Easterly Hunan Cuisine

Legit food, authentic, spicy. Nuanced, prepped and cooked just right. But the high price and level of service my god atrocious. It pained me. No thanks

Great, authentic Chinese food. The service was a bit on the slower side but servers are very sweet and friendly! The food was great and I highly recommend this restaurant if you're looking for some dim sum and whatnot.

The standout dish is definitely the fish filet soup. It's hearty, warm, and perfectly savory, making a fantastic broth to enjoy with rice. The lamb was a bit oily, but still very good. The service was excellent as well. Without a doubt, Easterly ranks among the top three Chinese restaurants in Berkeley. View menu

I'm from Asia visiting and the pickled sour fish has always been my favorite dish. I came to Easterley to try this dish, it was excellent. Spice level is serious. Gets spicier as it's boiling on a stove which is also a nice touch. It hits the spot. Fish is fillet so no bones. Others might prefer fresh fish but I personally prefer fillet as I don't want to be dealing with bones. Will come back to try other dishes

I don't usually write reviews, but I felt compelled to share my experience this time. I ordered three dishes, one of which was the duck. I know there's inflation and all, but seriously, there was NO DUCK! All I got was duck bones. There was even less meat than what you typically find after enjoying Peking duck at other restaurants. For $26, it was basically a plate of bones. To make matters worse, it was so salty that even my dog couldn't enjoy it.

We weren't able to secure a table at the nearby Gather, but that turned out to be a blessing in disguise as we ended up dining at Alborz just across the street. The food was incredibly delicious, the staff was exceptionally friendly, and the ambiance was classic without feeling stuffy. A special shoutout to the hostess and owner, Zaleh, who was the warmest and most accommodating person we encountered. She truly made our dining experience unforgettable! View menu

This is a serious Hunan restaurant. Despite its location in the middle of the downtown Berkeley sidewalk strolling district, it's not designed for Western customers, and indeed I was just about the only such one there at the time, though it's less intimidating that some of its kind down in Silicon Valley. The staffers I encountered all spoke English, the menu printed on a paper placemat had English in smaller type underneath the Chinese entries, and my dish did not have strange unidentifiable Things in it. I was given both a fork and plastic chopsticks, plus water occasionally refilled but no tea. I ordered stir fried lamb with steamed rice as a side to cut it. The lamb was a generous quanti...

This is an excellent Hunanese restaurant in Downtown Berkeley. A total gem situated in a neighborhood known for just okay college food. I usually go to Wojia in Albany to fulfill my Hunanese fix but this place gives them good competition. I had lunch with a friend here and the restaurant was filled with mainlanders, mostly Chinese international students...that's how you know it's a good place! I ordered D5. Poached Fish Fillets in Sour Soup 酸湯魚片: This was fabulous. The soup was deeply savory and had a nice kick to it. I liked that there weren't too many Sichuan peppercorns. Wojia's version tends to have a lot of peppercorns that you need to fish out. A4. Eggplant with Minced Pork, Garlic...

Ate here a few weeks ago during a spring break college tour visit for my daughter to check out Berkeley. Alborz is located right by the main entrance to campus. It was very good! I ordered us the paneer sabzi and combo plate appetizers, and they were wonderful. Honestly, if I went back there I would get those again, and some other salads or appetizers and thrill to all of those flavors. I'd skip ordering the entrees, which were meat and rice centric and just not as joyful to eat. I was there with my two daughters, we were the first lunch customers, and there was a touch of sadness to the atmosphere which compelled me to over order. One entree is definitely enough to share if you order appeti... View menu