Chengdu gourmet McKnight

Submitted by dementedturnip26 t3_ymg6ey in pittsburgh

Makes me kind of sad to see the less than stellar reviews as I think it’s likely a bunch of north hills Karen’s getting annoyed at a language barrier.

The most important part…the food is fantastic. The menu is huge which causes a ton of confusion with the staff, and add to it that there is a large language barrier it can be challenging to get in orders.

However, everyone is friendly but again just be patient. They are also still new and learning, but in general have been there multiple times and have had nothing bad yet. Would highly recommend the smoked duck. That was fantastic.

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yolorelli t1_iv3zbb4 wrote

I have witnessed this first hand when they opened. Super busy. Right around dinner time. Group of 6 baby booming Kevin’s and Karen’s walk in and couldn’t get seated right away. Started talking down to the wait staff. Said they rather go somewhere else anyway and they are never coming back. Blah blah. Entitled turds. The food was excellent though. I have recommended it to several friends and family.

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dementedturnip26 OP t1_iv44kzu wrote

What always makes me laugh is when people go to a place like this, then they get orange chicken and say “ehh wasn’t that great”

You know how I judge a place like this or las palmas and know it’s pretty good? When I go to las palmas and see the group of Mexicans there on their lunch I know in the right place. When I go to here or the other places like it such as Szechuan gourmet and see folks that are native Chinese I know I’m in the right place. Quite frankly you won’t see them at Emiliano’s or seasame inn. I like those for what they are but this is different.

North hills has always been pretty barren as far as diversity of food, and I just hope the moron crowd up here doesn’t ruin something that is frankly very different and very good from what we have here.

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livefast_dieawesome t1_iv56rqj wrote

> North hills has always been pretty barren as far as diversity of food

What are you talking about? They have an OLIVE GARDEN! You can take a TOUR OF ITALY. And a MAD MEX where right now they have a GOBBLERITO. that’s a BURRITO with thanksgiving dinner INSIDE OF IT. And RED LOBSTER which is the APPLEBEES OF THE SEA. And that’s not to even mention ARBY’S ON McKNIGHT ROAD

(I am being extremely sarcastic)

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whatadangus t1_iv57tq1 wrote

Hey man, I’ll be the first to say something like a Gobblerito shouldn’t exist….but it does, and it’s 🔥🔥🔥

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livefast_dieawesome t1_iv6m871 wrote

With the exception of arbys I am not above eating at any of the above places. Just usually with my parents or my wife’s family 😂

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mrsrtz t1_iv5b47j wrote

> APPLEBEES OF THE SEA

I laughed!

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mvc594250 t1_iv5b50n wrote

I mean, in defense of the north hills (food scene, not necessarily the people depending on the suburb), it's sparsely populated compared to the city and the other hills. Tough to support a great food scene when you're light on people and they all live fairly far apart.

That said, the north hills still has two of the areas best Indian/Pakistani restaurants (Taj Mahal, Kabab King), a great Burmese restaurant (Royal Myanmar), at least one exceptional Japanese restaurant (Sushi Tomo), several good Asian fusion spots (K Asian Bistro) a couple of serviceable Thai spots (Kanlaya for sure), California Taco Shop which seems to be well regarded in its lane, a couple of really good pizza places (Milano's and now the new Angelo's location), some decent Italian American spots (Silvioni's, Sprezzatura, Severina) and a number of good to great American food places, both pub style (Blue Goose, Rear End) and higher end (Hartwood, Brick and Barrel, Off the Hook, Napa Prime).

This is without touching any kind real local chain (ie Aladdins, Nicky's Thai). I don't think that it's really fair to say that the area lacks diversity, especially since it's so comparatively sparsely populated. I think that the real problem is that most people find a handful of meals or types of cuisines that they like and never even bother to look for a new restaurant or style of food. There's a lot more going on here than a lot of people notice and I think that's a shame.

All that said, I welcome Chengdu Gourmet and am pumped to make it over there.

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OnceBug t1_iv5vk87 wrote

This person dines yo, great info blast here.

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joncash t1_iv5emmx wrote

California Taco shop is weird. They make fairly authentic Mexican tacos, but call themselves California. Like why? Why name yourself after an American state? Good food, but just weird. Also I'm leaving this comment so I can refer to your list of restaurants. I've tried about 50% of them and love them all, so I'm pretty sure I'm going to like everything you wrote down. Thanks!

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Novel-Economics-6466 t1_iv5ord7 wrote

I think they’re named after Baja California? Especially with their Ensenada fish taco.

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joncash t1_iv65c5v wrote

oh god that makes sense. I can be so ignorant.

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kickerofelves86 t1_iv5kgk8 wrote

The best tacos I ever had were at a random truck in the central valley. Lots of Mexican farmworkers there

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IClight69 t1_iv6lje3 wrote

I’m gonna say any truck from Sacto down to go he Grapevine is fire. Then your in LA and it’s all fire until you fall into the ocean in the Yucatán.

