Hunan Bistro

One of my favorite authentic Chinese restaurants in Houston. Dishes are very fresh and flavorful and service is fast. There are many local regulars and the place is popping even on weekdays.

I enjoy dining at this place, and their food has just the right amount of spices. However, I found most of the dishes to be overly salty, with the eggplant dish with eggs being the only exception. It almost seems like they intend for you to eat a lot of rice with their dishes to balance out the saltiness. Despite this, the food overall tasted good, and it would be even better if they could tone down the salt. The service is fine; it's not top-notch but understandable given the busy times. The staff is generally attentive, though there can be slight delays during peak hours. I also tried their takeout once, and I didn't like it. The food didn't taste fresh and had a strong pork smell. For the best experience, I recommend dining in, as the food and ambiance are much better when enjoyed on-site.

Place was clean and server was friendly! Chinese customers kept on coming to the restaurant during dinner time, must be authentic enough to attract so many of them. Additionally, I really enjoy the menu with photos ;) Cumin Beef 4/5 Tasty but too little beef and too much cilantro (menu photo showed less) Hot Tango Fish Fillet 5/5 I love it Lotus Pork Rib Soup 3/5 I want to like it but I was disappointed. Does not taste like home. The white pepper overtook the soup.

Best Chinese food so far in Houston. Food is delicious. The eggplant pepper dish is sooo good! The stinky tofu is actually stinky (compliment) and is even better than the ones I had in China. The steam fish is large in portion and delicious!

The Star ⭐️ review is missleading. This place deserves more than 4 stars. I saw this place as I looked up spicy food but saw they have less than 4 stars so I didn’t go. However, one of my Chinese friend takes me here and I loves their dishes. My friend said if a Chinese restaurant open for more than 10 years, they are good. And this restaurant is one of it. If you love authentic, spicy Chinese food, try this place.

Authentic, spicy, and flavorful. While the spicy level is very high, it doesn't take away from the great flavor of the food. Both the food and service were good. I definitely will go back to try other things on the menu. Recommend the Dry Pot dishes (the mushroom one is great and non-spicy) and other Human Specialties.

The sauce on the clam was really thick and it was on the saltier side. This dish is supposed to be spicy but they were able to leave off the spice. BE CAREFUL when ordering the steam butterfly shrimp if you don’t want spicy. The menu doesn’t indicate it’s spicy anywhere so I ordered it and didn’t ask for less spice or none at all. As you can tell on the picture it was full of spice and the shrimp is black (which indicates it’s not fresh)! For $30 on that dish it wasn’t worth it at all. Service was good. There was only 1 server when we dined and she was running around between 6 tables by herself. She was the server and cashier all at once. She did warn us the shrimp would take 25 mins to steam so by the time we got that dish it was about 30ish minutes out. Again, not worth the wait unless if you was mushy shrimp. Inside had soft Chinese music playing with black ceiling. Had 3 big tables to fit large groups and a bunch of smaller tables. If you’re sitting in the middle most likely you won’t feel the AC but if you sit against the wall you’ll feel it!

I agree with majority of newest reviews: this places deserves way more than 3.9 stars. Food is very authentic, hunan style spicy. Service is fast, prices are fair.

Wow we were amazed by the quality of the food at this casual restaurant! We wanted to dine at the famous Mensho, but the line was hours long! So we ducked into this place and got a table immediately. Ordered the sizzling fish, garlic shrimp, noodles - everything was so tasty esp the fish! It's pricey but worth the experience - they bring it to you sizzling in spicy oil so yummy. Only two ladies working the whole room but they were extremely efficient and kind - even gave us a bunch of guava candy at the end for my kids. Please check this place out and enjoy!

First time here. Ordered 6 dishes for a party of 9 and we cleared everything on the table. Don't bring your spicy-intolerable friends here; this would be a nightmare for them. Eggplant - not a spicy dish and delicious! A nice intermission from all the other numbing spice (Mala) dishes. Pork and pepper - also not very spicy, still very bold in flavor. Crispy boneless chicken - this plate was empty before 5 minutes. Super crispy, and the garlic seasoning really accentuates the flavor. You can't go wrong with this one. Cumin lamb - star of the show for me. I'm heavily biased in favor of lamb, but I do feel that they nailed the authenticity of this dish. I appreciated it being more on the dry side, which lets the cumin dictate the flavor more. Rice is complimentary and you can ask for refills. The owner is a very nice person to talk to. Men's restroom was fine, but could use a more frequent clean.

