Two weekend visits to this relatively new subterranean Sichuan eatery in Harvard Square (Eliot Street) with a very inviting interior and some VERY spicy dishes. -- Vegetarian Cold Noodle: Firm, peanut buttery, satisfying. Not spicy. Not too saucy, so you can "feel" the noodle, but I would have liked more vegetables. -- Yibin Fiery Noodles: Warm and similarly al dente, these were manageably spicy. Meat crumble, seeds or nuts, scallions, and heat. -- Red and Green Pepper Chicken: Batterless but crisp, tender, and not boneless. Relentlessly spicy from several heat sources and kaleidoscopically delicious. The closest comparison is dry hot chicken that also goes by a few other names, but this was better. Elite, and the best thing I ate in all of 2025, but sadly no longer on the menu. -- Stone Pot Tofu: Billed as Ma Po Tofu sizzling in a stone pot, but no sizzle and no stone pot. Identified as very spicy but minimally spicy and more numbing (more "ma" than "la"). I enjoyed the overall flavor (heavily seasoned) and the saltiness of the fermented black beans. Despite some of the menu discrepancies, this was a really good version for my tastes. Near-elite. -- Green Beans With Eggplant: Strong flavor, not too hot spicewise, but volcanically hot temperaturewise. Decent. -- Chicken and Clams: Black bean flavor, whole peppercorns, spicy but loaded with flavor beyond the spice. A deceptively huge and quite delicious. Elite. -- Beef Spring Rolls: Not my choice. Crisp, beefy, and chili sauce on the side added contrast. Solid, but boring, more typical of an Americanized offering, and a waste of an opportunity given Too Hot's killer menu. -- Pork Belly with Fermented Beans: Superb rendition, not drastically different from twice cooked pork, but much more flavor and giant pieces. Near-elite to Elite. -- Shrimp in Dry Hot Pot: Tons of dry rub spiciness, giant shrimp, chopped vegetables, and crinkle cut potatoes. Near-elite. -- Brussels Sprouts w/Shallots: More subtle flavors here but hardly bland. Fried shallots had sort of an onion ringy presence in miniature. Cooked just right. Outstanding overall experience, with the best dish on the first visit and almost all winners on the second. Kudos to the friendly and helpful service, including a server suggestion to switch an item after noticing we ordered two very similar items. Eager to return often and try even more of the menu. read more

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Pretty solid szechuan spot in Harvard Square! I made a reservation to ensure no wait time and at the time, I had to make it quite early so it seems like a popular spot. Interior felt very modern and sleek - it was a bit small as well so it was a little cramped between tables and walking areas. The menu had a good selection of szechuan fare and we ended up sharing some of their popular dishes. I enjoyed the large fish one which was a good size for a family. Everything tasted authentic, my only qualm was paying for rice - you can't not have rice and it seems ridiculous to pay $3 for one bowl. Overall, a solid restaurant and option for Chinese food in Harvard Square. read more

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I was looking for a cozy spot to dine with family for New Year's Eve! Booked a table here . There is a parking garage conveniently next door although these guys don't validate parking tkt just yet . We came in a bit early not knowing what to expect and waited for the rest of our group to arrive as they won't seat until everyone is there . Our charming hostess walked over to give a menu for us to browse through. They were definitely busy !! Didn't have to wait long to get our reserved spot. This place is small but has a cozy and warm ambiance. The menu has a lot of items to choose from. Once we ordered ,everything came out in a fairly reasonable time. We ordered one round of shots to start the celebrations and then a plate of farm style mushrooms , griddle spicy chicken, pan fried veg dumplings and they were delicious!! Our hostess made sure to check in with us and ensure everything was good. We ordered side of rice to go with mapo tofu , lemongrass chicken and it was delicious! There is a good amount of vegetarian dishes to choose from . My daughter ordered the chicken soup with dumplings-that was a huge bowl and very shareable and delicious. Overall an enjoyable experience , although pricey! But we will definitely comeback here . read more

