You Jie Xiao Chao Chinese Food

Kate Colhyn Iconar

3.0

Very difficult to find for first-timers, this place is also known as the "Secret Chinese Retsaurant near Rockwell". No signage nor indication that the place, which maybe is an apartment, is a restaurant. The place supposedly serves Hunan (Hunanese) food which is for the spice addicts. We have come and gone several times and have tried quite a few of their dishes. Their gong-pao (kung pao) chicken, though tasty, has too much peanuts, oil and very little chicken. Their steamed dumplings are served Beijing-style as an order is about 20-or-so dumplings! Some of my faves include their fried string beans and fried intestines. Steamed rice is an EAYC affair.Their prices have jumped significantly over the recent years and in my opinion, offers little value for money. I consider the other Hunanese restaurant along Bagtikan St in Makati to be of much better food quality and value for money. On a side note, when I took my former boss here who was born and raised in Hunan province in China, he mentioned that the spice levels of the food was only in "the 25% level of real Hunanese cuisine". I suppose their spice levels are somewhat tailored for the Pinoy tongue.

Ipek Ozden

3.0

The little hole in the wall chinese restaurant behind rockwell. This place is always talked about but no one seems to know how to get there. You've probably driven past it several times when trying to cut through traffic in Guadalupe. There are no signs out front and to the unknowing from the outside this place could be anything. The two distinguishing items out the front are rhe red lanterns and a big air conditioning unit. A mate once told me its on that road first left after the town hall - you can't miss it, its the only place that has AC unit.I've been here several times before and looking at the menu its looks ok, the photos don't really do the food justice. Today we ordered fried and steamed dumplings, pot luck duck, kung pao chicken, noodles and yang chow fried rice.Dumplings were good dipped in the pungent black vinegar and chilli paste. The fried ones were better than the steamed ones, the steamed dumplings came out still a little cold.Kung pao chicken was good, but a little on the salty side. Packed with chicken and peanuts it worked well with the rice.Noodles were ok a little on the bland side and quite one note. I had to add black vinegar and chili just to season it a bit. There was however new menu items picture on the wall that the waitress failed to mention until after we ordered that included hor fun! ( I would have preferred those)The hot pot duck was really good spicy with big pockets of flavour. The duck was cooked the way I like it with crispy and moist flesh. The skin however wasn't crispy and the fat hadn't rendered down enough was still quite gelatinous - I opted to not eat the skin. But over all still an enjoyable dish.Overall the place is ok. Not worth the hype. Prices are reasonable. All that food only cost 1300 and was way to much for 3 adults. Being a Sichuan style restaurant I would have expected more bigger bolder flavours with a more intense heat. I'd go back just to smash down fried dumplings. :)