Had the pad thai yesterday and was very disappointed, the rice noodles were under cooked and the whole thing was bone dry. I had the chicken, ordered it to go and was the only one there and while I sat waiting all I heard was two different microwave ovens beeping. I'm not sure what is going on there now but I won't be returning any time soon, I'll be going into town for some way better pad thai read more

I've been to China Inn a few times since they closed during the COVID pandemic. Pre-pandemic, they had a superb buffet lunch that had numerous dishes that were good. Since they reopened, they have been on downward slide. Their dishes are uniformly bad. For example, I had a number #16 (a dinner combo, but during lunch), and there wasn't any part I could recommend: the fried shrimp tasted old -- not fresh. The boneless chicken actually had a bad taste. Their BBQ pork? I regularly buy better at Safeway. Even the Lo Mein was flavorless. Coming from Los Angeles, I know my American-style Chinese food. China Inn wouldn't be in business in a major US city. I get that this is ELLENSBURG, and our options are limited. PLEASE, a suggestion, if anyone at China Inn is listening: you need to either find a new cook, or maybe send your cook to be retrained. Also consider revising your recipes. read more

Not surprised to find that other reviews mentioned hair in the food as that's what happened to me today. Now, mistakes can happen, and while that's not acceptable, I can understand it. What I can't understand or accept however is the extremely rude interaction that followed with my server / the owner? I notified her that there was hair in my food the Szechuan beef, that I had lost interest in continuing to eat that dish (with still over half the food on the plate), and that I would need that to be removed from the bill. She took away the food without a single apology, and brought the check. I was dining with a friend who also ordered the Szechuan beef and we were provided with some egg drop soup which I was not aware came with the dish. So when we got the bill for $21.95 with a $12.95 item which was my friend's Szechuan beef and a $7 entry on the bill which looked like it said something about two things which we thought meant the soups. We didn't know it drop soup came with the entree and thought that we had been charged $3.50 a piece for the two soups. As we did not order soups I crossed those off the bill and adjusted the $21.95 total to $12.95. At the register the owner explains to me that the $7 charge was for my Szechuan beef entrse that had the hair in it! I reminded her that I had asked to have that taken off the bill and that I was in no way going to pay for food that had hair in it. Previously to this when I had pointed out the hair to her she started to say something like "Oh that's just.... " and then stopped mid-sentence when she recognized without a shadow of a doubt that yes it was an actual hair in the food. She rudely snatched the bill back from me, and stated the total to now be $15 (not accurate with the current tax rate- higher than what it should actually have been but whatever). And if all that wasn't rude enough, she then stated "Don't ever come back." To which I responded, "oh believe me, I won't." As I turned to walk away she couldn't let it go and muttered under her breath something about me not paying, at which point I encouraged her to go do something with herself. Do yourself a favor and stay away from this place unless you like your food contaminated with hair and extremely unprofessional and rude interactions with the staff / owner. read more

i freaking LOVE china inn!! my whole family and i have been coming here since i was a baby. yes, my mom was holding me on her birthday eating chinese food in one head holding me in the other lol. every birthday in our family we go here. my grandma who passed at the age of 92 loved it and we took her every birthday. will never ever forget this place. this is where my family comes together. would be the saddest person if they ever took this dang place down. love it here. thank you for the great customer service as well. funny enough just went here last night we. love. china. inn!!!!!! read more

If you get past the weird storage in booths and odd stuff sitting out (in contained areas) then this place is fun. If you're in ellensburg and in the mood for Chinese food or buffet (during the day or on the weekend at night also) then this is a good spot. I started off with a spring roll and it was light and tasted like hand rolled and not oily. Served with that bright red sweet and sour sauce they all have. I ordered the number 12 dinner. Which starts off with soup of the day which was okay at best. The meal is fried shrimp, fried pork which I think are hand breaded, some sort of fried chicken dish with brown sauce which was delicious. And then chow mein in the middle of all of this. Even though I'm not a big fan of fried shrimp or anything with too much breading it was hot and crisp and didn't taste like old oil. So when I dipped it in some sauce and it had some crunch it was kind of fun to eat. I ordered an iced tea it is a beverage and I think they've had the same iced tea for 100 years and keep putting ice cubes in it cuz it was the clearest weakest iced tea I've ever had. Parkings in front and in back I didn't see the restroom . read more

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Service was attentive and friendly, tables and restaurant very clean. -We ordered the family meal which consisted of the following: egg flour soup, bbq pork (not too dry and flavorful) pork fried rice (my favorite item overall) chow mein (has crunchy chow mein noodles, water chestnuts, celery, onion) egg rolls (huge and filled with large slices of cabbage) almond chicken (like katsu with a thick gravy. Just a hint of sweetness) fried shrimp (a little too oily for me). -Verdict: I'll return for a fried rice fix and maybe to try the other dishes they offer. read more

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The food is mediocre and the service seems to be getting worse. We have given them several tries but tonight was the last.

