Mama Lu's Dumpling House
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Returned for lunch on a Sunday. It was pretty empty inside and we were seated right away. They gave us hot tea and peanuts. A bowl of rice is $1. The AC was kind of strong but got better as more customers filled the room. We ordered 7 dishes and they were overall pretty good. Reasonable portions for the price. I wish they added more mayo sauce for the shrimp.
We had heard a Mama Lu's had opened in Arcadia, so we had to try it. Walking into the restaurant as a party of 8 on a Saturday around 5:30pm, there was no wait. After ordering our food, within 5 minutes all our food started coming out. Service was quick! I thought the fish fillets were plump, tender, with tons of flavor. The green onion pancake was crispy. The green beans were crunchy and flavorful. The pork chops were crunchy and delicious. The soup dumplings were juicy inside with a thin wrapper on the outside. I like how the juice bursts into your mouth. There were two dishes that could be better: the chow mein noodles were just ok. It's just not made with the type of noodles that I'm used to. The mapo tofu was just ok. After eating here, I felt satisfied and full. The serving size was right and most of the dishes had good flavor. It was reasonably priced and the waiters were very attentive. I would definitely come back here again to try other dishes.
Best Chinese food that my 99 year old Cantonese Grandma chooses as her favorite! So many dishes and they are huge! Delicious fish with black bean sauce, soups and bbq! They mix in some dumplings too! Very good prices for superior dishes!
Mama Lu's is a great alternative to that fancier place (you know what I'm talking about) when you want large portions served up quickly. Service is curt but I didn't mind. We were promptly seated after some waiting list confusion and served hot tea and sugared peanuts. We wanted leftovers so between the two of us we ordered quite a few items. The miss for me were the Juicy Pork Dumplings. They were lacking the punch of flavor that I was looking for. The Shanghai Style Chow Mein and Garlic Chinese Broccoli were simple yet tasty. I am a huge fan of Hot and Sour Soup and I have to say that this was my favorite item we ordered, and comes in an extra large bowl. For our final item we ordered the Crispy Pork Belly off of their BBQ menu. Some pieces were just fat but about half of them had pork and the skin was perfectly crisped.
BEWARE CHECK YOUR FOOD BEFORE YOU TAKE A BITE!! I dont really write bad reviews but the old lady that was working pissed me off. We ordered the salt and pepper chicken wing and the roasted duck. I took a bite for the chicken and it was still raw inside so we sent it back they took it back and the lady said she was gonna replace it with a new one so no big deal. They were taking a long time making the chicken wing so we tried canceling the order since we were already getting full and we didnt want the chicken wing anymore, we told the lady and she didnt let us cancel it even though we didnt want it anymore. We were on the last 7-8 pieces of the roasted duck and luckily i checked before taking a bite because it wasnt fully cooked. We told the lady again and she said thats how it is and made it seem like i didnt know what i was looking at. We always order the duck when we go to chinese restaurants so we know how it should look like when its fully cooked. Its my first and last time at this location and wont be coming back.
Always a delightful experience. 1) found parking in .2 seconds 2) service was exceptionally friendly and quick 3) high chairs - WIN 4) delicious, delicious food 5) reasonable prices Honestly I would come here all the time if I lived closer or within takeout range. But we always try to come out if we're in the area. Always!
Decided to visit this business again last week and had a terrible experience. When I first entered the restaurant, I notified one of the waitresses that we have a table of 10 coming in. She told me she'd put my party down on her list and to have a seat in the waiting area. 5 minutes later, another waitress (or she could be the manager) said, "NUMBER 46!....NUMBER 46!...I SAID NUMBER 46!" She then looks me dead in the eyes and says snarkily, "What number are you guys?!". To which I respond, "The other waitress never gave us a ticket number. She just said she'd put our party size down on the list. We're the party with 10 people." The rude worker then proceeds to ask, "Well out of the 10 people in your party, how many have arrived?" My grandma proceeds to say, "8" while my auntie says, "9" because one of them miscounted. The rude worker then points at the both of them and says, "so which one of you is telling the truth?!" Literally WHAT?! Is that how you treat customers? Accuse them of being liars? To the manager/rude worker: 你的父母教过你礼貌吗？(No manners; do better.) The front door is also locked during business hours for some odd reason... so if you park in the front, you'll have to walk all the way around the building to the back to enter the restaurant. Super inconvenient for customers. Loud environment too. Lastly, the Xiao Long Bao tastes disgusting. The wrapper is too doughy and the soup was cold. The meat was flavorless and tasted like it was reheated from a frozen package. None of the food we ate improved from last time. Will not be coming back even if someone paid me to.
