Silver House is as good as it gets for yummy Cantonese food around here! As a San Mateo County native, my family has been frequenting this restaurant for as long as I can remember, + we have never been disappointed. They continually serve our favorite dishes with fast service and consistency that keeps us coming back for more. They have an expansive menu so there's no lack of new dishes to try, + yes, we do often order special dishes off that whiteboard on the wall as well. As with most Chinese places, all the dishes are made for family-style eating, + there's always plenty to go around for a decent price. We usually get 4-5 dishes for the 4 of us + are quite satisfied! As mentioned in other reviews, do be sure to arrive early to avoid a long wait and better your chances of finding parking! This restaurant does serve free house soup + red bean tapioca dessert if you know to ask or speak Cantonese. Our favorite dishes that are worth Yelping about: * MINCED CHICKEN AND SQUAB WITH LETTUCE CUPS - the minced meat is juicy and mixed in with the typical snippets of veggies, shitake mushrooms, etc. they give about 5-6 lettuce cups to wrap the meat and slather sauce over; plus there's usually extra meat! * PAN FRIED PORK CHOP WITH SALT AND PEPPER - if you're a fan of salt and pepper chicken wings, you'll definitely love this dish! the thin, golden pork chop pieces range in size from a few inches to several inches long, + most of the pieces contain bone that you'll have to eat around. i love the crispy flavor and how it's not too chewy as one might expect. a bit on the greasy side, but it's worth it! * PEKING DUCK WITH BUNS - this is my favorite dish! for 4 of us, we usually order a half duck + a couple extra buns since there's definitely extra meat to go around. the large platter comes with the sliced juicy duck meat, crispy skin, 4 fluffy warm buns, plum sauce, + scallions. perhaps i'm biased since i LOVE duck in general, but this dish always just hits the spot for me. the duck, itself, is never scrawny or dry; they prepare it just right every time! * PRAWNS WITH WALNUTS - love the contrast of the soft prawns with the crunch of the walnuts. the prawns are quickly fried so they have a nice coating on them + aren't soggy or drenched in the light mayonnaise-like sauce. the honey walnuts are fresh and crunchy, and they aren't coated in the sauce so they keep their own sweet flavor separate. * ROCK COD FILLET WITH TENDER GREENS - this is one of our family favorites wherever we go. silver house makes this wonderfully as a medley of good-sized fish chunks mixed in with bok choy + snippets of various other veggies. the sauce is a bit on the oily side, but then again, this is a fish dish so it's a given. the fish breaks nicely along the grain, + has a nice smooth texture in your mouth. * SLICED CHICKEN WITH GINGER AND SCALLION - this dish recently became a favorite of my mom's because the chicken is so tender that it melts in your mouth. the highlight of the meat is pretty much this texture, + most of the flavor is in the sauce so make sure to dip your chosen morsel a few times before enjoying. we usually get 1/2 a chicken, + it's enough. * STEAMED EGG OVER GROUND PORK - we ordered this for a while until my dad started making it back at home, + it tasted practically the same, haha! the egg is fluffy thick like tofu + layered on top of a layer of ground pork on the bottom. the salty sauce and pork was a nice balance to the otherwise pretty plain taste of the egg layer. i recommend mixing the layers together a bit in your plate so you can taste that balanced fusion in your mouth with each bite. * STIR FRY BEEF AND ASPARAGUS - yummy dish with black bean sauce that goes well over rice or can be eaten alone. the beef is of good bite-sized pieces and pretty tender. most of the asparagus pieces are cooked just right so that they're crunchy yet still soft. one thing we didn't like was how they use the whole asparagus shoot + so some of the pieces can be pretty thick + thus a bit tough. * STIR FRY CRAB WITH GINGER AND SCALLIONS - very yummy, but pricey as well! silver house cooks the crab perfectly so that the crab meat is sweet + tasty yet the shell is just soft enough to crack without too much effort. the dish is served on a large platter with the joint, leg, + claw pieces cut for easy eating. the sauce and flavor is present but not too strong that it masks the natural sweet taste of the crab meat itself. i don't remember how much it was... but it's worth trying at least once when crab is in season! * SWEET AND SOUR PORK - it's your typical fare of this pretty Americanized dish. nice meaty chunks of pork are deep fried well and are coated in thick sauce along with pineapple, peppers, etc. i don't recall this dish being particularly special, but it's good. Check out this site for the menu (not including the whiteboard specials): http://www.sporq.com/sanmateo/silverhous read more

