We really wanted to like this place, but it fell short in so many ways. The food was bland and the service was chaotic. We had 3 people take our order and there was an obvious breakdown in communication amongst the staff. We had to remind them several times about our drinks. They forgot our soups (eventually arrived at the end of our meal) and our food came out without our ordered rice ( I was surprised they charged extra for that). The staff are nice, but the food wasn't good, and they don't function well as a team. read more

This spot has excellent, authentic Sichuanese dishes. My favorites are the beef noodle soup, mapo tofu, fish with pickled mustard greens, and spicy beef tongue and tripe (fuqi feipian). Based on some of the complaints I've read, it seems the key to enjoying this restaurant is to stick with the Sichuanese dishes. read more

These people are very rude and they don't know how to treat customers. Even though their hours say they're open until 10pm, I arrived at 8:45pm and the lady was rude and complained about me asking why I'm coming so late. As if I was such an inconvenience and a bother to her. Wow! I understand if a restaurant closes at 10pm and I get there at 9:45pm, that might be bad, but I NEVER do that, yet that grumpy old lady decided to berate me for coming 1 hr and 15 min early! If you want to close your restaurant early just change your store hours instead of screaming at your customers for coming in "late", for crying out loud. Their food is also super greasy and tastes like a greasier, overpriced version of Panda Express. If I want "Americanized" Chinese food I can go to Panda and save myself the distress of getting scolded. read more

Nice owners but food is not good. Tried it 4 times with same result. Really wanted to support this local business as walking distance from my house but alas I drive to get good food read more

This has nothing to do with delivery times, if it were, this would say 5 stars! This has to do with the attitude of the person taking orders over the phone. First, she is very rude and condescending. Asked to be taken off speaker phone and rudely instructed to be on time! When I asked to pay over the phone, it was declined! She insisted that I come in! A person who was in line ahead of me got yelled at for being late!!!! Wow!! (Anyone remember Seinfeld?) So the food has to be good then right? NO! It's average! Below, for some dishes. Gen Tso's was one of the worst I've had. Crispy beef was extremely salty. Suffice to say, it's not worth going. read more

This review is purely for the front desk lady. The food there is amazing. I've came here a few times with coworkers. Today will be the last time. The front desk lady (older lady) was super rude. Today we asked for our check to be split. The server said sure; however, the front desk lady came back and said we cannot. She stated the servers here are dumb and if checks have to be split, she would have to do the work and she doesn't want to do the extra work and instead she play dumb and that's the easier way to go. I requested for our checks to be split again, then she called me a spoil brat. I do not appreciate their service and will not go back again. read more

It's surprising to find an authentic Sichuan cuisine in Reston. This place is definitely authentic with the use of spicy and pungent peppers, garlic, and bold flavors in their dishes. If you don't speak Chinese, you'll most likely be ordering with your fingers, pointing to the items and pictures in the menu. Our server spoke very little English and it was more gestures and less verbal communication. Family style is the best way to eat Chinese food and I was able to try a variety of favorites. spicy cold chicken - I like my dishes hot, even bubbling hot sometimes. But this dish was surprisingly not bad. The cold temperature of the sauce almost acts as a cooling effect towards the spiciness of it. spicy beef and tripe - Good tripe but not too memorable of a dish. fish with mustard green - Delicious! Probably my favorite dish of the night. The spicy fish was cut a good size and very delicious. The mustard greens made the spicy and pungent sauce pop and works very well with the overall flavor profiles of the dish. spicy noodles with bean sprouts - I love noodles and the mouth numbing spices in the broth was good. I'm personally not a bean of bean sprouts but the length of these beans are similar to that of the noodles so harmonious Chinese cooking. eggplant - I love eggplants and this dish was good with the right amount of sauce. Definitely not the best Chinese eggplant dish I've had. mushroom with bok choy - Not too much of a fan of the sauce for the mushroom, but still good dish. Even though I am a fan of Sichuan cooking, the overall flavors and taste of the dishes were average and it doesn't keep me wanting to come back for more. But definitely awesome to try another authentic Chinese restaurant in the area. read more

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I've not eaten at the Lakeside Asia Cafe in years until tonight and I was really impressed. I orders Fried Rice Combo. Over the phone order was east and ready in 10 minutes. The fried rice sure was delicious. In fact for me the taste was perfect and quality of food was excellent. Will definitly return for more. read more

This is absolutely my favorite restaurant for genuine Sichuan food. Their dishes remind me of the cuisine I enjoyed so much in China. Very authentic. Great service. The owner was very kind and courteous. They were able to suggest some dishes that kids would enjoy and my boys ate up everything. We also love the homemade dumplings and warm, crispy sesame balls. The pictures below are Spicy Szechuan Chicken, Green Beans with Ground Pork, Shrimp with Asparagus. Other favorites are Stewed Sichuan Style Fish and Sichuan Bean Curd. read more

