Whenever I go home to Renton my mom gets us food here. Authentic flavors and great home style menu items! Try the salt fish fried rice (hum yi chow fun), it's the best! Beef chow foon and garlic pea vines never miss either! read more

This is hands-down the best " hole in the wall" chinese place in the east side. I almost hate to write this review, because then it will be packed. They have a wide variety of items, but be sure to check the white board for the daily specials, and ask you waiter to tell you about the items that are only written in chinese. One of them is often "giant clam two-ways" This is where they take a geoduck and make a good vegy soup out of the body as one dish, then flash stir fry the neck as a second dish. If you are with a party of 4 or 6, I highly recommend ordering this. Other great specials are fried squabs; hard to find any place south of Vancouver BC, steamed oysters, (my fav is the style with ones with garlic and soy sauce), and 7 Jewels with Lotus Root (a great assortment of 7 meats and vegy's) . read more

I have been to Mai Place many times and have only been disappointed once. I'm not sure what used to be in the building before Mai Place but it does create an unconventional side entrance as the main entrance located on the side nearest to Rite Aid. Being that it is a conversion, and not a brand new building, it doesn't have a lot of ambiance. The wait staff is so so. There is one waiter who always seems a bit put off when we are there, but I am starting to think that it is just his personality since the last time he saw us he asked us why we hadn't been in sooner. All the waitresses, though, are super friendly. I have the impression that this is a family run restaurant, as I see the same people there filling in many different roles. I always get the sweet and sour chicken and the white rice, my boyfriend orders a variety of dishes. I think they have the best sweet and sour chicken I have eaten in the Seattle area. It is cooked perfectly and the sauce is the right combination of flavors, not too watery, not too strong, just flavorful and delicious. The prices are rather inexpensive and I have never walked out of there without leftovers. read more

It was getting late, and my cousin and I were looking around the area for where we can eat that was still open. We decided to stop by here. We both ordered appetizers, Salt and Pepper Calamari and Fried Pork Intestines and two dinner combos, one with Mandarin Crispy Beef and one with Szechuan Beef, and both came with an egg roll, hot and sour soup, and fried rice. Food came out pretty quick. First was our cups of soup, then the egg rolls. Then the food came in random orders, so our appetizers actually came after our dinner combos. Instead of putting the combos together on one plate, our fried rice came in one bowl for us to share, and the main entrees for the combos came as its own entree dish. It was more food than we had expected; good-sized portions. All the food was really good, I am not sure if I can say fantastic, but we enjoyed it and had plenty left over to take home. I actually had always wanted to try the Sticky Fried Rice here, which looked good in the Yelp pictures, but did not order it this time. So I will have to come back again one day to finally try this out. read more

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Dropped by on a Sunday night and was happy with what we found. Probably helped to speak Chinese, but the waitresses were clearly experienced and quite friendly - especially in menu suggestions. We got a 2-person dinner (for 3) and added another dish. We ordered the pigeon (!!) because it's one of their specialties and half of the other tables in the restaurant had it too. The pigeon itself was 5 stars - super flavorful, juicy, crisply fried, and reasonably priced (~$9, Chinatown and Richmond are a little pricier). The other 2 dishes were alright, (beef + radish hot pot & steamed chicken). Nothing too exciting, but perfectly acceptable. The dinner ended with sweet bean soup as a bonus - also not that great (a little closer to sugar water than bean soup), but the thought was nice. I'd definitely want to come back in the future and try the other items the wait staff suggested because they really nail the specialties. (a lot is off the menu though, so ask!) read more

First time there for family dinner, comfortable environment and good service, price are reasonable, food is pretty good. Would like to come back again. read more

Mai Place Asian Bistro - Cantonese Near Me - Renton, Washington

The lighting is so dark inside I thought they were closed. We came in Saturday night around 5pm for a family dinner and we were the only ones there. During our meal there were only two other tables dining in. The service was good and bad depending on which waitress happen to come by our tables. We ordered their family style dinners. The portions are generous but was barely warm when it was served. The dishes looked good but were not flavorful. I thought it was strange that the fried rice had pineapple and raisins in it. Not sure if I'll be back. read more