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My family has been coming here for years...since I was teeny tiny, these guys have seen me grown up! Most of the waitstaff is the same as I remember it from many years ago. They are all very friendly & hardworking. The restaurant itself isn't much to look at, but it's all about the food..lunch or dinner it's all good. Though most of the time, I go to Tai Wu in Foster City for the same lunch items just because parking is easier and I think prices are slightly less. Definitely one of the best places to get Cantonese food in the Peninsula. Dinner faves: Minced squab & chicken in lettuce cups are a great appetizer with a drizzle of hoisin sauce. Sizzling rice soup I love!! And they aren't stingy like some places, they give you a good amount of rice, shrimp, & meat...not just them veggies! The chicken corn soup is also tasty as well with egg whites, corn, and little pieces of chicken..sweet (from the corn) & salty go together well here. My FAVORITE MUST GET--crispy fried chicken..now I love the standard version of this with the shrimp chips....but I always get the order w/the spicy sauce. The spicy sauce tastes like the sweet sauce that is served with egg rolls, but with a semi-spicy kick to it. Fried tofu with shrimp---cooked perfectly with gravy & straw mushrooms & carrots. Salt & Pepper Pork Chops--salty & spicy fried goodness! Lunch time grubs: The shrimp & egg chow fun is high cholesterol deliciousness but what also makes it good here as well as their gin mein (pan fried noodle) dishes is the fact that they serve it to you in a mini metal wok..so it stays warm longer. Their jook and of course with a side of Chinese donut hits the spot too! As others have mentioned though, get here early for dinner to get a table & a parking spot in the front or the headache of a parking lot in the back. read more

Ok, they have redeemed themselves. Lunch there 2 weekends in a roll and everything was tasty. Items we had: yee mein - it's served in a mini wok - simple with perfect texture rice noodle w/ chicken and bean sprouts - they use the super fine rice noodle and it was nice and stringy - also very flavorful fook kin fried rice - it's egg fried rice with a mixture of meat/seafood and veggie w/ plenty gravy on top garlic large pea sprout - this is my favorite veggie. will always order it if available braised tofu - crispy outside and soft inside w/ bok choy, carrots, straw mushrooms in a oyster sauce beef chow fun w/ extra gravy - comes w/ bok choy - flavorful singapore rice noodle - it's good but I don't think the super fine rice noodle is the right one for this dish chicken chow mein - i like the fat noodles and they had plenty bean sprouts tofu, preserved radish w/ ground beef in oyster sauce over rice - this was recommended by the waiter - it was good lamb stew w/ dried bean curds w/ a small side of fermented bean curd for dipping - very flavorful every dish was tasty...now we will have to go back and try their dinner. read more

Don't blame me for being a little partial but it had been a long time since I had some decent authentic Cantonese food. I have passed by Silver House many times but never thought to even try it out. For some reason I have always perceived Silver House as one of those very Americanized Chinese restaurant that couldn't do anything right outside of the sweet and sour pork and sesame chicken. I was wrong. Came here for a very late Sunday lunch (~2:30pm) simply because I ran out of options. Most restaurants already closed by then. Even though they are open between lunch and dinner hours, I was still rushed by our server to order because the kitchen staff were about to take their lunch break. I had literally 3 minutes to look at the menu. At the end I just picked one of my all time favorite Cantonese dish and took our server's recommendation for the other one. Our lunch was Stir Fried Beef with Golden Needle Mushroom and Salty Fish, Eggplant and Pork Clay Pot. They were both served promptly. Note that these dishes are on the Chinese menu without English names so I am just giving you a loose translation. The stir fried beef was tasty. The meat was tenderized and the seasoning was adequate but not too overwhelming. Nothing spectacular about this dish but it is authentic and quite likable. I also like the fact that it is not soaking in oil. The clay pot dish was what our server recommended and it was good. The salty fish used aren't the best quality but this dish is overall well balanced. The eggplants maintain a very good firm texture and the pork is nicely seasoned. An excellent dish to eat with your rice. Their clientele seems to split between Chinese and White. Quality of food is probably around 3.5 stars. Rounding up this time because .... well.. I am just partial to authentic Cantonese food in the Peninsula. read more

