First impression? Run! Here's the deal. At dinner time there wasn't a single soul in the dining room. And from the looks of things, Szechuan Restaurant hasn't actually sat anyone at a dinner table in quite a while. Maybe at lunch. That's surprising, because the restaurant is located within easy walking distance of several motels. But being adventurous, we decided to place an order. The buffet? Nope. Ignore the signs. The hibachi grill buffet? Nope. You can order hibachi, but forget any buffets. So, we ordered a bunch of items to take back to our room. Our starter, Hot and sour soup was a "never again". Dishwater has more flavor. But the other dishes were quite tasty, if you don't mind a little oil. But white rice can easily soak that up. Our shrimp and vegetables came with a variety of crisp veggies and huge shrimp. Nothing skimpy here. The chicken lo mein was also very good. Large pieces of chicken and noodles. The beef & scallops was a 50/50 deal. The beef was very good. The scallops were clearly not fresh and had a peculiar flavor. I'm hoping for the best. All in all, large portions, and decent food. Served up nice and hot-fresh from the wok. I just found the flavors very bland. We asked for spicy Szechuan and on a scale of 1-5, it barely cleared 1/2. Same with shrimp and veggies. They must do a heck of an online and delivery business. And be sure to pass on the scallops. read more

See all

The Worst Ever, greasy and no chicken!! do not order here!!! Grease, grease , grease NOt GOOD AND no AND i MEAN no CHICKEN!!!!!!!!!!!!! read more

Stopped in to Szechuan having not eaten there in over 20 years. The family brought in business is aging deteriorating rapidly. The food was not bad, but it was not good. The service was polite, professional, and courteous, but the rundown interior is in desperate need of a makeover. What was a thriving energetic nice restaurant in the late 90s is out would it stay with empty Pepsi 12 pack containers thrown about? Vegetables were very nice as well as all the proteins again it was not a bad meal. It was exquisite great meal. It was neutral. Extremely competitive Chinese market of Charlottesville Virginia. Szechuan is breathing its last breath. read more

Amazing food I loved it I have been going here since a child every time has been amazing!!

Four and a half Stars A new entry onto the Charlottesville dining scene that is worth your time. Let's get the one bad issue out of the way. They are new. Why is this bad? Well, they have the skill necessary to run a restaurant, but not the practiced timing that comes with experience. The person at the register keeps stepping away to help others; the cooks do not have the needed ingredients within east reach; the person taking orders at the tables keeps running back to work take out orders; the person working takeout orders keeps going to the register. All skills take time to learn, and they will learn them. Now for the good part. Plenty of parking for this end unit restaurant. It is a combination of a sit down restaurant (they give you the good plates) and a take out Chinese place. Clean and quiet enough to talk to your dining companions. The flavors are there. The cooks know the technical side, and with a little time will raise their meals up like culinary art demands. I am definitely looking forward to seeing how high they will rise. read more

Delicious! We ordered the steamed dumplings, sesame chicken and house shrimp with extra veggies and were thoroughly pleased. The portions were great and the food tasted fresh. The house shrimp had a nice kick to it and was very flavorful. The side of fried rice was underwhelming, but the rest of the food was great. Highly recommend. read more

No. Would not eat here again and wouldn't recommend anyone else eat here either. We ordered delivery and the food was poorly packaged basically spilled all over the bag. Once we got into the portions that were left, the sesame chicken was so old it was hard. The "sesame" sauce tastes more like syrup. Fried rice is basically white rice with a tiny amount of sauce. The lo mein noodles were mushy and the chicken was so old it smelled like it went bad. Absolutely do not eat here. read more

This restaurant is getting way too much hate man, first of all I love the way the food is made here it's my main go to especially on nights I'm trying to kick it and chillax with the fam the flavor profiles hit you dead up in your taste buds you wanna go to flavor town? Well you chose the right destination it's also the perfect place to enjoy a succulent Chinese meal read more

Food was ok. Didn't include chopsticks when requested in order. And their double fried pork was incredibly mild. For something listed as hot and spicy, I could sometimes understand when catering to local tastes, but I specifically requested it be made spicy and it was not read more

Great food, been going there for many years. Team is friendly. This has been my go to Chinese restaurant for many years

We phoned in our dinner order and picked up our food on a Sunday night. They are doing a great job with hygiene and COVID regulations. You can't enter the restaurant but buzz when you get there. The servers have on gloves and masks and bring your order out to you. Food was average Chinese take out. We got the general tsos chicken, sweet and sour pork (ok), eggplant (yummy), and beef lo mein (good amount of beef). The fried rice was disappointing: just white rice fried with soy sauce. Decent option if you're in the area! read more

The customer service was terrible - the employee was rude. I picked up my order and they didn't include my drink. Training Needed! read more