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The roast pigeon and lamb pot is awesome. However, the service is a bit slow. Would definitely try some other dishes later. read more

Mai Place Asian Bistro - Cantonese Near Me - Renton, Washington

I just ordered the sesame chicken and house special fried rice. After this introduction, I'm ready to try the specials. As I can only speak to what I ate, if your looking to cheap out and eat mainly breading while struggling to find a morsel of dry chicken then this place isn't for you. If you enjoy eating juicy dark meat chicken in every bite and don't mind paying a buck or two more for quality food, then try this place out. I will say that even tho the items I chose are typically the more American-ized types of Chinese food, the flavors were not and a bit more authentic in taste then what you may be used to. read more

This review applies to both the American palate and those looking for the genuine authentic, written in Chinese on a blackboard good stuff. Let's go with the basics: Accessibility: Sunset Blvd is a real busy street so if you're on 900 going NE, drive up to the NE 12th and take a left. Turn into the Rite Aide parking lot and cut across - that's your best route if you're traveling NE on 900. Parking lot: Unlike a lot of Chinese restaurants, this place has adequate parking for its guests so you don't have to park at the Rite Aid and get yelled at by the store manager for using their lot. Service: Much of the staff appear to be proficient in speaking Mandarin, Cantonese and English. Staffing levels are hit and miss here but they do mean well and try. Facility: It's one of the cleaner Chinese restaurants in probably King County in my opinion. I don't think you need to worry about rodents or insects luring around the place. Decor and furniture are not torn up or half a light fixture works. Price: I would say the price range floats in the $9-12 ballpark per dish. Anytime I've ordered three plates, the check comes in with tax sans the tip (for the moment) definitely above $40. Food quality: This is where Mai Place is a 5/5, and competitive with Yeh's Wok - Out of several visits over the course of a few months, the food portion size and flavors remain the same in a very good way every time. Food recommendations for either palate: Diced chicken and salted fish fried rice Eggplant in garlic sauce with pork Westlake Beef Any of their fried green bean dishes Overall, it's definitely a deserves first place in Renton for Chinese food and top ten within King County. read more

Absolutely love their food! Depending on the person serving, some may give 5 star service and some not so much. This is my to go experience, and the guy was great! Made sure I got my special request for lemon. Thank you!! read more

We liked the food better under the previous owners. It's a little less seasoned and a bit more expensive since the restaurant changed hands (it's been a few years now). read more

First time last night, Almond Fried Chick was great and plenty , fried rice was very tasty too. We will go back for sure !

Authentic, great tasting meals. I make sure to stop here every year when I visit the city.

Great roasted birds! Service is efficient, not overly warm or fuzzy but quick and they are great at taking orders without writing them down.

