5 places to get Sichuan food in Northern Virginia

These are our favorite places in NoVA for a numbing wall of flame, courtesy of the southwestern Chinese province.

By Alice Levitt • Posted January 13, 2022 at 7:00 a.m.

Uncle Liu's Hot Pot

Heat isn’t all about how high up the Scoville Scale you can climb. Ma la, the tingly sensation produced by Sichuan peppercorns, pairs with chiles for a singular burn that spice lovers quickly learn to crave. These are our favorite places in NoVA for a numbing wall of flame, courtesy of the southwestern Chinese province.

Fahrenheit Asian

Order this: Spicy beef noodle soup, mapo tofu
1313 Dolley Madison Blvd., Ste. 103, McLean

Hong Kong Palace

Order this: Dan dan noodles, cumin ribs
6387 Seven Corners Shopping Ctr., Falls Church

Hot Peppercorn Asian Cuisine & Bar

Order this: Lamb dry pot, diced chicken with chile pepper (la zi ji)
6396 Springfield Plaza, Springfield

Kungfu Kitchen

Order this: Sichuan chicken dry noodles, Chongqing poached fish
3221 Duke St., Alexandria

Uncle Liu’s Hot Pot

Order this: Diced rabbit with spicy sauce, hot pot
2972 Gallows Rd., Falls Church

This story originally appeared in our January issue. For more stories like this, subscribe to our monthly magazine.

Alice Levitt

Contributing Food Critic/Editor

Alice Levitt has been writing for Northern Virginia Magazine since 2020. She began her restaurant critic journey at Seven Days in Vermont in 2007 before moving on to Houstonia Magazine in Texas. Her food, travel, and health innovation stories have appeared in Vox, EatingWell, Simply Recipes, Allrecipes, and many other national publications.