I live like a 5 minute drive and I was like... I need to at least try this once to see if I'll go again. Sadly, that probably will be my last time. After doing some intense Pokemon Go for the night, I was craving hot pot and this place looked fairly cheap. My boyfriend and I were greeted by a worker who ended her shift and literally smiled and pushed us inside to eat. So we're sitting at the table waiting for a menu and some water. I would not blame them since there's 2 waitresses and I believe owner who are serving people. We ordered our meats, veggies, balls and noodles. Turns out we only get to choose meats on the menu while we pick up the rest in their back section. Their selection is not bad... I really wanted rice noodles but they didn't have any in the back. The beef balls were amazing and the star of the show. The meat itself is very sad. We for sure know that what we got was not wagyu. We got the leanest of meats and it was very hard to chew on. And they didn't have roast duck!! ): We also got the forbidden meat of any hot pot: chicken. We cooked it for 10 minutes but we didn't eat it since it was still questionably pink. At the end of the meal, it felt short and my jaw was tired from eating the lean meat. read more

We were looking for restaurants in the area at 930pm and found them since they were still open. We didn't eat hot pot but just got couple of dishes to go. Both food and prices were decent, would come back again. read more

Chef Li's Cafe - Menu - Chinese Near Me - San Francisco, California

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I'm honestly not sure why but I have a soft spot in my heart for Chef Li's. Maybe it's because it's never too crowded and my party is always seated right away (at least on weekday/weekend nights). Maybe it's because the server always recognizes us. Maybe it's because the plethora of food never fails to satisfy our hunger. But in general, the quality of the meats isn't outstanding. The price is pretty standard and not necessarily cheap (I believe it's about 25 per person?).They will get your orders mixed up/wrong (but honestly what hot pot place doesn't mess up your orders at least once). I think if you're looking for standard hot pot fare with some great milk tea, this place will definitely fill your craving. But if you're looking for a high quality, gourmet kind of hot pot, you're better off going to Little Sheep. read more

AYCE hot pot, milk tea, and appetizer for only $22.99? That's such a great deal! Usually AYCE hot pot can go up to $26+, so Chef Li's was well worth it. The restaurant was clean and nicely decorated with a mix of traditional Chinese and modern aesthetic. Our waitress was lovely and genuinely cared about the customers. She was instructing me on the best way to eat hot pot, showing me where the sauce bar is, and explaining the ordering system. She alone gets 5 stars! The food was pretty solid as well. Veggies were fresh and meat was tender. We had the thai tea and bubble tea, both of which were satisfying. Overall, I had a fulfilling experience and would not hesitate to come back! read more

We came here for dinner last Monday. We were one of two tables at 6pm. I like that you can get your own personal hot pot or have one communal hot pot. I haven't seen that before. There are so many options for broth, meat, veggies, etc. They have a good variety of appetizers. I absolutely love that they have a sauce bar that is well stocked that doesn't cost extra. Plus all you can drink milk teas! All of this for the great price of $23/per person without taxes and gratuity. We were one of two tables in the entire restaurant and I guess one of the waitresses must have been in training because she kept bringing us their food. I think we got their 4-5 plates of meat as well as other dishes. We kept asking her what it was and I told her that we didn't order it but she was adamant that it was ours or couldn't describe what it was. The first waitress we met was much more knowledgeable and friendly. Ever since moving to the SF area, it has taken time to get used to the higher food prices but I am so glad to have found a hot pot place that is so much more reasonable/comparable to Chicago. I wouldn't come during a busy time like Friday/Saturday night because I don't know what kind of service you would receive. But I would definitely come back with a group of friends for a laid back AYCE meal. read more

There are a number of Chinese restaurants on San Bruno Ave of the Portola Area, and Chef Li's café is right in the middle of them. While it serves bbq deli meats that are displayed on the window like many restaurants in the area, it also has an indoor dining area for hot pot that would presumably get used again once things open up more. I ordered their Chinese BBQ pork dish with rice, which is a standard dish of many Cantonese deli restaurants. For about $8.00, you get quite a lot for your order. One major difference I noticed is that this particular dish is a bit more saucy. It's not bad, but I was looking more for the standard style of this dish. Other restaurants server theirs as a drier meat along with vegetables. It also came with a cup of soup, which is a nice addition to the order. The service was pretty fast, but it was a slow day. If you want something that's a quick to-go order that gets you a ton of food, Chef Li certainly will serve you well. I didn't have a chance to try other items on there, but I'm looking forward to coming back. read more

