Well i'm going to sound repetitive in that we stopped in for lunch yesterday and had one of the best Chinese food experiences I've ever had. We order many things to sample and every dish was fresh, delicious and beautifully served. Service and atmosphere very pleasant as well. This is our new go to Chinese place in Novato. We absolutely loved it. read more

Great food and excellent service. The business owner is very friendly. The place is so nice and clean.

Great service, everyone there is always nice especially the owner. Haven't tried everything on the menu yet but the Mongolian beef is my go-to. read more

I've heard about this restaurant recently from a close friend of mine so our group decided to try it and everything tasted amazing!

I'd rather drive farther to spend my money on better Chinese food and support a more hospitable restaurant that knows how to provide good service. Owner is extremely rude for no reason, idk how you treat your own customers that way. She gave my party attitude and as a result we felt unwelcome and overall uncomfortable. Food gave me an upset stomach and I felt horrible the whole day on the verge of throwing up. Went to the bathroom and took a glance in the kitchen which was hella dirty with grime and stains on the floors and counters. Wouldn't be surprised if there were cockroaches or mice. Save yourself the trip & go to another restaurant instead. Disgusting read more

Definitely one of THE best chinese food that I've had in a long time!! The owners are very friendly and personable. The fried rice is not too hard. The beef is sliced thin so the flavors soak in yet cooked just right! AND it's not over cooked such that it's not unchewable. The braised tofu definitely is a must try!!! So are the dumplings! The sweet and sour soup is just a tad bit on the salty side for my taste, but that is because I can't tolerate too much sodium. I'll definitely come back and try the rest on the menu. The only drawback is that it's too far from me (Santa Rosa ) read more

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Delicious, clean and tasty. The Honey Walnut Prawns and Kung Pao Chicken are probably the best I have ever had. Also had veggie chow mein for the kids along with spring rolls and pot stickers. Everyone was super happy. Oh and order the eggplant and green beans, so good! And since it's during COVID-19 so my husband picked up and the owners we so kind and friendly. read more

Sorry. Really wanted to like this place. Came here on a rainy rainy night. Ordered Westlake soup, not very tasty. I had two spoons and left the rest. I forget what else we ordered but it was only memorable in that none of it tasted very good. Got free potstickers due to yelp check in, but those were soggy and tasteless. I know it's a local owned business, that's why I really wanted to like this place. But if you're Asian, and especially if you're Chinese, please don't waste your time. read more

Best thing I can say is it arrived hot. The Peking duck was fatty and under done. Chewy is not a pleasant experience! The sizzling seafood platter was marginal. Calamari was barely cooked. Chow mein and fried rice - I have had better. Could not compete with restaurants in San Francisco! read more

I tried Ming Yen for lunch with some co-workers recently, and I think it is the best Chinese food I've had in Novato to date. I only tried one dish, and was happy that it wasn't too salty or too oily. I've driven by this nondescript building for years and am glad I finally went to try it. They have a variety of lunch specials, and the interior has a bit of a diner feel to it. Try them out! read more

Ming Yen - Chinese Near Me - Novato, California

This is my new favorite Chinese food take out. The food is always good and the service friendly. They don't frown if I ask for extra sauce (like my old place). I love their wonton soup, pot stickers, and pork fried rice. I hope when the pandemic is over and we can eat inside to come here and enjoy a good meal in this cute little place. read more

We are fairly new to the area, and we are so happy we found this place. The food is delicious, the prices are reasonable, and Peggy and her husband are so sweet. We had orange chicken, sautéed vegetables, vegetable potstickers, and chicken wonton soup. All of it was excellent! My only complaint might be that we were told there were no mushrooms in the vegetables, when, in fact there was, and my fiancé is mildly allergic. Other than that, it was a fantastic experience, and we will be back often. read more

My Points Index {100}: Authenticity 40% Food 30% Service 10% Price 10% Ambient 5% Cleanliness 5% Authenticity 3/5 Food 3.5/5 Service 3/5 Price 3/5 Ambient 3/5 Cleanliness 3.5/5 64 points Remark: A solid typical US Chinese restaurant. read more