What immediately stands out in this restaurant to me is that there is a larger proportion of round tables to the small, square tables. This is normal for a Cantonese-style restaurant, and it's heavily embedded in our culture to eat in a circle with family. I'm originally from Guangdong Province, and so this review might be biased in that I am used to the plain flavors and sometimes curt service. However, I can confirm that all restaurants over in Guangdong are comprised of mostly tables that are round and can accommodate 8+ persons. We are a prolific community, you might say. I want to mention, too, that only a limited number of entrees are Cantonese, most of them are American-Chinese food. I came here on two separate occasions, one for a family dinner and the other to celebrate the last day of the Lunar New Year. I enjoyed the food that we had both times, and it really matters what you order here. I think it's always an advantage if someone in the group speaks the main language of the servers, as well, because I don't recall a single instance of poor service. Waiters/waitresses refilled our tea very quickly, and reassured us that our food was coming in a minute or two. They kept good tabs on us. My family mainly frequents Mai Place because they have pigeon here. It's odd and we're Chinese, what are you going to do. They love this stuff. Whatever they do to braise it or cook it makes the pigeon extremely tasty and not gamey in any way whatsoever. I would highly recommend. It's better than their duck here. For the Lunar New Year's dinner, we ordered a special they had for a limited time with geoduck. Excellent dish and a species native to the Pacific Northwest. They partitioned the geoduck in three ways: they made geoduck broth to form a basic soup as a starter; after which, they stir-fried one part of the geoduck with mustard greens and fresh tofu; they used the rest of the geoduck to lightly stir-fry with bean sprouts, and it came with a side of sauce. If they are still offering this, order it. Everything was gone before the rest of our food could come out. Each part of the geoduck special tasted fresh and as-is, rather than lathering in cornstarch, soy sauce, and other unnecessary additives. One might say it is plain, but it is personally my favorite Also, if you are concerned with aesthetics, they slice it up so it no longer resembles a gigantic, flaccid thing. We ordered the stir-fried pea vine with garlic, which was delicious and seasoned well with salt. As well as the duck with taro. It is not deep-fried duck with taro chunks in it; rather, it comes in a metal bowl that almost resembled a curry. This was a little hit-or-miss with my group. I love taro and the dish had huge chunks of taro in it. It is not everyone's thing, but the sauce that coated the duck came out not too thick or clumpy. It had an awesome flavor. There was also honey prawns and sweet and sour pork, but I did not eat these. However, others who did spoke well of them and had no problem finishing it all. I would take note that the sweet and sour pork does not come boneless, so others said that was the only frustrating part. Overall, two very enjoyable experiences. Mai Place doesn't immediately come to mind when I want to eat out at a restaurant, but it's never a place I would not considering going to if someone else wanted to go. read more

I have been coming here for a few years now. It's nice that Renton has a good Chinese restaurant. I alway order the sticky fried rice, spicy green beans, seafood egg tofu, and the sizzling fish (comes on a sizzling plate like carne asada). I'm not sure if I have all the English names right since I typically order in Chinese, but it's pretty close. The food is very flavorful! The green beans aren't too spicy and have great seasoning. My favorite veggie dish anywhere! I have always had great service when coming here. I know they get busy especially during the weekends for dinner and they are always short handed. Patience is key. They are not ignoring you, just busy. The food is always consistently good. It's my go to place when I'm craving Chinese. Take out is quick and easy too! read more

Typical American-Chinese menu, but there are some hidden gems if you just ask for them! Having grown up in the area, I've eaten at every Chinese restaurant in the Renton Highlands. I'm not saying Mai Place has the best food, but they definitely have some unique items that I don't see at other local Chinese restaurants. In an attempt to salvage this restuarant's reputation, I'll introduce some of my favorite items on their menu with the hope that you'll give them a try. If you're unsure how to order it just show the server your phone of this review or try to describe the dish. 糯米炒饭 - Sticky fried rice - This is definitely my favorite carb option on the menu. It's a slightly sticky rice fried with Chinese sausage, cilantro, egg, and baby shrimp. It has a very unique flavor and Mai Place does it right! 干煸四季豆 - Spicy green beans - The menu says green beans, but they're actually string beans that are sauteed in a spicy pork mixture with shrimp paste. It's hands down the best veggie item on the menu and I could honestly eat these with a bowl of rice for dinner! 铁板魚 - Sizzling swai filet - My best way to describe this is Chinese fajitas. This is a stir fry of strips of swai (a light white fish), bell peppers, and onions in a black bean sauce. It's served on a sizzling cast iron skillet and has excellent flavor. 龙鯉魚 - Fried fish filet (I think it's swai) - This is a very light flaky white fish lightly breaded and fried and is topped with green onion and a sauce similar to soy sauce. It's delicious and not heavy at all! 玉子豆腐 - Egg Tofu - I'm not sure how to translate it, but I love this dish because even though I love meat, I find myself craving this tofu dish. It has little rounds of tofu in a gravy-like sauce with a veggie that I'm not sure what it is. The veggie adds a needed crunchy texture to the soft tofu rounds. 椒盐排鼓 - Salt and pepper spare ribs - While this can be found at many Chinese restuarants, it's not typically ordered by Americans. Spareribs are lightly breaded with diced jalapeno and lots of garlic. It makes me sad to see the poor reviews regarding the service. I thoroughly enjoy the people here! read more

