I have to leave a 5-star review here because I seriously feel this place is underrated. I understand that people might feel some dishes are not to their liking - because this place is authentic!! American Chinese stuff like sesame chicken or orange chicken just won't be that good here. Also, this place is a Szechuan restaurant - so basically Taiwanese stuff is just "there on the menu", don't order them! Order authentic Szechuan dishes like mapo tofu, boiled fish, long-horn pepper beef, etc. for that spicy kick!! Overall I would recommend this restaurant to anyone craving authentic Chinese Szechuan food, my family's from Szechuan so you can trust me. read more

Menu is super long so it hard to know what their specialties are but most of the dishes we got were pretty good. Really enjoyed the twice cooked pork belly with cabbage and the cold Szechuan noodle which actually had a bit of Mala spice to it. Fried rice was just okay - it has a lot of egg and scallions but kind of greasy and not a lot of salt. Hot and sour soup was too thick. Pork dumplings were high quality though and also really enjoyed the beef with long hornpeppers. Maybe next time we will try the sadsad noodles. read more

Authentic Szechuan food. I love ordering at Cilantro: they are kind and attentive and full of mature flavors!

Not quite feeling up for a trip to Chinatown, my friends and I decided to stop by Cilantro for dim sum. We got there around 1 PM and it was pretty empty. No carts here, but they have most of the traditional dim sum dishes on the menu. Service was friendly and quick, though I could've done with a few more water refills (you know how cranky I get when I'm thirsty!). The food was fine, nothing spectacular. The soup dumpling skin was a little on the thicker side, but the flavors were there. Not a place I'd rave about, but if I'm craving dim sum and want to walk for only five minutes, Cilantro is a solid bet. read more

TERRIBLE!!!!! (1). The sichuan dumplings in red oil (their appetizer) was beyond horrible, so much so to force me to make a yelp account. It wasn't red, or spicy (as their menu indicated) but basically boiled dumplings with garlic and beansprouts. BLAND and extremely disappointing especially given that most of the clientele appears to be Mainland Chinese people. (2). The noodles soup was slightly better but the stock was meh... (3). NEVER going back. Would rather go to the Dumpling House or even the burger place upstairs. read more

Cilantro - Sichuan Spicy Dumpling With Chili Oil. Not spicy, no chilli oil (had to ask for hot sauce); nothing sichuan about it. AVOID! - Szechuan Near Me - Cambridge, Massachusetts

This restaurant is a wonderful, well-priced addition to the wasteland of Harvard Square. The 'bubbling fish' is delicious and theatrically presented by two servers, rushing it to your table: it arrives tenderly poached in a steaming bath of clear, hot oil, and is ladled into a second bowl to cool. The spice is strong and belated -- so be careful. The noodles are flavorful. The vegetables are fresh and well seasoned; there are four different types of eggplant! The tea is a bit odd: a mix of jasmine and the usual watery blend? But it's complimentary if you ask for it, and comes in a decorative-but-functional teapot (vs that familiar leaky, stout white ceramic companion of Chinese restaurants). There's also dim sum on the weekends, which is like Christmas come early to the brunch scene in Cambridge. It's no Hei La Moon, but for Cantabridgians on a lazy Sunday, this is a convenient option that hits the spot. There's a short a la carte with decent renditions of the core menu. I take issue with the petty, nonsensical review below that rates the restaurant poorly for 'copying' the Dumpling House and being 'generic' -- based solely on glancing at the menu and an order of chicken fingers???? Is that a joke? The two restaurants are only superficially similar because they have to cater a largely unadventurous dining population who prefer bad takeout recipes to authentic cooking. read more

Never go to this horrible place! I ordered spicy crawfish last Friday, which was discounted for $12.99. I guess the reason why it was discounted was because it was stale and they used spice to cover up the stale. After I went back home, I started diarrhea and threw up for several times for the whole night. Please see the picture for what I ended up with! My husband sent me to emergency and the doctor said I had acute gastroenteritis because of what I ate! Please please never go to this horrible place! read more

I have been here a number of times and been progressively more impressed over time. Certain dishes are not as traditional as one might expect but for the most part, they serve Chinese rather than American-Chinese food. Their lunch specials are a great deal -- $8.50 for a soup (egg drop or hot and sour), crab rangoon or spring roll, and then rice with a choice of dish. I've tried a few of the dishes -- the eggplant is my favorite. They make it so that the eggplants aren't too soft and mushy but are still flavorful. Their chicken and cashew dish is also a great blend of textures and flavors. The hot and sour soup used to be too sweet but it has improved over time and is now the perfect balance of flavors. It's also filled with egg, tofu, and mushrooms. The food isn't different between lunch and dinner but it's definitely a better bargain at lunch time. They've recently started serving up milk tea and bubble tea but I haven't tried it yet. The staff are very friendly and will chat with you! I believe it's a family business and if you come a few times you'll definitely start noticing familiar faces. read more