Good food, big portion, decent price, friendly staffs. We had the cumin beef and tofu dried pot, both were delicious. We asked for mild spicy, it's great to eat it with rice.

Omg? Is this the best Chinese restaurant in Chinatown now? Love their shrimp fried rice. Yet to try their lobster. I'm so excited to try that. Have to request it in advance. The green beans are great. I always order the cumin beef. Water boiled fish is a fan favorite. It looked like all the tables were ordering the garlic shrimp. The shrimp looked like it was in a yogi pose haha! Have to get the jasmine tea to complement all the food.

One of my friends said this was her favorite Chinese restaurant so I had to give it a try! I got the water boiled fish and cumin beef - both were delicious (the cumin beef was pretty spicy, the fish wasn't too oily which was great). Service is pretty slow but to be expected. Prices were around $16-19 per dish. Would definitely return!!

VERY GOOD FOOD, very authentic, good service and cute building. We went here last minute because another place we wanted to try had a long line.

If you're into bold and flavorful dishes with a hint of spice, then you're truly in for a treat. I found this gem of a place while wandering Dun Huang Plaza looking to try something new and this place did not disappoint. The service was quick to assist and ambiance is nice and clean. Here are some of the dishes that I highly recommend: Steamed Pork Belly w/ Brown Sauce This dish is considered a staple dish in most Chinese cuisines. The pork belly really just melts in your mouth and combination of the sweetness and spiciness of the sauce really compliments the meat. The cherry on top is the soft-pillowy bao buns the dish comes with. Hot Tango Fish This dish is a variation of the traditional Spicy Boiled Fish. In my opinion, the Hot Tango Fish blows the traditional variation out of the park. The sweetness from the marinated napa cabbage pairs perfectly with the spiciness of the fish. This dish is a must try.

The sauce on the clam was really thick and it was on the saltier side. This dish is supposed to be spicy but they were able to leave off the spice. BE CAREFUL when ordering the steam butterfly shrimp if you don't want spicy. The menu doesn't indicate it's spicy anywhere so I ordered it and didn't ask for less spice or none at all. As you can tell on the picture it was full of spice and the shrimp is black (which indicates it's not fresh)! For $30 on that dish it wasn't worth it at all. Service was good. There was only 1 server when we dined and she was running around between 6 tables by herself. She was the server and cashier all at once. She did warn us the shrimp would take 25 mins to steam so by the time we got that dish it was about 30ish minutes out. Again, not worth the wait unless if you was mushy shrimp. Inside had soft Chinese music playing with black ceiling. Had 3 big tables to fit large groups and a bunch of smaller tables. If you're sitting in the middle most likely you won't feel the AC but if you sit against the wall you'll feel it!

This restaurant is one of the restaurants in Dun Huang plaza that has lines. (The main one is the popular shabu shabu.) I had to wait like 10 minutes for a party of two even though it was closer to 9 PM on a week night. The parking lot here is also crowded. If you park in the structure, it's a bit of a walk because the restaurant is on the other side of the plaza. I shared three dishes with my eating partner: Mr & Mrs Smith, water boiled fish, and cumin lamb. We had to order rice, and it was like $2 per bowl. Cumin lamb was more wet than I'm used to. Other than that, those 3 dishes were really good. Flavors were on point. Service was ok. The lady was so busy, I felt so bad for her. There is a restroom in the back.

Hunan Bistro, a hidden gem in Houston Chinatown serving delicious Hunan dishes. Their steamed fish with noodles is one of my favorite

This is my favorite restaurant in Chinatown. But keep in mind. This is not your Americanized Chinese food. And Hunan means spicy. But they will cook to your request on how spicy you like. They may not have lunch menu, but their portion is huge. Try this restaurant with an open mind to experience new flavors.