Fantastic food! The house crispy noodles and mongolian beef were both fantastic, as well as the hot and sour soup. Very tasty, friendly service, I highly recommend Ming Yen! read more

My favorite Chinese food in Novato. Love the Potstickers, Chicken Chow-Mein, General Chicken, War Wonton soup, and dry roasted green beans. I take my family here and we always get those dishes. Service is excellent and they are generous with their portions and extra's like Capri Sun drinks for the kids when we come in. Restaurant is clean and nice. Would definitely recommend. read more

Absolutely delicious. We were looking for a great Chinese food place around here and we found it. Clean restaurant, great service, and delicious food. Couldn't ask for more! Will definitely be back. read more

Always enjoy my meals at Ming Yen. The food is always fresh, flavorful and delicious and the owners are always friendly and service is attentive. read more

Vicki the owner is wonderful..we had the last minute get together on Sunday and called in to get our order in...Vicki took care of us. The foods were great and everyone had 2nd or 3 rd servings...the portion were big too..highly recommended Ming Yuen ! read more

Wonderful experience. A gem in Novato. A family-owned restaurant that is really striving for a great experience. One of the best hot and sour soups around coupled with the largest potsticker I have ever had. Very worth the stop. read more

Having lived in San Francisco and traveled around a bit, I think I know my chop sticks. I'm not one for hyperbole but I think Ming Yen is the best Chinese restaurant in Marin. Each dish is executed perfectly and the service is impeccable. Peggy and her husband make you feel like right at home. Hands down, the best hot and sour soup I've ever had. My highest recommendation. read more

We usually go to SF for great Asian food but thought we'd give this local business a try. My favorite dish to order is Kung Pao Chicken. In all my attempts to order this, there have only been two restaurants that make it the way I like. I specifically asked the very nice waiter to make it mild, not spicy. When it arrived, it was so spicy I couldn't eat it. The lady at the front desk berated me as she said I need to say no spicy. But I did say that. They remade it and it just had too much boring celery , zucchini, and it just didn't cut it. Their spring rolls were okay, not greasy. The wor won ton soup was fair. All in all it was just average. read more

Be forewarned, there are no written stipulations on the Yelp "Check In" coupon for a free appetizer. You are relegated to only the least expensive ones. They really should write out clear expectations on the coupon. Shanghai noodle is *delicious*. This is not a common menu item in restaurants so here is your chance. Highly recommend. I normally don't order "American Chinese" dishes but something had me in the mood for general chicken. The sauce is just tasty enough I kept going back for more, much to my surprise. read more

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I've never in all my years experienced this at a restaurant. And I travel all over the United States too. We ordered the Szechuan Dinner Combo for 2 people from their restaurant menu they gave us. According to their menu it had Szechuan beef and chicken with mushrooms. And neither of them had a spicy icon next to the dish. When they brought out the food it was completely different than what we ordered on their menu. And it was really spicy and not edible to us. Even the sauce for the pot stickers was spicy. When I asked for the menu and showed her what we ordered she got really angry and upset and brought over a To Go menu yelling we ordered from the wrong menu. I said I ordered from the menu she gave us. And we wanted what we ordered. She got really angry and threw down the menus on the floor and had a scary temper tantrum. Here I am with my 90-year-old mother who is scared to death of her. So we immediately got up and left. My husband tried to reason with them to just give us what we ordered but she continued to yell at him and wouldn't relent. So we all left. We ended up going to Chinese House which was excellent and we were treated with respect and professionalism. Update: The owner's feedback are all absolute lies. She is adding lies onto her abuse. This person does not have any integrity or compassion and does not have even a drop of customer service. You won't stay in business long by throwing menus down and throwing a major hissy fit in Chinese that no one can understand. She has been caught in her lies becuz obviously we did not eat all the food becuz it was TOO SPICY!!!! She never once offered to replace the dishes that were not what we ordered. In fact, all we consumed was some of the soup and water. We never called the police but we were close to with how abusive she was. The police never came and kicked out a 90 year old lady. And we are not Chinese so it's absolutely ridiculous to ask people to know what dishes are spicy and which are not or to understand her rants in Chinese. You need to communicate with your customers and put spicy icons on your menu and make sure that you give people what they actually ordered from the menu you give them. Many of the reviews on here complain about this owner and her anger snd racism. As a mental health counselor myself I can say this woman is emotionally unstable. Pay attention, and don't go here. Becuz you have much better Chinese restaurants in your town and you won't be abused, and you'll receive what you actually ordered. read more