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So delicious, I try the Dan Dan noodle and the fish filet in spicy souse today, they are so good,yummy！！！ read more

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SUMMARY: Food was solid. Definitely would get again. Friends said their meals were more citrus-y than what they were used to. SERVICE: It was pretty dead on this Tuesday night when we arrived so the server didn't have many people to attend to. Nevertheless, he was very kind and all of our food and drink came out promptly. No complaints here if you choose to eat-in. FOOD: I got a the hot and sour soup. It was hot and it was sour do I was pleased with it. Friends seemed content with their appetizers of dumplings and soup. Although I don't believe the dumplings lived up to Dumpling House down the road. I had the General Tso's Chicken as my entree with a side of white rice. It was spicy and good. Not amazing, but definitely something I would get again. They have an expansive menu that will allow many people to have options to pick from. DRINK: Free tea so that was nice. PRICE: Bill for 4 people with tip came to a little over $80 with tip which isn't too bad for two courses. Also since it was Chinese, we of course had leftovers. read more

Their 毛氏红烧肉 was very very good. It's a good walking distance from Harvard Square. We'll definitely return here next time we're at Harvard. read more

Cilantro - 毛氏红烧肉 - Szechuan Near Me - Cambridge, Massachusetts

It feels funny to give five stars to a modest little place, but for what it is, Cilantro couldn't be better. We've eaten here a bunch of times and never had a bad dish. The food isn't innovative, but when it comes to all the standard Szechuan fare, there isn't a better place in Boston or Cambridge (and yes, that includes the Dumpling House and Sichuan Gourmet). We recommend the spicy dumpling appetizer, the frog hot pot, any of the chef's specialties and the leek pancake that is available on the dim sum menu on weekends. In our experience, service has always been fast and expert. Our kid broke the top of a teapot on one visit, and the staff were very polite about the accident. read more

This is the third time visit here. The first two times went OK. Tonight I got Beef Noodle Soup......The worst one I've ever had....avoid this order. Terrifying... @@ read more

Another good option in the neighborhood that was only discovered given the limited amount of delivery options in these shutdown times. The food arrived early and was hot so that's always good sign. I ordered the pepper steak with onions and was satisfied with the portion size and the food was great. Would definitely recommend if looking for Chinese food for takeout or delivery. read more

The food was decent. However not really authentic for some dishes. The dining experience was okay.

I tried Cilantro for take-away and the dishes and appetizers ordered were good. The sauces for the sesame and orange chicken were a bit more liquidy than one usually sees but they solidified a bit as the dish cooled a bit. The crab rangoon, though nicely fried, had a filling that was a bit sweet for my taste. The egg rolls were good, on par with better cooked egg rolls at most Chinese places. White rice has to be purchased separately, which is very common in the area. It is also normal in Montreal, where I lived for six years. Growing up in a place where it is not, it is always a bit annoying but not unique to Cilantro (whose rice was better texture than many and seemed fresh). read more

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This is an abbreviated review because I had just gotten dinner elsewhere but felt compelled to visit Cilantro after seeing that they had finally opened! I got two things to go: Hot & Sour Soup and Peking Raviolis. I judge Chinese restaurants on the basis of their hot & sour soup, and Cilantro's was quite good. It had just the right amount of heat and plenty of tasty veggies. I didn't see any pork in it, so it may be vegetarian (not a plus for me, but hey, it's Cambridge, so I've learned to deal with it). It could've used a bit more vinegar, but I tend to like it more vinegary than most people do anyway. I'd definitely get Cilantro's hot and sour soup again. The Peking ravs were good too -- LOTS of pork filling, no gristle or grossness (that's key), they were nicely fried to the point of being slightly well-done (which is exactly how you want them -- and why would anyone ever order these steamed when they're available fried? but I digress...), and they weren't too doughy or chewy. While I waited for my order, I spoke with the person behind the front counter, who was really nice and enthusiastic. I'm looking forward to returning for a full meal, to see how their entrees taste. And I hope they do well. This location has been home to quite a few restaurants in recent years (Cancun Taqueria, Lamole, and New Asia are the three I remember -- I don't recall what preceded New Asia). It's not an easy spot because it's tucked away underground, in the bottom left corner of the building. read more

