Best Chinese in Austin - hands down! Authentic menu without all the added stuff to mask the true flavor of the food! wait staff is awesome! food is exceptional! read more

We lived in Hong Kong back in the early 1990s and I worked in China with a US manufacturer. We fell in love with Dim Sum and have always tried to find restaurants that have this. Chinatown North is about as close to perfect as you can get. We lived outside of San Francisco for 14 years and this is every bit as good as what we found in China Town. The crab balls are great but are $5 each so this can add up quickly. Try the steamed BarbQue buns and the HarGow (shrimp dumplings). Sui Mi is also great. Go early as they get busy on Saturday and Sunday. read more

Food is always excellent! I'm very picky where I eat chinese food. This place always makes the drive across town worth it. I've been coming here since 1996 and I swear they have the same staff. Most of time I order and pick up. I will say the times I have eaten there the service is slow. But the food makes up for it. read more

I was really underwhelmed for a place that seems to be so crowded all the time. We went in the downstairs door and since we didn't want sushi were directed upstairs to the "Chinese" side of the restaurant. I ordered egg drop soup, which was excessively salty (and this from a girl who loves her salty foods), and a fairly normal Chinese restaurant dish (beef with broccoli) and was extremely unimpressed. The prices are higher than your average hole-in-the-wall Chinese restaurant, and at that the food is not as good. Their menu does offer a lot of options that you don't find at your average hole-in-the-wall, but for someone who was looking for the familiar, this really was not my bag. I can't say I'll be going back again. read more

Not bad. Had chicken with broccoli and rice. Pricing is high but you do get a large plate. read more

Chinatown North - Lunch special- General Tso - Chinese Near Me - Austin, Texas

I have ordered and eaten here a few times. The food is actually really good here, but you won't see many asian people here because the prices are considered "high" for a Chinese restsurant, but comparable to a Chili's or TGIF. I've ordered fried rice, hot and sour soup, and a few other clay pots, and vegetable dishes. All of which were really great. Even my mom was impressed, which is hard to do. However, the dim sum is sub-par. I know we can't compare austin to houston dim sum, but I expect my servers to know the dishes in both English and Chinese. Sure that doesn't matter, but also this dim sum lacks many authentic dim sum dishes as well. Things like "ham suy gok", tripe stew, etc. It's probably likely due to lack of demand but I still missed these things. Shanghai offers a much better dim sum in the city of austin in my opinion. For this reason I'm giving it 3 stars. All other food deserves 4 stars at least :). read more

This is probably the best dim sum in town and that's saying a whole lot. This is authentic and the variety is tremendous. I usually go for shrimp shu mai and baby spring bokchoy in garlic along with chicken feet and spare ribs. The dim sum is served on weekends just like in Chinatown's across America so make your reservation early. I've gone on several other occasions for dinner and was never disappointed. Still I prefer the dim sum which is their speciality hands down. read more

Susie is the best she made my visit so delightful she was so nice and funny made us smile also the food was soo good highly recommend spicy spider roll read more

OMG. We have been at the restaurant for more than 45 minutes. We JUST got our soup. Well, some of us did. We were JUST told there is NO miso soup. Even though we ordered more than half an hour ago. This is after we were told no sushi, yet it appears they are serving it downstairs. I've been here before and was able to order a kids portion or smaller portion. Tonight I was told that all we could order was the full size. Seriously? Nothing for kids. Absolutely terrible service. Second time we have had an absolutely terrible experience. We have tried to support our neighborhood restaurants but I don't think I can handle this again. Update. Food was cold when it came out. Said something at reception desk when we walked out. "Oh were you sitting on far side?" Yes. "Sorry. He got real stressed out". So you know there is a problem and you do NOTHING about it. read more

This place is probably the best dim sum place in Austin. I've tried some other places but they don't quite compare. Their ha gao and siu mai are solid. The nai wong bao and peking duck are GREAT! It's not Houston or Dallas dim sum, but it's pretty close. Also the service is wonderful here! The managers and cart guys are friendly and funny. Def the spot in Austin. read more

great food! nice place for brunch. Only down side is that they ran out of egg custard buns, they're my FAVORITE.