We started going here years ago, and a few years ago I would have given it 4 stars. I'm not sure what happened to the food but everything taste extra corn starched and a bit sour like. I don't know how to explain it. We use to go here about twice a month, but now we are back to maybe once every 6 months. There are some dishes here that are good and some I don't recommend. The unique lamb hot pot is great if you like lamb, and the fried fish was good. Service is good though and that is rare at Chinese restaurants. Given the location and availability of Chinese Restaurants in Renton, it isn't a bad choice if you need to come here. read more

I enjoy this restaurant because it seem like one of those small mom and pop Chinese restaurants. The service is quick and we almost always order the same menu items because we know what we like. The portions seem to get a little smaller than the last time we went, but overall we still had leftovers from all we had ordered. One of our favorites is the honey glazed spareribs. Very good. The price for their food is reasonable and you get a better deal if you order from a family style menu. read more

Went here for the first time with my family and i really like this place. This is the best Chinese restaurant I've had in or near Renton. We really like their family dinner. Peking duck, szechuan beef were delicious but the fried squid is ok. Their portion is quite generous for family style dinner. read more

Note on the front says they are closed til March 1st. We were trying to make reservations but they phones don't have a message saying so. So that kinda sucks... but they do do pigeons right. So, 4 stars for good pigeons but -1 star for service. read more

I would have never known this place existed if my uncle didn't suggest we eat here. It's nestled between Rite Aid and the teriyaki place on Sunset. The pictures on Yelp build it up more than it needs to be. The place is fairly small and poorly lit although it seems clean for a Chinese place. Nothing really jumps out at me about our dining experience. Because my relatives spoke Chinese to the waiter, I never really interacted with him. I assume everything went okay since the food was brought out quickly and no one was complaining. The food is better than your typical American style Chinese, but nothing to write home about... We ordered a banquet dinner and got red bean soup for dessert. The red bean was considerably less sweet than I'm used to, but it was still a nice touch to the meal. read more

Came again recently for a family dinner and was not disappointed. We ordered the 6 dish family meal and added a few items. The squab were exceptional and all of the food was tasty. It gets a bit backed up in the kitchen when busy, but the wait staff is really nice so it's not a big deal. The family likes this place so we'll be back. read more

Mai Place Asian Bistro - Squab - Cantonese Near Me - Renton, Washington

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I realize that Cantonese isn't my favorite cuisine as I find it to bland. I most enjoyed the pecan shrimp! As usual, the group of 16 was terrific, very friendly, interesting, and inclusive. This for me is a huge perk. As it made the dining more enjoyable The service was lovely, informative, and attentive. The price was very reasonable. I truly appreciate this restaurant as a american chinese place. read more

I orginally thought this place was great, and was prepared to be a regular due to the customer service and value. I am a firm believer in customer service, more than amazing food. If your service is good, I will patronize you more than a place with AWESOME food and bad customer service. So if you value customer service, read on.. I like the lady that works here. She is nice, and even allowed me to catch the lunch special right at the mark. However, the old man with the bad tupee' has to be one of the rudest people I have ever met. He did not include my full order, and instead gave me attitude when I brought it to his attention. I do not like to be provoked. I am honest, and will say the food is good, but be aware of the extra charge if you are paying with a card. A lot of asian establishments try this, and get over because most people don't care or pay attention. He has cost this restaurant a regular customer, and should be fired. It's not my fault they only have one server at a busy lunch hour and you were flustered, but I do not deserve snarky smart comments, due to your error, and instead, I should have been apologized to profusely. I will NEVER return. I always had a funny feeling anyway, when peering into the back where food is prepared. It didn't seem sanitary, and I actually asked one of the cooks to wash his hands. Why is it that asian restaurants let you see behind the kitchen, if they know it's not clean or up to the standard it should be? I'd put a wall up! Lol! Anyways, I should've used my original instinct. There is a better restaurant right across the street, and even a good teriyaki spot behind. THEY will get my business and money. P.S. I feel better now. ;-) read more