My mother and i took refuge here when we were on our way to Central U and there was a snow storm and what a great surprise! Very vibrant decor, traditional Chinese flavors, and nothing catered to the Americanized palate. They have the most tender and juicy bbq chicken and pork, perfectly balanced hot and sour soup with the right consistency. We will definitely stop by again when we come back! They also have the most happy and friendly staff, Andy was running the front and he made sure our water glass was never empty. Great experience, and greet food! I read from other fellow yelpers that they serve pho, and i asked about it but unfortunately they were all out. It must be popular, ill try again the next time though. read more

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Most uncomfortable experience I've ever had a restaurant. My waiter had poor hygiene (nasty smell, messy hair). My friend and I found hair in both of our phos. Grossed out by the experience, I immediately stopped eating and informed one of the waiters'. The waiter accused me and my friend of putting hair in the food which was ridiculous since both of us have curly short hair whereas the soup had long straight hairs in it. Even though I only took a few sips she still wanted me to pay for the whole portion. She was getting upset and came back to our table with several employees, all with a bitter attitudes. My friend agreed to pay for both of our phos and bad smelling waitress watched us from a distance as my friend was handed a "fresh" bowl of pho to-go. We immediately threw that shit out. read more

My only pho place i go to. They know me and my mom, Della both pretty well at this point. Best pho ive ever had personally, their my favorite. Their bobo platter is also fun and so good. read more

The buffet is decent but the dinners (non-buffet) need improvements. At the buffet I can get hot mustard and sweet and sour sauce but when food is delivered you have to depend on the wait staff and they tend to be distracted easily so it can be interesting when you need something. read more

China Inn - Pretty basic food. Bland for the most part. Be prepared to request sauces and hot mustard. - Chinese Near Me - Ellensburg, Washington

Came here for a late lunch (around 3-4) with my boyfriend. Immediately when walking in there were dirty boxes, books, clothes and dirty dishes piled up on some of the tables. When we ordered, it had taken over an hour to get our food. The lady did not give us water (also didn't ask is if we want any other drink at all) until we got our food. Also did not come back afterwards to check on us. Many of the staff were coming out of the kitchen with food and eating and talking, while we had been waiting for our food (note, we were the ONLY customers in there). The food wasn't anything special either, and while sitting in the restaurant i literally had to try and distract myself from thinking how their kitchen must look, if their seating was covered in literal trash. Definitely not going back. read more

China Inn is an Ellensburg must eat restaurant. The food is tasty and service is always friendly. Great family restaurant that aims to please. Their Crab Rangoon is a house specialty and always tasty. Almost anything on the menu will slide down your gullet with little trouble. It's not fancy but good food. read more

I love the China Inn it is so good. So many restaurants in Ellensburg are really similar and China Inn was so refreshing to eat at. The inside is very nice and the bathrooms were spotless. Its a little quiet but it got louder later into the afternoon. I had the dinner combo and the Chow Mein and the Sweet and Sour Chicken was so delicious. My fiancé had the Pho and it was also amazing. Please eat here!!! The staff is so kind and they have great food!!! read more

This place has authentic Chinese food, I had probably the best orange chicken in town! The service was excellent, and the place was very clean and organized. They also deliver which is nice because not a lot of places in Ellensburg do! read more

Pho in Ebrg! The real deal with quality homemade broth. I am so excited to discover this establishment. While the Chinese buffet/food looked fine, they have an unadvertised Vietnamese menu. The owners are from Vietnam and seek to appeal to Asian students from campus; in other words, authentic cuisine at great prices. Also, tripe and tendon available upon request. Side note, this is probably the cleanest Asian noodle joint I've ever been to. read more