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This is yet another diamond in the rough that is the DC Chinese food scene. I went here with some Chinese friends and we had a great time. They ordered a small mountain of food, and it was all delicious. They got there late, so while I was waiting I got some steamed pork buns and cold noodles with spicy sauce which were both excellent. Then they should up and got the rest. We got a spicy fish soup that was delightful. I feel like I have mental image of fish stew not being good, but the spicy broth of this stuff is scrumptious, and the mild white fish soaks it up. We got some bok choy and mushrooms that were good. The tofu soup was good on rice, and the crunchy pork dish we got was on point. I think the pork may have been knuckles, which might not sound good, but which were great. Awesome texture and flavor. Based on the decor, discreet location in a shopping center, and other patrons, the place was quite authentic. Five stars for being delicious Chinese food! read more

Lakeside Asia Cafe - Pork knuckles (I think), veggies, spicy fish soup, and some sort of stir fry. All delightful! - Chinese Near Me - Reston, Virginia

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I think this place is amazing if you are looking for authentic chinese food without going the distance. This place has a gorgeous menu with a variety of food selection. When you walk in you mainly see other Chinese people enjoying the fare. It's a bit small and not really a date spot but it's a great place if you are looking for Szechuan style comfort food. read more

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This is a wonderful Szechuan food place. I'm very picky about Szechuan food - most places just make the food really spicy, which isn't really what Szechuan food is. It's the herbs, spices, chili oil, etc. I really love the flavors here, and they like using a lot of fresh veggies and herbs. My go to's are usually the black mushroom appetizer, spicy cold chicken, shredded potato, fish in wine sauce, and bok choy with mushrooms. The owner is also super nice, but they are a no nonsense service place so don't expect fancy frills or anything. But the service is quick and they are always fast to swing by the table if you need anything. And plus is that my four year old who is usually very picky about spicy food loves this place so definitely not a overly spicy place but they have a great balance of depth/flavor in their dishes. read more

I'd say this is rock solid and such for authentic Chinese cuisine. The menu contains items that can range from traditional Asian dishes such as the moo shu chicken & bok choy with mushrooms to American Asian dishes such as orange beef and sweet & sour "fill in whatever protein is available". Any person who likes Chinese food will find something they like. The dining area is intimate and they offer take out which seems to be the most popular option. I wonder if they deliver; I'm out of range anyway so never mind. I always say go for the authentic stuff (my favorites are the twice cooked Sichuan-style pork, spicy fish & tofu, and bok Chou with mushrooms, and shrimp & snap peas) so you can experience what the truth is. Although some are satisfied with the American way, my heritage and ethnicity won't be denied! read more

Tried some authentic Sichuan food there. I liked the 鱼香肉丝... Not much more to say that their authentic food is really good. It seems most bad reviews come from their Americanized menu. Waitress was cool, too. read more

Lakeside Asia Cafe had delicious food! The chef was accommodating to ensure we had vegetarian/vegan versions of the food, and boy did he deliver. The hot and sour soup and Mapo tofu were both fantastic! It was probably the best Mapo tofu and soup I've had in NOVA thus far. What's great is that the flavors weren't diluted or changed because it was vegetarian/vegan which can be the case. Both dishes had the perfect balance of spice and flavor. Sometimes the "malaa" from the Sichuan peppercorns can be overpowering but this wasn't the case at all, it was just perfect! I would definitely recommend this place and can't wait to go back! read more

Love their food. Authentic, tasteful, not like Panda Express or any of those wanna be places! So authentic. We have bought here a handful of times since moving to the area and they never disappoint! definitely recommend this place! read more

FBI WARNING! This is traditional Chinese food, and this is really authentic traditional! If you are American and want to seek some Americanized Chinese food like General chicken or broccoli beef, then this might not be a good place for you. read more

So at 7:13 today I called to place a delivery order - the lady told Me delivery would be 45 minutes at least but if I picked up it would be 10 minutes. It is now 7:59 as you can see and I already paid $80 for my food but NO FOOD YET. The food is good here but when you lie to the customers for who knows what reason it makes me never want to come back. Too bad for them good for Chopsticks in Herndon as it seems they're going to get my business from now on unless they fix this! Fast! read more