Easy to miss this place as it's off the main plaza area. A bit dark but the food was very good. Wife complained about grit in her oysters and soup, but I didn't notice. read more

Called in take out and they said it would take 30 min. So I drove over and arrived within 25 minutes. She asks me to pay so I did. They had a big party there, so I could understand why they said it would take so long. Three people arrive after me and order in person. 40 minutes later the other three people got their food and left, I had to wait 10 more minutes (75 total) before it was ready. Horrible service and communication. If I hadn't already paid I would have just left. When she gave me the food she just did thanks for waiting, gave me the food, and went back into the kitchen. Never going back. read more

I like it here, no matter what anyone else says! We come here often for family dinners and my sister has even hosted a baby party here. Location is convenient, right up from the freeway with a full parking lot. Chinatown quality food without the hassle of street parking and Seattle traffic! The only downside is this place is too small to host a larger banquet. There are maybe about 8-10 large tables and another dozen or so smaller tables. Service is always good, and the menu and pricing and competitive. They offer a set dinner menu different from most Chinese restaurants. You can choose any combination from a list of 40 or so dishes and depending how many entrees your order, the price and the dishes it comes with varies. You could easily feed a table of 6 people for under $50!! Food is consistent, in a good way. My son loves the fried fish filets that comes with a side of the sweet soy sauce used for fish. One of the more simple dishes that we love as well is the steamed tofu. It's really just steamed tofu also served with a variation of the seafood soy sauce. We've never really had to wait to be seated (we do usually show up right before the dinner rush though), will usually get water the first time we ask, and our first dish never takes more than 15 minutes or so to show up after we order. Faster if it's not busy! read more

I went to the restaurant today around 5 PM. We were greeted by a pushy waiter. He came over every 30 seconds to ask us ready to order. I do not know why the waiter does not allow us time to read the menu since there are only two other parties in the restaurant. Also, we found out this pushy waiter did not give us the family menu. We would get free soup and rice since we ordered the same dishes that are on family menu. Now about the food. Asian fusion? Well, I guess pending on your definition of fusion. The menu is same as any other Cantonese restaurants in town at glance (since we do not have time to read the menu). Food very salty and full of MSG. Will I recommend the restaurant to anybody? Yes, if they like salt and MSG. read more

I'd give it 3.5 star. My friend highly recommended "deep fried quail" and that requires advance order. It was ok, I had it better at New Star (International District). It offers traditional Cantonese dishes and nothing special. I read the lunch menu and the price is not very competitive. We have tried deep fried & steam clams, deep fried quail, winter bean spout with garlic and veggie in hot pot. Everything was fresh and pretty good service though. If my friend insists to go there again, I would like to try their "Peking Duck". read more

I've been here before and the food was good but now they are under a new ownership (last 6months) and the food is amazing! Kung Pao Chicken and broccoli beef are delicious! Perfect for lunch or dinner, and the staff are very friendly. read more

