Hunan Cafe — Restaurant in Reston

My boyfriend and I ordered delivery to my home. I got egg rolls and shrimp fried rice (the only saving grace - otherwise this would be a 1-star review) and my boyfriend ordered kung pao chicken, which we both are used to being served as a mildly spicy dish. When he tasted it, there was zero flavor to it. It was just chicken and peanuts (isn't it usually cashews?). I also tasted it to confirm and yup, no flavor. No spice. No zing. Definitely not kung pao chicken. My boyfriend called to explain the issue. When it was clear the woman who answered the phone didn't understand the issue, he asked to speak to the manager and was told the manager would call us right back. Okay, no problem. Fifteen minutes go by without a word. So I decide to give them 5 more minutes before I called to complain. When no call came in, one went out.

I explained once again to the woman that we ordered kung pao chicken but that was not what we received, so they sent a replacement order. The poor delivery man came back with the exact same dish as what we were trying to replace. Hungry and frustrated, we asked for general tso's instead. The delivery man said okay and went back to the restaurant. My boyfriend however changed his mind a moment after he left and decided he didn't want this restaurant's food any longer. So I called yet again and told the woman not to send the general tso's and to just give me a refund. My boyfriend then goes online to order Chipotle instead.

A few minutes later and knockknockknock. Oh no. Sure enough, the delivery man is there for a 3rd time, general tso's in hand. I explain to him that I called very soon after he left and had asked for a refund. I'm sure that poor man hates me now, but I explained that it wasn't his fault, I wasn't upset with him - he's not the one answering the phone and talking orders and not listening to his customers, after all.

So i had to place one final call to Hunan Cafe, and demand my money back for the kung pao chicken. No kung pao, no general tso's, just a refund. Not even a full one, either, for our hunger and frustration. Just refund the kung pao chicken.

Overall, not a pleasant experience at all. The woman who answered the phone needs to truly listen to her customers and the restaurant needs to update what it defines as kung pao chicken.

EDIT: Another thing to note is that when I asked to speak with the manager over the phone (several times), I was told the manager wasn't in that day. So who was in charge? Surely there was a manager on duty...

One of the worst dining experiences I've yet experienced.

The restaurant is dirty, cluttered, and has has an odd, flimsy, dysfunctional and needless plastic and 2 x 4 partition between the front of the restaurant and the order/pick up counter. Tables and chairs stacked against the walls and a huge container of fried wonton strips with flies buzzing around them. I would have walked out when seeing this, but it was hidden behind the partition and I didn't see it until after I paid.

There's no indication of what one is supposed to do on entering the joint, but we figured out that one is to stand near the makeshift plastic door and wait for the impersonal "next" to be hollered.

The woman taking orders was rude, impersonal, ignored simple questions, and was unable to properly fulfill an order -- our order sat on the counter for 10 minutes, growing colder and greasier, while we stood in front of the makeshift barrier. We finally walked back there asked her three times where our food was and she finally shoved a plastic bag toward us. I am old-fashioned enough to expect a thank you, or some such, for my order, but nothing of the sort was offered. I asked for a receipt, four times, before she begrudgingly fiddled with the credit card machine and printed one. I felt, and was treated, like a prisoner rather than a customer.

She overcharged us for the order by $6, didn't offer a beverage, and didn't answer us when we asked, four times, if we could have some water on a 95-degree day.

The food was worse than the service. We ordered double-cooked pork. What was in the Styrofoam box was disgusting and largely inedible. Greasy, long strips of undercooked fat, not meat, mixed with a tasteless sauce and a few thin mushrooms. No other vegetables. Two large heaps of nearly cold and tasteless white "fried" rice and a thin, undercooked, greasy egg roll filled with bland cabbage. We specifically asked for extra spicy and there was no spice heat in the meal at all. As bland as it gets.

Run, don't walk, from Hunan Cafe Reston. Take your money to one of many far better restaurants elsewhere and have a pleasant experience and a better meal.

You will find nothing worse than Hunan...

First, I don't know the difference between Hunan or Cantonese cuisine. The counter server was a young adult (female), she was polite, fluent in English with a slight accent. She quickly and courteously took the order. Two lunch specials...

The Beef and broccoli was good, not amazing. The sauce was the right consistency, and had flavor one expects from beef and broccoli. The broccoli was basically al dente, cooked but still a bit of crispness. No hint of mushy. The beef was thinly sliced and tender without fat or gristle.

The sesame chicken was breaded and served in a thick sweet redish sauce. The chicken was cooked to done (not over done) and it was moist. I am trying to say it was neither Dry nor Chewy. The sauce was too sweet, as one often finds with sesame chicken, and there were no visible sesame seeds. Also there was some broccoli on the side with the sesame chicken, also al dente.

The vegetable spring rolls were about the size of my index finger. Inside was shredded vegetables and maybe some noodles? It was unremarkable, so I dont remember it well. The taste was okay. Not as good as the eggrolls mom used to make. But as a free appetizer with lunch they were okay.

The rice was just white rice that had been stir fried in soy sauce for a bit. I didn't ask for white, or brown, or fried rice, so this rice was fine. Not dry nor old.

The restaurant was clean for lunch rush; I think some crumbs under the tables is okay, because you don't sweep up while customers are ordering, or waiting for food, or eating, unless it is a significant mess. There was a piece of rice on my table; however, the counter girl was busy taking orders until a few minutes after I sat down, so she didn't have a chance to wipe my table until after my meal was done. She did wipe two other tables when the line cleared.

I read a BUNCH of the reviews (good and bad) before having lunch here. I decided to give it a shot anyway. And aftet eating here, I think this place deserves better than a 3.2 rating. So i would've given it a 4 if the overall score was already 4, but i want the overall to GO up,...