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Came here as an alternative since Little Shanghai was closed, and I remember a friend had recommended this place. The pricing is on the more expensive end for Chinese food, however I'm glad that the meal was actually pretty satisfying. Babe and I grabbed the Foo Kien Fried Rice and the Fried Eggplant with Salt and Pepper. The portion of the fried rice was HUGE, could easily fill up 3 people. It was also very flavorful and I love how its drenched in the sauce. The meat and the mushroom were the best part of the dish. The fried eggplant was pretty good too, however, it's better eaten with rice because it's really salty. It also comes pipping hot! So careful eating it, guys! Overall, not a bad place, maybe I'll come back for a large family dinner (that is, if Little Shanghai remains closed). read more

Silver House - Foo lien fried rice - Chinese Near Me - San Mateo, California

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Went to dinner at Silver House. It's Cantonese food that's pretty good, but expensive for me since we live in the East Bay. It's more expensive in San Mateo that's for sure. Dishes we got: FREE Chinese house soup - they give it to Chinese people, not the Caucasians - it'll scare them. Sat night it was a peanut beef soup. Ok. Steamed pork w/ preserved veggies - Tasty, I like it. Didn't notice it being too salty too. $11 Pea shoots w/ garlic - on the wall special. It was tasty enough. $12 Boiled clams - lots of little clams w/ cup of soy sauce/green onions. We liked it. $11 Huge red container of steamed rice $3 - hate haven't too pay for rice. FREE hot tea. They asked us if we wanted iced water - that was nice. Asked them to give me Fortune Cookie - I hate the Chinese tapioca dessert. Credit cards taken. My bill was over $40 w/ tip & tax. B. said the bathroom was through the kitchen, didn't use it. Street parking in the front, I think there's a parking lot in the back since people were entering from the back of the restaurant. read more

This is an old school Chinese restaurant. Like a hole in the wall, but food is good and not salty. Portions were pretty big. Only thing is the service is a little slow. Will come back again. read more

If I could give this place more than 5 stars I would. I've been coming here my entire life and it's never failed me. I know most of the waiters and they're all really nice. Silver House is my absolute favorite Chinese restaurant and every time I visit home I go straight here. (Be careful not to mix up this restaurant with the Silver Lake across the street). Try the fried eggplant. I guarantee you'll love it. (It's the best at dinner though, from my experiences. I think maybe they have a different cook at night?) And ask for the house soup! There are daily fresh soups that are complimentary upon request. My favorite is the one with lily root. Other must-tries include the sizzling rice soup, fried pork chop, lettuce cups, snow pea leaves with garlic, and the Peking duck buns. Honestly, everything here is good. Coming from an Asian family yet having very Americanized taste buds, I can truthfully say silver house is good for both traditional and Western tastes. Try it! It's kind of in an odd location (right on El Camino) but it's a hidden gem for sure :) Ps: there's a parking lot in the back, if you can't find street parking in front. read more

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I've been coming here on and off for at least 18 -20 years. For a period of time, they seem to have went down and I stopped going, but I went back recently and it appears they are back on track. The place is an average (not fancy) place to get decent Chinese food. Parking can be had on the street or their rear parking. If u come early enough, u can find spots. Food is very decent. Service is not bad, if u get the tall waiter. The guy behind the cashier box (owner?) who wears glasses is infamous amongst the Chinese patrons for having a dead-pan smile less expression. He says nothing and I have never seen him smile or say anything. If u get a thank you or a smile out of him, call the SF Chronicle. This is a miracle and it happens once every 300 years. I suppose if u r a regular customer, at least they recognize u. If not, it may take some time to establish the connection. Still, service is OK, but not great. The food portions are decent and food came out fast for us. The price is not low, but it's not super high either. Food is tasty and I enjoyed our dinner. Lee's comics is right next door, so if u have kids, u can take them to the comic book store while the food cooks. Decor is pretty standard but clean. I know many caucasians don't like going there because of the rude treatment. Don't feel bad, they are an equal opportunity restaurant. They even treat HK Chinese rudely. Go there for the food and know that this isn't a fancy service oriented place. Depending who u end up with as a waiter, some are nicer than others. But generally, all the waiters there don't smile much. They are androids. read more

