Came here during Xmas eve and it was fully packed. Parking is limited even with a exclusive parking garage designated for the place. Street parking is also limited. So be warned! We ordered multiple skewers, i feel the skewers were quite small as it didnt have any meat on it. Would have been better if they were a bit more fatter... read more

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Terrible service and they charge non Chinese more! They offer discount written only in Chinese so no one else can take advantage of the offer. read more

Came here for dinner when our initial dinner plans fell through. It was a Sunday around 7:30 and it was pretty packed. I believe there's a minimum order of 10 skewers per person. We were trying to understand the menu or have someone explain it to us but they only speak Mandarin so we ended up pointing at things and over ordering. For the skewers we got beef and lamb. They're all seasoned the same with that cumin flavor, so it gets tiring after a while. Some of the pieces were super fatty and I was biting into fat chunks. I did think the skewer rotator was pretty cool. It was fun to cook the skewers. Since we were only eating meat, we decided we needed some veggies so we ordered the stir fried eggplant. We would have been better off without this because it was drenched in oil. I think I would have had a better experience if everything didn't have the same flavor, and if I understood the menu. Tip - it's BYOB but only beer and wine (no soju) read more

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BYOB for free!!! Beef skewers at $1.10 (minimum 10 orders) were tiny given the cost. We ordered 40 of them for 2. We also got the bigger beef & baby cow? which were $3-4.50 a piece and was much bigger than the smaller beef. Overall, good cost & good taste read more

Xiao Chuan Dian - Beef skewer - Chinese Near Me - Palisades Park, New Jersey

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I had an amazing experience here! I missed the Chinese lamb skewer experience from Korea and this place satisfied my cravings! My group of 3 friends ordered many many different types of skewers along with 3 entrees, the sweet chewy fried pork (guo bao rou), stir fried eggplant and egg fried rice. Among the ones I tried the best skewers were the original lamb, special beef and beef tendon. These were super juicy and larger than the other skewers. These eggplants were also seasoned perfectly and the guo bao rou was perfectly chewy and crispy too. Note that the entrees are huuge so beware if you want to fit in more skewers! I absolutely loved this place (byob for beer/wine helps) and I would definitely come back! read more

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This place is usually packed so please make a reservation and don't just show up. They will probably turn you away. They have the auto-rotating rack for the skewers, which is really cool. The food was good and you get a bunch of different spices you can use. The tangsooyuk was surprisingly good! read more

Xiao Chuan Dian - Chinese Near Me - Palisades Park, New Jersey

Yelp keeps mixing up the review and photos for Xiao Chuan Dian with my review for Dunhuang in Edison, NJ. I rated this place 5-stars due to its delicious cold noodles... and unfortunately when I tried to delete the old review for Dunhuang keep appearing for this place, it actually deleted my review for Xiao Chuan Dian. What a shame - Yelp, please fix this mix up issue. read more

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I haven't had skewers since I lived in China but Xiao Chuan Dian's skewers were on point. Before we visited, I called to get a reservation, since it is a popular spot on the weekends. One thing that might be important to keep in mind is that since the restaurant is frequented by Chinese and Korean customers it seemed like the staff were more comfortable taking the reservation in Chinese or Korean. When we arrived, we were taken to a small room with a charcoal grill. Like many skewer places, you can grill your own skewers. For dinner, we ordered lamb skewers, beef skewers, mushroom and beef skewers, fish cake skewers, cold noodles and a cucumber salad. The skewers all came out mostly cooked (we were told to grill the skewers for another minute) and were all delicious, though the lamb skewers were the best in my opinion. These skewers went perfectly with the refreshing cucumber salad and cold noodles, which contrasted nicely with the hot skewers. Service was good though things might have been easier because I could speak Chinese. The price was a little bit high given the relatively small meat portions. However, all in all, Xiao Chuan Dian is a solid skewer restaurant that is worth a visit if your craving skewers. read more