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Moralitea t1_ivcfaok wrote

Royal Myanmar is a gem and I love it dearly.

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pghgreatest t1_iv7v7v8 wrote

Great post but disagree on Nicky thai.

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mvc594250 t1_iv839rx wrote

Like you disagree that it's a good Thai restaurant? It's definitely not the best in the area and it's a touch over priced, but it's pretty good. No Thai Gourmet, but the staples that I've had there have been at least good.

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pghgreatest t1_ivkmhxk wrote

It’s so bad last time we sent plate back to them and they didn’t even charge me :/

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jeffykins t1_iv4qz3z wrote

First time I went to the OG chengdu gourmet, same thing, filled with Chinese students and some families, so we knew it would be stellar, and it always is. I've never gone to a single restaurant more in this city than that place. I never considered that this stuff might go over the heads of some of the north hills folk

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hydrospanner t1_iv5no7u wrote

I mean I get what you're trying to say here...but at the same time, it certainly makes sense to evaluate a place based on how well you like the things you order and eat from that place.

It's a more valid evaluation for sure than deciding what you think of it based on other people's preferences.

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dementedturnip26 OP t1_iv8dcqt wrote

That’s fair. At the same time if I went to a fish restaurant and got a steak one complained it wasn’t as good as a nice steakhouse that’s dumb

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bluepisces1980 t1_ived5mu wrote

Yes I agree! Hahaha that’s my go to test of wether I should bother with how many diners from that target demographic are eating there!

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BroccoliKnob t1_iv4e6pi wrote

Hope the McKids enjoy their Taco Bell dinners and St. Vincent degrees.

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DynamiteRaveOW t1_iv3yaxg wrote

I have gone twice and never had an issue. There is one waiter, a young man who speaks perfect English and he is awesome to talk to. The food is amazing, like next level. It's very authentic. They also have a more 'American Chinese' menu for those who may not want to eat something on the other.

Sushi is good also.

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mikeyHustle t1_iv441x7 wrote

Honestly, way more people use Google for reviews than Yelp anymore. Yelp is kind of a forgotten wasteland, now. I wouldn't worry, especially if the quality is as good as Squirrel Hill. It'll do fine.

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Cheesiepeezy t1_iv4s9jh wrote

Yelp takes bribes is all you need to know.

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ocguy1980 t1_iv55ufg wrote

This is true. Though more of a “pay to play” thing. ESPECIALLY if you’ve worked with them and then try to cancel your agreement. They will tank your reviews. Garbage company.

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shhheeeeeeeeiit t1_iv6o326 wrote

I stopped using yelp when they stopped me from viewing their site on my phone (without downloading their app)

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Ok-Twist921 t1_iv3wrp0 wrote

They are wildin in there and I love it. The food is too unreal and I think I’m gonna go give ‘em a positive review right now

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konajinx t1_iv3vcyc wrote

Looks like they get the average sorts of reviews a restaurant will usually get, but their overall average is four stars. How is this a negative?

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dementedturnip26 OP t1_iv3vtve wrote

3.5 stars is pretty bad on yelp

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konajinx t1_iv3wxmh wrote

Not really. It’s better than average. Now 1-2.5 stars? I’d generally skip some place like that.

But that place averages 4 on Google. So if they have 4 and Yelp 3.5, that would get me to check the reviews and give it a shot if I was interested.

As far as Yelp goes, they do have areas of reviews called “not recommended” usually written by people who only write one or two reviews or have a severe slant, good or bad to their reviews. So maybe the reviews there are by legit users. I dunno. I used to be one of those local Yelp Elites for a couple years on there and it was just the goofiest shit ever.

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joncash t1_iv5e7tw wrote

I'm so happy ChengDu Gourmet is up here in the North Hills. Means I don't need to drive out to the city to get my Sichuan fix. And yes, the food is fantastic and very authentic. Yet I have to admit they had some growing pains, or still having. But that's life, I have no doubt as they improve their service their score will go up as well.

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scopesmonkey t1_iv49q0k wrote

Went last weekend; service was attentive and friendly and the food was stellar. Didn't try anything super out there, although nearly everything we ordered was from the traditional menu, but if the 'regular' stuff was that good, I might actually need to try the pig intestine-type stuff one day!

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TheTunnelMonster t1_iv43gz5 wrote

Didn’t realize it opened! Can’t wait to go support it! Is the menu the same?

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funkyb t1_iv5pse0 wrote

Mostly the same with additional American Chinese options.

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Kingjerm731 t1_iv58t0d wrote

I think they’re having some timing/ staff problems. I went and some family was pissed that they couldn’t seat them, lol. I was there with a few other people that work in restaurants, so we got it and were patient. Our waitress didn’t know anything about the menu, but luckily I’ve been to the original many times and could just order a bunch for us to share. I could see how this would be frustrating to someone that is new to the restaurant. The food was honestly even better than squirrel hill!