China Inn serves good Chinese food. I've had a combination lunch and a combination dinner before. They came with a cup of soup which was a bit too salty for me but still tasted good. I would recommend ordering Lo Mein rather than Chow Mein because their Chow Mein noodles taste like Chow Main candies. Good dishes that I've had there so far are fried prawns, almond boneless fried chicken, sweet & sour pork, vegetable lo main, and phad thai with beef. They serve lunch and dinner buffet and the prices are around $7-8 and $10-11 respectively (I don't remember the exact price but it was somewhere between these price ranges). Lunch buffet time: 11am-2:30pm (Wed and Fri), 12-2:30pm (Sun). Dinner buffet time: 5-8:30pm (Fri and Sat). The restaurant is very clean. I would go back there again. :) read more

China Inn - combination lunch (sweet & sour pork, chicken chow mein) - Chinese Near Me - Ellensburg, Washington

This is a fairly Plain Jane type establishment. Reasonably clean but a little worn. Food was as to be expected, per most of the reviews already given. I would say if anything the cook is just a little on the conservative side. All the elements (taste and texture) of the meal are there, they just aren't as pronounced as most might like. I will admit the fried rice was a little funky, not bad - just different. I would say it's a good place to start someone with a sensitive palette (kids perhaps). Probably not the place for you veteran Chinese Food patrons. Price was on par with any other Chinese restaurant - Buffett excluded. Eat Up! I had the pot stickers and a single serving of Kung Pao Chicken. read more

I came in terribly hungover after oktoberfest in leavenworth, and this pho made me feel 90% better! I enjoyed the broth, meat balls, and beef. It is on par with pho with Seattle. I wish they had this when i lived here! Central students, i hope you know to come here to cure yourself of hangovers. read more

Food is good but the place is always empty. Makes me wonder if Chinese is not popular in Ellensburg or everyone goes somewhere else read more

China Inn - Mongolian beef - Chinese Near Me - Ellensburg, Washington

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This place is legit! They are good with Chinese AND Vietnamese food... Its basically the only Vietnamese restaurant in town with Pho broth that you would expect at any decent authentic place. Coming from years of experience eating good Asian food from cosmopolitan cities, the only thing I would say that is lacking is portion sizes (but I also eat twice as much as the average person). Portion wise from 1 to 5 I would say the Pho for me is at 4 for noodles and 3.5 for meats. The lunch buffet is not all oily and salty comfort take-out food. It actually has health in mind being cooked with no (or low) MSG so you will leave without feeling dehydrated! Lastly their vegetables are actually well stir fried so you can stock up on veggies and protein and skip the other carbs if necessary! Will definitely come back. read more

ALWAYS GOOD. I'm very upset with the bad reviews of people saying the service is bad or the food stinks or that it is "buffet only"! It is not buffet only and I think some people are getting it mixed up with the 2 Chinese places on Main Street which are awful. I have been going to the China Inn for 14 years and have never had a complaint. read more

Ordered take out and while enjoying the pork fried rice, which was delicious, I bit down on some kind of rock.... Um...? Despite finding the rock in my mouth, the food is pretty good, my fav was the pork fried rice. I can't say I'll be ordering from here again, though.... read more

China Inn - The rock I almost ate... It looks almost like end of a fork... - Chinese Near Me - Ellensburg, Washington

Gave me dry noodles and beef there was not one drop of teriyaki sauce and plus I have heard dogs barking in the back I don't want to jump to conclusions but pretty sketchy to me. read more

Excellent Pho! Buffet is pretty good as well! Never once had bad service! Been going here for 4 years now. I've never had a complaint only good experiences :) read more

China Inn - Beef pho take out! Delicious my favorite cup o noodle - Chinese Near Me - Ellensburg, Washington

Worst Chinese food I have ever eaten. Not fresh or good. Big waste of money. (Exception: the ragoons) read more

Surely the worst food I have ever had. When you question it walking in then give it a chance then during eating start wondering what the kitchen looks like and praying you not going to sick.. You know it's bad. Its horrendous. Sad this place even attempts to do business, it's that bad. Sorry but it is. read more

This place is for the grease lover and no one else. All the food I have even had there was borderline vomit educing. The only saving grace of this place is that the food did not cost that much. The serves was bad, it had an eerie aura of uncleanness even though it was not filthy. read more

China Inn - A picture of a picture of the China Inn. - Chinese Near Me - Ellensburg, Washington

