Walked by this place a few times, I believe it's now a noodle house but the sign says Famous Bao and I'm sure the owner doesn't know how to update it in Yelp. Therefore, I don't think the older bad reviews are representative of what's currently here now. This place is open for takeout during shelter in place, but it's hard as the rest of Sather Lane businesses are closed and he has the lights off (probably to help keep his bills down during these tough times). I got two bowls of noodles, I usually try to get multiple dishes to get a better taste of a place, and they are honestly huge. I've been working through them all week because of the big portions. It's currently a one man show over there, the man who took my order also went into the kitchen and cooked it up, didn't take too long but enough where you knew he didn't just have everything pre-made. Both dishes were very good, I'm a fan of the texture of the noodles, I don't like noodles that are too soft/overcooked and these were perfect. The sauce in both dishes were really good, I got the spicy oil seared hand pulled noodles which has no meat but the sauce was like a chili garlic sauce and it has some veggies. The signature spicy beef noodles caught me by surprise, I love braised beef noodles and I order them whenever I see them on a menu. This beef was very tender and flavorful and wasn't very fatty like I've had at other places. The prices are definitely below typical Bay Area prices, probably because it's closer to campus and caters to a student's budget. TLDR; dishes are delicious and flavor, great price point. If you're on your daily quarantine walk, definitely stop by and support this local small business, I'll definitely be stopping by again.
Jenn T.
This place is pretty good for noodles, which seems to be what people order even though it's named after bao. Meals here aren't really consistent and need a lot more spice than they give. The service is friendly and it gets a crowd in.
Margaret Lee
Great hand pulled noodles at reasonable $$. I wosh they coukd add more veggies
Isaac Lomprey
Don't expect chatty California service, enjoy the dry spicy cuman lamb noodles or the pork belly dishes. Very busy around 6:30
Zhenni Lin
Good food, unfriendly service. The owner/cashier seemed impatient when I asked him whether a particular dish was spicy. He then proceeded to explain to me in a condescending manner that the dish was obviously not spicy, when it was not obvious at all.
Ian Larry
Excellent place to go.
Dylan L.
Food is so fire here!!! My favorite place in Berkeley for food hands down. It's greasy and oily, but dang it I love it. The lamb dry noodles are so good and the noodles they have are such a great texture. If you love cumin lamb, come here.
Maria S.
This place used to be Famous Bao, they are keeping the name but their menus are different. Mainly are noodles, stir fry noodles or noodle soups, came with choice of beef, lamb, oxtail or pork. We orderred 3 items; Signature Spicy Beef Noodle Soup, Stewed Oxtail Noodle Soup, Signature Spicy Beef Noodle. Overall the meats are tasty and tender but the soup has no flavor. The stir fry noodle tasted plain, it looks like the sauteed beef was poured over boiled noodles.
Leme K.
A HIDDEN GEM. I believe it's under new ownership. Different employees, different menu, different food items. If you are a noodle lover like I am, this place is the place to be! There's a new menu on the wall (it's the white and black one on yelp posted most recently) with selective items; mostly with noodles. The idea behind the menu is when you look at it, you can chose which noodles or rice (for a gluten free choice) as your base, and everything else are supplements to your noodles or rice. Today, I ordered 2 things: Braised Oxtail noodle soup and Braised pork belly tossed noodles. First thing I must note, they give A LOT of noodles (like enough for 2 people in one bowl). The Braised Oxtail noodle soup came with a giant bone with chunks of beef that have fallen off from being braised in the same pot as other oxtail. All seated in a big bowl with plenty of broth poured over and baby bok Choy and some cabbages as veggies. For this bowl, there were thinner noodles that almost resembles ramen noodles but without eggs. It's a wheat base noodle cooked to aldente for to keep the chewy texture but still soak up that rich broth mixed with the residual braised sauce of the oxtail and clear broth. The second bowl, I had to ask for their recommendations and ended up ordering the Braised pork belly with tossed noodles. In the bottom of the bowl seats your sauce of chili garlic oil, and other sauces the chef puts in. Then on top is your heafty amount of noodle (I chose the flat wider noodle) huge chunks of braised pork belly (I got 8 peices all in at least 1 inch diameter) and some cabbage and baby bok Choy. The noodles, once again cooked to aldente for a smooth and chewiness texture that gets coated by the sauce for the perfect bite. The flavors of both bowls of noodles were perfect, distinct and yet different but still similar in ways. The noodles were cooked perfectly giving off the chewy texture while being able allow the sauces and broth coat it. The toppings were phenomenal and in generous portions. Food was so delicious, my partner and I ordered Togo items for tomorrow's lunch. Lastly, the service was great. Although, there were some language barriers as the lady at the counter didn't speak much English, she tried very hard the best she can to describe the items on the menu to me. They accept credit and cash and even have Vegan and vegeterian options! Also, most items are under 10$! What a steal! They have indoor seating in the back and outdoor seating in the front which is great for groups, if you have a pet and or just want to enjoy the weather. Also, people get to see you slurp some delicious noodles. Unfortunately, I don't think the new owners or employees here understands or know what Yelp is and currently this Yelp Business is unclaimed. So for most of the reviews I believe was for the previous establishment. BUT! If you are ever in the area and looking for a cheap eats, please give this place a try.
