Best Taiwanese restaurant around Berkeley! Recommend fried oysters and steamed pork belly. Very tasty and nice environment!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
L L
A feast for the eyes and mouth! Nostalgic Taiwanese flavors done in such a exciting and interesting way. And of course I am so grateful for the MANY vegetarian options!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Spicy Noodles
Cameron Bochman
No good pics because I ate too quickly. Hands down best Taiwanese food in the Bay Area. All the staff are amazingly friendly. Menu updates regularly. Will come back many many times!!Update: came back many times and this place is still amazing. Menu changes regularly but they keep the classics. Eggplant is 1000/10
Lovely place. Really tasty small plates. Definitely a foodie's joint. But man, the lighting in there is horrendous. Feels like you're in a CVS. Some little touches/improvements to the lighting (low and warm plz), art, and ambience would make it a lot nicer and worth the price of admission.
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 5
Service: 5
Wenda L
Poor quality food and service. We ordered dishes from the menu, which were brought out with heavy modifications without asking us if it was ok. We ordered the grilled squid and radish salad. We were given pickled cabbage instead of a radish salad. When I asked the Taiwanese owner(?)/waiter, he said they were out of radish salad. He didn’t even offer an apology. dude - I didn’t order pickled cabbage; you need to ask me before you change my order.Some other dishes were disgusting. For example, the shrimp and tofu noodles — the dish is good in principle, but the shrimp was so overcooked that some were mushy and mealy. Do you know how bad you must be in the kitchen to do that??
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 1
Service: 2
Robynn H
Fantastic fantastic fantastic!!!My husband and I eat there today. We were the second customers there at 5:01 pm.Our first visit at this restaurant. Ms Angi greeted us with this Spirit of God energy.We sat near a window on a rainy evening.Angi explained the various Taiwanese dishes and Chef Tony's intention in creating them.We ordered: Fried Oysters, Eggplant Noodles. Oyster Mushrooms, Shrimp & Tofu Noodles, Black Rice Tea and Oolong Tea Cheesecake.I don't have the room nor the time to go into a whole lot of detail. But the overall experience was truly truly truly a blessing.The food was fantastic you can literally taste a love that was put in it. The atmosphere the music. The simplicity of the setting was so created with intention to show love.Everything was FANTASTIC!!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
CM
This is literally one of the best places to eat in the entire bay area. The food is *astounding* and the service is warm, attentive, and efficient. Can't be beat.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Jonathan C.
My new favorite neighborhood restaurant! The menu has lots of options I've never seen anywhere else, and everything I've tried is delicious. I especially loved the sweet potato greens! The staff and owner are very friendly and shared interesting background about the cuisine.
Victoria Kuhns
We didn’t realize that the dumplings were only on certain nights and they were out of a few menu items, but the staff was great and gave us suggestions for what to order. Everything was so delicious !! We will definitely come back!
I would give GTE 6/5 stars in every category if I could. Truly comforting, bonkers tasty, hits every time.My favs that I order nearly every time:• Spicy Noodle• Fu-ru Fried Chicken• Lu-rou Fan• Grilled Mochi
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Spicy Noodles, Fu-Ru Fried Chicken, Golden Kimchi
Geronimo Carlo Ramos
Visited around 5:30 PM on a Thursday. The place had a good crowd inside, but I found the outdoor seating with heaters more appealing due to the chilly weather.The order-at-the-counter system was efficient. I went for a variety of dishes: dumplings, the day's vegetable special, cheesecake, fried chicken, eggplant noodles, and almond tea.The food quality was impressive. Everything tasted fresh, and dishes marked as spicy had the right kick. The fried chicken was a highlight, especially with its unique, house-fermented vegetable side.What stood out was the front-of-house service - professional, attentive, and genuinely kind, which isn't something you find everywhere.The cheesecake was light and flavorful, a must-try. The fried chicken, juicy and well-seasoned, was another winner. I'd happily order both again.The prices are a bit high, and portions are more on the small side, but the overall quality makes it worth a return visit. This might be one of the top Taiwanese restaurants I've been to.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 5
Geronimo R.
Visited around 5:30 PM on a Thursday. The place had a good crowd inside, but I found the outdoor seating with heaters more appealing due to the chilly weather.The order-at-the-counter system was efficient. I went for a variety of dishes: dumplings, the day's vegetable special, cheesecake, fried chicken, eggplant noodles, and almond tea.The food quality was impressive. Everything tasted fresh, and dishes marked as spicy had the right kick. The fried chicken was a highlight, especially with its unique, house-fermented vegetable side.What stood out was the front-of-house service - professional, attentive, and genuinely kind, which isn't something you find everywhere.The cheesecake was light and flavorful, a must-try. The fried chicken, juicy and well-seasoned, was another winner. I'd happily order both again.The prices are a bit high, and portions are more on the small side, but the overall quality makes it worth a return visit. This might be one of the top Taiwanese restaurants I've been to.
matt wong
Friendly peeps, lovely Taiwanese food. Get anything - or everything! - from the grill (we landed on the whole squid, king oyster mushrooms, and the eggplant). Spicy (mildish but packin flavor) noodles, solid. Dou bao tofu, exceptional (first time trying it). See you again real soon.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Jason Lim
Mediocre and overpriced. Hard pieces of ground pork in the Lu Rou Fan were especially disappointing compared to my experience with the dish in Taiwan (where it costs about USD $2). Spicy noodles had too much vinegar and lacked spice. Also a tiny portion. The grilled bok choy for $7 was really steep for 4 half-pieces, when this much bok choi is $0.50 at a Chinese grocery store.
