I think this place is one of the most underrated restaurant in Charlottesville. This was one of the most authentic Chinese restaurant you can find in town! Their wide variety of menu could overwhelm you if you are like me who always get sesame chicken or general tso chicken haha but I tried new things based on what our server recommended and I loved it! I ended up getting three pepper chicken and hot and numbing brisket hot pot. Three pepper chicken sounds spicy but it was more so kick of spice, lil sweet, and had a lil tangy taste from the pepper! Definitely recommend. Also, if you love spicy flavors, you gotta try hot and numbing brisket (just fyi it's not those thinly sliced but rather lil more chunky but so soft yet chewy)! Oftentimes, chinese food can feel greasy but ofc their hot tea washes down the grease so well. You can find fusion Chinese food (lomein, fried rice, oh how typical am I) anywhere but it's so good that I found this place where I can actually have more authentic chinese food! Loved it :') oh I forgot to mention but ofc you must get bubble scallion pancake every time u go to this place :-) Price could range from $15-22ish so it's not that cheap but it's a real dish so I think it is worth! Also portion size is pretty good too :-) definitely could share 2 dishes with three ppl I think! Restaurant itself has lots of seatings, including booths. Lights are lil dim there but I guess that made me feel the restaurant to be more authentic haha read more

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Great spot to eat! The food was out super fast! We had soup each, Wonton and Egg Drop and both were fantastic. I loved my hot tea and told hubby it was the best hot tea I had ever had at any Chinese restaurant! Then came dinner- I had the shrimp Lo Mein and there was soooooooo much food! And delicious- super hot and again- we barely finished our soup and incoming! Our server landed our plate in front of us. Hubby had the sweet and sour and he said it was the best he had ever had (he's eaten way more Chinese food in his life than me). Service was fast and friendly- the dining rooms were very pretty as well! read more

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We had heard the story of the legendary chef and look forward to our meal with great anticipation. Boy, what a let down. From the run down condition of the restaurant to the wait staff and food, every bit of our experience was bad. We let our server know that I could not eat my meal but no attempt to adjust the bill or offer me something else on the menu was made. We brought my husband's left overs home but on reflection of its taste and presentation yesterday, we just threw it out. I wish I had taken a picture of their squid dish...absolutely horrific! read more

Dined here on the recommendation of a longtime Charlottesville native (former resident of Singapore) and enjoyed a marvelous meal of dry fried eggplant, cumin lamb, mapo tofu, and Hunan fish. Each dish was served promptly, nicely presented, hot, and good. The first three were at varying levels of heat, while the Hunan fish offered a more mild range of flavors. The mapo tofu was probably my favorite (I do like it hot). I would definitely return. read more

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I can't believe it took me so long to discover Peter Chang's! We ordered the Dry Fried Eggplant (which came with scallion, garlic, and Sichuan peppercorns), the Mixed Mushroom Hot Pot (which came with diced garlic, red bell pepper, jalapeno, onion, and a spicy sauce), Scallion Bubble Pancakes, and Pan Fried Mushroom Buns. Everything was delicious, but the stand-out for me was the Dry Fried Eggplant. It was crispy and perfectly spiced. It's now one of my favorite preparations of eggplant! Service was also incredible! I can't wait to come back. read more

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All the Food was great! We had ordered bamboo fish for appetizer, three pepper chicken (from chef's special section) and shrimp onion chili hot pot (from the grandma section); this was the star of the meal. read more

Peter Chang's China Grill - Order - Chinese Near Me - Charlottesville, Virginia

This was a little bit of a challenge to get the Mrs. there, but after we sat down and started perusing the sizable menu of Sichuan goodness, it was game on. We ordered the tea smoked duck, the Sichuan Pork belly, and the mountain chicken. None of them could disappoint- the balance of flavors was masterful, from the truly sweet and sour of the chicken to the spices in the pork belly. The tea-smoked duck was simply amazing. If you're in C-vile, go here. Take your time, order with family-style in mind, and you have a great night out in store. read more

It's a shame. Almost good. In fact, it's gone. Peter Chang built the restaurant, franchised it out and they ruin it. Cutting back on quality ingredients and keeping the prices the same. The servers were nice and speedy! The restaurant is best up and needs a remodel. :-/ read more

