Last winter, my friends and I went here for Taiwanese brunch. We ordered the * fried dough sticks * pan fried pork buns * stinky tofu * taiwanese sticky rice * steamed pork with cabbage dumplings * sliced beef wrap in scallion pancake * pan fried dumplings Food was average. I liked the taiwanese sticky rice the most. read more

First time visiting this establishment and maybe my experience was rare but I didn't feel welcome at all. Let's talk about the dishes, they were decent and authentic, one dish was over cooked but the rest of them were pretty good. It was a bit annoying that they kept pushing us to order baked fish (which was the most expensive dish on the menu, nearly $30 if I remember correctly). So, that's already brought down a couple of points in my head. We arrived 8:30ish and were rushed to finish around 9:20, I understand they all wished to quickly clean out and head home but there were only two tables at the time and I didn't appreciate the attitude. Lastly, We planned to leave cash tips and didn't leave tip on the receipt slip, before we had a chance to take out the cash, the waitresses quick turn around and ask for tips, I do think they are entitled of their tips but again, didn't appreciate the attitude. The dishes aren't bad really. However, the whole dining experience made me not wanting to come back again. Hope you guys have better experience than I don read more

Depending on what you order, Jean & Lee is a hit or miss. I like the sliced roast beef wrap (it's actually wrapped in scallion pancake and deeeelicious) and the minced pork over rice. Stay away from the soup dumplings (you will be very disappointed - it's poorly made and very sticky so it pops even when you're just trying to release your chopstick from it). The Chinese offerings like shrimp and broccoli, or General chicken, are very mediocre. But solely the sliced roast beef wrap wins them another star. Jean & Lee has lunch specials and I highly recommend ordering from that menu rather than the entree because they're actually almost the same size... even though the waitress told me otherwise. I felt a little ripped off afterwards because the lunch special does come with rice and soup as well... The guy downstairs in charge of the takeout orders is super friendly, but otherwise, service is also average. read more

Ordered beef chow foon. Old meat and not a lot of it. Tasted like it was frozen and reheated.

Im from SoCal, and if you know SoCal, you know there is a bunch of yummy Asian food there. Coming to Mass, it is extremely difficult to find good Asian food. After yelping around I found this place and had to try it (even though yelp reviews don't do this place any justice). The owner is an extremely friendly taiwanese man. The food here is super authentic and basically has everything you need on a traditional taiwanese menu. I'm just going to keep it short, but my mom even said this is the most authentic taiwanese place in the US. Classic foods to get: minced pork with rice, pig ears, stinky tofu, beef stew noodle, fired taro balls.... basically everything here is great. Lunch special is cheap, so come here for lunch if you're hungry and want to eat different dishes. Location is kinda weird, but who cares cuz the food is good. read more

Jean & Lee Kitchen - Clam soup! - Szechuan Near Me - Newton, Massachusetts

V Stars said Caesar, Hail Caesar! I think I've written this quite a few times: "I don't markdown for bad service in Asian restaurants, especially in Chinese places". I might prattle along, subvocally, at length about the "yuge" injustice I have endured for the love of fine cusine. But that doesn't get anything in your belly. So I suck it up, and you should too. It's a character flaw that has me eating very good food and getting better service despite my natural nasty disposition. If the food is good enough to return again to an establishment, that works for me. Fawning over every morsel you eat and tipping like a lottery winner helps as well. The upstairs room is more pleasant and you could be standing downstairs for minutes even hours until someone, likely an employee or kindly passerby, suggests that you head up there sit your butt down and order. At this point if they haven't given you a plate of the spicy peanuts, tea and a menu; call the Super Serious Crimes Unit of the Newton Police and have the lot of them locked up in irons! Well not the chefs of course, and certainly not the least condescending wait person. This strategy will insure you will be fed. Now having occupied valuable real estate, and a roadmap (the menu) don't dawdle too long. If you're unsure pick 3-4 items and recover on the second round. There is a chance that all the items you have chosen will not be available, don't panic. Calmly ask your server (the one still not in captivity) what is good today? If that does not work, order the entire left side of the menu, except on a weekend where you should order the entire right side of the menu. In extreme cases tack the menu to the wall and throw darts. This is your mantra is "Salty, Sweet, Crispy, Sour, Spicy, Creamy". Use these with care, but if you can order with these in mind and throw some color in you should be ai-right. Stuff I like: Steamed dumplings, XLB, pig ear, pork bellies, three cup [fill in the blank], beef noodle soup, everything in the veggie section esp green beans, napa cabbage and eggplant, braised fish, diced chicken with chili dry pepper, cumin lamb, pork chitlins, salt & pepper[pork/shrimp/duck... parking: spots on the property, they fill up, city meter spaces nearby. last visit: no Stinky Tofu 8^(. don't be too critical: it's a gem, being petty does not become you. if you are ordering anything General Tsao's you are doing it wrong! (actually the General Tsao's Chicken is better than 97% Chinese Restaurants in MA) read more

