Sichuan Garden — Restaurant in Victoria

If zero stars were an option that would be more fitting! I have never eaten here before and now never will again! We ordered online and our order was $75. We ordered sesame chicken, shrimp in some kind of sauce, chicken lo-mein, and then my husband ordered the Ching Ching chicken. Online it says you can select mild, medium or hot. He chose medium. And then ordered the hot and sour soup. Now all the food except my husbands was good. However my husbands food was NOT medium on any scale! And the soup smelled rotten and like it was from the sewer. I do not have a weak stomach but one smell of that and I gagged. So I called them to tell them. When I call I get the owner apparently. I start to tell her that everything I ordered was good except my husbands. She begins to tell me that it’s not her fault it is too hot. And that I knew it was hot when I ordered it. I explained that online it says I can select mild medium or hot. She then said well that was medium. I tell her that there is no way when there is more red pepper than chicken! She then tells me that Chinese people like it and I just don’t like it because I am America! At this point I am offended. I tell her all I want is a credit for 1 meal and that I would even bring her all the food back to show her I didn’t eat it. She at this point is almost yelling at me and telling me over and over that it is my fault. Being in food industry many many years and a GM that is something you NEVER tell a customer! This by far is the worst customer service I have ever received! I then tell her I will just cancel the transaction on my credit card. She then says she has my address and will come to house! And yes I have 4 others that can corroborate this. I have never been threatened like this. I am American and proud to be. Now the delivery driver was nice and was tipped well. I feel bad for him to have to work for...

I have been eating here regularly over a long period of time since this establishment has opened and have a seasoned perspective.

Food quality, makeup, and flavor is consistent. Most of it is excellent, but a few of the dishes took me by surprise. For example, the egg drop soup has a very small amount of corn in it. I was not expecting this and it changes the flavor slightly, but not in a bad way. The Kung Pow Chicken surprised me in a bad way. For some reason there is an excessive amount of celelry and... celery in this dish. I have ordered this a couple times to verify quality and confirmed with the staff that this is just what the dish is like. If you order the Ching Ching Chicken, heed their warning that this dish is hot. it is composed almost entirely of dried chili peppers, peanuts, and chicken and is also a dry dish. For first time diners, I recommend the Lo Mein Noodles, they come in several varieties, are always good, and you get a huge plate so you can take some home.

Service is quick (10 min food table on average), when it is busy, expect those times to increase to 20 min at most. The staff is attentive, checks up regularly, and on the few occasions they neglect this duty, the dining area is small and it is easy to get their attention.

Finally, price. This establishment is comprable in price to the other Chinese restaurants in town, I would say they lean towards the cheap side, though. It is safe to order appetizers and soup if your entree does not include them without breaking the bank.

After dining here for some time, I would recommend them to...

Gone downhill! This place use to be good, but the last two carry-outs were terrible. The most recent was Monday. I called in an order for fried Crab Puffs, small wanton and egg drop soups, chicken Lo Mein and beef Lo Mein. The lady repeated my order back to ensure it was correct, which it was when she READ it back to me. I picked up my order and took it home. To my surprise, they put Homemade Sweet Potato Pie appetizers on my order instead of crab puffs...these were the grossest things I ever smelled from a restaurant. I couldn't get past the smell to even try them. My wife however, was a little braver than I was. She took a bite from one and then spent the next 5 minutes trying to eat and drink stuff to get the awful taste from her mouth. The soups were the best thing from the order, even though they were OK and not like the better ones we have had in the past. The Lo Mein was the icing on the bad cake. The noodles were not cooked all the way, tough and chewy, and the Lo Meins were pretty dry. Could not eat much of anything other than the soups. One last issue, which is bigger than the bad food, the CHEAP Styrofoam containers. If the cook is going to dump SCORCHING HOT food from the pan to the container, you need to have high temp resistant containers. Nothing says contamination quicker than hole burned through the Styrofoam because the food was way too hot for the low temp containers they put them in. Serious second thoughts before eating there again or...