TooHot Review: An Elegant and Relaxing Evening

Imagine thunder growling at the same time as your stomach. It’s pouring rain, while a nip of autumn is turning the edges of the leaves red. You descend into the belly of a nondescript building in Harvard Square, voraciously hungry.

TooHot, an authentic Chinese restaurant that opened over the summer, will not disappoint.

You have entered a land of flickering candles and discretely placed stage lights that illuminate the room in a gentle glow. Classic Chinese art graces the walls in calming shades of gray and beige, inviting you to relax. The air smells like sandalwood.

The menu is vast and each dish looks more delicious than the last. You choose the shrimp ball with crispy rice and braised pork and bamboo shoot dumplings. Soft music croons over hidden speakers while servers whisk scrumptious-looking trays around.

Wood is ever-present in this space, from the driftwood chandelier floating over the table in the corner to the cups, bowls, chopsticks, chairs. Everything feels very natural. Plastic does not exist in this place.

Barely 10 minutes have passed before a massive bowl — you could easily press both your hands flat inside it — full of golden shrimp, red peppers, and mushrooms is placed in front of you. The Shrimp Ball froths energetically, and the waiter puts crispy rice into the bowl, eliciting a new burst of steam. Another waiter places napkins on the table for you with a flourish.

Your mouth burns as you greedily slurp up the concoction. It is sweet, tangy, slightly salty, and the rice seems to crackle and pop inside your mouth. The mushroom is black and curling, and it produces a satisfying snap each time you bite it.

The pork buns arrive next. Well-seasoned and juicy, they arrive broiling hot in a wooden steamer basket. One after another, they slip down your throat. They weigh heavily on your stomach, in the best way possible. You walked into TooHot nearly starving, and you left feeling completely full.

The final course is a delicate Chinese traditional sponge cake. Two cakes — each small enough to fit into the palm of your hand — arrive on a scarlet plate, dusted with grated lemon peel. Drizzled in a sugary sauce, juxtaposed by hints of citrus, the taste will linger in your mouth long after you leave.

TooHot is a perfect place to take a loved one on a date or slip into a meditative food coma after a stressful week. The atmosphere is simultaneously elegant and relaxing, with some of the friendliest waiters in Harvard Square.

—Staff writer Laura B. Martens can be reached at laura.martens@thecrimson.com.