Renee's is very good Chinese food. I'm not sure if its authentic (I'm not Chinese), but I do know that they use higher quality meat and vegetables than most other Chinese places. In most of the dishes I've tried, the flavor is outstanding as well. The orange beef is a big winner, as is the chicken with crispy noodles. Chicken lettuce cups are solid, but I've had better at other restaurants. Hot & Sour soup is also just OK. The service is fast and attentive. The owner is super nice, and almost always stops by to ensure that you enjoy your meal. The decor is nice and classy. Overall it is a good experience. read more

I would give Renee's 3.5 stars. I ordered take out from Renee's for dinner. The space is very quaint and I really like Renee, she's mad cool. I like the fact that the restaurant tries to cater to folks who prefer organic and vegetarian options. I ordered Garlic shrimp, brown rice and veggie pot stickers. The good points: the food was piping hot and the portion size fed 2 people. The points for consideration: the food was a little salty and a bit pricey. So, my review reflects the price, more so than the saltiness or the dining experience (as I didn't dine in). Nonetheless, I will definitely give Renee's another try. read more

Albany has really great Asian food, like China village. But the freshness of this place for vegetarians make it 5 star! They make any dish on the menu vegetarian!!! Try the kung pao and orange "chicken"! Oh if only I could afford to eat all my meals here! read more

Simply put: Organic Chinese-Food. Vegetables are organic when possible, Niman Ranch beef, pork, and lamb, and Petaluma Poultry all adorn the placard you see when you first walk into this Solano Avenue destination. So all high quality ingredients to start, input into classic Chinese dishes we have all known and loved. Everything I had was good, and so I come to wonder: why hasn't this been done before? Often times Chinese food is either bland, cloyingly sweet, or full of sodium, possibly MSG, and who knows what else. I don't eat it much, being an average American who was exposed to way too many strip-plaza take-out joints, as there seems to have been as many Chinese restaurants as there were pizzerias, and most of them, not very good. So if you were one of these people - go here, as this will change your mind. And if you already eat heavily within the genre, you will still like it, since the food just tastes good. And even better, it's all organic. Chinatown, Northern California style. read more

The second time I went to this place, they poisoned my food (I am highly gluten intolerant). I ordered two dishes: a shrimp dish and an eggplant dish. The owner of the resteraunt is usually pretty good about catering to my group of food allergies. They must have had a new cook or something, because she checked the shrimp dish, and they had put soy sauce in it, making us wait an extra 10 mins so they could re-make it. Okay, no biggie. But, she didn't check the eggplant dish, and since I had never had it before, I didn't know any better. An hour later, I was bent over in pain. Lesson: if it's clear, you're pretty good to go. If it's brown, it probably has soy sauce in it! I have a bottle of organic tamari sauce I am going to bring the lady next time I eat there. read more

Renee's is my favorite East Bay spot for yummy Chinese food. I have eaten here many times, and the food has such clean flavors and fresh tasting ingredients. Our favorite dish by far is the rock cod soup! Started as a special, and now on the menu. If you like spicy fish, I definitely recommend sharing this with someone or the whole table! Definitely make reservations, or avoid busy nights because this place can fill up really quick! When you drive past many restaurants and only one has a line out the door, its easy to tell the tasty spot on the block. Service here is fantastic! Every time I eat here, Renee comes to check on how the food and service have been. I think that is such a great touch! Someone once told me that the secret to getting repeat customers is not just to have great food, but to create an atmosphere where they feel as though they belong. This is one of those friendly places that will always make you feel welcome. read more

