Reviewing high end Asian restaurants as a Chinese-American person is always tricky. How tasty is it? Is it tastier than Asian restaurants of similar cuisine? And if it's not tastier, then how much weight do you give to decor and service to justify its price point? There's a feeling that Asian food (not including Japanese food here) should be cheap and tasty, and that some of its tastiness DERIVES from its affordability. But I believe that's a dangerous construct, one that perpetuates the racism against minorities and upholds the idea that non-Western cuisine can't be fancy, can't be philosophical, can't be expensive. Sumiao has an absolutely gorgeous interior: a riot of colors amidst an exposed ceiling and industrial-looking furniture. A long bar circles the restaurant; there is great contrast between the curved wooden high-tops and the more geometric square low-top tables. Service is mostly prompt and friendly; we ordered within 3-5 minutes of sitting down and got our food shortly thereafter. Was the food good? Sure. Was it the best Chinese food in the area? Maybe the best Hunan food, but definitely not the best Chinese food. The salted duck egg yolk corn was tasty ($18), although wasn't quite as crispy as I would have liked and skewed sweet in my opinion. The sesame noodles ($12) were a bit oily but the noodles themselves had great mouthfeel. The mountain yam ($18) was my favorite: spicy, crunchy, a little gooey, with nice chunks of pork belly and garlic. The Hunan 1/2 duck ($36) was a little unwieldy and I wish there had been a crisp element (green onions or cucumbers for the soft buns) but the duck itself was cooked well, with great crispy skin and not too much fat. (Side note: like a good Asian, prior to the waiter coming to box up our leftovers I separated all the meat and skin from the fat and bones...but when they boxed it they threw away the skin! I was so sad.) Finally, how innovative is it? In many ways, innovation in Asian food is just not as much of a thing, perhaps because there's so much local pride. Moreover, mixing flavors from Sichuan and Hunan and Shaanxi could be very innovative but for American audiences, it's all just "Chinese" - it doesn't push the envelope in the same way as, say, a southern-style Dungeness crab & grits "pushes the envelope." Sometimes, it feels like the only way to innovate in Asian food is to combine with Western cuisines (think Pagu or Little Donkey) and then you run the risk of being branded with the dubious term "fusion." So Sumiao isn't...innovative, exactly, except for maybe on their tropical / rice-wine inspired drink menu. But they offer up some dishes I truly haven't seen outside China (osmanthus cakes, yam bao with lotus paste filling) and that I appreciate. Tl;rd: 4 stars. We spent $120 after tax and tip for 2 people: 1 drink, 4 dishes, with a good amount of leftovers. Service is great. Ambiance is fun. Pretty tasty. Value is decent. read more

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I read so much hype about "Boston's first Hunan restaurant" and sorry to report it was a horrible experience. Seems to be big on concept/style and short on delivering tasty, reasonably priced food and decent service. Initially impressed by the trendy, modern interior design...and it went downhill from there. The mai tai's aren't even worth the happy hour price of $5. Super sweet. We ordered a second round hoping it was a mistake, but they were again sweet, sweet, sweet (and not in a good way). Our waiter either was new or didn't listen or clueless. Upon bringing the main dishes, I asked what happened to our order of scallion pancakes and he looked dumbfounded and then said he thought we wanted them last. Huh, really? Yelp reviews mentioned the high level of heat--even Qi L., who is from Sichuan, said the spiciness was intensely hot--so I asked the waiter to have the chef tone it down some, but made it clear we still like it spicy. And when I tasted the dishes couldn't believe there was ZERO spice. Literally not one chili pepper on the plate. Bland, like food in one of those Asian chain restaurants (P.E. or PF C's). His response: pour some chili oil on it. When the manager came to follow up, he said the kitchen misread the order, but wasn't receptive to our disappointment, and again, offered us chili oil, or to remake the entire meal (we didn't want to hang around any longer at this point). He did offer us a small discount and noted on the bill, "guest was upset food wasn't spicy enough." I laughed--I guess zero spice can be called "not spicy enough," and his argumentative manner ensured we definitely will not return here. read more