This place has the best cocktail and hot dog buns ever! And the employees are always super nice. This is one of my favorite places on the area. read more

Chef Li's Cafe - Cocktail bun ( coconut) $1.60 for two - Chinese Near Me - San Francisco, California

Foods were vey delicious , the restaurant is clean and the service is good. We like their porridge and green onion pancake.

Chef Li has stayed one of my go-to spots for takeout over the past year. They have an excellent three dish plus rice meal for a little over $30 that is good for at least two full meals for my family. They have Chinese BBQ and frozen dumplings for takeout as well. I used to get hot pot here but since I'm avoiding indoor dining, I haven't gone back recently, but I remember their hot pot being really good too with huge selection of seafood, meat, and veggies. read more

This is our go to Chinese spot since we live in the Portola neighborhood. The fried rice is the best thing on the menu. We order extra so we can have it for breakfast. The sesame chicken is delicious and crispy, not soggy. The pot stickers are good, but I like the dough of the dumplings better. The prices are awesome for how much food you get. read more

Chef Li's is one of the only hot pot places in the city that also offers roast duck, roast pork, soy sauce chicken (and may other BBQ items) as appetizers. It consistently blows my mind that they offer this- making its $24.99 price point one of the best values for hot pot in the city. Their sauce bar has many options which is a must for great hot pot. I believe many of the sauces they offer are actually home-made which is refreshing as most of the others places in the city serve sauces from cans or jars. They now allow you to grab as you need for their veggies/noodles/various fish and meat balls which helps prevent food waste. I see many tables order a la carte Chinese dishes which I have yet to try but will do so soon as they look very appetizing as well. Staff is very friendly and attentive. Glad there's such a consistent, well priced AYCE hot pot place in this area. read more

Chef Li's Cafe - They offer roast duck and may other BBQ items as part of their AYCE offering - Chinese Near Me - San Francisco, California

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They're back! Love this neighborhood gem. My favorites are the seafood soup, Singapore noodles with extra curry, and the pork ear.

Great food, very reasonable prices and clean comfortable restaurant. Parking might be tricky read more

Chef Li's Cafe - Great food, beet reasonable prices and clean comfortable restaurant - Chinese Near Me - San Francisco, California

I love HK style cafes, they are super affordable for the amount of food you get. This is definitely one of the ones with better service. Came here on a sunday afternoon around 11:30 and the restaurant was pretty empty. But don't let that fool you bc the food was delicious. We ordered a bowl of porridge and tomato with beef over pan fried noodles, it was $18 after tax and tips. read more

Chef Li's Cafe - Chinese Near Me - San Francisco, California

This review is strictly for hot pot. Hot pot is offered in the evenings and I'm so excited because this is my new go to spot. My boyfriend and I love to hot pot or shabu and we know those are two entirely different things. Hot pot is great because it's more than just meat and veggies. You can order seafood, and at this restaurant, you can order appetizers too. So many options to choose from and I love having options to choose from. We went to Chef Li's twice in one week for their hot pot because we loved it that much. Anyways, they're never too busy, both times, we were given a table right away. Sadly, the parking can be difficult, just don't be afraid to park a little further. After being sat down, we get a menu and dry erase marker and we just mark on the menu what we want. The first time we tried Chef Li's, we ordered a lot to try. The second time we came, we knew exactly what we wanted. Soup: Spicy miso and pork bone broth -American Wagyu Beef (must get) -Beef Ribeye (sometimes good, sometimes ok) -New Zealand Lamb (love) -Housemade Shrimp Paste (ok, wish it was more succulent) -Rock cod Fish Fillet (THE SOFTEST FISH FILLET EVER) -Fried Bean Curd (sometimes called fried tofu skin, MHM) -Fish balls w/ roe (no good, it's like cheesy inside, not the one I usually like) -Housemade shrimp wonton (must try) -Spinach or napa cabbage (pretty fresh & clean) -Flat potato noodle (clear flat noodle) -Green onion pancake (really really oily) -roast pork (not bad) -Deep Fried Wonton (the wonton skin was thick, no good) -Chinese Donut (really oily as well, I think re-fried) Everything is really good for the price. We pay $23.99 each and it's a steal! We love it! Must try their chinese food one time. I've heard positive things about it. read more