Xiao Chuan Dian - Spice - Chinese Near Me - Palisades Park, New Jersey

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3.5. Was in the mood for some skewers but not in the mood to drive to flushing so the googles began. Eventually we decided to come here and give them a try. Certainly pricier than flushing skewers but the cozy and intimate ambiance made up for it. I was slightly disappointed that they didn't have chicken hearts, but there was enough to choose from. The wings definitely deliver on the spice in the best way possible. My gf didn't like it as much as I did but I would certainly return to try a few more things. Give them a try for yourself and be the judge. ENJOY!!! read more

Fantastic place for late night dinner with friends/family. 100% like the xiao chuan restaurants in China and I'm here for this LOL. Beef and chicken skewers were amazing - so were the squid. The mushrooms would be better if some pieces weren't so thick and tough to chew through (the thin ones were divine) Fyi the entire menu is in korean and chinese so bring a friend if you're illiterate read more

Food is very god. Service is fast but do book a table ahead since it gets busy and the restaurant is small. Definitely one of the better Chinese skewer BBQ around. read more

We have mixed feelings about this one. We came here during holidays last winter with our friends on our trip to American Dream. It was Amazing! They serve authentic Northern Chinese Kabab, Korean cuisine as well as Chinese Cuisine. It's not usual that a chef could handle all three different cuisines so good together. Our friend who originally came from the Northeastern part of China said this was one of the best and authentic cuisine of her hometown eastern coasts. Not to mention their above average service and really good hygiene maintained. However, our second visit a year later was not great. We came back again on our roadtrip this fall, and paid another visit. The food quality served that evening was so much worse and two of the dishes we ordered were so bad that we barely touched. The server only offered to pack them for taking out. we were traveling and didn't want to ruin our mood to argue with him. I guess it's your own risk for dining here and just wish that your next visit would be better than my last one lol. read more

Xiao Chuan Dian - Chinese Near Me - Palisades Park, New Jersey

Came here with friends during the weekend for dinner. Definitely a different experience from any other skewer places I've been to! Each skewers are tiny portion so we ended up eating about 20 skewers per person (might seem like a lot, but it was actually the perfect portion). They all tasted amazing and the spice on the meat was so delicious! Highly recommend! Make sure you make a reservation in advance though, because this place does get super packed. read more

Xiao Chuan Dian - Chinese Near Me - Palisades Park, New Jersey

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Hmm skewers are 3 stars, but the dry hot pot (mala xiangguo) is 4 so I'll give it a 4 total. The size of the skewers is super small (think 1.5 inches of small meet for each lamb/beef skewer) so although they're not expensive on paper, the value isn't that great. The dry hot pot was one of the best we've had though so brownie points there! Also really wish they had their skewer menu in English, I struggled with reading the Chinese real hard (should've went to weekend Chinese school like my parents asked me to when I was young!). Google lens with their translation option came in hot. Tip: Get a reservation or go right when they open! We got there 30mins after they opened but all parties after us wtihout a reservation got turned away or told to come back in an hour:O read more

My friend was super excited about this place and loves skewers and recommended to it to us. We were lucky enough to have no wait. I love a restaurant where you can have an experience and it's fun finishing up the cooking process of the skewers how you want it at your own table. We tried both the beef and lamb, I'm not the biggest fan of lamb in general, but I actually did enjoy these lamb skewers, didn't have the overwhelming gamey taste which usually is what I don't like. The beef skewer was pretty good and the seasonings they have are a great flavor boost. Though, the only thing is that this place is quite pricey for not a lot of meat, so though I thought it was good and fun to eat here, probably would only come here, every now and again. read more

I was craving skewers and was happy to see that there was a skewers restaurant in pal park! But unfortunately, I did not have a great experience - to start off, the interior is not really pleasant and does not look very clean. The staff is somewhat friendly but limited in english. The menu is not in english - they had a simple english menu but it did not include everything they had. Also, there's a 30 skewer minimum to grill it yourself. Most of the skewers I got were $6-9 for 2 skewers so quite pricey. We spent about $60 for 30 skewers. Taste wise, it was good but I've had better skewers elsewhere. I ordered 10 beef, 10 lamb (both were $11 for 10) special beef, lamb, big beef, special big lamb. I didnt mind coming to try out this restaurant but I wouldn't come back. read more

