Sichuan Alley Bistro — Restaurant in West Hartford

Wonderful place to have dinner! This was my second time eating here- my first being about half a year ago. The ambiance was lovely and elegant, yet cozy and casual at the same time. The overall space is a bit small and tightly packed, but not a big problem unless you don't enjoy being too close to other customers. I'm not sure if its the same for other tables, but our seats were a bit low, so my legs were spilling out slightly to the side and I didn't have room to push the chair out from the table due to a wall. Other than that, the service was great! The owner was being an absolute boss lady by taking orders, serving, and bussing all the tables by herself. She had amazing customer service and was super sweet to us. The drink/food/dessert menus are all organized in one book, keeping it simple and clean. Most items had photos, so it was easy to visualize the food. The main ingredients were also listed under each item.

We ended up getting two drinks, two appetizers, two entrees, and one dessert. -Floating Like a Dream ($12.95) I'd say this drink was definitely worth the price. It came in a big margarita glass rimmed with little flowers. The alcohol was not too strong, and the flavor was good. Nice option if you want something simple with familiar ingredients. -Kung Pao Shrimp Bao Buns (3 pc for $13.95) So yummy! However, I wish it came with more shrimp! I think they put two pieces of small shrimp per bao. The size of the baos is not that big, but not super tiny. I definitely recommend trying this at least once! -Pistachio Latte (~$5.00) Pretty yummy flavor. Coffee flavor wasn't too bitter/strong. -Alley Chili Dumplings (6 pc for $8.95) Best. Appetizer. Ever. Every time I come here, I will make sure to order at least one serving of this! It is not too spicy- and since the steamed dumplings are laying on top of the spicy chili sauce, you can adjust how much chili you actually want to smother your dumplings in! The sauce is sooooo good though. Both times I came, I wished I ordered more of this before I got too full haha! -Grilled Salmon Pasta (Spicy) ($26.95) The flavors of everything combined in this dish were amazing. Not too spicy, more of an umami taste. Pasta, salmon, avocado, crispy kale, marinated egg, tomatoes, broccoli. It was just so good- and not crazy oily like I was worried about! The piece of salmon was a little smaller than what I expected for the price of the dish, but I think the other ingredients helped to fill me up, so I didn't care as much about it at the end. I don't think I would order this again because the price is a bit high for the food, but maybe on a special occasion. -Braised Beef Ramen (Not Spicy/No Vegetables) ($16.95) Immediately I noticed that this only came with three chunks of beef, which already looked smaller in comparison to the picture on the menu. I think overall the taste was good and pretty average. I liked how they used a different, more traditional style of noodles instead of the curly, yellow noodles that you get in instant ramen. I don't think this dish was that great compared to other things they have on the menu, but it was a decently big bowl that is sharable. -Chocolate Hazelnut Cake ($9.75) This was so so so good! I was worried it would be too sweet, but it tasted perfect. The taste reminds me of a ferrero rocher chcolate. The slice is the perfect size to share or just eat on your own! I would definitely...

There are a few restaurants around the greater Hartford area that specialize in Sichuan food and in my opinion, Sichuan Alley is the best around. This restaurant feels like something that a food guide would ask you to drive to Boston or New York City to experience but we are lucky enough to have it in our own backyard with free parking too (and excellent coffee next door with Perkatory)

Everything here is fantastic: the decor and ambience are incredible where everything seems intentional and very well curated. The food is amazing, my fiance and I had the pan fried buns (don't miss out on the roasted scallions at the bottom of the cast iron pan), the alley chilli dumplings which are my favorite Sichuan dumplings now hands down, the mapo tofu, also the best iteration of this dish and dan dan noodle. Again I sound like a broken record but we've had that dish from nearly every Sichuan restaurant and this place just hits the mark. It is a bit non-traditional with the kale, ramen egg and crispy peas, but everything blends so well together for a fantastic experience and somehow nows seems necessary to the dish. It is how you take traditional cuisine and modernize it with the right twists without losing the significance behind it.

We also tried some cocktails, we ordered the sake flight which came with four different sakes and two snacks as well as the kung fu panda which was so well balanced and delicious. Also the panda is made of chocolate and is edible! Next time we are back I want to try the brewed teas and the milk tea.

Overall I see this place becoming a new favorite of ours and there was so much more on the menu that I wanted to try that we have to come back. The prices are more than reasonable for the type of food and the level of thought and care that goes into it, especially for the location on West Hartford. I hope this place continues to thrive as it is recently opened because we already can't wait...

This is my first time ordering from Sichuan Alley Bistro. I had a rather large order (for 5 people). I placed the order thru the web via online order around 4:30 PM to be picked up around 6:30 PM of the same day. I paid the order.

When I arrived around 6:30 PM, the front desk lady told me that my order wasn't ready yet. It would be ready in another 10 minutes. After 10 minutes, I asked for my order again. The same front desk lady checked and told me that the kitchen didn't receive my order and they needed a few more minutes. After another 15 minutes, my order came out. Another lady came out and said the kitchen didn't receive my order until I showed at 6:30 PM. No apologies, period.

I wasn't happy and was indeed quite disturbed with my first experience with Sichuan. When I got home and unpacked the foods, the kitchen did a lousy job packaging my foods. The sauce leaked thru the paper bag and went all over my car seat. I got to completely wipe down my car seat. I was stressed and frustrated.

The foods were a bid heavy on the spice. I would say they were mediocre. Comparing to Shu restaurant next to A Dong market, I think Shu is definitely better in quality. The price is about the same.

Given the experience, would I come back? Probably not! I would go to Shu. Shu has great foods. I have ordered online countless time at Shu. It hasn't messed up my order even one. The...