Top Asian Restaurant in Berkeley
Le Pho Vietnamese Restaurant
2501 San Pablo Ave, Berkeley, CA 94702, United States
Pho soup contains MSG and got rashes but I guess it is common to add MSG in Asian restaurants. Shrimp roll doesn’t have MSG and it tastes good and fresh with the sauce. In total I would recommend the restaurant, the seating is spacious and high ceiling makes a nice dining vibe.
Da Lian Restaurant
1674 Shattuck Ave., Berkeley, CA 94709, United States
191104 updateVery disappointing and insulting. I ordered Jiajiang Mein and the sauce was too less. I should have taken a picture when it first came... so I asked about more sauce, and then they just put some oil-ish on the plate, without actually putting more sauce. Ill never visit here.190202 updateI visited this place again about two weeks ago and forgot to write an updated review. I had missed the jiajiang mien sold here, which was the reason of my visit, but it ended up with some frustration. The menu was too salty and not as tasty as it was. Price was still too high for the quality. If you are not out of budget and you want some quiet place to have dinner then its fine. But if not, definitely not recommendable. For the quality, Great China is better, with similar price. For the quantity, Heat Cafe is more recommendable with a much more reasonable price.First review:Not bad. But a bit more expensive than it is supposed to be.
Kirin Chinese Restaurant And Cocktail Bar
1767 Solano Ave, Berkeley, CA 94707, United States
UPDATE: My wife ordered from here by mistake and the food quality has gone way done in our opinion. It was some of the worst Moo Shu Pork I have ever had.I called in an order and asked for Chicken Chow-main, dumplings, garlic chicken & Rice W/Shrimp Snow Peas. I was not given a total price over the phone...I should have asked but it should also be given. When I arrived I was surprised and was shocked to see a bill for $68. The man at the front, a young guy, said that rice and snow peas were 2 different orders and the small box of shrimp I orders was $18! I was visibly upset and even said I was upset but he rang me up and still shocked and not wishing to make much of a scene, left. I got to my car and decided to call and tell them again I was pretty upset. Explained I was upset that I was not given the total over the phone, etc. he just range me up and I was still upset. He offered to credit me the $2.75 rice....Now I left a $6 tip....he told me he woudl remember for future customers to try and do this.... not helpful to me.As a business owner myself, as soon as I knew there was confusion with the food in the restaurant I would have offered to remove the items, and if one of my guests had called me 1 minute after leaving my place of business I woudl have told them to come back and left figure it out. I never want a guest to leave unhappy or even angry. Its my commitment as a business owner to make sure my customers are happy.This did not happen and I am still upset by it the next morning but that is on me to get over.Also, the food is usually really good and tasty. We just ate here in December but the food seems to be more oily then before, granted it just might have been tainted due to my experience but the other member of my party that had no idea about the interaction made the same comment about the food.I am giving 2 stars because the food and service in the past have been very good.I will try a different restaurant in the future before I make another take or or pop in order for dinner.
Akis Japanese Restaurant
2505 Hearst Ave C, Berkeley, CA 94709, United States
The food was good but I got a lot of hair in my makis. I am not exagerating like some angry/upset people when they leave a review. There was hair under the makis, in the makis, it was really gross. It can happen that you have hair but not that much! Looked like someone had turned bold making the makis. My friend told an employee immediately and they gave me other makis but they didnt apologize at all and brought back the makis with all the hair as well just in case you want them anyway. At the end a manager came to take the empty plates and I told her what happened. She didnt even look at me and only answered yes but we gave you some others. Should I feel like I owe them something because they gave me makis with no hair?Because the customer service is horrible and I am not sure of the hygiene in the kitchen I dont recommend that place at all.
Toss Noodle Bar
2272 Shattuck Ave., Berkeley, CA 94704, United States
Great regular Asian noodle restaurant. Take out or sit down. Reasonable prices too.
