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SY Chef

4.6 (78 reviews)
Closed 11:00 am - 8:30 pm

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Recommended Reviews - SY Chef

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A10. Scallion Pancake
Linda P.

Stopped in for lunch and was glad I got there early. It was very busy by the time I left. Even with being early, finding parking was a challenge. The strip mall parking lot is small. The hot and sour soup came with the Mongolian beef lunch. I did wish I'd picked the egg roll instead. The soup was fine, but it wasn't anything special. The beef and fried rice though we're excellent and not too spicy. I was really looking forward to the scallion pancake and it had great flavor but it was thicker and chewier than ones I've had before. I'm not sure if order it again because of that but I think it's a preference thing. I saw lots of other items I'd try though. Definitely worth a repeat.

Nick P.

It's been like a year since I was last here but we decided to give it a try again. We came here for a late lunch. It's located in a small outlet, so parking can be limited since it's shared. They do have some places to sit and eat but it's limited especially during peak hours. When we came in, we practically had the whole place to ourselves. I believe it's family owned and the owners are very nice and attentive. They have one gender neutral bathroom. We ordered stir fried lamb with onions, sweet and sour pork with pineapple, and shrimp, chive, and egg dumplings. Portion sizes are very generous and prices are reasonable. -stir fried lamb with onions 5 - lamb meat is very tender, requires very little chewing. -sweet and sour pork with pineapple 5 - most Americanized Chinese places, the pork would be soggy, but here the skin is very crispy. Pork inside is succulent. -shrimp, chive, and egg dumplings 5 - I really liked how they listened to my feedback from last time and added more moisture inside. They were definitely juicier and tastier than before. Skin is thin, good sized dumplings, and flavorful.

a group of people eating at a restaurant
Maria T.

We visited for the first time this past Sat. We had a great experience so we visited again the next day. This is a little Hole in the Wall with great food and great service. There are several 4-top and 2-top tables. I think the restaurant could seat a maximum of 22 people comfortably. The food was really good both days. On the first day, we ordered Mongolian Beef, spicy eggplant and combination fried rice. All was delicious! We liked the thickly sliced mushrooms included in the beef dish. The eggplant had a kick to it but was not overly spicy. The rice was flavorful with an abundance of protein. On the second day we ordered sweet and sour pork with pineapple and shrimp chowein. The soft noodles were handmade and the dish had lots of shrimp. Other: - In a rather run down strip mall with limited parking. - One unisex bathroom. - Soda served in cans (no refills) No complaints. Would definitely recommend. Great food and great value (big portions). May now be our "go to" for Chinese restaurant... At least for takeout or a quick bite.

A9. Homemade Hand Pancake
Adel W.

Newer restaurant in the Lisle area, and easy to miss as it's a tiny spot in a small strip mall! We came as a group of 8, and they graciously moved some tables to accommodate us. The interior is pretty small, and seats around 30-35 people! We ordered a bunch of dishes, and in the end it only came out to $110 total. My favorites were the Colorful wide cold noodle, pork head with cucumber, eggplant with potato and pepper, homemade H& pancake, and the boiled sour cabbage pork dumplings. I'd probably skip on the special dry chili chicken and stewed pork with fried tofu. Service was wonderful, only 1 woman was serving the whole place.

Menu
Francis R.

The hidden gem of Lisle. My wife had stumbled on this one via Chowbus. Very much a hole in the wall kind of place. Pretty limited seating and most orders seemed to be take out, but the food is legit. For veggies, we tried the eggplant w/ garlic sauce and sauteed green beans. Eggplant was piping hot, but both were delicious over some fresh white rice. For noodles, both the chow mein w/ chicken and colorful wide cold noodles were both great. They use fresh noodles in the chow mein and the cold noodles were perfect for a hot summer day. For main entrees, we tried the fish filet in spicy sauce and the stir fried lamb w/ onion. Fish filet was very nice and used some of the numbing peppers. Very tasty. The stir fried lamb was okay. I've had better, but it's decent. Anyways, we've been looking for somewhere closer to home instead of having to make the trek to our usual spots in Chinatown/Bridgeport. For sure will be back to try the dumplings here. 'Til next time, cheers!

Pork egg rolls, excellent!
Pearl M.

We decided to try a new to us Chinese restaurant. I've see SY Chef before, it's right next door to my husband's favorite burrito place. There must be something in the water there, because the food here is excellent as well. There are are about 8 tables, and the murals on the wall are very cool. It's very clean and well kept. There was only one server, but she was efficient and friendly. The menu has a ton of options. The crab Rangoon and egg rolls are priced per piece, which makes them a little pricy, but we'll worth it. I could have used more filling in the crab Rangoon, but they were still fresh and well done. We had spicy fish, which had the Szechuan pepper type of spice, a little mouth numbing, but not overwhelmingly so. The fish was tender and delicious. The Mongolian beef was a smaller portion than I expected for the price, but it was also very well done. Sometimes Mongolian beef is over sauced and cloyingly sweet. This was delicious, fresh tasting, and well prepared. The eggplant in garlic sauce was my favorite of the night. The vibrant purple was beautiful, and the garlic sauce was spicy, slightly sweet, and balanced with the right amount of salt. It was just perfect! My daughter order the cold sesame noodles and I ordered the colorful wise noodle salad. They tasted pretty similar to me. Both are dressed in sesame based sauces with cucumbers, carrots, and cilantro. I prefer the wider noodles, they're chewy with a bit more bounce. The other noodles seems starchier to me. Overall, I loved all the dishes we ordered. We will definitely be back! It was so nice to find a hidden gem that hit all the right notes!