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Consistently delicious! Guest worthy. Parking in the back is a challenge but worth the tastiness.

Really great and tasty food. I recommend the spinach with garlic, the Singapore noodles, the sweet and sour soup and the potstickers. We will definitely be back! read more

Cheap, greasy (but tasty) Chinese food- it's hard not to be a fan! We came in for a group dinner (party of 10) on a Monday night during the holidays, and the restaurant was packed when we got there around 7pm. Luckily, we had made reservations, but it still took them about 10 minutes to seat us. We ordered: -Jellyfish & Marinated Seaweed Appetizer: Pretty good. The jellyfish pieces were tender but still had a nice combination of crunch/chew, and the marinated seaweed as flavorful. Recommended! -Peking Duck: Not bad but not great. The skin pieces were good as well as the buns, but they don't de-bone all the pieces of duck meat so it was difficult to eat with the bun. -Fresh Steamed Bass: Pretty good- the bass was a tiny bit undercooked so it was difficult to get all the meat off the bones. -Large Pea Shoots: Delicious! They cooked these perfectly, and it was really flavorful but still fresh tasting. Highly recommended! -Honey Walnut Prawns: Yum! There was a good amount of mayo on the prawns, but I enjoyed it. The honey walnuts were also really crunchy and good. Recommended! -Fried Eggplant and Kabocha Squash: Just so so- there was way too much breading on the eggplant and squash, and they overly fried it. skip! -Ox-Tail in Clay Pot: Not very good. The ox-tail wasn't tender enough -Complimentary Red Bean Tapioca Dessert: Surprisingly pretty good, and I normally don't even like the red bean desserts. This version wasn't too sweet, and actually had a good amount of red beans in it. Overall, I enjoyed most of the dishes I had at Silver House, and the amount of food you get is a great value for the price. Service isn't the best, but surprisingly decent for a Chinese food restaurant (although it is helpful if you or one of your friends can speak Cantonese). I will definitely be back in the future for additional meals! Parking can be tough but there is street parking available. read more

I was so tired after LA to OAK and back on Friday, then driving from LA to San Mateo the next day, that I don't remember much except that going with AK's family and trying to talk to his mom in Mandarin made me realize that my Mandarin sucks. And the lack of sleep makes my Mandarin even worse. As if that were possible. What else I recall: 1) It was crowded so reservations are probably a good idea 2) The menu is extensive and I don't know what the difference was between the Chinese and English menus except that you probably get ripped off with the ones written in English 3) We ordered five dishes for five people and still had leftovers 4) The chicken with the crispy skin and chips around it was probably the best chicken of that kind that I've ever had. Ever. 5) The tofu, oxtail, string beans with spicy pork, veggies and beef with mushrooms were all fabulous. I haven't had that good of Chinese food in a long time. Too bad it's a six-hour drive from LA or else I'd be there at least once a week. Good place to go with friends. AK, will you take me here again when I visit?? read more

We were searching for a place to have chow fun after a location scouting. I yelped it and here we are. Good thing they had a sign that says more parking at the back, if not for that, I wouldnt circle around to look for one on a holiday. Now for the food. The chow fun did not have any taste to it. I also ordered chicken and diced salty fish fried rice we they over loaded on MSG. I definitely had better dishes and these two I ordered did not cut it. Maybe I will come back to order something else next time... read more