My party of seven walked in on an afternoon as a pitstop of a long road trip. I can only imagine how we looked, bundled in sweats and car slippers, straggling into the well-organized and dainty restaurant, backpacks and tacky fanny packs hanging from our limbs... Despite this all, we were seated immediately and our waiter did not hesitate to offer us drinks, nor did she blink when we had a mixed variety of requests. We bought many dishes, maybe five in total. We usually eat at the one in our hometown, in Frisco, and we were happy to discover that Hunan Houston holds up to our expectations! The menu is extensive, and everyone ordered their favorites and split it family style. Our fish was super tender (it melts in your mouth!) and the chili in our spicy dishes were so powerful, my mom, a spice veteran, had a running nose and was looking for more before her plate was cleared! There were also traditional desserts that some of our older family members remembered from their hometowns in China, and made them smile with nostalgia. You can bet there were no leftovers to take home!

I really love the food here! It tastes amazing, and the nice jazz music gives a nice relaxing and fancy vibe to the place. The service is great because the waiters are so nice and want to make sure that you are 100% comfortable. The only thing is that they have a bit of leaky toilet in the men's restroom. Other than that the bathroom and everything else was grate!

Excellent food and service. Truly, this place has only gotten better with a bigger, more robust menu. Their sushi is excellent and affordable. Nice update to the decor as well - great ambiance.

Small place with big flavors. Be prepared to try something new. Presentation on everything was impressive . I think the pork was my favorite. Staff was very helpful in guiding my choices so be sure to ask them and order a variety.

Just sublime food really. The boiled spicy fish over shredded cabbage served in light broth is one of best dishes in Houston. A deep fried version is also delicious and a favorite but I could eat the boiled version daily for a long time.

Great service. The food is always delicious. High-quality and consistent. I regularly take my family here.

Nice staff and customer service. I tried the Diced Chicken with Human Sauce. It was average. They don't have a Lunch Special Menu here unfortunately. Their regular sized entree is smaller than my usual Hunan restaurant's Lunch Special plate. Also, their entree costs 40% more for less food.

I've been here a few times the food is always excellent. Great service, quick and friendly. This is authentic Hunan cuisine, similar to what I've had in NYC and Hunan itself. Spicy just like it should be without all the oil I see in a lot of Asian restaurants. Price is a bit high but I'd consider dinner here a treat. Definitely going to be one of my regular spots

The food was great! Water boiled fish in chili - The fish was veryyy tender and sauce/broth it came in was spicy and flavorful. Perfect with rice! Sizzling tofu with seafood - The tofu was soft in the inside but had a nice crispy, saucy skin on the outside. It was really tasty. There was good amount of seafood and mushrooms throughout the dish. Pork belly buns - this was a good mix of meatiness and fattiness, which was great! It's a different flavor than most braised pork belly I've tried, but in a good way. It was serve with some greens, that reminded me of the collard greens taste.

This is definitely a regular go-to spot for me when it comes down to craving hunan style food in the Chinatown area. It's a small restaurant and can get packed easily on the weekends. But during the weekdays, there's not much of a crowd, so you can occasionally enjoy a nice quiet dinner here. When it comes down to the food, I honestly have never had a bad dish here. Every dish has great flavor, with a no-kidding spicy level (so adjust accordingly), and nice portions. For 2 people we got: Cumin Lamb (a dish we can't avoid whenever we come here, absolutely favorite, great flavor) Steamed Pork Belly with Buns (first time trying this, and I liked how the pork belly is not dripping in fat/oil and the buns that came with this dish is a different take to it. Rice with this is the best way to devour it) Egg w/ Eggplant and Pepper Salad (also a first with this one, and loved it!) Meatball w/ Mushroom Soup (they don't offer much soup options here, but this one is a must if you're trying soups, especially for mushroom lovers) And as always, the eyes are bigger than the stomach, and we ended up with leftovers. With great food and friendly service, I highly recommend trying out this place if you're in the area.

We are regulars for lunch and this is the best Chinese restaurant in Bellaire area. The service is good and prompt. The new Japanese menu is very good.