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Went on a sat after lunch time (1:30pm ish) and they were still very busy. First time and find that the entrance had no one there for seating upstairs. Had to go upstairs and ask for a table. The food was decent but pricey. Taste homemade. Sweet soy milk - recommend Bubble tea - sweet enough according to my husband Stinky tofu Carrot cake (Lou bo Gao) Pork chop rice - big portion Red wine sauce pork belly - majority fat (30% meat, 70% fat) Xiao longbao - The skin was way too thick in comparison to any up to standard Taiwanese or Shanghai cuisines' xiaolongbao. The meat itself was absolutely too lean to be qualified as its ingredient as it feels like you are biting on dry steam pork patty. We encountered a couple who sat down way before us and didn't get their food until we were almost done. Of course they had to remind their waitress about their food and had to also remind them what they ordered. (My guess is the waitress forgot to put on their order) read more

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As a Taiwanese, I really have to share this classic Taiwanese restaurant. +) 1. Great location: The restaurant located in Newton which is not away from downtown Boston. We drove around 20 mins from BU. And it offers few parking spaces. 2. Traditional Taiwanese food: The foods are great. Don't need to explain!! Come and taste 3. Huge space: The seating is actually located at second floor, but there are enough seats for customers. 10 minutes wait is worth, don't worry. -) 1. Not enough advertising: well, I have been lived in Boston area for two years, and this is just my first time having food here... Overall, 5 stars. read more

Jean & Lee Kitchen - Szechuan Near Me - Newton, Massachusetts

We come here virtually every weekend as the Taiwanese-style dim sum is superb and it is family-friendly. Our staple dishes are shrimp pancake, sweet swirl buns, friend dough & sweet soy milk, turnip cakes, Xiao Long Bao (with soup inside), beef tendon, beef stomach, pork ears, beef noodle soup, and of course, spareribs with rice. The scallion pancakes and pan-fried dumplings are always a hit with the kids. The food is consistently good and the flavors are spot on. The staff is efficient and timely. Similar to my review of another Chinese restaurant, they do not, however, go the extra mile to carry out a conversation, make a genuine connection, or recommend dishes based on THEIR experiences. This, in my opinion, is an area all Chinese restaurants need to improve upon. The establishment has two floors and we rarely have to wait which is a pleasant treat after waiting outside for years at Chung Shin Yuan for Taiwanese dim sum of the same quality. The owner, or one of them, is a very pleasant and friendly man who treats my entire family, particularly the three young children who can be quite rambunctious at times, with patience and respect, every time. This is our family weekend spot now - so glad it opened in Newton! read more

Jean & Lee Kitchen - Taiwanese dim sum - Szechuan Near Me - Newton, Massachusetts

The service here was A+. Our waiter was super attentive and extremely nice. The food was decent but I've had better. The oyster omelet was too eggy, not enough of the sweet potato starch but the accompanying dipping sauce was to my liking. The yansuji (salt and pepper chicken) was nicely done, my only complaint would be they're not traditional boneless pieces, they're almost like chicken wings. The eggplant with basil was pretty boring. Definitely looked appetizing but flavor was just not amped up enough. The pork chop over rice was probably the biggest I've ever seen! Super thick cut which was nice but the batter around it was also thick and not crispy enough as a result. The rice with the pork flavor was really good though. The dessert we got by accident was interesting.. It was purple rice which I love, and it has date paste, which was great, but then it's glazed in like a passion fruit syrup and has guava candies sprinkled throughout. Not something I'd order again.. I usually don't comment on decor but this space is pretty neat with like green walls and blue accents on the ceiling. read more

