I checked my numbers before writing this review, because I do not like writing bad reviews. Over the years, I've done 388 reviews on Yelp..... and only 6 have been 1 star. Most of those reviews were because of a service issue, but this one is because of the food. Both my wife and I had the hot and sour soup, which was neither hot nor sour. It wasn't very tasty at all, and oddly thick. I had an egg roll and she had a spring roll. You could actually see burn marks on the bottom of both of them, like they had been heated in a pan after having been fried. I had the chicken egg foo young and my wife the hunan chicken. I'll admit I've never had egg foo young, so maybe this is what it's supposed to be. But it was like a couple of egg omelettes piled on a plate, completely covered (and I mean completely covered, as in literally falling off the side of the plate) with a light brown gravy....like you might see for breakfast at Cracker Barrel. I actually like all those things, but it just didn't work in this case. Nothing seemed to be seasoned. As for my wife's hunan chicken, it looked really good when it came out. But the chicken was so salty, she couldn't eat it. I tried it and she was right, it was pretty bad. As for positives, the sides of fried rice that we got with the entrees weren't bad. I have never gone to a Chinese restaurant and not left with a couple take out boxes of leftovers, because they always give you way too much food. But when the server came over and asked if we needed boxes, we both said "no thanks". read more

This is the second time I have tried their food. There won't be a third. The beef lo mein was flavorless and the beef itself tasted burnt and greasy. read more

Chef Lee - Flavorless Beef lo mein. - Chinese Near Me - Mineral, Virginia

What a great surprise to find a high quality Chinese Restaurant at Lake Anna. A newly arrived year rounders we were lamenting the thought of missing out on big city Chinese Cusine...well Chef Lee is our new "goto" for Chinese!!! read more

Fair is fair, 2 years ago I rated my last few trips here and was down to 1 star. Tonight after a long time we decided to try it again. Tonight was a great experience the food was great, our waitress was very polite, and helpful. read more

Where are people comparing this place to when they say best Chinese ever? Panda Express is like a trip to Chinatown compared to this place. First of, if you put hot egg rolls in a hot bag with no ventilation they get real soggy. Second, they were pretty rude, I thought everyone saying that, was just complaining about cultural differences, but no straight up rude. I felt like I was getting my nails done at a vietnamese salon while paying my check, ladies know what I mean. Third, the shrimp fried rice was greasy and dry at the same time, it's really a miracle of science and had no flavor. Did they use powder eggs? My dog wouldn't eat it and I had just taken her on a hike. Lastly, the prices are ridiculous, there's a reason they don't post them on the website. read more

This place is amazing. I can't even imagine how much more busy they would be if they were in a larger area. So happy to have a great Chinese restaurant at Lake Anna. read more

Didn't feel like cooking so we got take out after a great weekend on the water. We got Gen Chicken lo mein egg rolls won ton soup and crab won tons. It was all great and fresh the portions were Huge. Definitely go for the lunch specials! read more

Love this place for take out. The fried rice is delicious. Our favorite is honey twins.

Have only had carry out from here, but it was very good. Some of the best chinese I had in a long time. My in-law's speak highly of the owners and dining experience. I will definitely be ordering from here again. read more

Went to Chef Lees for lunch. The people were pleasant and the service was good. However, the first thing I could smell is the rancid oil use to cook with. This was confirmed when my dish was served. the dish itself reaked. The overall quality of food in my opinion was very low. I could not bring myself to go back there. read more

Visiting from out of town, happened by Chef Lee restaurant today, and it seemed convenient. That said, I was surprised when entering to see how well thought out the decor was. Intricate and ornate woodwork, proper seating and bar placement were all welcoming. Customer service is good here. Staff is intelligent and friendly. That said... do t come for just the decor or friendly staff. I was VERY impressed by their food! The orange and general tsos chicken dishes were obviously top quality cuts, and marinated cooked before breading and frying. The sauces were very good. The dish called "The Kew" features filet mignon and a very rich beef sauce. We will be dining here again before we leave. For sure. read more

