You will be overwhelmed by the size of their menu when you walk in! The scallion pancakes here are great! And the amount of rice they give you with their "rice dishes" is more than plentiful; you can sub in brown rice for $1. They cook the food so fast too! You get enough food for about 2 meals to boot. Highly recommend! read more

The Chinese BBQ is always on point but you guys have to do something about the soft, mushy rice.

I teach near here and went for the first time last night upon recommendation of other teachers (who had gotten recommendations from students). All three of us ordered the General Gau's chicken and ended up stuffed and happy. There was more than enough for lunch today and it actually reheated well! read more

I came here with a friend today for lunch. It was amazing the crowd this restaurant was attracting. The line was literally out the door. Unbelievable! On with the food. on suggestion by my friend, I order the fish fillet w/chinese broccoli over rice. The portion was incredible. Enough for two meals. The fish fillet had a light batter; very fresh, moist and big chunks of fish. The broccoli was fresh as if they grew it themselves somewhere in the back. OMG! the chili oil they gave for free was incredible. I never tasted anything as good. Definitely, one of the best hot oils I tasted. My friend ordered BBQ with wonton noodle in soup. She gave me a sample and was blown away by the taste. Also, surprising in the wonton wrap was pork and shrimp. Normally, places only use pork in the filling. Overall, definitely will eat here again and again and again!! read more

YUM YUM YUMMY! The congee was delish! Real nice prices and in a really cute area. Also it's pretty close to where all the real action in Chinatown is! read more

The rice plate combinations are amazing! ~$8.00 for a plate of rice and a choice of meat with a little bit of vegetables. You can't go wrong here. Very tasty, fast and on the better end of cost effectiveness. read more

Love Chinatown Cafe! Best Chinese BBQ in town. Food is consistently good. Must try: Roast Pork, Roast Duck, Soy Sauce Chicken!

I understand why Chinatown Cafe got such high reviews.Growing up in a Chinese family, when the family go out to eat, all we care is value, large potions and cheap prices. Back to 2014! everything about Chinatown cafe is below average, from CUSTOMER SERVICE , tasteless food, prices are the same as other area Chinese restaurants, some items are even more expensive. Went to Chinatown Cafe for lunch with friends, we ordered the 3 meat rice plate, beef chow fun(dry), wonton noodle soup; all below average with no flavor or taste. The rice plate came with chicken and they charge $ .30 for the ginger and scallion sauce(you need this for your chicken) but they nickel and dime you for the $.30. For a $10 dollars plate you think they can just give it to you and move on, no f'cking way., they argue with you for the $.30, ever heard of CUSTOMER SERVICE. the meat that was on the rice plate was some leftover they picked out from the leftover pan, chicken was over cooked, the duck pieces was mostly bone and dry, roast pork was the only thing that was eatable, but only average. The dry style chow fun was tasteless, chow fun noodle was was not separated so lots of white pieces of noodles not cooked along with any seasoning; easiest dish to make, but they f'cked it up. The wonton noodle soup came with lot more wontons than other area restaurants, but that sucks too. Wonton has no taste; all ground pork with no other ingredients and very dry, the noodle was over cooked, soup has no flavor at all. If you put everything together, value for your money at Chinatown cafe, I think NOT. There are so much more options for Chinese food in Chinatown! read more

Best authentic Chinese food this side of the city. Have been coming here since I was two. My favorites are R1 and J6. You have to order by number rather than by name. The staff speaks Chinese. For those who are looking for the best quick and tasty Chinese look no further than Chinatown cafe. read more

This place used to be good. I ordered the beef chow foon and it was flavorless. The noodles were all stuck together too, so the noodles didn't absorb the sauce. Go to Peach Farm instead. read more

The price was really good and the quality of the food, especially the rice was decent. The staff wasn't your typical ride Chinese take out place and were helpful when you asked. We also came in with a really large group but they were accommodating. read more

I would always come here for some fast and cheap chinese food. The food here taste delicious and there is a huge variety of choices of chinese food. The service here is fast as well! The max I ever waited was around 8 minutes! The downside to this wonderful restaurant is that it does not accept credit cards. However, whenever you order something, they usually jam the box with food until its full, so the quantity is great! I would definitely recommend this place to anyone that want some delicious fast chinese food. read more

