I ordered take out from Silver House. One note I want to make is that I'm positive the food would have tasted better when it's fresh and at the restaurant, so that is the reason why I'm rating this place a 3.5 stars. (I will update once I try the food at the restaurant) Here is what we ordered. a. Salt and Pepper Eggplant b. Chicken Fried Rice c. Vegetable Chow Mein d. Beef and Broccoli e. Salt and Pepper Spare ribs The salt and pepper spare ribs was my favorite dish. The beef and broccoli was pretty tasty as well. (The kids loved the beef and broccoli) I wasn't too impressed with the chicken fried rice which is a pretty easy dish to make, but everything else was pretty good. Parking was a BIG pain. There is street parking but during dinner time, the street was packed. Also, there is a small parking lot for this restaurant, but with people not knowing how to park properly and parking spaces being very small, it might be best to find alternative parking or else when you leave the parking lot you might pull an austin powers in getting out of the lot. I had to drive around the block a few times to get a parking spot, which didn't happen immediately. I ended up parking in a spot I wasn't supposed to, but thought I could go in, pay, and pick up the food. I waited about 5 minutes to get my food and the restaurant was packed with a bunch of Chinese people which is always a good sign! :) Oh and thank God nothing happened to my car :D. I would recommend people coming a little bit earlier to avoid the parking hassle unless you don't mind walking. read more

I am honestly surprised at all the positive reviews. At best the food is so so. We had a group visit for the first time for lunch (lots of Asians for those curious) and we have all had better food experiences. We ordered from both sides of the menu and every dish was so so. Try it yourself read more

Pluses: authentic Chinese dishes, not Americanized. Crispy chicken was outstanding, moist inside with incredibly think crispy skin. Peking duck had fabulous steamed buns. Minuses: some dishes had a lot of salt or msg...very crowded on a Saturday night and though we phoned in advance we were misadvised about how long the wait would be. Ambience is slightly below average for a Chinese restaurant. Parking tight, since the tinylot in the back is way insufficient and otherwise you have to find parking on El Camino Real or crowded side streets. read more

Would have been 5 stars but I dinged it because of how unorganized they are. It was 7pm and there were 4 reserved big tables, parties of 7, 7, 7, and 10. House was packed and there were 3 big tables not cleaned. Reserved parties expect to be sat down immediately, if not at least within 10 minutes. Everyone who had reservations were frantic for their tables. They need a better system. Other than that, the food was great. Coming out of the kitchen at a good pace. All the dishes were cooked very nicely. Except the clams, which were undercooked and had to be requested to cook a little longer. It was a little pricier than I am used to but they compensated with taste. Portions are a medium to large plate. The family and I liked this place so if we're ever in the neighborhood, we'll be back again. read more

What are the best Chinese restaurants in San Mateo. I've eaten there a lot and was never disappointed

Restaurant has been at this same location for at least 40 years. Food has been consistent and delicious. Many specials written on white board in Chinese. Parking across street on El Camino usually is easier than in front of restaurant. read more

So much Chinese food in this little section of El Camino. I had one of those bad Chinese food cravings. Gimme whatever is on that specials board. The mango chicken was okay. I think if the mango was cooked in the sauce a little more it would have been fantastic. Unfortunately the pieces were large so the middle of the mango tasted like the fruit, not anything cooked in sauce. The ox tail in red wine sauce though. That was worth the wait for our seats. The ox tail was chewy and the sauce/broth was rich. The carrots were fully cooked, too. It made me want to get more rice so I could finish the entire clay pot of ox tail. If you are rolling part of 10+ Silver House can accommodate. They have a fixed menu option for large groups which by price is reasonable. I just hope you get here early enough, especially on Sundays. This place gets full from tables with larger parties. read more

Silver House - Ox tail red wine in clay pot. - Chinese Near Me - San Mateo, California

Awesome, consistent and flavorful comfort Chinese food. This is a mainstay with my family - my parents and I go here often whenever we want Chinese food. Love all their dishes that we've ordered over the years. Their special combination fried rice is a standout, with all the flavors balancing each other. It's a dish that can be eaten on it's own. The salt and pepper chicken wings - To. Die. For. If you love fried chicken, then you have to order this. Parking lot in the back is very tight, FYI. read more

