Hunan Bistro 湘缘 — Restaurant in Chicago

Typically I don’t give out 5 stars to Chinese restaurants since I have higher standard for them because of my ethnicity, but I am truly impressed by the quality of food here. This is the best Hunan restaurant that I have ever had! Let’s start the review: 麻辣大片牛肉： they used beef shank meat for this dish, thinly sliced and marinated, then stir fried to perfection. It’s spicy and numbing, seasoned with soy sauce and Chinese 5 spice. The sesame seeds adds a new dimension to the flavor. The meat is a bit chewy for beginners, but that’s how this dish is suppose to taste. The numbness will only hit you after you swallow your first bite, think of it like the after taste of a smooth sake. Highly recommended! 干锅鹿茸姑: a mixture of three different kind of dried fungus and pork belly, stir fried to perfection. This is my favorite dish today. The aromatic dry mushrooms and rich pork belly complements each other well. The chewiness of the mushroom meets the rich pork belly, perfect symphony! 腊鸡莴笋汤： the smoked chicken was made in house, Smokey and a bit chewy, but using it in a soup softened the chicken and add some smokiness to the soup. The nutty celtuce absorbed the chicken flavor and IMO, the best thing in the soup. This is a must order dish in the restaurant if you are into smoked meat. It was a new experience for me! 长沙臭豆腐: for people who are familiar with stinky tofu, this is a piece of heaven. Most of the stinky tofu in America are similar to regular tofu, not stinky enough. This is the real deal, yet still tolerable to me. The tofu is fried and served with a special sauce. I loved it. Stir fried morning glory: typical stir fried vegetable dish, perfectly cooked, but it would be better if they put less oil in the dish.

Overall a great restaurant, highly recommend if you want to have an authentic Hunan ...

Hunan Bistro: A Spicy Delight in Chicago's Chinatown

During a recent Monday lunch, my friends and I decided to indulge in a Hunan cuisine feast at Hunan Bistro, located in the heart of Chicago's vibrant Chinatown. Known for its bold, spicy flavors, this restaurant did not disappoint, providing a perfect setting for a spicy food catch-up.

Food Highlights:

-Stewed Pork Feet with Soybeans: The pork feet were remarkably tender, falling off the bone, and bursting with flavor that harmonized beautifully with the soybeans.

-Beer Duck: A regional dish from the Dongting Lake area in Hunan, the duck was succulent, with the broth having a unique, savory taste from the beer infusion.

-Hand-Torn Cabbage: A staple vegetable dish from Hunan that was simple yet perfectly executed.

-Mashed Pepper with Preserved Egg & Eggplant: This dish was an interesting mix of textures and flavors, combining the softness of eggplant with the sharpness of preserved egg.

-House Special Spicy Pork: As the name suggests, it was fiery and packed with spices, offering an authentic taste of Hunan.

-Egg Fried Pepper: Another spicy & protein treat that complemented the other dishes well.

Overall Impression: Hunan Bistro offers an authentic taste of Hunan cuisine with its salty and spicy dishes that are perfect when paired with a bowl of steaming rice. The flavors are robust and well-balanced, making each dish stand out. The atmosphere is welcoming, and the food is consistently prepared to showcase the richness of...

4/8/2024: Today’s food was a tad salty. The cumin lamb was nothing special. Steamed fish overdone. The tiger peppers they didn’t bother to deseed this time 😂 Service still great, place still clean.

2/2024: Incredible meal 🐟 🪷 Location is longer walk on Wentworth from the square but my goodness what a gem 💎 Loved the 中国风setting also.

Steamed Weever 清蒸鲈鱼 was perfect with the light touch of soy, just tender meat, julienned green onion and ginger for the best balance… no cilantro 🌿 which is so important to not rob the fish of its flavors.

Lotus 藕夾 Root Box is childhood fav with a bit of heavy batter but quite tasty nonetheless.

Tigger pepper 虎皮青椒was playing roulette with our taste buds. Some of it was sooo spicy 🥵😂

夫妻肺片Beef shank cold dish was loaded with cilantro 🌿 to offset the numbing spice which was delish.

Great attentive servers who were quite friendly. Ordering via iPad was also quite convenient. Payment is by server only.

Give it a try… U...