Hunan House

I’ve tried this place before and ordered stinky tofu… The sauce tasted really bad.
Wanted to try it again… So decided to call in for delivery but Very rude. Whoever picked up the phone hung up on me twice!!! Would rather order from joes Shang hai next door.

Spend 30 dollars+ with tax and tips included for dong ding frog. All I got was a plate of garlic, ginger and kill-​you spicy peppers with frog BONEs. Zero star. Doesn’t deserve to stay in business. Please stay away.

Overall foods were good — glad we have another nice Hunan restaurant in Manhattan! The sautéed pork with green pepper tasted authentic — lots of tasty pork, wish there were more peppers :). Sautéed spicy frog was awesome with quite a number of ingredients, making it quite tasteful. The sliced fish in red pepper was spicy and good. The soup, with seaweeds, rib and ingredients like green onion, was the best, and we finished it all! Check this out if you like spicy foods.

Just don’t do it… Save yourself the frustration. Service does not match expectation and it is forced upon you even with less than mediocre experience. First and last.

Won’t change the rating, because I’ve been consistently ordering pick up from them for the past year, and this is the first hiccup. Plus the woman on the phone was very courteous while working to understand and resolve the issue.
FYI: Their version of Mai Fun is different than what one would expect when ordering Mei Fun (and different than every Google image I found before ordering ;-), not a simple inconsistency throughout their menu, as I originally thought.
They serve Mai Fun as thicker, round, white rice soup noodles with the protein on top, and broth w/​scallions on the side. The only Mei Fun they serve is Singapore style. You’d only get a clue about this difference if ordering directly from their site, where the Mai Fun dish is listed as «Mai Fun or Noodle Soup»; the standard food delivery sites just list it as a noodle, not a soup.
Fortunately, the kind woman understood, and had the order remade, since they gave me fried pork dumplings rather then the pork soup dumplings I ordered. They don’t accommodate the request for Beef Flank Mei fun… but she offered up traditional Singapore style… and to have it delivered to my office, since I’d already used my break time for the incorrect pick up.
The order was there within half an hour. Solid soup dumplings, though the dipping sauce tasted funny (I think too much fish sauce mixed in). Singapore Mei Fun portion was ginormous! Very strong curry fragrance. Solid flavoring.
Hunan House remains a grand recommendation!

This used to be a dependable and tasty lunch Hunan restaurant for midtown west. My last visit there was downright awful. It started with the waitress — completely signed off and not interested in serving the customers. Then the soup was (hot and sour) was tasteless and microwaved! They didn’t microwave properly the first time and I had to send it back — they sent the same dish back — now more microwaved! I thought that was some sort of a health code violation!
The main dishes were equally awful and tasteless. If the owner is reading this — you are better than this! Fix it or you will soon become another restaurant casualty on 56^th.

Hunan House on 56^th street is actually a more luxurious setting of Hunan Manor and Hunan House in flushing. Hunan House is actually one of the first chain stores that started in NYC, before everyone decided to open replicas and what not. They have a full bar here! Which is pretty cool… How many Hunan restaurants have you seen with a bar? You can wine and dine at the same time while eating spicy cuisine. They are quite busy during lunchtime on the weekdays, and the weekends… I mean there is a crowd for a reason.
If you never had Hunan dishes and it’s your first time, here is what you should do: If you can’t handle spicy dishes, you have to remind them to adjust the level of spice. If you’re a health concerned person who freaks out about oil and salt… then you should tell them to adjust for you as well. Hunan dishes are heavy on flavors; you have to know that before you enter the restaurant. You must try the Fresh ginger chicken, cost around $ 30, but it’s a very large dish, to be shared most of the time. Their farmhouse stir-​fried pork is great here as well! I also love their Hunan style fried rice and brine rice noodles, both very authentic! Also… don’t compare Hunan House to Joe Shang Hai. they’re completely different Asian cultured food…

This place is SUPER lame… The dishes are TINY and over priced. We ordered some chicken dish, and we didn’t think there is any meat in it. It felt like we are eating fried chicken skin.
We will never come again.

