City Lights of China
| Address: | 1731 Connecticut Ave NW #1, Washington, DC 20009, USA |
| Phone: | +1 202-265-6688 |
| Site: | citylightsofchinawashington.com |
| Rating: | 3.5 |
| Working: | 11:30AM–9:30PM 11:30AM–9:30PM 11:30AM–9:30PM 11:30AM–9:30PM 11:30AM–9:30PM 11:30AM–9:30PM 12:30–10:30PM |
Location
Photos 100
Reviews 14
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A Private User
I am really not a picky person when it comes to food. The food here served in a pretty small portion but as a chinese myself, their food is really not authentic chinese food at all. Well, that aside. The only thing that made this dining trip the worst ever was the service. My friends came in as a surprise while we were almost done with our dinner, so we requested to change to a bigger table. Not only the waitress was rude and refused to change, she walked off and scolded us "nuts" in cantonese(Obviously she didnt expect us to understand cantonese as we were speaking mandarin all the while). We went berserk and tried to talked to her. We expecting atleast an apology from her but she raised her voice! I really do not see why she counldnt change for us! We were ready to order more food and its not a very difficult task to change tables anyways. We were visitors from NY and this restaurant has one of the best review from google search. What a disappointment!
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A Private User
I ordered food for delivery. It came at a reasonable time, but that was all that was good about it. I ordered the crab cheese wontons. First off, there was absolutely no crab meat in them. It was purely cream cheese deep fried in a wonton wrapper. I find the whopping $7 price tag on these wontons to be outrageous since there is no crab meat in them. I also ordered the chicken lo mein which was very bland. I found it a little disturbing that you had to pay an extra $2 for white meat, the other version was labeled as regular... regular what? That freaks me out a little bit. All in all, I spent $22 for bland deep fried cream cheese and bland lo mein with some kind of "regular" meat. Id definitely skip this place and try something else....
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A Private User
The food here is not only delicious and satisfying, it is also inexpensive. The proportions are very generous, which is also a plus because you can have it tomorrow for lunch or dinner! The cuisine is very authentic, including the Beef Stew Noodle Soup, Eggplant and Garlic sauce, and Peking Duck. A must-try is their Tinkling Bells Pork which is one of their signature dishes. There is also a vegetarian menu which allows food for everyone at all price ranges! The service is quick, which makes the experience an even better one. I have also had delivery from here and they have a very friendly delivery service, it is also very reliable. I HIGHLY recommend this restaurant!! One of DCs finest!!
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A Private User
I went to this place for a quiet dinner, and I sure was not disappointed. The cream chicken soup could do with some more cream, but it was decent. I never liked the soft dumplings, so asked them to provide us the fried ones. One fact about this place is that they give you plenty of oil to drink(which I never asked for!). The main course included General Tsos chicken, and I must say it was well worth about 10 bucks in a place like Bethesda. The meat was pretty fresh and the spices not to hot too. All in all, a great Chinese place in the heart of Bethesda which I recommend for their service and just OK food.
JE
Jeff Sauri
I used to order here fairly consistently, and it was usually pretty good. However, since about 2012 Ive found it to be consistently disappointing. Their sweet and sour pork batter changed from a light golden batter to a darker, dustier, overcooked batter. The pork itself is often very subpar, which may be why they overcook it. The fried rice has become more bland. The beef egg rolls are still pretty decent, and the wings are okay when not overcooked. However, the last few times Ive ordered delivery, I ended up throwing out the entree. Im afraid theyve run out of second chances with me.
CA
Casey Nordell
Great little Chinese place. I came to DC over 10 years ago and loved this place. In the past decade, a lot has changed in DC (some for the worse), but City Lights is still the same great place. The hot and sour soup is a little bland, the prices are a bit high, and the bathroom was a bit smelly, but the service and food and menu selection is great. Seriously, I know my review sounds good and bad, but I love this place. If you are in DuPont Circle and want Chinese, check out City Lights.
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Ann Smith
The food is great, but the customer service is TERRIBLE!! They delivered my wrong food when I asked for Sesame Chicken with Broccoli and they put the hot pepper all in my Hunan Shrimp, which is too spicy to even eat!! I called to request the correct items, and the woman told me it was MY FAULT!! She then told me they would be sending out the correct food, and when I went to thank her she HUNG UP on me. I will not be ordering from here again.
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Evan Carlson
My gold standard for Chinese food is Peking Duck. Arbitrary? Maybe. Accurate, absolutely. And City Lights hits the spot. There is a severe shortage of decent Chinese takeout in DC, and this is one of the few exceptions. That isnt to say it will wow you, but lets be honest, youd be hard pressed to find the wow in DC Chinese food without heading out to the suburbs where the real Chinatown now is (stupid gentrification!).
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A Private User
I was hoping this would be my neighborhood Chinese takeout place. It was really expensive for takeout. The food was mediocre at best, about the same caliber as mall food court Chinese food. You would be better off going to Panda Express. Im definitely not going back and would not recommend this place to anyone (go across the street to Thai Chef, the food is better and less expensive).
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A Private User
Now, Im not a foodie...in fact Im more of a plain eater. However, even plain eaters like tasty food. City Lights did not disappoint in the tasty category. I went with the General and the only downside was I didnt have someone to share it with. The price was a bit higher than my liking, but not outrageous. The atmosphere was quite pleasant. Quiet enough on a Saturday afternoon for a nap.
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Jeff Berman
I have rarely had a Chinese dinner with so many dishes cooked so poorly. Muchu pork with little pork, scallian pancakes with few scallions. Orange chicken with little orange flavor. The dumplings were decent. Everyone at the table agreed the dishes lacked flavor. City Lights used to be one of the best Chinese restaurants in Washington, but that was years ago I guess....
CA
Cameron Hernandez
Been a DC native for the past 15+ years and this is hands down my favorite Chinese restaurant in the city. The food is always high quality, sauces not overly pungent or sticky-sweet, and I love the healthier sautéed options and that you can order dishes with all white meat. Prices are a littler higher than some other places, but as the saying goes you get what you pay for.
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Patrick Yanusz
I thought this was a wonderful restaurant to stop in. My wife, best friend and myself stopped her on the way to the Board Room next door looking for something to eat. The food was a bit pricy at first glance but when it arrived at our table, it was a sizable plate. Plenty of food leaving me satisfied with great taste. I would stop here again if I was in the area!
EM
Emma Holt
Best Chinese food. Great service and a peaceful environment just enhances the fact that the food is amazing! The lo mein is perfectly cooked and seasoned and the general tso chicken is a perfect balance of well spiced while not being blindingly hot. I also appreciated the numerous vegetarian options. Definitely one of the best meals I had in the city.