I never tried Renee's Place because I always found myself going to Bowl'd instead. When I learned of its use of organics (overrated for certain preparations), the Sichuan influences (always a plus), and I read the generally positive Yelp reviews, I was intrigued. Per usual, I went to the "chef's specialities" section and tried two dinners: (1) Smoked Sirloin Pork (described as: "Lightly smoked Prather Ranch pork, with organic green cabbage and scallions") and (2) General Tso's Chicken (described as: "Diced chicken deep-fried with green and red bell peppers in hot spicy garlic sauce"). First, yeah, I know, General Tso's chicken is not Sichuan, but it is a lifelong guilty pleasure of mine. As such, if a restaurant looks promising, I always try it and I have always been slightly to largely disappointed by all the variants that I've had on the West coast. Why is this? I do not know, but I did not have this problem when I lived in Chicago (an underrated food town, actually). And yes, I know there's a bit of sentimentality from my experiences in NJ, NYC, and Philadelphia, but I will digress no more about my golden youth. Renee's version is good, not great - certainly not spicy, and nothing I would ever crave. This is not said to dissuade you - Renee can cook. I'm just not going to say this is a great General Tso's chicken. I was most curious about the smoked sirloin pork - and I enjoyed this dish because it tasted fine. Alors, there was no smoke (I really hoped for it - the Sichuan can lace a meal with a light and appealing smokiness) and it was a surprisingly small portion (as was the General Tso's chicken). This was one of those situations where I don't think a customer gains any benefit from organic produce. Tomatoes, absolutely. Certain lettuces? Definitely. You can taste the difference. But onions? Cabbages? (Or, as an aside, something like a russet potato?) No, no, no. But it is surely reflected in the price. In conclusion, I'd recommend patronizing Renee's Place because it's doing good work and Renee makes tasty food. But given my lukewarm feelings about non-Sichuan Chinese food, I will be hard pressed to go back when Bowl'd is next door. read more

Ah! I LOVE eating here! After a bit of a hiatus, my husband and I dined here tonight and I'm so glad we did! Everything that I put in my first review of Renee's still holds and Renee herself is just such a warm and kind person! If you do give Renee's a go, I hope you're lucky enough to get Ivy as your server. Ivy just enhances your dining experience. Super sweet and genuine as well, she'll give you great recommendations if you're not sure what to order, just let her know what your favorite flavors are. While every business can't be "spot on" all the time, I feel like Renee's always tries to go a step above...and I truly appreciate that in a restaurant. read more

Wow! Incredibly underwhelming!! Szechuan prawns + Hot Wontons = mediocre at best. Ridiculous music = Moonllght Sonata and not cool or interesting retro?! Renee and interior design sense = Incredibly lovely and welcoming. Wait staff = Eager at first -yet dismissive and inattentive afterwards. Beverages = Bottle of warm white wine for $22. Guess I'll try lunch for the follow-up. So disappointed, considering.... Review from walk-in at 7pm on a Sunday. Bummer. read more

I believe that good cooks make good food...but great chefs make great sauces. Unfortunately, this is Renee's Achilles Heel. At first the flavors of the dishes are very clean. The meats are tender and generously portioned, the vegetables crisp and not oily. But then after a while, especially if you've ordered more than two dishes, you realize that most of those dishes taste alike....just soy sauce. Unlike Ching Hua/Alameda, there is no depth or imagination at work in Renee's kitchen. Xiao lum bao: only 6 to an order. Pork is too lean (no juices inside) and tastes only of some green onion. Skins are thick. My Hong Kong-born DH said it was like eating cardboard. Hot and Sour soup: all the ingredients are there and high quality...but there's little sourness, and absolutely no heat. Bland, bland, bland. Orange Chicken: good, but spicy? Not on your life. My 84-yr-old MIL who avoids chiles like the plague, didn't even realize this was supposed to be a spicy dish! Dry fried green beans: Boring and ordinary. Undercooked and although soy sauce gave it enough salt, the promised pickled vegetables were almost invisible and the taste negligible. Braised deep-fried tofu: Good, but would be better as the traditional claypot (such as how Hakka Chinese in SF makes it). Deep-fried tofu absorbs a good sauce the way a dry sponge absorbs water, so the more you let it "swim around" the tastier it gets. There was only a small amount of gravy. A touch of fresh garlic and chopped bitter Chinese cabbage gave a bit more depth to this dish than the others could boast. Chicken w/asparagus was okay. Beef w/peapods boring, tasteless gravy. What makes us downgrade Renee's is what is most crucial to any Asian: the rice. It's a beautiful quality of short-grain pearl white, but it was al dente. We like soft Japanese rice; if we wanted chewy rice we can always order brown rice instead of white. Because the starters are on the small side and the soups are good but light, the five dishes we got for three people only gave us a small amount of leftovers, enough for one person's lunch. It should be noted that reheating the leftovers made the salty soy sauce flavoring even more prominent, unlike our experience with Ching Hua's more tasty leftovers. read more

