Famous Szechuan Pavilion

You need to love tongue numbing spicy to eat here! I got the spicy wonton soup and I really liked it. We also got some spicy pork. You have to get your own drink from the fridge, which I didn’t mind. It does seem like you have to speak some Mandarin to go there. I walked in with my Caucasian husband and the lady immediately spoke Mandarin to me. Still a good experience and good food. :)

Dirty, dirty, dirty. There’s a «C» Health Department rating sticker on the front door. I noticed upon being finished and leaving. Thankfully I didn’t get ill.

The twice cooked pork is my favorite dish here, just the perfect amount of heat that slowly creeps up on you. The price seems a little high, but the portion is so big the leftovers turn into another two meals, well worth it. The traditional soups are better than just about any other Chinese places around

Mr K and I went to FSP for lunch on one of our regular outings. I had only eaten, one time, at the location when it was in an old coffee kiosk in a parking lot on Manchester. The K man was up for anything and we went to this strip mall on Olive just inside of I-​170 because there is a Jamaican place (De Palm Tree) there. The hours on DPT lied to us, they were not open even though they said they were. So we headed into Szechuan Pavillion.
This is a no nonsense place and it was freezing inside. They had a little electric heater set up on one side, so we sat within range of that. Places like this don’t deter me, although it is not really for those who want to be coddled.
Mr K tried to order hot and sour soup and was told by the guy that «This is real Chinese food» meaning they don’t serve it and apparently it is not real. I ordered Yu Shan Pork and Mr K ordered the same in chicken and we shared. This was a little strange; the meat is cut totally differently and the serving size is completely different, but they are seasoned the same. The dish does not have vegetables so we had very tasty meat with white rice. It was a little oily, garlicky and spiced well with toasted red chiles. I really enjoyed the flavors and the heat. I would order it again but would try to find a vegetable dish to go with it.
My impression is that this is pretty much home cooking and is not dumbed down for those of who are used to very Americanized Chinese dishes. I need to keep going back for a chile fix and to explore the menu. The photos of noodles look great. Just don’t go expecting a fancy place or one with a lot of polish. It is a weak 4 stars, I am rounding up a little.

The second best Sichuan food in St. Louis. Did I mention there are only two Sichuan restaurants in St. Louis and the first is pretty mediocre? The first itineration of this place was funky and hard to resist-​a little kiosk set in the middle of a parking lot. Quite honestly, the food wasn’t that great but I appreciated the scrappy attitude and was willing to cut them some slack given that they were operating out of an 8′ by 12′ box. Unfortunately, when they moved to a larger place on Olive they didn’t up their game. Chengdu Chicken-​small chunks of chicken buried amongst a mountain of dried chili-​is my favorite Sichuan dish. Imagine my horror when I saw the old granny «chef/​owner» preparing the dish by reaching into a bag of previously deep fried, diced chicken that had been frozen. Trust me, this is not what’s meant by the term twice cooked! But it sure as hell was twice cooked and tasted like it. Chicken jerky, anyone? None of the other dishes stood out either as being particularly well prepared. The food strikes me as the Chinese equivalent of what you might expect from mom if mom was a hack in the kitchen. It is cheap, though. So roll the dice and give it a try!

Love this restaurant. The Dan Dan noodles and won ton soup were both amazing. Our favorite hole-​in-​the-​wall in STL

Best take out Chinese in STL. I recommend the Yushan Crispy Pork, Pork Dan Dan noodles, shredded potatoes, and pork with green peppers aka jalapeños! At first I was unsure of this place. I now get take out once a week. Amazing!

