Decided to try a new spot today and was pleasantly surprised! The Beef Combination Noodle Soup was especially enjoyable--the broth was flavorful yet had a clean, comforting taste. The noodles had a great texture and really soaked up all the flavor of the soup. We also tried the House Special Pan-Fried Beef, which was tender and packed with flavor. It paired perfectly with rice and made for a really satisfying dish. Will be back to try the other dishes! read more

Cindy's Kitchen - House Special Pan Fried Beef - Taiwanese Near Me - Hacienda Heights, California

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Was so glad I happened on this very unassuming joint after a visit to the Hsi Lai Temple nearby. Probably the best beef noodle I've ever had stateside (compared to Taiwan that is), the other reviews don't lie. We also ordered the braised pork intestine which had the perfect amount of smoke to the flavor. We had some leftover pork intestine to take home, but we also ordered a few cold apps to take home. All of it was very very tasty for dinner later. Definitely going to stop by here again the next time I go to the temple. read more

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Staple from my childhood. Very glad they are still in business. Restaurant seats about 24 people and only has about 8 tabletops. Parking lot is small so if you're able to get a seat in the restaurant, you'll be able to enjoy all the pickled mustard greens. Front of house is run by 1 person and service is always great no matter how busy they get. Spareribs were super tender and nicely seasoned. Mushrooms soak up a lot of the sauce and sodium so make sure to eat with rice. Beef noodle soup is a solid choice. Beef is super tender and they don't skimp on their protein portions. Also love that they still provide you with the pickled mustard green jar to scoop as much as you want. Please don't waste it if you aren't going to actually eat it! The soup base compared to other places is a lot lighter but still very flavorful. Overall, If you're looking for some nice local Taiwanese food, then this is the right place for you. Prices are also still super affordable compared to most other newly opened places. read more

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Hidden gem in a strip mall! It's been here 30 years and I never knew about it til this year! I brought my Taiwanese friends who were visiting from Taiwan and they said it tastes more authentic and better than actual food in Taiwan! read more

The food and the service were amazing! When you first walk into the restaurant you'll see it looks very authentic and similar to a fast food style restaurant but this is where most people might leave but TRUST ME take a seat and order it up! Everything we ordered was delicious. The KungPao Shrimp was the right amount of punch and they didn't skimp on the peanuts nor the shrimp. The house special pan fried beef was so tender and had a great flavor. The dumpling soup (although I thought it was a soup dumpling with the soup inside the dumpling) was flavorful, and the dumplings were delicious with the right amount of spice. Will come again! read more

Cindy's Kitchen - Taiwanese Near Me - Hacienda Heights, California

This is one of my favorite beef noodle soups in town. The tender beef and the tendon have a lovely soft QQ texture. Also, their side dishes are all good. Ranging from the smoked intestine( my fave) to wood ear mushroom and spicy sliced beef. Definitely give it a try when you're in town crazy for some beef noodle soup. read more

Drove by this restaurant for years but never got the chance to give it a try, until when we start looking for cold stew marinated dishes, a few friends highly recommend this restaurant! During my 1st visit, I got 7 different cold dishes: pork ear, cold seaweed, salty peanuts, sour cabbage pork belly, smoke intestine, Shanghai tofu & mushroom, and string tofu salad. Brought to a potluck and everyone loved the dishes! I brought my Mom there a few weeks after, and we got similar cold dishes and also porkchop rice, and fried noodle. The lady was really nice and offer the Mix & Match cold dish option, in that way, we can almost try everything in the cooler! Compared to cold dishes, the porkchop plate is just standard. The noodle came with a nice portion but didn't stand out either. read more

