Hunan Springs is located in
Wescosville, close to Route 78 and the Route 222 (Hamilton Street) Bypass in
a big multi-story farmhouse (although the restaurant itself only utilizes the
ground floor). The décor of the restaurant doesn’t resemble any another Asian
restaurant. The main dining room features exposed wood beams and stone walls.
Two sets of huge oak doors allow entry from outside. A large fish tank is the
focal point in the main dining room, which has several different dining areas
and types of seating (booths and tables). Two larger round tables feature a
lazy Susan/turntable so that dishes can be shared more easily among larger
groups. A second smaller dining room handles overflow crowds, because this
restaurant is often crowded and busy. The restaurant also features an L-shaped
wooden bar (a full bar with beer, wine, and spirits is available) and a small
lounge room/area where you can relax on comfy seating while you enjoy a drink.
As you might imagine, Hunan Springs features Asian cuisine,
which always looks deliciously fresh and is nicely presented. As you are
perusing the menu, the waitstaff delivers a basket of crispy noodles with two
kinds of dipping sauce (hot mustard and duck). We almost always order the
pan-fried pork dumplings and eggrolls as appetizers (both of which come with a
small portion of yummy sweet cucumber salad), followed by the chicken with
broccoli and another entrée; this time it was the sweet and sour pork. The
chicken with broccoli is served in a white sauce, which is different than
nearly every other Chinese restaurant in the Lehigh Valley, and it is
delicious! We order it as one of our entrees every time that we visit. We also
like the house lo mein, the cold sesame noodles, and some dishes from the
“authentic” Asian menu, including the sha cha beef and kan ben string beans
with pork (the string beans are really amazing!) (If you are really
adventurous, the authentic menu features unique items like bean curd, taro root,
and even jellyfish! Of course, there are plenty of standard Asian dishes on the
regular menu.) Dishes are served family style to encourage sharing, although
portions are not overly large (usually, we can each eat one whole entrée). For
dessert on this visit, we shared the red velvet cheesecake, which the
restaurant orders from Sweet Street in Reading, but they also deliver a small
bowl of pineapple chunks and the requisite fortune cookies (although on this
visit they were chocolate-flavored) when you get your bill.
Service at this restaurant is very good, fantastic even from
several of the Asian men who have been long-time employees. Even though we only
visit every two months or so, the waiters always remember us and bring us our
standard drink order even before we order it! The men are very friendly,
shaking our hands and greeting us warmly. Mr. Ho, the owner, and his son Jay
are also very welcoming and personable and remember us from visit to visit. This
is one of the few Lehigh Valley restaurants that truly makes us feel like we
are valued customers. And their tasty food makes us want to return again and
again.