I happened to this place since I live in the neighborhood. I've been here a few times and have bought the mongolian beef, which I enjoyed. This time I bought the house special. It was a great mix of seafood! Very tasty, I like that they accept card, and you can purchase through Grubhub. read more

Value, flavor and atmosphere was excellent. Meat and seafood portions were large and fresh. This place just does hot pot the right way. There is nothing spectacular here but everything was good. The soup bases were clean without too much salt and msg, the food was fresh, and the atmosphere was comfortable. If you are just looking for an decent place to eat hot pot without the hassle of lines or high prices, this should be your number 1 choice. Surprisingly, the high quality beef was actually high quality and the seafood was extremely fresh tasting. That being said though, this is a new establishment and the quality might not maintain itself as time goes on. Around 23$ per person is absolutely worth the quality and comfort of this hot pot experience. read more

The cleanest restaurant in San Bruno Ave. Had a quick lunch there, ordered sizzling pork intestine plate and seafood chow fun. Portions are big. I like pork intestine, many restaurants' the same dish only has few thin and small pieces of the intestine. But Chef Li's Cafe's dish, all pieces were chunky, fatty, chewy and tender. The seafoods in chow fun were very fresh. A little bit greasy but taste good. read more

Chef Li's Cafe - Seafood Chow Fun - Chinese Near Me - San Francisco, California

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Very biased service here. Restaurant is owned by Chinese owners - not very good English. Poor service, forgot several times to put in our orders, didn't notify us of last call, etc food is good but for so many reasons I will not coming back here. p.s Good luck finding parking read more

Good go to for Cantonese food. We like the beef chow fun, salted fish, chicken fried rice, salt and pepper pork, Geen Dow pork chop, string beans, eggplant. Good value for the money and the amount of food you get. read more

Probably the first proper vegetarian review? No fancy vegetarian/vegan soup, but they can "make" you a soup on the spot, which is just... mushrooms and chinese leek/green onions (and some other flavoring), boiled in water, from scratch. I think it's actually the Beijing Style Clear soup. I guess that's what makes it "clear" It's fine, because they have all these awesome veggies like prefried yam and mushrooms that you can just put in the soup and cook your own soup. And a ok variety of sauces (ask which ones are vegetarian, sesame is.) But be prepared to wait for a longer time since the soup is cooked from scratch and all the flavors wont get in until later. But their veggie selection is really great! And cheaper than other AYCE hotpots. Still, I prefer a place where they already have a pre-cooked vegetarian/vegan soup. read more

This is my favorite hot pot place and I've been to a lot. The service is great and the food is fresh. They get busy sometimes so try to go earlier or make a reservation. There is also a huge amount of choices when it comes to broth, veggies, meats and other toppings. I love how you can get your individual hot pot or share a huge one with your entire group. They're also very generous with their sauce options. Their hot pot option comes with unlimited milk tea which is a nice touch! Aside from the delicious hot pot meal, their roasted pig is amazing. You can order it in the front of the store. It easily ranks as one of the top roasted pig I've ever had. Trendy and juicy! I can't wait to come back and satisfy my hot pot cravings! I'm so glad there's finally a great hot pot place in this area! read more

