Taste of Hunan 湘村人家

An excellent restaurant with very authentic Hunan cuisine. Every dish we tried was delicious and full of flavor. It does get quite busy, so expect a bit of a wait during peak hours - but it’s definitely worth it.

The food is really good. We had fish, pork and beef. All of them are fresh and tasty. Two people ordered four dishes. We can hardly finish it! Recommended! Also free ice-cream!

One of the best chinese food restaurants I've ever tried in US. Recommend the smashed eggplant & pepper with century eggs.

The food is authentic and great. We really enjoyed it. Not too salty at all. The eggplant is interesting and delicious. The fish is so good with the spice. So far the best Chinese restaurant we have tried in the San Diego area!

My favorite Chinese restaurant in San Diego! Smashed Eggplant & Pepper with century egg is a must-have.

Back at Taste of Hunan, one of my favorite Chinese restaurants in San Diego, for a meal. The two of us ordered three dishes and specifically requested no spicy, but one dish still ended up being very spicy. The other dishes were quite tasty. The total for the three dishes came to $76, which is around five hundred RMB! Con: Wait was unusually long, we sat down at 7:06 pm, our first dish - the century egg / eggplant came out 7:42 pm and our last dish came out 8:06 pm had to wait 20 mins for all of our dishes to come out. We went on a Sunday night and the dinner rush was slowing down. Besides the risk of this wait, I highly recommend this San Diego gem.

This Chinese restaurant is authentic and delicious with a high spicy level. We ordered some their top pick dishes, like smashed eggplant and century egg, spicy beef entrails, pork bun, and Hunan spicy beef. The eggplant and century egg was their first pick and tasted amazing, especially with rice. The other entrees were great, but I liked the top pick the most. The majority of entrees were highly spicy, but did not serve with rice. Rice was also not unlimited after ordering. Seats could be limited. We came here early, so no need to wait. But there was a long line when we left.

The best hunan dish in San Diego. A lot of not spicy food options as well if you are not a big fan of spicy food. Their sour and spicy fish is my favorite. The fish is fresh and everything tastes good!

Hunan style cuisine has easily become one of my favorites after eating here! Service is great and is decorated well. The cuisine lends to a lot of spicy foods: Smashed Eggplant and Pepper with Century Egg: Amazing over rice! The century egg gives a nice creamy texture with the smashed eggplant. The black bean also give a great punch of flavor in this dish. Easily a must get with rice! Xiangxi Style Beef Entrails: Similar flavors to other dishes, spiced and spicy. Mainly the texture of the meat shines here. Kind of like a jerky texture, if you like intestines and organ meats this is it for you. Beef Loved by My Wife: Again, similar spicy and spiced flavor profile, this time with a tender beef. It's good, not my favorite though. Braised Beef Brisket with Sweet Potato Noodle: A welcome change in flavor, a nice light soup packed with flavor. The beef brisket was super tender and the noodles had a great chew to it! Pork Belly with Quail Egg: This may not be a traditional Hunan style dish, but I'm a sucker for a tender pork belly and this was it. The quail egg was fried so it has a nice rough texture on the outside that complimented the pork belly nicely. Stir Fried Pork Tripe: Similar to the beef entrails, this is great if you love organ meats which I do. It's more of a sharp and quick hit of spiciness which is different than the longer, lingering spiciness of the beef entrails and beef loved by my wife dishes.

One of my favorite chinese restaurants in San Diego! I usually come here on a weekday for dinner and there isn't usually a wait. My favorite dish is the smashed eggplant! My friends and I crave it every now and then and it's just soooo good. We've also tried other things like the sour cabbage fish, but I prefer Fish With You over this spot since they make it too spicy and sour. We've also tried mei cai kou rou, also good but pretty standard. The stir fried bamboo is just ok, I wouldn't get it again. The eggplant is reason enough to come back!!

