Just north of Berkeley, the restaurant is in a nice busines district with easy, free street parking out front. The old storefront it occupies has charm and the interior decor resembles what I saw on my visit to Beijing. I was directed here by a colleague who is a connoisseur of Chinese cuisine since I’m in SF with rare time to spare.

The first thing I noticed on the menu was the variety of appetizers and accompaniments – a mixture of traditional Szechuan and some inventions with locally available ingredients. I was confident I was in for a treat, seeing the two dozen or so tables were mostly occupied by Chinese families. One unexpected treat was the lovely waitress who was wonderfully pleasant and helpful.

I came for something spicy – and I wasn’t disappointed – the chef was generous with the Szechuan pepper! The portions here are lavish – sharing an appetizer and an entree should satisfy any two people unless they haven’t eaten in the last 24 hours. I’m reluctant to give a five-star rating based on just one dish, but there just isn’t anything to complain about and the food I had was exquisite.