Pretty solid Cantonese fare at a somewhat non descript locale on the stretches of EL Camino in San Mateo. The guy who sat us seemed a bit surly at first but the waiter we eventually got was pretty friendly. Got an order of pot stickers to start, curry chicken and ginger/onion beef. It took a while for the pot stickers to come out and I then came to realize that they cook it the proper way. Boiling, frying and getting that nice crust on the skins. Filling was moist and flavorful. One of the better pot stickers I've found in the area. Curry chicken and ginger/onion beef both had really good flavor also and the meat was super tender. The chef definitely has some wok skills. As I was listening around the room one of he really big tables spoke Vietnamese and then so did the surly waiter. I then talked to him briefly and I guess the establishment is Chinese-Vietnamese in some aspects, though you wouldn't know from the menu. Definitely one of the more solid Cantonese joints in the area and based on the dishes we had, I'll definitely be back to try some other things. read more

This place is alright. Nothing I can really brag about to my friends. This restaurant is located on El Camino and there is parking along the streets as well as a parking lot in the back. Once you step inside, you'll see the entire dining room. It's a decent amount of tables and chairs and the bathroom is inside through the kitchen. My mom's family and I had taken up 2 big tables and we were seated next to each other. Both tables decided to order their own dishes so I can't really say for the other table, but for my table, the food was just okay. We got salt and pepper crab, fried calamari, corn and pork soup, green beans, and some other dishes that I can't really remember right now. Honestly, nothing was super memorable. The food was decent and prices were okay, but I was expecting a lot more awesomeness from a restaurant that has a 4 star rating. Service was friendly, though. They were quick to refill the teapots and bring extra supplies when asked for. Overall, eh. If I'm back, it's because there's another family event, not cos I chose to be here. read more

Have been coming here for years, my most recent visit was for a relatives birthday this weekend. Cheap, greasy (but delicious) food! We had a full table of 11 so we ordered a little bit of everything. My favorites include the salt and pepper eggplant (deep fried), the pan-fried noodles, and garlic chicken (whole). The meal includes soup (usually a pork soup with some type of starchy vegetable) and dessert at the end of the meal - this weekends was taro soup with tapioca. It may have been because we ordered too many dishes, but all of our dishes came out at the same time, and there was no room on the lazy Susan for all our food - forcing us to crowd smaller dishes on the table around us. read more

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How many updates can you write on reviews??? Favorite (local) Chinese restaurant. Clay pot beef stew was so tender, and the strips of bamboo were so good and not too big so you don't choke on it. Beef Chow fun (not dried this time), we always get that, and the fried bean curd with sauce on the side...and little mushroom pieces in the sauce are one of the best parts. THANK YOU for the free red bean dessert, my uncle celebrated his birthday here and I do agree, I'd want a birthday here too...or at least a nice dinner gathering here. is perfect. I will probably find a new favorite restaurant soon, but at this moment, this is my favorite. Can't rave about it more. Things come and go so quickly but when it's good, its GOOD. read more

My boyfriend was craving some Asian-style seafood and found this place. First impression? Old school style Cantonese restaurant with VERY Asian decor. I mean, there's a bunch of Chinese lanterns hanging from the ceiling! Also, stuffy. They need better ventilation. The portions are big... and oily. The food is really oily. Other than that, the food was great. The fried chicken wings, the steamed oysters with black bean sauce, the salt and pepper crab, the pan fried noodles. Yummmm. read more

The food are all great ! We love going back to this restaurant. Their crews are all nice and professional ! Kung

There are tons of advertised as "Authentic" Asian cuisines along El Camino Real, been to most of them searching for Authentic inspired Asian cuisines that brings me back to childhood times. Finally struck gold, Silver house is my tardis and enjoyed every dish I ordered. They have a lavish menu stretching from Meats to Seafood, I usually order steamed black bean oysters with onions and boy, they are fresh as they can be with daily stir-fry veggies. After every meal, they give you home made sweet desert. I am happy they use the freshest ingredients and the love they put into every dish. Thank you for bringing me back past memories. read more