Returned to Novato for the best Chinese food around during these challenging times! Peggy hasn't missed a beat regardless of the "Governor's mandate" or the media driven fear about another virus! The Food is still delicious. The service is still great! And the customer service is still first class!! Thank Ming Yen for another great meal! read more

This is the best Chinese food I have had in the bay. The house fried rice wor wonton soup are staples and potstickers. You can't go wrong

The food here was amazing, the service was amazing, and Peggy was such a nice person to me and my friends always checking on us!

This place is one of the very few spots I go out to eat when I'm in Novato. The food here is great and it truly pains me to see how some people slander small businesses where they haven't even eaten before! The owner Peggy is such a lovely person, she always takes care of me and my friends when we drop by and also slides us some extra! read more

Heard this place has gone through multiple changes in owners recently. It use to be of my favorite childhood places for lunch in the 90s. It's been a few years since I last visited so I decided to place a simple order by phone just for nostalgic sake. I was immediately greeted rudely by a disrespectful woman on phone. Her tone was very aggressive. I was not sure if I called at the worst time. She immediately shouted the price $21.00 with tax for 2 items which was absurd for lunch. I only wanted a simple lunch combo to go, but she had trouble understanding. I questioned if she was attempting to overcharge and she immediately refused to take my order. I hate to leave bad reviews, but they need to get their customer service in check. The Lunch Special was the one thing they did better compared to other Chinese restaurants in the Novato area. read more

I really appreciate this aunthentic chinese food with real fresh ingredients, thank you so much for the excellent service, and positive vibes. This restaraunt has the fastest service. read more

First off they gave us the wrong order. War wonton soup isn't even close to hot and sour soup. Salty water with chicken, shrimp, beef, and bok choy. Potstickers were burnt, not just brown from the frying pan. The woman was screaming to someone on the phone about their order. Our regular go to was closed on Monday. Never would I recommend this restaurant. We went to Ming Yen for years then when the new owner came in, it went down very fast. read more

Horrible, horrible experience. If I could give negative stars about the service I would. Wouldn't seat us when the restaurant was empty. I get COVID regulations, but there were many, MANY tables that were 6 feet apart. It wasn't about COVID. She (the owner maybe?) wanted us to sit where two guys weren't even done eating. She was rushing them to leave, so that we could take their table. They even looked stunned. When we asked to be seated somewhere else (6 feet apart) to not rush the other guys, she got very impatient and started yelling. She yelled at us to get out and wouldn't serve us after we repeatedly asked to be sat at one of the many other empty tables. Worst costumer service experience I've ever encountered. Super rude owner, was yelling at us to get out...like common??! I've read previous reviews and they are right, super mean and rude owner. Never again. The two guys were Hispanic and so are we, so she wanted us to take their table. The only other people that were there was a Caucasian (or looked white) family and were on the opposite side of the restaurant. There was definitely racism going on, she only wanted us to replace the Hispanic family with ours even though there were many other empty tables. I hate to bring race into this, but it was very racist. The Hispanic guys weren't even done eating and she was telling them to leave to give us, the other Hispanic family a table. They told us their disbelief as well. We had no problem waiting, it was just the way everything was handled. Complete and utter disbelief. read more

Grew up in the city as a kid, Ming Yen satisfied my craving for Chinese food. Service is always friendly and food is always great. Been here a few times now and the service and food is always on point. read more

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The owner is mentally unstable. She is argumentative and scary. She obviously doesn't understand that when you treat people badly and don't care about what they want that you are losing customers. Be careful becuz if you order on their restaurant menu they gave you as you are seated in the restaurant that you should actually order from the ToGo menu. That was her excuse after she brought out the wrong dishes. She was out of control angry when I told her it was the wrong dish. Everything I ordered they got wrong. And then didn't want to fix it. And by the way, when is Wor Waton Soup ever made spicy? It was awful and the pot stickers were burnt. read more