Taste of Hunan is one of our favorite spots for authentic Hunan food in San Diego! We ordered the stir-fried cauliflower, mashed eggplant with century egg, and pork tripe with chicken soup -- everything was fresh, flavorful, and just the right level of spice. Their takeout process is super easy and smooth. They always answer the phone quickly and politely when placing to-go orders, and the food is ready on time. The staff is friendly and provides great service every time we visit or pick up. No wonder they're always busy -- the quality and consistency here are excellent. Highly recommend for anyone craving real Hunan-style comfort food!

Great orange chicken!!! It is flavorful and it is a large portion...I order takeout and the buy beer to accompany dish!

Overall dishes were hit or miss, flavors on the heavier side. Good: fatty pork belly was sublime & melts in the mouth, Bad: pig's feet & braised pork were not that tender, prob pressure cooked instead of slowly cooked the real way. Fish in sour pickle soup: the fish tasted too fishy, broth a bit bland Other dishes were avg: tofu in stone pot, stir fry beef, stir fry pork with pepper which was on the greasy side

I am always happy when I eat at Taste of Hunan. My favorite is the Eggplant with Century Egg, though it's hard to make the picture look aesthetically pleasing. The restaurant is clean and has that typical Chinese restaurant feel to it. The staff is very kind and does their best to answer any questions you may have.

This has been bookmarked for several years and today I was in the area for dinner, so i crossed another place off my list. Food was okay.... Lamb with cumin was overcooked and greasy. Chicken Kung Pao was moderately spicy and also yoo greasy. String beans w garlic was the best of the three items.

The pickled stir fried chicken was really good! Will definitely order again. The vegetable fried rice was great too!

love this place! lots of parking, clean restaurant, and fast, attentive service. this place is one of our faves for chinese food and it's very authentic. we are always craving the smashed eggplant. the free melona ice cream was also really refreshing after a meal. :)

I come here a lot, both for take-out and for large parties! Some of the most authentic Chinese food in the Mira Mesa area and worth going to if you don't want to make the trek to Convoy (and you'll know it's authentic once you see the demographic inside the restaurant). My favorite is the fish fillet with pickled vegetable, which is a bit pricey but very much worth it - a huge bowl of sour/savory soup with large fish fillets and Sichuan pepper spice and so addictive. Can't go wrong with other things on their menu either. They have large rotating tables that would be excellent for large parties 6+, and while they can be busy during peak hours, the wait is pretty minimal every time I come. Clean, bustling ambiance and good service. The parking is also very convenient in a large Trader Joe's plaza. Wouldn't hesitate to recommend this place to anyone and looking forward to coming back!

A decent choice in this neighborhood. Some items are surprisingly good. Braised beef brisket with sweet potato noodle: 4/5. The soup is rich in flavor. Beef brisket is tender. The only negative is the amount of noodle, it's almost non-existent. You have to fish for it. Will order again next time Cumin lamb: 4.5/5. The lamb is tender. The onion is super sweet. They go really well together. A side order of rice is perfect. House special pork feet: 3/5. Nothing special about it, but it's definitely not bad. Yangzhou fried rice: 2/5. Bland. Nuff said. Chicken chow mein: 2/5. It's ok. Can do without.

Just a few days later, I went back for lunch with friends. At noon, there was no wait at all, and the food came out super fast! This time we ordered cauliflower, beef, and large intestine - every dish was delicious and went perfectly with rice!

My second time here and I tried a few new items. Steamed Pork With Preserved Vegetable & Bun, Smashed Eggplant & Pepper With Century Egg, Stewed Chicken & Pork Tripe With White Pepper YUM YUM YUM along with their signature Cumin Lamb Served On Sizzling Iron Plate, Braised Pork With Quail Eggs and to round it all out Sautéed Seasonal Vegetable. Everything was so delicious and so many more new things to try the next time I come by. Saturday evening was busy but we got seated after a 20 minute wait, Out party of six was too small for the empty large round tables that I think seats about 10. The food came out pretty quick and we felt a little push to leave, but there were people waiting and we were just gabbing.