This place gets busy during peak hours! That tells you it's good food, but try to beat the dinner rush. Service also slows down when they get busy too. Some dishes I ordered never arrived, but it wasn't an issue since I was so stuffed. I got the Chafing pot with soups 1 and 2. Not super strong in flavor, but I enjoyed the kick the spicy soup gave. Our first pot came with a fly in it, so they replaced it without much issue. I love their sauce station! So many ingredients- you basically can create any sauce you want. Minced garlic, peppers, creamy and clear sauces, etc. As far as ingredients go, everything we had was fresh! I only dislike they stack meat plates on top of another, since I don't know how clean the bottom of their plates are. Each portion is well-controlled too; I never felt tired of eating the same order and had stomach left for other things. I loved the quail eggs, pig blood and intestines, lotus root, shrimp paste, and beef balls with pork filling. It was impossible to try everything on the menu. I must return! read more

If you're not Asian don't expect to get service. It's all you can eat, yet we consistently were not getting things we asked for. There was a language barrier and we tried non verbal cues, and if she didn't understand why couldn't she get the English speaking server? They gave us 10% off after I complained. I was almost about to walk out without paying, but I am not that kind of person. Tab was $70 for 3 people and we probably barely ate enough for one person collectively. Asked for more udon, rice, the menu, napkins, water.... got the water, after we complained. DONT GO HERE **food was mediocre as well would be less sad if it was at least decent tasting** read more

The best duck in town! All the most delicious roasted fowl, pork, delicious flavor, crispy skin and wonderful family run customer service. I will always return for Chef Li's Duck! read more

I like how home-y this place feels for all you can eat hot pot. Because this restaurant has a more mom & pop vibe and isn't overrated with a bunch of hype, it felt like I was more supporting a local business than one of those popular must-try hot pot places in the city. For $23 before tax & tip you have a wide selection of broths to choose from, meats, vegetables, dumplings, noodles and all you can drink milk tea (say what?) My sister and I had a date here on a Friday night where there was no crowds or anything and we were looking forward to eating a good meal together. We were seated at a 4 person table with their own burner so instead of us being able to get a split broth pot, we instead got our own broth pot and got to try each others. After reading reviews, I chose the pork bone broth and my sister got the tom yum. I would totally recommend the pork bone broth! It was super soothing for a cold day. We ordered a LOT of food; I would recommend getting the new zealand lamb & wagyu beef for sure and any of their housemade dumplings. Everything else like the veggies and noodles are pretty standard and are usually offered at other hotpot restaurants. They have a DIY sauce bar and even an option to dump an egg into your soup! The milk tea is pretty good however it tasted more like using the powder mixture rather than using real tea leaves. Downsides of this place: the service isn't the best, as we saw about two waitresses running around to all the tables even when the place wasn't overly crowded. We had to flag them down to get our orders in. As I requested certain items (i.e. the bok choy), they substituted for another item without letting us know they ran out; it wasn't until I mentioned it to them that they told me they didn't have anymore so they decided to give us something else. For the most part despite the downsides, I think this place is good to get your AYCE hotpot fix at a reasonable price. read more

The food was good, great service and the price is amazing! We ordered home so didn't know how the place looks like, but food was so good we ordered round 2! read more

AYCE hot pot within 5 mins from home? I'm there! This place opened recently (re-opened under new management and added the hot pot portion?) and I heard about it from word of mouth. Came here on a Friday evening and there was little to no wait. For $22.99, it's all you can eat and drink (Thai, Taro, Jasmine, or bubble milk tea). You can choose to have your own little pot and get your own broth or a big pot to share. I typically get the coconut pork bone soup base. Soup base tastes great and is easy on your stomach (haha). Anyways this place is usually understaffed. There's literally like 2 people serving (1 takes care of the front, where they take orders/sell Chinese food and helps out with the hot pot portion of the restaurant occasionally). A lot of the servers are somewhat new and they seem to panic a bit when it gets busy. On to the food: The food in my opinion is so-so. The quality of their meat is decent but I've definitely had better. For $22.99, I honestly did not expect much so I came in not expecting much. They give you about 5 slices of meat for every order so order a lot before they get busy. Everything else is what they'd typically have at any ordinary hot pot. 4 stars for the quality and the price of the AYCE hot pot. I would definitely be back to satisfy those hot pot cravings. Decent food and easy on the wallet. **Cash & Credit accepted ***Residential parking a few blocks away behind San Bruno Ave, street metered parking on San Bruno Ave. read more