Mama Lu has great food and good service . We usually went to the one in Monterey park so we were happy when this opened up locally. The parking isn't bad because it's shared with other places like banks and other restaurants . We usually get crispy pan fried noodles, Tofu medallions , fried chicken and any vegetable dish. Honestly everything is pretty good but our favorite is the tofu medallions.
There seem to be a lot of new Mama Lu's locations opening up in the SGV, but I've never tried them before. This Arcadia location is one of the newer ones, so when my friends suggested coming here, I was excited to check it out. Parking in the back was surprisingly not very easy, considering I came on a rainy day during lunch. There are only about five parking spots in front of the restaurant. There are other parking spots nearby, but most of them are marked for the bank next door. The layout is pretty much the same as the old Tasty Garden that used to be at this location. When I went in, the restaurant wasn't very busy, and I was able to choose any open table I wanted. As I walked in, I barely saw any servers around. We ordered xiao long bao, beef rolls, Yang Chow fried rice, and French-style beef tenderloin. Overall, everything was good. The xiao long bao was juicy, the fried rice was tasty and not too oily, and the beef was tender. The beef roll, however, was just okay. The service was decent, especially if you don't mind waiting, since you don't see the servers around very often. They also sell Cantonese BBQ at the front, so don't forget to take some home with you when you leave.
Flavor is okay but the place isn't too clean and service is okay. Literally sat next to brooms and dirty dishes, I asked if they could move the brooms and they just laid them against the wall next to us. Shrimp sumai was delicious. We asked for mild kung pao and it came by so spicy, we mentioned it to the server and he said just take it home and add rice.
Nice peanuts with sugar on the side to welcome you along with tea. Highly recommend the clam mussel bok choy soup. The soup is white from the fish bones and is very milky looking and filled with flavor. Very filling! The fried fish with seaweed is great and comes in a large portion size. The pork and crab soup dumplings were great and the crab flavor is something to taste first before adding some vinegar. Everything came out together pretty quickly! Service was pretty prompt and quick. Ambiance is very family style! Seats were comfy.
My Mom and I were on our Saturday food run in San Gabriel Valley area. I was excited to find out that Mama Lu's Dumpling House is now in Arcadia. I have been wanting to come here to eat. I found the best opportunity. I brought my Mom here for lunch. Free parking behind the restaurant. Actually, most people enter through the back because the front door is closed or just locked... not sure why. They have a BBQ deli area where you can pick up a pound of this and that such as BBQ pork, roasted duck, soy sauce chicken, and more. Huge inside seating space. Cozy and clean atmosphere. One observation, the seating along the wall seem to slope down. For short people like my Mom and I (LOL), it was very uncomfortable to sit there. We had to sit on the regular chairs instead. Lady staff members were friendly and attentive. Menu had a great selection of different food items. Prices were very reasonable. We ordered 5 dishes... yes, I know there was only the two of us LOL. Hey, they don't call me the to-go or take-out gal for nothing. Anyway, every single dish was so very delicious. Flavors were on point. I can taste the WOK cooking. Portions were big. Can't go wrong with any of them. I would order all of them again and again. Funny, I ended up coming back here a week later to do take-out for a few different dishes plus roasted duck. YUMMY! - Crab With Dried Scallop & Egg White Fried Rice (I can taste the WOK!) - House Pan Fried (tasty lotus, woodear, snow pea, Chinese sausage, etc) - House Special Fish Fillet (good chunks of fish) - Juicy Pork Dumplings (very juicy!) - Simmered Free Ranch Chicken (tender and moist chicken) Highly recommend Mama Lu's Dumpling House! They seem to be popping up in different cities. I recently found out they are also located in West Covina. Cool! I will be heading over there to check them out, too. I want more WOK taste LOL.
