No, that headline isn’t just a random assortment of four words. Ping Pong Dim Sum is the name of a dim sum restaurant in Washington, DC, that I tried for the first time this weekend. Though this site isn’t exactly up there with Zagat for restaurant recommendations, I can happily give this place a Roger Ebert-style thumbs up.
Hmm. I just confused a reference to restaurant reviews with a movie reviewer. Oh well.
My cautious culinary approach meant that I had never even tried dim sum before Friday night. Sesame chicken from a takeaway down the street is about as adventurous as I’ve been. I haven’t even dined at the fast food chain Panda Express, though that’s more because the one Panda Express location I recently walked inside gave off an odor of sweaty socks, which made me doubt the quality of the food.
Ping Pong Dim Sum by way of contrast is a classy, stylish place — the kind of venue I don’t often find myself in. You’re given a long menu of dim sum, small plates of Chinese dishes including dumplings, sticky rice, soups, and far more.
I was particularly fond of the steamed bun packed with honey-roasted barbecued pork. The buns are so soft, it’s like eating a cloud. If a cloud was edible. And filled with deliciously tangy barbecued pork. Forget the confused comparison and instead take my word for it that Ping Pong Dim Sum is well worth a visit.