The food was good but not amazing. I did like how the scallion pancakes stayed crispy and how fast everything came out though. Didn't have a bad experience and everything tasted good, just wasn't in love with

A small restaurant with about 8 tables seating 4 to 8 people each. The ambiance is pleasant and good for a date or family dinner. We got: 1. The Tofu Seafood- excellent all around dish. Everyone enjoyed it and it was the first one to be finished. 2. Garlic fish filets pieces over Napa cabbage in wok HEI flavored garlic sauce- absolutely delicious! Perfect for people who need some veggies in their meal. 3. Green beans with dry chilies and green onions - very flavorful for such a simple dish. 4. Crispy fried thinly sliced intestines with chillies- spicy hot crispy intestines that my daughter raves about. It's definitely an acquired taste! Even though my husband and I are not into it, we tried a few after seeing her go at it. Very well seasoned and crispy! We went back for more. Lol. Warning though- does not taste good when it's cold! 5. Kung Pao Chicken- if you've had the original back in the day, you know it's a white garlic sauce. Theirs is just soy sauce. So we couldn't sync with it. So out of the five dishes, four were fabulous! That's an excellent rate of happiness for trying out new dishes at a new restaurant! The service was a bit slow since only 2 waiters were working the dine-in and to-go. Their to-gos seem to be very popular. But they were friendly and patient as we looked through their chinese/english large menu filled with pictures. We had leftovers the next night, the food was finished with gusto in the order above. So we are definitely going back for more next week! Happy New Year 2022!

I had the Hunan Beef Rice Noodle for $9.99. It was good and spicy but the noodles were very oily. I'm suffering from sodium overload right now. Not a lot of beef, peanuts, or veggies. The only veggies were some chopped up green onions. Looks like a lot from the picture, but once you mix it up, it's not as much as you think. It's mostly noodles - they're hiding under the peanuts and beef in the picture of my entree. Customer service was very good and the restaurant was clean. Located in the shopping strip at 9889 Bellaire Blvd. suite D-254. It's hard to find. Google Maps takes you to the parking lot of this large strip center, but doesn't take you directly to the establishment. I ended up parking and wandering around and found it - but that's not the restaurant's fault. You can blame Google Maps for that. :) Don't get it confused with "Spicy Hunan Chinese Restaurant" which is literally straight across the parking lot in a different building.

Love the food and customer service ! Food is always on point! Love that they can speak both Chinese and English.

For what may be the best Chinese food I've ever had, I will let a Flowers seller named Brandon serenade you. The Killers - Hunan https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RIZdjT1472Y I did my best to save some When the food came out on time But to the Cumin I surrendered The kid who brought the food was kind And sometimes I get hungry When I reach the Hunan door Close your eyes, clear your noise Smell the food Are we Hunan or are we Jiangsu? My Tofu is vital, my hot pot's cold And I'm on my chair Looking for the chopsticks Are we Cumin or are we Lamb, sir? Pay my respects to rice and noodles Because the lamb is just so good Give my regards to Seoul and Ramen They always did the best they could And so long to the Dim Sum You taught me everything I know Wave goodbye, order well You've really got to go Are we Hunan or are we Shandong? Chonqing Chicken is vital, my appetizer's cold And I'm on my second helping Looking for the Soy sauce Are we Cumin or are we Lamb, sir? Will your system be alright When you use the loo tonight? There is no discount we're receiving Let me know, are you all done eating? Are we Hunan or are we Anhui? My server's coming, my water's cold And I've got nummies in my teeth Looking for a toothpick Are we Cumin or are we Lamb, sir? *** This is probably the best Chinese restaurant I've ever eaten at. Even more than the legendary Xi'an of NYC. There is nothing like Hunan. It's paradise. What to get: Cumin Lamb, Tofu w/fish, and Chongqing Chicken. Three of the very best. What not to get: Caught up fighting over a table. There's always a race to get a table here. It's called the "Hunan Race." I'm not in the habit of routinely paying $15 per dish for dinner, but it's a pleasure at Hunan Bistro, and a regular one that I indulge in. I discovered real Chinese cuisine a few years ago, and since then I've probably eaten at a good 1,000 different places. The only one (outside Buffalo) that I've been back to 20 times (and counting) is Hunan. If Hannibal Lecter owned this place, it'd be Human Bistro. If they served food with the power of love, and were happy to be stuck with the same customers every night, they'd be Huey Lewis Bistro. And if it were named for my nether regions, it'd be Hugedamn Bistro. The dream girl says: "Hunan Bistro is so good! The lamb cumin dish is amazing! The roasted cauliflower was delicious! That chicken dish was really good! I love the tofu dish when it's spicy. The employees are super nice!" "That chicken dish" probably means the Chongqing Spicy Chicken. But again, Hunan is easily one of the best Chinese restaurants I've ever eaten at. In fact, it's one of the best restaurants of any kind, I've ever been to. The Lamb Cumin is one of the best of its kind of ever had. They're mid price, not cheap, but it's worth the price when you taste this wonderful delicious succulent Lamb, which is much more healthy than a lot of the greasy Sichuan Lamb Cumin dishes you'll find. And if they are as proud and confident in their food as they should be, it's Hubris Bistro. If you watch TV on your laptop while waiting for your food, it's HULU Bistro. If the Spicy Chicken goes straight to your butt, it's Huge Ass Bistro. If you get in a girl fight here it's Hold My Hoops Bistro. If you spend more on gas to get here than you do eating here, you may be driving a Hummer Bistro. If Drew Brees eats here, it's Whodat Bistro. If they refuse to play music by the Who, it's Whoban Bistro. And if a rap Clan eats here it's Wu-Tang Bistro. And if you're as promiscuous as me, but female, then I guess it's Who's-the-daddy Bistro. And if you're more into the Hungman Bistro, call me.