We've been going to Peter Chang's China grill in Charlottesville, VA for years. Only yesterday, June 21, did it turn out to be a ripoff. My wife brought home the Seafood Stone Pot, which we've had before. The takeout container was half-filled, less than one serving. There were exactly two shrimp, but 80% of the container was button mushrooms. This is seafood with mixed vegetables? If we ate in the restaurant, I'd have returned the dish to the kitchen and walked out. Whoever was cooking that day should be fired. I don't want to spend that kind of money on someone trying to unload a pile of button mushrooms. It's sad we can't trust that place any more. read more

This used to be my labs go to until ~that incident~ but I've moved on and we still go back. I bring my family and friends who want good Szechuan. I defiantly start out with the -scallion bubble pancakes: perfectly crispy with a lightly sweet sauce. -bamboo fish: perfectly breaded and fried, a little spicy with some tasty hot peppers and perfectly spiced cilantro For the main course I get various things but my go to are -Szechuan hot and numbing beef: so numbingly chewy -Szechuan stir fried hot pot with choice of meat -Mapo tofu: I think that's what I get but I like most of their tofu dishes I love their other dishes too (well I never get the general tsos or whatever because I can't vouch that those are good) read more

Should have read all reviews. The worst Chinese food ever. It was mushy, obviously frozen food. Not fresh. Sweet n sour chicken was neither. It was so spicy hot no one could eat it. The "grandmas noodles were hard , dry and nasty. We threw the 48$ meal in the trash. We wouldn't even let our dogs try it. The very worst we have had. We threw it away. All of it. read more

Wow. This place has gone downhill in every way imaginable. Used to be the best Chinese in town and sadly now it's just overpriced. Do better! read more

Had a nice dining experience this time around. The young waitress was helpful, patient, and courteous. Ordered three dishes and was too full; finished them all because they were so delicious. Didn't pay too much attention to the names of the dishes ordered, so please see my uploaded photos for reference. Still have a few days left staying here. Therefore, may try out new dishes on the next visit. Recommend eat early to avoid the crowd. read more

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This restaurant is by far the best Chinese restaurant in Charlottesville, started by famous chef Peter Chang; I would highly recommend this to any large group looking for a tapas-style experience. The wait staff is friendly, the ambience inviting, and the food delicious. Each dish had its own unique spice and flavor profile, and is designed to share among friends and family. I'd recommend ordering the shredded tofu with Thai Chile sauce, the light and airy scallion bubble pancakes, the light and crispy oven-fried eggplant, the double boiled pork belly, and clay pot fish special. While this may sound like a lot of food, we brought a group of 10 and it filled us up completely (with tons to spare) and left paying under $12 a person. In summary, I highly recommend PCs for large groups or family gatherings for an enjoyable, flavorful, and price-sensitive meal. read more

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Their chinese food is the best in town. The food has good portions and the taste is not overly salty. My favorite dish is the tripe and tendons. read more

Very disappointed. This used to be a great restaurant . No one there seems to care anymore. Our last takeout was not even our order and was missing packages of sauces. We didn't discover the problem until we got home. We Threw most of that out. Tonight the delivered order was $165 yet was missing the spring rolls, the two diet cokes and no sauces at all! Not even soy sauce, mustard, etc. We wont be back read more

Pure zero. Worst dining experience I've had in quite a longtime. No effort out of the kitchen. As our waiter was so nice, we did not complain, but there is no way i will pay for such, ever again. Trifling attempt at all four dishes. Sad sad sad. read more

Rude wait staff. You might get your dinner and you might not. Terrible experience. They'll ruin your evening. Don't go here.

Ordered delivery from this place, and had food poison that night. Never would go back again! I don't know what it was, maybe their staff didn't clean their hands before prepping the food or something. read more

-What you need to know in a sentence: Will fix your craving for pretty good Chinese food in cville -Ambiance in threeish words: a meh conference room with Chinese decor slapped on the wall and a few lazy Susans -Treated like: being nice and getting our food matters but small talk doesn't -Must try: beef brisket soup, bamboo fish -Other random tidbits: be careful because some of the food can be actually very spicy! read more

Has really gone downhill since Peter Chang moved on to more profitable ventures elsewhere. Feels now like just an average Chinese restaurant - both food and decor-wise. Sad. read more

I had lunch here for my first visit to Peter Chang's. The restaurant was clean and the employees were friendly. The food was flavorful and fresh. read more

