San Antonio | Sichuan House 🥢🌶️

About seven or eight years ago when this restaurant first opened, I used to love coming here – great food at reasonable prices, and most importantly, they had a cold dish bar! 🥗 Just like those self-service counters in supermarkets back in China where you pick and pay by weight. I was obsessed with their marinated bamboo shoots and often got them to-go. After moving farther away, I started going less and switched to Qianjiao Baiwei more often. But as Qianjiao Baiwei’s quality declined… I dug this place out from my memory! 💭 Sometimes San Antonio feels like a Chinese food desert 😩. While others get to choose which restaurant is tastiest, we’re just picking the least bad one. And every once in a while, we go back to an old “not great” spot to see if it’s gotten better… just in case it secretly improved! 🤫 I’ve been here three times recently – here’s what stood out: ✅ Camphor Tea Smoked Duck 🦆 The best duck in SA! Crispy skin, flavorful meat, and generous portions – especially compared to their “upscale sister restaurant.” ✅ Twice-Cooked Pork 🐖 So good! Pork belly with garlic sprouts and a bit of green pepper – perfect with rice 🍚. Great for takeout – tastes even better reheated. ✅ Cumin Beef 🐄 Strong cumin flavor with green peppers and onions – another rice killer! ✅ Stir-Fried Three Mushrooms 🍄 Shiitake, oyster, and enoki mushrooms (I think!) – so tasty with that wok hei flavor you just can’t replicate at home. 😐 Just okay: -Spicy Dry Pot Fish 🐟 White fish from HEB, coated in batter – flavor was fine, but not crispy enough. A bit soft. -Spicy Intestines Could be fried a bit longer. Not bad though – worth a try if you’re into intestines. Next time I want to try the Cumin Spicy Duck! 🦆🔥 Oh, and I heard they were recently featured on Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives – has anyone seen the episode? 📺 #SanAntonioEats #ChineseFood #SichuanCuisine #FoodReview #TexasFoodie #AustinArea #LocalFood