TASTE OF HUNAN (湘村人家）Among the Very Best Chinese Restaurants ... I have lived in China/ Taiwan/ Singapore for over 20 years & have had some GREAT MEALS in Asia & North America. I find this casual & non-pretentious Hunan cuisine restaurant, sharing a mini mall with Trader Joe's in N. San Diego, to be one of the most outstanding Chinese restaurants I have ever visited (now twice). Unforgettable! （忘不了)!

After a nice head spa, my friend and I decided to get dinner at Taste of Hunan. When we arrived around 6pm on a Sunday night, there was hardly any wait. We were sat at a table and were told to order via the QR code on the table. Interestingly enough, they did NOT ask the older (40s-50s) people that got sat next to us. In fact, they took their order by paper pretty quickly. They spoke Mandarin and we did not, not sure if that made the difference? We ordered two items the mashed eggplant and the fish fillet in mustard greens. Eggplant is ALWAYS yummy. Always a good idea, trust me. You have to get it. It just hits the spot. The fish fillet dish was soupy so they bring you bowls and spoons which is thoughtful! The fish does get sort of get spicy after a few mouthfuls. There's peppercorns and peppers in the broth but not a numbing spice.

We have not been here for 5 years and decided to try again. The restaurant is light and bright and busy. This is authetic Chinese but they were have menu items that cater to the Chinese American eaters. We ordered pork belly with Chinese cabbage, crispy bamboo shoots and clay pot tofu. Everything came out fast and delicious. The servers circled around asking if we needed anything. Several thanked us for coming in. When we left there was a line out the door with about 10 people. Great place to go with easy parking, authetic without driving to Convoy area. Only negative was the dishes were a little oily but still tasted good!

We ordered the pickled fish, eggplant, and beef entailed. All 3 dishes were authentic and delicious. Full of rich flavors. The service was amazing. Usually this place is packed but the wait is worth it. I will come back to try other dishes!!

The cumin Lamb was flavorful and spicy. Chicken chow mein - standard and good. Spicy chilli pork noodle soup - each component was good in this soup.

If your thing is pig guts, bull frog or intestines than this place is for you. Their few Americanized Chinese dishes are ill prepared skimpy on meat and very greasy. Place has atmosphere and staff is pleasant but hard to understand and speak little English. Service ok once you are understood. I understand different but this was too authentic for gringos. Don't punish us with the few dishes that are main stream and very badly prepared

This is a great place to get authentic Hunan food. I especially liked the Cumin Beef (kinda taste like lamb) and the Shredded Cabbage. The kids loved the fried rice, XiaoLongBao, and Mapo Tofu. Most of our dishes were spicy. It led some of the people on our table break a sweat (actually, a lot of sweat ). Nonetheless, everyone came out satisfied and happy. I hope we can go back and taste their other dishes. I noticed quite a few tables had the pork hock, which we didn't get to try during this visit. This place is an exception to many Chinese restaurants I've been to. It had good space and nice decor, very good food, and great service (all in one place!). Usually it has one or only two of these things, but rarely all three. To top it off, their food was reasonably-priced. You get really good value for the price you pay.

Fantastic and perfect!!! Get their cabbage and lamb-- it's soo addictive! Their mapo tofu tasted kinda different today-- extra spicy and savory and numby and just so delicious!! Service was also great! So fast and kind. 100% recommend this restaurant!!

