I visited a Raleigh cafe that brings the heat. Here’s what I got for $25
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- Drew Jackson visited Chuan Cafe in Raleigh and ate there for under $25.
- Small plates like scallion pancakes are $6; braised beef in chili oil is $21.
- At lunch, the quiet dining is punctuated by DoorDash and takeout at 2004 New Bern Ave.
Food can make us feel many things. All the good stuff, like joy and comfort and pleasure. Even, seemingly, the warmth of the summer sun in a ripe tomato.
But nothing else turns our tastebuds into embers like Szechuan food, and its signature buzz and tingle of chiles and peppercorns.
We stopped by Chuan Cafe this week for our On a Budget series, where we dine all-in for under $25.
The first time I had Szechuan food, it felt like magic. Something from Willy Wonka’s Chocolate Factory or Alice in Wonderland, that simply taking a bite of deep-fried mushrooms, piled with chiles, crushed peppercorns and cilantro, could make my face go delightfully numb and ablaze at the same time. I was hooked.
If you’re having an early lunch, the staff at Chuan will still be prepping food in the dining room, snipping the tough ends off mounds of green beans with scissors.
When I asked the lone server her favorite dish, she shook her head and said “it’s too spicy here,” and that she prefers the sweeter Hong Kong style.
Chuan Cafe menu
Chuan blends the traditional Szechuan dishes and the popular Americanized favorites, like Sesame Chicken, served with a ring of broccoli. Dishes on the menu range from small plates like scallion pancakes and vegetable spring rolls for $6 to large shareable entrees like braised beef in chili oil for $21. Other classics include the wonderously silky and jiggly mapo tofu for $14.
I went with bamboo flounder, where pieces of fried fish are topped with mala spices, cilantro and celery and served on bamboo dish. And chili wontons, steamed pork dumplings in a red chili sauce topped with a sprinkle of chopped scallions.
The fish had a light flavor and a hearty crunch, with the frying oil pulling in pieces of crushed chiles and peppercorns, giving some bites a tingly red tinge. The cilantro and onions give an herby punch through the fry and heat and salt.
Compared to the spice of the fish, the dumplings were sweet and rich, swimming in bright chili oil.
Where is Chuan Cafe?
Chuan Cafe off of New Bern Avenue in Raleigh is one of the Triangle’s top Szechuan restaurants, popular for noodles, dumplings and fried bites covered with the mala spice mix of numbing peppercorns and hot peppers.
Situated in a strip mall between a vape shop and an AutoZone, Chuan Cafe is quiet at lunch, a gentle pace of DoorDash Orders and takeout ringing chimes on the door. Outside, a two-story tulip magnolia looks like a pink firework burst near the ground, and the promised warmth of spring has everyone outside, chatting on sidewalks and car hoods.
Inside, my mouth is on fire because I took three too many spoonfuls from the communal pitcher of chili crisp.
The wontons were $8 and the fish was $13, bringing the total to $21 before tax and tip.
Chuan Cafe is located at 2004 New Bern Ave., Raleigh.
This story was originally published March 6, 2026 at 4:12 PM.