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Do not pass up the chance to eat here - hidden in a tiny strip mall in Hacienda Heights is this is teeny gem of a restaurant serving authentic Taiwanese food. Yes the ownership changed about a year ago but the back staff are the same. Do not come here for a fancy date. It's literally five tables in a small space surrounded by large freezers filled with frozen dumplings and noodles. Unless of course you are trying to impress someone like me who loves loves loves finding mom-and-pop shops specializing in authentic, tasty, and unique dishes! You come up to the glass cases to feast your eyes on the freshly made cold dishes of the day - my favorites were the crisp lotus roots, pleasantly bitter lightly garlicky bitter melon, crunchy marinated black wood ear, seasoned tofu strips in mild chili oil, tofu skin with snow peas, or any of the smoked "tapas" - sliced chicken gizzard, chili oil tripe, smoked shredded intestines, shredded pork with bamboo and snow cabbage, sliced marinated beef cuts...literally pick any of them and it will be refreshing, light, healthy and delicious. I loved the vegetable cold dishes the most, save your protein choices from the main menu because they are so delicious and well prepared. The smoked cold dishes are nice but they all taste about the same, just the texture is different depending on the protein source. Outstanding dishes I have had here: #Beef noodle soup (紅燒牛肉麵)- I liked mine spicy, and I requested half beef, half beef tendon. Both were *perfectly* marinated, tender, juicy, toothsome, as were the noodles (I prefer the thin noodles). The best part of this amazing meal is the shredded pickled cabbage - sweet and sour, make sure to add a big gob of it to the soup before enjoying! Do not eat this without the cabbage, it literally is the best. Just like in Taiwan! #Braised pork rice - I had this both ways (large chunks of braised pork belly, vs ground pork) and both were delicious. For those foodies (you know who you are) choose the chunks, you'll thank me later! #Kung Pao Chicken - OK this is a Sichuan dish and got added to the menu when the ownership changed hands, but it is best I've had! they use roasted peanuts and it is a winner! Ask for a bit more spice if you can tolerate it! Enjoy with the jasmine rice #Snow Ear Red Date brown rock sugar drink/dessert - this is literally made perfectly each time, a bit on the sweet side so I like to bring it home and dilute with water so you can enjoy the moisturizing and soothing effects (hello gorgeous skin) during the summer and fall months #Tea - the jasmine tea they serve here with every meal is high quality with a gorgeous mouthfeel thanks to the tannins and beautifully fragrant, not the watered down D-grade stuff they typically serve at most large chinese restaurants to save money. I literally would come back just to hang out for the tea. There are lots of other dishes I'd love to try, including cumin beef, other braised dishes, but start with the above time-tested classic comfort dishes and enjoy working your way through the menu! read more

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Wow Cindy's continues to be a solid local spot and consistent with their quality. This time we ordered their cucumber/bittermelon/seaweed/spicy bean curd good dishes, beef tendon noodle soup, soybean sauce (zha jiang mian) noodle, shrimp/pork/leek dumplings and house tofu. I loved everything except for the house tofu because it was fried and I prefer braised, soft tofu. Otherwise, every other dish we ordered was lit. Can't wait to come back for more!!! read more

Cindy's Kitchen - Beef tendon noodle soup - Taiwanese Near Me - Hacienda Heights, California

Great price . Tasty . Conveniently located in Colima Road, Hacienda Heights neighborhood. Great price . read more

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Delicious, savory and authentic Taiwanese food. Beef noodle, braise pork over rice and combo chow mein were amazing! Fast and friendly service. Cozy, mom-n-pop, deli-like ambiance. Very quiet. Highly recommended. We look forward to coming back and trying other dishes. read more

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Tried Cindy's Kitchen in Hacienda Heights and had mixed--but promising--impressions. I ordered both the Taiwanese beef noodle and beef tendon noodle soups. The flavor was solid, and the tendon noodle was cooked to a perfect al dente. Unfortunately, the noodles in the beef version came out soggy, which made the entire bowl rather inedible. It seems like the inconsistency may be due to the understaffing--one hardworking waitress (an auntie) was juggling everything: hosting, cleaning, taking orders, and serving. It took about 15 minutes just to get a table cleared, so if you are going, I would avoid the lunch rush. That said, I really appreciate and support mom-and-pop shops like this. They clearly care about their food. The auntie was really nice and kept asking if everything was alright and apologizing for the slow service. I will definitely give them another chance (or two, or three). With a little more support or help in the front of house, I think Cindy's Kitchen could really shine. read more

Apparently we have been coming here for take out weekend lunches per my mom's favorite spot. It was just my first time visiting 'Cindy's Kitchen,' with her. How to make your visit efficient~ Place phone order for take out. But we are frequent customers, so the order taker already knew us without asking for a name. Doing this will help reduce waiting time upon arrival if you are in a rush. They are Taiwanese cuisines sold here even though management may not seem to be from Taiwan anymore (we are told it's sold over): their dishes range from rice to noodles. I believe I got the Pork Stew rice today. We ordered a couple more other dishes I can't translate. Since we phone ordered before driving here, we were in and out of here within 1/2 hour. There was a bit of a wait because there were other phone orders before us! We will be back again like next week. Give them a try if you like Taiwanese food, you won't be disappointed. read more