Great China
2190 Bancroft Way, Berkeley, CA 94704, United States
Being a Chinese immigrant who moved from Taiwan to Houston, Texas at the age of 9 and living with a Caucasian family, my expectations of Chinese food is atypical of most Chinese Americans. So the first time I went to Great China, I went by myself, and I ordered their Kung Pao Chicken lunch special served with a soup, spring roll and salad for $16. I soon realized that by opting for this comfort zone choice, I completely missed what makes Great China one of the best Chinese restaurants in the Bay Area.Motivated to amend my previous experience, I returned with a party of ten, and we were poised to immerse ourselves in a truly authentic Chinese culinary journey. Our order reflected this, as we curated a bonafide feast reminiscent of the vibrant foods found throughout China, from the street vendors of Xian to the upscale restaurants in Beijing.The meal kicked off with a serving of Spicy Cold Skin Noodles (Lian Pi), a popular Northwestern Chinese street food. These noodles, simultaneously springy and chewy, were quite a departure from traditional Italian pasta. Served cold atop an array of vibrant veggies, succulent shrimp, and perfectly cooked egg, it was a refreshing salad-like appetizer that set the tone for the meal.Their Hot and Sour Soup was next, a ubiquitous offering in most Chinese restaurants, but here, it felt like tasting the original blueprint. The balance of sour to savory was perfect, as was the ratio of vegetables and egg to broth, resulting in an ideal consistency. This was clearly hot and sour soup as it was intended to be.The Peking Duck, the house specialty and what a lot of people associate with Great China, did not fail to deliver.The oft underrated component of Peking Duck is the wraps. If its too doughy, it can ruin the dish. At Great China, the wraps are executed to perfection. They are so thin as to be almost translucent, yet they retained their firmness throughout the meal, allowing us to savor the dish at our leisure without worrying about the wraps hardening.The Honey Walnut Prawns were a revelation, crispy despite being drenched in a sticky honey sauce. This dish eclipsed any fast-food equivalent Ive ever had - Panda Express has got nothing on this :)Accompanying our main dishes was the Ong-Choy (Water Spinach) with Fermented Tofu Paste. The freshness of the water spinach was evident, offering a crisp contrast to the robust flavor of the fermented bean curd.Our seafood indulgence included two crab dishes. The Ginger Scallion Crab with Noodles, a Cantonese classic, was followed by the equally delicious Cantonese Pepper Salt Fried Crab. Comparing the two would be an exercise in futility - each had its unique appeal, and both were winners that complimented each other.Finally, we had the Steamed Surf Clams. The clams, paired with fluffy sticky rice soaking up all the flavorful juice, made for an exquisite finale. The delicate flavor of the clams was complemented by the crunchy scallions, adding a layer of unexpected texture.Even though I was raised on a diet of Americanized Chinese food (beef and broccoli still holds a special place in my heart), my palate, unsophisticated as it might be, was still able to appreciate and savor the authentic Chinese flavors that Great China brings. This establishment truly provides a culinary experience that bridges cultures, making the richness of traditional Chinese cuisine accessible and enjoyable to West and East alike. It has mastered the art of authentic Chinese cuisine. I now know where to take my Taiwanese mom for a feast when she visits, and its a place where both of us can honestly enjoy.
Mint Leaf
2865 Seventh St, Berkeley, CA 94710, United States
I love Mint Leaf!What the food is like:The pho is good. Flavorful enough to not be boring, and plain enough that it is comfortable to eat. I like to get the special rare beef pho.The shaking beef plate might be my favorite when I want to be spoiled. Its basically a plate of big chunks of well-flavored meat (garlic, onion, salt, probably other flavors too). Love the sizzling sound it makes while it is served.The spring rolls are all really lovely, too. They have a lot of crispy textures stuffed into them.Most of the dishes are very flavorful. Some of them are also rich.Online ordering: I appreciate that Mint Leaf recently incorporated the ability to use Online Ordering through GrubHub and other platforms. I love being able to schedule a pick-up time. I used to order via telephone and would ask for extra jalapeños on the side, and they would sometimes be forgotten (totally okay!). Now that I am ordering online, though, theres a printed receipt that shows the request for extra jalapeños. It seems like this has been making it easier for the staff to ensure order quality. The person who is usually behind the counter has been kind enough to double-check that the jalapeños are there when they see the receipt, without me even having to ask.Thank you, Mint Leaf!