Food was phenomenal :) Spicy, but that's to be expected of Hunan cuisine. Server was friendly & experienced. Overall, best restaurant experience in Dun Huang plaza. This restaurant offers THE best glutinous rice balls with sesame!! The soup is sweet and had chamomile with goji--hands down, this is the best value dessert.

This is my second review and this place is as authentic as it gets. Great portions, service and food is beyond good. Having tried quite a few restaurants in bellaire, this one is clearly at top of the list. Must visit 5 stars always.

I had orange chicken with fried rice and the food was terrible. It was the worst Orange Chicken I had in my life. It tasted like left overs from previous day with orange chicken sauce on it. It was so hard I nearly broke my teeth. I complain to the manager and he said he will talk to the chef and will make sure it will be better next time. Sadly for him, there will not be a next time. However the service was reasonable.

Food wasn't bad I would like to try different things. Combination fried rice with no veggies is my favorite. It was basic but good. O yea I would recommend it. So they're not heavy on shrimps like most places I go. Ima try the beef and broccoli next time. Would've been 5 stars they just got to clean the clutter around the inside. Would of liked to know the Health inspection info without asking.

Have been going to hunan bistro for years. It's our go to spot for hunan food. It's changed owners over that time and the most recent owners are really taking care of the place. Prices have gone up, but so has the level of service and the cleanliness. Everything is good here and I'd highly recommend it if you are into spicy Chinese food and want a change from the typical Sichuan fare.

The restaurant was very clean . The staff was friendly . Pork peppers was a nice size portion with great flavor loved the heat of the peppers . My fiend picked the pig feet it was cooked in like a stew she said very tender and flavorful. If In Chinatown you want to check out this restaurant.

Came here on a busy Saturday evening in Chinatown, but this place didn't seem to be as crowded as other frequented spots like Banana Leaf, or Wing Kee. Nonetheless, Hunan serves some good Szechuan food, although I have had better. But true to its name, the restaurant does not hold back at all on its spice - would not recommend this place to anyone who can't handle a lot of heat in their food. Everyone at the restaurant seemed to be calm and comfortable with the spice levels, while my family was struggling with napkins and extra tea (as we do not normally eat Szechuan cuisine). The fish filet pepper stew was a solid dish, very hot as expected, and came in a huge portion that the 3 of us could not finish. The Ong Choy (water spinach) with garlic was our only non-spicy dish - a bit too salty for my taste though. Also not so impressed with their black fungus, which lacked some flavor. However, I did enjoy their clams. I would have liked to try their pork or beef dish instead of just seafood, but I don't think I'll be back here anytime soon simply because the food is too spicy for my liking. However, the customers around us seemed to really enjoy their food, so I suppose it is up to your own preference.

We have visited 70% of the restaurants in Chinatown, and this is my favorite. Extensive menu about the size of an encyclopedia and everything is good. Service is fine. Decor isn't outstanding but you come here for the food. Highly recommended.