Mai Place Asian Bistro - Cantonese Near Me - Renton, Washington

First off, they are not fusion anything - they serve Chinese food, thats it. The food isn't excellent but it will fulfill your chinese cravings. You can't go wrong with the usual sweet and sour pork and honey walnut prawns. One of two reasons I knocked them down a few stars is that I do want to note that I purchased a restaurant.com certificate for this place and they did not honor it. They had a sign posted on the door that they do not accept them. When asked why, the waitress said "because we cancelled it." I asked restaurant.com about that and they noted that all restaurants sign a contract that say they must honor any certificates purchased. even if they have already cancelled. This to me shows poor customer service. If you decided that you signed up for something that you didn't think was a good business deal anymore, fine. But you should honor the patrons (new or returning - which I am) certificates. Second reason I knocked them down is that again, the food isn't the best. In my opinion, try Mandarin Palace down the street. Better service and tastier food. read more

I've eatten at Mai place restaurant plenty of times and even attended their grand opening! I have yet to be disappointed with this lovely piece of Chinese food heaven. My all time favorites are, of course, honey walnut prawns because they are bursts of perfection every time! And then beef chow fun because I'm a huge noodle person. The salty fish & chicken fried rice is delicious !!! Don't be fooled by how it looks from the outside, this place is really good Sauteed String Beans with Minced Meat- yummy !!! Most dishes are 100% authentic Chinese. Next time I'm going to try their Chinese Peking duck, crab/lobsters and sizzling platters. BTW, although this place was not packed, their calls for take-out were non-stop! read more

We dined here yesterday on Labors day and waited one hours for the first dish to be ready. Then the subsequent 3 dishes were available as we finished the prior one... Like a 4 course meal. The total duration was over 2 hours and it would have been an OK experience if the dishes were good. 1/3 meal was undercooked and 3 boys ended up spitting out the honey glazed ribs. Other dishes were salty and we could not consume much although we were all starving. THEN we got a receipt with the full amount for the ordered food that were not only late but below acceptable quality level. It wasn't even worth spending time to request discount on our meals. Came home and make a small dish for my starving boy. Never returning to this place again. HORRIBLE customer service. read more

Just got charged a whopping $22 dollar for one dish to go. You be the judge. Is it a rip off? read more

Mai Place Asian Bistro - The $22 chicken.... - Cantonese Near Me - Renton, Washington

We came here mainly for Chinese set dinner during special event like birthday or friends visit. It is because they have pretty good set dinner menu and big table. The food is not bad and they serve roasted quall. read more

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Good prices. Better than I expected. They have squab or was it pigeon? Not as good as vancouver; but its the closest we get The restaurant had a special. Geo duck in three ways. We ordered that, squab, beef brisket and tendon casserole and Beijing pork. The geo duck was made into a soup, combined with vegetables, and another plate by itself. The soup was very flavorful. Everything was decent. As I said it's better than expected. If I'm ever in renton and want Chinese food, I'll poetically go here. read more

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Stopped by to try their food, ordered mandarin crispy beef, it was very good! Also ordered crispy noodles and they were good as well. Will try for lunch read more

Mai Place (the English name sounds completely different from its Chinese name for some strange reason) has a decent location on Sunset Blvd., though the exterior of the restaurant would not appeal to potential customers because it just doesn't look like a restaurant from the outside. I've been to Mai Place handful of times by now, and it is one of the more authentic Chinese restaurants in the area. Besides the quail, which usually requires advanced ordering and is just OK (overcooked), the menu items are just like other bigger Chinese restaurants around. On top of the menu itself, they have a bunch of entree names posted all over the walls throughout the restaurant. While it gets customers' attention, the ordering process could be quite funny. You'd read the menu, then walk around the restaurant to read the walls to see if there is anything else you might want.....personal opinion - Mai Place is just too cheap to add these entrees into the menu because it'd require new print jobs. The fish with taro sticks are quite good, and the taro isn't overpowering at all. The lamb hotpot is also very good, with plenty of meat and vegetables for the $ with excellent taste. The service quality depends on the wait staff, and of course does not compare to Yea's Wok, which is a famous Chinese restaurant in Newcastle. Come here if you want to try something new and authentic, but don't prepared to be "wowed" because it's nothing too special. read more