Ok, the food was good. But I think they may be struggling. Portion sizes are down from last time by a lot, and the price of extras is sky high (we had 4 people and paid $11.50 for rice). Watch your budget here, and look carefully at other diners to size your order. read more

This has been a favorite spot for my family to go ever since it opened in the 90's. Lovely peaceful atmosphere, friendly service, good food. As a vegetarian, I've always been very happy with everything I've ordered. I especially love the dried green beans. Family and friends have liked their non-vegetarian meals too! read more

They have a really high-quality food. I really like their chicken substitute, and their vegetables are always tasty. I don't get the MSG headache that cause me to quit eating Chinese food at other places. read more

I hate having to give such a low rating, but my experience was really quite terrible. I took my mom here for her birthday after reading all the great reviews, but man was it a disappointment. First, the pros: - Beautiful ambiance: clean and tastefully decorated - Location: right on Solano Ave Now, the cons: - The service. I think I could tell who Renee was -- she was quite nice. But our waitress who we actually interacted with was a nightmare and a half. Not only was she super grouchy (barely a hello or a welcome...forget a smile), but she messed up our order - TWICE, and couldn't answer our questions about the menu. - The food. I'll say that the short ribs were delicious, but everything else we ordered was pretty awful tasting. We were all excited for a big heaping bowl of mixed vegetables, and were utterly disappointed. - Small portions. Okay, I know I'm not in Chinatown where I can get a heaping pile of food for $3, but for what we paid, we really were expecting more. My brothers actually went to Chinatown after our meal at Renee's. I'm sorry to say that I won't be coming back. read more

Nothing spectacular. We went there to mark my good friend's belated birthday. We were tempted by the word "organic" in combination with Chinese. The decour was pleasant enough-kinda of yuppie boutique look but clean. The waitress refilled water fast but she wasn't very smiley. I am a vegetarian so I ordered imitation chicken with broccoli as well as stir-fried veggies. My friend ordered something along the lines of orange chicken. We ordered a side order of brown rice for everyone. My dishes were bland, nothing average, not particularly tasty. Just alright. Had better and no comparison to the taste level of say Golden Era in SF. Also, the serving size was small considering an average price for a dish is $11.00. And the worst part, the sauce tasted like oyster or meat. It was funky. Not a pleasant lingering aftertaste in your mouth. Especially for a vegetarian. Finally, they gave this small bowl (you know, the plastic kind -a container with a lid) of brown rice and charged almost eight bucks ($2.50 per order) for it! Pretty funny in a ridiculous way. Anyway, I tipped them but I would not go back with so many other yummy choices around. The food didn't stand out in taste. Just alright in a bland way. Good luck! read more

Tasty food, all made from healthy local/organic ingredients. Many of the dishes are mild in flavor, but there are also some zestier options on the menu. They can prepare many of the entrées gluten-free if you ask. read more

Renee's Place I think has just become our go to for great Szechuan! I visited a few days ago with my mother in law and my daughters and we were all very satisfied with our meal. The cumin lamb was delicious and addictive. The meat itself was very flavorful and the seasoning was great, I just wish it was a little spicier. The sweet and sour prawns were great. The chicken chow fun was really nice, and the noodles were very fresh tasting with a beautiful texture. My girls ate so much that I was stunne. The shanghai dumplings were just mediocre. I was expecting a little more soup in the dumplings. Overall, Renee's is just what we've been looking for. Their food is clean and healthful, the ingredients are top notch, and their service and hospitality will alone have us coming back. read more

The food lacked flavor, the only dish i enjoyed was the honey walnut shrimp. They use old teapots and do not change the table mats covered in stains. The portion size to price ratio is a rip off. read more

Renee's Place - They have dirty table clothes not classy - Chinese Near Me - Albany, California

A healthier take on Chinese food! I never leave feeling gross/greasy like I sometimes do at other Chinese places. The salt and pepper shrimps and eggplant with basil are my favorites. Many veggie and imitation chicken dishes for vegetarians also. The place has a nice ambiance to it and the staff are really nice! read more