Delicious food and highly recommended! This is one of our favorite places to eat in Chinatown. Flavorful dishes that suit people with strong taste and enjoys spicy food! Gotta get the signature fish head dish! Our other faves are the dry pots, cumin beef or lamb, sizzling tofu and vegetables! Staff is friendly. The place is small so try to beat the peak dinner hours by going a little early.

I think this place is a great restaurant with very reasonable price. I came here for lunch and 2 of us spent $40 and had left over food. We ordered the pork belly, fried crispy intestine and pork feet. And all of them were on spot perfect. The only criticism is the pork belly is just not tender enough. Everything else is great including service, environment and speed of service. That being said they do have a lot of other good options I have not tried such as their fish head and whole fish dish.

good service and good food we ordered beer duck and spicy fried beef. Taste amazing!!!' Definitely go again

Wasn't too bad. It was good. Good quality meat and dishes. You can tell they took their time making them. Tofu was good. Fish in hot oil was nicely balanced. Lamb was awesome and flavorful. Cauliflower was awesome! Beef. Good. Chicken. Good. Sauces for the dishes went well with white rice (super important) Glass noodles. Thumbs up. Overall good experience. Definitely holds their own against other Chinese restaurants in the area.

Well, I really like the food here so I've been here for a couple of times. However, what pissed me off this time was the bad service at the beginning. To start off, I made a reservation at 730p on July the 4th for 4. We arrived there right on time and were told that we have to wait another 5min. Okay, we waited. Another 10mins passed by. Then we were about to be seated, with still missing one chair and food garbage on another. I told the waiter and he GAVE ME ATTITUDE!!!! He said with impatience: "can't u just wait a little bit more?!!!" I was like, dude, I just asked for a very reasonable request! But I didn't say anything coz my bf started to be annoyed so I tried to calm him down. Then we were seated and placed order. I thought that was it! But then he gave us a dish, but NO RICE!! Even when I asked water without ice, he seemed super impatient! I had to ask another kind waitress to give us a bowl of rice to feed four starving stomachs-well, she apologized and immediately provided the rice-which I had to say was quite professional. Anyhow, I like the dishes especially the fried Little yellow fish. But definitely not this specific waiter! I know u guys were busy but that's not the way to treat customers!

--- NK Score = 8.2/10 --- 8/10 = Furniture/Ambience 9/10 = Food Quality 7/10 = Service 6/10 = Price (Other Ratings N/A) _____________________________________________ =( BASIC INFO )= - Small, Casual Interior - Chinese Food - Variety: Spicy, Noodle, Rice, Family Style - Prices: Medium-High ( $7.00 - $15.00 ) _____________________________________________ = Atmosphere = Casual interior, the place is brightly lit and has good quality seating/tables, but some of the tables may be a bit too close to one another. The noise levels here are above average during both lunch and dinner hours as the area is quite compact and the place is usually busy. _____________________________________________ = Food Quality = --- Fried Fish Filet ($12.99): 5/5 --- Very flavorful, soft, and intensely spicy pieces of fish that basically melt in your mouth, maybe. The fish is incredibly soft, which is unusual as it's fried, but it totally just disassembles in your mouth like clouds. Be careful though, as the spice in this dish is quite potent and may cause severe sweating and skin warming action. Portion size is rather decent, but it does kinda vary as I've had both medium and big portions before. --- Egg Tofu Seafood ($13.99): 4/5 --- The flavors are mushroomy, with a touch of seafood and savoriness, but the main feature of this dish is the super soft egg tofu that just liquefies in your mouth, literally! The portion size is decent, they give a lot of egg tofu, which is great, but the dish is a bit expensive even with such a massive quantity of deliciousness. --- Chicken Lo Mien ($9.99): 4/5 --- Interesting, for such a simple name, this dish actually packs quite a charming amount of flavor! The flavor is mildly spicy, savory-sweet tomato, and a touch of onion. Both the noodle and chicken have pretty good textures, which is super soft and easily bitable. Portion size is about average for the price. Not Recommended: - Cumin Beef (Spice overpowers the dish) - Eggplant Brown Sauce (Kind of bland) _____________________________________________ = Price / Service = Prices here are a bit more expensive than most Chinese restaurants, but somewhat comparable to Hunan cuisine. Service is okay, can be good or average. _____________________________________________ Miscellaneous (Other): - Above Average Spice Levels - Possible Smoking Outside, Avoid Doors Reviewed By NK (November 2017) Images Below By Jason L (NK)

Best fried fish ever! I'll come back for that and the green beans and eggplants. Trust me. It's amazing. So four stars for that alone. Pass on the fried chicken. Nada que ver. Parking is a headache just go the parking structure. Yes it is pricey but my kiddo and his friends were all about it.

