Recently remodeled, Nine Dragons is probably the easiest restaurant at Epcot to get in to without a reservation. That’s because to so many people Chinese food is not equated with fine dining — it’s something that comes in a cardboard container and you get it for takeout. This is different, more of an upscale Chinese dining experience.I popped in for a lunch and started with a bowl of chicken consomme with pork dumplings, a golden broth with a rich mouthfeel. It had two big dumplings of chewy dough filled with well-spiced ground pork.
For my entree I had the shrimp with spinach noodles, which looked very much like something you’d find served in the Italy pavilion. (But remember that Marco Polo is said to have introduced Italians to pasta after a voyage to China.) The noodles were fettuccinelike and were mixed with red and green sauteed bell peppers and dotted with flecks of hot pepper flakes and topped with cool, fesh coriander.
The shrimp had a thin film of crispiness and peppery spice.
For dessert there was a sponge cake with fruit filling that was slightly dry.