I did not check this place out on Unilocal before going. I was in the area and thought I would try Szechuan food. More or less, a bit of a hole in the wall. They also had a LOUD
TV on and the older lady (only person there) was watching Chinese opera. The room was very very hot and the woman, owner? lifted up 2 dirty fans and put one on the table in front of me and the other went on the table behind me.
I ordered the spicy wonton soup and didn’t care for it. It wasn’t too spicy at all, it just had a grainy texture to it, like maybe something solid wasn’t stirred and mixed in correctly.
Since I had only taken a couple of sips/​bites, I asked if I could swap this for something else. She was kind enough to let me do that. I ordered the chicken fried rice. While she was preparing the rice I went to the bathroom. Oh my, a word to the wise, if you go here please don’t use the bathroom, very dirty.
I returned to the table and the rice was waiting for me. I took a couple of bites and asked if I could have some soy sauce. She went in the tiny kitchen and brought out a squirt bottle, and I squirted some ss in the bowl. She told me TOO MUCH and she took the bottle away from me. I hoped I didn’t do anything to upset her, I wondered if she took it as an insult to be asked for soy sauce? I hope not. I asked to take it home and she brought out a styrophome pint container. I started filling it with the rice and asked if I could have another container. She grabbed the container in my hand and piled the rice high in that original container, she closed it up and put it in a bag. I don’t know that I’ve ever had an exchange like this before. P. S. The chicken fried rice was just OK.

Eating here was a fun experience (as if we’d parachuted into Szechuan Province) but I’d love to take a native speaker with us to clarify the menu. We got three dishes: the cold noodles (these are NOT peanut noodles made famous by Empire Szechuan in NYC) a pork dish and mopa tofu. They all had the same red sauce, heavy on Szechuan red peppercorns. These little peppercorns are delicious but rather medicinal and a little go a long way. If the language barrier had not been so strong we could have ordered something with another sauce. As it is, we can only hope they have dishes with different sauces! It was like being in someone’s house; the large screen TV was loudly playing Chinese cable and the proprietress and chef came out and sat next to us to watch after making the food. I would have given another if they had a better menu and ambiance.

As a business, I hate this place. I give them 1 out of 5 for how they run their business. Yet, because they are wizards in the kitchen, they get 5 out of 5 for their food. So I landed on a 3 out of 5 as an average.
First, I’ll start with the good: the food. This place makes some of the most excellent food I’ve ever had. Yet, it isn’t for the faint of heart because the menu explains nothing and the employees can’t do any better (more of that in the business part of the review). I have had about 9 different dishes here and they were all excellent. Every single one was good enough to be a signature dish at another restaurant. Also they really spice things up here, all you spice heads, this is your place. They cook everything to order which is a good thing but expect a wait if they are busy at all. Their portion size is also pretty good (although the price does match the portion size in my mind).
Now for the negative: the business. First, as I mentioned before, the place isn’t for the faint of heart. The menu is written by someone who has a bare understanding of the English language and the staff doesn’t command the language any better so if you’re wondering what «Chicken with bean» is, you’re out of luck. The only way to know is to try it. Their décor is worth mentioning because it looks like an office but instead of desks their are cheap tables and chairs. Oh and a large TV with foreign movies (with foreign subtitles as well) on in the front. The tables aren’t very big but they must be bigger than their prep tables in the back because if you come late in the day (after 8 or so) you can catch them butchering animals on one. I have. Twice. I was getting my food to go and am not bothered by animal butchering but I can only imagine how appetizing it would be for most people to watch an animal get all cut up while trying to enjoy their food. (To be fair, it was at a table away from the main dining tables by a bit but not that far as there isn’t that much room). Also, this is a no frills sort of place so don’t expect anything like high chairs, a soda fountain or AIR CONDITIONING. By the way, pay attention to their hours and not their lights inside. I have seen them have their lights off when they have no customers only to turn them back on when a customer enters (happened to me once when I started to walk up and stopped only to have a server who was smoking outside point to the door and say «Eat?» after a nod, he opened the door and turned on some lights).
I feel as if this review is a bit disjointed and I apologize for that as I wrote it in several different segments while waiting for my food various times at the Pavilion. I have been eating at this place since it was a little drive up Pavilion on Manchester and will continue to eat their food. I find their food amazing but their service, ambiance, and menu to be terrible. If you’re brave enough to try new things that you might not understand, I highly recommend the place to you.

Disregard the décor.
The food is wonderful. If you do spicy, get the spicy wonton soup. Yu shan anything is great. Spicy and tons of flavor.
Vegetarian chicken = tofu.
I can’t wait to try more of the menu. Want to go?

