Taste of Szechuan — Restaurant in Portland

As we enter, we instantly recognize/remember the location formerly being an Elmer's restaurant! Flooding of childhood memories enter our minds, giving us hope that this experience will be good...

So! We order the crab rangoon, fried shrimp, General Tso's chicken and Mongolian Beef (lunch specials).

Crab rangoon: very crispy and the filling is ample; the sauce that comes with it ruins it. The sauce has ginger in it, paired with the cream cheese from the filling, creates a "mold" or "mildew" taste. Poor poor sauce choice.

Fried shrimp: My personal test of a restaurant's skill. They failed. Definitely the most interesting looking fried shrimp I've seen, but as soon as I bit into it...disappointment. The batter is what I call my "whoopsie" batter. It's gummy. Not something I'd serve at a restaurant.

Mongolian Beef: The "wok hey" was definitely there, but even that couldn't save the dish. They should've called this "Mongolian Onions." and the fried rice...was so dry. How do you even do that?!

General Tso's: Best dish of the meal. The batter was crispy, the sauce was decent, but again paired with the desert fried rice.

Oh, we also got hot & Sour soup with the meal, the entire reason we went for Chinese food today. It was spiced vinegar and water with bits of tofu and woodear. Very disappointing as well.

Definitely won't be going back for the food. It's also a bar if...

Taste of Szechuan is a family-owned restaurant that serves up some of the best Chinese food I’ve had in a long time. The orange chicken was perfectly crispy with just the right balance of sweet and tangy sauce, and the salt and pepper fish was absolutely fantastic! Light, flavorful, and cooked to perfection.

The prices are very reasonable, especially considering the large portions, so you definitely get your money’s worth here! The dining room is spacious and comfortable, making it a great spot for family gatherings, parties, or group events.

Friendly service, delicious food, and unbeatable value — I’ll definitely be coming back to Taste of...

This is a really solid plate of Sichuan food. The flavor was THERE during our meal of crispy fish, boiled beef in spicy broth, mapo tofu, cumin lamb, sesame chicken, and a stir fried vegetable dish whose name escapes me. This restaurant recently opened, and the owner and manager couldn't be nicer. I will definitely be returning here; for Sichuan food in this neck of the woods, it's a huge win. Don't sleep on it. Also: while we ordered our food to go, I stayed in the restaurant for awhile and chatted. It's a spacious, interesting and welcoming interior with a full...