I've been to two locations of Mama Lu's Dumpling before but this was my first time at this one. The seating is pretty clean and we were given jasmine tea right away upon sitting down. Yang Chow Fried Rice: The rice was so fluffy and we loved the Chinese sausage that was in it. It definitely helped balance out the other dishes that were more saucy. I was surprised by how generous they were with the shrimp. 10/10 recommend! Beef Pan Fried Noodles: These noodles were so delicious. It was the perfect combination of sauce, crispiness, along with the veggies and proteins. Sometimes I find that the noodles can become too soggy but I feel like this had just the right amount of sauce. Kung Pao Shrimp: The portion size was generous this was my least favorite because I felt like the sweetness was a bit too overpowering for my taste. We had a hard time getting the server's attention for togo boxes and to pay for our check. I wish they refilled the tea as well. Other than that, I recommended coming If you're looking for authentic Chinese food!
Loved the food here! We've been going to the mama Lu's in Monterey park for a while now but decided to try this one out since it's closer to us. We were pleasantly surprised! The decor is so nice and I love the giant windows that let a lot of light in. This place is very comparable to the one in Monterey park to be honest! The green onion pancake was so crispy it was 10/10! The pea sprouts were also good, not too much oil. My favorites were the soup dumplings and the fried pork buns. They were very juicy and flavorful! The service was also great, very attentive waiters making sure our tea pot was full and waters were refilled. Would definitely come back again! read more
MAMA LU DUMPLING HOUSE We got: 1) beef wrap (BEST BEEF WRAP EVER ! So juicy flavourful crispy) 2) Shanghai rice cake 3)spicy wontons (this one didn't meet my standard , I like saltier and more flavor this was more oily. I like din tai fung better for this one) 4) fish with seaweed 5) Thai style fried rice (great portion, yummy if you like sweet sour) 6)filet mignon (AMAZING) 7) juicy pork dumplings 8) honey garlic pork chop Fast quick service food, not too loud, I think this is the best location in terms of ambiance and cleanliness probably because it's new. They provided salted peanuts and tea :) I love the food here ! All very flavourful and fresh hot I think this is the spot to go for *not over priced DIM SUM options :) BEST BEEF WRAP IMO because I like more saucy with sweet hints and salty. follow me for more , Living with Luci read more
The portions here are big! We ordered half a duck, and it was juicy and tasty. The green beans came on a large plate, fried and seasoned well. The Cantonese fried noodles were also really big. That's great for sharing. The prices are reasonable for the amount of food you get. The service is quick, so you don't have to wait long. I've been to a few of their locations, and the food is always good. The restaurant is also big and clean, making it a nice place to eat. read more
9 months ago
For this year's Christmas Chinese restaurant, we chose Mama Lu's in Arcadia. They were very busy, but the staff was kind and helpful, considering the stress. * Hot and sour soup: Very good. * Kung pao chicken: Very good. * Szechuan shrimp: One of my favorites. * Beef with chili oil: I ordered this expecting a stir-fried dish, but actually received a stew. It reminded me of a lemongrassy Vietnamese stew, and I enjoyed it. Pork dumpling: Tasty. Chicken chow mein: Tasty. read more
1 year ago
5 months ago
The location is chill and a relaxed restaurant. Enough space to walk around. Has a to go window as well. Very well known for smoked duck. Love their dumplings and chowmein all very flavorful. Parking is in the back . read more
2 months ago
mama lu's always hits! they have a big and spacious parking lot in the back, which is great. located next to the bank. the food is always phenomenal, offering authentic chinese flavors and textures and freshness. the biggest highlight for us was the portion size too. 3 dishes fed us for 3 meals for 2 days lol. so value! the restaurant is clean and modernly decorated, perfect for large groups or date night or even solo eating! my fav activity here is practicing my ordering in cantonese! the staff know english, canto, and mando which is always great. shoutout to their serving staff of seemingly all women / aunties! come here for authentic chinese food!! they wont disappoint. if you like din tai fung, give mama lu's a try forsure :-) read more