A small milestone: REVIEW #500. (woo hoo.) I braved the one who has mastered the art of looking down his nose at me and even managed to get a couple of smiles from him. :) This is a kind of bare-bones Chinese restaurant that happens to serve very good food. Not perfect this time but very tasty. I had their chicken with green beans and black bean sauce for my first time visit today. They started me with what has become instantly one of my favorite soups: a finally diced tofu soup with pork and cilantro in a very flavorful broth. They serve it every Friday (a different soup of the day). I complemented the soup to waiter who brought out my dish and he very quietly and nicely offered me seconds, which I took willingly. Yum! The lunch special was served with a large covered bowl of hot fluffy steamed rice that really kept warm this way. The mound of green beans and chicken came out on a separate plate that looked and smelled of black bean sauce awesomeness. OK, so there was probably too much oil used in the preparation (with everything glinting of this coating). But the beans were perfectly hot and crunchy and so flavorful with the black bean sauce and tender chicken slices. No headache afterwards (and I didn't order "No MSG"). A good start to what I look forward to be one of my regular spots. read more

Silver House - Chinese Near Me - San Mateo, California

The food were great before the pandemic happened. I'm not sure if they changed the chef or not, but last time I ordered from them, the flavors had changed. I meant: they're still nit bad, but we're definitely not like they used to. The seafood tofu pot was a bit fishy; the fried rice was lock of flavor; the soup was good and the pepper salty chicken was not crispy enough. Overall, they tasted differently than before. I'll give it another try and see, but was a bit disappointed for sure. read more

We order here often. The food is good, but: 1. The place is quite unsanitary looking (we only take out and try not to think about how dirty the kitchen is). 2. The service is rather subpar. They are impolite and have an attitude as if they could not care whether you ordered there or not. I get the sense that this might be the case for non Chinese customers (but can't tell for sure). 3. They screw up the orders quite often. We ordered take out a few days ago and asked a dish to be made spicy. It was NOT!!! They have also given us the wrong order in the past... We are done with this place! read more

I love Silver House restaurant! Don't confuse this with Silver Lake across the street. Went there for dinner tonight with family and this is what we ordered: -salt and peppered oysters - DELICIOUS! Fresh, not fishy tasting -salt and peppered egg plants - Generous portions and lightly fried -Salted fish, chicken, and tofu in clay pot - I love this over rice. Not too much salted fish taste though -Beef with bok choy - standard tasting -deep fried flounder - pretty good here -Chow mein with pork - this is really good here. not too oily like other places -honey walnut prawns - pretty good here The parking is a bit tough. You can park on El Camino but the street is super busy. They have a parking in the rear...a tiny tight gravel lot that can fit about 6-8 cars. The service is good here. They were quick to refill the tea and cleared our dishes promptly. Can't wait to go back! read more

Like's - free soup, free red bean dessert (even though I don't eat the stuff), XO Eggplant Claypot, when you order rice for 2 they don't just give you 2 individual bowls, but an entire bowl of rice. I've been here twice and not sure what happened but the second time, my favorite dish (Salt & Pepper Pork) was very mediocre. It was a good thing we also ordered the XO Eggplant in a clay pot which was the best dish because it was served piping hot and went really well with the rice. read more

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This place feels like home for me. My family and I have been coming here for so many years now. Most of the food you order from the menu is pretty good and the portions are great. I really love how crisp and delicious the veggies are in the dishes. One of my favorites is the bean curd with veggies/mushrooms; it is so yummy. Their string beans with minced pork is also a favorite of ours. Their peking duck is pretty good too, I absolutely love their buns. Also, their free dessert is always so good, it's either red bean soup or taro and tapioca dessert. read more

I guess it's just another neighbourhood Chinese place that people eat at. I'm still trying to figure out which dishes are good though. Seems like they mainly do Cantonese-style dishes. The menu is very typical, with good sizes (on the large side), and the food tasted decent. Decent enough that I would consider coming here for lunch again. But of course, do not expect it to be that much better than the average Chinese food. It's just not the greasiest. read more

A traditional Chinese eatery. Very standard Cantonese cooking with excellent result. If I live close by, this can be my go-to place was a substitute for my own kitchen. Other than that, there is not much to write about. read more