We have visited Chef Lee's several times. When we first started going we never had a complaint. About a year ago, something changed and we haven't enjoyed the food as much. Did Chef Lee leave?? We haven't been back nearly as often because the food was just ehh... My wife loved the Hawaiian delight, but the meat isn't as tender as it once was, they cut back on the pineapple and she noticed. The last time we ate there my egg roll was so oily I couldn't eat it. My General Sao chicken was lacking flavor and the rice was crunchy . I asked for more rice and my server brought me some that wasn't scrapping the bottom of the previous batch. Luckily the service and good bar drinks saved the day! At the lake it's the only Chinese place so other Asian options are limited. Hopefully they will get their groove back!!! read more

OK I can say Asian is way more better then this place chef Lee .OK it was a long day nobody wanted to cook so we went to get take out it smelled good we pleased the order that took a while a it was getting late we finally got it and got home started to eat what a desapointment it tasted like someone outed a bottle of Gaelic and a pound of sugar in the food nasty.. after a hour past felt not to good I know on thing I will never go there again or reqamend going there I'll stick with Asian cafe read more

Chef Lee - Chinese Near Me - Mineral, Virginia

I have seen many negative reviews lately about Chef Lee. Although I live near, I have not visited it as much since my duties find me in Chantilly a lot. It appeared that this place had gone downhill both in service and food quality. I decided to see for myself and I'm glad that I did. All of the service staff is new or returned from working there earlier and they could not be nicer. I ordered a spring roll, egg-drop soup, and veggie lo mein. Everything came out piping hot and was excellent, just like it was when they first opened. Although I had not experienced the problems that many folks had, they seem to have turned things around for the better. I'm certainly going back. read more

Food was gross. Had Orange Chicken. Sauce was too thick and tasted like put whole rine of orange in. Beef and broccoli, beef was over cooked and broccoli undercooked. Didnt taste good. Ordered Fried rice, looked like brown rice, definitely not fried rice. Not worth money. read more

Typical American Chinese cuisine. Expensive too unless you come for their lunch combination platter. I had the moo shu chicken which came with the authentic wraps and hoisin sauce. It was pretty good. My husband had the sweet and sour chicken which was made right. The egg drop and hot and sour soups were alright but kind of watery. Overall, we were impressed seeing this place is in rural Lake Anna. Otherwise, it's not too much different than other American Chinese restaurants we have tried. read more

Excellent!!! Honey Twins, Happy Family, Shrimp Fried Rice all the best we have had in quite a while. We had a lot of extra, so it was definitely worth the money. Update-got the honey twins again and again it was great. However, the house fried rice was only so-so. Our booth had been sat in about a thousand times too many - cracked and worn, and felt the springs underneath. read more

Typical American Chinese food. Nice interior and very friendly servers. Spicy doesn't really mean spicy.

Alright, so I generally don't go out of my way to review Chinese restaraunts in the literal middle of nowhere. But this place was out of this world. Food was fresh, portions were generous, menu was creative and thoughtful (Honey Twin was amazing,) and the service was quite good. At first I felt like the prices were a bit high, but when I thought about it, if I hadn't pre-judged this place because it was attached to a Food Lion, the price is exactly what I would have paid for that quality of meal. Some real craft went into this place. I was pleasantly surprised. read more

Two days in a row I've tried to have a nice dinner on my birthday weekend to much disappointment. The first time I tried to stop by this place it was closed...only on Tuesdays. Now the sign says they are open every day again. Who knows what that was about? I judge Chinese restaurants by the crab rangoons. Hot and creamy with a strong cheese and light crab taste is my preference. These were rather dry and the pastry was unpleasant. Something was off in this recipe. My order of sesame chicken was just a little off in flavor as well. The food was hot and the breading was done well but the sauce flavor was missing something. A few more pieces of broccoli couldn't hurt either. Good sticky rice though! Service was good; locally comfortable without the 'best friends' chitchat. And the decor is not overly Asian, very warm and cozy. I'll stop by again and try some other dishes to see if it was just me, or the chef. read more

I've had better food from the freezer isle in the grocery store. They are high priced, small portions and bland taste.. dont waste your money read more

The manager was very rude and disrespectful. I had my daughter order food and he was making fun of how she was speaking. She was speaking in a soft voice , and he explained to me she shouldn't be placing orders. Now come on really." I'm Asian as well" we all know the Asian accent jokes." Well I politely walked out never to return. read more

Placed a large order for take out - very pricey!! The food was just awful. Ordered a variety of dishes and they all tasted the same. It was just awful. Will not go back!!! read more

