Spice Spring has fired up the burners in Cleveland’s Old Chinatown, taking over the grand dining room at 2136 Rockwell Avenue and putting Szechuan and Cantonese dim sum back in play on the block. Run by Mr. and Mrs. Lin, the restaurant turns out a long list of freshly prepared dim sum alongside an extensive lineup of soups, noodles, stir-fries and dry-pot dishes. It is open for lunch and dinner every day except Tuesday.
According to Cleveland Scene, the kitchen sends out nearly 35 dim sum items in stainless-steel steamers instead of traditional carts. The Scene's reviewer dug into pork soup dumplings, pork-and-shrimp siu mai, beef short ribs with black pepper sauce and a Szechuan-style twice-cooked pork entree, singling out the broad menu and modest pricing on many dishes.
Per Spice Spring, the restaurant lists its phone as 216-785-9363 and posts hours that show Monday through Friday service and weekend hours beginning at 11:30 a.m., with the restaurant closed on Tuesdays. The site also offers online-ordering links and photos of signature plates.
Menu highlights and prices
The Scene's taste test pegged pork soup dumplings at $6.45, pork-and-shrimp siu mai at $7.95 and beef short ribs with black pepper sauce at $8.95, with larger plates such as Szechuan-style twice-cooked pork around $18.95, according to Cleveland Scene. At those price points, paired with a daily dim sum rotation, Spice Spring reads as both a casual neighborhood dim sum stop and a spot to order bigger, spicy Szechuan dishes to share.
Where it sits in Old Chinatown
Rockwell Avenue between East 21st and East 24th is still considered Cleveland’s "old Chinatown," a compact run of historic storefronts that predates the larger AsiaTown district farther east. The Encyclopedia of Cleveland History traces the area’s Chinese settlement to the early 20th century and notes that Rockwell became a hub for restaurants and markets, per the Encyclopedia of Cleveland History. The building at 2136 Rockwell previously housed Emperor's Palace, which has been listed as closed in online directories since about 2020, according to TripAdvisor.
Just down the block, Sichuan Hot Pot at 2162 Rockwell continues to pull in spicy-food fans with hot-pot and dry-pot options, reinforcing the street’s taste for fiery Szechuan flavors. The restaurant’s own site notes carryout and dine-in service and a menu built around broths, meats and combo platters, per Sichuan Hot Pot.
Spice Spring's soft opening earlier this month gives Rockwell another reason to swing by for dim sum and Szechuan food close to downtown Cleveland. Early visits suggest the Lin family is aiming to turn the space into a neighborhood anchor, and the next few weeks should show how both the menu and the block settle into the new addition.