I love this place, great food, interesting menu, in a beautiful, peaceful ambiance. I hope they survive this plague, I hope to go back as soon as they are permitted to open dining read more

Best Chinese food in Albany. Sometimes it takes a while but the wait is worth it. Best item on the menu are the Orange chicken and the Chicken Chow Fun . read more

High quality food and service, we will definitely go again. Plan on it taking a long time, the tempo is slow and casual. read more

I got the wonton soup, chicken with black bean sauce, and eggplant with basil. The eggplant with basil was phenomenal. I love the fact that they use fresh ingredients, but both the soup and chicken lacked flavor. read more

Super delicious duck, pork dumplings and hot and sour soup. Very tasty, well prepared!! The place was very cute and staff was friendly. Hope to dine in post-covid. read more

We've been going here for since we moved to Albany almost twenty years ago (has it really been that long?) and it's always been one of our favorite restaurants. Best Chinese food you'll find anywhere, seriously. Delicate, tasty without MSG, not greasy, it always feels like some thought went into the preparation. But my personal favorite thing is how serene and peaceful the atmosphere is in side. Quiet, carpeting, gently moving fans, Mozart on the stereo. read more

Delicious, very fresh, and high quality Chinese food. Friendly, courteous, and fast service. Beautiful, tasteful, peaceful/calm decor and environment. Also, in addition to sourcing local farms, there's a separate vegetarian section of the menu with vegetarian "chicken" - great spot for vegans/vegetarians. I'm not sure why this place has some negative reviews since everything was great! And, in my experience with Berkeley/Oakland/Albany, the prices are on par with other similar Chinese food spots in the area, I.e. you'll pay a bit more than if you'd gotten fast food Chinese, but the quality is worth it. We ate dry string beans, Basil eggplant, and the General Tsao's chicken- all wonderful! If you'd like higher quality, well-sourced Chinese in a beautiful setting, go here! read more

I've been dining regularly at Renee's for the past couple of years. Until I discovered Renee's, I had given up on Chinese food because of the questionable ingredients I found at other establishments. Renee's changed that! Simply put, the food at Renee's is outstanding. Fresh, wholesome ingredients are handled with a delicate touch that is rare for a Chinese restaurant. Meats and vegetables truly shine! Not only can one feel good about eating healthily prepared dishes, but every dish is truly delicious. Renee's offers numerous savory vegetarian options, and the meat dishes, prepared with organic, humanely raised meats, are superb. In addition, Renee's has an excellent wine list that features organic wines, and even offers organic green tea! The beautiful, tranquil décor of Renee's Place provides the diner with a pleasing dining experience. Classical background music soothes the spirit. Renee, the charming owner, greets you and makes sure you have a wonderful time. Service, both from Renee and her staff, is unfailingly excellent. Renee's offers great value for the high quality provided. Five stars! read more

Best Chinese food in the greater Bay Area, without a question. My husband is incredibly picky with his Chinese food and this is one and only favorite place! None of their dishes are too sweet like many other Chinese restaurants. Their flavors are strong, well balanced and a great reminder of classic Chinese cuisine in America. The restaurant is a calm, peaceful environment with an incredible staff. The prices are very comparable and the tea is amazing. Dishes I recommend: - Mu shu chicken - Hot and Sour Soup - Potstickes (amazing!!) - Kung pao chicken read more

Renee's has long been our go-to Chinese restaurant. Why? Reason #1 - Renee. She's friendly, attentive, kind, efficient. Reason #2 - the ambience is modern, clean, and not tacky. Reason #3 - the food is richly flavorful and interesting - not just Chinese restaurant standards, but really tasty variations and original dishes. Our favorites? The sweet but delicious orange chicken; dry-fried string beans; mongolian beef; and oily scallion cakes. And they have an interesting and unusual beer list! read more

