Went here for lunch. Food and service both good. I had moo shu pork. Large menu with many choices.

First of all, I hadn't been in this restaurant in 30 some years. As students we loved it. I moved back to Michigan and visiting Madtown this was a must go (Micky's was breakfast). The low reviews were troubling, but reading them people gave 1 star because of the 20% tip they automatically add; the food reviews were always good. And the food was REALLY GOOD!! The place was a lot cleaner than I remember it and the service was excellent with really friendly people. And it was crowded, so obviously they are doing it right!! I still live in Michigan, but if I lived here this would be my go to Chinese place. 5 stars!! And the service was worth 25% so we added 5 bucks to the automatic tip!! read more

please beware, yes, super sneaky 20% tip on bill, after I had a nice tip in my hand! **owner grabbed $23 food & drink money off the table, then threatened to call police/started filming me over $2**... red flag- I was scrutinized in parking lot before I entered, I shouda left... I had been going since 80's --will NEVER return! such a cold & humiliating experience, I'm an **elderly, disabled woman, was appalled by the treatment, am contacting BBB** barely worth any food/drink at all! read more

I haven't even finished my food yet. This place is amazing from the vibes of all the guys here working to the food. I'd give it 10 stars if I could. read more

Hong Kong Cafe - Haven't even finished it yet. 5 stars. Amazing. - Chinese Near Me - Madison, Wisconsin

I love Hong Kong Cafe!!! Cute little Chinese restaurant run by a sweet Chinese couple who are both so nice and provide excellent service. The food is good and the portion are generous. Have been there twice now for lunch and had a wonderful experience both times. They offer a nice selection in the menu with plenty of vegetarian options. Currently they have a holiday promotion, where is you spend $50 you get a $10 gift voucher to use later. Go check this place out for yummy and fresh Chinese food. read more

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A long-time Madison staple. Their tailgates before Badger football games are the way to go. It's never too crowded and easy to get served. Having wonderful Asian food is a nice change of pace before a game as well. read more

Hong Kong Cafe - Chinese Near Me - Madison, Wisconsin

Best Chinese food in Madison hands down. The staff are very friendly and accommodating, the decorations are nice. I have been eating here since I was young and I haven't ever had a bad visit. read more

We are from out-of-state. Last year, took kids and their spouses to a UW football tailgate here, and had a blast--soju bombs, cha-siu bow, egg rolls, and all the rest. It was so great, we did the same thing again this year. Why the one star? Because on one credit card charge, I left a 10% tip, but the final charge was upped to 20%, without my permission. On a second CC charge, I left no tip because my SIL put $10 in the tip jar. This charge was also upped to 20%, without my permission. What kind of B.S. is this? Enjoyed seeing a "brother" make good $$ on festivities, but this is dishonest. Sadly, we will never return to Hong Kong Cafe. read more

My husband and I got carry out last night and my husband got food poisoning. I've enjoyed this restaurant in the past but will no longer be dining here. read more

Overpriced and as others mentioned, sneaky 20% auto gratuity that he is smug about once you notice it on your check.

Service was the best I've ever had in my entire life. Friendliest people ever! Great food

Amazing food, amazing service, amazing staff. No complaints and a favorite place to visit whenever in Madison!!

We were so excited to return to Hong Kong Cafe for dim sum today! We have ordered from them throughout the pandemic as they are a favorite, but it's just not the same as eating dim sum in person! The owner, Terry, is friendly to everyone that walks in and the casual atmosphere always lends to friend conversations with the staff throughout your meal. The dim sum is handmade and it was just as delicious as I remember! Feel free to order as many dishes as you want, they're always happy to pull an extra table over for you too. Hong Kong has the best potstickers in town and it is worth it to order a wide variety from their dim sum menu. They're also serving sesame balls now which is the best way to end your meal! read more

Hong Kong Cafe - Chinese vegetables, shrimp salad and the best potstickers anywhere! - Chinese Near Me - Madison, Wisconsin

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We tried the veggie egg roll and bbq pork bun at their Taste of Madison booth! Both were amazing, I think the best pork bun I've had in Madison so far! The chili oil was a must have with the egg rolls. After trying these, we can't wait to go to Hong Kong Cafe's restaurant. read more