Good spot for Chinese food. Most places are the same and most of times I'm always ordering the same thing. If your in the area, I would check this place out

The restaurant is just okay. I am in this area pretty often and can smell this restaurant whenever I am nearby and it always smells delicious, so one day I finally decided to visit and try out their food. Their customer service is decent, maybe just average. We didn't run into any major issues and they were not rude or unwelcoming, just not super attentive either, but this could be due to a language barrier. We ordered about 5 different dishes and decided to share, but quickly noticed that their food is kind of hit or miss. A lot of their dishes end up tasting very similar, since they use the same seasonings for a lot of items on their menu. Perhaps I just was not too fond of the classic, traditional, Hunan taste, but the flavor did get old pretty quickly. Their steamed fish is delicious, but the serving size is quite small for the price. We also wanted to try their soup dumplings, but they were sold out by the time we got there. The restaurant always seems fairly busy and appears to be quite popular to locals in the area, as it is almost always bustling.

Easy ordering where you can order off of a QR code or order with your server. The food was brought out fast and hot and it tasted delicious. Will be back.

Back again. This place is always reliable with quick seating, friendly service, and delicious food. The ordering is via QR code and is very convenient. We got our usual: the water boiled fish (spicy and sour), eggplant with century egg (spicy) and green beans. The Hunan (xiang) cuisine focuses on spice. If you like spicy food, you will probably enjoy this place. They can also make it non-spicy.

We had a team lunch at this restaurant. It was nice they have a big table for 15 people. The foods here are pretty nice, we didn't order a lot of spicy authentic Hunan food because we want to make sure everyone can enjoy the food here. But surprisingly, the most popular dish was an authentic Hunan food which is the eggplant with century eggs. Overall it's a nice place, with good food, good service and clean environment.

Authentic Chinese food with bold flavors! Can be a bit of a wait on a weekend evening but the staff is efficient so the wait is never too long. We had the eggplant century egg signature dish, fish with pickled veggies, pork belly with preserved veggies and chicken/intestine soup. There is no bland flavors here, and it's best that you like some spiciness to your food. The pork belly dish was savory and meltingly tender. The fish fillet was moist and addictively sour from the crunch pickled veggies. After a bite of the century egg mixture, you need to go back for more. Everything here has been fantastic but the only tiny thing is that the dishes are slightly more salty than I prefer. Not too much to keep me from coming back tho!

I have seen this place forever and have never tried it u til last night. Very authentic, wild to tame choices on the menu. The smoked pork and fermented vegetable fried rice was amazing. Xiao long bao was fantastic. Only a block away from the house and definitely going in to my usual rotation.

My favorite Chinese restaurant in town. Services are great, food is never disappointing. The only bad thing is the wait is always long especially during weekends. That's why usually order Togo and enjoy the food at home.

This was an interesting one. Have not been to this place but it's actually pretty good. Their eggplant dish was actually one of their popular dish and it was good. It's not like your typical Chinese food but good. It's also not very big place but nice and cozy. The service was pretty good also. So check them out if you like Chinese food.

Great service and food affordable, especially for family style. Always crowded so make sure you have the right expectations.

I really enjoyed the smashed eggplant--it was flavorful and well-balanced. However, the other dishes were a bit too strong for my taste. That said, the staff was very friendly and welcoming, which made the experience pleasant overall!

Omg! First time my mom enjoyed Chinese food at restaurant! Amazing food and taste! Authentic! Clean and nice staff! We ate the delicious smashed eggplant, steamed fish, xiao long bao, vegetables of the day! Will try the fish with pickled vegetables next time - heard it was delicious from a neighboring table.

The place is pretty spacious. Went there on a Friday night after a movie, it was packed with people and have a long line waiting. This restaurant is a popular place because of their authentic Hunan cuisine. My favorite were the Xiangxi beef and the chicken and pork tripe stew with ginger and white pepper. They were spot on.

