This is my favorite Chinese cuisine place in Monterey. I usually order Chef's Special items, which…read moreinclude Sichuan Style dishes. This time, my partner and I got the Sichuan cold noodles, fish soup with pickles, and eggplant in garlic sauce. The noodles are a great texture, and the sauce super flavorful with a little sweetness and numbing spice. The fish in the soup is super tender, cooked to perfection. The soup has a little spice, but it's mild and balanced with the pickled veggies. The eggplant has so much flavor, sweet and umami. We also love ordering the Dandan noodles, cumin lamb, and shredded potato. These dishes are very similar to ones we ate while visiting the Sichuan province in China. They offer all of the familiar favorites as well like chow main, fried rice, and Mongolian beef (but I highly recommend trying some specials). The service is friendly and efficient. The food comes out quickly. You can also easily order for pickup on their website. The inside of the restaurant is cozy with plenty of seating. I will continue eating here whenever I'm craving Sichuan flavors (which is often).

Super good food very fast service they move some tables together so we can have large group of 8…read morepeople together The salt and pepper fish is amazing good value The ginger beef is very tasty and good quality of beef They have some parking in the back and you can enter through the back door so that helps if you can't find parking on the main street Simple, classic good vibe exactly what you want from classic Chinese restaurant nice decoration simple paintings on the wall. Everything is the definition of a good restaurant.

We stayed at a nearby hotel and we found this place. They were able to take our order and prepare…read moreour food hot and fresh quickly. We got the chicken with string beans, chicken fried rice, crab rangoons, egg rolls, orange chicken, and pork chow mein. Our favorites were the orange chicken, crab rangoons, and chow mein. The portions were generous and the 4 of us had enough for a couple meals. I'd definitely go here again!

Of all the Chinese restaurants I've eaten from, this is by far the cleanest and freshest restaurant…read moreI've been to. I was really surprised by the low ratings. We had the shrimp chowmein, crab rangoons, green beans, salt and pepper chicken and the steamed fish. Everything was delicious and this will be a spot we'll visit again when we're back in town.

I keep coming back for more!!! I tried new items, and I have fallen in LOVE with their wonton soup…read more The broth is so rich and full of wontons, meats, and vegetables! I can't wait to eat in person one day, I door dashed my food again, and the food always comes so fresh! I can't imagine how well the service in person is! This is hands down my favorite Chinese restaurant in this area! I love how the staff always marks off my items, and puts their initials! They really do care!

The food is good; but every time we order delivery they leave things out. Don't bother ordering the…read moremu shu because they don't bother including the pancakes, This has happened three times, we've even called about it. I didn't care about a refund, I just wanted them to get it right the next time. But they forgot them again. Now there will be no next time.

Apparently, the policy at China Garden is simple: be white or receive no service…read more White customers were greeted, given menus, and served normally. We, Chinese tourists, apparently purchased the special invisible customer package. We asked for a menu and received no response. We tried to order additional dishes and were ignored again. It was impressive how quickly the owner could notice white customers while suddenly losing both hearing and eyesight whenever Chinese customers spoke. When we continued asking for basic service, the owner became aggressive and threatened in Chinese to slap a Chinese customer in the face. Then, in a remarkable display of hospitality, the owner blamed and accused the customer. Apparently, asking for a menu and trying to spend more money at the restaurant are now serious acts of misconduct. This was not merely slow or careless service. The owner treated Chinese customers differently, deliberately ignored us, bullied us, and then used a threat of physical violence to intimidate us. The owner seemed comfortable targeting Chinese tourists, perhaps assuming that visitors would remain silent because they were unfamiliar with the area. Calling this restaurant "China Garden" is the best joke of the entire experience. Chinese food, Chinese name, and open hostility toward Chinese customers. Perhaps "White Customers Garden" or "No Service for Chinese Tourists" would be a more honest name. Congratulations to the owner for creating a dining experience where discrimination and threats arrive faster than the food. If you are white, you may receive normal service. If you are Chinese, based on our experience, expect to be ignored, bullied, blamed, and threatened for having the audacity to ask for a menu.

Great food. Quick service. Take out was easy. Found via reviews and it held up. Would recommendread more

Ordered so much delicious takeout tonight! Great portions!…read moreEverything was super fresh, meat was tender. Everything was super flavorful! We ordered: beef tomato chow mein, veggie chow mein, veggie egg foo young- the gravy on this was perfect for us! Beef with broccoli, green beans in a garlic sauce & pork fried rice! Yes! A lot of food but we had for lunch/dinner & looking forward to another couple of meals! So yummy & comforting! Looking forward to ordering again!

I would love to revisit this restaurant in near future. I was not expecting the food to be so good…read moreand price very reasonable. Me and my family came for a short trip Monterey Bay and as it was lunch time we were not aware of any restaurants. We just saw it on our way and being a Chinese food lover stopped our car just outside the restaurant and tried our luck. The restaurant was quit spacious and clean. They also have a space for some special occasions or banquet. I came here along with my 4 yr old kid. After settling down we order for dishes for lunch. And it's better if you tell them not to make it too spicy while placing the order. Food was too good and very flavorful and so was their service, they were quite fast.

Dinner at Chef Lee's felt like a warm, homelike dining experience in a space filled with beautiful…read moreMandarin-style art. From the moment we walked in, it felt like stepping into a different world. The receptionist and servers were all courteous, welcoming, and very accommodating to our large group. We ordered soups and several dishes to share, and our favorites were the almond chicken and eggplant dish. The service was quick, the portions were generous, and everything arrived fresh and satisfying. Overall, it was a comfortable, enjoyable meal with great hospitality from the staff.