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Great place for authentic Taiwanese dishes! The minced pork is a great to go dish. I am normally not a big fan of pork but this restaurant does it well. The pan fried beef was nice and spicy without being too spicy. There's lots of frozen items if you want to take some food home. The restaurant is a little small but it is clean and well maintained. The staff is friendly and attentive. Their smoked duck is absolutely packed with smoky flavor. Their portion sizes are generous and the food is fairly priced. They have free onsite parking. I love supporting mom and pop shops like this. I would definitely come back. read more

Cindy's Kitchen - Pan fried beef in cumin sauce - Taiwanese Near Me - Hacienda Heights, California

The food here was okay, very mom and pop. Beef stew noodles are good, but they could use some more work on the noodles. The side dishes were okay, got the wood ear fungus and fried gluten. Nothing to really rave about though :/ read more

Come for their signature beef noodle soup and boiled dumplings (also sold in freezer bags of 50). Their chow mein and rice plates are sadly not that great; the minced pork rice lacks flavor and is too oily. Noticed they also have such quintessentially mainland chinese fiery dishes as 'water boiled fish', 'water boiled beef', etc. I doubt I'll ever try these, as my diet these days is leaning toward less spicy and less oily. read more

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Very cute mom and pop shop that serves cheap Taiwanese food! The beef noodle soup was only $12 and they also have a variety of cold dishes you can order as well. We asked for a side of chili oil and it went well with our food. Parking is a bit small but I believe it's the only restaurant in the plaza so shouldn't get too bad. read more

Cindy's Kitchen - $12 - Taiwanese Near Me - Hacienda Heights, California

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So. Much. Yesssssss. I'm taiwanese and I absolutely love this place! Everything tastes just as my mom would make it. I also really appreciated how they had side dishes or other meats to go. Similar to a deli. And they had fridges full of frozen foods! Lions head braised meat balls. Potstickers. Wonton. They speak Chinese but are also fluent in English. I will be coming back and bringing my parents for sure. I like this place more than Dagos in West Covina. Just tastes more homemade and brings back nostalgia. read more

This small hole-in-the-wall serves your homemade Taiwanese dishes. The cold side dishes were good, but in all honesty some were not the best I've had. They make their side dishes slightly different from what I am used to. Their beef noodle was good with tender meat, but note that their version is light and more on the bland side. Perhaps it was because we ordered non-spicy? It was refreshing nonetheless. Their pork belly rice bowl was delicious! The flavor was good and they gave generous portions. read more

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Local spot with no frills. Their fried pork chop over rice is solid however felt like very little meat and mostly batter. Service was good and they had a few tables if you wanted to dine in but not a huge space for families. read more

This was our first visit here, and we arrived in a fairly small parking lot, though it did have a few open spaces. The actual restaurant is pretty small, seating only about 22 people. They had a large array of cold side dishes displayed. We ordered the beef and tendon noodle soup, black fungus cold side dish, and the white fungus and date drink. The white fungus and date drink was thick but not too sweet, and my wife really enjoyed it but made sure not to drink too much of it to get full before the main meal came out. The black fungus side dish had a good amount of garlic, and some hints of ginger. I prefer a little more vinegar and chili kick in my black fungus, but my wife really enjoyed them because they were not spicy. The beef and tendon noodle soup was a hit. The beef was super tender, the tendon perfectly cooked and easy to chew, the noodles were bouncy, and the broth super clean. My only grip is that they give maybe a couple more pieces of meat and tendon (there was only one beef and tendon piece each fr my wife and I when splitting the soup). They also brought out a small container of pickled mustard greens which was a great accompaniment to the savory soup. The service was also very good, with two servers working the restaurant. It never really got super busy, so there wasn't much wait when anyone needed something from them. The price was also very reasonable for the quality of the food. Based off our visit I would give them 5 stars for the food, price and service. We will definitely be coming back and trying other dishes. read more

Great hole in the wall family run restaurant. Every dish on the menu is a must try. Come here multiple times a month, dine in and take out. read more

It took us several years to stop by this restaurant a block away from home, especially since we had peaked in before and wasn't sure what they specialized in. After the guise of our fellow yelpers, we ordered the beef stew and it has become part of our go to places nearby. It's typical to see clients show up with their personal pots, an indication that they plan to use to host large parties. Each time we go, we try a something different but in all honesty, it's the beef stew with noodles that had us returning. read more