Was expecting this new location to be just as good as the other ones but it was a bit disappointing. Service was good but food was so so. Flavor is a bit off, especially the seafood fried noodle. It was quite bland and the seafood items were scarce. The decor is modern but I believe the renovation was from the previous ownership/restaurant. Large parking lot in the back. read more
5 months ago
The beef wrap was amazing. It was a perfect blend of fresh cucumber, chives, perfect amount of hoisin sauce and beef. And the crispy onion, pancake outer layer was fried too perfection, light and fluffy, but still crispy. The soup dumplings (xlb) was very juicy. The fried pork dumplings was pretty tasteless and I didn't feel like the dough was fully done. We opted to come here due to no wait vs Ding Tai fung . And we did not regret it. The prices were very reasonable & fast service, hot food. read more
We came on a Friday night. This place was pretty packed, but we got seated right away! The food came out FAST. They take your order on an iPad and we got most of our food in less than five minutes. It's a little bit of a red flag when we first got our orders. But I had no issues with the food. It was all delicious. The place itself was kind of cramped. The tables were kind of close together. The inside is very big and the decor is pretty nice. I also like the plates!! Parking is also kind of hard to find. read more
2 years ago
Came here for lunch on a Saturday, and honestly the experience wasn't that memorable. Maybe I just have way fonder memories of the dumplings, especially the frozen ones in bulk that I used to eat all the time, but I agree that it doesn't seem like this place matches up with the Monterey Park branch. The noodles were a bit bland, and felt lacking in the quantity of meat. We had the steamed sea bass which wasn't bad, but wish there was more of it especially given the price. Finally, the pan seared buns had good meat on the inside, but the outside can be a bit on the drier side. Overall not bad, but this place needs a lunch special for a average meal, and/or improve the food, otherwise I wouldn't be coming to this location very often in the future. read more
We were so excited with Mama Lu's opened in Arcadia. My aunt got their food months ago and said it was just OK, but I chalked it to their new opening. So when we were thinking of where to eat for dinner, we decided to give it a chance. We placed the order and they said it would be done in 20 minutes. When we got there, we were annoyed to find out that they said that they don't have our order. 5 mins later, they found our order, but it was still take another 10 to 15 minutes. Now, let's get to the food and see if it was worth the wait. Let's just say, it wasn't worth it. The wonton lack flavor. The seaweed fish and seafood pan fried noodle was just okay. The only thing I liked from this location was the xiao long bao. I think if I ever crave Mama Lu's again... I'd rather drive to Monterey Park location and get the food from there. read more
For years, I've been hoping Mama Lu's will come to Arcadia, so it's a nice surprise to see them open a new location less than 10 minutes away. The interior is larger, brighter, more contemporary than their original on Garvey in Monterey Park. The service is prompt and efficient. The staff is always moving at a fast pace to get the turnover moving along. The food came out hot and fast. The flavor however, although good, isn't great like the OG location. Seaweed fish: Hot, crispy and tasty. Served with salt/pepper for dipping. Use it sparingly because it's very salty. 4/5 Sautéed string beans: Crisp fresh beans in garlic. Pretty good. 3.5/5 Beef Roll/Wrap: Generous amounts of sliced beef, but it's bland. The beef doesn't taste marinated, nor are these made with a slightly sweet sauce like many other places. I probably wouldn't order these again. 2.5/5 Eggplant in garlic sauce: Heavy for a veggie dish, and can use a bit more pork slices in here. There are some places that make it better. 3/5. XLB: Not bad. There's a bit of juices in here but not where it can fill a soup spoon. These took the longest to come out. 3/5 Chicken fried rice: It's on the lighter side, as in it can use a bit more salt/seasoning. Also, the chicken is lacking, but it has a nice fragrant wok taste. 