I came here on the recommendation of a friend who owns a food business and does business with the owner, who also owns a business that provides restaurant supplies. It's a little bit outside of Chinatown proper, in the Tufts medical area, Pros: - You order and pick up your food at the counter, and you seat yourself. Despite this, it's a clean and large establishment, unlike other Chinatown BBQ joints which have just a few tables. Plus you aren't under as much obligation to pay tip. - Portions are great. I ordered wonton noodle soup with roast duck, and I got 8 very large wontons in my soup. Each wonton took me two bites to eat! - All you can drink hot tea (self service as well). Cons: - The roasted meats I've tried (duck, crispy pork, soy sauce chicken), are pretty average to me, without a lot of flavor. - A few times I have gone (usually at around 7 o'clock), they have run out of a few dishes (once they didn't have roast duck, another time they did not have my favorite thing ever, crispy pork). - You're going to be eating out of disposable containers, using disposable utensils. I think this works okay with the rice dishes, which are served out of a styrofoam box, but it doesn't work for the soups, which come in a plastic disposable soup bowl with the broth separate and a flimsy soup spoon. The broth also wasn't piping hot, they way you'd want your soup to be on a cold, hurricane-ravished evening. - It's greasy. But hey, this is Chinatown. - I think this place is marginally more expensive (~50 cents) than other BBQ places in Chinatown, like Hong Kong Eatery or Quic Pic. read more

I love this place. I've been coming here for years and I can tell you that if you order wonton noodle soup with the thick noodles and either bbq pork, roasted pork, or roasted duck, you will not be disappointed! Adding the duck is my personal favorite. This costs around $6-7 and the portions are amazing! The wontons are large and stuffed, noodles are plentiful (I can never finish them), whatever meat you pick you'll also have lots of, the soup obviously has some MSG but with a little of their homemade hot sauce.. it's heavenlyyy, and they even throw in some greens (choy) in there. I don't think there's anywhere else that offers wonton noodle soup at such a fair price for such quality and large portions. Some of my other favorites for this place include the fried thick noodles with beef and their fried chicken wings. Yeah, they're quite greasy, but if you plan on indulging, this is the place! P.S. everything you order from this place basically comes in a large rectangular styrofoam box and the average price is prob. around $7-8 read more

Best quality Hong Kong style restaurant I've tried so far in Boston, not mentioned the portion is huge too! Ordered R1, which comes with roasted pork, roasted duck and soy sauce chicken. The flavor is very natural, not overpowering at all while maintaining the texture of the meat: the chicken is moist and juicy, the roasted duck is tender and savory, the roasted pork is excellent as well. Highly recommend it! read more

This has to be the best place for a quick fix! I grew up on their food for almost 9 years. The Beef chow fun is my favorite but for my family they love the Wonton noodle soup. If you can still go for some more have a side of their BBQ Pork, it's very crispy! They also finished remodeling the place too which is a big plus! read more

I wouldn't say their roast foods are excellent, but its taste is still above the average of Cantonese food in Boston.

Worst experience at a Chinese restaurant. If you don't speak Chinese, good luck ordering. They girls behind the counter are not helpful at all and don't speak much English at all. They gave me something I didn't order and I couldn't even tell them they messed up because they don't understand me. I hated whatever they gave me which was slimy tofu and broccoli over steamed rice. My friend said the egg rolls are horrible. He had trouble ordering as well. The water out of the dispenser wasn't even cold. It was also a super uncomfortable experience because we got stared at the whole time. I guess this is supposed to be an authentic Chinese place and they don't get many white people. read more