Truly a strange little hole in the wall. I felt I was eating in someone’s kitchen. No separation between the dining area & the view of the dirty kichen & pot scrub sink. Cleaning items sitting on the floor below the sink. A sofa covered with blankets against one wall, boxes piled haphazardly against same wall and raw food prep occurring in the dining area. How do they pass inspection? Did I mention zero ambience?
The food was fine — fairly ordinary stir fry chicken with green onions & carrots (a bit burnt though). I doubt that I shall be back.

Very good dan dan noodle. A must try! I had it every time I dine here. It is quite spicy tho. The service is pretty slow since there are only two people serving the food. It seems that the business is a family business.

A recommended authentic eat in part of StL’s Chinatown. Szechuan Dan Dan is my recommendation on a cold day

A friend from work took me and a few associates here for lunch. The food was pretty good.
The won-​ton soup (non spicy) was excellent as was the dan dan chicken. The serving sizes were generous and came out very hot. I requested that they dial down the spiciness and they were accommodating.
If you could get past the eclectic décor and the pile of furniture piled on one side of the restaurant, it was an interesting experience.
They may want to consider renaming some of the menu items. I’m not sure how many orders of «dregs of fat» are sold. It might be tasty but I wasn’t about to find out. And where else can you see Asian soap operas at lunch?

This place is the best! The people are friendly and the food is AWESOME. I ALWAYS order the spicy wonton soup. Great flavor, not just hot to be hot. In fact I often order one to go as well to bring home and eat later it’s so good.
Everyone who enjoys spicy food should try the spicy wonton soup. You will not be disappointed I guarantee.

I came here with my parents to try something new. This place is simply toooo spicy for our taste buds. If I have a bad cold or sinus issues, this place would be on top of my list to make me feel better. Service was awesome. The language barrier was a bit hard. If I were to come back here, I would come with someone who can speak the language.

I went here with two friends and– oh man. This place is as good as the reviews say. Amazing, even. I would even go as far to say that it’s the best Chinese food I’ve had.
Since I don’t have much to add that hasn’t been said, here are my cliff notes:
*there is no AC here. Get over it. There are fans, and you’ll be sweating from the spiciness of the meal and will forget about it.
*this food is SERIOUS about being spicy. But, it’s flavorful spice; its not hot for the sake of being hot. Delicious heat!
*I loved the ambiance. It feels like you’re eating in somebody’s grandma’s basement, which is, I think, appropriate.
*Had the spicy yu shan pork, pickled cabbage with pepper, spicy wonton soup, and some breaded pork dish I’m forgetting the name of. All were amazing.
BOTTOM LINE: I’m already craving more! I will definitely be back. Get out there and eat, people!

This place is as good as it gets for me when it comes to wonton soup. If i want wontons, I come here.
never get it for take out. the little old lady owner will yell at you and tell you that the wontons will get soggy by the time you get home. She knows what she’s talking about.
Always get the spicy wonton soup. The clear broth variety isn’t bad but the spicy is much much better.
Try to take a chinese friend with you, preferably one who knows szechuan cuisine. The old lady will be more likely to feed you more authentic stuff.
Go back often because, like i said, the wonton soup here is the best around!

Went with a couple of friends for a late lunch/​early supper. Seems like almost every table in the place had Chinese speakers, and it helps for reading some of the menu items. Thankfully we had a native speaker, so was able to read some of the items (or, the owner could always interpret too).
We decided to go for the Hot Pot, which was delicious. But a word of warning, do not let anyone order when they’re on their way to becoming drunk… we ended up ordering over a dozen different meats, vegetables and mushrooms to put in our pot, so we had a LOT of leftovers. When we asked for the remainder to go, they brought us a bucket :-)
I think a party of 3 could have made do with only 6 or 7 items, and been very full
The pot comes with 2 sides, on containing a light broth with scallions, and the other half jammed full of hot peppers –yum-​, and you drop your meat/​mushroom/​vegetable choices on whichever side strikes your mood.
We had: Beef Tripe (which was very tender) /​Crispy Pork /​Mussels/​Beef Meatball /​Lobster Meatball /​Sliced Lamb /​Sliced Beef /​Chinese Sausage /​Oyster Mushrooms /​Needle Mushroom /​Black Fungus /​Raw Tofu /​Fried Tofu & each had a bowl of Sesame Oil containing lots of minced garlic, so our total for 3 persons ended up being $ 105 (or $ 35 ea.),