Yanjun W.
8.22 dinner. I had a chicken leg noodles. What a big drumstick and many noodles. There were cabbages and green vegetables.There was a large space and not many people. The Shaanxi dishes are nice. Waiters can speak Chinese. At last I was very full.
Firstly, it is incredibly suspect that a place called "Famous Bao" did not in fact have any Bao at all (addressed by a small sticky note labelled with an ambiguous "NA"), but that is only a small complaint in this nauseatingly negative saga. I thought the noodles were pretty alright; definitely a little bit pricey at $10 for a small bowl, but that's Berkeley. The waiter was literally the rudest person I have ever met in my entire life, and I feel as though many of the other reviews do not convey exactly how unnerving it is to interact with him. When my girlfriend asked him if they had any Bao, he gestured at a sticky note that said "NA" on it and angrily said "What do you think NOT AVAILABLE means ah?" BIG RED FLAG, but we stayed because we were in a hurry and needed some dinner. I told him we would review the menu and pick something else, so he waited impatiently (sighing and shaking his head intermittently) for about 30 seconds before condescendingly asking if we "needed help ordering." I told him no, to which he sniped "maybe it would go faster if you had help." It is worth noting that there was nobody else in line, for now obvious reasons, so we were not inconveniencing any customers. When I told him I wanted the food to-go (of course), he sighed, whipped out a radio and shouted "WaiMai WaiMai" ("to-go to-go" in Mandarin) without acknowledging me in any way. I was actually a little bit scared interacting with him, as he seemed to have a somewhat explosive and unpredictable temper, especially at customers. He handed us a bag and we left as fast as possible. I will literally never, ever come back.
John H.
I know the menu can be overwhelming. Like any restaurant, if you order wrong, you will likely be disappointed. So I just thought I'd add a recommendation. If the weather is hot go for some Liangpi 凉皮 - house made mung bean noodles. The fat cold noodles are so refreshing the name literally means "cold skin". That magic sauce is a little spicy and very vinegary which the noodles absorb so well. I used to eat these on hot summer days in Beijing on a tiny stool outside. Sorry for the nostalgia side but I just wish they had some cucumbers and spongy fried tofu, and more peanuts to mix around like I used to get. I'm not sure if that's how they roll in Xi'an where the noodles are apparently from but it worked for me. They're so good I wanna learn how to make these myself. Don't sleep on the cold skin.
Sophia C.
I was tentative to come here because of all the negative reviews, and they were right. First off, when I came in the cashier did not acknowledge me. Then I ordered the five spice oxtail noodle soup. When he brought my order, there was no soup, so I asked him about that and he got mad. I don't understand why he got so mad especially because the broth for this dish was already premade. It is such an easy fix, yet he made such a big deal about it. He grabbed my dish and as he left he was shaking his head. Blatantly rude. I feel bad for the owner of this place because he's probably the reason why people hate this place. Sucks for them because they just lost a potential regular customer. Like the food. Hate the service so it's a no from me. I'm never coming here again. If you want famous bao, just go to the one in sather lane because the service and experience here is not worth it.
Ed Oakes
Food is great, but the service can be quite unfriendly. If you're willing to make the walk, the one on south side is a better experience.
Donduk D.
The cashier or the person who takes order there is extremely rude, unprofessional and condescending. The whole time while I was talking to him he was watching his phone screen or something and never gave any effective communication. I asked him is that possible to replace shrimps with other options, and he directly interrupted me and said "so no shrimps", then I explained I want to know is that possible to replace it with other meat, then he screamed "I don't know! Only kitchen knows! You want something? Yes or no?!" Literally the most awful experience especially on the first day of Chinese New Year at a Chinese restaurant. If he doesn't know anything I don't know why he works there. If it's truly impossible to replace any ingredients with other options it's totally fine with me, but can you tell your customersin a good professional manner instead screaming? From other reviews, it seems like that extremely angry and rude cashier has a really bad attitude toward Asian somehow, or maybe to all customers. DO NOT GO THERE!