Best Taiwanese restaurant around Berkeley! Recommend fried oysters and steamed pork belly. Very tasty and nice environment!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
A feast for the eyes and mouth! Nostalgic Taiwanese flavors done in such a exciting and interesting way. And of course I am so grateful for the MANY vegetarian options!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Spicy Noodles
No good pics because I ate too quickly. Hands down best Taiwanese food in the Bay Area. All the staff are amazingly friendly. Menu updates regularly. Will come back many many times!!Update: came back many times and this place is still amazing. Menu changes regularly but they keep the classics. Eggplant is 1000/10
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Delicious pepper and sesame chicken, soy milk chicken, braised pork belly ?
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Dumplings, Taiwanese Minced-Pork Noodle, Spicy Sauce Fried Chicken
Lovely place. Really tasty small plates. Definitely a foodie's joint. But man, the lighting in there is horrendous. Feels like you're in a CVS. Some little touches/improvements to the lighting (low and warm plz), art, and ambience would make it a lot nicer and worth the price of admission.
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 5
Service: 5
Poor quality food and service. We ordered dishes from the menu, which were brought out with heavy modifications without asking us if it was ok. We ordered the grilled squid and radish salad. We were given pickled cabbage instead of a radish salad. When I asked the Taiwanese owner(?)/waiter, he said they were out of radish salad. He didn’t even offer an apology. dude - I didn’t order pickled cabbage; you need to ask me before you change my order.Some other dishes were disgusting. For example, the shrimp and tofu noodles — the dish is good in principle, but the shrimp was so overcooked that some were mushy and mealy. Do you know how bad you must be in the kitchen to do that??
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 1
Service: 2
Fantastic fantastic fantastic!!!My husband and I eat there today. We were the second customers there at 5:01 pm.Our first visit at this restaurant. Ms Angi greeted us with this Spirit of God energy.We sat near a window on a rainy evening.Angi explained the various Taiwanese dishes and Chef Tony's intention in creating them.We ordered: Fried Oysters, Eggplant Noodles. Oyster Mushrooms, Shrimp & Tofu Noodles, Black Rice Tea and Oolong Tea Cheesecake.I don't have the room nor the time to go into a whole lot of detail. But the overall experience was truly truly truly a blessing.The food was fantastic you can literally taste a love that was put in it. The atmosphere the music. The simplicity of the setting was so created with intention to show love.Everything was FANTASTIC!!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
This is literally one of the best places to eat in the entire bay area. The food is *astounding* and the service is warm, attentive, and efficient. Can't be beat.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
My new favorite neighborhood restaurant! The menu has lots of options I've never seen anywhere else, and everything I've tried is delicious. I especially loved the sweet potato greens! The staff and owner are very friendly and shared interesting background about the cuisine.
We didn’t realize that the dumplings were only on certain nights and they were out of a few menu items, but the staff was great and gave us suggestions for what to order. Everything was so delicious !! We will definitely come back!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Restaurantji Recommends
I would give GTE 6/5 stars in every category if I could. Truly comforting, bonkers tasty, hits every time.My favs that I order nearly every time:• Spicy Noodle• Fu-ru Fried Chicken• Lu-rou Fan• Grilled Mochi
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Spicy Noodles, Fu-Ru Fried Chicken, Golden Kimchi
Visited around 5:30 PM on a Thursday. The place had a good crowd inside, but I found the outdoor seating with heaters more appealing due to the chilly weather.The order-at-the-counter system was efficient. I went for a variety of dishes: dumplings, the day's vegetable special, cheesecake, fried chicken, eggplant noodles, and almond tea.The food quality was impressive. Everything tasted fresh, and dishes marked as spicy had the right kick. The fried chicken was a highlight, especially with its unique, house-fermented vegetable side.What stood out was the front-of-house service - professional, attentive, and genuinely kind, which isn't something you find everywhere.The cheesecake was light and flavorful, a must-try. The fried chicken, juicy and well-seasoned, was another winner. I'd happily order both again.The prices are a bit high, and portions are more on the small side, but the overall quality makes it worth a return visit. This might be one of the top Taiwanese restaurants I've been to.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 5
Visited around 5:30 PM on a Thursday. The place had a good crowd inside, but I found the outdoor seating with heaters more appealing due to the chilly weather.The order-at-the-counter system was efficient. I went for a variety of dishes: dumplings, the day's vegetable special, cheesecake, fried chicken, eggplant noodles, and almond tea.The food quality was impressive. Everything tasted fresh, and dishes marked as spicy had the right kick. The fried chicken was a highlight, especially with its unique, house-fermented vegetable side.What stood out was the front-of-house service - professional, attentive, and genuinely kind, which isn't something you find everywhere.The cheesecake was light and flavorful, a must-try. The fried chicken, juicy and well-seasoned, was another winner. I'd happily order both again.The prices are a bit high, and portions are more on the small side, but the overall quality makes it worth a return visit. This might be one of the top Taiwanese restaurants I've been to.
Friendly peeps, lovely Taiwanese food. Get anything - or everything! - from the grill (we landed on the whole squid, king oyster mushrooms, and the eggplant). Spicy (mildish but packin flavor) noodles, solid. Dou bao tofu, exceptional (first time trying it). See you again real soon.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Mediocre and overpriced. Hard pieces of ground pork in the Lu Rou Fan were especially disappointing compared to my experience with the dish in Taiwan (where it costs about USD $2). Spicy noodles had too much vinegar and lacked spice. Also a tiny portion. The grilled bok choy for $7 was really steep for 4 half-pieces, when this much bok choi is $0.50 at a Chinese grocery store.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 2
Service: 4