I was very hopeful that it was gonna be traditional Hong Kong Cafe Cuisine, but it's just regular Chinese American cuisine, which I'm very sad about. Hong Kong Cafe cuisine was developed after WW2, which was heavily influenced by British cuisine. They had various dishes that couldn't be found anywhere else but Hong Kong Cafe's. Sadly, this is mot one of them.... read more

Good Chinese food for the price and location! I ordered the sesame tofu, and I was definitely satisfied. I was hoping for some spice since I ordered the hot version, but it didn't seem any different than the mild version. The egg drop soup was also good, but it wasn't unique. The food came quickly, and the servers were very nice and speedy. If I have a Chinese food craving again, I will definitely keep this place in mind. read more

Hong Kong Cafe - Sesame tofu - Chinese Near Me - Madison, Wisconsin

We've gone here for years, the food is consistently excellent, owners are very kind, and the ambiance is cozy, clean, with beautiful art. We love the egg noodles aka Cantonese style chow mein. read more

We love this place! Everything is so fresh and good! Always amazing service and the owners are so kind and generous. They know my dad when we do take out and always greet him! We love the chicken curry, general Tso, fried rice, and more! Basically everything is delicious! read more

Average standard Chinese food. Portions are small for the prices. Fair amount of veggie options. They are willing to accommodate your spice level. As we liked our food very spicy, they brought us a small dish with chili oil for added flavor. read more

The food is decent. However the price is very high, and they are adding 20% tip to the bill automatically. I thought the bill was high and later called them to clarify, they would not tell me exactly whether the tip was added. They keep saying that it was not their job to tell me. I found the way they handle it to be dishonest. read more

Dinner has a separate menu that is extremely overpriced (like double the lunch menu), and supposedly it also mentions an automatic 20% tip that is added no matter how many are in your party, and by no means was the service worth that. The only difference between the two menus, besides the much higher price, was the plate it was served on. And the wonton soup - blech. Don't waste your time or money. No wonder there were no other customers in there at the same time we were. read more

Food is ok. But they added 20% tips without informing you. So I paid (1+20%)*(1+20%)=144% after I gave tips.

My girlfriend and I love HKC. The family owned business is a Madison staple. From the friendly, warm greeting when you enter to the delicious, generous portions you are served it is a great experience. There is actual fruit in the sweet and sour chicken. Everything is always very good and the service can't be beat. read more

My family has dined here for over 20+ years. Lee and Shirley are the hardest-working and most kindhearted people you will ever meet. They are a family run business that maintained the same staff forever because they treat every employee with kindness. Notably, they know many customers by name and spend time getting to know your family. The extensive menu caters to everyone and the food is always flavorful. Ask for recommendations and they will guide you in the right direction and happily accommodate your preferences. Hands down the best hot and sour soup ever - a must! After ordering takeout hundreds of times over the years, we've never had a bad meal. They go above and beyond to welcome customers. Hong Kong Cafe is the only Chinese restaurant in Madison worth going to. Truly a beloved Madison staple! read more

Ordered two take out dinners about 2 weeks ago and was very disappointed. I have dined in there a number of times through the years and have always liked the food. However the dinners I picked up were bland and tasteless. My dining partner ordered sweet/sour chicken and received about 5 chicken nuggets covered in sauce, about three quarters of the container was a mixture of onions and green peppers. I ordered cashew chicken, the cashews were soggy and the meager amount of chicken was difficult to find in the mix of soggy veggies. We also got an order of egg rolls again tasteless and not what we expected. I understand they are struggling to keep the business going during this difficult time but for $43.00 this was a terrible disappointment. Unfortunately we ended up throwing most of it away. read more

This is a convenient location for business lunches in the area but I must say the value could be much better. The 'lunch menu' entrees are all $9 and up and include only ONE option for a starter/side: a fried pork/veggie roll OR a soup. I've lunched here multiple times and most recently got the veggie lo mein, which had decently tasty noodles but very few veggies (seemed like 1-2 of each type), and a side of bland rice. It was a lot of carbs and filler for $9.50. Both soup AND an egg roll would help but again, the price seems steep compared to other similar lunch menus in the area. Silver lining is the service is attentive. read more