Saigon Express
2045 Kala Bagai Wy, Berkeley, CA 94704, United States
I visited this restaurant because of its convenient location, and no one stayed in line at that particular time. I am not a regular eater of pho soup, but this time I decided to eat here. My reaction to this food is not very impressive because there is not really much to eat for the price I paid, about $18 dollars together with tax and tip. Furthermore, I wish they could add something else extra for that price, just like Mexican restaurants do(nachos, salsa and some veggies). Unfortunately, after this restaurant, I had to go to another place and buy a humburger so that I would not be hungry and be able to last till dinner. There were about eight people inside. Overall, the experience was acceptable.
Ph K & K
2533 Telegraph Ave, Berkeley, CA 94704, United States
Hands down, the worst Vietnamese restaurant I have ever eaten at. Here are the reasons why:1) The Vietnamese fish sauce is arguably the most important part of Vietnamese cuisine. Here, its more like fish sauce and sugar, diluted with water. There are no chili, lime or garlic taste in it whatsoever.2) Food lacks flavor - I had the rice with lemongrass pork chop. The pork chop lacked any flavour whatsoever. It definitely has not been marinated and the taste of chili and lemongrass was lacking. We also had the Pho - the soup was too sweet and it wasnt made from bone broth (more like flavour packs). They also provide too little herbs (i.e. Thai basil). Lastly, the pho noodle is also not the correct type of noodle.3) The accompanying salad consisted of Spinach, parseley and dill - three ingredients which made absolutely no sense in a Vietnamese dish. On its own, the salad would have been average, but altogether it was just confusing.4) I hereby dedicate an entire point to the papaya salad - the papaya was cut too thick so it stopped being crunchy and started to become slightly chewy - an adjective you never want to use on a salad. Again, the herbs was lacking, and the fish sauce was bad.However, it is not a total disaster - whilst the pork chop lacked flavour, it tasted fresh and not dry. The same with the beef in the Pho - the meat had a good texture to it. The service was good - we were given a big glass of water soon after we sat down and the food arrived within 10 minutes.Nonetheless, it was the worst Vietnamese meal I have ever had. Despite a lack of Vietnamese restaurants in Berkeley, I would not be returning. After returning home, I regret finishing the food. My very-Asian body feels violated by the food, and I am currently eating two whole Romaine Hearts in an effort to expel the food from my body in my next toilet break.
Oriental Restaurant
1782 Shattuck Ave., Berkeley, CA 94709, United States
June 14, 2023 - Temporarily closed :( (Theres a sign on the door. No other info besides that. Signage has been there for about 1.5 months now)Under new ownership, I went end of January 2023 and had Marys Special with brown rice. The chicken is just as good as before, so very happy about that. The shrimp were almost as good - not sure what it was missing but it just didnt have that lil oomph. Dont get me wrong, it was fine - Ill still order this meal. The fried veggie eggroll was too sweet so wouldnt get that again. Ill try their chicken eggroll next time if they have it. The place is updated, looks nice inside and they accept credit card now. No outdoor seating. No masks worn. Green tea and water with or without ice is offered. Id definitely and will be coming back! ?Before new ownership - Food has not changed, still delicious as ever. Definitely my top favorite fast tasty reasonably priced restaurants. Im so glad theyre back open for take out. If you do order your food to go, you may want to double check its correct because sometimes a few things are incorrect. Not sure if its the communication, the ordering process, server not writing down order, the chef or combo of things that my order would be inaccurate. You may want to reiterate when ordering & have them repeat back your order before paying in cash.There was at least one or two tables for anyone interested in eating there. There was one table inside by the entrance that was occupied too. If they were closer, Id go here at least once a week! Seriously, try their food!