I was a little skeptical about Peter Chang at first, but I was pleasantly surprised with my dining experience. The food here is pretty authentic. I got the Pork rib mushroom soup in a ceramic bowl and it was delicious. The pork was really well cooked and very tender. The meat melts in your mouth and the cartilage is nice and crunchy. There's also a ton of mushrooms in the soup which gives it a rich, flavorful aroma. Totally reminds me of my grandma's cooking back home in Taiwan! My boyfriend got the beef brisket noodles and really enjoyed it, too. The noodles were chewy and there's plenty of meat in the dish. It could have been a little spicier, though. Portion sizes here are huge! We had enough leftovers for another meal. The soup was definitely enough for two people and the noodle was in the appetizer section. Prices are great for the amount of food they give you. Our server was attentive and food came out pretty quickly. Plenty of parking and plenty of tables. My only complaint is that the food is definitely on the greasier side. If you're looking for less greasy less salty Chinese/Taiwanese food, Cafe 88 is probably a better choice. The side of rice we ordered was also a disappointment. The rice tasted old and was too hard. Other than that, a good place for non-Americanized Chinese food! read more

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My husband and I ordered the Kung Pao Chicken (which was labeled as spicy), but when we tried the first bite we didn't expect it to be burning hot. Usually the general spice level shouldn't be this high unless we specifically order crazy hot level. Not sure if they accidentally made it inedible, it was just too much. Not sure if we will order from here again. read more

Looks like it hasn't been kept up and the food was pretty much along that line. Hot and sour soup was mostly corn starch and 'crispy noodles' were anything but. The spicy eggplant main dish was inedible and the rice was cold. My dining companions had an equally impoverished dining experience. Yuck. I have no idea how this place manages to stay afloat. $40 lunch for 3 with only water to drink. Just say no. read more

If you think the China wok 3 down the street sets a low bar for Chinese food, well Peter Chang's has lowered that. If you've read my review from the past, things have changed for the worst. Came on New Year's Day, and we went through a bunch of restaurants before deciding on coming here. I asked my parents and they said it's gone down a lot in recent years in terms of quality of food. But when you have nothing left in terms of options, we thought why the heck not. Came in and the lower sections booths have this really weird echo. It all feels a bit claustrophobic. Ordered and the server was quite helpful at getting some suggestions. We had the basil eggplant, which was actually quite good. Light, not too oily, but when we saw the rice, I could tell it was pretty sub par. When I had a bite, I confirmed it. Now, as an Asian man of 20 something years, I can say I've had my fair share of rice. I even go to Rice University (not at all relevant but if it made you chuckle, mission accomplished). Now, the rice we were given was either one of two things. 1) the quality was really bad and it was severely undercooked or 2) the rice was leftover from previous days and the owner didn't want to throw it out. When you bite into it, it's like it was tiny bullets. The center was still raw. I mean, how the hell are you a Chinese restaurant and not even know how to cook rice???????! The niu liu, which is a spiced stir fried beef with onions, the raw flavor of the onions was still there. Not only were the veggies raw, the onion wasn't even peeled! Some pieces were absolutely INEDIBLE. This should be cooking 101. My parents and I just said we'll cut our losses and packed it up so we could fix some things. I think it's the first time in my life I've came back home and made my own rice and had to fix a dish from the kitchen myself. When we complained to the server, her only response was, "I mean this is how we have to eat it too". What? I mean I know Chinese restaurants have a rep for bad service but this was not the way to handle it. The manager came out and said he would help re-steam the rice but even then it doesn't change it one bit. I think this has to rank in the bottom two experiences I've ever had in a Chinese restaurant. But in Charlottesville, you don't have much in terms of options. This is kind of a plea to the general, but if someone can open a decent Chinese restaurant in Charlottesville you'll be the talk of the town. It's a college town with a bunch of international students and professors that would love to have one. read more

This place used to be great, what happened? The dining room is dirty, with a huge cobweb near the dining room door, a broken window, dust on the chairs, and one of the seats had vinyl so shredded it looked like a raccoon tried to nest there. Paint is scuffed everywhere on the walls. My child's meal arrived stone cold. I usually order the basil chicken but this time decided to try something different. The pieces of chicken were overcooked, tough and cold. The rice arrived 6 minutes before the main dish, and wasn't fresh, there were chewy grains inside. We were halfway through dinner and the check was deposited on our table without a word, no "How is your meal?" It's sad because this place used to be amazing, it's clear the kitchen has stopped caring. And give that dining room a good scrubbing and a paint touchup, for Pete's sake. It makes customers wonder what the kitchen looks like. read more