I went here a total of two times. The first time was pretty upsetting, because I was the only table available and I still couldn't get my food in a timely manner. However, it was close to closing time so I thought that maybe I'd give them a chance at an earlier time. Big mistake. Though the restaurant was fuller, the service was not much different than the first time. This place is a hotpot place so you order what you want on a menu and it comes out for you to cook. However, out of the three times we ordered, my friend and I only received half the items. We thought maybe they ran out of items? It would have still been nice to know. Next, our food items came very sparsely in some areas and abundant in others. We got the end parts of noodles and our meat came out in small pieces of six, but they gave an excess of veggies and deep fried foods to the point where we couldn't finish them. They also started running out of food at 8pm, two hours before closing. Their sauce bar was not correctly labeled so it was confusing to make sauces. It was overall a mess. They also took 10-15 minutes to come out with food and they never checked up on our table unless we asked. However, parking is never hard (+1) and their milk tea is also unlimited and delicious (+1). However, their bubble milk tea ran out by the time we got there (7pm). Overall, I wouldn't come back. I'd much rather spend my money on a place where I can receive my food in a timely manner with all the food I ordered. A meal that takes an hour took us about two hours due to slow service. read more

This is a hidden gem. From outside it's a regular neighborhood roasted duck/pork/Chinese buffet sort of place, but inside, it opens up to a bigger restaurant where they serve an extensive chinese dinner menu. What's neat, they are also an ALL-YOU-CAN-EAT Hotpot buffet. What I really love about their hotpot is that you can have an individual pot with your own broth, so you don't have to share with others. All you order from the menu is the sliced meat, and everything else is displayed in their buffet style cooler in the back, so you're free to grab anything. Love their sauces, especially the ginger-garlic concoction. Majority of the time, we'll come in for hotpot, but there was once when we ordered their Chinese food delivery and it was also very good. read more

Review is only for the "all you can eat buffet" element of this restaurant. I cannot speak upon anything beyond that. The following is just my opinion, and that's exactly all it is. It's not right, nor is it wrong. Just my opinion. I really wanted to like this place. I really, really did. First thing to note: according to their policy, you only get 90 minutes for the "all you can eat". Think about that for a minute. Second note: came here on the weekend. We were very much excited to try Chef Li's and got there a little bit after the buffet began. Got a seat right away as there was not a whole lot of people there yet. We got the menu and began our selections. Round one was about to commence! Got our milk teas right away, but the first round of food took a little bit to come out, and missed a few items that we ordered. As we began eating, crowds started to come into the restaurant and it was noticeably busier. One thing we observed was that at the time, there were really only 2 individuals helping everyone with the service. An additional employee was behind the counter handling the checkout process. The thing about an "all you can eat" buffet is that service is constantly needed at various tables for various reasons, but that definitely was not happening since they obviously were short staffed. We were almost done with round 1, and wanted to begin ordering for round 2. After some wait, and pondering whether we were able to use some kind of dance to attract her attention, the waitress came back with the menu for round 2 and uttered something in the lines of "you might want to get everything now". We started to realize that this is truly not an "all you can eat" buffet because we were really under a lot of pressure from time constraints and not only that, limited servicing. Round 2 took extremely long to get out, and again missed a few items we ordered. The most surprising part (which was also the most disappointing), is that it took us an immensely long time to get a second round of milk teas (which we ordered on the menu). It wasn't until a third employee came on the floor that we were able to get that second round. Now, onto the quality of the food. All the seafood is pretty standard, but it was the meat that shocked me the most. The meats were really not all that great (in my opinion), and quite frankly all tasted the same. There was this interesting taste to them, that I cannot pinpoint exactly what it is. The broth was sub par, but the noodles (which for some odd reason took an hour to come out, and two order tries) were solid. My favorite part of the meal were the milk teas. That was truly the most on point item they had. Would I go there again? Not really. For $23+ dollars, I can honestly say I did not get my money's worth. I can only presume certain things about this place, and I will keep that to myself. However, if you're looking to roll the dice, you may want to give it a try. read more