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I really would just give 2.5 stars, but I rounded up to 3 (edit: I rounded up to 3 because the host downstairs was friendly but otherwise service was disappointing all around). I came here with my family and a few friends for dinner, there were eight of us total. We ordered a bunch of things to share--soup dumplings, scallion pancakes, a mushroom noodle soup, chicken and mixed vegetables, smoked fish, a pork dish, and calamari. The food was pretty tasty, but not good enough to make up for the service which was 100% awful (and I'm used to fairly curt service at most traditional Asian restaurants). We struggled to flag down a server to place our order after sitting down with our menus closed for over ten minutes. The restaurant wasn't super busy but the pork dish came long after we finished all of the other dishes, and the calamari dish never came because they forgot to place the order so we had to cancel it. The only speedy aspect of service was when we asked for the check. I probably won't be coming back unless I have several hours to spare on a meal. read more

I've been here a few times and tried a variety of things from their menu. I would give it another star, but the staff has been rude to us on countless occasions. The food is standard, and really hits the spot if you're craving Chinese food. I really liked the glass noodle with minced beef but I don't think they sell it anymore. Appetizers: The xiao long bao is very disappointing and not good at all. I always caution my friends to not order it. The scallion pancakes are mediocre and only taste good when drenched in sauce. I really recommend the taiwanese sticky rice!!! It's only $5.95 for a sizable portion if you go during lunch. Entrees: I love tomato and egg. That's a classic comfort food. They make it well! The fish fillet is also pretty good. The string beans are typical, but the portions are big. Again, I really love the glass noodle but I'm not sure if they took it off the menu. The Shacha beef noodle is fairly good as well. Overall, you can't go wrong with Jean & Lees. The portions are pretty big and it's probably the best Chinese restaurant in the area. However, the service is so rude. The staff seem like they hate working there and are not attentive at all. They stand by the kitchen and look mad when we call them over to fill our water glasses or anything. My friend was trying to explain a dish to the staff taking our order and she brushed his comment aside and didn't care to try and understand. Not only that, they ALWAYS push for tips. I tipped 15% once and a waitress told me it wasn't enough and forced me to tip more. She was rude to us the entire night and 15% was generous considering the bad service. 1/5 star for service. read more

Some context: We got there at 9:20 PM, and they close at 10 PM. They said they were going to close at exactly 10 PM, so my friend and I agreed that we were going to order and finish eating by then. However, when we were ordering our dishes, two waitresses made terribly rude remarks about how the dishes were going to take too long to make and seemed very visibly annoyed. They also offered for us to do take out because they were worried that we would take too long to eat. My friend and I sensed their hostility and left immediately. Even if the restaurant closed at 10 PM, the waitresses should not be this mean to their customers. We understand that it was late, but we got there 40 minutes before closing, which is sufficient time to order and eat. They were so unwilling to serve us that we lost our appetite. read more

Many people said Jean And Lee Kitchen's service is really bad ,but waitress got money by tips they deserve to have 18% or up. I got really good service and it's always my favorite restaurant all the time. The food was really good it's the most traditional food that I have eaten. read more

Nice little spot serving very traditional Taiwanese food. They have a large selection of meat, fish, vegetable, and noodle dishes, as well as more unique street-style foods that are really interesting to try. I like the scallion pancake rolls, steamed vegetable dumplings, and noodle dishes. The staff is usually pretty nice and give good recommendations on foods to try. read more

I actually like this place a lot. Better than chang sin yuan in my opinion. Much bigger menu. And decent portion. Taste good enough ! You tiao is not as good. Food are more oily than chang sin yuan. But I like it. Maybe because I'm from Sichuan lol read more

I came back recently to Jean and Lee, and food was still decent. Menu changed a bit, but all the old time favorites were still there. However, there was a major issue with our visit this time. As we were leaving, one of the waitress stopped us, saying that the minimum tip was 18%. Never heard of such a thing. Tipping is not even required at all, and a minimum 18%? Pure BS. I will not come back again. read more

Food was really good. Favorite was the beef wrapped with scallion pancake, tasty and good portion. Their soup dumplings weren't amazing, but they were tasty and you can tell they are homemade. The reason for not giving 4 stars, the absolutely horrible service. When we arrived we had to wait for a table, no big deal. When we got our table, many had just left, meaning the wait staff should have been quite attentive. This was quite the opposite. I'm not a stranger to flagging fown the waiter or waitress as this is common at asian restaurants, but after flagging them down, we waited and waited. Once ordering our food, soup dumplings, beef and scallion pancake, eggplant and sweet and sour fish, the food came and we sat with empty plates and dirty dishes for over 10 mins. Yep. I timed how long it took for the wait staff to see us. At this point, we seemed invisible and when we got their attention, the waiter came over and asked if we were done eating...umm there was no food left, yea I think we are done. GET US OUTTT. Once the credit card was out, the owner flew over to take it. I know this is a business, but how about asking how our meal was, make us feel like we want to come back! After all this, I most likely will only order take out from this establishment and let others with more time to kill, occupy a seat in their dining room. read more

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So nostalgic! Always take guests here. Happy they survived the pandemic. Dishes you would be hard pressed to find elsewhere.