Xiao Chuan Dian - 10 lamb, 10 beef - Chinese Near Me - Palisades Park, New Jersey

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Excellent! Skewers for bbq or order menu items to share. The cumin lamb and shredded beef were excellent. Terrific fried rice too! BYOB. Need reservations. Delicious and giant portions. read more

Had a wonderful family dinner here! I see there are mixed reviews, but I think it's because it takes a bit of know-how to have a pleasant experience, which I'll explain below. The skewers are all really good - lamb, beef, sausage, marbled pork (雪花肉), and the mushrooms wrapped in fatty beef! Goes down perfect with some light beer. The staff don't exactly show you how to cook the skewers over the charcoal, unless they see you doing it wrong (which they did for us, haha). You're supposed to cook the skewers on the lower rack (~1 min for the standard lamb and beef skewers and a bit longer for the specialty ones, but they all come out a bit pre-cooked) and then keep them warm on the top rack. The menu may be inaccessible to those who do not read Korean or Chinese - there is no English. But you can ask the staff for recommendations and/or clarifications. I believe you have to order in batches of 10 skewers (except for the specialty ones). Also, if you want one of the tables with charcoal grilling (they're all a bit tucked away in the back of the restaurant and are semi-private rooms), be sure to call in advance to reserve it. When you make a reservation, you'll have two hours from the start of your reservation time to eat. So arrive on time, because if you're late you only have the remaining time to eat (since the reservation slots are back-to-back and get filled quickly). I also highly recommend their stir-fried dishes. So if you're not a huge fan of skewers, don't let this turn you away! There's plenty to eat among the veggie stir-fry dishes, including eggplant, egg fried rice, cabbage, etc. read more

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Wow wow wow, this place is a hidden gem. A few things to note, reservations are a MUST. They only accept rsvps 1-2 days in advance and will not allow reservations for days farther out. If you want Friday rsvps, you have to call on Thursday between 11am-12pm because they're closed on Wednesdays and the spots book fast. For reference I called on Thursday 2pm and there was only 1 spot open on Friday. These customers are vicious. And on weekends, they give you a 2hr limit to eat. The food was delicious. The restaurant specializes in chuanr food (chinese skewer) so please do NOT expect westernized chinese food. Also, Northern Chinese food is not for everyone. Some people love cumin & peppercorn and some hate it but it doesn't hurt to try . We ordered a variety of skewers including lamb, mini beef, beef tendon, squid (skip this), beef mushroom, and short ribs. All the meats were incredibly flavorful, tender, and delicious. As for the dishes, we ordered spicy fatty beef (mala), crispy sweet & sour pork, bok choy, shrimp fried rice, and cold noodles. They were great complements to the skewers and made our dinner extra special. I will be back! read more

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We were finally able to get a reservation and we can report that we enjoyed eating here! Call for a reservation because they get very packed- even if you're a party of 2! What we got: Mini Beef skewers Mini Lamb skewers Beef Intestine skewers Pork Rib skewers Squid skewers Mixed Cucumber Stir Fry Squid Egg fried rice We were excited to finally land a reservation, however, service was a bit rocky at first because no one greeted us to tell us how things operate there. So take note of the following: if you cannot read Korean, use your google translator app because the paper menu they provide isn't in English. They do have a formal menu with English translations, but there's def more options on the paper menu. If you're sitting in the private booths, press on the call button to get their attention!! As for the food, everything we ordered was seasoned really well and we enjoyed all the dishes and skewers! The skewers come cooked, but depending on how well you like the meat cooked, you can put them on the grill. We loved how the charcoal gave the meats a char when placed on the bottom rack and kept them warm on the top rack. Definitely coming back to try more things now that we know how the restaurant operates read more

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food was so different from traditional korean chinese... really enjoyed the service and ambiance...

