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Rumors that Chinese Szechuan restaurant will soon close are not true. The 37-year Pleasanton staple remains open, at least for a while.
“We’ve had wonderful relationships with our longtime customers and seen their children and grandchildren dine with us. But we’re probably not going to feed their third generation,” said Huey (pronounced Who-ee) Wang, whose web address touts the year of their founding, chineseszechuan87.com.
In August, local social media pages lit up with displeasure when news spread that Chinese Szechuan was closing. But a month later, the sales contract fell through at escrow, disappointing Wang who continues to work with the landlord and a commercial real estate agent to find a buyer for the business. The closing date remains uncertain.
“We would like someone to take over the restaurant and serve the same kind of food we do,” Wang said. “That would make our customers happy. But we don’t know the timing to find a buyer.”
The reason for closing is not related to the landlord, added Wang. “It is challenging to end our connection with Goble Properties, another family business, who have been kind to us. But the restaurant business is hard.”
Wang survived the decline in guests during the pandemic years. The Hopyard Village shopping center, home to Chinese Szechuan, has rebounded with new tenants. But the trend to hybrid work keeps more employees at home rather than at their desk in nearby Hacienda business park, where they would pop over for takeout or gather with work groups at the larger tables with rotating lazy Susans.
The declining lunch volume from Hacienda has had a significant impact on Wang’s bottom line. Also, increased competition from newer restaurants in Dublin’s shopping centers and rising restaurant costs from ingredients to supplies have hurt profits. Yet Wang has kept prices at reasonable levels. Lunch specials are a full meal of egg roll, fried won ton, choice of rice with prices from $15 to $18 depending on the entrée.
On the menu, spicy dishes are marked with a red pepper. But you can order any hot-spicy dish, including the Szechuan named dishes, less spicy, and there are many milder Mandarin options. Chinese Szechuan also includes a fryer basket symbol in front of fried dishes, but Wang is quick to point out the popular Mandarin Chicken is “lightly” fried.
When you see menu items named after regular diners, you can surmise that the restaurant cares about its customers. On Wang’s menu, you’ll find Denny’s Pork, a stir fry with bell peppers and jalapeño, named for a longtime customer.
“We moved to Pleasanton in 1987, and we started dining at Chinese Szechuan which had opened that year,” said Ken Shabino, of Pleasanton. “At first, we would take the family when we didn’t want to cook. We had some of the kids’ birthday parties in the side room. A few years ago, we catered our wedding reception at the house with their food, and it was hit.”
Regulars have their favorites at Chinese Szechuan. Shabino was quick to share his frequent selections: potstickers, Wor Won Ton Soup with shrimp, pork and beef, pork fried rice, chicken chow fun with black bean sauce and Chinese chicken salad.
Wang noted that the most popular menu item is Mongolian beef in a unique, not overly spicy brown sauce. Mandarin chicken and honey walnut prawns are also favorites. Wang is of Korean heritage and serves Jam Bong spicy soup, a specialty of Korean cuisine. The restaurant’s version of the traditional soup features house made, thin spaghetti-like noodles, spices, seafood and pork.
A secret ingredient at Chinese Szechuan is server Tina Wang, who began working for her sister 23 years ago. She warmly welcomes everyone who enters and greets regulars by name.
Guests are ready to order their favorite dishes. Liz Sufit of Pleasanton gravitates to honey walnut prawns or Empress Tsu-Shi’s prawns with broccoli, bamboo shoots and mushrooms in a white sauce. Sizzling rice soup is another regular order, which Sufit calls “Chinese penicillin”. Hot chicken broth is poured over the big bowl of crunchy rice at the table where it sizzles with a puff of steam. Her husband Howard Scott is partial to garlic eggplant and second-best choice, Mongolian beef.
“Our kids grew up eating here. It is one of the first restaurants they ever went to,” Sufit said. “Our daughter still likes mu shu, and we’ll bring her some takeout tonight.”
Sufit recalls choosing their favorite seating area with their young family. “The back section with large tables and lazy Susans was useful for ‘corralling’ the kids to keep them from running around the restaurant,” added Sufit.
At lunch recently, Sammie Flanzbaum agreed about the value of the back section. “We had a large family dinner at Chinese Szechuan the day after our wedding. My young cousin stayed with us while we all enjoyed our meal.”
Her parents joined her for lunch recently. Everyone especially enjoyed the broccoli beef in hot garlic sauce: “The broccoli retained its crispiness, and the beef was thinly sliced in a garlicy sauce with a vinegary kick that tickled your tongue,” said her father, Joss. Sammie’s Kung Pao chicken was not overpowered by the spice. The group were fans of the Mandarin chicken which arrived later with its crunchy, non-greasy texture.
A resident of Concord, Flanzbaum is periodically asked to pet sit at her parent’s home in Pleasanton. “My treat is ordering from Chinese Szechuan. I get takeout on the first day — chicken chow mein, green beans and one more entrée — which lasts while they are gone,” said Flanzbaum.
Wang and her guests are in a waiting game for news of a buyer. Meanwhile regular customer Shabino is dining at Chinese Szechuan more frequently and as usual, over-orders and receives a box for leftovers.
“It’s a friendly, wonderful place where you feel at home,” Shabino said. “They make us feel special, kind of like family. They know our favorite table, and they know our names. We recognize others when we dine — they are at their favorite table, too.”