DoorDash - one hour to get food prepared for Chinese- one hour!!!! Beware- they are not prepared or have clear support to help patrons

My husband loves the scallops w/vegetables. The scallops are small but the vegetables are plentiful. The dish is accompanied w/rice, white or fried. He chose the fried rice which he said was the best fried rice ever. They give you so much food that you can eat off one dish for 2 days. read more

They lied to me about an order time and made me wait 30 minutes for food they didn't even start. She printed out the ticket right in front of me at the 28th minute out of the 30 minutes, and proceeded to say it will come out soon, as she carries the newly printed order ticket back to the kitchen. read more

It's American Chinese fast food but it's true to what it is. Whether delivery or in-person, it delivers a quick but cheap, efficient, and tasty meal. Its lunch buffet is spot-on and its delivery is quick, correct, and wholesome without skimping on portions. It's not a fancy restaurant but it doesn't pretend to be - if you're looking for some quick fixes, here is where to get it. After having ordered from and been here too many times to count over the years I can say that with certainty. read more

Always the best Chinese food in town! Have been going there since 1977, still love it! Wish they delivered to Crozet! LOL

The buffet selection was small compared to other chinese buffets. The food tasted average and the staff was nice. read more

Szechuan Restaurant - Vegetable lo mein, string beans, cheese wonton - Chinese Near Me - Charlottesville, Virginia

Great Chinese-American cuisine, prepared by really sweet people. Always hot and fresh, the breaded items aren't overbreaded, and they even grow some of their own vegetables out front! Prices are fantastic, too. I'm a regular here. read more

Been going to this restaurant for 20 plus years! Love them! Best Chinese food! Family is amazing too!

I was staying in the motel across the street and thought I'd give it a try. I was pleasantly surprised. The Double Fried Pork and Kung Pao Chicken were both really good. The fried rice was just okay, but decent. They still don't allow dine in, so takeout and delivery only. I'd definitely eat there again when I'm in town. read more

Fine but not great. I think the Lo mein has spaghetti noodles and not egg noodles. Not much flavor to the egg rolls. Mediocre unfortunately but okay for quick meal if needed read more

Szechuan Restaurant has almost no authentic dishes (I'd *maybe* consider their eggplant dish to be authentic), but even for its Americanized Chinese food, it disappoints. I'd consider Panda Express to be a 2.5/5 for its Americanized Chinese food, but this place is definitely a 1/5. Service is nice, but I just can't forgive the food. The interior of the restaurant just seems to be falling apart, and the atmosphere is oppressive. I'm not sure how clean the restaurant is with their food, given how dilapidated their premises are. In my experience working in Asian restaurants, the restaurants that are kept sparkling clean in the dining area usually have better standards for cleanliness within the kitchen. read more

Wow the food here is very good! Very hot and fresh! Food came out very fast and service was very good. We came for dinner and I was very impressed. Can't wait to come back soon. read more

Beef was overcooked. Fried race was basically just white rice. Ordered on doordash and restaurant provided no chopsticks or silverware. Ordered two fried rices and they gave white rice instead. read more

Ordered online through their website. The website ended up charging my credit card twice. After about an hour I called to check on the food and the women told me it was on the way. About 30 minutes later it was still not delivered so I called back to ask about it and was told it was on its way. I also inquired about my credit card being charged twice and the woman on the phone did not want to help resolve the issue because "they were busy". After waiting on hold and talking to the woman nothing was resolved and she was telling me that she couldn't fix it because she didn't have any of the information. Long story short--two hours later finally got our food and it wasn't anything great. Pretty average and not at all worth the wait. read more

It was 10pm at night and I was in search of a hot meal, so I went to the local Chinese spot right by my restaurant. My hot garlic chicken was loaded with cartilage that I had to spit out nearly every other bite. I figured that they threw something together real quick late at night, so I'd give them a pass. I returned a few days later for their lunch buffet. They had SIX hot items on the buffet, along with four fried items, and two soups. That was it--and they all sucked. Honestly, one of the five worst Chinese restaurants that I've ever been to in my life. Staff was very friendly and offered to refund my meal (I passed because I did eat most of it), but save your money and head elsewhere. read more

The short moral of the story to come: trust Yelp reviews over Grubhub reviews. My fiancée and I were hungry. We have a one-month-old, so it's difficult for us to go out. So, based on Grubhub reviews, we ordered from here. Unfortunately, that was a mistake. I ordered the Surf and Turf, Hunanese style. My fiancée ordered the Moo Shu Vegetables. Both were disappointing. The Moo Shu vegetables, I'm told, tasted off. The Moo Shu pancakes were also disappointing. My dish, the Hunanese style beef and shrimp, was also disappointing. First, despite a note that the dish was hot and spicy, the dish was neither hot nor spicy. (I hate to be that guy, but I've had authentic Hunanese dishes in China. It is the hottest food I have tasted: mouth-screaming heat. It was great.) The quality of the ingredients were also poor, especially the shrimp: instead of being crispy and fresh, the shrimp were mushy. Nor were the vegetables in the dish great. The hot and sour soup was the one bright spot, with one important caveat: unlike every other Chinese restaurant I've been to in town (and I'm thinking especially of Taste of China and Peter Chang's), the soup had meat (in this case, pork). I'm perfectly fine noshing on the sweet, sweet taste of pig flesh, but many people aren't, and it would be unusual to find it in the dish. There are better Chinese options in town. Go to them, instead. read more