I came here as a group of 8 on a Tuesday evening. A part of us got there right at 6 and we were seated a little after 6:20 once everyone arrived. As the place was filling up, we had to play musical tables so that they could accommodate other parties as well. I saw that a smaller group had to do the same thing for us when we were first seated. This is done before we ordered, and went from a longer table to a round one with a lazy susan. We definitely lucked out on that one! Here's what we got: (my favorites indicated with *) *Braised garlic string beans $16.99 - they had a great crunch and flavor *Spicy Pork liver salad $12.99 - thinly sliced with good flavor Sautéed Cauliflower $16.99 - tasted fine but seems expensive for what it was Steamed Rice (for 8) $15.92 *Pork Dumplings $14.99 - crispy dumplings with juicy meat *Smashed eggplant & pepper with century egg $18.99 - very nice flavor, and the egg wasn't strong Cumin lamb served on a sizzling iron plate (aka shovel head) $28.99 - presentation aside, this was mostly onion with some lamb. The picture in the menu is misleading, as this was maybe 40% lamb and 60% onion. I wouldn't get this again but if you decide to get it, let the onions caramelize before digging in *Mysterious Spare Ribs $22.99 - slightly sweet but very tender and good *Fish fillet with pickled vegetable $26.99 - definitely worth it. So much perfectly cooked fish and the veggies were really good too! Stewed chicken & pork tripe with white pepper $26.99 - the flavor was good but the texture seemed a bit off. This was a recommendation from a friend but I probably wouldn't get it again. Chicken chow mien $15.99 - standard chow mien. Nothing special but it wasn't bad. Once the food started coming out, it kept coming out. The rice came after we got about 4 dishes, and it was definitely a great compliment to many of the items that had a lot of flavor. Collectively we ate about 85% of what we ordered and there was just enough left over for a few lunches. A service charge was already included in the bill for our party and it worked out to be about $36 per person.

The rudest restaurant in San Diego, hands down: Taste of Hunan (Xiangcun Renjia). The boss will ask you, "Are you done eating?" even before all the dishes have arrived. Then the staff keeps pestering you: "Do you need a to-go box?" They had a large party needed extra seating, so they wanted to merge our table with theirs. Worst restaurant I ever met in my life!!

Delicious! My sister in law also married a Taiwanese (like her bro ) so we all like good food. We had a reservation for 8 people. We were seated almost right away and the place is packed. We ordered the sour fish soup with no bones (my spouse is scared of fish bones getting stuck while I eat fish like second nature), chicken and ginger, mai cai cou rou aka fatty pork with pickled vegetables underneath and fluffy white buns to put them in, beef noodles, etc. Too many dishes to count but they were so good. The sour fish soup was a surprise but a quick favorite. My 8 yr old loves soup and pickles so he loved this. Kids loved the green beans and cauliflower with crispy pork skin ( like chicharrones). So many other dishes we want to try for next time. Definitely make reservations!

Very good food! Taste of human provided great service and they sat us down quickly. Overall I would rate a 9/10. Best chinese restaurant in san Diego!

Authentic food and great service! This is a place that family likes going to whenever they want a taste of home. One of the few solid Chinese restaurants in San Diego!

Taste of Hunan is a decent spot with plenty of options for Chinese dishes. We tried the lamb stir fry and the spicy fish filet. Both were reaalllyy spicy for me but mild for my husband so I guess it depends (I am a mild to medium lol). I thought the flavors for the lamb dish were good and would have really enjoyed it if I could handle the spiciness. Fish soup dish was a bit too sour for my taste since they put tons of soured veggies in there. The prices are a bit higher than other Chinese restaurants but they were very friendly and parking was easy to find. Glad we tried!

This place is bomb! The only thing is some of the dishes, like the veggies, seem overpriced to my family and I. We prioritize ordering meat or fish dishes and everything we got was delicious and full of flavor. The beef entrails (5/5) were chewy spicy and sooo full of flavor it was definitely my favorite dish because I love spice. The pork with chili peppers (4.5/5) had nice flavor but the some of the meat wasn't as tender as we'd like, but the flavor made up for it. The addition of the chilis and black fungus was perfection. The Changsha stewed beef tofu skin seaweed (4/5) was super delicious! It was a nice starter for us and we loved how each item paired with the others. Overall great experience! You order through a kiosk but you can also ask the waitresses for anything! The price is a little on the higher end but still a super delicious satisfying meal! I highly recommend.

