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2014-12-07
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This place is a favorite of mine-- I don't think I've found better Sichuan in HK so far. I was disappointed in Yunyan and The Monogamous Chinese; and San Xi Lou, while good, is rather mild when it comes to spice. This place has, first of all, got some serious, respectable spice and second, has excellent renditions of all your go-to Sichuan classics.I've come here with ethnic Chinese before, and we ordered lots of spicy stuff and organ meats; this time we were dining with a number of Europeans (I
I've come here with ethnic Chinese before, and we ordered lots of spicy stuff and organ meats; this time we were dining with a number of Europeans (Italians, Germans... that sort of thing) and we had to order some non-spicy stuff. Boo! Well one thing we got was these mushrooms. They were pretty good, and there were a few chilis in there anyway, even though the dish was from the non-spicy part of the menu. Good, B
I must say that I don't really remember these noodles too well. There was a pile of sauce on top of them, and this picture was taken after the server stirred them. I do remember that they were firm and flavorful, unlike some rather plain noodles I've gotten at Hunan and Cantonese places recently. Good, B
This is where things get great. I'm sure you're already well aware that Sichuan boiled X is the way to go. For X here I think we've done frog and fish-- this time we got the fish. Easily my favorite dish of the night, the fish is tender and just bursting with flavor and there are tons of chilis and numbing peppercorns. The noodles in the dish were undercooked when it arrived, but this was probably intentional as they softened up nicely later in the meal. I could've dealt with hotter, but I think we didn't order the hottest version of this dish. Excellent, A
We got some non-spicy pork thing. I'm sure the Italians thought it was fine.
This thing though. There's somewhat of a story behind this dish. We wanted to order frog something-or-other (probably instead of the fish soup). But we were convinced to try some other, more special frog dish. Then I guess the frog ran out, so we got the dish prepared with squid? The details are murky here because I was not involved in ordering (other than by shouting out various preferences when we arrived). Anyway, this thing was crazy hot. It had pickled green chilis and a thin red sauce, but was otherwise just squid. A friend of mine sitting next to me (I'll call him "Spicy Pete") had some of this before me and then coughed a little and goes "that's really hot." Spicy Pete is not a spice wimp, so I eagerly stuffed some squid in my mouth, gave it a moment, and went, "What are you talking about Spicy Pete? That's not all that hot." Then, maybe five seconds later, I knew what Spicy Pete was talking about. It catches up to you. It is hot.
Anyway, I have to say I didn't like the dish. The squid was really firm and the whole thing was a little too pickly for me. Great spice-wise, but not my cup of tea. OK, C-
I don't remember this dish too well either. I only took pictures of some fraction of our total dishes-- we were 13 people, I think-- and I don't think I ate all of them either. I did eat this, it was your standard chicken-bits-with-maximal-bone-shards thingy. After spitting out a dozen or so bone shards from my first bite, I decided to skip it. [No rating]
The other truly excellent thing we had is the fried chicken with chilis. They do a frog version which I also like. I'm sure you've had this dish before. It's difficult to convey why this version is so good. First off, the chicken is very tender and juicy. Second, it's seasoned with a blend of herbs and spices that would make Colonel Sanders jealous. Finally, there are tons of chilis (I guess that's true for all versions of this dish). I like the version at San Xi Lou, but in my mind this one wins out in juiciness, flavor, and spice. Excellent A+
Ma Po tofu: this ones hard for me to rate. I was never all that big on the mushy version of tofu and I think we ordered this one toned-down in the spice department to satiate the wimps. But I have no reason to think it's anything less than par for the course. OK, C
One disappointment on the night was the green beans. I mean, they were pretty flavorful, but I think also very oversalted. This dish is usually salty, but I thought in this instance it was unusually salty. Still OK, C-
I'm a big chilis-as-vegetables person. I find this dish has various interpretations. Frequently, the chilis are pretty wilty and mushy. This was a firmer rendition, which I liked. I have had better versions, but I would get this again. B+Final thoughts: If someone were visiting HK and wanted Sichuan, I would probably take them here. If I wanted my favorite dishes done right and done HOT, I would definitely come here. The people who work here are friendly, the food is delicious, and it's a great private kitchen atmosphere without all the drawbacks you frequently get with private kitchens (like slow service or no alcohol). This place is just plain excellent. A
Other Info. :
We had a reservation for 8:00pm, but did not have any of our party there until 8:15, and not the full complement until 8:30. They were extremely gracious and friendly nonetheless, and managed to scrounge up some chairs to seat our unmanageably large, unreasonably late party. I like the folks who work here.
(The above review is the personal opinion of a user which does not represent OpenRice's point of view.)
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