I was absolutely blown away by the flavors at Chengdu Taste.
Food I've tried: (* = my favorite)
- SICHUAN CUCUMBER* ($10): super refreshing, and I loved how this balanced out the heaviness of the other dishes. It is fresh cucumbers lightly seasoned with salt and some other umami spices (probably includes MSG). This is the superior way to consume cucumbers than eating it raw on a veggie platter.
- EGGPLANT WITH GARLIC SAUCE* ($14): I loved this eggplant dish as the eggplant was perfectly cooked. The sauce is amazing, as it balances the slight sweetness with the garlic flavors. We also got rice with our meal, and I loved mixing the sauce with the rice.
- LAMB WITH CUMIN ($24): the lamb is very well prepared. It is not too gamey, and the spices, notably a bit on the heavier side, go well with the lamb flavor. It does come with vegetables which are also well cooked - they are still crunchy without being raw. It is marked on the menu as being spicy, but I didn't really think it had too much spice. I even ate the chilis that were in the dish and I only occasionally got the mouth numbing feel. Though to be transparent, I do have a higher than average spice tolerance.
- PORK WONTON IN RED SESAME OIL ($10): among all of the dishes I ordered, I think this one tasted the most standard. It was good, but it was also exactly as I expected pork wonton in sesame oil to taste like.
- FRIED SESAME BALLS (dessert) ($6 - 6 pieces): we tried to order the pumpkin cake, but unfortunately they only had fried sesame balls and and fried bread. Per the recommendation of the waiter, we went with the fried sesame balls. Note, they are very very hot when they come out, especially the center, so I recommend taking small bites only. These are very savory, and they have red bean paste at the center. Because the dough is fried, it is very light on the tongue but as soon as it hits the stomach I felt the heaviness, perhaps the heaviness was also compounded by the very filling meal I had just consumed. I think if you are a fan of savory desserts, this is a really great option. If you are looking to satisfy your sweet tooth, this may not be what you're looking for.
- Per recs from a friend, if I go back, I would want to try the NAPA CHILI FISH, TWICE COOKED PORK, MOUTH NUMBING CHICKEN, STRING BEAN.
- I do want to note that the meal (especially with the menu I ordered) is pretty heavy as there is a lot of oil involved. But I definitely knew this going in and I loved every second of it.
Atmosphere:
- When I visited around 8pm on a weekday, it was pretty empty and the restaurant was pretty quiet.
Service:
- The service was ok. The initial waiter that took our order didn't really know the dishes that well (good thing I had gotten recs from a friend about what to try). And it did take us a few attempts to get the attention of the waiter throughout the meal, but perhaps this was because we visited near the end of the closing time so they were busy. But overall, the staff was very friendly with us when we did interact with them.
Overall:
- PRO: amazing flavors, I can't wait to go back to try more!
- CON: the service can be improved I still gave this place a green because I primarily judge my experience on the food. Dealing with the service is about managing my expectations.