After years of doing business with Kirin, we've started to get our Solano Avenue takeout from Renee. I had walked, biked and driven past this restaurant innumerable times without even asking myself what sort of food they served. The answer to the question is "Berkeley Chinese"; they are the first Chinese restaurant in my experience to tout the use of free range chicken, organic produce, and so on. I like dealing with Renee, who tells me what I should order. (For the full experience, avoid Wednesdays, when she's not there.) There's a dish of small braised pork ribs that she recommended that they we've ordered every time since. This place is not necessarily better than its competition, but it represents a welcome change of pace (new tastes). Renee's Place is welcoming, and it's definitely worth a try. read more

One of my favorite resteraunts in Berkeley, I come here quite often and have become accustomed to the waitresses (who are very sweet) and the food. The prices are very reasonable for lunchtime (untill 3 pm) and for dinner it can be a little more pricey. Still I reccomend this place for the atmosphere is very charming and the service is great and the food is very amazing. read more

Food: 4 stars Price: 2.5 stars I came back. I said I would because I like to support organic, local food, and sustainable businesses. I didn't order the shrimp again (read my last review for further details). However, the prices are still killing me for some Chinese take out--even with the consolation that most of it is made with organic/sustainable sources! Anyway, this time around I ordered the Mushu Veggies, which gets 4 stars; 2 containers of the orange chicken (because it's just so damn good), which gets 5 stars; and some more veggie fried rice at about 3.5ish to 4 stars. Like I said before, Renee's is good Chinese food but not fly me over the moon so good, which makes me still painfully aware of how high the prices are, even after rationalizing the wholesome nature of its sources. I don't know... I don't want to be too critical, because I know how tough it probably is to run a restaurant in these times. I hear that profit margins are low and the labor, stress and management of one high. I guess I must limit my visits to just an occasional thing. read more

Renee's place is back on top of our list and better than before. It did hit a rut about a year ago. Renee seems to have fixed the problem. The spices are back to perfection. The carpet is gross but Renee is the most affable and elegant owner/host in the East Bay. read more

This is one of the best Chinese restaurants I've been to. Seriously. It's actually good, high-end Chinese food, not your typical greasy, gross Chinese food. It's all organic, with Niman Ranch meats and fresh vegetables, and not overly oily or overcooked. You actually feel good when you're done eating. I especially love the pot stickers, the chicken in lettuce cups, the sesame chicken, and the lion's head (an authentic dish that's not on many Americanized menus - pork meatballs on a bed of sauteed spinach.) The restaurant is beautiful. You can go for a nice dinner and take guests, which you can't say about many Chinese restaurants! The service has always been great and the owner is darling. A few Yelp reviews have mentioned high prices. Entrees average around $10. Sure, that might be more than your average Chinese delivery place, but prices are really quite reasonable and worth it. read more

Renee's is one of my favorite places. First off, the ambiance is good, and the service isn't bad, either. Secondly, and most importantly, the food is heavenly and the ingredients are probably hippie-approved. Some repeats: the sizzling rice soup!, sesame or ginger chicken, and the gianlan (Chinese broccoli). read more

This is one of my favorite Chinese restaurants. I usually order the Schezwan Prawns and the Spicy Wonton appetizers. Lunch is a great deal $6.75 soup, salad rice or chow mein, tea, appetizer and entree. Also you must try the imitation chicken dishes. They don't really taste like chicken but indescribably yummy. read more

