Mala chili 麻辣川味

Overall the food was really good! The Spicy Chicken (not too spicy but with the schezuuan peppercorn) and the Yu Xiang eggplant (sweet) were my favorites, they were perfect. 10/10 would strongly recommend. The soup dumplings didn't have much soup, so they kinda felt like wontons, but they were yummy too. The sesame red bean pancake was good but there was y a lot of filling so it wasn't as sweet as I've had it at other places. Overall really good food though, I'll come again!

Came here for the first time, and what a great surprise! We were just roaming around the shopping center when this restaurant caught our eye. At first, we were debating between grabbing a drink or having some Chinese food, and we’re so glad we decided to stop in for a meal. It turned out to be one of the best choices of the day! The highlight for us was definitely the mapo tofu—without a doubt the best we’ve had in the area. The flavors were bold, the spice level was spot-on, and the peppercorn added just the right kick without being overwhelming. We also ordered the eggplant dish, which was just as impressive—tender, flavorful, and perfectly cooked. Everything felt authentic, fresh, and thoughtfully prepared. The atmosphere was welcoming, and we left excited to come back and try more dishes. This spot is a gem, and we’ll definitely return soon. Cheers 🥂 They have a robot machine running around which was cute! ☺️

Crawfish mala style! 1st time eating crawfish this way and I must say it was very good! Crawfish were fresh and surprisingly large considering it’s so early in the season

Best Chinese food!!! We ordered pork egg rolls, spicy wontons, pork potstickers and beef lo mein. It was phenomenal! Highly recommend. It was very busy on Valentine’s Day but totally worth the 20 minute wait.

Is it authentic? Yes! Is it good? No! The coolest thing about this spot is the tablet ordering system that sends orders directly to the kitchen. We ordered two egg drop soups, scallion pancakes, chicken dumplings, and General Tso's chicken. The soup had a crap load of gluten in it as it was gummy. It was not just broth. The scallion pancake was greasy, and the steamed dumplings came out dry. The chicken was definitely large chunks, moist, covered in sauce, but it was thick and unflavored. I came for a day date. I was impressed, but it wasn't palatable; my date hated it. He refused after the egg drop soup. I tried adding chili oil, but it didn't work.

best Sichuan food in Austin. most of it was gone before I got a chance for a photo... my favorite is the pork rib dry pot (extra spicy). kinda salty but ok with rice. I don't recommend their Beijing duck - bland. overall the portions are a bit small for the price but nothing super unreasonable.

Cedar Park has very few decent Chinese food spots, so happy to have found Mala chili. Things that stand out are the expansive and creative menu and good portions on the appetizers. They do have many of the typical dishes (sweet and sour pork, orange beef, etc,) but they also have many things we've never seen that we'd like to come back to try. And they don't skimp on orders like dumplings. Service is great as well.

Updates: The restaurant later contacted me directly and explained it was a supplier issue. They were very sincere and offered a refund as well as to remake the food. I appreciate their willingness to take responsibility and make things right. ———————————————— Very disappointing experience. I ordered through DoorDash and paid over $100 for three dishes. The crawfish was extremely poor quality — the meat was mushy and falling apart like paste, which is not the texture of fresh crawfish at all. I ate a few before realizing something was wrong and my stomach started feeling uncomfortable afterward. The Peking duck was also missing the essential crepes and sauce, which makes it impossible to eat properly. The only acceptable dish was the snow pea leaves. For the price paid, this level of quality is completely unacceptable. I’ve had crawfish many times and this was definitely not fresh.