1 Read your bills!!! They automatically charged 20% tips on the bill without telling us. We would end up paying 40% tips if my friend didn't double check the bill. I don't think this is proper. 2 Fake Chinese food. The food is not horrible but this is NOT authentic Chinese food! read more

Chicagoland native. Incredible Chinese food here! Was a little pricy but tbh It's 2022 and worth if for fire food everytime. Lo mein, fried rice, potstickers, egg roles all fire read more

Those who are rating HKC less than 4 stars have clearly never had their weekend Dim Sum! After moving from California (where authentic Asian food is everywhere), I have found this to be the only place for tasty Dim Sum in Madison. The owners will go above and beyond to accommodate any cravings you may have (call ahead to double check what is in stock if you're particular) and their variety is amazing. I love the pan-fried seafood noodles, green pepper/shrimp, barbeque pork buns, and fried taro. Whether you want a little Asian snack or a full meal, look no further than HKC on Sat/Sun from 11-2! read more

It's one of those small businesses in the area that you want to do well; it has a nice atmosphere, in a relatively decent location for college students, and has a lot to offer on its menu. But the truth is--it's overpriced, a little more expensive than most other Chinese places, isn't really even close to authentic (or so I've been told by two of my Chinese conversational English partners), but the worst part of it all: the food isn't that good. I've been here numerous times and the food is just bland. There's no flavor to the meat, the sauces are weak and flavorless, and there's no spice whatsoever. The rice is often undercooked and hard and the vegetables were such poor quality, I found a borderline rotten piece of broccoli in my dinner once. None of these things are tolerable in a Chinese restaurant. None. Especially not when I can make it at home for much cheaper. I wanted to believe that this place wasn't bad--but three strikes and Hong Kong Cafe, you're out. read more

I had to order lunch for a special event in my office this past Friday. I am relatively new at my job and have never had to organize lunch for a special event before. I was really nervous about things not going as planned, or that the food would be sub-par, especially after reading some of these reviews. I needed food for 10 people delivered by noon. The restaurant doesn't even open until 11 am, so I was worried there wouldn't be enough time. I called the night before to ask about what I should do, and I was told to fax (yes, fax) the order to them first thing in the morning. I then called when they opened and paid over the phone. I am relieved to report that I could not have been more pleased with my delivery experience with Hong Kong Cafe. Not only did the order arrive promptly at noon, it arrived exactly as I ordered it. Nothing was missing. Everything was hot. The delivery driver even carried the food all the way up to our office (it's inside a huge building) instead of just dropping the food at the door and leaving me to take it up. Since I was still a bit on edge from organizing the event and dealing with the stress of the food situation, I didn't eat much, sadly. I tried a little bit of a few things though. The Hot and Sour Soup and bites of Governor's Beef were flavorful and actually spicy, which was a nice change. (A lot of times when I order spicy Chinese food it is not spicy at all). The veggie egg roll I tried actually wasn't amazing, but to my credit, I thought it was chicken when I grabbed it. It was just a little bland with only cabbage inside. Also, I had a couple bites of Sesame Chicken, and it was AWESOME (and all high quality white meat). In fact, I was so sad that I couldn't enjoy it, that I plan on going back to HK Cafe soon, and I plan to order Sesame Chicken again. I've always said that Madison doesn't have any great Chinese places. This was until I tried Hong Kong Cafe. I don't think I'll go anywhere else for Chinese in Madison ever again! read more

I was going to give this 2 stars because the food wasn't very good but it was editable. I wasn't impressed with any of the food at all. The egg rolls were gross & the crab rangoon was the worst I've ever had. I ordered Lo Mein, which was disgusting. All the other people with me were all equally disappointed. Not only is it gross, it's really expensive. For the service.... Our waitress was very nice and helpful. However, after I left the restaurant and walked to my apartment 3 blocks away, I realized I couldn't find my phone anywhere in my apartment. I had torn the place apart and came up empty handed. So, I called the restaurant and asked if they had found a phone and they told me no. About 20 minutes later I called back and said "Hey, I had just called about a phone and was wondering if you could ask and just make sure no one found one. I really think I left it there." & the man on the phone replied "You call your phone right now and listen and you will not hear a cell phone in my dining room because it's not here. Goodbye". Now, I work in the service industry and was very polite to him and he was so rude to me I was astounded. I would not recommend this restaurant to anyone. It was terrible! I would give 0 stars but I cant. read more