Sumiao Hunan Kitchen - Zero spice! - Chinese Near Me - Cambridge, Massachusetts

Tried out the $5 mai tais. Too sweet for my taste but the price was right. We also had the calamari and mushroom shumai. The calamari was pretty delicious. A little too chewy, but I liked that they added some peppers and it was larger chunks of squid instead of rings. We also asked for siracha mayo for dipping! The shumai were full of rice and mushroom but the ratio was off. Too much rice! They were sorta blah. They have a happy hour so I will try out some other apps (half off 3:30-6:30)! read more

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Location is good but food is expensive. Came in for lunch yesterday and the young manager asked me if I have reservations and also needed my phone number in order to seat our party of 4. There were only 2 tables occupied in there. We ordered the fish maw soup as it's one of our favorite soups and we've tried many. This was a $30 big bowl of blandness and lacking in all the ingredients that is traditional as there were sliced tomatillos and luffa with enoki - where's the fish maw? And salt?. We had to ask for pepper and soy sauce to "fix the soup" like in Ratatouille. The $16 soup dumplings came in 5 pieces and there were no soup nor savory flavors as they were dry!! I don't think we've experienced this before. I ordered the $42 no-bone house crispy duck and it came with only 4 baos so I had to get a few more. The skin of the duck was crispy and the duck was good. The $15.00 Power-Lunch of medium heat Ginger & Scallion chicken, hot and sour soup, and white rice (rice was $3.50 - does not come with the lunch) was good and bad. My friend enjoyed the hot and sour soup. But the ginger & scallion chicken had long horn peppers thrown in there which overpowered everything and burned his mouth so he couldn't taste anything else. I gave this a 3 star as this was the first time we tried this place and haven't tried other dishes Yelpers raved about. Maybe some things are better prepared than others on this menu. We love Hunan cuisine and I am always with foodies who have expansive palettes. This place did not impress although the House crispy duck and hot and sour soup gave glimpses of possibilities. We spent over $140.00 for a lunch that could be much better. read more

Took parents out for a early Mother's day dinner. Friends and online reviews mentioned how small the portions are for their dishes. I was ready to hear about "too spicy" or "not worth it" kind of comments from parents, but they all turned out to be compliments. We haven't had Hunan cuisine for a long time, all the dishes were delicious especially the SAUTEED EEL WITH SHISO. The portion was decent. Our server, Laura was attentive, friendly, and knowledgeable about the foods there. She provided great recommendations! Everyone else we met at Sumiao were also very friendly. This is how great hospitality looks like, highly recommended if you are craving for Hunan cusine! read more

Sumiao Hunan Kitchen - Sauteed Eel With Shiso - Chinese Near Me - Cambridge, Massachusetts

Food is very salty - usually Hunan cuisine is salty which is understandable but don't know why this cook of this restaurant makes it this salty?! Maybe it wants you to eat more rice. Please they charge $3.5 for each bowl of rice. Close to MIT shouldn't justify the super high price for the rice. read more

A great, mostly traditional Chinese restaurant with western-influenced presentation. The menu incorporates a lot of mainland Hunan cuisine, such as the cold braised beef with chili oil. The food seems less oily than an average Chinese restaurant, but it still has the same spicy kick expected from Hunan cuisine. Service is fast as well, we came in right as it opened and had food prepared within 10 minutes of ordering. The dining area is spacious and modern, and the menu is trendy and offers helpful descriptions of the food. One small downside is that the one non-traditional dish (chicken with rice crust) I ordered was mediocre at best. Highlights: loved the scallion pancakes, braised beef with chili oil, and string bean with eggplant. The scallion pancakes were hot, crispy, and came with a slightly sweet and spicy mayo. The cold braised beef with chili oil tasted authentic without a pool of oil at the bottom, could've been spicier too. And the string bean with eggplant tastes like a better, less oily yu xiang eggplant. Drinks: soy milk may have been overpriced (around 4 dollars) but it was nice to have a hot drink on a cold day. If they offered me you tiao I probably would have to find a way to give them 6 stars. The coconut matcha drink is really good too but off menu I think (it used to be on there). Chicken over rice crust: the description on the menu and from the waiter led me to believe that it was a more hearty meal, especially considering it's on the fall/winter seasonal menu. What we got was basically an appetizer. You're supposed to put the chicken on the cold, hard rice cakes and eat it. The chicken had strong flavors of celery and ginger, so I would avoid if those flavors do not fit your palate. Ended up eating the chicken with rice instead of rice cakes. read more