Furst time here i came in today random choice wanted to eat somthing different and well we came in here and the environments was great the service was great highly recommend to anyone who likes to eat great food will be back read more

My friend recommended me this place since I was looking for a good dim sum place in Austin and I was blown away. The interior is really nice, the food was good, and the servers were really friendly. If I ever want dim sum in Austin, I will be sure to come here again! read more

Cold faces in the restaurant, over priced food, untidy plates. Is this place really a restaurant? Really weird and unpleasant experience. Only one waiter, he was busy as a bee, all the other people who work there were just sitting and watching. read more

So many good things! And they even have take out! I love being there and getting to see all of the different foods and picking out what I want from the cart! The sesame balls are amazing!!! read more

Chinatown North - Chinese Near Me - Austin, Texas

I'm a self-proclaimed Chinese food connoisseur for sure. And when I moved to Austin, I was thrilled with the fact that my favorite Chinese food restaurant (Golden Wok) would be right down the street. My brother however, hates Golden Wok and has attested to ever joining us in the restaurant ever since a weekend where we ate their twice when we were visiting. I love trying new Chinese food, but I hate trying out the Chinese food prices. For some reason, every Chinese restaurant thinks they now are in the 14-15 dollar a plate business for a side of noodles and vegetables and Chinatown was no exception. Had I not been so preoccupied by some of the ridiculous prices (17.95 for chicken, rice and egg roll?!) I would have focused on the amazing Lo-Mein that my brother insisted I try. The noodles were done perfectly and the veggies the same all done in a wok of greasy goodness. My husband, got the Hunan Chicken (11.95 w/steamed rice and broccoli) and that was also done with a nice asian flair as well. I would go back for another round, but can't say that this beat Golden Wok. I would say that the boasted 7.95 lunch specials sound promising and will be in my near future. Likes: Veggie Lo-Mein Hunan Chicken Dislikes: Fried Rice (not a fan of frozen carrots and peas in my fried rice) read more

I haven't been here for the regular menu, only Dim Sum, and it was top notch. There are a lot of options, as per many dim sum establishments around town. What stands out at Chinatown is the presentation and quality of the food: every entree was dressed up with flavor and was more visually appealing than normal dim sum options. I was not a fan of the coffee ribs but the walnut shrimp was amazing (beware if you don't like mayo). You also can't go wrong with the sesame balls and pork dumplings. Definitely an experience for those who are used to more hole-in-the-wall dim sum places, or even the fast food Get Sum Dim Sum. read more

This place is absolutely delicious! I was thrilled to walk in at 9:05pm on a thursday night. I was with my father and we were desperate to find a real restaurant to go sit down in - and near Far west Blvd? Most everything closes at 9 or 10pm. Anyways. chinatown has a wonderful interior. it's very comfortable. and the FOOD IS EXCELLENT! I ordered beef with broccoli and i asked if they could add just a little bit of spicy flavor - not enough to quality it as a spicy dish, but just a little extra flavor. They were happy to help. and when the food plates were brought out.. my mouth salivated! Large portions. Excellent egg rolls. Everything was just right - but especially the HOT & SOUR soup. I absolutely LOVED the Hot & sour soup. I would recommend that to anybody and everybody. Service at the restaurant was exceptional. I will be returning to Chinatown again soon. Especially for their lunch specials!! yummy. read more

This is our go to place for Dim Sum and the selection is very broad. If you don't see it ask for it . Yum !!! 11-2 sat and sun only This is the only dim sum in town too read more

Over cooked duck with plum sauce served with attitude by a waiter. Yuck. I tried two white wines but could drink neither because they had gone bad. I've tried both locations, downtown and north. Both equally terrible dining. read more

The facts.....This is not as good as it used to be. The food and service are just ok. Do not get any shrimp rolls. I couldn't find what I had on the menu but it had fried shrimp in the roll and it was not good. I left the entire roll except for the piece I tried. The server didn't even ask why. The chicken in the fried rice is fatty and not the best pieces. read more

I haven't dine-in just yet but I'm planning too! I work a block away and I LOVE LOVE LOVE there food. I'm not even a big fan of Asian food, but I'll always eat here when I get the chance! read more