You really can't find much better Chinese in Madison than right here. Family-run, incredibly friendly service and food that'll have you ready to schedule your next visit. Reasonably priced, dinnertime can be a bit expensive but lunch deals are solid. You get what you pay for, and as always it makes for fantastic leftovers. Would certainly recommend. read more

Great service both in the restaurant and for delivery. I've dined in a number of times, and some of my friends swear by their dim sum on Sundays. I usually order the governors or General Tso chicken, and the quality of the meat is above average for this type of Americanized Chinese food. I love the flavor of many of their sauces. My only issue is the amount of filler that exists in most dishes. I am not a fan of water chestnut, mini corn, bamboo shoots, or excessive celery. All exist in various quantities in most of my favorite dishes, so I figure I pick out a good 20% of the Governors chicken volume by the time I'm done. This is a standard concern for me with most Chinese restaurants and by no means a major criticism. Delivery is fast and accurate, and the guys they send are awesome. read more

Stopped in here last night after the Badger game. It is a smaller restaurant located on the corner, pretty much exactly what you think of for a small Chinese restaurant. We were seated quickly and all the staff was working diligently to make sure everyone had fast service. I had a bowl of the egg drop soup and it tasted really good. I also had some bites of the hot General Tsos with vegetables. Everything tasted great. read more

I think that HK Cafe is the best Chinese food in Madison (however, I make no claim that it is authentic--I'm comparing it to other Chinese-American restauarants in the area) For example, when I order sweet and sour chicken, it's actually in the sweet & sour sauce rather than just some fried chicken with red sauce on the side. The other dishes I've had there have been a distinct improvement over typical Chinese-American food too. The downside--it is expensive for dinner. Much more so than the other Chinese places in town. I only buy this for lunch. read more

So far, I've experienced 3 different Chinese restaurant in Madison. From this place, I only had lunch take out, but out the 3, I think this place is the best in terms of taste. The lunch takeout portion is quite generous. It comes with egg roll, too. I'd try their dinner menu when I have a chance. read more

We've been going to the Hong Kong Cafe for years. Coming from Chicago where we've eaten in tons of different Chinese restaurants and are kinda spoiled, we were relieved to find a really good Chinese restaurant here in Madison and close by. The service is good, very friendly and quick. Great egg rolls - a true test of a good Chinese restaurant and the bathrooms are clean. I always check a restaurants bathroom, if they're not clean, you can imagine what the kitchen is like. Fabulous fried rice too, also another test of a good Chinese restaurant. Ingredients feel fresh. Highly recommend. read more

If Hong Kong Cafe were in another part of town, like Atwood or Hilldale or Willy, then I would never bother making a trip to eat there. However, it's in Regent, which makes a pretty short walk from my office. And since my other options for Asian cuisine in the area are Ginger Root and QQ Express (See my reviews on those (spoiler: I think they both suck really bad)), it automatically gets some ups for being edible. There's a lot of decent options for lunch (although a lot of them are similar), it's a good size portion, it's pretty quick (for a sit down place), and the entrees for lunch are all pretty cheap, at $6-$8 each. I don't really need much more than that when it comes to getting a quick lunch during work. But they could be better. I can tell that the vegetables aren't of the best quality, and their menu is very traditional, so just expect the classics with no twists or frills. If they did something that would make it more a destination spot, then I'd visit more often for sure. But for now, the location is what keeps me coming here on occasion, and bumps my score from a 2.5 to a 3.5. read more

I have been here a few times now, and it's been pretty good! We always order the appetizer platter - shrimp toast is to die for according to my sister! I also ordered the hot and sour soup tonight, which was delicious! The bits of tofu and bamboo shoots are my favorite. I wasn't overly hungry this visit and more so just tagged along for company. I did pick off others plates however :), and the sesame chicken is tasty. It was ordered hot on the spice level, and hot it was! Everything was nice and fresh, and portions are filling with a little left over to take home. The service is always beyond exceptional! Staff is super friendly, funny, and accommodating. Our waitress tonight was super cute and funny. It took a little bit to get water and soda refills, but since the food was so good we weren't too concerned. Will keep returning :) sweet staff and delicious food! read more