Hunan Delight

When it comes to Chinese restaurants, I'm a bit of a stickler.  I tend to look for restaurants or places that serve the real stuff, not some Panda Express or PF Chang's crap.  So I usually know that only restaurants in areas where there is a large Chinese population.  Usually, this means major cities or their immediate suburbs in some cases.  So you will never see me eating in some joint in Billings, Montana or Vermillion, South Dakota.

But what about Olney?  It's sort of in the Washington, DC metro area.  But this suburb is far from being the foodie paradise that I would prefer, with the usual chains like Chipotle and Five Guys among others.

As a first impression, this may be the last place I would want to blog about.  There are no Chinese characters on the outside.  Each table is served a plate of crispy wonton strips as an appetizer.  All tell tale signs of a typical takeout joint serving Americanized food.  But this thought was somewhat far from the truth.

I found out about this place from my parents, who were there on their way back from a trip.  They too had low expectations for the place.  But when they saw a group of Koreans order a Peking Duck, they instantly changed their minds and ordered one for themselves.  Koreans apparently frequent this place quite a bit.  But if that is the case, then why is there no Korean restaurant in the area?

That's for another time.  But for now, here are the dishes that are not listed on the menu and highly recommended by yours truly.

Peking Duck

This is probably the house specialty.  My first time dining here was the first time I had this dish in 3 years and first in 8 years in Maryland.  It's more than a simple roast duck.  It is first blanched in boiling water, then hung to dry for up to 24 hours.  It is then rubbed with the maltose glaze that gives the duck its brown color before it goes into the oven.  It's accompanied with scallions, pancakes, and sweet bean sauce.  On certain days, the head chef would prepare and serve the duck table side.  To eat it, you fill the pancake with sauce, scallions, and duck and then roll it up like a burrito.

When it comes to Peking Duck, it's all about the crispy skin.  Most places would serve mostly the skin and a little bit of meat.  Here, they serve the entire duck except for the wings.  Traditionally, most people would ask for the carcass to take home after carving.  My mom makes a killer gourd or winter melon soup with the carcass.

Rockfish with Chili Paste

Surprise, surprise.  A 3 pound rockfish from the Chesapeake is deep fried whole and topped with chili paste.  There is also a mild version where the fish is topped with a sauce of pickled vegetables.  Either way, they are both really good.  The fish itself is fresh and

Soft Shell Crab with Salt and Pepper

Another great surprise here.  The soft shell crabs are lightly fried and seasoned with salt and pepper.  It is garnished with chilies, scallions, and garlic.  A great combination of flavors in here.

At end of the meal, there was a dessert of rainbow sherbet.  I found this rather hilarious the first time I came here, but I guess white people wouldn't like the taste of tapioca soup with taro or red beans.

I'm actually glad I found this place.  This kind of place is one of the reasons why I started this blog: to look for the more nondescript places that serve unique and exciting foods.  If there is one thing I wish the restaurant could do is to add some authentic Chinese vegetables.  And since they have a large Korean clientele, I recommend that they serve pickled vegetable salad in place of the wonton strips for appetizer.  I believe the Korean name for that is kimchi.

18220 Village Center Dr
Olney, MD 20832