Lakeside Asia Cafe - Helloooo? - Chinese Near Me - Reston, Virginia

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After spending $40 including $6 tips on 2 dishes, my wife and I left the restaurant with a half-full stomach. We have been coming here on a weekly basis for lunch, and always ordering same 2 dishes: double cooked pork and hot and spicy boiled fish. The dish portions have been always small, but at least it's good enough to make us full, so we had no complaint about it until today. Credit to the waitress for giving us $3 discount after the complaint, that brought total cost from $37 down to $34, plus $6 tips. However I don't want a discount to make me spending $40 and left with half empty stomach. I don't think we will come back to this restaurant any more. read more

Lakeside Asia Cafe - $37 for 2 dishes! And 2 of us were still hungry after finishing everything. - Chinese Near Me - Reston, Virginia

They got our order wrong. My wife asked for a drunken noodle dish (cho fun) with tofu and a yellow curry with tofu, for Carry out. Then when I go to pick up the woman said our order was one dish yellow curry and tofu and one cho fun with beef. I said no they both had tofu, then the women who took our order said that my wife ordered a drunken noodle with beef and fried tofu with yellow curry. I then explained to that my wife ordered the cho fun with tofu then it was a whole back and forth Where the woman said that my wife said beef. Not tofu, only tofu for yellow curry. My wife and I are vegetarian and i just paid $15 for a dish that we aren't going to eat. Why would we order beef, I hate knocking on immigrants who have English as a second language, I'm an child of immigrants, but come on at least have some manners and don't argue with the customers and please have a stronger grasp of the English language and know the implications of beef and tofu.... ugh frustrating. Half our order is going in the trash along with my money. I'm done with this place. read more

This is not cheap Chinese. I'd say the price is just about right for the quality based on one dish. The kung pao chicken is on par if not better in some ways than Mama Chang's. Tender chicken, wonderful aromatics, and just enough sichuan peppercorn (numbing). read more

What a shame. The 2 Chinese dishes we ordered were spot on authentic. It's too bad the owners and staff are complete idiots and liars. I just moved back to the US after 20 years in Asia and the 3 pepper chicken is right out of Taiwan and the clams with black bean sauce was exactly what you would get in HK or Shanghai at a local food stall. Delicious. I asked for a volcano (rum punch drink) which is the first item on the drinks menu. We no have. OK, a headhunter. We no have. What do you have? BEER. I finally got the simplest Polynesian drink, a Mai tai. it was terrible. My big issue came when I ordered the Beef Rendang, the national dish of Malaysia. Rendang is a thick, dark curry paste dish that is not wet or soupy but sticks to the beef pieces. Out comes the Rendang and its yellow curry beef in a bowl of yellow sauce. I ask the owner lady "What is this" an she says Yellow Curry Beef soon corrected by the waiter IN CHINESE saying "tell him it's Beef Rendang" so she starts singing the same tune; Beef Rendang. Calling this Beef Rendang is basically the same as serving boiled duck legs with onions, white bread and grape jelly and calling it Peking Duck. If you can't make a dish, don't put it on the menu and when you get caught serving a bad substitute, admit your guilt and fix the problem. Don't be a lying shit. Dine at your own risk. billkalbo@gmail.com read more

Kind of traditional Szechuan flavor restaurant. It is located by lakeside, so we really enjoy the views here. And the lakeside shopping center is good. The parking is easy. We ordered steamed chicken with chili sauce, which is not that spicy, and could feel a little bit numb in your mouth. It's pretty good. Recommend. And we ordered crispy eggplant and pepper salt spareribs, they are just so so, not amazing. I will come again to try other traditional Szechuan food here. read more

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Don't waste your time coming into this restaurant. Food is mediocre and not the best also too overpriced, old Asian lady that tends the front order service counter is super rude and condescending. Save yourself a head ache and DONT COME HERE!. read more

Great restaurant with a diverse menu. It's my go to spot for beef tendon noodle soup. read more

Lakeside Asia Cafe - Beef Tendon Noodle Soup - Chinese Near Me - Reston, Virginia