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Love the diversity of options that are all authentic Chinese options! The sticky rice shumai was super good and the rest of what my group ordered was also incredibly satisfying. read more

Sumiao Hunan Kitchen - Chinese Near Me - Cambridge, Massachusetts

Came here to celebrate my birthday and first thing that we found was that there was a $10 charge for bringing in cake. The management said that other places usually charge $25 for cake and that it was unfair to the server if there wasn't a charge because she would take longer serve us. It leaves a bad impression when management has to justify their actions by saying that other places charge more for cake. Lol... Ok, we didn't fight it because we came here to celebrate and understood the reasoning. However what was truly UNFAIR to our sever was that she was the only one working taking care of the entire section. There were 3 people manning the front desk (just standing there), 3 people in the back SLEEPING (!!) on the tables, and 2 managers sitting at the bar on their laptops while this poor girl was busy refilling waters & taking orders for 8 tables. That is unfair to the server. Onto the food. For what it was, this place is very overpriced. We spent $152 for 4 people. - Crunchy Cucumber Salad: it's a little sad that this dish wasn't perfected since it is a signature Hunan province dish. It was overdosed in honey and VERY sweet. - PEPPERS WITH CENTURY YEAR OLD EGG: Wasn't anything special. The proportion of the egg vs the peppers were off. There were about 80% more peppers than egg, making it virtually inedible due to the spice. - GREEN BEANS & EGGPLANT: this was executed perfectly. Hands down to the chef ‍ - Sweet sticky rice cake: unique dish (more a dessert than appetizer). I don't see this at any other restaurant. This was the first thing that came out. Very delicious. -CRIPSY DUCK: This was $36. The meal itself was decent, but not worth the price. They gave four pieces of steamed buns to cover half a duck... which wasn't enough. - TEAPOT: We wanted to get tea to offset the spice from the peppers. What is normally FREE at other asian establishments, Sumiao charged $12. When they brought the teapot over, it's two tea bags in a large of water. At the very least for $12, I expect fresh tea leaves. Overall, I was very disappointed at the service and at the cost of the food. I came here for a birthday celebration and the overall experience was subpar. The decor was nice and the ambiance had a lot of potential. How does an establishment charge a cake fee but have 3 kitchen employees sprawled out on the tables sleeping in the broad daylight? How do you charge $12 for a teapot and use 2 regular teabags... especially at an Asian restaurant where tea is such a prominent part of the culture? How do you have 8 employees working but only one server doing everything? There were some redeeming qualities (eggplant & sticky rice cakes) but for the price, service, and experience... I would not come back again. Especially since this was a special occasion for a birthday, I was disappointed at the overall impression this left. read more

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I love Sumiao!! It's such a modern restaurant but their dishes are authentic and super delicious!! Grandma's Pork definitely blew my mind as it was packed with flavors and so tasty!! Also they had Duck Yolk Breaded Corn Kernels and it was BOMB!! I love everything duck yolk and it is really so rare to find good dishes here in the States!! Also, if you see all customers bwing Chinese in a Chinese restaurant then you know this place is good!! I really recommend it!! read more

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This place is nice. It has a good vibe, the atmosphere is very chill. Vibe check: passed. I ordered: La Rou with bamboo shoot, Garlic flavored okra, Yellow river fish. I personally love the la rou because it has a good balance between meat and veggies. The yellow river fish is a bit spicy because there are jalapeños and the mala seeds. Overall, I would come here about once every few months. There are other options with better prices. read more

What a lovely place! We had a great meal here earlier in the pandemic (our first time dining indoors in Boston in fact), and were impressed at how spacious inside it was, with enough space for social distancing and all the servers and workers masked. Our server was lovely and advised us on what / how much to order. The food was excellent- the shumai were especially a highlight. Really conveniently located by the T also. Will be back if we're in the area! read more

Sumiao Hunan Kitchen - Changsha Shumai (6) - Chinese Near Me - Cambridge, Massachusetts

