Mission, San Francisco · restaurant
Sichuan-accented Chinese that plays loose with Western ingredients: kung pao pastrami — deli beef tossed with chili peppers, peanuts, and scallions — is the anchor dish that put this restaurant on the national map. The tingly mapo tofu and Chongqing chicken wings keep the menu bold, while thrice-cooked bacon with rice cakes proves the kitchen is just as serious about the straight-ahead stuff.