3.5/5 Food overall isn't bad. Service is quick, but not very personable which is to be expected from most Chinese restaurants. Other info: There's a shared parking lot in the back. Many closer spots are reserved for Wells Fargo, but you should find one a few steps further away. The rear entrance from the lot leads you to the BBQ takeout station. This also serves as the area where people wait for their tables. For weekends, I'd say after 12:30ish is when the line gets quite long. This location does not sell the frozen dumplings and wontons like the MP location. So I would occasionally have to still drive out there to pick some up. For me, from the first visit, it's a 3.5 rounding up to a 4 because I'm just happy they're in Arcadia now. read more
Mama Lu's has opened another location! I've been too a few and the quality in Arcadia definitely stands out then the other locations. The seaweed fish was a standout. For being a fried fish, the batter wasn't greasy and actually felt light. Soup dumplings and pan fried dumplings are always a must get. Although we didn't order and noodles or rice, we saw our neighboring table order them and the portions were huge!! Also, this location has a bbq takeout section like Sam woo which is quite convenient! read more
SUPER excited that another Mama Lu's location has opened up! I've always been a fan of their soup dumplings, and they're just as good here if not better--juicy, flavorful, and perfectly wrapped. The beef rolls are really good too and perfectly crispy but not too heavy. I also tried the sautéed pea sprouts which were pretty good too--not the best I've had but the big portion size made up for it! Service is great overall. The place does get pretty busy, so be prepared for a bit of a wait. Absolutely worth it though in my opinion! read more
2 years ago
Servers were nice and inside was clean. Plenty of parking in the back. Wait was 20 minutes for 1:30 PM on Sunday. Back door leads you to the BBQ place. Spacious seating. Non-dunpling Food is mediocre compared to many other similar types. Their wontons are good . Wouldn't recommend udon noodles. Deep fried dough with condensed milk is very good. Beef wraps - 101 makes it better. read more
1 year ago
Mama Lu's is a chain, this review is for the Arcadia location. The portions are huge, the prices are fair, and the food is consistently flavorful. Some of my favorites like the house fish, bok choy, fried rice, and French style tenderloin make it easy to share a family-style meal. Service is fast and friendly, and having parking in the back makes it convenient. With its generous servings and authentic flavors, this Arcadia spot has become a dependable go-to for hearty Chinese comfort food. read more
I was really excited when Mama Lu opened in Arcadia. I went here on a Saturday night and this place was packed. I went towards the back parking lot entrance where the BBQ items are. There was no one to help get me a ticket for a table so I had to walk inside the restaurant until a waiter saw me and gave me a number. I had about 3-4 tables ahead of me and he said waiting time would be quick. I waited about 30 mins for a table and more people started to come in after me waiting for a table but there was no one in site to give them a ticket. FYI, just walk inside the restaurant and have a waiter give you a ticket instead of waiting for someone. I ordered the : Pan-fried dumplings: 3/5, they were ok, looks like they just toss in a pan Beef Roll: 3/5, the cucumbers are sweet, the meat kind of taste like pho, wish it had more sauce. Crab and Pork Dumplings: 5/5 juicy and my favorite out of the dishes Spicy Wontons: 4/5, it wasn't spicy but a sweet taste to it. I really like the filling. Maybe because they are still new, the food doesn't taste the same as the Monterey Park location, some of the food seem like its lacking some flavor. I will definitely come back when the place is more settle down. read more
28 days ago