Peter Chang's China Grill was a third eye opening experience. This restaurant was wonderful, with good and quick service and delicious food. The Tea Steamed Duck was a scrumptious meal with a side of yummy fried onions. Well priced for the amount you get. Disappointed that I did not get to meet Peter Chang. read more

Ordered here for the first time recently and got the flounder entree with vegetables and rice. It was an incredible deal for the price and it was delicious! Can't wait to order here again soon. read more

Finely, decent Chinese food. Traveled from Roanoke (where I still cant find a good Chinese restaurant) and found this on first night in Cville. It was good. Great service. Nice variety of food. Started with dumplings and Dan Dan Noodles. The spice was just right. I ate the entire bowl myself. Also had the Puff Pancakes with a wonderful dipping sauce that would be excellent on shrimp. Had Fried Eggplant which are nice and tasty. Finally had the Talapia with sweet sauce and pine nuts. Having lived in China we use to eat a similar dish. This is the first place outside of China I have seen it. Tasted good. The entire fish was devoured. Real nice staff. Will come back next time in town. read more

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Avoid. Simply avoid this restaurant to save your health and mood. I have visited this restaurant many times, but it's getting worse and worse recently. About two weeks ago, we ordered beef with scrambled egg, which was seriously sour. We told the waitress (the elder lady) and she helped us void the dish on the bill before we left. This time we found steel wire in the food, which was after I paid with card. I told the waitress (a younger woman), who was dismissive and simply said "this was not my problem, have a good day", with a contemptuous smile, and left. No help on checking with the dish or express an apology (even for the sake of the restaurant). read more

Peter Chang's China Grill - Chinese Near Me - Charlottesville, Virginia

Not the tastiest Chinese food I have had. I ordered the chicken guangong and tried some of my partner's double-cooked pork belly. Both dishes were fine and fairly spicy, but neither dish was very flavorful. It is entirely possible that this style of food preparation is too bland for me, but I have definitely had better restaurant Chinese food. The food was not unappealing, but I cannot recommend Peter Chang's. read more

I really wanted to like Peter Chang's, but spending around 8 years near Oakland Chinatown with legit Szechuan food - I can't give it a full stamp of approval. I've been here twice and have not been impressed, but it was a decent fix if you have a Szechuan craving. They do have both traditional Chinese foods and also American Chinese food, so it should be a decent place for everyone's taste buds. The restaurant environment is alright - not fancy and not grungy, but a good in between. They have plenty of seating, both for large parties and also smaller, more intimate groups. Service is typically pretty friendly, and their fast and efficient. read more

Food: Excellent Chinese with a huge selection, including plenty of traditional "grandma" dishes and an emphasis on numbing chili heat (if you are willing) Value: Generous portions. Be aware that most of the Chef's Specials are enough for two (and maybe three). $30 to $35 will leave you and a friend satiated. Service: Can be a little rough around the edges, especially at peak times (Saturday night on a football or other big event weekend is the worst). Took a while to get my order taken and water refills could have been more frequent. Overall: Recommended. May be best Chinese food in the area. read more

Peter Chang's China Grill - Hot and Numbing Spicy Combo - flounder, shrimp, sliced beef, chicken. Serves two. - Chinese Near Me - Charlottesville, Virginia

Excellent food. It has still retained its s flavor. We have visited their restaurant in Fredericksburg, VA. Was not sure of this location bur turned out good. Will definitely recommend it to folks to try once read more

1.5 hours for them to tell us they had just started cooking our food and that they have no duck... 2 hours to get our FIRST entree... 3.5 hours to eat dinner... Only 1 water refill in 3.5 hours.... Their menu is almost exactly like Taste of China. Not surprising since both are opened by Peter Chang. What is surprising: the attitude that the waitress gave us, the hot and sour soup that tasted like hot sauce, and the food that all basically tasted the same. The appetizers were good though. We got beef tripe and tendon in chili oil and chicken in chili oil. The entree ribs were good too. That's about all I would come for though.. Btw, they charged us $6 for the soup when we only wanted one bowl. The waitress said we ordered wrong. We clearly ordered it by menu number. She said it was our fault that we ordered from the wrong side of the menu.... dude... we ordered it by NUMBER. The numbers arent the same! read more