My family has been going to Chinatown for decades. I used to go there in high school with friends as a treat. It was the location of family birthday outings for my grandmother and others. It was my favorite restaurant to go to for years. The service was always great. We used to order things that weren't even on the menu and they would gladly accommodate us. Tonight we decided to go back (for my daughter's last night in town) after not having been for a while. My dad has a heart condition and cannot eat MSG. So mom called in advance to see if they would prepare food without MSG. She said that the person who answered the phone said something along the lines of, "yeah whatever we can do that if you ask." So we proceeded to the restaurant (although that lukewarm response should have been a warning), sat down and then we're told that the restaurant did not have any tofu today. As my family in attendance was vegetarian, that was a big disappointment. So we left as 3/4 of the dishes we were ordering were tofu-based. Would a Chinese restaurant even open if they didn't have chicken? It is possible to run to the store when you are out of something. I'm sad that the place where so many wonderful memories have been made is not what it used to be. read more

This place was incredible from start to finish. Great service, beautiful interior. Ordered the crab wontons and steamed pork dumplings for appetizers. Both came with two different types of sauces. All of it was absolutely amazing. I ordered one of the specialty rolls and it was SO good, I even took the leftovers home and they were still just as good the next day when I finished them. Also tried the Mongolian beef and Moo shoo pancakes and they were incredible. Best Chinese food I've found so far in Austin. Highly recommend. read more

This is one of my favorite places for Chinese food and both locations are good. Delicious food made fresh to order. Great atmosphere and excellent service. They accommodate special orders and requests too! read more

My family and I was at this location for my sister birthday and it was terrible Jason was our waiter rude inconsiderate and untenanted the food was amazing other than that it was good read more

My favorite Dim Sum place. They wheel around the traditional cart and you grab what you want. Took my parents here, love EVERYTHING and it was so cheap! Really fun, with lots of unique dishes. read more

My take-out was not enjoyable; under-cooked and tasteless dumplings with grainy filling, chewy BBQ ribs, etc. Will not be trying this place again. read more

If you love Asian food, if you love yourself, if you love good service, then this place IS NOT for you. Came here for lunch and immediately noticed their clientele was majority Caucasian elder women. But we shrugged off, maybe some senior specials, who knows? Hands down the worst Chinese food I've ever had. Panda Express can blow this place out of the water! It's completely drenched in sauce, and not good sauce either, extremely salty. Food doesn't even taste edible honestly. Service was the most ridiculous. A heavy built man responded mostly with yep, uh uh, ok. And while you're talking to him, he walks away and signals with his hands that he's still listening. Seriously?? Who the heck hired him and kept him there? I have many times given 5 stars for poor service but good food. But poor service usually entails the don't speak English well, or you're somewhere authentic and it's a hole in the wall. This was neither cases. Save your money and stomach for elsewhere. read more

Jason was such a great server and we had such a great time at Chinatown for an after 2017 holiday celebration and looking forwards to 2018 thank you Jason! Lisa read more

love the Dim Sum, great selection, fresh, a little of pricy than others, but so worth it. Service is hit and miss, over all ok. they have a huge huge( I mean huge) wine selections. read more

Went on a Saturday lunch for dim sum. It was great. For 2 people, we were able to keep the tab under $30. We had about 6 dim sum dishes including the following: 1-Steamed BBQ pork bun ($2.65) 1-Baked BBQ pork bun ($2.65) -- my favorite (sweet baked bun with pork filling, YUM) 1-Pan Fried Turnip cake ($3.55) - - was okay, I've had better 1-Pork shumai - - - pretty good 1-Beef cheong fun noddle ($4.55) With dessert and tea, the lunch was just right! Will go again. read more