Definitely need to come here if you are experienced eating this type of preparation of food. Not meant for everyone. Service was good, people were nice so it made the experience better. Tight place to eat so I understand why reservations are a must. There were about 8 tables inside. Street parking only, read more

Skewer bbq is trendy right now and this restaurant is benefiting from it. Compared to other options in Flushing or the city, I would say this is probably not as good. If you rather not travel, you just have to make do. It can get very expensive if you order a lot. I would recommend ordering the lamb skewers and then maybe a couple of beef skewers. Then maybe a soup or some noodles for variety. To be honest at this price range I would rather have gone and have a beef bbq combo at a Korean bbq place or to one of the ACYE options nearby. read more

Lamb skewer was good! But nothing else was. All the red seasonings tasted like mala. We got fried squid which also tasted like mala. This place was pricey as they have minimum order limit for certain skewers. And they don't give you the charcoal heat for bbq unless you have an order of least 30 skewers. read more

Xiao Chuan Dian - Chinese Near Me - Palisades Park, New Jersey

Love the food and great service!! One of my favorite restaurant in Palisades Park. 200% recommended. Make sure before you go call them first and make a reservation. read more

Xiao Chuan Dian - Chinese Near Me - Palisades Park, New Jersey

Quite disappointed since I had high expectations. The skewers were good, and probably the reason for me to come back. I especially liked the wagyu beef and lamb skewers. The sliced beef wrapped enoki mushroom was too salty and the squid had that strange sweet taste I didn't like. So I would avoid them next time and try things like spicy chicken wings. The dishes were below average. The only good one was spicy clams. The overly sweet Guobaorou (sweet and sour pork slices) had soooo little meat that you feel like you are eating fried dough instead of eating meat. It had literally no taste of meat if you eat it blindly. The dry pot mushroom didn't come with dry pot, and had little mushroom but full of thin sliced pork belly. It was very salty and oily. The cucumber got too much sugar. Fried fish was ok but you won't want to order it if Hou cannot handle small fish bones. Service was average. The food arrived rather quickly, but we only got water half an hour after we asked for it. The dinner area was well-setup since you sit in a semi-closed room that has little interaction with your neighbors. Before tips it's 140+ for 4 people. For the price you would expect better quality of food and service. read more

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The food is PHENOMENAL! The Chinese BBQ skewers are SO GOOD and the other northern Chinese dishes have so much flavors and very authentic. I've been here a billion times and everything , every time sent me back to heaven. Beware of the spicy chicken wings - they are really the silent killers that will have you drinking gallons of water! It is best to call ahead to make a reservation. Every one there is so welcoming I felt like walking into my own home. They are super nice and patient to hear your requests - even at busy times. There are these little rooms inside which feels like our privacy is respected but there are also these tables outside of the rooms if you are feeling more of a community vibe. I would 100% recommend this place. It has never failed me. They have a small parking garage but it is likely that it would be full. Parking is pretty easy to find outside down the residential road though. read more

Food was good and service was as well. The lamb was seasoned well and no gamey flavor or smell. The beef skewers were oddly a bit gamey. The eggplant dish and the tang syeok was the best. Would Def revisit when craving lamb. read more

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Authentic spot for Chinese skewers, decently priced. Our group likes the hot dishes more than the skewers, but the two groups were the same in taste (e.g. all the spicy hot dishes had the same sauce, and the skewers all only had the dry rub for flavor), but the flavors were decent. Service was fast. read more

Xiao Chuan Dian - Lamb and beef skewers, stir fry clams, dry rub - Chinese Near Me - Palisades Park, New Jersey

One of my favorite places to eat during the cold season. The skewers here are legit and done right. Skewers come pretty much cooked and you get charcoal in the middle of the table to finish the skewers off at the table. I tend to stick with the beef and lamb skewers here. The rest are just ok for me. The other kitchen dishes are also all very good here. Would highly recommend the cold noodle. Can't get enough of that every time we come. read more