Pretty delicious Taiwanese food here. The quality of the food has definitely gotten better in the past few months. They're rather new, so they're still ramping up. Pricing is reasonable. The portions are a bit small though. Expect to order at least one plate per head. I love the scallion beef wraps, the noodle soup, and the free Kim chi they provide when you arrive. They ran out of the vegetables that I wanted which is unfortunate. The eggplant and tofu aren't bad either - on par with other venues. Overall I would return here as it's a great reunion spot. read more

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Reminiscing Taiwanese cuisine, we went to try out Jean And Lee Kitchen. We're always on the hunt for some good food. I don't normally leave reviews but I just had to for the service! There is really an issue with the waitstaff. We were not done eating and they gave us our bill and started taking our dishes away. She took away my full bowl of rice which was right in front of me! A bao was literally in my hand as I was eating and she took my plate away. Just for reference, it was in the middle of the day -- it was not busy and there was only one other table eating at the time. I originally thought there was some miscommunication but after reading reviews, it looks like this is a normal occurrence. To upper management -- your food is good but your waitstaff is really bringing the restaurant down. I'm not sure if there's some discrimination towards young Asian customers but that's what it looks like from other reviews. We still tipped 20% (not even knowing that they require 15%) but that was some bad service. Seriously. Just some notes about the food: soup dumplings aren't good. read more

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Taste of Taiwan without the air fare. Everything is so good! Fried pork chop over rice is my favorite. The way they season and fry their meats is perfect. Their fried food isn't greasy and oily like other places. My girlfriend always requests her food as spicy as possible. She was blown away by their Lo mien and told me I need to learn to mimic it. You know it's good when a foodie asks you to try to recreate it! Other items I recommend off their menu: -beef wrapped scallion pancakes -tofu skins -five spice cold beef -salt and pepper fried chicken -anything really, you can't go wrong!! The food is really hard to beat! But the owner Alvin is amazing! Very friendly, always upbeat with the guests and very patient! Protip: the lot is small but there is ample parking in the old Clark's lot or chestnut st street parking. read more

Great place , reasonable prices, Alvin is always there to welcome-you upon arrival . Food is fresh served up hot, soups appetizers are all great, small bar but the cold beer makes up for it. My go to for Chinese. read more

Great food. Very consistent. Nice folks. I recommend there crispy fried chicken with dry peppers (hoes great as appetizer with drinks). And their Taiwanese sausage fried rice is too good. read more

Food is only ok, but doesn't even matter if the staff is rude, hostile, and act lime they don't want you there. Well, I guess they got their wish bc after giving them a second chance I vowed never to give them another dollar. And the one star is too congratulate them on succeeding in their goals, otherwise it would be zero stars. read more

I love this restaurant. Great xlb and beef noodle soup. Delicious. The atmosphere is functional and bright and the host is friendly and rightly proud. Great place and I'm so hungry read more

Clean.. ordered fried rice for the kids and they loved it. Good price and friendly staff. read more

Jean & Lee Kitchen - Szechuan Near Me - Newton, Massachusetts

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All I am looking for is a local Asian restaurant I can grab a quick lunch special to go. The inside of the place looked clean and bright....the man running the front seemed very friendly (that's a plus). I ordered a lunch special plate to go. Both the soup and lunch plate did not seem all that hot when I got it home two blocks away....I microwaved it. The dish I ordered was better than average....a good mix of veggies and chicken. The sauce was very good!!!! I will have to try other dishes as well to get an accurate impression. I am not looking for perfection....just something pretty good. I think this place will do the trick. I'll be back again. read more

I was in town visiting my family and I have to say they are the best one I've tried so far that is not in China town area. Their overall flavor is def close to actual Taiwan favor. We ordered a lot and got a pretty good taste of everything. I don't think I have a favorite so you should try yourself. Was just in California the week before and the Taiwanese are the best in US. This place does not make me frown like all the others in MIT area. read more