We had friends from out of town that wanted some good Chinese food. In the 15 years I've lived down the street from this place I have only tried it once and I couldn't remember how good it was or was not. I read some reviews on FB and on Yelp and thought I would give it another try. We ordered the Szechuan dinner for four people and two extra orders of hot and sour soup. it was not cheap we did not get our free items. They said it would be ready in 10 minutes. We got there in under 10 minutes into my surprise our entire order was ready. When we got home to eat all the food, it taste like it was leftover from lunch. No one could finish their food. We had lots of leftover that went straight to the trash it was that awful. NEVER AGAIN! read more

I'm 68, grew up in San Francisco and moved to Novato in 1965. It took me 55 years to try Chinese food here. My son told me "Try Ming Yen" a million times over the past decades. Last Friday I finally did it and was so happy I did. Great Chicken Chow Mein!!! Absolutely outstanding. We DoorDashed dinner. It brought back childhood memories of Chicken Chow Mein at a little hole-in-the-wall on Chestnut St, Tin Tin Chop Suey in Honolulu and Far East Cafe on Grant Ave. All 5 Stars. Ming Yen is 5 Stars with 5 exclamation points!!!!! I considered those long-gone jewels the best at savoriness and delicious-ness. MSG? Not a problem with me. Mom was from Osaka and MSG was standard issue in my family and I'm still here. Can't stop recommending Ming Yen to friends and family. Their food is the BEST! Ming Yen has been around for decades. I hope they're around for decades more. read more

The food I ordered came out fantastic, it was warm, delicious, and exactly what i was looking for when looking for good Chinese food. The lady who took my order was very polite and welcoming overall it was a very good experience for me. read more

Rude staff. Refused to answer a simple question as to how long take out order would be. Their website said order would be ready at 3:58 pm. Refused to check status of order at 4:05 other than saying it was being prepared. read more

This place has great customer service that counts for a lot I ordered some foods for delivery and they missed an item and without tell them on the next order I made they sent me a chow main for the order they did not send on the prior order , great food as well A must try place read more

Unhappy with what I received or I should say lack of. Was charged for protein added on my veggies and never received. Found this in my Seafood soup and unsure what it really is. Would recommend checking orders before picking up a take-out order. Order was ready one time. read more

Ming Yen - Seafood Tofu Soup- found this in my soup. - Chinese Near Me - Novato, California

I remember awhile back the vaunted website fivethirtyeight.com had a contest to determine the best burrito. Editor-in-chief Nate Silver posited the concept of a "replacement-level restaurant", essentially being a run-of-the-mill Chinese restaurant - no frills on any level, but still managing to do what they're supposed to do, and earning three stars. Ming Yen accomplishes this on the quality of food itself - not particularly memorable, but it didn't make me sick either. The problem is essentially everything else. Yes, I know that my expectations for this format should be modest. But here are a list of things that went wrong: 1) It's December, put the heat on. I'm a guy who often complains of places being sauna-like, and even I felt chilly. 2) I know there was a remodel recently, and at least the outside looks better. But put some color inside to make people welcome. 3) Wait at least a minute before taking our order. Don't act huffy because we aren't quite ready yet. 4) That being said, you don't have to take another ten minutes before coming back. 5) We ordered three main dishes. We probably should've known better when we only received one that a problem was amiss. But the server didn't come back for another 30 minutes after that. Leading to... 6) If customers are constantly looking towards the kitchen, investigate. Leading to... 7) Don't give customers the "hurry up and leave" look, especially when the restaurant is less than half full. 8) If there's a problem with delivering dishes (which was most certainly the case here), apologize and explain what happened. Expedite to remedy the problem. 9) In the case where a significant portion of the meal was forgotten about, offer to comp the meal. Didn't happen here. 10) It didn't seem as if the other customers, such as they were, were all that jazzed about their meals either. Complaints overheard about chlorine-tasting water, forgotten dishes, etc. It's too bad - we had thought with new ownership at least the appearance of trying would be present. Maybe we picked a bad night, but we're not going to try again. read more