During a recent trip we stopped over night in Ellensburg, WA. My family was looking for decent chinese food and found wonderful (5/5) reviews and said to ourselves, we must try this place. We stopped in on Thursday night and noticed there where a few cars in the parking lot, which is good for a Thursday. We where promptly seated and asked the waitress for reccomendations she said "It's all good". that was not what we wanted to hear! We asked if the meals where mainly fired, like most Chinese/American food is, and she said "It's authentic chinese food." We ordered a few combinations and where dissapointed when the plate arrived. The food was fried and slathered in gravy. We where expecting "authentic!" Chinese food. This was a big upset because of the previous reviews. This is just a warning. If you want fried Chinese/American food save your money and go to Safeway. You will get better food there. read more

We love this place. If we do take out it is always the same Cashew Chicken with Pork Fried Rice, Egg Foo Young, and Spring Rolls with Sweet and Sour sauce. If we eat it we will have the Buffet or try something new on the menu like the Orange Chicken. You get a lot of food and we always have leftovers for the next night. The owners are so sweet and friendly. I have tried the other places in town but this is where we end up all the time. We will always go here and be very faithful to these people. Our dogs love the cookies and sometimes they will give us extra broken ones for free or we will buy extras. For the price of the food you get a lot and always enough for the next day. read more

We stopped in on a Friday, 10 minutes after the buffet hours started. When we walked in it was empty but one older woman who said she would need to clear us off a table if we wanted to eat. Every table we saw (at least 8) had dirty dishes on them and obviously had not been cleared nor cleaned since the previous customer ate there. We told her we would look at the buffet offered to see if our younger children would find something they liked first before I guess making her clean a table for us? Like I said, it was just 10 minutes after the buffet start time but all the items with sauce had a thick film over them like they had been under the heat lamp a very long time. The meats looked dried and reheated beyond belief. The white rice was swollen and mushy as it had been reheated and was not fresh. Nothing was fresh and it all looked absolutely disgusting. There was a smell, like an old waxy dive diner in the buffet food area. The 5 of us gave each other a NOPE look and left. We would never consider going back. It was the strangest and most nauseating experience any of us have every had. read more

Highly Westernized "Chinese" food. I would call it standard fair and only mildly tasty. Service is nothing to note. Most obvious advice I can give, don't order the pho from a Chinese restaurant. read more

I have no idea how on earth this place got three stars. Service is completely non-existent. The buffet was full of very stale food that had been sitting for hours. I mean literally sitting that long. Things were nearly flavorless. Honestly there's much better Asian food in the frozen isle at the local grocery store. read more

Had tried China Inn a good six years ago because our usual place was closed. It sucked back then and hadn't been back. Well...we ended up trying it again for the same reason...was hoping maybe things improved even though I didn't really want to order but my kids had their heart set on chinese. Ordered take out...over priced and bland! For example...an order of the Kung Pao Chicken which is a spicy dish was 11.95...there was no spice and barely any meat. The veggies weren't even a good mix...lots of canned baby corn and cheap celery and for 12 bucks. Definitely will NOT be back. Twice was more than enough...bleh! read more

I came to China Inn seeking the Pho, to my surprise it was not on the menu, but when I ask our server she assured me that they served three kinds. Chicken, beef and seafood I am not use to ordering it this way but was pleasantly surprised when she brought me my large bowl of beef pho. They only have one size, large and it was very good , with plenty of meat and noodles. I will defiantly be back to experience the best pho I have had on the east side of the mountain. The owner came out to ask me how I know they served pho and weather I liked hers, she assured me that everything was from top quality ingredients and she was right. Very good pho! read more

Well worth a 5 minute drive off I-90. The owners are from Hong Kong and Viet Nam, and their cooking is authentic and delicious. We read the previous Yelp reviews and agree totally with the rave comments. This place is a great meal stop. read more

What a hidden gem! After moving here from Seattle I was having trouble finding a restaurant with tempura. I called China Inn to see if it was on their menu. It wasn't but the owner knew how to make it and whipped some up for me! It was delicious, and an amazingly huge portion. Totally recommend China Inn and their wonderful service read more

Excellent, authentic pho. The chef cooks the beef for 9 hours, making it very flavorful. I live in the international district of Seattle, and the pho here at China Inn is on par with what I can get back home! read more

The owners of China Inn are super nice and the inside is very clean and decorative. Good chinese food and they even serve pho. Nice service as well. Always like to get my honey walnut prawn fix here whenever I come to Ellensburg. read more

The best restaurant on the way to Seattle from Colorado! Tasty, fairly priced, clean, family owned and very friendly! Everything is delicious:)) we were surprised that the restaurant had just one review and we took the risk of coming here because we couldn't really find anything around. The place is really good, so here it is- another good review. read more