Consistently comes through with variety (monthly specials, deep menu, getting deeper), value (lunch…read morespecials give you about 3/4 of a full entree plus the soup, app, and rice), and ease of use (every item is pictured on the online menu; huge parking lot; plenty of seating). Consistency of quality (texture, flavor) is less dependable.
-- Hot and Sour Soup: Thick without being gloppy, filled densely with mushrooms, and hot in both the spice and temperature meanings. Simple and satisfying.
-- Fish Filet with Green Sichuan Pepper: Had this one again and had the same great experience as described in the previous review. Thin broth but jumping with flavor.
-- Twice Cooked Pork Belly 回锅肉 : A longtime favorite with instantly recognizable pork flavor, accented with black beans, and the added light crunch of leeks. It's a great combination. Tried twice during this cycle: once just right, once too fatty.
-- Shredded Pork with Tea Tree Mushrooms 肉丝茶树菇 : A late August 2026 special with tender squiggles of pork balanced with sturdier "branches" of mushroom with an earthy flavor and a firm octopus-like texture. Nice balanced savory flavor without any need for heat.
-- Sichuan Kung Pao Chicken 四川宫保 : A reliable standby when you want something with heat and flavor, but your dinner companions are not so adventurous. Very tender, a little sweeter than the "American" version and without the celery, but still authentic.
-- F10 Fish Fillet in Chili Oil Sauce 水煮鱼 (on a lunch combo): This dish that I often get at night gives you nearly as much quantity on the lunch special, with a choice of soup, choice of rice, and choice of appetizer. Soft, tender boiled chunks in a bright red bath with a pile of red peppers and garlic on top (easy to remove anything you don't want), with cabbage and sprouts underneath. Spicy and best had in winter, but too good to skip in summer. I didn't get the promised numbing sensation this time, but it's a potently flavorful dish and one of my favorite renditions.
-- Chicken Wing: Single whole connected wing included with a lunch combo was extra large, breaded, and very crunchy and juicy. No marinade flavor inside, so duck sauce was necessary.
-- D03 Crispy Boneless Duck with Vegetables 蔬菜炸鸭 : Large platter of mostly duck, all of it with skin on, and most of it-- but not all of it-- crisp as billed. Minimal vegetation, which is a plus in that it maximizes meat but a minus if it's the only entree you're having. Simple flavor with a simple, thin brown sauce. Satisfying, but average. Interestingly, a taste from a friend's lunch special version of this dish a few weeks earlier had a lot more crisp, a lot more juiciness, and a lot more oomph to the sauce. Might depend on the day.
-- F19 Crispy Sweet & Sour Fish Fillet 松鼠鱼 :
Twin filets of fish, each about 10" long, boneless, extra extra crispy, and with fish within thin but still tender. The sauce was your typical Polynesian style fire engine red, with more sour than sweet, but nicely done with peas and without glop. A bit pricey but voluminous enough to provide plenty of meals and plenty of value.
-- T06 Spicy Dry Pot Tofu 香锅豆腐 :
A sauce less dish where the slices do the heavy lifting. Tofu triangles comprise about 80% of the pot, each one dark brown and a bit dry and over cooked. My wife, who's a tofu lover, said it was like chewing on rubber.
The ledger shows mixed results from dish to dish and even from visit to visit for the same dish. But when they're on, Sichuan Palace is fabulous enough for a 5 (and some visits are 5). The inconsistency brings them down to a 4 (with some visits 3).