Colorful Wide Cold Noodle Toppings
Eugene W.

This place is legit. My mom is from Shenyang and she approves. Colorful Wide Cold Noodle: I've never had this before, and it's delicious. It's cool and refreshing. The noodles are fat and have this great chewy texture. I like the slight hint of horseradish. Sour Cabbage Pork Dumpling: These dumplings are also legit. The wrappers are A+ and the filling is A+. You can even buy them frozen to take home. Yang Zhou Fried Rice: I pretty much never order fried rice at restaurants, but my mom was craving it. They give you a MASSIVE amount. This is undoubtedly two meals' worth no matter how much you eat. It's also really tasty. Probably not their specialty dish, but it has great bang for buck They have good deals on lunch specials that I want to try if I come back, too! Staff are very friendly and they recently expanded their seating area. You get a discount for paying in cash.

Curry chicken. Has a sweet taste.
Asim R.

Saw this restaurant on Yelp and thought I should try it had such good evaluation. Reached here ordered hot and sour soup, the taste was very decent but not the best. I love that you could get a large bowl for a very inexpensive price. Then I ordered the curry chicken. It was unusually sweet compared to all the other curry chickens I've had. But I can honestly say this is not a Chinese dish, curry is more Pakistani. I ate it, but I am used to it having more of a curry taste as opposed to a sweet taste. i'm thinking the people who are ordering Mongolian beef add the lamb are having a much better time and giving you a better evaluation. I can't say I will be back and try other dishes. But I don't think I'll be ordering the curry chicken. Another thing usually food comes out piping hot in Chinese restaurant unfortunately my food was not piping hot, but one thing is they're very busy as soon as people finish eating, they get up they come and clean the table and someone else is ready to sit down. It doesn't seem like there's a lot of space. But they move everything very fast. people are polite and kind. And honestly, since I've been sitting, the tables have turned at least twice each table if not, three times. All the table seat about four people. I definitely think I would come back. But I didn't see a five star rating today maybe the next time.

Menu first page
Jie S.

Very excited to see a new Chinese place popped at Lisle. A few little birds told me this place and indeed praised this place before I had my first visit here around lunch time. The Chinese name of this place is indeed Shenyang (a northern city in China) dumplings. With this name, you would know there are many choices of dumplings. We saw some interesting options on the menu and tried one I never had before - sauerkraut dumpling which apparently a good choice for folks' family came from northern side of China and we hardly see this as an option at other Chinese restaurants. However I have to say it is an acquired taste and wont be my first choice when come to dumplings. However it was raved by others. We chose the cold glass noodles which is also a popular dish from the same area. It was nicely seasoned and mixed with sliced cucumbers. This one has a nice mustard taste and just right for summer times. The one I liked most today was a veggie dish with eggplants, potato, and peppers. It was cooked just right with a bit browned potato and peppers are still crisp with some nice brown sauce. Fruit tea was just paired perfectly with our meals. We also explored their displayed items like you would see at food court place. we tried a bit fried pork, veggie, and lo mian and decided to pack a lunch box for kids at home. Services were warm and promptly. Looks like words were out as all four tables were pretty much occupied during the lunch hours. This definitely add another great option beyond either Cantonese or Sichuan food. Will came back for sure.

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7 days ago

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6 months ago

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8 months ago

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2 months ago

The food is great, loved the ambience and service was excellent. Fresh ingredients and plenty. I recommend

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2 years ago

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4 months ago

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2 years ago

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3 years ago

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2 years ago

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3 years ago

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4 months ago

Good food. Good service. Not your regular run of the mill Chinese restaurant. Will return for more.

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3 years ago

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8 months ago

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1 year ago

Fantastic food! We especially loved the hot and sour soup - totally hit the spot. The service was super fast. Highly recommend.

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3 years ago

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5 months ago

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1 year ago

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1 year ago

The food just wasn't that good. The service was fine. The ambiance is poor. Seating is terrible!

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1 year ago

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4 years ago

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3 years ago

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2 years ago

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10 months ago

Best eggs rolls great beef and broccoli good service clean rest room great fried rice

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3 years ago

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3 years ago

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1 year ago

Had high hopes based on all the positive reviews. But we didn't like it and the portions were kinda small.

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Ask the Community - SY Chef

Do you sell frozen dumplings?

yes we sell,$80for100

Can you dine in?

Yes

View All 4 Questions

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