I've been coming here since 2001 always a good meal , used to eat here daily becouse had a business 2 doors down . I haven't been since before Covid . The beef noodle soup is always the best around . read more

I've been wanting to try this place for a while now and finally got lunch here on a Friday afternoon. This is a small place located in a very random plaza with a few stores. We dined in and ordered beef noodle soup, house pork belly, pork/leek/shrimp dumpling, and the shrimp fried rice. It was not busy during this time so we received our order shortly after we ordered. Everything that we ordered tasted good. The beef noodle soup was good. The meat was tender and the soup had a beefy flavor with a bit of spice. The pork belly was very tender and I would come back again for it. They also have frozen dumplings for sale. read more

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4/5 STARS Order: combination beef noodle soup, tofu+intestine+pickled cabbage stew I come here on the way home from work sometimes to pick up beef noodle soup. The combination one comes with more variety of cuts like tendon and tripe along with the braised beef. Personally its a little salty for my taste but the broth is flavorful and beefy. It comes with thinner noodles normally so if you like the thicker one ask for "wide noodles", not "thick noodle". The tofu instestine pickled cabbage stew (#2 on the menu), is good here. The portion is big and theres also pork blood cubes and leek in it. Note that this dish doesn't come with rice automatically so you'll have to order some or cook rice at home to go with. Service is fine here, nothing special but still much nicer than most other asian restaurants in the area. They get fairly busy sometimes so the wait can be like 10-20 min or so to get your food, but everytime ive gone in the off hours I ususally get it within 12min. The ambience is plain, but theres a variety of foods around to look at. When you walk in, you are immediately greeted by the cold case where they offer small appetizer dishes ranging from $6-$18. They also offer some frozen dumplings and handmade green onion pancakes in the freezer on the right wall. Additionally, next to the cashier there is another fridge where they offer a few deink choices such as "mung bean and barley drink" ($3). Overall I will continue to order my beef noodle soup from here as its a great deal for the price, and it's convenient to pick up on the way home. read more

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Nice place to enjoy family style food. I ordered rice dish which has a really good portion. Although there is not much of the sides but I still like it. I had their Sichuan dishes in the past also pretty good. Don't forget the house special braised dish like intestines if you order to go and microwave it or throw into your noodle can make all the difference. They also offer dumplings on the pricier side but hey I don't think anything now is not pricy when you eating out. read more

I picked this restaurant for my birthday dinner for no reasons other than I wanted Taiwanese Food, I wanted to try a new restaurant, and this was close by. When we arrived, I really thought I made a mistake. This is a tiny hole in the wall place that really looked kind of sketchy. I tried it against my better judgment, and the food was Da Bomb! So good! They have authentic Taiwanese food with authentic Taiwanese drinks. I had a lot of delicious and hard to find Taiwanese dishes that are not your typical popcorn chicken or stinky tofu that everyone knows. I highly recommend. I brought a bunch of none Asian friends and they loved the place too. read more

A friend wanted to try this place after IG post. We ordered the beef noodle & steam dumplings. The noodles wasn't cooked thru that it's really firm with the taste of flour. As for the dumplings the meat filling was not bad but the flour skin was the same hard textured & thick. Felt like you are eating not fully cooked floured. I can't believe why the reviews are 4 but I can surely say this is my true experience! This is a NO for me! read more

This place is surprisingly good. I ordered the beef noodle soup and wonton soup. I know it's not a lot, but the flavors were there. It's really a small place with a few tables and they also sell snacks on the side. Like peanuts. It reminded me of a home cooked meal. Not the commercially processed stuff. The service was good. I placed an order for pick up and they were done sooner than they said. They also packed it up really good and put everything in a box to make sure nothing falls over in the car. By the time I got home [approx a little over an hour drive] everything was still hot and ready to eat. I will be back to try other things on their menu. read more

Beef noodle soup was tasty and reminds me of 富宏牛肉麵 in Taipei. Fried chicken was super crispy and tender. Ordered way too much for 2 people.... read more

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This place is an unassuming hole in the wall that you could easily drive past. However, this is one spot you will not want to miss. It's a small restaurant, maybe can seat maybe 5 groups of people max, but it's worth checking out even if you have to wait. Usually I'm a big fan of the braised pork, and it didn't disappoint here. However, the true star of the show for me was the Kung Pao chicken; probably the best Kung pao I've ever had in my life. The chicken was tender but crispy, and the peanuts were flavorful and crunchy. Absolutely delicious with rice and their string beans. The food and service were A+ Will definitely be coming back as soon as I have another chance! read more