Peter Chang's China Grill has only been open a few months, but it was busy with diners. The majority were American, but it was encouraging to see and hear some Chinese. Kudos to my Uncle for not only inviting us to lunch, but for apparently finding the only decent Chinese restaurant within 60 miles. Olivia and I went a little overboard once we saw the menu because it had been 2 weeks since leaving L.A. and we were getting a little tired of buffets, burgers, and chicken fried anything. We tried these: - Braised Fish with Chili Sauce - ok. Lacking Szechuan spicy zip - Shredded Chicken with Smoked Tofu - Interesting take on this dish - Mongolian Beef - Traditional version of an American favorite - Mixed Vegetables - Good veggies, but needed more flavor - Hot and Sour Soup - Zesty. I liked it. The restaurant is operated by enigmatic Chinese chef Peter Chang (also called Peter Cheng, Peter Zhang, and Zhang Bide in Chinese). He has a small amount of buzz on the internet because of his frequent restaurant changes in the Chinese Cuisine wasteland called the Southeast. To be honest, the Chinese dishes were good and worthy of 3-stars, however, given the location and need to serve the local community Chang's China Grill probably deserves 5-stars. You aren't going to find better anywhere nearby. I'll settle in the middle at 4 stars. read more

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Peter Chang's was definitely a decent choice. I had the chicken and broccoli. I chose to have fried rice instead of white rice. I believe I'll try white rice next time. The fried rice didn't seem cooked to order or even warmed to order. The soy sauce/brown sauce was a little uneven and you can see the white rice and it was also soggy. That sounds really bad, but the food was still good. I also tried the scallion bubble pancake. This was interesting. I was not ready for what it would look like. It was pretty cool. The curry sauce that comes with it is pretty good. I'll be back because its fairly reasonably priced with decent Chinese food. It just wasn't the best I've ever had. If you've ever had Kum Kao in Brooklyn, NY, that's the standard I'm looking for. read more

Peter Chang's China Grill - Chinese Near Me - Charlottesville, Virginia

This is definitely one of the most authentic Chinese food places in Charlottesville. My Chinese family is picky about Asian food and Peter Chang's makes the cut. Today we ordered the scallion bubble pancakes and steamed soup buns (xiao long bao) for appetizer. I would definitely recommend getting the bubble pancakes! They are tasty and come with a nice curry dipping sauce. It is also a very kid-friendly choice. The steamed buns were not all that good, we could've passed on those! For the entree we got the fried tilapia (#67 on menu) with pine nuts and a sweet and sour sauce. This is definitely one of my favorite dishes at the restaurant! It is very crispy on the outside which I like. We also got the basil chicken which was flavorful even though we asked for it to be cooked mild. The pan fried tofu was delicious! It had a mushroom mix in between the tofu which was great. Our final dish was lomein for the kids to share. The noodles themselves were of a good texture but the sauce/flavor was very typical. read more

Peter Chang's China Grill - These were my two favorite dishes! Top is the fried tilapia and the bottom is half of the pan fried tofu. - Chinese Near Me - Charlottesville, Virginia

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I am so glad I got to try Peter Changs while visiting Charlottesville. Not everything we ordered was great, but it was a wonderful meal overall. We were ravenous, so we each started off with a bowl of soup. Now, I wouldn't normally order soup in a Szechuan restaurant, but we wanted something that would be served immediately. And wow, I'm so glad I did - the hot and sour soup was one of the best I've had. We started off with the Crispy Pork Belly and Tendon and Tripe in Szechuan Sauce. Unfortunately, I wasn't a big fan of either. The pork belly was too greasy, and the tendon dish had a coconut-like flavor I found off-putting. (We confirmed with the owner there is no coconut in the dish, which I found to be even more perplexing.) Now, on to the entrees. We shared the Bamboo Fish, Braised Beef with Cilantro in Clay Pot, Mapo Tofu and Three Gorges Chicken. I would say the tofu and fish were the stars of the meal, both having that intense Szechuan spice I love. The beef was soft and had a deep cilantro flavor. The chicken dish was very kid-friendly, kind of sweet and not spicy. The service was friendly, but the pacing of the food was rushed. The appetizers came out in the middle of eating our soup, and then the first entree came out once we'd only had our first bites of the appetizers. And trust me, we weren't eating slowly. I think it set the pace of our meal to be rushed. They also started asking us which foods would need boxes while one diner was obviously still eating. Despite the negatives in my review, I would definitely return and recommend to friends. read more

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