Szechuan Spice — Restaurant in Pittsburgh

My son and I were excited to try out Szechuan Spice this New Year's Sunday after I had seen a sign in their window earlier that week advertising "pushcart dim sum every weekend." When we arrived, however, the place was nearly empty and no pushcarts with steaming dim sum were to be seen. We were informed that was a think before COVID happened but no more. We decided to stay and try our luck anyway. The food was okay and wasn't overpriced, but there was also some misleading info on the menu. We were instantly struck by how many items contained the chili 🌶️ pepper symbol, and assumed their spiciness was exaggerated. Even my General Tso's Chicken had the symbol and it was not spicy at all (I'm rather spicy-averse). On the other hand, my son ordered one of the "flaming dishes" all of which were labeled with the same 🌶️. HIS dish was extremely spicy and riddled with tell-tale chilies. Most restaurants use a graded-hotness rating system for their menu items, and this would have given us better warning about the relative spiciness/un-spiciness between our two orders. We also ordered the Hot & Sour Soup, which was neither. My son is smart and always asks for extra vinegar, which this time came in a small bowl on the side. When added to the tiny bowl of soup, it at least allowed the soup to live up to the "sour" part of its title. My General Tso's was reasonably priced at $12 for a substantially sized portion that became half take-home. My son's soup came with a (sterno) flame under it, so it was "flaming" as advertised, but waaay more spicy than expected. The dumplings we ordered were tasty but too greasy. Our waiter was adequately polite and attentive and the restaurant (including the "facilities") was quite clean. The quality of food was not much above regular take-out Chinese food, but I had to take off another star because of the un-graded spiciness on the menu and the owner's deceitfulness by keeping the sign up about "pushcart dim sum on the weekends" when it had gone extinct with COVID, which is classic bait and...

Let me start with the building from the outside you would think the place inside would be rundown and old but that is far from the case. Inside was clean and the seating was very comfortable.

Let's get to the food You will have two menus built into one and let me go into that.

The first menu, which has a green border, is American style Chinese affair so familiar tastes with nothing to extreme for an American. My wife and daughter ordered from this section of the menu and the food they got was indeed very good.

The second menu, which has a red border, is actual traditional Chinese versions of many of the same dishes. This isn't for beginners or people used to the American style Chinese. The flavors and tastes you will experience as well as the addional ingredients not found in the American style would be very difficult for someone who hasn't tried true Chinese style cooking. This was the menu I selected from and indeed it's very traditional indeed. The soup I had was spiced very nicely and was very heavy on oil which I like. As you can see in my photo the bowl is very large and it would be best shared instead of by a single individual but you will have a solid two meals if you order it for just yourself. The quality was excellent and the flavor was on point.

Word of caution to those who go the traditional style and haven't before. The broth is spicy and the oil is heavy your body will experience cramping, flatulence and a runny stool if you body isn't used to it so start slow if it's your first time. Even for someone like me who has had many of this authentic food it still got to me a bit but for someone new prepare yourself for that to occur if you consume and entire meal.

Overall this is a fantastic place and you will not be disappointed no matter if you go the American style Chinese or the...

I'm quite surprised by this place, since their food was very good. Some have noted that the prices are a bit high, but they are not outrageous. They are definitely worth the quality, and this is the spot to head to if you want high quality food in decent portions, not cheap American-Chinese. Today, I tried the pork dumplings with sauce, scallion pancake, and tapioca pudding.

I've been on a recent dumpling-kick, so I can say Szechuan Spice's are pretty good. The shell is not too thick (New Dumpling House has much thicker shells) and the meat is quite flavorful. I would have wanted the meat to be cooked for a little longer though. Portion wise, this was decent. Prices are a tad higher.

This is my first time trying a scallion pancake. There isn't a strong scallion taste to it, which I think I prefer. The texture and flavor is similar to Indian paratha, if you have ever tried that. I enjoyed this pancake and thought again, the portion was decent.

Their side sauce is amazing! Seriously delicious, and it went with both the dumplings and the scallion pancake. I would dunk almost any appetizer in this. It's perfectly balanced, a little bit on the sweeter side. They also give you complimentary fortune cookies like most places. One of them was a little stale, so they weren't too good.

Their tapioca pudding was also new to me. The tapioca pearls certainly give you a unique texture. The milk (I assume it's milk) is tasty and creamy. You'll find pieces of what seems to be taro in here, too. Not a huge fan of that, since it's a strange texture and flavor. This is not a very sweet dessert, but it seems authentic.

All in all, if you're looking for Chinese food that's not too expensive but still tasty and authentic, this could be your spot. Portions are pretty decent and they have numerous unique dishes. Love their...