Didn't like either the shrimp chow fun nor stuffed tofu. Tough shrimp in the chow fun and the stuffed tofu wasn't stuffed, it's just mashed shrimp tofu paste balls read more

The food is amazing here!! Must try: - Salt and pepper fried chicken wings!! It's SUPER DELICIOUS! - Steamed vermicelli scallops. They are served in the shells, which is really good composition for photos! - BBQ roast duck: don't know how to describe, they just taste amazing! For all the people who said Services is horrible, that is how most Chinese restaurants services are. Being Chinese myself, here is a tip to get servers from your servers. Waves your hands!!!! They will come to you!! read more

It has been many years since I have been here, so this review MAY be antiquated. I came here with a group of non-Asians. I am Chinese but do not speak their dialect, and look closer to Korean or Japanese. Generally, I felt like the waiters were more engaging with the chinese speaking customers and were more rude and short with our group. Since our group was non-Asian, we ordered some fried rice. I also ordered white rice, and then they charged the whole table for white rice even though most did not eat it. When I asked about it when the check arrived, while they eventually adjusted the bill, it was a hassle. I used to come here regularly for chow fun take out, but have not been back for years due to the treatment. Again, this is experience from several years ago; perhaps things are better now. Aside from the treatment, the food was pretty tasty as I recall. read more

First visit on 02/20/2010 for dinner. This is the first Chinese meal I have lately in the Bay Area. It is not that hard to get a parking, and luckily I found the cloest parking spot in the back (so you guys know where to head to for parking, the parking spot in the back is pretty tight, so hopefully your car won't get any hit if you do park there, lol). The interior decoration is as simple and thrift as other Chinese restaurants. It also serves variety of Chinese food with different price range. We ordered something simple, no expensive seafood, just daily dishes. Price is pretty good. One thing amazing, the speed that they serve the food after we placed the order, and tonight the restaurant is not too empty. What we ordered tonight: 1: Deep fried smelt fish with salt & pepper: love the deep fried smelt fish, and it is hard to cook not right, so the taste is good! 2: Traditional salt-baked chicken (half): the chicken meat is too soft and the taste is so so. 3: Braised bean curd with vegetable: my favorite dish tonight, the bean curd are so yummy and the vegetable is so fresh, i love it. The service is pretty good too, I would like to come visit again next time. read more

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We literally found out about this restaurant last-night when my husband and his cousin was talking over the phone. We decided to stop by and see what he was talkin about! And boy was we in awe, the food that he recommended was THE BEST! We live in San Francisco and we can never find a spot that my husband would like esp for the Wonton soup, and I believe we found it here! First off the customer service was awesome! They were super nice and didn't rush you at all. War wonton was what my husband has been looking for and he found it here. The wrapper was real thin with huge amount of meat inside, just the way he likes it. Salt and pepper chicken was FINGER-LICKIN-GOOD (seriously) I have never tasted one with a light, fluffy batter we had to order an extra to take home. Mongolian need was also good! Hong Kong style combo pan fried noodle was delish! Light sauce, the way we like it. We will definitely return. Thanks Silver House. read more

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Best Chinese food in San Mateo. Favorites: Yang Chow Fried Rice House Special Fried Chicken - for those who like dipping sauce Egg and Shrimp Chow Fun Deep Fried Kabocha Squash with Salted Egg read more

The food is very delicious. The staff is friendly. Been going here for about 12 years. nothing bad to say on my end.