The food is soo fresh and flavorful. The scallion pancake is nice and crispy,the pork belly is really tender and fatty that's what makes it so good. The lady at the counter was really nice.

I really like this place and so does my wife's chinese friends. It is one of my favorite places inside of the corporate shopping center. If you like authentic chinese dishes ,which my chinese friend's say is fancier chinese cooking, this place is right up your alley. I am caucasian and pretty much am down for anything that is authentically chinese. It has a lot of dishes that you won't find on a "white" persons chinese resturant menu. I would say that it is like a 4.5/5 food for 4.0/5 price. It is a treat but there are so many good resturants in china town if you just have asian friends to point you where to go. The dishes I have had are cummin lamb and boiled chili fish and beef. I have had others but I can't remember their names. The place is legit.

We've eaten here twice already, and I love the bold flavors here. We've tried several dishes, and we'd order most of them again. Here's the breakdown so far: Baked tilapia in spicy, numbing broth (see video): I realize some people may like the numbing, tingly taste of the Sichuan peppercorns. But, I for one am not a fan. I would much rather have had just the spicy chili peppers in the broth alone. The fish in the broth was still tasty, though. This dish was quite pricey. So, we probably won't order this again, since the Sichuan peppercorns can't be removed from the broth. Stir fried lamb with cilantro: Delicious. The lamb is pretty gamey. So, if you don't like gamey meat, don't order this dish. The cilantro, garlic, leeks, and chilies went so well with the lamb. Get this if you like lamb! Stir fried beef with garlic, leeks, ginger, and chilies: Notice a theme with their veggies and spice? This was a pretty good dish. But, it didn't really stand out amongst all the dishes we've tried. So, we won't be ordering this again. Stir fried pork belly with same veggies and chilies as above, plus sliced extra firm tofu: Fantastic dish. The pork belly was not too fatty. I loved all the different textures of the meat, veggies, and tofu. It tasted so good! I highly recommend this! Stir fried tofu egg with veggies, shrimp, and squid: I really liked the texture and flavor of the tofu in this dish. Everything else accompanying this dish was just meh. Kind of a toss up on ordering this again just for the tofu. Fried chicken bites with garlic, leeks, ginger, and chilies: So good! The batter was light and crispy. The chicken was seasoned well, and tasted delicious. Yummy! Pan fried fish with aromatics and chilies: This fish had hardly any bones, which I appreciated. It was fried to perfection, since I was able to eat the bones because they were already fried to a brittle state. Just overall good dish. Aside from the mostly great food, the service is pretty subpar. The waitstaff were pretty unenthusiastic to do anything, and were irritated when we were asking them to explain what was in certain dishes. I think the waitstaff at Mala Sichuan Bistro were much better trained with regards to customer service, and their food is quite tasty as well. But, come try Hunan Bistro anyway. At least the food will definitely keep you coming back.

What better way to lift up Hurricane Harvey woes than eating big portions of spicy Chinese food? We got the cumin lamb, braised pork belly with chili peppers, and dry fried green beans. The cumin lamb was probably my favorite, very flavorful and not too much gamey taste. The braised pork belly had similar flavors minus the cumin, so I don't recommend getting both of those dishes if you're not getting anything else. The pork belly was fatty and tasty like pork belly should be but was a little dry and chewy, not melt-in-your-mouth like I was expecting. The dry fried green beans were OK, mostly limp and greasy, not as crispy/crunchy as I had hoped. The reviews all warned about how spicy the food was, but I actually didn't think it was too overwhelming and had a good amount of spice, could even have been spicier. Hunan spice is more straight-up spicy + salty vs. Sichuan spice which is numbing and more fragrant. One thing that surprised me was how good the service was. Our waiter was always offering to fill our waters, very friendly and helped to find a dish when I just showed him a picture of it. Overall was not super impressed, but it's worth a try for standard, authentic tasting Hunan dishes. I will definitely go back to try some of the other dishes!