Long time place in San Mateo. Been there since I can remember. Stopped going during the pandemic. Doesn't look like anything inside or outside. But when you get in, it's a homey atmosphere... everyone is casually eating and it is definitely a "family" restaurant on the weekends and a lunch spot for hard working people at lunchtime due to their reasonably priced rice dishes! Service is sometimes touch and go depending on how busy they are... I do avoid it during major Chinese Holidays like CNY... but most weekday nights or even Sunday nights are good times to go. The food though is totally authentic Cantonese cuisine. They even have seafood tanks for live seafood. I lived their black bean sauce steamed live catfish... meaty and delicious!!! All their dishes are done the right style and taste to fit even me who grew up and ate everywhere in Hong Kong. If you want good Cantonese food, gotta try this place out. Kinda not great "ambiance", some might even call it a dump and difficult to park, but for the food... I am there!!! Anytime... read more

When it comes to Fresh Seafood with Flavors, Must go to a Cantonese Style Chinese food. They have a family combo selection, $ 68.00 menu that comes with 6 dishes, soup. Also ordered Extra Scallops and Oysters http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/NRTuvfDmMjpI_Km908wnNQ?select=bu2DRYllprBw5g3dOFKTXQ#uF8kJq-UnTTUSatS3HotVQ Pretty good for a Cantonese style in San Mateo area. Food came out within 10 minutes even on a crowded night. You can replace some dishes that you don't like from the combo to something that you may like (additional $ may apply). The bigger the group, The more dishes selection you can try. read more

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Pretty dang good for Chinese food outside of SF, but I must say severely overpriced. Maybe if you're looking to do banquet style for a nice dinner, but even then the portions aren't banquet size. Garlic peasprouts- delicious! Perfectly crisp and not overwhelming w the garlic Chicken geen mein (pan fried noodle)- perfectly tender & the sauce! Wow. Must say it prob makes my list of top 3 I've had. Black bean fish fillet & green bean- steamed lightly & decorated w veggies although they substituted the green beans on my dish. Was a little sad about that. Together came to $45.. not bad for 3 dishes but for Chinese food the norm of this is prob $25-30 max. Brought it to my grandma, a great Chinese chef herself and she raved about it. Guess that speaks for itself! read more

Okay, this is definitely NOT an Americanized Chinese restaurant. It is a Chinese Chinese restaurant. Just look through the window and see who's dining there and you'll know that it's the real deal. We had reservations for 7 adults and a toddler. My wife and I were first to arrive and were pointed to a table. After we sat, two sets of menus were left on our lazy susan. A couple of minutes later, a pot of hot tea was put on the lazy susan. Neither server uttered a sound as they performed their duties. We were then completely ignored until the rest of our party arrived minus one who couldn't make it. Our family likes variety and we like to eat big. Tonight was no exception . We ordered the $128 wor-choy dinner for 8 AND four additional dishes. It was a ton of food. Enough that the servers had to move some items to smaller plates as we ate them down. We also had to stack dishes in very precarious ways to keep everything on the lazy susan. One dish was set aside off of the lazy susan and no one ever touched it again. People walking by kept staring at our lazy susan because it was so overloaded. And here is where the restaurant also failed. We had a total of at least 11 dishes. The food came out in waves. Three or four dishes at a time. After the second wave, we asked the server in Cantonese to ask the kitchen to slow it down. After mumbling a reply, he went away and came back with another dish. I asked again in English. It's amazing how some folks can ignor you in any language. On the one hand, I can understand how they would want to turn tables as quickly as possible. On the other hand, I know that I enjoy my food most when its hot and fresh from the kitchen. I won't go through the entire menu. It was too much to remember and I failed to write down all that was included. Of note, the steamed whole catfish was delish. The lobster that was substituted for the crab that they were out of was too small for six people. Many other restaurants would serve two rather than one. We ordered Salt and Pepper Deep-fried Chicken Wings. If I remember correctly, they only serve the mid-wing section. What's odd is that they split the two bones so you ended up with two pieces of chicken from each mid-section. It wasn't portion control because there were a good number of them served. We just couldn't imagine the time wasted to split them like that. Overall, the selection and quality of the food is decent. The prices are reasonable for the portions served. Service is mediocre at best. read more

Best Peking duck on the peninsula! Solid Chinese food across the board, and I'm picky. Competent, good service.

