Chinatown Express, H Street, Washington, DC

This restaurant was submitted for one of the dirtiest in DC. Let me tell you something; I feel like I need to bathe after this experience. Chinatown Express is a tiny little place on 6th and H in Chinatown. The restaurant walls boast of its mention in The Washingtonian as one of the best cheap eats circa 2004. Fortunately for the them, the criteria had nothing to do with the cleanliness of its bathroom. Although, I'm not sure how the person who chose it got past the the dirty fish tank with grime floating on top of the bubbles and clinging to the sides of the tank! The fish looked like Potomac/Anacostia river fish. Now that I think about it, my husband mentioned he saw a man fishing at Haines Point and it appeared he was taking his catch to a restaurant. I think I know which one. I ordered a vegetable eggroll which I had no intention of eating, but I had to get something in order to gain access to restroom. It was in the back and up a couple of filthy looking stairs. I opened the door and oh horror of horrors!! How do people eat at this place? There was a dirty, and I mean BLACK dirty, mop in a dirty blue bucket, the walls were bulging as if something was trying to come out but had been taped over with duct tape and then plastered. There was an exhaust fan that allows one too see outside into an alley. What do you want to bet someone can't look in and see you there on the toilet? I, my dear readers, will NEVER know because you couldn't pay me enough to go into that alley! The door to exit the bathroom was positively filthy. Look people, if you're going to keep your bathrooms dirty, don't use white paint. It shows everything...then again maybe that's the point. Maybe they think their food is so darn good, that you will still eat there in spite of the grime that makes no attempt to hide itself. Ack!! As I was waiting for my egg roll, which I had no intention of eating, I caught a glimpse of the kitchen as the door swung open. There was crap all over the floor and that was it. I was just about to leave without the darn egg roll, when it was handed to me in a nice clean brown paper bag. I'm assuming it was brown...maybe it was just dirty.

I'm going to have to go back, oy, and get more photos. These came out green...I

think my camera got sick.

6/14/2007 - I went back for video. Check it out!