Reviews & Ratings for Szechuan Gourmet

08/12/10

Long Lines, But Worth the Wait

by marisa 17

So, you want to sit down at a restaurant but, you'd rather have something besides American food or Korean BBQ? Well make sure you stop by Szechuan Gourmet. It can get a little crowded so call ahead if your group is large. We had only 3 total so we were seated within 15 minutes of getting there. Their lunch specials include Soup (Egg Drop, Wonton or Hot & Sour) and the portions are decent. Oh yea, I almost forgot they serve rice with all their lunch specials. I had Sweet and Sour Chicken and it was typical Chinese food, nothing special but still worth the wait and price. I should have tried something more exotic but, I couldn't make up my mind. If you don't mind a little rudeness from your server and want to get some GREAT wonton soup in your tummy, try this place out. It's not ideal to take your clients here, but, I will recommend it for a sitdown lunch with your peers!

12/15/09

too hot, too spicy

by OBMan56

I tried the szechuan food here and it was too spicy. I wasn't sure if it was supposed to be like that. I don'r think I will go back again.The service of this restaurant was okay.

• Cons: spicy

12/03/09

beware the 56 St. restaurant

by CeCeS

Within hours of making my first charge purchase from the 56 St. store, a huge and mysterious payment was charged to my card to Western Union.

As a result, I had to cancel out the card, am not sure if I will get my money back (over $700), and had to have the bank go through a two-week investigation.

Since this has never happened to me before and since it coincided with Szechuan Gourmet -- is it a coincidence?

• Pros: nothing is worth this hassle
• Cons: credit card problems galore

08/11/09

The Food is not fresh

by mh1040

I ordered the Stir Fried Fish Filets w. Mixed Veggie and it was horrible. The dish was either sit in the kitchen for awhile or was defrosted from the freezer. I personally will not return.

05/02/09

My Favorite Chinese Restaurant

by aldo2002

No atmos and sometimes they run out of beer but otherwise this place is a great little resource. I love tons on the the dishes and I've always found US chinese food (much like US indian cuisine) to be awfully poor next to their UK counter-parts (don't hate me). This place is solid, cheap, nice and the service is fine. Put it on your radar.

• Pros: Toungue Tripe, Cold Noodle, Vinegar sauce fish
• Cons: airport decor (but what did you expect)

06/21/08

I can't stop thinking about this place...

by daeviydt

Earlier today I had dinner for the first time at Szechuan Gourmet... and I can't wait to go back.

I'm addicted to spicy foods, and this place is like heaven. I'm glad to finally have somewhere like this nearby (rather than having to travel all the way to Flushing and back for Spicy Tasty or Little Pepper).

My meal: Ox Tripe and Tongue (spectacular! amazing spice, mouth-numbing, everything was so crisp and fresh), Dan Dan Noodles (not the best i've had, of this standard szechuan staple.. i wanted a little tartness or tang, but it was still really good), Scallion Pancake (SO good, surprisingly. it was light and flaky, delicious. Not at all, thankfully, the typical soggy dense greasy version), Braised Lamb Fillets with Napa Cabbage and Roasted Chili (amazingly spicy! the lamb was extremely tender. all the different little vegetables were all cooked perfectly. the only negative thing i could say is perhaps it could use a little less salt)... I keep looking over the menu, planning my next visit (Spicy Sesame Noodles, Beef Tendon, Chef's Ma Paul Tofu, Double Cooked Sliced Pork Belly...)

The restaurant decor is nothing special, kind of standard, it could be Cleveland in 1980, but nothing is dirty or tacky.

The service was as helpful as they could possibly be. There was a cute moment where the server asked if he could take my plate and I sort of went "yeah but no but yeah but no but yeah but no, okay" (it's so hard to say goodbye!), we both laughed.

The clientelle was varied -- a hispanic couple who ordered safe dishes and pushed things around, not eating much. a jewish couple with sleeping infant who ordered safe (and a lot!) but loved every bite. a few chinese couples who were really enjoying themselves, and me... At one point the Chinese couple next to me complimented me, saying I really knew how to order the good stuff (aka I eat like them), and it's surprising how i could handle the extreme spice (which was too hot even for them).

• Pros: Ox Tripe and Tongue
• Cons: Time goes by so slowly (I can't wait to go back)

06/02/08

Great Midtown Szechuan

by huskyduck

I went here on the advice of New York foodie, Ed Levine, because I find I agree with the majority of his reviews. This place is a definite find. In Midtown too, the so called foodie graveyard of Manhattan. Chef Ma Paul's silky tofu is the kind of dish that will linger in your brain for days after eating it. The incredibly silky tofu comes with a smokey, firery pepper sauce with ground pork, the perfect dish to spoon on rice. The wok fried chicken with almonds and green onion was like a dish of the most incredible fried chicken you can imagine cut into bite sized pieces wok tossed with chili peppers and sliced almonds and green onion. Sounds simple enough but this is not your father's Chinese food.

• Pros: Chef Ma Paul's Tofu
• Cons: A bit pricey for what you may be used to paying for Chinese food

Editorial Review

by Contributor

The fiery flavors of Szechuan cooking, in everything from General Tso's chicken to stir-fried duck tongues.

09/01/06

Worthy side street hole in the wall

by blawson80

I was tromping through Manhattan this week, and ended up here because I was hungry and wet and it looked acceptable. What I got was the cheapest meal of my trip - prices reasonable even by Minneapolis/St. Paul standards - and it was good, too. I had a spicy pork dish, I think it was called "enchanted pork" or some such thing, which I recommend. The lunch specials are a very good deal.