Spicy King

Might be my new favorite Chinese place in SF! I LOVED the decor inside -- it felt like sitting in an outdoor courtyard somewhere in Imperial China, with tiled roofs peeking over tables, thatched lighting fixtures, and warm red pillars separating the dining areas. The vibe is perfect for both a catch up with friends and an intimate romantic night out. The food was, in a word, killer. Bright, fresh, and spicy, this was everything I hoped it would be. The deluxe chicken came out with its own flame burner to keep it warm, which added warmth to the intoxicatingly spicy heat already there! The sesame chicken was the perfect pairing for the spicy chicken, as the sweetness was a nice break in between bites of chili. Mapo tofu is my personal favorite Chinese dish, and this place did a good job -- the firm tofu and bright, thick sauce made it the perfect pair for some white rice. I do wish there was less ground pepper and more sichuan pepper (I was surprised to not experience any of the signature mouth-numbing effect of mapo tofu from a place called "Spicy King"). The waiter came once to take our order and we never saw them again -- it was a bit of a challenge to flag someone down when we wanted our bill, but otherwise everything flowed nicely.I'm not kidding when I say this is going to be the new place I take visitors for dinner in Chinatown -- the decor makes it unique and fun (without being kitschy) while the flavors seal the deal (for those really looking to impress guests, I'd recommend a nightcap one block down at the mysterious Moongate Lounge!).

We were looking for a good szechuan restraunt and, after a quick reddit search, this one was recommended. Our two go tos are eggplant in garlic sauce and crispy szechuan tofu. While they didn't have the first, the eggplant was just like we are use to. Caramelized rich and filling. The eggplant was almost it's own sauce with how cooked down it was. With how oily and cooked down it was, I think one rice almost wasn't enough. The service was good and they were attentive but not overwhelming. They were quick with water but the water wasn't cold which was a bit of a bummer. The ombionce of the place was nice and not too cheesy like a lot of Chinese restraunts. I don't really know how to feel about the motorcycle though. It certainly make the place it's own at least.

Let me start by prefacing my rating a bit -- I'd still come again, but only after studying what to order. This place has high highs and low lows, as some dishes are miles better than other dishes. I ordered the mustard green fish soup, spare pork ribs, and cabbage. The soup was standout. It wasn't fishy at all, flavors were well balanced, and the dish portions were huge. The spare ribs were rock hard. Literally thought I was going to injure a tooth at some point trying to gnaw meat off the bone. Cabbage was good, but really overpriced for what it was. Service was friendly but incredibly slow. Decor was interesting. It was casual Chinese, but had a decorative motorcycle in the front with lights. Again, I'm still going to be a repeat customer and recommend people visit but I'd advise to go by other people's recommendations, or ask the server for input.

I don't really eat Szechuan food enough. I was looking for a quick lunch in Chinatown that was a little out of the ordinary and I stumbled upon Spicy King. It's an intimidating name for a restaurant but I gave them a try. I ordered the chicken and fish maw with flaming pot and it was excellent. It was definitely "hot" - it numbs the tongue a little and my face started really sweating. I absolutely loved it. I needed more napkins to wipe the sweat off my face. Service was good though the restaurant wasn't busy. I liked the decor - it's a little more upscale than the traditional Chinatown restaurant. With tax and tip, this dish was around $38 - relatively pricey for lunch but I enjoyed it. I'd recommend them if you are looking for some spicy food in Chinatown.

So yummy! New spot saved in chinatown :D very yummy and good variety of szechuan foods! Hotpot was the perfect variety of everything I wanted and the fish and veggies had such a yummy sauce.Service was very quick after ordering! Love how they plated all the food and the inside was cozy and intimate for a group of friends.

A solid sichuan spot in the heart of Chinatown. We were seated in a semi-secluded area near the back, which was nice despite having no reservation. The spicy chicken with explosive chili peppers was top tier, but the cucumber salad was surprisingly my favorite dish. Crunchy fresh cucumbers with yummy garlic & cilantro that wasn't too overpowering - the perfect appetizer to precede some spicy noms! My only complaints would be that the tea smoked duck looked nothing like the menu photo, and that it was difficult to get the attention of our server on a busy night.

I'm not sure if this was an error, but this place had no real Szechuan pepper flavor in any of the dishes. There was no numbing.The only thing I thought stood out was the wontons in spicy chili oil. Everything else was pretty mid.The server seemed busy and forgetful.The restaurant is cute with what you would expect in a Chinatown establishment.But spicy? I'm not so sure of that.

Good spot for Sichuan food in Chinatown but definitely on the pricy side with small portions, hence my 3 star rating. I'd give it a 4 for the food itself.I'm a wimp when it comes to spice and don't eat a lot of Sichuan food, so I'm not an expert by any means, but I thought the dishes we ordered here were flavorful.My part of 3 came for Saturday lunch a little after 1 and the restaurant was pretty empty. The restaurant looks small from the outside but was much bigger inside than I expected. Dector looked a little bit old but was still nice.The menu has mostly spicy dishes (I assume most of them are standard Sichuan dishes?) but also has some non-spicy options as well if you're a spice wimp like me.We ordered 3 dishes to share:Szechuan chili pepper with pork ($18.95) - pork was very tender and flavorful. This dish was the spiciest of the three as they sauté the pork with a ton of jalapenosBBQ cumin lamb ribs ($28.95) - my favorite of the three dishes! It's marked as spicy but was manageable and had a lot of flavor from the cumin. I wish there was more lamb ribs though... for the price, it didn't have enough meatBraised peking duck with steamed buns ($28.95) - would skip this dish as it's a small portion (sad given the price). I also didn't particularly enjoy the duck which was a bit sweetWe shared one bowl of rice ($2.25), which was enough for us.I read some other reviews that service was slow and the food took a while to come out, but that wasn't the case for us, probably because it wasn't that busy when we came.I saw another table sharing a whole fish cooked in a spicy broth. Would like to try that next time I come.

I was craving 酸辣粉 (sour spicy vermicelli) really badly, and Spicy King was recommended to me by a friend. The interior looks like a classic Chinese spot, eccentric decor, reasonable prices, one server. The noodles were $13.95 for a bit bowl, but no protein included. The flavor was great! I asked for more sour and less spicy and they delivered. I'd come back to try their whole fish and other more popular dishes!

Decent Szechuan spot in Chinatown, but probably wouldn't be my first choice. We came here during the peak of Lunar New Year celebrations so it was extremely packed, but so was everywhere else in the area.The garlickyness and savory qualities of each dish were pleasing to the taste buds, but the spice wasn't as intense as I would've preferred. My friends were suffering a little though since they have lower tolerances LOL so it worked out for the group. The spiciest dish that we ordered was definitely the 重慶辣子雞 (Chicken with Explosive Chili Pepper). We were initially shook at how large each of these dishes appeared at first glance, but the quantity was not that much since most of it was covered in chili peppers.I'll give this establishment the benefit of the doubt due to LNY, but I wanted to say that the service was unbearably slow even after we had already been seated (ex: requesting extra bowls, waiting for the check). The waiters actually forgot a table next to us to which we kindly pointed out to them. Thankfully, the ordering process and speed of the food being made was efficient, which we appreciated since that's the most important anyway.