I don't know what happened to the food at chef Lee's. It is awful now. Maybe a new chef?…read moreWhen did they start putting raisins in the sweet and sour sauce, it was discusting. The mandarin fried chicken is supposed to be extra spicy, yet it barely had any flavor at all. The noodles in the chow mein were all two to three inches long, it was like theydid that on purpose, and there was absolutely no flavor. The fried rice looked like white rice tossed with frozen vegetables, and like everything else NO FLAVOR. These four items cost me $83 and some change. I have been going there for years. This will be my family's last time. Yuck

The place is nice and clean. Thumb up. Food was decent and…read moreservice is fast. It is located right in front of hotel continental.

i went into this place with really low expectations. like any ethnic food in tourist areas, it's…read moreusually pretty bad. now before i give my review i do know what's up with bow. as a kid my grandmother who was born in china town would buy these from china town all the time and feed them to me as a kid. so i know what's good and bad and what bow should taste like. looking at some of the bad reviews i really don't think these people know what's up or maybe they been eating at Panda Express too much (you know real Chinese food‍‍) anyhow the bad first... it's pricey but this is a tourist area so you shouldn't expect anything less. waiting for it might take some time BUT they are fresh and hot even in China town they are only warm most of the time from sitting around for awhile. so the good... yes it's takes time but what would you expect from something made to order as a bow. i did order the red bean one because i was craving something sweet. now most reading this probably have no idea what red bean is but iykyk!! the bun was super soft and the bean was smooth. also my kid knows this type of bow bread as well and she won't hold back if it is bad. their first impression was "yeah good" so the bun is spot on the way it should taste. you also need to eat bow fresh for the best taste. because the longer you wait the worst it will taste. the bread will get hard fast. saw a lady in these reviews complain about no paper on the bottom of the bow. huh? they put paper on bow only when they are sitting too long... say in a pastry shop or when you order them to-go to bring to friends or family later in the day so it don't stick. they don't need it if you eat it right away. either way i give them a 5 out of 5 for the bow. 2 out of 5 for the price since you can get them in china town for $2 bucks but good luck in finding that around here so a totally fair price so stop bitching. but again very decent bow and would go back again for sure.

The best House fried noodle combo and Fried rice combo on the planet! I highly recommend this…read moreplace. Delicious food and really nice people.

Ordered online for pickup about an hour before closing. Got the won ton soup with noodles. Flavor…read morewas just OK but not enough broth to add the noodles. Combo fried rice was same, just OK. Walnut shrimp was the most disappointing. One of our favorite dishes and it was inedible. Overcooked, hard and dry. Maybe freezer burned. Pecans(not walnut) were literally black and bitter. Not going back there.

Jim's is easily the best Chinese food in the Monterey Bay area…read more We live in Marina and the places here are "so so" . so we heard good things about Jim's and boy are we happy to have a great option that's not too far away. Everything we've tried has been great. And the service is excellent.

This place is the definition of a hidden gem…read more Tucked away in a random corner, it's easy to drive right past it and never think twice. From the outside, it doesn't look like much, and inside it's tiny tiny. maybe 6 to 8 tables total. Honestly, it could use some updates or a bigger location, but don't let any of that fool you. The second you walk in, you get that old-school family restaurant feeling. The kind of place that's been around forever, where the same family is working every shift and knows half their customers by name. No room for a Togo box hidden storage, no trendy décor, just people focused on making great food and taking care of their customers. The owner was incredibly kind and even brought us a complimentary order of their veggie rolls to try. They were absolutely delicious and such a thoughtful touch that made us feel genuinely welcomed. And the food? Absolutely incredible. Every single thing we ordered was packed with flavor, fresh, and cooked perfectly. Not one dish disappointed. It's the kind of restaurant that reminds you why local family-owned spots are worth supporting. If you're looking for fancy, this isn't it. If you're looking for some of the best food around in the Monterey area, this place is a 10/10 and well worth the visit. Don't judge this place by its location or appearance, the food speaks for itself.

Visited Siamese Bay and it was a great experience! We are visiting from New York and this was a…read moregreat spot to enjoy some warm and tasty comfort food. The owner was extremely kind and welcoming and the ambiance was so beautifully traditional. We had chicken pad Thai, spring rolls, and chicken fried rice which was delicious. Would highly recommended!

This restaurant has been around since the early 80's. There's a photo of Clint Eastwood and the…read morefamily who owns the restaurant. This is one of his favorite Thai restaurants and frequented this establishment probably when he was the mayor of Carmel. According to the owner, Clint's son stops by from time to time. The menu had many of the typical Thai dishes. I thought I'd try something different. I wanted to try more but with my shellfish allergy, I was limited. They all sounded delicious though with crab filling and shrimp. We ordered: THAI SPRING ROLLS - small bite-sized rolls filled with silver noodles. Cute and crispy. Not greasy is always a plus! SPINACH - a vegetable dish you can order with your choice of protein. We went with tofu. The dish had thin slices of fried tofu and big slices of mushroom. Well-balanced, well-season and not overcooked. You can enjoy each ingredient as they're meant to be. CURRY NOODLE - I wanted curry and also wanted a noodle dish. This combined both of what we were looking for. We ordered this with pork. This was soupier than what I imagined. I wish it were drier or a thicker broth, but it was still good. THAI NY STEAK - This was our favorite. The steak was cooked medium, sliced and served with a stir-fry of mixed veggies. The homemade Thai sauce is what makes this dish so special. It's tangy with a little spice. So good! Food came out fairly quickly. Service was wonderful. The owner was very sweet and personable. He made us feel like we were long time customers. When we're back in Monterey we'd like to come back and try more dishes!