Think of it this way. The menu here is like taking the menus from a Chinese, Thai, Malaysian, and Japanese restaurant, cutting the menus up into pieces, throwing those pieces up in the air and mixing them, and, then, randomly splicing some of the pieces together to form a new menu with tape and glue (with the Chinese menu getting the biggest chunk of representation in the final reassembly). In the end, it is a hodge podge collage that doesn't quite work for me. Let me explain. For three whole pages, its menu is basically a typical Chinese-American menu. It features items like Hunan chicken, sesame beef, and shrimp with lobster sauce among a host of other familiar Chinese-American standards. Then, there is a section entitled, "Thai & Malaysian Favorites," which lists twelve unimaginative Thai standards such as chicken with green curry and pad thai. But, wait, there is one...literally, ONE Malaysian offering listed...the plaintively titled, "Malaysian tofu casserole." The menu continues with five Japanese offerings (no sushi, by the way) and, then, a lengthy and heterogenous section of "Chef Specialties" that includes mostly other Chinese (Sichuan) and Thai dishes and two more borderline Malaysian dishes, "chicken randeng" and "beef randeng" ("randeng" is usually transliterated as "rendang"...but, I digress). In the end, I ordered four dishes to try...the beef randeng (because this classic beef dish, which can variously be regarded as both Malaysian or Indonesian, is rarely offered around the DC area), the Malaysian tofu casserole (because it was the one explicit Malaysian dish), the fish hot pot (because I am a sucker for fish and Sichuan food), and the chicken lo mein (because a few in my dining party happen to favor Chinese-American fare...nothing wrong with that). The beef randeng, curiously, was served in a bowl, which, I believe, was intended to mimic a blossoming lotus flower (but, I don't really know). It was paper thin and made from the same exact skins that are used to wrap crispy spring rolls. While it was, in some way, visually appealing, it simply became soggy (and, quickly, at that) from the randeng sauce. In fact, the flowering shell acted much like a sponge and sopped up the gravy and moisture around it (so much so that the level of the curry sauce dissipated as the evening wore on - not from being eaten or consumed but by being absorbed up by its own vessel). It was like a Venus Fly Trap (forget, lotus leaf...lol). The beef was cubed from a well braised piece of chuck roast, and it was covered in a yellowish curry/coconut sauce. It was tasty in its own way...kind of like how Susan Boyle is pretty. However, what I ate wasn't really beef randeng (or "rendang"). It was merely a facsimile. The real dish, which is a staple of Sumatran cooking, is a deep brown, reddish, almost black concoction of curry and coconut that is simmered for hours until the liquid in its coconut spice bath has evaporated to create an intense combination of beef, spice, and coconut flavors. Here, we have the equivalent of a punt. The fish hot pot was a misguided attempt at the classic Sichuan dish that is variously refered to as, "fish in fiery broth," "fish in mala sauce," "fish in spicy soup..." Anyway, the Lakeside version lacked broad bean paste (which is just unforgivable) and chili peppers. It is like making marinara sauce without tomatoes. It just can't be done. Furthermore, the only inclusion of Sichuan peppercorns came as a mere sprinkling of crushed peppercorns on top of the assembled filets. It was not integrated or distributed in the broth itself. The broth was, therefore, quite mild and was more pinkish red rather than deep, fiery red (which is what it normally is when both broad bean paste and chili peppers are part of the recipe). The flavor was tasty but nothing approaching "very good" or spectacular. It did, however, feature obscenely large chucks of tilapia filets (by far the largest I have ever seen in this dish). The filets were like little wallets...little coin purses and were, honestly, too big to absorb the broth that surrounded them. The Malaysian tofu casserole was an uninspiring mix of cellophane noodles, fried firm tofu, Shanghai bok choy, carrot slices, bamboo shoots, and snow peas (in a mildly tasty but, ultimately, all too familiar broth that sat somewhere on the Cantonese and Chinese-American border). In the end, Lakeside Asia Cafe is a classic case of an essentially "Chinese" restaurant that is really overextending itself. Usually, this means that a Chinese restaurant has simply added sushi to its menu (with maki and nigiri being the two big contenders in its limited arsenal). However, at Lakeside, they have tried a different take on this overextension...but, with very mixed results. Sushi anyone? read more

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Good asian food. Nice menu selection. Ample parking. The next day, my friend already came back bringing her guests. This is a good find. I just find the dumpling's skin to be too thick. The crispy pork rib was really good with its garlicky flavor. Yum! read more

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If you enjoy authentic Szechuan cuisine, you will love this place. It's a regular part of my house hold restaurant rotation and will continue to be so as long as they keep the same ownership. read more

really good food! Really tasty and very sichuan! And their boba tea is good too. I like how the restaurant put heart in their food. Yum yum yum read more

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This is the best Chinese restaurant in the Reston/Herndon area. It's always a challenge to find a good Chinese restaurant in VA. For a decent Chinese meal, I have to travel up to Rockville, MD. Even that, they are not comparable to what I've had in Cali or NYC. I had little expectation of this restaurant before coming here. The name sounds Americanized and the reviews are all average. But I was surprised how good the food is. First of all, I love that the menu has pictures which remind of of all the restaurants I have been to in China. Second, the Sichuanese dishes taste home-made and delicious ( I personally have been to Sichuan, China numerous times). So finding out there's such a restaurant here in this area is a total joyful surprise. For those who just want a quick bite, like getting Lo Mein or egg rolls, I suggest that Panda Express or China King would serve you better. If you are in for good authentic Chinese food, order the dishes in the first few pages of the menu to try. read more

