Tradition blends locally to create surprising and delicious dishes

Chinese-style roast pork (left) and quail eggs are featured on Bespoke Kitchen's menu.

The amount of time and work that went into preparing the whole fish made him impatient at first, but then he tasted it and said, "Oh my gosh, that tastes so much better."

"Growing up in the area when Chinatown was actually Chinatown, we would go to the restaurants where they pulled the noodles in the window and had all the ducks," he recalled.

Besides the "varied cornucopia of food" it has to offer, another thing about Chinese cuisine that he loves is the sharing culture.

"It's not just about giving you food," he said. "Everybody sits around, platters are put around all the different dishes on the table. Everybody is sharing and serving each other. The meal is social."

During the past few years, Friendly has noticed a general shift among Washington's restaurants towards less expensive menus and a shared table experience.

"What I see happening with Chinese cuisines, specifically in DC, is that you still get this ubiquitous take-out restaurants that are like Papa Johns to Italian food, it's not the same thing.

"People are starting to get into the smaller bites — a little bowl of this and a little plate of that — as opposed to a feast with a whole Peking duck and whole fish," he said.