Hunan Palace Goes Large

Hunan Palace

Location: 418 N Fruitland Blvd. Salisbury, MD 21801-7025

Cuisine: Hunan, Americanized Chinese cuisine

Capacity:  6000 square feet

Offers: Dine-in, Take-out, Party Trays, Delivery

Signature Dish:  Boss Delight, General Tso’s Twin Delight

Year of establishment: 1984 (took over in 1999)

Phone: 410-546-5990

Tucked in a corner of a thoroughfare, like other Chinese restaurants based in Salisbury, Maryland, you can see a Wal-Mart, some schools and various residential developments. This medium sized, 6,000 square foot dining wonder of Americanized Chinese offers seating to dine-in, delivery, take-away and party trays as part of its catering service.

Festive All Year Roundabout

Indoors at Hunan Palace you'd think that Christmas was celebrated all year long. The festive décor includes a tree alit with small sparkly white lights, the kind seen on Christmas trees. Adorning the booths made of oak and maple are climbing ivy plants. Against the sushi bar wall is a colorful hand painted landscape depicting what looks like Mt. Fuji; done up in cheerful hues of bubble gum pink, shocking blues and lime greens.

In another area of the restaurant at the bar little flags are strung across the length and width of the bar on the ceiling. OK, they're advertisements for beer however they give off that feeling of peace and freedom often associated with the Tibetan square flags one sees in temples and monasteries. Here, near the bar area is a wide berth – perhaps for dancing? There's plenty of room to maneuver between tables or the blue leather booths that line the far wall of the eatery.

Dried Peppers & Other Delights

The main focus here is Hunan cuisine. With the mainstay of this region being spicy and pungent, chefs at Hunan Palace enhance the dishes by adding chili, pepper and dried peppers. Another notable feature is their use of a “strange flavored” sauce (guai wei jiang) which enlivens many dishes with a somewhat tangy yet sweet flavor.  However the luxuriousness in which the chefs prepare Hunan cuisine is equally impressive in the Japanese arena. The sushi is not to be taken lightly. The salmon with sesame seed sprinkles or tempura fried shrimp in a roll with its pink coral tail jutting from the top of one piece, avocado laced shish kebab skewers with rice and fish are some of the original tongue teasers.

The menu consists of more than 100 items. There are two items the owner especially recommends. Boss Delight. It has a very interesting name. It consists of tender beef slices, jumbo shrimps and a colorful mix of fresh vegetables. The arresting bed of reds and greens compliments this well prepared dish. ARN tried to find out how the name came about yet this boss wasn't budging.  Strange Flavored Chicken. Another strange name with a wonderful taste. You may wonder what is so strange about this dish. The chefs at Hunan Palace approach it with a twist of red chili and dried peppers to give it a spicy hint. All the while the spiciness is tamed to meet the dietary requirements of locals by adding something sweet and sour, such as sugar and vinegar. It is a delectable treat to savor. 

There are so many “Delight” named dishes that diners can't help but be, well, delighted.  Hunan’s Twin Delight, General Tso’s Twin Delight and Sizzling Triple Delight are the ones that are sure hits with the diners. For someone on a diet or seeking delights in another fashion, such as steamed entrées or rather healthier cooked meals, Hunan Palace prepares such entrées on  special bamboo steamers. There are no added oils or MSG. All the food is fresh and locally sourced. No canned food is used when preparing healthy dishes for the customers.

Razzle Dazzle

Glance at the menu and grab a rail or a chair as your head may become dizzy because there are too many choices. Apart from the usual offerings, including a variety of poultry, seafood, vegetables, appetizers and soups, a special drinks menu has been created to meet customer requirements. The drinks vary from hard liquor, red wine, and beer to cocktails and soft drinks. Aside from the common drinks that you could easily find in other restaurants, there are also several homemade cocktails, such as Suffering B, Frozen Daiquiri and Flaming Volcano inspired by the bar at the Shepheard’s Hotel in Cairo, Egypt. The bartender mixes rum, lime and liquors together to make a wonderful blend that is highly acclaimed. The Flaming Volcano receives the loudest applause among Hunan's customers. Even with the popular bar, food is still the centerpiece of the restaurant accounting for the majority of sales.

Favorable Service

A large team of six cooks in the kitchen preparing Chinese cuisine, one of whom was invited to the USA by the owner Mr. Chen. Then there are two making sushi and four bartenders working the bar. Mr. Chen recounts, “Our staff is professional and knowledgeable of our customers’ desires, their preferences, and how to accommodate them. The staff is well versed in the habit of being friendly and courteous to the customers.

“As a dine-in restaurant, we pay more attention to customer service to please our patrons. After all, customers are our valuable resources. We should satisfy them as much as we can. We believe that customers will come back again and again for our food and our attentive and friendly service. If there are any customer complaints, the staff will immediately replace the order, free of charge.  Furthermore, Mr. Chen adds, “We never sacrifice quality for profits.” “What we are trying to pursue is the consistent delivery of high quality food and service.”

Mr. Chen told ARN about some of the promotions done throughout the year. “On the holidays, we introduce authentic appetizing dishes that are not found on the menu regularly to celebrate the traditional Chinese New Year.”

USP's

What makes Hunan Palace stand out above the rest is mainly that is has a liquor license. The second USP is that it successfully blends two styles: Chinese and Japanese. The third USP is the lack of using sauce. Homemade brown sauce is the only one available. The owner rarely relies on gooey sauces to enhance the flavor preferring natural ingredients sautéed to produce more smoke and flavor.

How it All Began

By 1999 when Mr. Chen took over the aging eatery with a poor reputation it had been there for 35 years. Prior to his purchase the place had been sold many times over. He changed the appearance, upgraded the menu, trained his staff and completely turned the heads of the local customers in his direction. The timing was right, the geographical location was perfect and good human relations were in his favor. It was a lucky turn for Mr. Chen. His customers attest to that luck as well by frequently returning and writing good reviews on websites such as Yahoo, Expedia and Trip Advisor.