I love coming here for all you can eat hot pot cause it's close to home and very reasonably priced. The name of the business will not give it away that this is a hot pot place but give it a try! They have a pretty wide selection of meats, appetizers, soups and sauces. They even offer all you can drink boba! I usually go for the half and half soup with Thai and the pork bone broth. So yummy! They have very fresh meats and good variety. However they are a bit disorganized. The servers usually do not tell you what everything is and sometimes you don't get everything you order. The portions here are rather small which I'm not mad about because my eyes are usually bigger than my stomach and it allows me to try more things on the menu! One thing- I usually LOVE beef tongue but the beef tongue they serve here is cooked instead of raw and it's rather thick. Makes me wonder if it really is beef tongue :( They have a sauce bar towards the back of the restaurant and they have so many yummy sauces! Try putting together a few things to create the perfect spice and taste! read more

Glad there is finally an AYCE hotspot place in the area. You get what you pay for at this place. The selection of meat and various soups makes this place great if you really like hotpot. I was surprised they included appetizers, desserts and milk teas in the AYCE menu. The quality of the food is exceptional. I was impressive with the quality of the meat. The quality and taste was definitely there if you can tell the difference. If you're looking for an AYCE hotpot place in the area..this is the place! read more

I love bbq! So when I decided to check this place out I was really shocked. Everything was SUPER CLEAN, the service was fast and the staff behind the counter were all super nice. I ordered half a duck and it was delicious! The prices are super fair! I will have to come back someday to try more of their dishes. 5/5 STARS read more

Where should I even start? The soup base taste is fresh made and all the sauces are very good as well! Most important thing is ALL the food is very fresh. The people who work inside are nice and quick. I will definitely go back again soon. P.S: My daughter's favorites were the fried buns with condensed milk and the quail eggs. She also liked the style of the restaurant. She said it looks very simple and clean! read more

For those who have been to iPot in Sunset, this is basically iPot. I'm not sure if its the same owner, if it's not, there's probably a lawsuit on the way lol. The menu is exactly the same! A few differences, the price is lower here, 22.99 for ayce, milk tea is included (regular, jasmine, taro), and there is no half pot half grill option, instead of ice cream they give you a popsicle at the end. The meat quality was good and the service was decent, I will admit the service is a little slower here vs. iPot, there are only 1.5 servers currently. We came at an odd hour for lunch/dinner so the service was not too bad and we got our meat in a reasonable time. Overall, if you don't want to wait for a table at iPot and don't mind not having grilled meat, I recommend coming here. read more

$22.99 for AYCE hotpot. Meat choice and quality: pretty fresh and is way bette than the little sheep in union square. However, when I ordered 2 plates of wagyu, the two plates looked drastically different. I also loved the clams; they did a good job to clean them. All the homemade fish/meat balls are delicious. Standard selection of veggies. I don't like eating carb so we didn't order anything like noodles. Sauce station: the bomb. They even provide raw egg as a dipping. 4 types of milk come with the $22.99. But we were too full to try it. Lastly, the whole reason that we came here is that they have the fried bun with condensed milk. I rarely eat carbs but I cannot say no to these perfectly fried crispy buns read more

Picked up food from here a few times. Quick and easy! We enjoyed the chow mein, Kung pao chicken, fried rice, and some other items. They have frozen dumplings for sale too. Very good and homemade. read more

The location of this spot is great. I ordered shrimp fried rice and wonton soup. The soup was exceptional. I've never had it before and it was awesome. Sad thing to say the shrimp fried rice compared to the soup was night and day. It consists of a pile of dry yellow rice with a large amount of baby salad shrimp. To add the shrimp weren't clean so the look of the meal was very unpleasant. Not going to give up on the place cause the soup was so delightful. Until next time read more

This place was a pleasant surprise. I was looking for a Chinese restaurant in my area and many of the Chinese restaurants in the area were closed. But, Chef Li's Cafe was open. We walked in and were seated. We had never eaten here so the lady was very helpful in assisting us in placing our order. We ordered the House Fried Rice, Walnut Shrimp, and Sesame Chicken. I was very pleased with the generous portions and the quality of the food. The service was quite good. My overall experience was great, I would definitely recommend this place, the prices are reasonable. read more