Sichuan Style - Berkeley

I recently discovered an authentic Chinese restaurant in Berkeley that I didn't know existed until a few days ago. It is located in North Berkeley and has plenty of paid street parking. My friends and I tried a variety of dishes including kung pao chicken, fresh spicy boiled fish, mapo tofu, Szechuan spicy string beans and eggplant, and spicy sour soup. I had no idea this place was here and would often drive to Fremont for Chinese food. I will definitely be returning to this restaurant!

We ordered tan tan noodles but received something different (a watery sauce lacking peanut flavor). The vegetables were overcooked and the pancakes for the mushu pork were stale.

So, hmmm. I've mixed feelings about this place. On the one hand, Sichuan Style rests on the premises of the late, semi-great King Tsin restaurant, which was a staple of my youth growing up. I will admit that institution went down hill seriously in the 90's and 00's: the last time I ate there was about 12 years ago and it was clearly in its death throes. SS is certainly a great improvement over what was left of a once-great restaurant. The interior of the restaurant shows remains of its former incarnation here and there (mostly the panels on the east wall), but is far more open and airy than before. While pleasant, it feels a bit unfinished--as if a decorator got started on the place and then suddenly quit. That apart, SS boasts a pretty broad menu, with a considerable number of offerings (not all of them szechuan, as we used to say in my youth). Most of them are quite well done. The sauce can be a bit heavy and gloppy at times; sichuan should have some zing in AND have a medium-thick sauces. But in general the food is of very good quality and the spices are well-balanced. The pork dishes in particular are well-done. I'm not as familiar with the Chinese offerings of the East Bay as I once was, but I would say overall, it could compete comfortably with other restaurants in the area. That they also usually have specials that seem to cater to a more Chinese clientele is perhaps an indication of that as well. Is it a spot I would like to sit and dine? Maybe not, but for a takeout order, they make a pretty damn fine meal.

My favorite sichuan restaurant of all time. They really provide consistently amazing sichuan dishes, and developed my love for spicy food. The food has generous portion at a reasonable price. Although I move to a different area in East Bay, I still keep coming back to dine in to support their business (also sadly I cannot find better sichuan food in my new place in tri-valley). Thanks to this business! Please keep up with the great work!

Really excellent fish, hit the spot! Also highly recommend the sesame bread and the eggplant. The only issue was that we had to pay in cash and weren't informed ahead of time, so my friend had to leave to the nearest ATM when the check came.