Cilantro is okay. I had the Sichuan Spicy Dumplings and Pork with Bean Curd lunch special. As the daughter of two Sichuanese parents, I found the dumplings to be really underwhelming (will I lose all credibility by admitting that I almost prefer the spicy dumplings at the Kong?). The pork with bean curd dish was drier than what I'm accustomed to and not very flavorful. Still, I'm giving Cilantro 3 stars because there aren't a whole lot of great Chinese options in the Square, and it's extremely well priced--that being said, I'd rather walk an extra few minutes to Dumpling House. Also, my server was really sassy in a not-so-lovable way. read more

Update: Sichuan Spicy Dumplings remain incredibly delicious. By far the best value on the menu for your satisfaction "buck". More expensive when on the regular menu (vice the dim sum brunch) but the portion is larger as well. Very, very spicy, even for those who normally order "five star spicy" at a Thai restaurant, but not at all unpleasant. Sichuan bubbling fish is delicious, but not what I expected. It's served in a bowl of hot oil. The fish is rich, buttery, and flaky. But it really needs something else to go with it to elevate the dish. Get a flavorful side to go with it, and you'll be happy. The Kung Pow chicken was well seasoned (but not nearly as spicy as I expected), but massively overwhelmed by the amount of celery and peppers. Needs more meat. Shame, because the meat is really well done -- chicken was very tender. read more

I am always on the look out for good Chinese food, because it serves as wonderful comfort food for me. Cilantro did not look like much from the outside, and it is tucked somewhat away, but on a hungry Saturday night, we decided to try it, and we were pleasantly surprised. Parking - street meter parking along Mass Ave, or it is also reachable by the Red Line or the bus. Decor - The restaurant itself is not very large, and decor may not be as nice as some places nearby (such as Dumpling House), but still clean and bright. Food - We ordered Fish Fillet with Chili Sauce (水煮魚）, which was flounder and mixed vegetables steeped in chili oil sauce with herbs, and Sauteed Diced Chicken With Chili & Pepper Sichuan Style （辣子雞）, and a cold milk tea (they ran out of bubbles). Both dishes were fantastic, though they were both spicy. I would highly recommend them if you like spicy. The milk tea was also delicious and served as a great quencher to the fiery spiciness. The portions were quite large - between the two of us, we finished the fish fillet but had to take home some of the chicken. Service - Staff were friendly and efficient. No complaints at all. If you want some good Chinese food and do not want to wait in the long lines at the nearby Dumpling House, Cilantro is a solid choice. In fact, Cilantro might even be a better choice. read more

Decent restaurant with a few favorites on the menu, though pricier than most other Chinese food options around this part of town. Service is generally prompt. read more

Overall, not bad, but not that different than other Cambridge Chinese offerings. Dou miao: too salty for my taste, and extremely oily. Okay, but not worth reordering Mapo dofu: good! Very numbing, but not too spicy. Make sure to get rice, as it doesn't come with. Beef hefen: good, but not special. Worth the order. Red braised pork belly: meh. kind of dry, which is disappointing. Twice cooked pork: not that good, I wouldn't get this. read more

Solid new authentic Chinese restaurant in a convenient location. Has stiff competition from nearby Dumpling House, Cafe Sushi, etc., but is worth checking out. I had their bubbling fish dish, it comes in literally a one-gallon pot and is loaded with more fish than a single hungry person can reasonably consume. Many restaurants that serve this stew ("Shui Zhu Yu") include only a modest amount of fish and primarily use cabbage and celery as filler, but Cilantro's pot is mounded with fish... it's almost an unbelievable amount of food for $20. I have a positive note on the service: The table next to me required a lot of assistance from the waiter for helping them choose their order, and at one point the waiter actually brought out a cookbook or magazine clipping to show them a picture of the dish they wanted. When that dish arrived, the diners asked for something else because the dish wasn't prepared the way they expected. The waiter politely clarified with them again what they wanted, replaced the dish with no attitude, and the diners seemed pretty happy with the result. It's not my practice to spy on tables next to me but I thought this deserved a mention. My own experience with the wait staff was positive as well (they speak both Chinese and English, and were very warm and interested in how I enjoyed my meal). read more

Cilantro - Szechuan Near Me - Cambridge, Massachusetts

I am Chinese. This is a very good Szechuan restaurant. I specially like the "Chinese Burger" aka "Rou Jia Mo" in Chinese. Great location, close to Harvard Square. read more