Jean & Lee Kitchen - Szechuan Near Me - Newton, Massachusetts

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Just so so. Nothing is special except server demanded more tip from my 90 year father after we paid $30 of meal cost $189 for lunch. We thought it was sufficient but the server made it sound like she was doing us a favor by not charging a "18% service fee". They are just greedy. Average Taiwanese food. read more

Mediocre food and poor service. There was 6 of us and a baby, the waitress almost spilled hot and sour soup on my sister's head and never apologized. Not impressed with the quality of food, especially scallion pancakes - stale and super thick dough, you could barely taste scallions. read more

Too sweet and lacked spicy and complex flavors usually with good Chinese food. Despite hearing great things about Jean and Lee, I was not very impressed. It was busy, yet the food did not meet expectations. You need to order rice. None came with the meal. read more

The fried dough (U-tow oil stick) is so light and crsipy. The fried chicken were half wings and salt and peppered and very tasty. The pork belly sandwiches on montao bread was weirdly sweet and the flavors didn't seem to go together very well - (sesame and pickle and pork?) The pork is good by itself, the bread is good and fluffy. Together though, weird. We like the Taiwanese sausages with garlic alot! The pork and chive steamed dumplings were decent but the chilli sauce wasn't that great. The sweet pan-fried buns were yummy. read more

Jean & Lee Kitchen - Menu - Szechuan Near Me - Newton, Massachusetts

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I've been ordering takeout for lunch from this place for about a year now and it's consistently excellent. There is not much Taiwanese food around Newton, so I expected Jean and Lee to be subpar but to my surprise, upon ordering one of my favorite Taiwanese dishes: Fried porkchop over rice, it was probably one of the best ones I've ever had - better than ones I've had in Flushing. The pork chop was perfectly fried and they do not skimp out on the pickled vegetables like many places. Alvin, who works the front is also a friendly guy who always remembers me and my order. For Taiwanese food in the greater Boston area, this place is one of the best. read more

If you are looking for good taiwanese food, you have found it. Everything on the menu is delicious! I love the noodle soups. The dumplings (chive and pork) are homemade and the best I have had. The string beans and snow pea leaves are my favorite veggie dishes. I could go on. I have been to this restaurant a handful of times already and it just opened not to long ago! OH, and it is SUPER family friendly. They even have kids plates so you don't have to worry about your child and glass! You will not be disappointed. read more

I have tried many Taiwanese restaurants, most of them a bit too heavy and salty for me. The dishes here are just right and delicious. Not too salty and definitely feel more healthy. My favorite dish is always Eggplant with basil. I have been here a few times already, they never disappoint me. They also have a small private room for dinner which is perfect for family gathering. Will definitely be back! read more

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The worst restaurant services, we walked in with two male worker chatting in front of us and ignored us until a manager like woman pointed at us. The female waiter grab us one dim sum menu only (later she grab two menu for the next table). We waited 30 mins to start the first course, the table next to us was later than us but already have three dishes started. Food: tiny dumplings are dry and fried pork burns are soft not crispy. Only dish is eatable was salt and pepper crispy chicken. Overall the worst restaurant in the area! read more

This place is great. My favorite dish is the sauteed pea pod stem, but every dish we have tried has been good. Service is quick. No complaints this is my favorite Chinese restaurant better than anything in Boston. I hope Edelman never finds this place read more

Within walking distance of my office (as well as Clark's Shoes offices) Jean and Lee's gets a solid lunch crowd during the work week. The service is dicey, but the star is the food. Today I had a spicy sirloin beef noodle bowl, and it was outstanding. The broth was filled with spices, the beef was thick and chewy, the noodles tender and the vegetables fresh. We also had soup dumplings (please ask my coworker for correct pronunciation). The week before, I had peking ravioli and a lunch portion of general tsao's chicken. Both were good, the chicken in the general tsao's was a bitch chewy, but it was tasty. Tea comes at the table with every meal. Extra points for the Taiwanese candy bowl downstairs. I've had a coconut hard caramel and a lychee hard candy. Love that! read more

We were used to be satisfied with tasty Taiwanese dishes here. But this time we got a bad experience (attitude) with the waitress when asking why the fried porkchop is downsized about 50%. She said it varies everyday. The offered food should be consistent everyday. I won't come back until their service (especially quality) improve. read more

Jean & Lee Kitchen - 50% Downsized fried porkchop compared to what offered usually. :( the waitress said it varies everyday... - Szechuan Near Me - Newton, Massachusetts