Dim Sum are bite-sized potions of food...not at Chinatown North. They are ridiculously huge and so are the prices. I'm giving 5 star because the service was great and because the "pockets of treasures" I liked, were awesomely tasty! The beyond good: Taro balls (?), pan fried chicken basil dumpling, curry squid, and another dumpling. I think all the dumplings would be great! The not so good: (oily) shrimp toast, (crab paste) stuffed snow crab claw, and mini peking duck buns (couldn't taste the duck until we removed it from the buns). We also had the shrimp wontons and they were ok. Now, for the not so good choices, wait a while before you dig in, I found the flavor became more robust and juicy after it cooled down a bit. If you plan to order anything made with shrimp/fish/crab paste, bring water for your trip home because that stuff makes you super thirsty! And if you desire the tasty peking duck, order it off the menu not as a dim sum option. Arrived at opening, no line and we got a great table next to a window. I will go back and try it again but Chinatown North did not make it on my list of "restaurants I crave". Maybe my next visit will change that, cuz I really love Dim Sum! read more

I know less about Asian food than anyone you have ever met. I can claim expert knowledge in several areas, but when it comes to Asian food I am that other guy. The clueless one. Don't get me wrong. I really enjoy Asian food; I'm simply completely ignorant of the Asian dining process. I can't discern Japanese food from Chinese, Vietnamese, Taiwanese, or any other nation or region. I don't know what Pho is. I was informed several weeks ago that ginger slices shouldn't be placed on the food, as I like to do. It is to be eaten by itself as a palate cleanser between different types of food. This made me sad since it had been the one thing I thought I did well. I'm good at artfully draping it over the bite of whatever I'm about to eat. But I'm not even sure this is true since I'm sometimes fed misinformation about Asian food by other Asian food diners, evidently just to see if I'm gullible enough to buy it. I don't know what any of the names of the foods mean so I often order blindly, resulting in odd looks from the waiter and once in my having to pretend I wanted to eat wasabi on crunchy noodles as an entree. I have no idea what different soy sauces are for, or even if I should be using soy sauce on whatever random food I've ordered. Often when I pour soy sauce on my food I get looks of puzzlement or even barely disguised disdain from nearby tables. But the next time, when I don't use soy sauce, I get the same looks. This suggests that my soy sauce miscues may not be the cause of the disdain, but I like to think they are. I don't know the difference between sushi and sashimi. I have no idea what sashimi is, or even if it's food at all, and I call anything rolled in rice sushi, although I've recently been politely informed that this is completely wrong. I know that now, but I still can't stop doing it. This, along with the ongoing soy debacle, adds a thin layer of shame to my Asian dining experiences. But I like to use chopsticks. I like the whole concept of them. The idea that you can't eat unless you can pass a manual dexterity test appeals to the gambler in me. And I love soup dumplings. Heavenly little steamed pillows of beef or pork in dumplings with a spoonful of savory broth marinating in them. They are absolutely delicious, plus you get your meat and soup at the same time, resulting in a more efficient meal. Honestly, in terms of time management eating I really think they're on to something here. The Chinese name for them is Xiao Long Bao. The only Asian words I can actually spell and recognize. I've been told it is Mandarin. I've also been told it's Cantonese. Chinatown Restaurants has them on their on line menu. And I wanted them. As soon as we had business in North Austin, I plugged in the address and off we went. Mistress Linda saw the name of the restaurant on the GPS and grimly settled in for another disturbing dining experience where I try to describe food using crude drawings and hand gestures and the waiters recoil in fear and anger. The interior is nice, although the floor needed a good vacuuming, which is something I always notice in a restaurant. It was full the weekday we were there but it was only a few minutes wait for a table. Once seated we asked for menus, but also ordered Dim Sum, which, I think, is a reverse buffet where the food comes to you on carts. But I'm often wrong about these things. The soup dumplings are a menu item, but I couldn't find it, or anything like it. Unwilling to eat wasabi and crunchy noodles again I asked if they had soup dumplings and was assured they did so we ordered the pork. Mistress Linda tackled the Dim Sum but I waited for the main event. And I'm glad I did. You get a steam basket of six per order. I had two orders. They weren't the best soup dumplings I've ever had, but they were pretty good. You eat them using a spoon rather than chopsticks so that you don't lose any of the broth when you bite into it, thus denying me the use of the one thing I can actually do in an Asian restaurant besides chew. But I didn't care. The dumpling was a little too thick and chewy, but still good. The broth was flavorful and the pork was tender and succulent and the broth had seasoned it perfectly. A dipping sauce came with the dumplings but no way was I dancing through that minefield. I ate with gustatory glee while reveling in being reunited with My Preciousss again. I offered some to Mistress Linda. This is the definition of true love. She accepted, which was disappointing but not unexpected. The Dim Sum items we shared between dumplings were very good. There was some kind of crunchy turnip ball that was very good. I'm reasonably sure it was turnip, even though it didn't taste anything like turnip. Actually I'm not sure why I'm calling it turnip. The service was very good, and the bill was right at $50 before tip for two people, no drinks. Come for the Dim Sum. Try the Soup Dumplings. Delicious in any language. read more