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Great ambience, friendly service, and delicious, mostly authentic Chinese cuisine! The lava fish was definitely the highlight of the meal, but everything was amazing. read more

Sumiao Hunan Kitchen - Green Dry fried string beans - Chinese Near Me - Cambridge, Massachusetts

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Sumiao hosted us for a large event and knocked it out of the park. Trendy atmosphere, live entertainment, amazing food - they nailed it all! We were lucky enough to meet Sumiao herself - to be honest, she could serve me a piece of cardboard and I'd buy it. She is hilarious and even sang us a song! You don't get that personality anywhere else. The food was awesome - they have plenty of vegetarian options and dishes that range from traditional to unique. My favorite was the pumpkin cake they serve for dessert. Do yourself a favor and order it (it is worth the calories, I promise). The staff was incredibly helpful, and the bartenders were friendly and funny. They were very willing to offer drink advice, and seemed to have experience making some interesting cocktails. I am looking forward to coming back for a true meal outside of this event! read more

This is my favorite restaurant. It's where I take my family when they visit, but we also go here for special occasions, or honestly just anytime. We always get the sizzling basil eggplant and crispy fish fillet. Every server here has been warm, friendly, and professional. Bernadette was our server the last time we went, and she's doing a fantastic job. read more

My friend and I came here for lunch on Wednesday around 11:30am. Apparently all the tables were already reserved so we had to sit at the bar. Indeed by noon the tables were filled and there was a short line! Overall, the food is delicious but the price is a bit high for the portion sizes and ok service. The service is only so-so. We were taken care of by a guy at the bar. He seemed to be hard of hearing and not familiar with the menu, so it took awhile for us to get our order in. Even then, the order he got wasn't quite right -- there was just one dish we wanted two of, but we ended up getting two of a couple other dishes as well. Fortunately, it was no problem to return the dishes and we didn't have to pay for them, but overall the process of ordering food was a bit confusing. Perhaps it was just that one waiter, and we recognize he was trying his best, but there maybe could have been another waiter to help him out to make things go smoother. The food was delicious but pricey compared to other Chinese restaurants in the area. For lunch, my friend and I totaled $65 tax and tip included with a little bit of leftovers to take home. I don't think the service or setting made up for the extra price. Perhaps it's just the location of Kendall Square that makes it pricier. Sweet tofu pudding - Great as an appetizer or a dessert! Tasted authentic and just the right amount of sweetness. Hunan street noodle - Loved this! The sauce wasn't too salty or heavy, and the meat and bok choy tasted great. Pork soup bao - Tasted authentic, although I actually prefer my soup a little sweeter (this one had a stronger vinegar flavor). I don't see myself coming back alone, but I would take a group of friends here if convenient! read more

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Good experience! Me and my family enjoyed foods, Atmosphere and Service by SY here! Thank you guys read more

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One of my all-time favorite restaurants. The lotus root, green beans, and noodles are to die for. Quality drinks and beautiful ambiance. It's on the pricey end but perfect for a nice date or a celebration dinner (which we did for my graduation). read more

This is just the best Chinese restaurant I found in Boston area. I love spicy food and ordered Yellow River fish. I ate similar dish in a lot of places, however theirs was mind blowing. The waiter mentioned that it has pumpkin and carrots in the gravy. The taste was quite complex, very tasty. It had 3-4 types of chili peppers and mushrooms in the gravy. The white rice was good quality jasmine rice with nice aroma. At the end we ordered a coffee flavored gelato. Loved again. The restaurant is very nicely decorated with comfortable seating arrangements. The service was exceptionally good. Plenty of street parking spaces were available. The location is quite convenient for MIT students and staffs as it is just a few blocks away. Overall, we will be back again and highly recommend. read more

Came here on a Friday night with a dear college friend. I've been meaning to come to this place for a while as my Chinese friends have given this place their stamp of approval. And they're right as this place is definitely good! We got their Sizzling Beef with Chili and Onion, Spicy Cauliflower, and Yellow River Beef. I really liked everything we ordered! The flavors were really on par to what I've had in NYC and the food was cooked really well. Overall, very authentic flavors! The only complaint I have is that the dishes were quite oily. There was literally a pool of oil on my plate when I finished my meal. Idk if that could be helped but that was something that turned me off. Otherwise this place is really good for relatively high end, yummy Chinese food! read more

