When they say spicy, they mean spicy! Great for me, but definitely could be offputting for people that can't handle it. Located in the heart of Chinatown, with delicious food. Highly recommend the salted fried fish (it is spicy!) as well as any of the pork belly dishes. They are so savory and amazing. Also have a great selection of bubble teas! It might seem like a communist themed restaurant, but don't let that scare you away.
Lao Hunan affords a dining experience like no other in Chicago. Its kitschy, Mao-themed decor includes a banner that says, "Serving People" across one entire wall of the establishment (pretty funny, considering it's a restaurant). The other wall boasts a hall of fame of notable figures who came from Hunan province. The young, friendly waitstaff all sport chinese communist uniforms (not kidding) to match the decor.
Even people with no sense of humor will love Lao Hunan, because the food is absolutely delicious. Though strange animals like turtle and frog appear on the menu, my party decided on some chicken, beef and vegetable dishes. Everything was incredibly tasty--spicy but not too spicy. The dishes came out in under ten minutes. Also, the price is right! Rarely can you feast so well for so little.
Hop on the red line ASAP and head to Lao Hunan.
I lived in China for three years and the food here tastes just like I remember it. I ate my favorite dishes 口水鸡 (chicken served cold in spicy sauce) and 水煮牛肉 (shredded beef boiled and served in spicy sauce with cabbage and bean sprouts).
If you have never had authentic Chinese before you really should try it. It's totally different than the average takeout place.
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This place was a fun place to eat with a huge menu!
The wait staff is decked out in green "standardized uniforms" from communist China era. The idea was that everyone would wear the same clothes, no matter their social class, work, or gender. The green clothes were for soldiers and the Red Guard, while the factory workers wore a blue version with a red tie.
We had Pot Stickers(good), Egg Roll(okay), Lychee Smoothie(not fresh, but tasty on a hot day), Fried Bun with Condensed Mild (Great flavor with good texture light and fluffy- more like a dessert), Spicy and Crispy Chicken(okay - Too Salty and Dry, all the heat seemed to be from large amount of chopped red pepper), General Tsao's Beef (okay - sauce was too sweet)
While waiting for our food we saw some incredible looking dishes being served around, and wished we had more insider knowledge. The table beside us has an entire fried fish that them seemed to really enjoy.
It was definitely worth the trip.
One last note - if you are one of those people that rate places based on how nice the bathroom is, you may want to stay out of this one. While it was not that dirty - it was not close to clean.
So good. The Royal Mushroom with Jade Tofu Japanese Style was especially awesome, and something completely different. The Famous Stir Fried Lamb had an interesting tongue-tingling spicy flavor, but had too much cilantro. Very interesting decor :)
The food was made with a lot of knowledge and care.
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We were in the South Loop Sunday afternoon, which was unusual for us, so we decided to hike over to Chinatown for dinner. I'd made a note that Lao Hunan had Genero Tsao's Tofu, which I'd hoped would evoke the chicken original that I'd been missing for all of these years.
We arrived a bit after 8 pm. The dining area was about half-full and we were seated immediately. We were served hot tea and ice water almost as soon as we'd sat down. The tea was hot, but not terribly flavorful.
We selected the sought-after dish along with an order of crispy fried eggplant. Our waters were topped off regularly while we waited for our food to arrive. When they did (served a couple of minutes apart), they were quite hot (temperature-wise) and were served with a large quantity of dried red pepper.
Once they'd cooled to a safer state, we dug in. The eggplant was indeed crispy and very salty (which is a compliment for us). The orange-tinged oil coating our plate made it clear that this was not health food. The General Tsao's Tofu was not breaded, as I'd hoped it would be. The tofu and vegetables were served in a tasty sweet-and-sour sauce, but it wasn't the dish that I was expecting; I don't think I would order it again.
Despite this, we were very pleased with both the meal and the service and would happily visit again.
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