Location: 1100 Dundas Street West, Mississauga
Website: None

As a fan of spice, I’ll admit that Chili Cabin mostly caught my eye because of its name.  They specialize in Hunan Chinese cuisine, which, according to Wikipedia, is similar to Sichuan cuisine, but with a more pure level of spice rather than numbing heat.

I tried the Hunan style stir-fried pork and the stewed vermicelli, which both offer a customizable level of spice: mild, normal, or extra.  I went with extra spice for the pork, and normal for the noodles.

Both dishes were very spicy.  Not quite blow-your-face-off hot, but definitely hot enough to put some sweat on your brow and clear your sinuses.

And both were very tasty.  The Sichuan comparison seems apt, as both dishes had a similar flavour profile to Sichuan dishes that I’ve had (but without the numbing heat).  I liked both quite a lot, though the pork was my favourite of the two.  The pork was nice and tender, and it comes absolutely doused in a flavour-packed oil that was intensely delicious.  It’s one of those dishes that’s almost too flavourful on its own, but once you have it with rice it really comes alive.

I liked the noodles a bit less, but they were still very tasty, with a nice chewy texture, satisfying spicing, and savoury ground pork interspersed throughout.  It’s a winner.  They have a million things on the menu here, and I’m quite keen to come back and try some more stuff.