Man... tbh this location is such an huge disappointment.... We've been long time patrons to Mama Lu's for a long long time. I was just at the Pasadena location in Dec and it was great. So when this location opened up we were sooo excited cuz it's so close by to where we live. It's where Monarch used to be and they spent a lot on interior decors so the ambience is pretty nice. However it feels kind of like a warehouse inside where there's a lot of ambient noise so you gotta talk louder even to the person directly next to you. Food was ??????.... Seafood fried noodles 6/10, there was no flavor whatsoever, and we could tell they didn't actually fry the noodles, they bought them as is and only poured the sauce over it. Chives pockets 8/10, okay these were pretty decent, but a bit too oily for my taste. The skin of the pocket is chewy though which is nice. Fried seaweed fish 7.5/10, the breading is too thick, but the fish is pretty juicy. Honey Pork chops 8.5/10, these were pretty good. No complaints. Black bean clams 4/10, the dish didn't have too many clams to start with, and we found that a bunch of the clams were dead and didn't even open. When we were about half way through the dish (that's when we found out about the excessive number of unopened clams) and brought it up to the manager, she said "oh you guys should of told us earlier we could've redone the dish for you" and walked away. Think we'll stick to the several other locations... not coming back to this one. Pure disappointment. read more
This space used to be Tasty Garden around 10-15 years ago, then Monarch over the last couple years, and now Mama Lu's. I came with family during opening week and it wasn't too busy. You can tell they've tried to incorporate some of the Monarch's decor and furniture into their restaurant. We ordered the XLB, beef noodle soup, beef rolls, and a fried rice dish. Although the food itself was cooked well, everything seemed to lack a bit of flavor. I guess I was expecting more of an explosion of flavors like I've experienced at the MPK location but the lightness and blandness was unfamiliar to me in terms of restaurant food. The complimentary fried buns were a nice touch. I will probably have to come back in a few months for a fair review. read more
1 year ago
Very clean and plenty of seating. We ordered: juicy pork dumplings, spicy wontons, sautéed string beans, and beef udon! We enjoyed everything that we ordered. read more
7 months ago
7 months ago
Lady told us to sign in for 3 and wait by the bbq area. Few mins later, couple walks in, another lady seats them. Ummm so why am I signing in for? Useless sign in sheet. Theres no 5 guest ahead waiting, we're only the ones at #74. Some couple walks in and says "for 2" and got seated on table for 4. read more
1 year ago
Good food, and authentic. Recommend BLACK PEPPER BEEF TENDERLOIN STIR FRIED UDON Came here a few times. Overall food is pretty good, and service is acceptable. Got seated pretty quick and ordered pretty quick. Food is authentic and server could speak Cantonese/Mandarin. read more
10 months ago
6 months ago
The food is amazing and all the employees are so nice and attentive. The spicy wontons are sooo delicious. read more
4 months ago
1 year ago
Opened six months ago. Ordered pan fried seafood noodles- large portion with shrimp, with fish, fish cake, Bok Choy, mushroom, sliced carrot all in gravy sauce. Very tasty and more than filling. Ice water and tea offered with small plate of salted peanuts to nibble while waiting. Also ordered fried pork bun-quite impressed with its flavor, texture and size. My son ordered just udon with shrimp (forgot to add broccoli) stir fried in light soy sauce. He loved his dish. We will surely visit again. It also has a separate section for dumplings, sui mai, roast duck, etc with side dishes - suitable for a quick lighter fast meal. It's next to Wells Fargo and U.S. banks, so convenient for us. Clean, spacious with fast courteous service. Much nearer for us than its sister branch in Monterey Park that we previously frequented. read more
1 year ago
Pan Fried Bun: Not what I expected. It looks nice and crispy from its appearance, but it has a soggy, thick bun inside and meat that is kind of "dry" because all the juices have soaked into the bun. Beef Roll: Crispy skin, tasty inside, but other stores like Noodle Street are better. Pan Fried Noodle with Beef: Just OK, it is overpoweringly salty from the soy sauce flavor. Plenty of tables, bright environment, fast service Parking is kind of hard to find. Most of them belong to Wells Fargo Bank and Bank of America customers only. read more
9 months ago
Past few experiences were pretty good. Dumpling and shao long bao are delicious. We ordered beef stew noodle today and was a disappointment. Noodle came dry and we asked chef to fix it and the soup flavor is not traditional Taiwanese beef stew noodle. The meat is hard, dry, and soup tastes like Chinese BBQ flavor. We returned the noodle because it was just awfully bad and still came up in our check. Not to mention their pancake is super and greasy oil. If you are up for pork dumplings it's worth to try. read more