Great food for great price. I've always wondered how these Chinese restaurants that provide a mountain of food at such a low cost could maintain their business (secret still unknown). I took a 2 mile trek just to try this place out, and it did not disappoint! I ordered the roast pork belly over rice to go, and that thing must have weighed almost two pounds. Granted, most of the weight is rice, but there was still a hefty, appreciable serving of pork in the dish. The meat had minimal bone, which is always tricky when ordering roast pig. The soy-sauce-like flavoring sprinkled over the rice gave the dish a bit of acidity so that the plentiful rice wouldn't get too underwhelming. The pork skin was crispy and full of salty flavor (the abundance of rice helps balance the sodium) and the meat itself was soft and perfectly seasoned (probably the best seasoning on Chinese barbecue-style pork belly I have ever tried). I also ordered a separate soy-sauce chicken to-go that I plan to eat for lunch tomorrow - but I'm sure it'll be just as good! read more

The food has gone down hill. Very disappointed food tasted bland. Will not go back again. Wonton brisket with rice flat noodles ‍was so bad. I don't have words for it. Wonton were chewy. Yuck. read more

Visiting from NY so I guess my expectations were high. Place was Very busy, filled with local Chinese patrons so I felt that was a good sign. Sweet and sour chicken was OK. Too much rice, not enough chicken. Pork fried rice was blah. Very little flavor. Wonton soup did not live up to the hype. BBQ ribs were VERY fatty. They serve them cold and not coated with hoesin sauce, flavor was alright though. I definitely would not wait on that line again. read more

I use to always get the chow foon and loved it but this recent visit delivered the worse dishes I ever got from this place. The foon was trouble the cook must have just thrown the noodles into the container and poured a little sauce over. The other dishes were just as bed. Maybe they just had a bad day? read more

Great place, great food, all for a low price! Every time I come here with my family we order a Wonton Mein (W1) and a Hong Xue Fish w/without rice (R31/S1). It's absolutely delicious. The broth in the Wonton Mein flavored and seasoned well and the gravy on the rice dish tastes really good. Overall, if you want a quick/cheap dinner or a good lunch while in Chinatown, then I would highly recommend you come here. :) read more

Classic, this place has been around FOREVER their hor foon is always sold out because it's bomb.com . The seafood chow mein and sahm boh faan are equally delectable. read more

Despite its aloof location and shaggy appearence, Chinatown Cafe, I believe, is one fo the best Chinese Restaurants in Boston. My friends and I went right before the closing hour to order dinner; we had the Chicken Curry, the Beef & Onion with Blackbean Sauce and the Peking Ravioli: very tasty and very cheap! The dumplings were some of the best I had tasted in quite a long while. Would go their again! read more

This is an institution​ near Chinatown I've been going since 1991. They have great wonton noodle soups, shrimp with lobster sauce, fish fried rice, BBQ roast pork, and Soy Chicken. Their portions are quite big. The downside​ is that they only accept cash, so don't forget to bring cash. read more

I ordered brisket chow mein and barely have any brisket but a whole bunch of choy stem and on top of that found a piece of plastic in my noodle and the cook said squid spine which either way is still not edible. Did hey offer to cook me a new one or a refund?? A big fat NOPE!!! read more

This place used to be the "spot", after church, after school, after sports, a quaint enviorment where cash is your best friend because creidt cards will just earn you an angry stare. Eating Chinese Food everyday does get to me, so I've had better at home *some things*, but the one thing I never get tired of is the beef noodles. Its been one of my favourites since I was a wittle boi, just because the price is more jacked I'll have to lower the rating =(. read more

So you've had a busy day at work. Maybe you skipped lunch and now you have that "it's 5pm and I need to eat a lot of food right now before I hurt someone" type of feeling. Well look no further than Chinatown Cafe. You get a ton of delicious food of cheap. Even when I am super hungry I cannot finish a whole order in one sitting. Everything I have gotten there has been tasty and they have so much to choose from! Also the last time I was there the guy in front of me in line bought cow stomach. How cool is that? read more