The food here is terrific. After spending the past 2 years in Beijing, I would say that Cilantro is as close as you can get to authentic Chinese food hailing from the flavors of Sichuan, Guangdong, Huaiyang, etc. Don't worry if you aren't familiar with these exotic locations in China; I'm not and I'm just learning about them my girlfriend who ate at Cilantro with me. After several visits, I world definitely agree with the other reviewers that this is the place to be when you want great Chinese food without trekking out to C town. I will go as far to say that Hong Kong Restaurant down the street is crap and a disgrace in comparison. Service here is always great. Everyone at the restaurant is super polite and you get your food quickly from the wok inside. Everything we ordered on the menu so far, from the mapo tofu and the Westlake soup to the spicy beef and veggie dishes have all been delicious. Look forward to sampling the rest of menu this year. read more

The food was not good at all. It was very "greasy" and wasn't close to authentic or even in the range for that matter.

Strongly recommend the Szechuan Beef Noodle Soup with Chilis. Beef is tender. Broth is flavorful. Best beef noodle soup I have ever had in Boston area! read more

I had to try this place, since it's the only dim sum restaurant I've seen around Harvard Square. It was good, but the portions were decidedly small. I'm thinking especially of the turnip cakes and the sticky rice. They were teeny-tiny, probably about half-size in each dimension (= 1/8th volume). Taste was good, but I felt rather ripped off. The other dishes, such as shrimp dumplings, and shu mai had the more usual proportions, and tasted fine to boot. Another diner observed that the place's main cuisine is from northern China. Dim sum is from Guandong/Canton in the south, so it seems the dim sum is more of an extra add-on than a natural outgrowth. read more

As a Beijinger living in Boston, I've been on the quest for authentic water boiled spicy fish (or better known as shui zhu yu in Chinese) for three years. And I have to say this restaurant didn't disappoint! The fish was tender, with just the right amount of spiciness. The bean sprouts in the dish were juicy and crisp. This is the closest I have gotten so far to the delicious food at home. read more

Cilantro - Sichuan bubbling fish (shui zhu yu) - Szechuan Near Me - Cambridge, Massachusetts

Solid Chinese food in the square, that is not only tasty, authentic, but also budget-friendly. Much better than you other Chinese options in the square; very similar to Shanghai Gate in Allston. We've tried: Braised Pork-Mao's Family Style, Soup Dumplings, Ma Po Tofu, Pea Pod Shoots, the dim sum, and Pork Trotters. Definitely try: braised pork, ma po tofu, pork trotter Pass on: soup dumplings, dim sum (shiu mai and buns only if you somehow can't make it out to Chinatown) I would probably die in heaven bathed in braised pork and ma po tofu. It was decadent. We received better than average Chinese restaurant attention (read: great!) with plenty of tea refills. It was crowded on a Friday night but dim sum on a Sunday afternoon was completely empty - might be due to the fact that it was winter break. No liquor or beer license, awkward bar with a tv that only shows infomercials. Great spot, a plethora of good dining options in one plaza. Note: $20 minimum on credit cards - at least it's not cash only read more

Super affordable and absolutely delicious. Popped by here while trying to kill time before going to the nearby Oberon theater. The schezuan dumplings were amazing, and the soups were so good! Really solid food at an affordable price. read more

This place is for real for real. True Sichuan place!! I've eaten here several times and basically stuck to the what i consider safe dishes since I always have a hard time with the menu. When I say safe I mean that I've had it and know it's good. Especially when I'm starving and not looking to take chances. Not because I'm afraid to try something new. Anyhow, my boyfriend and I decided to go for dinner and instead of getting the same old stuff, we went for an adventure!! We got a couple of the chef specials of spicy frog and grilled fish. Then the major treat was the pig ears! Not only was everything delicious but it was an adventure! The pig ears are made with Hua Jiao, aka Sichuan peppers!! We thought we were having an allergic reaction to the dish until the waitress kindly explained to us that it was the peppercorn. The dish basically made our lips have this weird tingling numbing sensation. The famously numbing properties is believed to be caused by the molecule, hydroxy-alpha sanshool. According to google and some research I did after. I though I've had it all and was not going to be surprised by anything anymore but NOPE! Cilantro surprised me. We can't wait to go back and try some of their other specials. read more