I am not terribly surprised that no one has rated this yet, but it's a shame. I've eaten here probably 30 times in the last seven years, and every time the food ranges from "good" to "wonderful" (the variability of Szechuan being the only complaint I have, but even at its worst it is still good). I learned of it from a college friend who ordered from every Chinese restaurant in town, looking for the best one, and settled on Szechuan. All the things you expect from a Chinese restaurant that delivers are there, and are very good. The egg rolls are particularly notable. The restaurant itself is actually quite nice, and the family who runs the place are lovely. The very high-quality lunch buffet, $6.50 the last time I went, is the best lunch deal, anywhere. The bottom line - the food is excellent and is right now an undiscovered gem of Charlottesville. read more

We students have a nickname for this place. "Sketch-wan". While I have never eaten there in the day, they are awful party hosts at night. I'm sooo glad OYFA and other Asian groups last spring decided to use Sakura for their celebrating, where they have an excellent bartender, rather than this awful place. What kind of place (esp. after patrons generally pay the org to get in) wouldn't give free water, only bottled water? That's dangerous from those who buy alcohol at the bar and for those who have been dancing. I had to go all the way to a nearby inn to get water to people who desperately needed it. read more

They say to never judge a book by its cover and I think Szechuan is a good example. I've been coming here for a year now. Although the location and building might not be visually pleasing to most people, the service and food are the heart of the restaurant. It is family owned and everyone there greets you with a warm welcome. They have a decent lunch buffet for a real bargain. For dinner, I would recommend the crispy chicken. It's somewhat similar to general tso's chicken but better. The small flank chicken slices are sautéed perfectly with celery, carrots, and green onion. Not sure what's on the chef's special sauce but it's delicious. Eat this dish with some fried rice and you'll be a happy camper. Will continue to come and try out the other dishes! read more

Szechuan Restaurant - Crispy chicken - Chinese Near Me - Charlottesville, Virginia

Long wait tonight they used grub hub for delivery took well over an hour and a half. Food was average and left items out

Best dumplings in town (other than the very different dumplings at Marca and Luca, which are wonderful too). Yummy! And I have tried the dumplings everywhere.. Very friendly and service-focused staff.. read more

Had a terrible experience ordering food for delivery from this restaurant today. Not only did my food arrive late, but when I called the restaurant to inquire about my order, the lady who picked up the phone scolded me for placing a small order, even though my order was above the minimum limit of what one can order through the delivery app. Never going to order from this restaurant again! Terrible customer service. read more

My boyfriend and I hit up the lunch buffet about twice a month. It's small in comparison with the others in town, but the quality blows them out of the water. The beef in the beef and broccoli actually tastes and feels like meat, not rubber. And I don't know what they do different about the sauce, but no other place compares. Their chicken wings are fantastic, too. As for the service, they have always been very friendly. The waitress is always there to refill our drinks and used plates don't pile up on the table. Plus, it's always nice when the staff recognize you and don't have to be told what you want to drink. :) I love this place. read more

Far from the best Szechuan food in town. Why call it "Szechuan chicken" if it's just stir fried chicken with soy sauce? Dishonest branding. They also got my order wrong for delivery. read more

Nice staff and owner, good lunch buffet and dinners. But what sets them apart is the BEST fried rice in Charlottesville. Hot and sour soup is pretty good and crispy chicken and beef dishes are delish read more

I love ordering take out and delivery from here! Their general tso AND orange style chicken is soooo good. This place is amazing

Friend recommended this place and so got a big take out order to try handful of different items. Everything was great and liked how they bring out so you don't have to go inside due to covid. Parked nearby so we could start eating right away and laughed because we seen the friend who recommended it picking up an order. Really good just not 5 stars because not the best Iv ever had, but STILL 4 stars because no complaints :) read more

Hibachi teriyaki chicken: cut into tiny dry cubes with some sauce over them; Fried rice seemed to be white rice with a little soy sauce; Vegetables? Onions, one small piece of zucchini. Flavor wasn't bad, but the offering was pathetic. Spring rolls OK, both the meat and vegetable egg rolls bland and about 99% cabbage. Yum Yum Sauce should be called It's OK Sauce. Gave this place a shot just to try a different Chinese restaurant in town. No reason to return. read more