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Very delicious! highly recommend this place to people who want to try legit skewers. This place is also BYOB (no soju), but they sell beer there as well. corn noodle: 5/5.. noodle itself is pretty chewy and soup is very tasty. tried lamb (small and large)/ squid/ wings. I personally loved their small lamb skewers, but my boyfriend loved their large lamb skewers. service was great, but they took awhile to bring our orders.. but we will definitely come back soon! read more

Their food got cockroaches in it. Stay away. I threw up and had food poisoning and I will sue

This is a really authentic North China restaurant. The Lamp skew was great, especially with the spice read more

Xiao Chuan Dian - Chinese Near Me - Palisades Park, New Jersey

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LOVE this place! The skewers are seasoned beautifully. I especially love the lamb and chicken wings. Some of the skewers have minimums though (ie: you need to order minimum 10 for lamb). 10 sounds like a lot, but its very reasonable and easily sharable between 2 people. It's also fun to grill your own meat as well. As a note, this place is BYOB and there is a liquor store right across the street! read more

Haven't wrote a 1 star review in a long time however this place definitely deserves it. Thanks to the reviews I called ahead of time to make a reservation and they spoke Chinese on the phone. Once there, we were told that the parking spots are full in the garage. So we had to park on the street and the meter is in front of Hmart. We ordered lamb skewers, shrimp, tofu and some dishes. In regards to the food, everything was good however the customer service is definitely the worst I have ever experienced. From the start there was no explanation as to how to choose from the menu as there are minimums such as must order a min of 10 mini lamb skewers. When asked how to order the skewers we were told that we did not do it correctly and was dismissed. Secondly, the staff members were rude and did not explain how to cook the skewers we had to ask how long to cook and where to put the skewers. The bottom cooks the skewers and the top is to keep it warm. Asked for a refill on the water 2 times before we were acknowledged and we were seated in front of the mens bathroom and no one closed our curtains when leaving. Lastly, we were not allowed to order skewers to go because we were told that they do not have enough for customers dining in. Which confused me, they have minimums but we are not allowed to order more to go. At least the bathrooms were clean. Honestly worst experience ever, avoid at all cost. The food is not worth the headache. read more

Great skewers spot in Pal Park. Skewers come in a variety of meats and cuts mainly of lamb and beef. The meat is also accompanied by a very tasty chili powder that is used for dipping. Only problem I had was that in order to cook the skewers yourself, there was a minimum order of 30 skewers and depending on the meat there was a minimum of how many skewers you needed to order. read more

Xiao Chuan Dian - Lamb and beef skewers - Chinese Near Me - Palisades Park, New Jersey

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They should modify the menus to include English names for the food. The skewers are small. Most people come here because they want to experience the cooking at the table but it seems the waiters prefer and try to convince you to let them cook the food in the back. They have a button for service. I've had better skewers and better experiences at other places read more

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Prepare to be teleported to central china. This hole in the wall is as authentic as it gets. The food came out quickly and was delicious and affordable. The skewers are cooked on the table in front of you in a bed of charcoal. This is a great place to bring friends and have a night out of. read more

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2nd time to be there. I love skewers soooooo much! They're rooted in my bone and blood. Well, personally, I like small lamb skewers and M lamb skewers (老串) very much and recommended. The beef Tendon(肉筋，但我觉得不应该这么翻译吧。。）and chicken wings are also great. medium spicy is reaching my limit...try it with cautions Lamb rib is okay. I may not quite enjoy the one with less seasoning. Kind of disappointed to the lamb kidney. I may want to eat the slice of kidney instead of the chunk. I have the beef Tendon with spicy sauce today as the dish. It's great and has the flavor of my childhood So I will give it a score of 85/100 read more

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Believe it or not, I usually do not give 5 stars or strongly recommend a restaurant. But honestly, this one is worth it. This is my favorite restaurant for skewers and mala flavor dishes. Portions are very generous and everything is delicious. While the skewers are a must... Definitely order the mala tang, guo bao rou (sweet sour pork), and cold noodles. BYOB except for soju. Make reservations! The seating is also booth style so the privacy is nice as well. read more