This place is almost as good as it gets when it comes to cheap, large servings especially when it comes to Chinatown. Located on Harrison Ave., a short walk from Tufts Medical Center this place is perfect for that "I'm starving" feeling that most teenagers get when they haven't eaten for a couple hours. It's pretty clean and has no strange smells something that you sometimes have to deal with when eating in this neighborhood, and there is enough seating for the people who choose to eat there who aren't many because of its simple outward appearance. It has a large menu of Seafood, Beef, Chicken and even duck dishes, which is a plus considering how delicious all the food is. I went with my girlfriend and another friend and each of us got a dish, choosing simple things because we weren't that hungry. A few minutes after ordering we each get a box packed to the brim with piping hot food, so much that none of us could finish our dish. There are dispensers of hot tea, hot water and cold water which you can just go and grab whenever you want without having to wait for someone to refill your cup. One of the staff Raymond has great recommendations when it comes to the food, and let's you know what goes well with what. He's funny and easy to get along with and talk to, unlike many other restaurants the quality of the food and the service both make Chinatown Cafe a great place to eat at when you just want to be full to the brim. read more

I really like their food. Its authentic, but its cheap, fast, and you can take it out. They have lots of rice and noodle dishes. You can order in English, but its better if you know the Chinese version of what you want, just to make sure the cashiers get your order right. They also have cooked poultry and meats you can buy by the pound and take home to eat. I like their soy sauce chicken. I'd recommend getting it to go because it gets really crowded. read more

Authentic Chinese take-out place known for their great congee and good stir fry noodles. Very good portions. I usually go here when I am hosting a party and need good cheap Chinese food. A bit of walk from the T-stop though. read more

I was very disappointed over the food I received today. In the past I could order meat and vegetables over rice or noodles and receive a large portion of meat and vegetables. This Place Must have new ownership or management. today 5/5/17, I ordered two plates . One was beef lo-mien and the other pork and broccoli over rice. on the lo mien plate I received a few pieces of thinly sliced fatty and grizzly beef very few scattered vegetables. The second order was pork broccoli over rice. To add to the insult I received 4 pieces of very fatty thinly sliced pork very littler broccoli with a good size portion of rice. I guess I will not go hear again. The food pictures do not replicate what you will receive. This is a CASH ONLY BUSINESS. read more

The congee tastes great here, and they give huge portions! I found myself almost licking the bowl at the end of the meal. I was quite impressed by how clean the restaurant looked as well as their extensive menu with very good prices. read more

Back in the 90's this used to be my favorite place to eat in Chinatown. The owner is actually a family friend and used to roast a pig at a party every year. Fast forward to today; the dishes have a lot more rice and just don't taste as good as other places in the area. The congee is pretty damn good though. read more

i worked a block away and always came here for lunch. it's very affordable and the food is so good. the wait is quick as it's prepared as soon as you order it! i love the shredded duck lo mein and the wonton noodles were always a close second! the seafood satay udon was another good dish. when my husband started working nearby, i told him to go here for lunch. read more

the good: cheap large portion (compared to rest of chinatown) get your own food aka no tip the bad: could use more flavoring, some things taste kinda mediocre will be returning!! read more

After a few weeks of rotating through Chinatown Cafe, Hong Kong Eatery, and Quic Pic, I've definitively decided that Chinatown Cafe has the best Cantonese Style BBQ. The Roasted Pork is my favorite of all 3 by far, especially if you can make it bjust before or during peak lunch rush. All 3 options suffered during a later afternoon hour, while Chinatown Cafe was straight up out of food. That says something. The pork was by far the sweetest so if you're not into that bbq aspect, i may point to Hong Kong Eatery. Also, this is probably the location with the worst English so be ready to order by letter/number if you're Chinese is weak. read more

Unfortunately, this place is on the far side of Chinatown, which is inconvenient for most people, but it's worth the walk for their tasy food. The food comes out fast, and the menu is huge. I recommend the noodle dishes or the rice congee, which are extremely inexpensive. Don't expect any service, though. It's a purely bus-your-own-table place. It's a long walk from work, but my coworkers and I have become semi-regulars despite the distance. read more

This place is such a hidden gem!!! I AM SO GLAD THAT I HAVE FOUND THIS PLACE! Finally a place that gives you a decent amount of yummy congee! I am coming here whenever I don't feel well cause they're congee is so good lol. Heck, I'm coming back all the time lol. It's a bit hidden away, but definitely worth the trip. Cash only, but everything is so well priced! I can't wait to come back and try their wonton soups that I see so many pics of. I'm so excited to try their BBQ!! read more