This place can get crazy busy on the weekends. We try to go on an "off time" for dim sum. The waitstaff is always great and attentive, and prices are very reasonable. I usually grab the spinach dumplings, and scallion pancakes. damn, i could eat those every day of my life. as a non-meat eater, i don't have too many dim sum options at the place, maybe like 3 or 4, but i always walk away happy. the husband and meat eater gets all kinds of cool looking dumplings. and he can be very "picky" about food, and really loves this place. so, meat eaters + vegans + dim sum = awesome place. read more

This just happened!!!! Need I say more? We were excited to try this place but was so disappointed. Place is dirty and food is worse! Please do not waste your money and find another place to spend your bucks! You won't be missing anything. read more

Chinatown North - Chinese Near Me - Austin, Texas

A few weeks ago, I went back to Chinatown (the last time I went was probably in like 2003 or even earlier) ... for some reason I forgot to review this visit for awhile. Maybe this will be a relatively-short review? My husband and I found ourselves on the pertinent side of town and for awhile couldn't think of anywhere good to go to for dinner, but finally remembered this place, so we went. As soon as we were seated we ordered hot tea and water, and some crab puffs as a appetizer (a rare treat for us, but usually better at "nicer" restaurants than at cheaper ones, buffets, etc.). The place was about half full and I reflected on how much of a good "date restaurant" it probably is. But I may not know what I'm talking about since my husband and I have been together almost 10 years. While we waited to order our food we heard some other patrons asking a waitress what "3 cup chicken" was. She described the recipe and concept as something that their chef had created. Uh, no. I'm not at all Asian but I know that that's a traditional dish, and I've definitely eaten it at other restaurants, even in this town. The drinks arrived promptly, the appetizers; a bit later. I think we each got three crab puffs and they were pretty good. Looked like we got a tiny amount of dipping sauce, but it was enough as long as we were dainty and mannerdly about it. My husband ordered the Szechuan Spicy Duck and I ordered the Sesame Shrimp. It took awhile for our food to come, but a reasonable while. We both liked our food and thought that the portion sizes were good. His meal was at a good level of spiciness ... seeming subtle at the beginning but building up as he ate, but never way too spicy. There was quite a bit of duck, and it's a good thing that he likes the skin, because it comprised much of the dish. I enjoyed the bite that I tried but, as I've said in other reviews, duck is just too fatty for me to eat more than a little bit of. My shrimp were large, in a good not-too-sweet sauce, and had the perfect amount of non-greasy breading (not so much that the taste of it overwhelmed the shrimp, not so hard/thick that it hurt my mouth ... get your mind out of the gutter!). Were they as good as what I used to get at dear departed Tien Hong? No, but they were closer than anything I've had since. I was glad for the broccoli accompanying the shrimp, though it was a bit undercooked for my taste (probably a minority opinion, though). Both of us were able to take home leftovers, which made our meal a better value for the $50 or so we spent on dinner. We'll probably go back, and probably sooner this time. read more

This place is pretty good for Austin and the environment was welcoming. Service is great too! I would definitely come back soon!

