Xiang (Hunan cuisine)

Somewhat surprised that no one’s seen fit to try to the place. I went with a party of 6 last week for lunch.

Any signs that advertise that Xiang is a resident in the plaza and occupies the space across from Ocean Star were not obvious. It gets better. The entrances opens onto a foyer space bereft of employees. Think right side of the bottom of a letter “L”. One must go around the corner and trust that the waiter will appear and recognize you as potential patrons. We saw another party arrive, wait, and leave without being greeted.

I understand Hunan regional cuisine to be known for being spicy, even spicier than Sichuan. We opted for medium spicy which our party found quite palatable. We decided to order primarily from the “Chef Specials” portion of the menu.

The first dish pictured in pork stir-fried with pickled vegetables. This dish was well received by our party.

The second dish was beef fried with chili’s about 1/2 the size of a jalapeno, with a heat level comparable to a say, an anaheim. The chili’s were not uniform in spiciness, which made it interesting. Almost like a Cantonese beef with green pepper, but with slivers of jalapeno included.

The string beans were well prepared with a significant amount of “wok hei”.

The spicy squid was the spiciest dish we ordered. The addition of cumin to this particular dish was unexpected.

Lamb stir-fried with cumin. Good balance; some places overdo the cumin (if that’s possible).

We had a member of the party who was 105, We decided the steamed egg might be a good fallback dish if everything else was too spicy. A little more watery than I’m used to in the Cantonese/Toisan style.

Total for lunch $100 incl.tax/tip for 6 dishes. We probably got charged extra for rice.

Not sure if it was a good sign, but the owner lit a couple of joss sticks and offered them as we left.

The place deserves more business IMO.

Xiang Cuisine
141 N Atlantic Blvd
Fl 2 Ste 200
Monterey Park, CA 91754

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Uh, does an Instagram posting count?

https://www.instagram.com/p/BfhdVKXlzY9/

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how was it? it was our 7th choice after the green beans.

The ants on a tree was very good, though I’m not sure if the nostalgia factor entered in.

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Pig trotters are good.

i was going to order that as my choice, but i knew i’d be eating most of it - which seems unfair.

Anymore recommended dishes for this place?
Never had true authentic Hunan, I’m a big Sichuan guy…
Want to try this place out ASAP.

Went back in March with a group. A few of us found the food to be overly salty and/or greasier than they should be. Not sure if the kitchen staff has changed since. It was rather popular with the Chinese Millenials at the time.

Unless there’s a change I’m unaware of, Hunan Mao still ranks as top Hunan restaurant, ahead of Hunan Chili King. Some here have written favorably of Hunan Spicy Taste as well.

Um, why?

It’s stupendously mediocre.

OK Nm, where should i try for best Hunan then LOL!

Hunan Mao

Steamed squash with tulip petals, fried lamb ribs, stinky tofu and steamed taro are all fantastic. Braised pork is good too.

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Fried lamb ribs! Wow. I’d like to cook those. But, of course, we can’t talk about that here :slight_smile:

^
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Up two.above your above quoted post :wink:

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What are your thoughts about Hunan Restaurant? We went to the location in Rowland Heights which was recommended to us by a friend who thought it was one of the best Hunan places in the SGV, though it has shuttered since. (there is another location in Monterey Park).

https://lafoodiepanda.com/2018/11/11/hunan-restaurant-湖南少官-in-rowland-heights-ca/

FP, I’ve never made it to any of the Hunan Restaurant branches (I understand the one on San Gabriel Blvd. that is now Shen Yang Tasty was another), though I have friends who liked the San Gabriel restaurant. When I’ve wanted Hunan, or was looking for specific items, I usually found myself at either Hunan Seafood (now relocated as Hunan Mao), the since closed Hunan Style in San Gabriel (in Golden Plaza) or Hunan Chili King.

Has anyone tried Xiang Yuan Gourmet after they stopped their dim sum service?

Dong Ting Chun, I think, is very underrated.

Their eggplant thousand year old egg dish is one of my favorite denture-challenged dishes of all time. Good fish head too.

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i suspect i’m not the only one who’d prefer clarification on “mediocre”; i found the food to be tasty. if it’s somehow less authentic, ok.

I second the rec for Hunan Mao. I don’t remember the name of the dish, but it’s Hunan ham with dried turnip. The name is in Chinese. Ipse, would you know the Chinese characters for that?

There is a great dish called Chicken with peppers or something like that. It’s a sauteed, spicy pepper salad with some bits of chicken (including bones) thrown in. The flavor is wonderful. You might be crying and/or sweating from it afterward, though.