My favorite Chinese of all time, and now it's on my never to return list. Ordered the same dish I always order, Chicken with mixed vegetables, Came as Shrimp with mixed vegetables, No biggy, tasted good. Next I hear the waitress say don't eat that. She came picked it up and served it to the next table after I ate some. The lady at that table was overheard saying he looks clean. Then when my food came the meal tasted very strange. Sent it back. It was returned and the cook said it was Okay. and did we want it heated up, as they had been walking around with it for 10 Minutes. I told them food was not acceptable, bring me my bill. Which she did without any consideration that the food was unacceptable and we didn't eat it, Charged me full price.. Last trip to Chef Lee, so sad read more

It is a great restaurant and good food. The service is great and a great addition to Lake Anna. We stopped in when first opened and continue to go there. read more

I love this restaurant! Their food has always been good since I discovered it at the begining of this year and I keep going back. The portions are perfect. If you like shrimp try the walnut shimp. It is very sweet but so good! The service is very good as well. It is out of the way for me but well worth visiting. read more

Best chicken broccoli ever!!! I've eaten at a lot of Chinese restaurants and this is the best so far..

My favorite Chinese food place in the area. It's delicious. But just a tip if you like spicy all for extra because their spicy is for bland old people read more

I have eaten here twice when we go to Lake Anna to take care of boat but OMG Sauce out of can....soup....rice...you name it they are all BAD! Egg roll wrapper is not cooked all the way when you order eggroll.Chicken dish are not for human consumption here...just bad cooking on Hispanic cook not taught by skilled chinese cheff. Panda express is better than this...I am dead serious. read more

The food is ok. The price is ridiculously expensive I could go have steak and I mean good steak for less than getting lo mein from here, the management and owners are the rudest people I have ever met. Take your business to another place or stick to a buffet, same food better price nicer people. read more

We got the lunch specials the other day as a take out meal. Generous portions, on par with other causal Chinese restaurants we've dined at. The dinner prices are on the higher side for what you get, but the lunch specials are a decent deal. We particularly liked the crispy noodles they used for the soups (i.e., they are tasty and crispy, which we don't seem to get all the time). read more

Surprisingly good Chinese food for out of the way Mineral Virginia. Really like the "Happy Family" and "the Kew". Generous servings and good prices. Small but well stocked bar - reasonable drink prices. Have had good luck dining in and carrying out. read more

My one star rating has more to do with the staff then the food. The food is spot on and amazing and the price is not horrible at all. Where some staff members are ok and good serving others are not. I visited here maybe about a week ago and just can't get over the conversation I heard. I will be ordering my food to go home for now on and will not be dining in ever again. One of the women was on the phone yelling either it was a personal call through the work phone or she was talking to a customer. When she finally hung up the phone she yelled at the top of her lungs "STUPIDO". Obviously they do not care to make their customers feel comfortable . read more

Was very disappointed, I had moo goo gai pan, very bland. My husband had the Kew dinner it wasn't very appetizing either. $50 down the drain. read more

By far one of the worst Chinese restaurant I have ever eaten at. My waitress was very nice and prompt. My egg rolls were COLD!! My wonton soup had nothing in the inside of the wonton. We ordered 3 Happy Family and the sauce was disgusting.. I would NOT RECOMMEND this restaurant for my DOGS!!! read more

We came here with a big group on vacation. The food was delicious and the portions are huge! The service was really quick even with us having so many people. read more

I used to love Chef Lee and ate there weekly for lunch. I really want to like it but lately the quality does not seem the same. Stale Chinese noodles, sharp tasting tea and very ordinary food. Also, I have food sensitivities and wonder if they use MSG now but didn't in the past?? I am having trouble finding anything I can eat there, not knowing what's in it. Also, I have always wished they would offer brown rice but so far, no. Hoping they will be more conscientious about quality in the future. read more

Another great dinner at Chef Lee last night. High praise for the Chicken Egg Foo Young, Orange Chicken, Triple Delight and Garlic Chicken. Food was excellent and service was very attentive. Portions are good and reasonably priced entrees. read more

Good food! We've been a few times for lunch and enjoy the egg roll and entree we've had (Kung Pao chicken is our favorite.) A solid place for decent Chinese food. read more

Always consistent quality (good not great)... we come here every visit to lake and enjoy the option for Chinese.