I love this place for great Chinese food. Every time we come, I swear we over order. Between my husband and I, we get like 5-6 dishes to share, enough for that meal, even lunch and dinner for the next day. The waiters are super nice to us every time we come, maybe it's cause we go there so often! I especially like Wang, he's one of the waiters there. He definitely takes care of us and always seems to know what we're going to order. We come here a lot with my in laws too for dinner and they love it just as much as we do. Everything that we've ordered from this place is yummy! From their beef fried frice, eggplant with minced beef claypot, honey walnut prawns, bak choy and black mushroom...all of it is good! I hear that their salt and pepper crab is the bomb too! However, we have yet to try it. If you are here for dinner, they give out the best dessert, red bean with tapioca and dependent on the day it is taro tapioca. Both desserts are really good. I've even ordered the dessert to go before. read more

I've been coming to Silver House for many years. The food and service are always great. Fresh seafood and reasonable price, a definite must try if you haven't. read more

I've been going to this place for years. I haven't gone as much recently since I moved out of the area, but it's been a pretty solid Cantonese styled Chinese restaurant. The food is good, portions are reasonable, and the restaurant is pretty clean. If you like Cantonese Chinese food, you'll find this place is pretty good. It's not fantastic, but prices are reasonable, and you get good quality. Overall, it's a restaurant worth coming to. read more

** 3.5 Stars ** As I am extremely picky when it comes to Chinese food, I searched Yelp and found Silver House well rated by Yelpers, so I thought I would take a chance. The restaurant was clean. The service was typical of what I would expect at any Chinese Restaurant, nothing spectacular. We ordered pot stickers - 5 Stars (very very good), fried won ton 3.5 stars (better than average, but just slightly on the chewy side, need to be cooked just a little more), Yang Chow Fried Rice - 4 stars (very good, but not the best), Duck - 3.5 stars (just above average), and Mu Shu Pork - 3.5 stars (just above average). Parking on the street seemed to be pretty easy. The service was a little on the slow side, but that is okay the food was pretty good and all of the ingredients seemed to be very fresh. Will try this place again. (It's better than Hot Wok, Oceanic, or Little China Kitchen). read more

My favorite Chinese Restaurant in San Mateo! Excellent quality of food (vegetables are always fresh and flavors are outstanding). I haven't found anything here I don't like and everyone we've brought here have enjoyed the food immensely. The service is fast... Favorites of mines and friends: Dry Pan Fried String Beans Salt and Pepper Pork Beef Chow Mein (the smokey flavor is standout for this staple dish) Any Fish Dish! For lunch, they give a complimentary soup which is usually different and always tasty... I've tried other chinese restaurants around san mateo and san jose too, and this place just stands out for food quality and fast service. Decor is typical, but hey if the food is good who cares about the fake vine plants hanging from the ceiling =). read more

My parents have this place on speed dial and so do yours. They let go of their weekly grip on this place when i became a teenager restless with routine, even delicious dependable routine. But even in my wandering my stomach knew this place as home it's still great and I now jump at every chance to go. Everything's so good... this is where I'd order Chinese banquet from any day. Tender beef, fresh fish (I love the steamed tilapia with that sweet soy sauce and greens and crispy fried sole), huge crabs, jumbo shrimp all cooked to cantonese style perfection. The rice is especially good too. And they're fast! Every time i walk past the kitchen to get out by the back entrance (by the way, what a godforsaken street that little alley is! it's like worse than the oregon trail back there... pave that thing) I see crazy wok flames. Service is great and don't be deterred - they'll work hard to understand your English and they remember you fast. When i was little a waitress named Rebecca used to buy peanut m&ms for me - my favorite - and store them by the cash register to give me when we came in. hee. We even visited her at her new restaurant in SF once. There's another guy with kind of sad eyes who's also been here since I was little and he always asks after me. It's always crowded weekend nights and some of the smaller tables are a little close together, but it's well worth it. come hungry! read more