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whyadamwhy t1_iv6q8sv wrote

I live in Millvale so having the new Chengdu so close to home is a godsend. My gf and I have been there a few times already, including my birthday. I usually steer clear of public reviews, but I’ll throw some love their way because I know that it’s excellent. (Edit: spelling)

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Gordo774 t1_iv5daer wrote

I've gone there 3 times. Twice for takeout, once for dine in.

Both times for take out, they got the order wrong (flat out wrong items) or forgot items. Definitely worth a bad review, especially for the premium over some other Chinese spots in the area.

Dine in experience was great.

Hope they can figure it out, as it's within walking distance to home for me.

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dementedturnip26 OP t1_iv8dmn5 wrote

Where the hell do you live that you can walk to this haha. Not trying to dox you but genuinely curious.

Do you propel down the hill from the apartments on the hill

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jirenlagen t1_iv5oblt wrote

If people can’t have patience for a potential language barrier, they really should avoid going to a place called Chengdu. Friendly and taste of food is key.

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Fueld_ t1_iv55gmj wrote

We just tried it for the first time last week, very impressed. Better flavor than sesame inn.

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stadulevich t1_iv585db wrote

Its my favorite chinese in the city. But, never been to the mcknight one. Only the squirrel hill one.

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funkyb t1_iv5p84p wrote

Reading through the reviews on Google it seems all the issues are with sit down service. Which is good, because that stuff can be fixed a lot more easily than quality of the menu.

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scuba_steve_b t1_iv7mi2x wrote

Just got takeout from here the other night for the first time. Wanted to get something off the traditional menu and something “safe” off the Americanized menu. The lo mein was very good. Off the traditional menu I got the Chongqing style chicken, gotta say, I was disappointed. I had no idea what to expect but to me it was just like dry spicy popcorn chicken. That’s on me though for not understanding what it was. Any suggestions on favorites off the traditional menu?

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sopmaeThrowaway t1_iv8878f wrote

I moved to the north hills from the city. We got take out from Chengdu’s squirrel hill location all the time. It’s delicious. I’ll have to go to the new location and show my support. Where are the bad reviews? I don’t have Facebook (I deactivated and deleted my account in protest 6 years ago) so I can’t leave any reviews there.

I think you’re right about the Karens. They heard that this was delicious authentic Chinese food and just want to be jerks because they prefer mall food court Chinese to Sichuan. They like being served samples on a stick, not trying suspicious new things.

Before the new location opened I read they added some more suburban options to appease these kind of people, I guess it didn’t work.

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bluepisces1980 t1_ivecyld wrote

I love the place! Always order from the menu specializing in Mainland Chinese cuisine (chengdu/Sichuan) and have bever ever been disappointed! I like that when I go in they have options, food or good, space is big and clean and a diverse range of diners… I get Americanized Chinese for my 4yr old and my son and I get Sichuan dishes… the spicier the better!! ❤️👌🏼

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ocdcdo t1_iv6sp6s wrote

Their food has been really good but they do have slips here and there. Our dumplings last weekend for takeout were fully raw pork and mostly raw dough.

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CL-MotoTech t1_iv6nttq wrote

I’ve had it twice and I’d say it’s above average. Both in quality and price. The problem is that price out paces the quality by a good bit. They don’t have enough authentic dishes for me to want to go there and pay the extra money. My wife is a less risky order than me, she got General Tso. I can say it was actually really good. But for like $18 with a side of rice. Please. The portions are average. I’m sure we will be back but when you are racking up $70 for a family of three it should be better optioned with better quality. I’ll head to Subba when the new location is open any day over Chengdu.

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pAul2437 t1_iv6t2gk wrote

Yeah this poster is miserable and has gotten banned several times before. They just like to troll people and feel better than others

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theherbpuffer t1_iv8ah1m wrote

Who cares there's countless Asian restaurants in the area

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BroccoliKnob t1_iv4dwmi wrote

Downvote me all you want Karens, but I worried about Chengdu’s expansion the moment I heard about it. People don’t live a couple miles out McKnight for the cuisine.

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pAul2437 t1_iv5es3c wrote

It’s a whole two minute drive longer from downtown than the squirrel hill location

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S4ltyInt3ractions t1_iv552ri wrote

Went there because I was excited it was closer than squirrel hill had a lame experience food was not as good as original out of 4 dishes one was fire 2 were acceptable one was not good and I don't mean I ordered something I don't like also ordered beers first got them at same time as check this was within first couple weeks of opening so I plan on giving it another chance but will likely drive to the original instead...

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Winter-Relief4661 t1_iv3uqn5 wrote

“The menu is huge which causes a ton of confusion with the staff, and add to it that there is a large language barrier it can be challenging to get in orders.“

So the problems are mostly with the restaurant, but you decided instead it’s because of the Karens you invented in your mind. Thanks for the inside info, op!

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