Solid delicious Cantonese food at cheap prices. A little dingy in the interior, but that's what a good Chinese restaurant is all about! Chow fun and clay pots are amazing! Kind staff. Shy but well meaning. Best cheap Cantonese food in San Mateo. read more

If I could give this place 0 stars I would. This will never be my 1st choice of eatery. However, I had to come for a family event. One of the waiters (shorter Asian man, balding if not bald already - I couldn't really tell) was EXTREMELY RUDE! He blatantly said, "Move!" as he was making his way past my husband to bring food to a table. To make matters worse, I went to use the restroom, past the kitchen area and this time he clearly said, "MOVE, GET OUT OF HERE!" Seriously?!?! How much more rude can he possibly be. I see reviews of bugs in people's dishes, hair, etc. It is a horrible place to eat at. Again, it wasn't my choice to eat here since I had to meet a big group of people for a family event. I picked at my food, which was overly greasy and looked like it was microwaved or re-heated. NEVER AGAIN SILVER HOUSE. The most inconsiderate, insulting and uncivilized waiter works here. Plus, with the unsanitary restaurant conditions. Eek...me thinks HELL NOOOO! read more

Best Cantonese restaurant in San Mateo. Don't look for good customer service, but look for good food. Many dishes are delicious, their fresh seafood dishes are the way to go. read more

All prices are up $1.00 from what us shown in the yelp photos. Portions are okay. Kung Pao dishes do not use peanuts, that not usual.

Really good Guangzhou Chinese food. Not salty, not oily, three types of boiled chicken with ginger and scallion, pleasant service, clean and fast. read more

My go to Chinese restaurant. Good food, large portions, reasonable prices. My go to favorites include clay pot eggplant with beef, spicy string beans with ground pork, salt and pepper pork chops, Hong Kong style chow mein. Actually everything is really good, except maybe some of the deep fried dishes read more

The ambience felt slightly unwelcoming. The main course of sizzling sea bass we got, was way too oily even when the fatty nature of the fish is accounted for. But the cold appetizer of jellyfish tasted the way it should - summery sweet. This restaurant, while it may work for large groups, is not worth the money you pay for when it's just two people. read more

Silver House - Oily sea bass - Chinese Near Me - San Mateo, California

I've only had take out here. Silver house serves authentic HK/Canto comfort foods. I usually pick up from here for lunch. Service is pretty quick. The space looks like it can seat large families. My favorite dish is: Shrimp Chow fun with runny egg read more

This place has the worst customer service! The guy behind the desk is lazy and stupid, he doesn't know how to take an order to go and has a very bad attitude. I had to cancel my order because he was such a jerk. read more

Dont come to this restaurant. I dislike their food so much, only eat here three times a week read more

All I can say is wow... eat here before going to SFO... Peking Duck. .. the best! Bones and all... just like you'd expect it in China. Authentic Chinese... with many families & Asian diners... Not fancy... but great food. read more

Silver House - Peking Duck - Chinese Near Me - San Mateo, California

Based on reading my friends' reviews and then coming here for myself, I was a bit disappointed. Silver House is a place I have driven by for years but never really had the chance to try until last week. The overall vibe of the place was 1980s msg-laden Chinese take out. I did not get the feeling that the place changed much over the years; moreover, I did not get the feeling it got a good inspection (did anyone else notice the live seafood tank, yikes!). Two out of three dishes we ordered were mediocre and one was good. I'll start with the good. The clay pot pepper chicken was light and flavorful, just enough zing and white meat with a great broth. Two other dishes were unmemorable: The Mongolian beef and mushu chicken. The beef was not that spicy and included some questionable cuts of meat. Not only that, but the Mongolian beef dish had more bamboo shoots than a panda exhibit. Meanwhile, the mushu, always a favorite of mine, was disappointing due to the cold and skimpy wraps they offered. I believe they gave like four wraps but we still had left over chicken and sauce. Overall, except for the clay pot dish, the food did not taste fresh and did not have memorable flavors. One very interesting, but equally disappointing, thing happened here. When I ordered, I asked if I could have "no msg." The waiter said, "what do you mean?" I said, "no msg please." He said, "Ok, no EXTRA msg." To which I retorted, "Wait, what do you mean?" He replied, "Just the normal msg, no extra ok?" I muttered, "Um, that's confusing, how much msg is in the food?" He answered, "Just the normal msg no extra ok." (Note the lack of question mark). MSG rhetoric notwithstanding, there is much better Chinese food around. read more