It is time to rate my Dim Sum experience at Chinatown. In my previous life, before I moved to Austin, I always rushed out of bed really early in the morning, and tried to arrive at the restaurant by 10am, or else there was always more than 1 hour wait to get seated. It's like that in LA, SF and any other large US city with serious authentic Dim Sum choices. But when I called Chinatown to reserve a table for 4 + 2 kids for 10:30AM, they told me they will open at 11:00AM. I was gonna fall off my chair. So relaxed. Isn't it a little late to open for Dim Sum at 11? Oh, ok- yes of course, we are indeed in Austin. Shouldn't forget this small detail. Anyway, let's forget the odd working hours and move on to the essence. 1) Ambience: this is a nicely decorated Chinese restaurant... Downstairs is, as most of you know already, the Musashino Sushi Dokoro Japanese restaurant. For some reason, I didn't really appreciate such a close proximity of the sushi & dim-sum restaurants. I guess they are owned by the same dude? Anyway, as experienced Dim Sum eaters, we felt this restaurant caters a lot to Caucasian taste. But then, we did see many Asians and some African Americans. I'd say there were maybe more Asians than Caucasians, which was a good sign. You don't wanna go to a Dim Sum restaurant where 95% of the clients are white, trust me... 2) Food: generally speaking, the service was kind and fast, and the dim sum dishes are good. I'd use the word "pretty decent". It was my first visit and so I had lowered my expectations... but even so, none of the dishes really stood out or impressed us. Come on! At least 1 or 2 dishes should have been pretty good, memorable. I have hard time remembering which dish was our favorite- there simply wasn't one... That's why this will not be our choice for Dim Sum in the future... I'm not saying I'll never come back again- I'm just saying it does not make me wanna visit every weekend. Some comments: - We liked the duck (can be seen on the uploaded Yelp pic) and the Seabass appetizer. The Taro Balls were pretty good too. - We really wanted steamed dumplings. But for the first almost 30 minutes after we sat, they were constantly bringing a lot of cooked / fried stuff. We did order a few of those, but come on. After asking at least 10 times for the steamed cart, we saw it slowly making its way from the other side of the restaurant. Another 10 minutes later, we finally got to talk to the steam cart dude. - We ordered several dim sum dishes that ordinarily we prefer to be sliced in 2 parts with scissors. This is something very normal to ask at most dim sum restaurants in the world. You say "can you cut my shrimp noodle" or "can you split my taro balls" or "cut the baby bok choy for us, thanks" and the cart pusher takes out a scissors and cuts it for you. Here, I asked the server to split it in 2... they looked at me as if I am an idiot that fell of the sky or something. I asked several times, they could not understand what the heck I'm asking. They called other servers... The manager... Then, finally they brought me a really dull (and cloudy) knife and said "there, you can cut it". I got really upset! If you are a frequent eater of Dim Sum, I am sure you understand what I'm saying about splitting up noodles with scissors- it is the way they always do it for you! So how come these people have no idea? Well, they are simply NOT AUTHENTIC. - So, like I said, there were too many fried choices, took too long to get the steamed dumplings cart, and let me add one more impression: SUPER expensive tea price. $10 bucks for a Chinese Tea? You have got to be kidding me. It's not right- sorry. I would be OK if you charge me 2-3 bucks, since the restaurant looks "high-end" fine. But $10 is kind of sour, I don't like it. Rip off. Conclusion. As I suggested above, overall, the servers are all very polite and nice. The atmosphere is "beautifully decorated" with a Chinese theme, but definitely meant to appeal to a western taste. I guess it is supposed to be a sort of PF-Chang's feel. But to me, the definition of a "good" dim sum is often just a modest hole-in-the-wall type of place that has outstanding food. That is where most Chinese people would go, I am convinced. I've been to Dim sum places that were dirty, loud, noisy, stinky, really busy with human traffic, really chaotic. But I couldn't wait to visit again... read more

My husband and I went to enjoy some Dim Sum at Chinatown this Sunday at around noon. We haven't enjoyed any Dim Sum since Marco Polo which is now closed. Anywhoo, we really loved the Peking duck in the steamed bun, personally I could have eaten all of them on the cart. YUM... I thought some of the dishes were just the same thing showcased in different ways, kinda a bummer if you ask me.... I like how they have carts with a flat top skillet to pan fry the dumplings at your table. The ambiance is really nice, the Dim Sum carts are cute (they are red with hearts). Service was great (obviously, they push the food and mimosas right up to your table)! For dessert I had a cute little sweet mouse filled with red bean paste(no mice were hurt in the making of the dessert) read more