Walked by this place a few times, I believe it's now a noodle house but the sign says Famous Bao and I'm sure the owner doesn't know how to update it in Yelp. Therefore, I don't think the older bad reviews are representative of what's currently here now. This place is open for takeout during shelter in place, but it's hard as the rest of Sather Lane businesses are closed and he has the lights off (probably to help keep his bills down during these tough times). I got two bowls of noodles, I usually try to get multiple dishes to get a better taste of a place, and they are honestly huge. I've been working through them all week because of the big portions. It's currently a one man show over there, the man who took my order also went into the kitchen and cooked it up, didn't take too long but enough where you knew he didn't just have everything pre-made. Both dishes were very good, I'm a fan of the texture of the noodles, I don't like noodles that are too soft/overcooked and these were perfect. The sauce in both dishes were really good, I got the spicy oil seared hand pulled noodles which has no meat but the sauce was like a chili garlic sauce and it has some veggies. The signature spicy beef noodles caught me by surprise, I love braised beef noodles and I order them whenever I see them on a menu. This beef was very tender and flavorful and wasn't very fatty like I've had at other places. The prices are definitely below typical Bay Area prices, probably because it's closer to campus and caters to a student's budget. TLDR; dishes are delicious and flavor, great price point. If you're on your daily quarantine walk, definitely stop by and support this local small business, I'll definitely be stopping by again.
This place is pretty good for noodles, which seems to be what people order even though it's named after bao. Meals here aren't really consistent and need a lot more spice than they give. The service is friendly and it gets a crowd in.
Great hand pulled noodles at reasonable $$. I wosh they coukd add more veggies
Don't expect chatty California service, enjoy the dry spicy cuman lamb noodles or the pork belly dishes. Very busy around 6:30
Good food, unfriendly service. The owner/cashier seemed impatient when I asked him whether a particular dish was spicy. He then proceeded to explain to me in a condescending manner that the dish was obviously not spicy, when it was not obvious at all.
Excellent place to go.
Food is so fire here!!! My favorite place in Berkeley for food hands down. It's greasy and oily, but dang it I love it. The lamb dry noodles are so good and the noodles they have are such a great texture. If you love cumin lamb, come here.
This place used to be Famous Bao, they are keeping the name but their menus are different. Mainly are noodles, stir fry noodles or noodle soups, came with choice of beef, lamb, oxtail or pork. We orderred 3 items; Signature Spicy Beef Noodle Soup, Stewed Oxtail Noodle Soup, Signature Spicy Beef Noodle. Overall the meats are tasty and tender but the soup has no flavor. The stir fry noodle tasted plain, it looks like the sauteed beef was poured over boiled noodles.
A HIDDEN GEM. I believe it's under new ownership. Different employees, different menu, different food items. If you are a noodle lover like I am, this place is the place to be! There's a new menu on the wall (it's the white and black one on yelp posted most recently) with selective items; mostly with noodles. The idea behind the menu is when you look at it, you can chose which noodles or rice (for a gluten free choice) as your base, and everything else are supplements to your noodles or rice. Today, I ordered 2 things: Braised Oxtail noodle soup and Braised pork belly tossed noodles. First thing I must note, they give A LOT of noodles (like enough for 2 people in one bowl). The Braised Oxtail noodle soup came with a giant bone with chunks of beef that have fallen off from being braised in the same pot as other oxtail. All seated in a big bowl with plenty of broth poured over and baby bok Choy and some cabbages as veggies. For this bowl, there were thinner noodles that almost resembles ramen noodles but without eggs. It's a wheat base noodle cooked to aldente for to keep the chewy texture but still soak up that rich broth mixed with the residual braised sauce of the oxtail and clear broth. The second bowl, I had to ask for their recommendations and ended up ordering the Braised pork belly with tossed noodles. In the bottom of the bowl seats your sauce of chili garlic oil, and other sauces the chef puts in. Then on top is your heafty amount of noodle (I chose the flat wider noodle) huge chunks of braised pork belly (I got 8 peices all in at least 1 inch diameter) and some cabbage and baby bok Choy. The noodles, once again cooked to aldente for a smooth and chewiness texture that gets coated by the sauce for the perfect bite. The flavors of both bowls of noodles were perfect, distinct and yet different but still similar in ways. The noodles were cooked perfectly giving off the chewy texture while being able allow the sauces and broth coat it. The toppings were phenomenal and in generous portions. Food was so delicious, my partner and I ordered Togo items for tomorrow's lunch. Lastly, the service was great. Although, there were some language barriers as the lady at the counter didn't speak much English, she tried very hard the best she can to describe the items on the menu to me. They accept credit and cash and even have Vegan and vegeterian options! Also, most items are under 10$! What a steal! They have indoor seating in the back and outdoor seating in the front which is great for groups, if you have a pet and or just want to enjoy the weather. Also, people get to see you slurp some delicious noodles. Unfortunately, I don't think the new owners or employees here understands or know what Yelp is and currently this Yelp Business is unclaimed. So for most of the reviews I believe was for the previous establishment. BUT! If you are ever in the area and looking for a cheap eats, please give this place a try.
