NiHao Arlington

Having lived in the area for a few years I am always willing to stop by to try out new restaurants. I stopped by for lunch on my own and enjoyed the food so much that I convinced friends to try out more of the menu a few weeks later. The entrance is a small area that opens up to a larger restaurant area. I was surprised for lunch that there were so many empty tables but it allowed us to be seated right away. It took us a little while but we did order several items to share including soup dumplings, a scallion pancake, pork belly, and others.

This was my first time trying soup dumplings and they were absolutely delicious. I will definitely be going back again another day!

NiHao Arlington provides authentic Chinese food, great service and dining atmosphere.

We walked in around Saturday noon and were seated immediately. Their chairs were comfortable.

I like most of the dishes on the menu are small plates. You can order 2-3 dishes per person and are able to try more items than you would normally have at a Chinese restaurant. The only downside is that the price could add up quickly.

This was absolutely wonderful all around.

NiHao was a tapas style serving experience. Amazing dishes to share, it’s the try everything kind of place and wow was it worth it.
We got a bowl of rice each and shared different plates of beef, chicken, and vegetables. I wish I took pictures of everything (we went twice).
The difference between each plate was fantastic, all my cravings were fulfilled.
I wish we had ordered dumplings and this very interesting looking “puffed up tortilla” thing that looked incredible. We were just too full.
The staff was great, it was quiet and low key, the atmosphere was relaxing and it’s pretty, very well decorated. Subtle I’d say.
The bar is located at the front of the store which means the large garage style window to access the from the sidewalk is open.

I’m confused by any negative comments. We found this place by chance as we walked by, the smell from the bar is what drew us in.

We had been curious about the restaurant since we found a new sign outside before they opened, and finally we dived in.
They have various tapas inspired Chinese dishes on the menu.
We were not sure how small they were so ordered 3 plates in the beginning.
The Dan Dan noodle was a little hot but tasty.
The steamed rice wrapped with lotus leaf was good and smelt good. Probably some people might care about the smell if they have never tried this dish.
The beef with green onion was the best of the three and really tasty. We should have ordered white rice together as that would go well with the beef.
After we finished eating them, we noticed we could eat more, so we ordered 2 more, the lo mein and the balloon pancake.
When we saw them coming, we were slightly shocked by the size because we believe they were as small as the previous 3 dishes we ordered.
Well, it was our fault, but we did not really regret it.
The balloon cake looked big but actually there was nothing inside so we easily finished eating it, but the curry flavored dipping sauce was not our taste.
We thought we could not finish the lo mein, but it was tasty so in the end we ate all of it.
Overall, their food is really good. The best Chinese restaurant around the Crystal City and Pentagon area.
Probably you will enjoy whatever you order.

From the outside the restaurant looks small but actually they have many tables inside and there was a large party room in the corner, so it is good for solo, couples and families, but if you eat in a big group, you might need a reservation beforehand not to be disappointed.
The employees are friendly, and answer any questions about the food or the portion.
We went there at a weird time (not lunch not dinner time), but they served us fast, but all the food was fresh and hot which is a very good sign as some other restaurants start getting their B-team in at that time.

Food was super tasty! We got the Shrimp and Chive Dumplings, Chongqing Spicy Chicken, Three Pepper Beef, Salt and Pepper Shrimp, and Dry Fried Green Beans. All were incredible. Spicy items were less spicy than expected (we judged them to be about one chili level less than what the menu says). Knocking one star off for the takeout ordering experience. Ordered by phone, and when picking up, were charged more than the online menu prices ($51 vs $83). Guessing that they gave us a larger entree size for some items vs the tapas size? This wasn't clear, since larger sizes options weren't listed anywhere on the menu. They also unfortunately didn't let us know that we needed to order rice separately. However, the restaurant just opened yesterday, so hopefully the price transparency will improve once an online ordering system is available. Highly recommend!