Crispy Fish with Savory Hot Sauce ($12.95) is a traditional Szechuan-style dish.[/caption]In a shopping center across from The Domain, Szechuan House caters to two types of Chinese food lovers—those who enjoy the familiar, Americanized staples such as General Tso’s, and those who want a more authentic Chinese food experience.
Kevin Ma said he has been in the restaurant business for decades, both in the U.S. and in China. Ma took over ownership of Szechuan House in October 2014.
“I upgraded a lot of stuff,” he said, including adding a wine and beer list.
Red Chinese lanterns hang from the ceiling of the dining room, and other novelties, such as a gold laughing Buddha and a koi fish watercolor painting, are scattered throughout the restaurant.
Ma’s wife, Hongli Li, helps operate the restaurant with about 10 other employees, Ma said.
“Our food is traditional Szechuan-style Chinese,” Ma said. “This is the best Szechuan-style Chinese restaurant in Austin.”
He said popular Szechuan-style dishes include the Crispy Fish with Savory Hot Sauce ($12.95) and the Crispy Duck Szechuan Style ($14.95). Szechuan House also offers vegetarian options such as Stir Fried Three Kinds of Mushroom ($10.95) and Wok Seared Green Beans ($8.95).
Ma was a Cantonese cuisine chef in China for 10 years before moving to the United States in 1993. Szechuan House chef Shensong Lei has 35 years of experience cooking both Szechuan- and Hunan-style cuisine, Ma said.
Vegetables are ordered fresh daily, and fish are delivered live and then butchered in-house—the fish are never frozen before hitting customers’ plates, Ma said.
Szechuan House also offers lunch specials Mon.-Fri. from 11 a.m.-3 p.m., ranging in price from $7.25-$8.50. Lunch specials such as kung pao chicken and shrimp with broccoli are less traditional and include an egg roll and a choice of rice and soup.
The restaurant offers delivery within a 5-mile radius of its location at 11005 Burnet Road for a $3 delivery charge.
“Every day we have new customers,” Ma said.
About 80 percent of those customers come back for more, and with constant construction in The Domain, Ma said he expects his customer base to grow.