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weekend lunch before hillsdale mall...no wait and seating plenty...order of the half peking duck and house special beef...requesting rice....peking duck served with typical julienned green onions, buns and sweet hoisin sauce...duck fat wasn't rendered down...thick greasy chewy fatty skin...the buns were brick hard...warm, but super hard...old buns?...one of worst peking duck experiences...house special beef was just battered fried beef strips with a thick sweet dipping sauce (maybe pouring sauce to mix)...wasn't bad in taste or texture, but boring...add some vegetables or any color...it was just a very bad experience for a $35 total lunch after tax and tip... read more

Silver House - don't get the peking duck...brick hard buns...greasy fatty duck - Chinese Near Me - San Mateo, California

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According to the latest San Mateo Chinese senior citizens' rumors (my grandma is in on all the good gossip), the tides have changed again and now Silver House is currently serving up the best Chinese food in town. Yelping it old-school! They've got some really good food here ... we ordered the wo choy dinner and we enjoyed everything! The ambiance is also above-average for comparable Chinese restaurants. Prices are fair, too. There's street parking if you can find it, or a tiny, tiny parking lot in the back. I feel kinda bad for Silver Lake across the street, because Silver House is equal or better in pretty much every way! You may have to wait a little for a table since it can get really crowded... but that alone says something about this place when their competition across the street is nearly empty. read more

If it weren't for my chronic heart burn I'd insist on eating here all-day...er-day. This place is such a hidden gem. Definitely greasy hole in the wall quality but with a clean more uppity nicer Chinese dim sum type ambiance. A friend of mine claimed that before the Dumbarton bridge fee was increased to $5 her family used to drive from Fremont to San Mateo for this place - its THAT good. The past two times that I've eaten here I've ordered the same three (3) dishes - seafood combination with pan fried noodles; slippery egg with shrimp chow fun; and fook king fried rice (hehe). They come served up HOT on little wok style plates. The food tasted so fresh, I was convinced they cooked them on the dishes but my friends voiced some more reasoning to me. Nonetheless, this place is GOOD. I'm so glad that me and my dearly beloved have an awesome Chinese restaurant to go to in San Mateo. I will probably write a follow up review once we go there for dinner. Enjoy! read more

This is some seriously good Chinese! THE CRISPY CHICKEN IS THE BEST I'VE EVER HAD; IT IS DEEP FRIED DELICIOUSNESS, CRISPY BUT STILL MOIST. Of course, like so many good Chinese restaurants, it doesn't have the greatest ambiance, but the food is fantastic. Good size portions with reasonable prices. The service, overall, is fine, except for the guy up front, who, comically, loves to look at you down his nose, it's like being in a Seinfeld episode, classic. If you're in NorCal and looking for a Chinese flavor feed, this is the place. read more

The best tasting Chinese food (Cantonese style) you'll ever eat. I've been going here religiously ever since I was 4-5 years old when they first opened up ~20 years ago and they've been consistently amazing all this time. Favorite dish of all-time: house special braised tofu. Nobody else even comes close to making it as delicious as they do. Nobody. The outer skin of the tofu soaks up the dark sauce and the tofu itself is very very soft. Get it and you'll be coming back to this restaurant for life, like me. They offer complimentary soup before your meal (hot and sour for lunch, but for dinner they change it daily). They're typically very good and taste better than my grandma's homemade soups. Practically all their dishes taste amazing and ingredients are usually very fresh. Most importantly, they have really good "wok hay", which means they get a distinctively great flavor from the wok. The decor may be a little tacky and it isn't as clean as other restaurants, but the food is outstanding. Trust me, it's worth eating here. Here are my other favorites, after their braised tofu, of course: - gon been say gui dow (spicy string beans and minced pork): the string beans are typically crunchy and taste great with the pork. Not too spicy and oh, so delicious. - yao lum gai (crispy chicken? sorry, not sure what it is in English) - salt and pepper pork chops: crispy on the outside, moist in the middle. Seasoned just right. - mongolian beef: I can't even remember how other restaurants make it, but they use young bamboo shoots in this dish and it pairs well with the beef - jiu pai geen mien (house special hong kong style noodles): Classic. - gon chow ngo haw (beef chow fun): one of my all-time favorite dishes period. Get this for lunch, along with the noodles above and you'll be happy. - jook (porridge): Their jook has become my standard for what all jook should taste like. It's yummy! - dai dow mew (large pea sprouts with garlic): when it's in season, large pea sprouts are one of my favorite vegetables. And they cook it perfectly here with a dozen wok-fried cloves of garlic to add some spice. - rock cod fillet in black bean sauce (for lunch): delicious pieces of fillet with onions and green peppers tossed in black bean sauce. So yummy--I get this all the time for lunch. Last but not least, they give you complimentary dessert for dinner. They rotate between two: 1) red bean soup: the best red bean soup I've ever eaten. Just enough tangerine peel to get that grittiness and not so sweet that it's like you're eating pure sugar. Great consistency and flavors are well balanced. It's like they've been making it for 20 years ;) 2) white tapioca soup: In one word, delicious. It's a great consistency and has little chunks of taro in there that add that extra bit of flavor in there to balance the sweetness. Silver house is the best Chinese restaurant I've ever been to, even compared to some of the best restaurants in Hong Kong. I'd give them 10 stars if I could. read more

