I’m about to dive into three cold dishes at NiHao, Peter Chang’s Chinese spin on tapas-style dining in National Landing. Knowing the chef’s penchant for the hot and numbing one-two punch of Sichuan chilies, I prepare for a tongue-tingling hello. It’s only fitting, considering ni hao means “hello” (literally “you good?”) in Mandarin.
Sure enough, the first bite delivers, its noodle-like strands of tofu skin splashed with a bit of chili oil and mingled with cilantro, red pepper and red onion. To make this dish, Chang rehydrates bean curd sheets in a broth flavored with star anise and cinnamon, then rolls the sheets into logs and slices them into “noodles.” The flavors harmonize rather than overpower each other, and I love the slightly chewy texture of the tofu paired with the slight prickle of Sichuan peppercorns.
The tingle and heat factors are turned up a notch on the second plate—braised chicken tossed with house-made chili crisp, crushed peanuts, chili oil and sesame seeds, served atop chunks of cucumber to cool the palate.
Next up: a melange of wood ear mushrooms dressed with red onions, cilantro, garlic, pickled Thai chilies, black vinegar and house-made scallion oil. The combo is vibrant and earthy with a kick of back heat.
For devotees, Chang’s dramatic history is now lore. Rising from poverty in China to become one of its most heralded chefs, he came to the U.S. in 2001 when he nabbed a plum assignment helming the kitchen at the Chinese Embassy in Washington. Two years later, his stint ended and he went on the lam with his family, hopping around the Southeastern U.S. and cooking in various Chinese restaurants until he got his legal affairs in order.
Today, he lives in Donaldson Run with his wife, Lisa (also a chef); their daughter, Lydia; and Lydia’s toddler daughter, London. The family owns 18 restaurants, including Peter Chang Arlington (open since 2015), NiHao in Baltimore (which Lydia opened in 2020) and Peter Chang McLean, which debuted in October.
For this second iteration of NiHao, the restaurateurs decided to adopt the (mostly) small-plates model that has become so popular in American restaurants. “It’s a good way for people, especially tables of two, to try a lot of different things,” Lydia says. “We want to get away from the idea that Chinese restaurants serve large portions of everything.”
Faith Rubin, who runs the bar program at sister restaurant Chang Chang in D.C., crafted the beverage list at NiHao, with nine signature cocktails incorporating Chinese ingredients and named after notable Chinese films. The Happy Together (rose vodka, lychee, red grapefruit and cava) and the You Are the Apple of My Eye (shochu, plum wine, Campari and ginger) are tasty ways to start a meal. Tsingtao beer also goes nicely with the bold flavors that are hallmarks of Chang’s cooking style.
One word to the wise: The food comes out lightning fast, so it’s best to order only a few items at a time. Doing so allowed me to gauge my appetite along the way and control the pacing of the meal, even if it didn’t stop me from over-ordering with abandon.
The prices are quite reasonable. On one dinner visit, our $100 check (not including tip) covered two cocktails, eight dishes with leftovers and dessert.
Fans of Chang’s other restaurants will recognize a few familiar offerings, such as dry-fried eggplant (or green beans), dan dan noodles and Lisa Chang’s signature scallion bubble pancake.
I never pass up the eggplant. Crispy on the outside and fluffy on the inside, the fried batons are wok-tossed with Sichuan peppercorns, chilies, cilantro and scallions. This dish has been a Chang classic for 19 years for good reason.
The dry-pot chili shrimp is a terrific seafood version of the eggplant. Its ma la (“hot and numbing”) combination of dried chili peppers and Sichuan peppercorns is a predominant element on NiHao’s menu, also featured in a colorful trio of spicy edamame, smoked tofu and diced carrots that packs a wallop. Ma la pork riblets get a similar treatment, with crinkle-cut french fries thrown in, even if they seem superfluous.
For a showstopper, a whole branzino (one of two large-format fish specialties) is deep-fried, wok-seared with ma la spices and tons of dried chilies, then plated on white porcelain, bathed in hot oil and topped with scallions and Sichuan peppercorn powder. The heady aroma, along with hints of cumin, fills the dining room.
The chef’s non-ma la dishes are just as satisfying—even seemingly simple ones such as velvety sliced chicken breast and snow peas in a rich stock-based sauce. The restaurant sources many of its ingredients from an Amish farm in upstate New York, including eggs, chickens and older laying hens that are used to make stock.
The same magical broth is the base of another must-order dish: a stoneware pot of bubbling chicken soup perfumed with ginger and teeming with rice or egg noodles (diner’s choice), tender bok choy and morsels of braised bone-in poultry.
I was especially intrigued by a duo of lotus-leaf packets that arrived at our table in a bamboo steamer. Unwrapping them revealed a savory-sweet amalgam of glutinous rice stuffed with pork, dried shrimp, Chinese sausage and shiitake mushrooms.
“This is a homestyle village recipe,” Lydia says. “The rice is toasted first, then mixed with aromatics, mushroom soy sauce, oyster sauce and chicken stock. The lotus leaves impart a tea-like flavor.”
Another homey offering carried over from the family’s Fairfax restaurant, Mama Chang, is a quick stir-fry of scrambled eggs, tofu skin, hot green peppers and Chinese celery. This intense and herbaceous combination may well be my favorite. Wok hei, the smokiness imbued from stir-frying over an open flame, permeates the eggs and adds umami that makes this simple dish irresistible.
NiHao’s 3,000-square-foot space, designed by D.C.-based Nahra Design Group, seats 70, including a six-seat bar with windows that open to the sidewalk facing Crystal Drive. White and jade green tiles form stunning geometric patterns on the walls, complementing a jade green tray ceiling, aubergine banquettes, side chairs upholstered in teal shag fabric and terra-cotta flooring. It’s a charming space, but not a quiet one. Be prepared for the noise that bounces off all those hard surfaces.
All isn’t perfect at NiHao—just nearly so. I loathe paper napkins in general, but especially the flimsy and practically useless ones here.
Another bummer: an order of stodgy soup dumplings that stuck to their parchment paper lining and tore open when I tried to lift them with chopsticks, thus depriving me of the big payoff (the luscious soup inside!).
Of the two desserts on the menu, I found the deep-fried rice cakes unpleasantly gelatinous, but they were redeemed by the other sweet option: a vanilla and whipped cream cake roll topped with raspberry sauce.
These are minor quibbles, especially given the need for good quality, full-service Chinese (or Asian, for that matter) restaurants in National Landing. The neighborhood seems delighted by NiHao’s arrival. At 5:30 p.m. on a Saturday, the place was full and the tables on either side of me turned over twice before I left.
What to Drink
In addition to a full bar, NiHao offers nine signature cocktails ($13) named after Chinese films. Among them: the Crazy Rich Asian (cognac, scotch, sweet vermouth and blood orange) and A Chinese Odyssey (baijiu, Sichuan green peppercorn, tequila, lime juice).
Nine wines (one sparkling, one rosé, four whites and three reds) are available by the glass ($10 to $12) and bottle ($35 to $48), as are three beers and a cider ($7).
NiHao Arlington
1550 Crystal Drive, Arlington
703-512-4109
HOURS
Monday through Saturday, 11 a.m. to
10 p.m.; Sunday, 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.
PARKING
Plenty of garage parking. The garage at 1550 Crystal Drive is free on weekends.
PRICES
Small plates: $4 to $15
Large-format dishes: Chicken noodle soup ($14) and two whole branzino preparations ($38)
Desserts: $6 to $9