My daughter and I came here after a long plane trip and wanted a easy simple chinese meal. The wonton soup tasted like soy sauce and warm water (not even hot!!) and the dumplings were really thick. We ordered the sesame chicken and ended up with something that tasted like churros in some type of thick orange syrup. We couldn’t even swallow it!
They didn’t ask us if itwas ok, they just took it away!
Luckily the beef and onions were ok and the white rice
.
What surprised us the most was the cook in the kitchen smoking!!!
I don’t like to write bad reviews but this was the worst place I’ve been to in years!!!

I would give 2.5.
Cucumber salad-​good. Small cubes of fresh Chinese cucumbers. Well sauced.
Beef tendon with pepper corn sauce-​delicious. Thin slices of beef tendon. Great taste with peanuts and chili sauce. A little oily.
Pork dumpling with chili oil-​below average. Tiny dumplings. Soggy dumpling skin.
Chinese broccoli with oyster sauce-​bad. Bad quality of oyster sauce whose flavor dominates. The Chinese broccoli is a little undercooked.
Sliced fish with pickled cabbage soup-​bad. The fish fillets are not fresh. The pickled cabbage tastes like it comes out of a paint bucket.
Cold country style chicken-​bad. Chunks of chicken breasts with bones drenched in chili sauce. Plain in taste.
Rice-​bad. Dry.

My father and I decided to check this place out because Joe Shanghai had a 20 minute lunch wait and we were craving chinese food. Definitely on par with (midtown) Joe Shanghai. A lot spicier (which we like) but after my dad paid with his credit card, it was hacked.
Eat here, don’t use a credit card.

Being a person born and raised in Hunan. This is an awesome place! To have a such high quality Hunan food in downtown area is really amazed me! So easy to access for tourist like me!

I’m going to have to defend this restaurant about price complaints. Coffee nowadays cost almost $ 4 a cup in New York City. If you add a croissant with your coffee you are probably paying almost $ 10.
You are paying around $ 10 for their lunch specials that comes with rice and soup/​spring roll. The portions are big enough, and you have to base them on the location as well.
You can order pick up on crowded weekdays, or order delivery prior to when you will be hungry. I love the design of the interior, its so elegant and defines Hunan culture. I am from Hunan and I know how food taste like back home. They are as close as you can get in New York city. I come here often since my work building is around the area, and visit the one in flushing closer to home since they are chain stores!

Unique, great place for authentic Chinese food. I’ve been a visitor of the hunan house chain for many years now, probably 5 – 6 years since the opening of the first Hunan House in Flushing, and that says something big. I’m biased but I’m biased for a reason. This place has a bar and that’s what makes it so unique. There is a wide variety of food and most of the waiters are bilingual, making it much more comfortable. The ingredients are fresh and yummy, and they don’t use MSG, which is a nice bonus. I would recommend you to go here at least once, if you haven’t because you’re missing out on some of the most authentic, delicious and spicy dishes in NYC. My all time favorites are the fish head, steamed pork, spicy fish, spicy lotus roots sauteed eggplants, spicy cumin lamb, and fried green beans. As stated above, there is an extensive menu, which incorporates both spicy and not spicy dishes.
The term «spicy» is extremely subjective, and it’s different for everyone. But if you didn’t want to eat something spicy, you should’ve went to the subways next door, so don’t complain when it’s too spicy. The food is indeed spicy but it’s also so good that you can’t stop eating it. Yes, my lips are usually very red after eating from this place but I love it! It’s not really good Chinese food until you’re crying out due to how spicy it is.

After a long hiatus following an unpleasant service episode, finally revisited Hunan House again. After a few visits, I’m relieved to see that the super hostile manager appears to have moved on to greener pastures…
Upping to four stars for:
— large selection of food including some pretty unique Chinese dishes that are hard to find around the city
— menu has photos — always a plus with exotic food
— overall decent and consistent quality of food — I do usually stay away from the lunch special menu which tends to be a bit more lackluster compared to full menu, though much faster to come out from kitchen
To be improved — minor:
— some dishes a bit pricey for what they are
— lunch portions on the small side
— don’t expect too much from the ambiance — which is fine with me, only there for the food
Overall, much improved dining experience. Look forward to trying more items from the menu.