I love this place. My dad has been going here since 1999 when he worked in the area, and even though we now tend to frequent restaurants in closer driving distance, the last couple of weeks we've had our weekend family dinners here. They have had the same friendly waiters since the late 90's, parking is relatively easy (even on a Saturday night), and of course the food is great. I don't typically crave noodles elsewhere, but whenever I eat here I always have to have either the beef pan fried noodles or the combination chow fun. Other favorites: beef & eggplant clay pot, braised tofu with vegetables, deep-fried smelt, and string beans with minced pork. Free tapioca dessert after the meal is also really good. read more

I've been coming here ever since my family moved to the Game back in 1996. This place has literally not changed. The staff has seen me grow up- from a rambunctious 7 year old to a grown ass woman paying for her family's bill, I will never stray from Silver House. The quality of their food is consistent, if you're looking for real Chinese food. I'm not talking about that sweet-and-sour shet either. Get some real Chinese food or go to Panda express at Hillsdale mall already. My family went here for dinner when my mom didn't want to cook, so that was pretty much once a week. I don't want to brag and say we're VIP, but lets face it-- We've been supporting their establishment for over 15 years. The place can get pretty packed, so I suggest you drop a member of your party in the front so they can get on the list while you look for parking. Don't even try their parking lot unless it's lunch time. A bunch of Asians with their benzos trying to park/back up in a small parking lot = you get the picture. My dad, who is part Chinese dad always ordered food by what he remembered his family made as a child and also what other Chinese families ordered. Because of that, we've came to a select set of dishes we rotated every week: Salt and Pepper Squid- I still can't find a place that makes it like they do. It's not fully deep fried with a batter like how other places do it. I hate batter, and there isn't in this one Tofu clay pot- Mom always made us order at least one vegetable dish. This one was one we could all agree on. Braised tofu, shitaki mushrooms, carrots, bok choy (yeck), and this brown sauce. Crispy Chicken- I'd always steal the shrimp crackers and dip them in the salt. I'd also grab a few pieces of the breast. Today, at 27, I still do it. Beef Stew Clay pot- Always good Tofu/preserved egg casserole- I don't know what the eff it is called, but I can NEVER find it at another restaurant. I try explaining what it is, but it's practically impossible. It's in this glass dish that takes the longest- a soft tofu consistency with 5 kinds of egg? Duck, Preserved, Scrambled chicken egg, and maybe some more? Lord have mercy, my life changed when my family discovered this dish Steamed fish of the day and fried- Just learned how to cook this at home, so maybe I won't order this as much. Pea sprouts/gai lan/ ong choy- All good- order them with garlic stir fry Silver House, I'll never leave you. I've been to Hawaii, Seattle and back-- You are the HANDS DOWN, BEST CHINESE FOOD I've ever experienced. OH- and this place used to have ties with Riverside Seafood in the city. But it ain't the same... read more