Cindy's Kitchen - Best Kung pao chicken on earth - Taiwanese Near Me - Hacienda Heights, California

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Might be the best hidden restaurant I've ever found. Their side dishes are on display right when you walk in and you can see what they have ranging from potatoes, tofu, beef, tendon and more. I got the beef stew + beef tendon noodle soup and for the sides we got the tofu and pig ear. Gotta say right now, they're portions are enormous. Not just their side dishes but their noodle soups as well. For the price I paid (~$35 total), this is definitely enough to feed me and my girlfriend for 2 meals. For the sides, the tofu was soft, but still had a bite. The pig ear was gelatinous and very flavorful. Definitely recommend getting some while waiting for your food! For the noodle soup, the noodles were QQ (nam sayin) and the meats was super soft. The stew meat was infused with cartilage that made it fall apart. The tendon literally just melts in your mouth. I want this place to be successful, but lowkey don't want the lines to be long when I come back. read more

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this place is more like 4.25 stars out of 5 stars. typically, i'm the one who finds the places to eat, but flying back to california, my parents suggested this place. i'm glad they did! First of all, this place is located in a very small strip mall. Parking will be very difficult during lunch as other businesses occupy the same parking lot. I heard you can park in the back neighbor if you can find parking. When i walked in, it was a bit stuffy. not sure if the AC was broken or if they don't turn it in... However, it wasn't too bad. As for the food, we ended up getting beef noodle soup, Mongolian beef, pig ears and spicy tendons and fried rice. Everything was really delicious. Although, the fried rice was a bit salty for my tastes. The beef noodle soup had a good broth and they'll allow you to pick skinny or thick noodles. I also recommend getting the Mongolian beef, the beef is a bit sweet, but it goes very nicely with the onions. I really enjoy snacking on the pig ears, and they'll allow you to pick two dishes (combo) from the cold fridge in front. Service was quick, and the price was reasonable. read more

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Very delicious beef noodle soup. The meat and tendon are super tender and I love the appetizers here too! H you c add n adjust the spicy level of the soup read more

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Recommendation to have their beef noodle. It's delicious! There's also a variety of cold dishes you can order from and a bunch of frozen/refrigerated dumplings and noodles that can be bought to cook at home. read more

Beef noodle soup was pretty good and filling, but the star of the show was the pork rice. Never knew the pork could be so tender and they give you like two bowls worth of rice read more

Cindy's Kitchen - Taiwanese Near Me - Hacienda Heights, California

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We ordered a bunch of stuff to try: - beef noodle soup: the beef is mostly tender, but the noodles are very clumpy for take out. It's probably much tastier eating it in person. - dry beef noodle: this comes with a sesame sauce on top. My husband thought it wasn't bad. - fried pork chop rice bento: this was our favorite! Super flavorful. Comes with thin pork chop, an egg, a marinated tofu, and some minced pork sauce. This is what we would order the next time we come back. - tofu skin cold salad: this dish wasn't bad but some pieces of tofu needed to be cooked a little longer because they were too hard. read more

Finally! Why haven't I been here sooner! I was super sad when Simbala shut down. It was my go to for Taiwanese comfort food. Cindy's kitchen is a small cozy spot that offers all your hearts desires for Taiwanese cold dishes, beef noodle soups , rices plates and various dishes. This place is super clean and give a generous amount. Prices are good too! They also sell frozen dumplings and pancakes! So good. read more

Cindy's Kitchen - Fried chicken over rice - Taiwanese Near Me - Hacienda Heights, California

I've been here twice and cannot believe i didn't discover this place sooner. First time I tried their beef noodles and beef combination stir-fry; their pork and bamboo was so delicious. I knew i had to return and try more authentic dishes 2nd time round braised pork belly, preserved vegetables and tofu, spicy beef from the cold fridge, and their crispy chicken rice is soooo juicy and perfectly fried. I can't comment too much about on the ambience its just an old shop few tables and chairs but they are constantly buzzing with people during lunch and dinner hours. Service does take a bit longer as there's always just one lady taking orders and serving food. However she's very attentive and does her best. If you can just order it to go and enjoy the comfort food at your own home. read more