Cilantro - Szechuan Near Me - Cambridge, Massachusetts

This review is mostly based on the food The food Very tasty! Coming from China, it is obvious to me this chef knows Chinese cuisine and have a solid foundation in the techniques to produce delicious food. The fish fillet with spicy chilli sauce was one of the best I had in the US; the sizzling beef with black pepper was tender and flavorful; dry fried chicken with hot pepper was crispy on the outside and tender inside. Everything on the chef s special looks authentic. The appetizers we had were very good too including Shao Mai and pan fried dumplings. The service I can tell the serving staff are not accustomed to us restaurant hospitality, so they may appear awkward and not helpful. Listening to them speak Chinese, I have the impression the they are really trying to help, - at least for our table they did a decent job: bringing water and tea, changing plates, etc. Overall, this is a place worth coming back to once in a while for tasty bite of Chinese food! read more

Ordered takeout from Cilantro through DoorDash. The delivery itself was on time and the food arrived hot. So far so good. Then I opened the containers. Oh boy, did things go downhill from there. First, I tried the Steamed Veggie Dumplings. They looked fine (the flour was thick and bloated but I've come to expect this from restaurant dumplings) so I picked one up and took a big bite. Guess what? They were meat filled. They got my order wrong. Now I'm not vegetarian, I just prefer the taste of veggie dumplings - but what if I were vegetarian for personal, or worse, dietary reasons? This wasn't like forgetting to leave the dressing on the side, this was more along the lines of failing to disclose a dish contains nuts. Unacceptable. Oh and by the way, the meat dumplings weren't even good. The next dish, Sautéed Frog in Chili Sauce, I was really looking forward to. Anyone who's had this classic Sichuan dish knows that the frog is delicious if cooked right - smothered in chilis and sauce and so tender the meat is almost falling off the bones. I opened the lid to this container and found the frog breaded and deep fried, not to mention buried in a mountain of vegetables. Wtf?? Rather than delicious meat, each bite was instead filled with soggy breading, not to mention the meat was tough and overcooked. Of the other two dishes I ordered, the Honey Roasted Walnut Shrimp was poor (dry shrimp, stale walnuts, and clumps of mayo on top of a few leaves of lettuce, I've honestly never seen this dish done this bad), and the Salt & Pepper Fried Fish Fillet was average (I order this from every Chinese restaurant I visit; these were too salty and the fish didn't taste fresh, but at least the fillet pieces were a generous size). Maybe I just "lucked out" and ordered the worst dishes this restaurant had to offer. But this was some of the worst Chinese food I've had in Boston and I certainly won't be ordering from them again. One star for the prompt delivery and one star for the average salt & pepper fish fillet. Sorry for the lack of photos, I wasn't planning on writing a review at first and ended up throwing a lot of the food away in disgust :( read more

This is the closest authentic Chinese restaurant to Harvard Square. Dishes are standard authentic Chinese fare with a seeming focus on Sichuan cuisine. I do not think those who are unaccustomed to authentic Chinese food would like the place. The restaurant doesn't feel very clean, and it feels quite small (not great for groups). They have a cheap lunch special that can be good for a quick bite. read more

(Second) I'm naive and I returned even after posting the review below. The entire restaurant was pretty much empty, as we expected. But empty can be good! Maybe you want a quiet place to relax. My friend and I went at 4 PM because we wanted a place to talk and unwind in peace. We ordered food with low expectations. We decided to linger and enjoy the meal, and didn't feel bad because we knew we weren't taking up an in-demand table. The waiter (middle-age, male) kept coming back to ask us what we will order, even after we asked for more time. By the end of the meal, he actually said "you should finish now, you take long time." Are you kidding me? We weren't even there a full hour after getting our dinner when he demanded this rudely... Very dissapointing. It would have been great to have a decent Asian place in harvard square, because Hong Kong food is not meeting the standard. But between this servicce and the $15 steamed vegetables that tasted like manure, I'm advising you not to go! ** (first) Change my mind yet again. I took out a tofu pad thai this time and it clearly tasted like straightup ketchup (did they run out of ingredients?) and smelled like poo. Furthermore, it had a hair in it. Furthermore, the entire restaurant was empty. Furthermore, it was way too expensive for how disgusting it was. Also, I ordered a side of plain steamed vegetables and it costed almost $15 after tax. What??? I won't be returning. read more

Food is authentic. But they don't hire enough people for rush hour. The waiting time is long and the authentic dishes are over-priced. Except for the owners, most wait staff look either angry or upset. read more

Huge selection of food, and I like everything I've tried! The prices are fair, and the service is quick and great.

Argggh.waitress arguing with me..............,.,. . ..,..............wonton soup comes after the main dish?????

This is my go to Chinese food place in Cambridge. The food here is delicious, there are also some real authentic dishes if you know what you want and what to order. The place is very clean and it's got a really nice decor as well, I love the paintings they have on the walls. read more