Ate here a lot as a kid with the family. I would say it's the only place left in San Mateo I would still eat Chinese food as most of the good one's are further up/down the peninsula. Parking is a pain for this place, especially on the packed nights but it's well worth it. If I'm in the area, this is my choice for Chinese. P.S. Come here for lunch, seems to be a better deal than dinner. read more

Decided to hangout with my brother. Since we were going to do dinner and a movie, I got to pick the movie and he picked the restaurant. I had no idea where we were going and then once we found some convenient street parking, I realized I was headed for Chinese food. We entered the moderately-sized restaurant which had the register close to the door and about 17-18 square, rectangular and circle-sized tables. The place looked like it was getting good business with lots of Asians and non-Asian eaters. We were seated, given menus and hot tea. After caliaberating with some friends previous to this outing, my brother already knew what 3 dishes to get. Here's the lo-down: -complimentary house soup (soft pork and vegetable soup): standard -pan fried pork chop with salt and pepper ($8): my brother's favorite dish so he had to order it. When it came out it was perfectly pan fried and tasty with lots of peppers and green onions. Eat it quickly because in a matter of minutes, it doesn't taste as fresh. -eggplant & minced beef, in clay pot with XO sauce (not on the menu): I'm not a fan of eggplant, but this dish, as well as the amount of tasty, thick sauce, sold me. It was nice and spicy and a came out piping hot. I liked XO sauce and this dish was my fave. -shrimp with crispy fried bean curd ($10): the tofu was good (nicely fried on the outside and soft in the inside), lots of shrimp, but nothing too spectacular. We also got rice and the traditional red bean dessert (which we didn't eat since we're not fans of that stuff). The food was good and the price decent. Service was standard and the place looked cleaner than other Chinese restaurants I've been to. I'm saving judgment for now, but would definitely come here again (maybe I'll take the parents) and try other dishes, in addition to ordering the eggplant with minced beef clay pot dish again! Note: you can also order take out and while you're waiting, there's a Lee's Comics next door or if you're super hungry, grab a slice of Seniore's pizza at the end of the street. read more

Awesome chinese food -- everything we ordered was delicious! My favorites were the crispy skin chicken with shrimp chips, stir fried pea sprouts, steamed egg with ground pork and green onions, beancurd with mushrooms and bok choy, and the prawns with walnuts in light mayonnaise sauce. Oh and the soup of the day was really good -- some beancurd skin with mushrooms. Minus 1 star for the decor even though it's your typical chinese restaurant style decor ;) read more

Came here for Chinese New Year dinner on a Saturday, and we were able to score a table for four without a wait. There was a small and cramped parking lot in the back of the restaurant. The dishes were quite authentic, so no real complaints there. Everything was tasty -- the steamed sea bass, garlic pea sprouts, roast duck, yi mein ("long-life" noodles), and the dried oyster with black moss. Most of the dishes were pretty reasonably priced, except a few of the specials. The live sea bass was around $7/lb. Unfortunately they charged $5 for the house soup, which is usually on the house, and the soup was nothing much either. The new year special -- dried oyster with black moss was $30 (same price as the fish), which I thought was ridiculously overpriced, especially for dried oyster, not even live. They give red bean soup on the house, but if you want fresh oranges, it's another $5. No wonder there was no wait to be seated. I don't understand why they want to penny pinch their customers. They should just give things for free when they should be free -- like the house soup and fruit at the end. What cheapskates...I expected more, even from a Chinese restaurant. read more

Silver House is a definite must try! It's a hole-in-the-wall joint with excellent food and service. Pretty much every item on the menu is delicious and packed w/ flavor. I suggest trying their eggplant w/ ground beef in a sizzling ceramic pot. Their chow mein Hong Kong style w/ thin crispy noodles is great too! You will not be disappointed I promise. Side note: If you decide to dine in you're usually treated with a red bean dessert soup at the end of your meal. *thumbs up* read more

Came here for dinner with family. They told us they were out of crab and gave us lobster instead. Then table who came after us got crab. We asked the manager why and he said a guy conveniently went out at 7pm to buy fresh crabs and other bogus responses. Then he gave bad attitude. Otherwise service and food was good. read more