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We were looking for authentic regional Chinese food and we found Sumiao. They specialize in Hunan style cooking so we decided to give it a try. It was a great choice from the food, the decor, the atmosphere and the staff! We were seated on time and from the beginning our waitress, Gin was spot on. She explained the menu, certain dishes and answered our questions. We were able to request the amount of 'heat/spice' for each dish. This for us is helpful, my husband likes it crazy hot and I like it mildly spicy to hot. We enjoyed all the dishes, my favorite was the Sizzling Crystal Vermicelli, my husband picked the Yellow River Beef. It was in an amazing flavorful spicy sauce/broth. The beef was sliced super thin. When the server, Johnny brought it to us, he realized we didn't have any rice and offered to bring us some. He said it added to the dish and he was right - thank you Johnny! Each dish came to the table as it was ready by one of the servers. The Chili Chicken was thinly sliced served with a delish hot oil and the crispy English cucumbers added a refreshing crunch. Glad we tried the Scallion Twisty rolls and next time I think we will try the Pork Bao. As a special treat for Mother's Day we were given a Rose Bao, handmade in house, filled with red bean filling. It was a nice way to end the meal. The atmosphere is upbeat and welcoming - in addition to our servers, Gin & Johnny, we spoke to Lee the manager and a gentleman who may have been the owner. He explained that they have seasonal/monthly specials that are focused on the foods of the season and what our bodies need at different times of the year. So we are going back soon and will be trying the seasonal menu! In the past year, going out for dinner for us has changed - it is now an event, something we want to be a little special, a little different, something we really appreciate more than we did in the past and we have become very selective. So happy we selected Sumiao for our night out. They made us feel welcome and our night out was the authentic food experience we were hoping for. We are looking forward to returning soon with family & friends. read more

Sumiao Hunan Kitchen - Chili Chicken, Yellow River Beef, Sizzling Crystal Vermicelli, Scallion Twisty Roll (4), Rose Bao - Mother's Day Treat! - Chinese Near Me - Cambridge, Massachusetts

I was fortunate enough to be able to attend an event at Sumiao's Hunan Kitchen. All I can say is wow, she knows how to throw a party. If you're looking for a different cuisine that tastes great, you have to come here. Now onto the food! I tried the following: Sumiao Gyoza Pumpkin cake Avocado meatball Garlic calamari Spicy crunchy cucumber Mala Duck Five spices braised beef Fried tofu Lava fish Cilantro rice As you can see, there's plenty of options for any palette. Get it all or anything that piques your fancy as it's all good!! The gyoza was awesome and the sauce accompanying it was perfect. The pumpkin cake was an amazing dessert. The avocado meatball was crisp and yummy. The calamari was spicy but not too spicy. The crunchy cucumber was refreshing and the five spice braised beef was extremely tender. The mala Duck was well prepared and thinly sliced (similar presentation to the Peking Duck in Beijing). The lava fish is indeed spicy (and I love spice) and flavorful. Tofu was great and the rice was an amazing side. Even with the snow, there was plenty of street parking on a Tuesday night. Thank you, Sumiao!! read more

Sumiao Hunan Kitchen - Chinese Near Me - Cambridge, Massachusetts

Had an amazing World Cup Final Viewing Party in the conference space. Thank you to Zimu Chen, Shao Zhu and all of the hard working staff for making this special event a huge success! I have received only rave reviews of the menu items and service. No doubt I will return! read more

I am always satisfied with this restaurant because their dishes are not americanized and so authentic. Their food is so flavorful and the taste of spices from their dishes always make me come back! As mentioned in the previous yelp post of this restaurant, I always order these four dishes: shakshan cabbage, bbq rib festival, yellow river fish, and kun fu beef brisket. This time I only went with one friend due to pandemic, but these four dishes are enough for 3-4 people! Typically, I would pick meat and seafood over vegetable but Sumiao makes their skashan cabbage to perfection that my chopsticks reach over their cabbage more! I can honestly eat rice and just their shakshan cabbage because it's that good! Not too salty, and it's perfectly seasoned. Once the pandemic is over, it would be a wonderful place to have a group gathering! read more

