Red Ginger — Restaurant in Kensington

First, the food was picked up so it was fresh and tasty overall. It was my first time eating at Red Ginger, so I was a bit taken aback by the restaurant itself, as it could use a bit of updating and a fresh coat of paint. But, looking past that and acknowledging that it appeared clean...I ordered the following. Chicken with black bean sauce extra spicy, Crispy Pan Noodles with Chicken and veg, 2 regular egg rolls, wonton soup and hot and sour soup. The customer service was excellent and as I said the food was delicious overall. Now, the big question, will I return? To be honest I do not know🤔 If the following things change I would...1.) Add some other vegetables to the egg rolls other than cabbage and a few onions. I know that they also have a "Special egg roll" on the menu but would a few carrot shreds and a bit of green from cilantro cause a major cash loss? 2.) Five Spice Powder is a fickle mistress. Add too much and she will overpower the dish, add to little and that authentic Asian flavor we know and love will seem lost. What is interesting about this is I asked for extra spicy and received none and at times found the 5 spice overwhelming. Thank goodness I had my own chili 🌶️ oil at home. I appreciate the food we had last night and who knows what the future holds, but I think Red Ginger could be 5 star with just a few tweaks...they are...

This may come off as bias because this really is my favorite take-out Chinese food in the Kensington/Bethesda area but I hope to provide some evidence to back this claim. Every now and then I'll take a chance to try another one of the other staple/highly reviewed Chinese restaurants in the area and I have constantly been disappointed. Not only am I disappointed with the quality of the food, but the prices are much higher than Red Ginger. I'm making a conscious choice to leave out the names of the disappointing places I've tried because I don't really like the spirit of that and also these places are already struggling given the current situation. My favorite order is hands down the cashew chicken, but I also love the Mongolian beef, beef and broccoli and their combination fried rice. The only thing I was slightly disappointed with are the fried dumplings. Conclusion: I've tried to do my due diligence trying other take out spots and I've found that Red Ginger always stands up above the rest. Great prices, great portions, and always quality. I give Red Ginger a glowing recommendation to anyone looking for a new Chinese take out...

UPDATE: I changed my mind after eating hear a coupe more times. I believe this is the best Chinese place in Kensington, and I've tried all the others. It took a while of trying a couple of dishes, but Red Ginger delivered solid, dependable Chinese food, every time. Not absolutely incredible, but very good, and consistent. They also have pretty good Thai selections. I just had the Pad Thai, and it was really good! I'll be getting it again. Plus, they are never late and are always courteous. I'll keep going back, and I'd recommend it.

Previous post: The food here was okay. I got the Thai curry with chicken and my wife got the orange chicken. She liked it, but I was underwhelmed. The orange chicken breading wasn't very crisp and the meat wasn't that tender. The Thai curry had all the right flavors but was pretty heavy and...