Leave unrealistic expectations at the door. This is Hunan House, and we’re only here for the food. I won’t be judging or commenting on hospitality, service, and timeliness.
Hunan is a fresh of breath air after frequenting Joe’s Shanghai for so long. The extensive menu reads of authentic dishes, and the portions are banquet-​sized — which explains the hefty price tag other reviews note. Recommendations for conservative palates include Crystal Shrimp Dumplings and Steamed Pork with Preserved Cabbage (the long cuts of the Pork are equally fatty as they are lean). Both dishes taste homey and give way to a placid mealtime. The more adventurous should consider Crispy Pork Intestine, Fragrant Pig Ears, Cold Thousand Year Egg, and Watery Mouth Chicken. Hunan’s also on the list for Seamless, and most of the dishes seem to keep well throughout the delivery trip.
Tip — Vocalize exactly how spicy you want your dishes especially if you can’t handle the heat. It could make or break your experience. Non-​spicy, hot & spicy, very h&s, and super h&s are your options.

Okay, after one year, this place has gradually earned my trust back as an authentic hunan restaurant. It has been doing better since I first came here. Just stick to the staple Hunan food and you will be fine.
Staples:
Spicy dried carrot with smoked pork
Stir fried pepper with pork
Thousand year old egg with green pepper (eggplant inside too)
Their signature soup is decent too
Overall, a decent hunan food/​takeout/​delivery place. My go to place when I miss my hometown flavor.
Ps: if you are gonna stick with the general Tso chicken or chicken with broccoli, then you are missing out on a chance to taste the real Chinese food.

I went in for lunch with a friend from out of town. It was packed and there was a 25 minute wait for take out so I assumed it was good food. We both ordered the Kung Pao Chicken lunch special with wonton soup. We got our food, paid and left to eat in the park.
Simply put, this meal was terrible. There was barely any chicken, barely any peanuts, absolutely zero spice, and the dish was completely inundated with celery. If I ordered Kung Pao Celery, I still would have been disappointed because of how bland it all was. The soup was just hot water with bland wantons and a pinch of scallion thrown on top for good measure.
Honestly if it cost more than $ 22 for both meals, I might have actually gone back to complain, but instead Ill just leave this passive aggressive review. DO NOT EAT HERE, and dont be fooled by a crowd. 0/​10, would never consider going back.

I think it’s good, at least the place and the service is much better than some other Chinese restaurant~
For the food, just don’t try the Mao’s braised pork (毛氏红烧肉), I tired it cuz I think it’s a famous Hunan dish but got disappointed~ all the other dish I ordered here are good, it’s kind of Hunan mixed with Szechuan flavor, you can also order some famous Szechuan dish here, it’s authentic Chinese flavor~
They also have lunch special, this will definitely be my regular lunch place if I still worked near there~

Horrible, horrible, horrible. The food here is so spicy you can’t taste any of the flavors. Hot oil drenches everything, making the dishes barely edible. At the end of your meal, your plate is a oily mess of orange and red oil, and your tongue (and sometimes lips) are on fire.
Okay, I’m being a little unfair. Some of the dishes are actually edible. On a recent visit, I ordered the Dan Dan Noodles, an appetizer of rice noodles, spicy chili oil, minced pork, and spinach with a hint of peanut sauce. The dish comes unmixed, so it’s up to you to stir it up to incorporate all the flavors. You can err on the side of caution and leave some of the hot oil separated, and this makes it edible and delicious.
Ordinarily, I’m a customer who seeks out spicy foods, especially when the chilies add an extra dimension of depth of flavor to the dishes. However, bone-​in chicken casserole was way too spicy, like eating a nuclear bomb. This was exacerbated by the fact that tiny bones littered the entrée, like shrapnel from a destructive explosion. Unfortunately, my mouth served as the razed and rubbled detonation site.
Other dishes range from the fairly spicy to the extremely spicy but the pattern is pretty consistent. Service is a little absent-​minded and can sometimes be aloof, but they ferry water to put out the fires quickly.
Pros:
— Has some interesting dishes on the menu
— One of the only Szechuan restaurants in midtown (above 42^nd)
Cons:
— Most of the menu is too spicy, and not the flavorful kind of spicy
— Some of the ingredients taste unfresh or maybe expired
— Expensive for Chinese food (they have $ 25+ entrees)
— Service is aloof and weird sometimes