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I miss eating authentic Chinese food and was super happy with our choice to dine here. I would never guessed it's a Sichuan restaurant by the name of it or venture all the way to Reston if someone didn't tell us about it. We ordered family style and every dish was good to amazing. My favorites from the 6 dishes we ordered was the fish fillet with pickled mustard greens and the cold sliced beef/tripe with chili sauce. We also ordered salt/pepper shrimp, cold spicy chicken, ma pao tofu, and sauteed garlic Chinese watercress. These dishes are best eaten at the restaurant instead of takeout. I would definitely trek the 30 minutes to eat here again. read more

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I'm outside the restaurant 2 pm Saturday. Sign on the door says they're open. Google and yelp say they're open. They're clearly closed with no one in the restaurant and doors locked. We have a group of 15 that needs to find another place to eat. read more

I don't know what happened but my first experience here was my best experience *by far.* I've been back several times since and each time was a disappointment. My second time I got the orange chicken, and it was so gristly that I still cringe thinking about it. Second time I got takeout. I was craving wonton soup so I ordered a large container, and the broth was so pale, weak, and completely flavorless that, after one bowl, I threw the remainder away. The third time I got the Thai Basil Chicken, and it was chicken served in the same exact brown sauce they use for their other dishes. It had absolutely zero basil flavor and came with bland, oddly paired vegetables (eg, yellow squash). Won't be back unless I'm desperate. read more

We had pork belly, shredded potato, bok choy with shiitake mushroom. It's surprise that they have pork belly and it's authentic. read more

Lakeside Asia Cafe - Bok choy with shiitake mushroom - Chinese Near Me - Reston, Virginia

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This restaurant is the worst of it's kind. This is the second time they have overcharged me for delivery for extras and they don't deliver. They actually had the driver come back to pick up the order instead of fixing the problem. Poor service and management skills. The food if you're interested is ok. Nothing special. Try it for yourself and be disappointed with the service. Looking at these photos do you see extra bak choy in my soup or extra vegetables in the rice container? Let me remind you that I did pay for extra vegetables. I ordered the soup because I'm feeling under the weather. This is not the first time I asked for extra, was charged for it and was disappointed when it wasn't in my order. This is the last time!! Worst part was the owner was really rude over the phone like I was trying to steal from them. Never again! read more

Lakeside Asia Cafe - Chinese Near Me - Reston, Virginia

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This is authentic Szechuan food. They serve the best Laziji around. My wife is a fan of there spicy fish soup and Chinese vegetables.

Yuuuummy Sichuan food! Came here with my Chinese family #provingimauthentic (6 people) and ordered: 1) mung bean jelly in spicy sauce - delicious cold appetizer with a ma la spiciness 2) golden pork shoulder - very tender 3) fish fillet with pickled mustard greens - very good 4) baby bok choy with mushrooms - bok choy still has that delightful crunch 5) shredded potato stir fry with green pepper - easily overlooked but full of flavor, a light vinegary taste with a spicy kick. Love it 6) moo shu pork - good but the other dishes were better Def would come here again! read more

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They're back open!! And the food is just as wonderful as ever! I ordered the chongquin chicken, which is spicy and has that perfect numbing taste that Szechuan cooking should have. The entire speciality menu is wonderful. read more

Nice restaurant. We ate in but they do lots of take out service. Place seems to be popular with South Lakes community. It's def not your average greasy Chinese takeout & that is a good thing. The prices also reflect this. I think lots of dishes were in $16 range. One of our noodle dishes included fresh noodles - which are more tender and gummy than dry noodles. It was different and interesting. Service was pretty good. It's a mom & pop shop so very homey ;) My fellow diner got a green curry dish & it was fluorescent green - which was a bit odd and he noted that "this is not natural" ha. It tasted ok but the color was def funky & made u wonder. I'm happy to have found a new Chinese food option in Reston. read more

If you asked me what restaurant in Reston has very unique probably the most delicious Asian food, yet you must tolerate mediocre or inconsistent service to eat there, Lakeside Asia Cafe will win the prize! They have great soups, shrimp, fish chicken and noodles dishes and it seems very authentic and healthy. The wait staff there can be a bit abrupt, and even rude, and they will YES you, when they don't understand you. I'm leaving this feedback in hopes that the wait staff can learn to be friendlier and accommodating , and make this place a great little and very special restaurant, all around. It's a shame that such good food can be overlooked due to mediocre service. A little love, patience and proper training of the wait staff to put the patrons first, can go a long way! read more