6 months ago
"There's nothing quite like the feeling of stepping into Mama Lu's Dumpling House and ordering too much food. it's pure comfort. Whether it's their signature Juicy Pork Dumplings, the comforting wor wonton soup, or their original hot and sour soup, every bite is perfect ! If you haven't been to this place, this is place to be highly recommended! read more
8 months ago
This was my first time visiting, and I left completely satisfied. Everything tasted amazing, the staff was very friendly, and the restaurant was spacious and comfortable. You can tell it gets busy during dinner time, which speaks to its popularity. I would definitely recommend it. The duck and juicy dumplings were my favorite! read more
9 months ago
The salt and pepper wings were easily my favorite dish. The wings were excellent with a perfect crunch and tender, juicy chicken inside. The hot and sour soup was flavorful, the fish was well prepared, and the rice was tasty. Both the beef and chicken dishes were solid and satisfying. Service was friendly and fast. Overall, a delicious Chinese food spot! read more
1 year ago
Have eaten my way through smoky hawker stalls, back alleys, and banquet halls. I know what Chinese food is supposed to taste like--bold, soulful, unapologetically alive, humming with tradition and regional swagger. Which is why Mama Lu's Dumpling House in Arcadia doesn't just miss the mark--it feels like an act of culinary vandalism. The food here is so offensively bad, it's as if the cooks in the back are all deliberately squatting over 5,000 years of Chinese culinary tradition just to see who can take the biggest, steamiest, and greasiest pile of shit on it. Let's get something straight -- I used to like the original Mama Lu's. Many did. But this location? Whether it's a bootleg operation using the name, or a franchise run by people who've never tasted their own food, this place is a farce--a counterfeit version of what Chinese food should be. It does to the cuisine what wax fruit does to hunger: fake, lifeless, and vaguely insulting. The crispy seafood noodle was a culinary war crime. No squid. No scallops. Just limp bok choy, low-grade fish cakes, and flavorless filets that taste like they'd been thawed in a sink next to a dirty mop. The noodles were soggy, not crispy. The only thing crunchy was the rising irritation. Then came the pork chops. "Fried," they claimed. In reality: soggy, limp, and so depressingly underwhelming they could've been steamed in someone's armpit. Flabby and joyless, like the B-side of a karaoke ballad in a dying dive bar. And for this masterclass in mediocrity? I dropped a hundred bucks--and walked out feeling like they should've paid me for choking down the garbage they had the gall to plate. It felt less like a meal and more like culinary assault. By the time I left, I was half-convinced I'd just been forced to gargle the chef's balls--and genuinely considered filing a police report afterwards for being forced to endure this cultural travesty. This isn't Chinese food. It's a hollow, microwaved echo. Even Capital Seafood--yes, that Capital Seafood--can manage something vaguely presentable. Mama Lu's in Arcadia doesn't even show up to the fight. It's a blight on the San Gabriel Valley food scene and a slap in the face to every chef who ever picked up a wok with pride. Avoid it. Burn the receipt. Then go somewhere that actually respects the food. read more
I've been going to Mama Lu's in Monterey Park for years, so I was super happy to see them open a new spot in Arcadia. This location's got some cool additions like BBQ pork and ducks, which you didn't get at the original. They've taken over the old Monarch restaurant space--fancy vibes replaced with awesome dumplings! The menu still has all the classics that made Mama Lu's famous, like XLB and onion pancakes, plus Cantonese stuff like beef chow fun. We've been a few times already and loved the BBQ pork ribs and the steamed Chilean sea bass--both were seriously tasty. The service here's been great, but parking's a bit of a pain since the lot's shared with two banks that hog most of the spots. Still, I'm excited to keep coming back and try more dishes and the prices are very reasonable. read more
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Mama Lu's Dumpling House - shanghainese - Updated September 2026
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