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TLDR: really yummy Chinese food in a beautiful space close to Harvard campus, albeit priced according to its campus proximity. I really loved the space; much more beautiful than what I expected walking to the basement level. I also found the service to be hospitable; when we decided to order the cumin beef, the server joked around with us while giving a genuine heads up about the spice level. He even brought over extra water before our carafe was empty because I had made a comment while ordering about how we'd need it. Dishes: - Yu Shiang eggplant: this was so delicious. I'd totally get it again. A nice smoky flavor with perfect char and spice - Cumin beef: too spicy for me! The waiter's warning was appropriate but I literally could not taste the flavor, only spice. Be warned. I also felt like the portion was smaller than I expected although that's perhaps due to the fact that the eggplant came our first and I expected a similar price:size ratio -- definitely get rice or some sort of carb base to neutralize the spice here - Pan fried pork dumplings: yummy and surprisingly generous for the price. Well flavored and as expected. In summary I'm really happy that a solid Chinese place has moved into the square. Hong Kong is much more Chinese-American in flavor. I'd recommend! read more

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I know this is a Sichuan restaurant, but the food was drowning in oil. I came here with a friend and we ordered the gold griddle spicy chicken, sizzling cumin beef, and the Chongqing spicy beef slice shredded noodles. The two protein dishes tasted pretty similar and were extremely oily. The noodles were actually really good. I liked the different textures from the beef, noodles, and wood ear mushrooms. I'd honestly come back just to get the noodles again. read more

Too Hot - The image shows three main dishes of Chinese food on a wooden table. The top plate contains noodles topped with a sauce and pieces of meat and vegetables. The middle plate has stir-fried vegetables with red and green peppers, celery, and meat. The bottom bowl includes a stir-fry with lotus root, green beans, and minced meat. There are also bowls of rice, glasses of water, and empty black plates around the dishes. - Asian Fusion Near Me - Cambridge, Massachusetts

First off, no it isn't. I mean I'm as white as whole milk so maybe they took pity but the food just wasn't that spicy. That said - it was delicious. We got a fish dish, mushrooms and noodles, each of which was very artfully put together and each which brought a different amount of spice, numbing and just flavorful goodness. Definitely pretty oily, though I've run into that a lot in Chinese places around Boston. But for some reason that made me want to eat more, not less. Had a bit of a confused belly by the end of the meal but would definitely do it again. Also - worth noting the place is very nice and elegant, a good spot for a date that doesn't mind getting greasy. So, hot. But not TOO hot. read more

We're big fans of Noah's Kitchen, so we were excited to check out their new sister location. The space itself is beautiful--thoughtfully designed with unique, eye-catching decor that creates a warm and inviting atmosphere. That said, it felt like the team was still working through some kinks in service. A few of the dishes we ordered arrived lukewarm instead of hot, and one item was accidentally left off our order altogether. The mushroom egg shrimp balls with black truffle was delicious but an unreasonably small portion for the price of $36. We're hopeful that with a little more time to settle in, the experience will match the high standards we've come to love from Noah's Kitchen. We'll definitely be back to give it another try! read more

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Everything we got was really yummy! I've been looking for somewhere with good sichuan heat, and their chicken dish didn't disappoint. The kung pao shrimp and green beans were also delicious, and the staff was friendly. Just make sure you order rice to help with the spice read more

Really tasty place with spicy food! Favorite dishes were the smoked duck, steamed whole fish, and the complimentary rice cake dessert you get. The place is well decorated nice, though I do think it's pretty expensive. read more