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High end Chinese restaurant with modern environment and authentic food! Went there 3 times already, and picked out this spot both for Mother's Day and my birthday. Except the price point nothing much to complain. Feels like home! Love that they let you control how spicy you want for almost every dishes. read more

Sumiao Hunan Kitchen - Chinese Near Me - Cambridge, Massachusetts

刚吃完，service太差了，把我们的菜上到隔壁桌了，然后过了5分多钟，隔壁桌说没有点这个菜，然后服务员直接端到我们桌子上面来了，这还是covid呢。我们一共点了三个菜，只上来两个。我们还不是忙的时间来的，根本不是bandwidth的问题，不知道店主怎么管的，这个小哥叫glianxxx Very bad service, do NOT go!! during COVID, the server directly move the dish from the table next to me to my table. Unbelievable! read more

Sumiao Hunan Kitchen - menu - Chinese Near Me - Cambridge, Massachusetts

Wow! How did I miss this spot? I chase great Asian food all over the boston area. Been to many spots in Quincy, Malden, Cambridge, Allston, Chinatown and lots more. I visited Sumiao for my first time today for lunch. Ordered way too much with a friend. Could not find a weak-link. Dumps, eggplant, wood ear, garlic calamari, beef on fire. Each dish was distinct and truly Hunan. The service we received from Bernadette was the same as the food: outstanding. I can't wait to go back for dinner with friends so we can order more! read more

I give 3 stars because there really aren't that many contemporary Chinese restaurant that is own by Chinese. I want to say ambience: 5 Star Authenticity: 4 Star Taste: 2 Star Price: 1 Star Service: 4 Star The best thing is the steam pork bun. It transport you to China. It is the best steam pork bun I have tasted in the us including la. It is better than ding tai Feng. I highly recommend! The other dish we had overall kind lack of flavor. Was a bit blend and that's a shame because Hunan food is supposed to be known for its spices. We got the beef noodle for medium spicy level and honestly it is not spicy at all and Shanghai shaomai which is just bland. What bother me is the price. If you want to charge 16 dollar for a bowl of noodle it needs to deliver the goods. If I get ramen for 16 dollar I feel full after. The noodle we got there is an appetizer with 2 thin slice of no flavor marinate beef and half of egg. I'm all for fancy expensive Chinese because I think this is an area lack of representation. However, there is a reason some restaurant can charge 30 dollar for a bowl of pasta because I can taste the love and work the chef put into it. And they use top notch ingredients. Over charging for the sake of rent is not the reason. I can guarantee the noodle is not handmade and the beef is not grass fed. Apologize for the rant! Having said all of it I will def go back for some pork bun. read more

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I got the Weekday Power Lunch (Lava Fish with Melted Gold). Food was great but for $17.50 you'd think rice would be included. They charged an additional $3.50 for a small portion of white rice read more

Went here on Saturday night. Ordered (appetizer) mala duck, pan seared pepper, (main dish) LA ROU with mushrooms, chinese cabbage pot, spicy shredded pig ears. LA ROU the smoked pork belly is impressive, I can't find this taste in other chinese restaurant, it makes me believe the description "house made". Mushroom is not just regular mushroom, they put cha shu gu in it (not sure about its correct english name), again not something I can find in other chinese restaurant. Just because of this dish, and other dishes are also well-prepared, we will definitely return to try other dishes on the menu. read more

Sumiao has the perfect savory spicy flavors that I crave -- their dishes are what you would call a "rice thief" in Korean because they make you eat a lot of rice. My favorite dishes that I've tried so far are the lava fish (tender fish fillet in spicy fermented pepper sauce) and beef on fire. It definitely is pricey especially a la carte -- the lunch special is more reasonable though, and that's what I would go for in the future. read more

Sumiao Hunan Kitchen - Lava fish -- YUM! - Chinese Near Me - Cambridge, Massachusetts