Amazing food, great service, spacious and clean dining space. Definitely a must go if you are in the area!

Food was great and shareable! The inverted eggplant was a new experience. It was a bit loud, but understandable for a Saturday.

Geeeez I was missing some authentic spicy chinese food! This was so yum, but on the oily side. Service was okay, they were so busy and the restaurant was packed full of people. We asked them for recommendations, but they just told us to order the specials without much explanation. Came here around 7:20 PM on a Saturday and waited approximately 40 minutes to be seated. I would definitely definitely get the beef dish. Even though it's on the oily side, it was an EXPERIENCE. The fish portion was absolutely massive. We took 5 to-go boxes after and are still eating the leftovers. Duck neck was p good but not my favorite. Overall great experience and would come back again. Unsure if I'd wait 40 minutes again though.

Food: 5 Service: 5 Ambiance: 5 Came to this restaurant with a friend who always introduces me to traditional Chinese dishes. We basically hunt for places where he can find dishes he's used to eating back home. We got normal spicy for both dishes and were pleasantly surprised that it was a tolerable spice with great flavor! Both these dishes are vegetarian and honestly, changed my outlook on a vegetarian diet. I couldn't stop eating the cauliflower ! (I don't think I've ever said that about a vegetable before lol) Service wise, we came on a weekend so it was packed. Even so, the servers were always walking by, and could tend to anything we ask for like water or boxes. If you enjoy white noise and busy, family-like environments, this place is perfect!

The food was terrible. We also made a mistake of ordering chicken fried rice. It tasted worst than the fried rice from a buffet place. I would give it a 1 star except the waitress was nice. We tipped her well but the food was horrific. Not going back.

Absolutely love this place! The food has that true Hunan hometown flavor--rich, bold, and deeply satisfying. Every dish reminded me of home. After eating here, I honestly don't think I could go back to a Sichuan restaurant--this just hits different. Highly recommended for anyone craving authentic Hunan cuisine!

I have mixed feelings about this spot. I don't think I would come back here regularly. I don't even know how often I would come back here. It was just so intense. But, that's a good thing too. I'm just not used to this. Beef stir fry with pickled peppers. The cilantro and the spices were so strong. The mapo tofu made our mouthes so numb. The chow mein we finished so fast. It's a good chinese spot.

I've passed by this place when I got board and brew next to it and finally got a chance to come here when my friend suggested it after his delightful experience 2 weeks prior. We got there around 7:30 pm and not many people were inside thankfully. Probably because we were eating a late dinner. We sat down immediately and thankfully their ordering process was super simple by scanning the QR code to order online with our phones. We selected our dishes and the order was sent to the kitchen. TO food came out within 10-15 min, so fast! We got 4 dishes between 2 guys and 1 girl: 1. Cumin lamb served on sizzling iron plate 4.5/5 2. Sauteed beef with pickled chili peppers 3.5/5 3. Sauteed seasonal vegetables 5/5 4. Braised chicken with chestnuts 4.5/5 The cumin lamb was very flavorful and had a decent crisp on the outside of the meat. I loved how there were chopped onions inside as well. I got normal spicy but for you spice lovers go for the extra hot. The sauteed beef with chili peppers was different than what I expected. Unfortunately there was cilantro all over this plate and I just can not with cilantro. The beef was also weirdly too chewy. The sauteed vegetables were garlic seasoned steamed bok choy and was super good! I'm not sure if they have this for only a season or all year but this was a ncie vegetable dish to balance out our protein heavy meal. The braised chicken with chestnuts were also very good. The chicken was very juicy and the chestnuts were a nice addition. I wish there was a bit more flavor but I'm also not very familiar with Hunan flavors. Overall great food and nice space inside!