Sumiao Hunan Kitchen

We decided to eat here as our last meal in Boston before we moved out of state - it did not disappoint! We expected there to be a wait as it was crowded even on a Tuesday night, usually a good sign. We were seated immediately at the bar, where we were serviced by Bao. Best meal, best service, and best conversation to remember Boston by! Bao was extremely accommodating, informative, and personable - he clearly explained different menu items we had questions about, provided recommendations, and explained mixology theories behind our drinks. We intended to stay for just an hour to eat, but ended up stayed until closing! Thank you Sumiao and Bao!

Had a chance to try Sumiao while visiting boston this time around, and I was thoroughly surprised by this place! I had heard good things and this place was really a true hunan style chinese kitchen! I'll start with what I wouldn't get again: the chili chicken and the shrimp shumai. I assumed the chicken would come fried or something, but the chicken is just boiled it seems with a schechwan style broth / sauce poured over it (although this sauce was numbingly delicious). We ordered all our food mild, and I would order mild again if you are a medium spice lover! I would also not recommend the shrimp shumai again - it was fairly bland and only soy sauce was offered with it, we left most of it behind. Now onto the must try: we really enjoyed the sizzling fennel lamb cubes - they were really tender yet flavorful. The fire beef was also really flavorful, but I would recommend ordering a side of some white rice to eat along with it, as it doesn't already come offered with rice. Along the beef meat, I wish I had tried the yellow river beef, as every ad showed it and if the broth tastes anything like the one poured over the chili chicken, then that would be a must have! Will have to try it next time!The fried rice was also a little bland, so would try something else next time. The noodles were flavorful and would recommend. Eggplant and green beans were a great option for our vegetarians in the group.The service was okay - we came in as a larger party of 7 with clear availability at many tables. It took us talking to the manager for us to get seated indoors when there was clearly plenty availability left at the time in which we came in at. I would though recommend making a reservation in advance to avoid the hassle - although the reservation fee is $25pp cancelation which is why we were hesitant to begin with.

Amazingly authentic Chinese restaurant with upscale seating environment and really thorough menu with all allergies and ingredients marked. Full bar as well. I think it's one of its kind and really unique in Boston - you can't find an alternative for such a restaurant that's fitting for a big group with people in mixed backgrounds and different prior knowledge of Chinese foodIn other words, well done restaurant management! It shows a lot of thoughts behind the details and clear business objectives/targeted audienceMy favorite dish was the lamb chops. So tender and flavorful!If I have one critical feedback, that would be some menu items are overpriced, but again the portions are not bad so I still think it's worth it

Service is always great here and food is delicious. You can always adjust the spice level for the entrees you order, but they are known to be a place to get spicy food. Not sure if it's the MSG added (or just some other specific ingredients), but I always don't feel the greatest after eating from here, even though all of the food is tasty.I also regularly get takeout from here and they're always on time and package everything well.

We came here as walk-ins on a Saturday night and they were able to seat us immediately at the bar or communal table. We chose to sit at the bar, but the communal table looked well spaced out enough that it would have also been cute and enjoyable.Flavors and cooking style were tasty and authentic, but there was a big discrepancy in portion sizes between dishes. We got a decent size for our appetizers (mala duck and cold bean curd), but our vegetable dish of eggplant and string beans was much smaller than we are used to the dish being at Chinese food restaurants.Overall, the prices are on the higher end as well ($12-16 for appetizers and $20-40 for main dishes), but that's pretty inline with other nearby restaurants in Kendall Square.Our favorite dishes of the night were the mala duck and eggplant and string bean. Both were flavorful and delicious so would definitely get again.The cold shredded bean curd wasn't as flavorful as we would have liked. (Maybe our fault for requesting mild, but this dish could have used some soy sauce). Would skip.The lava fish and sweet tofu pudding were both tender and light and enjoyable, but not a must have again.Overall, the service was good and attentive, the decor was new and modern, and the food was yummy but a bit pricey. I would come here again to try some more dishes, hopefully ones on the better side of the price to portion size ratio.

Hot & Sour Soup: Better than the average hot & sour soup at a standard Chinese restaurant.Melted Gold Soup: I liked the unique flavors in this soup.Shang Gan: This was my favorite appetizer. I got authentic spicy for this, and boy was it spicy. Really good stuff. The tofu nicely soaks up all of the juices and bursts with flavor.Potstickers: Really good. Nice sear on the bottoms.Kung Pao Shrimp: The vegetables tasted fine, but this barely had any shrimp in it. Pretty disappointing.Spicy Popcorn Chicken: Really really crispy. Excellent flavors.

Came here in a group of 9. Got seated in a more private area . If you are looking for nice Chinese cuisine dining experience with professional staffs, this place is for you. It's an excellent place to take your business partner or to impress someone with nice dining area.The food is good, lot of options to choose from. This restaurant is in the top 10 Chinese restaurants in Boston area that offers excellent crispy duck, so you should def give this restaurant a try. It's family style so prepare to have your food shared. However, you are definitely paying the price for the nice atmosphere, our bill comes out to be $70 each but the food don't match the price point.

Came here to celebrate some birthdays with a group of friends. We reserved one of the back "rooms" which was essentially just a semi-see-through curtain serving as partitions between tables. We were running late though, so appreciate their flexibility in letting us keep our reservation. We got lots of dishes including the green beans, grandma noodles, braised pork belly, lamb chops, all of which were good. We also had allergies in the group and they made sure to mark which ones were meant for which part of the table to ensure no cross contamination which we really appreciated.

I had a great experience coming to Sumiao it was very busy for a Thursday afternoon, but I sat the bar. The bartender was very attentive to us and always made sure we had water and if we needed anything. Now I will say this is probably one of the best general tso chicken I've had . It was so flavorful and had such a sweet savory flavor to it. The shrimp fried rice was also delicious it wasn't super oily or greasy like other Chinese food I've had. The sake flight was also delicious and for a very reasonable price as well. The place is open concept they had some outside seating and share tables where you can sit at. Overall I really enjoyed the food and experience here and will definitely be back!

Very nice classy clean interior but still colorful and funService was kind and attentive, food came at good speedRegular spice level wasn't too spicy. Each dish we got was spicy in a different way. Chicken was nicely tender. Wood ear salad was standard. Eel was drier and a firm chew, not the best but not bad.Overall the price didn't feel worth the food but maybe ordered wrong since I know people who really like this place!