As a vegetarian -- considering the ubiquitous use of MSG and the animal-based stocks in many of the (pre-made) sauces -- sometimes edible Chinese is difficult to find. Sadly, even in the Bay Area, I still find this to be true. Since when is "Vegetables in Oyster Sauce" a vegetarian dish???? Yes, believe it or not, "oyster sauce" is made from oysters. Who woulda thunk??? Renee's has a handful of imitation chicken dishes that lured me to Albany to try on for size. Thank you, Yelpers, for tipping your hands to this effect. The vegetarian chicken is nothing like the veggie chicken one would find at, say, Golden Lotus in Oakland's Chinatown. (At Golden Lotus, in many of the dishes, the faux chicken is so good, I think a carnivore could be fooled. If I remember correctly, there are three types of veggie chicken at Golden Lotus, so not all veggie-chicken dishes use the same kind of veggie chicken). At Renee's, in contrast, the veggie chicken is nothing like chicken, and even a blind man with a lobotomy and no teeth could discern this. That said, it's still quite good. It provides a chewy and meaty texture that satiates any remaining instinct (or socialization) I may still have for animal flesh. It was quite satisfying. That said, the Kung Pao (Imitation) Chicken was just okay. The vegetables weren't crispy, and the entire dish was drowned in a gloppy sauce that was reminiscent of Americanized-Chinese. Heck, I don't care if it is Americanized -- I just care that it's good. I care that the preparation reveals the chef's brilliance and talent. I care that the flavors are vibrant and the food non-greasy. Sometimes American-versions are more suited to our palate, so I don't want to be self-righteous about any lack of authenticity in Renee's food. Rather, it was the lack of subtlety and delicateness that gives me pause. Kudos to Renee for providing a vegetarian hot and sour soup at lunch, and for her willingness (or so said by my server) to make a vegetarian version upon request any time I return. While it wasn't outrageous hot-and-sour soup, it was pretty good. I would have had another bowl had it been offered. The vegetarian spring roll was also quite good, brimming with vegetables instead of the all-too-often cabbage-only roll that has become the mainstaple of the Chinese industry. Although personable, I found Renee to be proprietary about which brand of imitation chicken she uses. Despite my inquiries, she evaded a deliberate response. I'm certain that she marinates her imitation chicken, so even if she gave me the brand, I don't think I could easily replicate its flavor. Instead of sharing her information -- which so many restaurants have done -- she referred me to Whole Foods to search for various soy-based faux meat options. I can't say that I won't be back. I most likely will be. I certainly want to try some of her other imitation chicken dishes because her imitation chicken is memorable despite that it tastes and seems nothing like chicken. That said -- as I've iterated in several other posts in the past -- Da Lian in Berkeley is still heads-and-shoulders better in virtually every respect. The mastery of Da Lian's cooking is apparent in every bite. The sauces are light yet complex. The food is not oily. The vegetarian hot and sour soup is both hot and sour as well as peppery and among the best I've had. Da Lian, however, does not have faux meat, and given that I don't eat much fish (and I don't eat cod, which is Da Lian's fish of choice), my universe of dishes there is limited to a handful of selections. Sometimes I just want more choice, and thus I find myself seeking out places like Renee's. Da Lian is too authentic -- and I say that in a positive tone -- to consider faux meats and vegetarian pandering. Da Lian's hand, however, with Golden Lotus' faux meat selection would be a veritable heaven. For the meat eater, I would imagine that Da Lian is like a culinary candy store. One added thought: Da Lian is cheaper. Renee's menu is considerably pricier than the typical run-of-the-mill Chinese. Renee's vegetable mu shu (which I haven't had) is more than $2 more expensive than Da Lian's (which I have had, and it's excellent). If it weren't for the imitation chicken, I would not likely return to Renee's. Because of it, however, I will likely be back to expand my faux meat horizons. read more

i love renee's and i love renee too. she runs a wonderful business with her heart as much as her mind. since i rarely read the small print, i can't go into some of the subtleties that some reviewers have, i can say that in all the times i've been there, and i have been going there since its very beginning, 14 years ago, what i consistantly get is wonderful tasting food. it tastes pure. i'm not even sure i know what i mean by that, but that one tastes the tastes. maybe it's that the sauces never overwhelm but only enhance the food they are served with. that, and that there is something unique in every dish. this isn't "chinese food" (as in 'i'm in the mood for chinese food'); this is fine dining at reasonable prices. with all of the variety this asian cusine offers. i think my favorites are basil eggplant and orange chicken. on the same plate. really great, almost secret place for lunch too. read more

As good as Chinese food gets. Now i am not a fan of Chinese food, but this restaurant has a great salmon dish, vegetarian items, chinese originals, the great specials, decor, and staff. Some great menu items are their "rolling lettuce chickens" (light, and refreshing), orange chicken, and their great sizzling plates (incredibly aromatic). Pricing is surprisingly cheap granted the current market, but like all restaurants, only time can tell when they will increase their prices. read more

Very polite service and classy environment. Had the minced tofu in lettuce cups, sauteed string beans, and brown rice with tea and our total was around $30. All the food was very good. Good vegan/vegetarian options. They sell snobby water (Voss, Pellegrino, etc) which I found a little amusing. read more