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This new restaurant is well-decorated, clean, and spacious. Here are the items we ordered: -Yibin Fiery Noodles ($16.99): These noodles were deliciously spicy, light, and chewy, but the dish came out room temp. -Tibetan Style Sizzling Beef ($30.99): Included a sturdy portion of beef and loved the crepes that it came with to wrap the beef and vegetables. -Small Potatoes with Cumin Dry Pot ($16.99): Potatoes were not crispy and vegetables were spicy but not very aromatic. -Grilled Whole Sea Bass with Spicy Ginger and Tofu ($52.99): Relative to other grilled whole fish I've had before at Chinese restaurants, this fish felt more deep fried. The sauce, tofu, and vegetables were good, but it would have been nice if the fish was hot when it came out. -Organic Mushroom Egg Shrimp Balls with Black Truffle ($36.99): This was my favorite dish. The eggs were well cooked and the shrimps were delicious. However, it was quite a small portion for the price and the truffle flavor was light. Overall, the food was solid and the service was attentive. Their menu is extensive and we will be back to try other dishes. Just note that it is difficult to find parking in Harvard Square. Additionally, many nearby parking spots along the street only allow parking for up to 1 hour, which is not quite long enough for a meal. read more

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Solid 4/5. The food was delicious! Overall, everything was well seasoned and the ingredients tasted pretty fresh. The space was pretty clean and the decor was cute. Parking wise, it's Harvard Square... There isn't parking within a light walking distance so I highly recommend getting dropped off. Food spot lights: - Chengdu Mala Cold Chicken: Very tasty, loved the texture and flavors. The "ma"/numbing sensation wasn't overpowering and the chilly oil was pretty mild but added a lot of great flavor. - Wok-seared lamb: It can look a bit scary but the chillies far more for flavor and texture than for spiciness (it was actually pretty mild). The lamb was tender and very well seasoned. My only note would be that it is quite salty without some sort of neutral carb (e.g., rice, noodles) to cut the salt. - Spicy Double-Pepper Cod: I will say though, it is *pretty* spicy because of the millet pepper, so don't dip the fish in the sauce if you don't want the spice to really build. The cod was tender and juicy but not watered down and I *loved* the sauce. I didn't quite know what to expect for "Chinese Style Omakase", but to be honest, it was kind of disappointing. For something like Omakase, I place a lot of weight on service, and that's where my experience fell short. I felt like I was being rushed to finish each dish and if I paused to talk with company my plate with whatever was left on it would be taken away/replaced. It's hard to balance attentiveness with hovering, and I think it was a bit overdone that night. Also, the portions we got were great for family style dinners, but a bit too much for the number of things on the menu. given same serving sizes, I'd personally probably recommend 4-5 of the entrees on the menu for a group of 5-6 (with rice). I saw a lot of interesting dishes on their regular menu and I would definitely come back to try what the experience here is like normally. read more

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Food is more authentic less Americanized Chinese food. Spicy but not crazy. Lots of unique choices. Food comes out fast but service and close out can be longer if they are busy. read more

Great food. Way over ordered. Very cozy. Service was still a little off as more demanding tables were paid more attention while we waited. I'm sure this will improve with time. read more

Directly across from the Batia and Idan Ofer Building, the restaurant is located underground. It's warmly decorated and offers a wide variety of dishes, including specialties from Yunnan, Guizhou, and Sichuan. For those who can't handle spicy food, milder options are also available. read more

Too Hot - Area - Asian Fusion Near Me - Cambridge, Massachusetts

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Went to the restaurant because my son started working there, but was blown away by the atmosphere and the food. I highly highly recommend!

My wife got food poisoning from eating the snakehead dish. Avoid like the plague. Also overpriced for what you get.

This is a tough one to rate. The flavors in the dishes I got was excellent-truly so, in a manner that I've rarely had in the States. However, the prices were high. I wouldn't mind paying such prices for truly great food. However, the dishes tended to skimp on the protein and instead substituted in cheaper ingredients such as french fries. Yes! My chicken dish (Golden Griddle Spicy Chicken-$21) had 50% chicken and 50% french fries mixed in with the vegetables and spices. That cost this place a star. read more

Yummy authentic Chinese dishes. We liked the Guizhou sour fish soup, smoked crispy duck app, beef cubes with black pepper, green beans and twice cooked pork. Will go back to try more dishes! read more

We had a great dinner at Too hot last night! The food was delicious, and I loved all the vegetarian dishes, especially the eggplant strips, the brussels sprouts, and the tofu dishes. Service was very good and the decor is beautiful. read more