8.22 dinner. I had a chicken leg noodles. What a big drumstick and many noodles. There were cabbages and green vegetables.There was a large space and not many people. The Shaanxi dishes are nice. Waiters can speak Chinese. At last I was very full.
Restaurantji Recommends
Firstly, it is incredibly suspect that a place called "Famous Bao" did not in fact have any Bao at all (addressed by a small sticky note labelled with an ambiguous "NA"), but that is only a small complaint in this nauseatingly negative saga. I thought the noodles were pretty alright; definitely a little bit pricey at $10 for a small bowl, but that's Berkeley. The waiter was literally the rudest person I have ever met in my entire life, and I feel as though many of the other reviews do not convey exactly how unnerving it is to interact with him. When my girlfriend asked him if they had any Bao, he gestured at a sticky note that said "NA" on it and angrily said "What do you think NOT AVAILABLE means ah?" BIG RED FLAG, but we stayed because we were in a hurry and needed some dinner. I told him we would review the menu and pick something else, so he waited impatiently (sighing and shaking his head intermittently) for about 30 seconds before condescendingly asking if we "needed help ordering." I told him no, to which he sniped "maybe it would go faster if you had help." It is worth noting that there was nobody else in line, for now obvious reasons, so we were not inconveniencing any customers. When I told him I wanted the food to-go (of course), he sighed, whipped out a radio and shouted "WaiMai WaiMai" ("to-go to-go" in Mandarin) without acknowledging me in any way. I was actually a little bit scared interacting with him, as he seemed to have a somewhat explosive and unpredictable temper, especially at customers. He handed us a bag and we left as fast as possible. I will literally never, ever come back.
I know the menu can be overwhelming. Like any restaurant, if you order wrong, you will likely be disappointed. So I just thought I'd add a recommendation. If the weather is hot go for some Liangpi 凉皮 - house made mung bean noodles. The fat cold noodles are so refreshing the name literally means "cold skin". That magic sauce is a little spicy and very vinegary which the noodles absorb so well. I used to eat these on hot summer days in Beijing on a tiny stool outside. Sorry for the nostalgia side but I just wish they had some cucumbers and spongy fried tofu, and more peanuts to mix around like I used to get. I'm not sure if that's how they roll in Xi'an where the noodles are apparently from but it worked for me. They're so good I wanna learn how to make these myself. Don't sleep on the cold skin.
I was tentative to come here because of all the negative reviews, and they were right. First off, when I came in the cashier did not acknowledge me. Then I ordered the five spice oxtail noodle soup. When he brought my order, there was no soup, so I asked him about that and he got mad. I don't understand why he got so mad especially because the broth for this dish was already premade. It is such an easy fix, yet he made such a big deal about it. He grabbed my dish and as he left he was shaking his head. Blatantly rude. I feel bad for the owner of this place because he's probably the reason why people hate this place. Sucks for them because they just lost a potential regular customer. Like the food. Hate the service so it's a no from me. I'm never coming here again. If you want famous bao, just go to the one in sather lane because the service and experience here is not worth it.
Food is great, but the service can be quite unfriendly. If you're willing to make the walk, the one on south side is a better experience.
The cashier or the person who takes order there is extremely rude, unprofessional and condescending. The whole time while I was talking to him he was watching his phone screen or something and never gave any effective communication. I asked him is that possible to replace shrimps with other options, and he directly interrupted me and said "so no shrimps", then I explained I want to know is that possible to replace it with other meat, then he screamed "I don't know! Only kitchen knows! You want something? Yes or no?!" Literally the most awful experience especially on the first day of Chinese New Year at a Chinese restaurant. If he doesn't know anything I don't know why he works there. If it's truly impossible to replace any ingredients with other options it's totally fine with me, but can you tell your customersin a good professional manner instead screaming? From other reviews, it seems like that extremely angry and rude cashier has a really bad attitude toward Asian somehow, or maybe to all customers. DO NOT GO THERE!