I've lived in Houston for the past three and a half years or so and have never been to a restaurant that I would automatically recommend to someone asking for Chinese food recs. I'm glad that I finally found Hunan Bistro, because if you like spicy food and you like fish, please come here. GEOGRAPHY Let's talk about Hunan for a little bit, namely the fact that it and the more well-known, inland Sichuan province are not the same, although they're both known for spice. I think Szechuan has become the namesake for spicy Chinese food, but I hear sometimes that Szechuan really is more "mala" numbing spicy--the spice that tickles and vibrates its way up your spine until your head is tingling--while Hunan really brings out the chili pepper spice. Here's what I ordered that I believe deserved a 5 star review: FOOD 1. Hunan Steamed Fish Head 2. Sizzling Seafood Tofu Platter 3. Hunan Smoked Pork (??) The fish head is difficult to explain if you've never had it before. If you think primarily of fish filets when you think of fish you might be terrified, but trust me... you're in for a treat. Thinking about it anatomically, the fish head is predominantly muscle. Think about all that dark meat, cheek flesh, incredibly tender, soaking up that sweet broth. It comes with a side of noodles as well, to easily feed three or four. (My mom and I are gluttons so we ate all of the head and rolled out of the restaurant but, that's another story.) It was SO good, the meat was ridiculously soft and simply melt-in-your-mouth... textually unlike any fish I'd ever had before. And given it was a gigantic head but the amount of meat that was there was still surprising. Incredible value for an incredible dish. (There is no small size, watch out--portions start at medium.) The tofu platter uses soft tofu medallions first fried to create a nice exterior, then soaked in brown sauce alongside the fish, shiitake mushrooms, and curls of calamari. Overall this plate wasn't a "signature" piece like the fish head, but the flavors nevertheless came together really nicely. It's not spicy, so you could order it to rest your palate. Last but not least, la rou! "La rou" is hunan smoked pork--think Canadian bacon-- but rather than smoked it's supposedly hung up and air-dried. So in Western terms, would that be... jerky? And yet, it's not as tough and dry, but rather bearing a consistency more similar to bacon. Maybe it's due to the cut of the meat. Ah, I'll stop speculating. You should get some form of this dish, because it's very much a trademark Hunan food item. It comes out spicy! I got a version with hard bean curds (dou fu) and leeks, and plenty of chilis. This one can be easily be eaten with 10 bowls of rice, so watch out if you're watching carb intake. Very strong flavors, also recommended. SERVICE Probably the most judgmental waitress I've ever met, but kind of in a good way. We came in not knowing exactly what to order, and she commented with more or less of a "what are you doing" kind of tone while giving us suggestions. Everything turned out for the better, haha. Time to come back sometime for lunch to try their mala tang! Until then, I'll still be dreaming about that fish head...

Excellent food especially green bean saute. Steam fish, cabbage with chili, cabbage with vermicelli. Expensive but worth every cent. Service is not the best good sometimes bad sometimes. We still go back since we love the food.

Food was ok but nothing extraordinary. I'm a huge sucker for good authentic Chinese food and restaurants but this place was nothing special. We ordered the water spinach, kungpao chicken, tofu dried pot, and the hunan style pork. They all tasted OK, but nothing stood out. However, service. Service was definitely lacking. We never got water refilled and felt like we weren't ever cared for. They were actually fairly rude. One waitress was also pressuring us to buy the 3 most expensive dishes, which included the big fish head and steamed fish dishes which were $25+. It made us feel really uncomfortable because we said multiple times at first that we wanted something lighter. And as we were tipping on the receipt, 2 waitresses were staring us down next to our table, eye-ing us to make sure like we were gonna give tip?? As we finished signing, they IMMEDIATELY bolted towards our check, looking to see if did tip. We ended up giving the minimum recommendation, but we just felt uncomfortable the WHOLE time. I've always been trying to find a great spot in Chinatown, and this definitely doesn't do it for me. Wouldn't return here...