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One of the best authentic spicy Chinese food you can have in greater Boston. Always a default for me who lived in China for my first 18 years of life. Golden beef, Lava fish, sizzling lamb, and their veggie dishes have constant high quality! Wait can be long so reserve if you can, or else call and ask about bar/long table spaces read more

I do not remember how many times I ordered and picked up. Food is so authentic and yummy. Green Pepper Mixed With Century Egg must try. Sizzling Lamb is nuts in a good way. so flavorful and tasty. Sizzling Basil Flavored Eggplant is another favorite dish. I like shrimp so I will order Duck Yolk Breaded Crispy Shrimp!!! Even though I always picked up from the store, the dishes still are delicious. I am a little surprised about the stars they earned. It should be higher. read more

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Sat at the bar on a slower night and had Kai as my bartender. He was excellent -- attentive, knowledgeable and lots of fun to chat with. All of his recommendations were spot on and I'm glad I took his advice. I was initially hesitant to get the garlic okra and Yellow River Beef but I'm glad he pushed me to try them. I went the adventurous route and tried the Soft Crystals for dessert, and boy was that a trip! Very peculiar dish, unlike anything I've had before. Had a great time last night overall. Sit at the bar when Kai is working and you'll have a fun night! read more

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Cute and clean decor, great service, we had the fried rice and garlic okra which was a great vegetarian appetizer or side, it was kind of like a vegetarian version of octopus! Really good crunchy outer texture and little pearls on the inside read more

My friend and I spend a very pleasant night at Sumiao. With the recommendation of the waiter, we took the Yello-River Fish and Wood-Ear Mushroom salad. The fish was pricy for tilapia, but very well seasoned. It felt like a creamy soup with large chunks of fish in it, which we both really liked. The mushroom salad was waaaaay too spicy, and lacked any other spice it in (maybe my taste buds were too burned to eel anything else). I thought, again, that it was over priced, but also did not like the dish. My friend is a big fan of extremely spicy food, and he actually really enjoyed this one. Service was great - friendly, knowledgable, and flexible for special requests. Atmosphere was great too with some live music in the background (reasonable volume too!). read more

Food was incredible!! popcorn chicken was crispy, cauliflower was awesome. not to mention, great service from Bernadette!

the quality of food here is worth the price. got the famous Lava Fish, Beef on Fire, Sizzling Lamb, and La Rou with Bamboo Shoots and they were all very good. Have never been inside (always take outs). Want to try everything on their menu! read more

Welcome to the first Chinese restaurant in the Boston area that successfully manages to merge bright and modern ambiance with, what is for the most part authentic and tasty, Hunan cuisine. For appetizers, I would recommend - -Green Pepper mixed with Century Egg (I know it sounds weird, but it's a traditional Chinese dish and has a unique flavor) -Steamed La Rou (smoked pork) & Shang Gan (smoked spiced tofu) For Meat Lovers, go with- -Yellow River Beef (thinly sliced beef cooked in a spicy broth) -Global Steamed Pork (sliced pork belly steamed with Chinese pickles -very flavorful!) For Veggies/Tofu, try - -Pan Seared Egg Tofu (Japanese egg tofu in a tomato based sauce topped with shrimp and pea) -Spicy cauliflower (they can adjust the spicy level based on your liking) I would say I've enjoyed everything I order there and still have a lot to try (they have a pretty big menu!). However, pricing is definitely on the higher side (meat dishes are $20-$35!!). I think they will do better by lowering the prices a bit and cut the portion by 1/3 - so that people can pay less and try a greater variety of dishes! read more

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Dine Out (Restaurant Week) Boston Modern and Chinese Fusion Food! Lava Fish, Avocado Meatballs, and Cassata! *** Locals A great place to check out! Lots of Chinese fusion and authentic food. Good to come out for Restaurant Week as it is cheaper, and you try new things you wouldn't have before. *** Travelers Not worth your time and money unless you were here for Restaurant Week. It is pricey for the quality of food, and the service was very slow if you wanted to grab a quick bite. *** My Recommendation Come here for their Lava Fish! Very fresh and good, but the service is slow, so maybe ordering a drink or two would help. They have an expansive drinks menu. Try them out for Restaurant Week! IG: @foodisseur read more