Meiwah Restaurant

It’s unfortunate to write this review, I wish I could keep saying that this is one of my favorite restaurants in the area, but after finding - and almost eating - a whole roach in the orange chicken order, I’m afraid I will not be ordering from here anymore. The food usually tastes amazing, but last night we ordered takeout and when I was about to take the third bite out of the orange chicken, I saw something weird - it turns out it was a roach, whole, stuck to the sauce and the chicken. Needless to say I almost threw up everything I had eaten so far, and had to dispose the rest. My husband called to report it, and all they did was to refund the chicken. I hope that seeing this, they can take further actions into making sure the restaurant is as safe and sanitary as it should.

If I could give them 0 stars, I would! I was at this restaurant today, Sunday, 9/8, around 4:30 PM. I wanted to order some delicious Chinese food, as I had never been here before. I ordered 5 dishes: Crispy Beef, which turned out to be pork; General Tso's Chicken, which was completely raw inside, posing a serious risk of salmonella or food poisoning! Two other dishes were Lo Mein—one with beef, which was so bad my family and I couldn’t eat it (I have a small child), and the other was Chicken Lo Mein, but it came without chicken and had huge canned, not fresh, mushrooms. The last dish was Chinese eggplant, which was horrible and had no taste. I wasted so much food because we were afraid to eat it. I called the restaurant, and someone answered the phone. After pretending not to understand English well, he put me on hold and left me there! So I dialed again, and he picked up, once again pretending not to understand me. He was repeating what I was saying, twisting my words. I know he understood me! The food today completely ruined my day! I spent $90 for nothing because I couldn’t eat it. I want my money back, which was $85.33. It’s terrible what that restaurant serves people! I saw online reviews giving them 4 stars—how did that happen? Who gave them those reviews? I feel disappointed and frustrated. If I don’t get a refund, I’ll report them to the Health Department for serving raw meat! Beware! Please see the pictures below and judge for yourself!

Dinner here was fabulous. Great views from floor to ceiling windows and not crowded at all. Our kids come here often and brought us here for the ambiance and what my daughter said was “the best Chinese food we’ve had here so far.” We’ve eaten Chinese food in Hawaii, Germany, California, Nebraska, Virginia, Florida and Barcelona, and we’re picky. Every dish was good, the sauces well-balanced and complex, not formulaic, not heavy. Sweet and Sour Chicken was perfect, crunchy with all white meat. The sauce was spot on. The Tinkling Pork was poured onto a hot cast iron platter so that it sizzled; it was good, with added deep fried dumplings, pork, mushrooms, baby corn, pea pods and carrots. The Hot and Sour Soup tasted perfect. The Chicken Fried Rice was excellent because not only did it taste good but the texture wasn’t wet and you could “taste the fire,” which means it was cooked in a wok over high heat but not burned. The dim sum dumpling filling was more pork than shrimp and tasted like Hawaii-style gau gee filling. There was a dipping sauce made of soy sauce, minced garlic, minced green onion, a few bits of minced fresh ginger, a touch of sugar and a touch of maybe vinegar: I loved it. You have to ask for soy sauce and hot mustard, but when they came these were high quality. Just as my kids predicted the patrons were quiet families, groups of business people and singles relaxing over a meal with the view. Our servers (one was the manager, I think) were smiling, attentive and detail oriented. Empty dishes were taken away quickly and unobtrusively. They didn’t talk a lot but that was maybe a language barrier thing; I smiled and they smiled. They were respectful of us and efficient. The windows were clean, the chairs were clean, they put fresh white paper over the white table cloth, the plates and utensils were clean, and we didn’t see anyone carrying a black dish bin— dishes were taken away by hand. I noticed other reviewers said the place was dirty but I didn’t see that so maybe they’ve responded to the reviews and have improved. Even the white salt and pepper shakers were clean. For the reasonable prices the ambiance is classier than you’d expect. It’s a jewel of a find.

I have been here a few times. The food is OK if you want to have a lunch/dinner with your colleague. I'v had prawns, dumplings, chickens and Mongolian beef and I find the food not outstanding. It's very average. The dumpling is was well prepared but the inside contents looked like it was defrosted supermarker product. The dips were just dips nothing unique. The mongolian beef was also very average. The beef came with a egg fried rice but only found small traces of egg, it was just rice in sauce. Overall the food was very average. The servers were loud and they may not be rude but it felt like you've been shouted at. They also communicate in Chinese very loudly, which make you feel like their comfort is prioritized over customers. This is really the deal breaker for me. I can deal with any food but the treatment makes the lasting impression. The atmosphere is good. I would go for a drink or a dinner with my co-workers . I would not take my family or date for a quality time.

Authentic taste of chinese dinning hall; lots of choices to try

UPDATE - 6/16 - (images 3 & 4)- I was told that the old size bowls were back so I ordered 4 entres today. The bowls are slightly larger than last week but smaller than the original size. The food is always GREAT and the price did not change so i'm just going to take this one on the chin and call it a win. Thank you Meiwah Restuarant 6/12 - I have purchased 4 entres every week forever so I knew something was wrong when I picked up the bag. It was light. I looked inside and the containers were 30% smaller (images 1 & 2). I checked the receipt to see if maybe I was charged for lunches. Full price. I called to ask the Manager about the bowl size and he said it was a supply issue but the portion was the same. "Impossible". It's a shame. The food is always great to perfect. A little too spicey occasionally. $14.95 for that small container is a big ask. I'll be back when the supply issue is resolved. Size Matters.

I found a random piece of string/hair in my food. I would give a word of caution about cleanliness concerns based on my and others’ experiences.

I went off Chinese food for a while and then a friend took me to Meiwah. Bam. I'm back. The food comes out quick and delicious. So many authentic choices and always terrific. I appreciate how hard the staff works and still they're kind and pleasant. And it's nice how it's situated above the fray in Friendship Heights. You feel like you really got away from it all.