33 Best Chinese Restaurants in Irvine

“Haidilao never fails when it comes to quality and comforting hot pot. The dining area is clean, spacious, and beautifully accented with Chinese-style lantern fixtures.
Broth & Sauce Bar: The four-grid pot is the way to go — spicy broth with rich aroma alongside a savory mushroom broth and clear broth for lighter items. The DIY sauce bar lets you craft the perfect dipping bowls, from creamy sesame sauce topped with chili oil and cilantro to traditional fragrant garlic sesame oil.
Fresh Ingredients:
Sliced Beef & Lamb: Freshly sliced with vibrant color and great marbling; cooks tender and juicy within seconds.
Sides & Noodles: The dried tofu ribbons soak up the flavorful broth perfectly, the Napa cabbage is crisp and sweet, and the instant noodles cooked in the spicy broth make for the ultimate finish.
Service: Attentive and seamless as always. Water refills, apron prep, and empty plate clearances are handled smoothly without being intrusive.
An effortless 5-star meal that delivers on taste, consistency, and top-notch service every single visit.“

“I had a great first time experience at noodle nest. I came in craving some lamb cumin skewers and ended up ordering few other items as well. The service was super friendly and everything came out very quickly. The restaurant is pretty big overall and has iPad ordering which I like.

Marinated cucumbers: pretty standard with a big kick from the peppers. 8.5/10

Black pepper beef udon: noodles perfectly cooked with tender beef and a nice flavored sauce. 9/10

Lamb skewers: well seasoned and crispy and pretty tender. It hit the craving I was looking for. I would order double next time. 9.5/10

Sweet and sour pork riblets: pretty good, but I suppose the pork could have been slightly more tender for my preference (still came off bone) and the meat on the ribs were a little bit tiny. I would still order these again but just nitpicking. 8.5/10

Overall, I was pretty happy with my first experience here and I would definitely come back to try more things and get more skewers. Again shoutout to the manager and staff who was super nice and welcoming, we were definitely the only white boys in there 😀.“

“01SEP2024 | Nice to Meet You Skewer Hot Pot is a chic hotpot restaurant. My first impression was that it was clean, with delicious food and attentive service. The prices are just right for the quality of the food and ingredients. I would give it a 10 out of 10, and we will definitely be coming back.“

“Our server, Michelle T, was outstanding in every way. She remembered serving us in the past and was so welcoming and genuinely delighted to see us. She went out of her way to make sure that the cocktails we ordered were prepared perfectly by speaking directly to the bartender. When we asked about dinner specials we had in the past she found us those special menus and also reminded us that we could get a bottle of wine for half price on Wednesdays.. She checked with us frequently to make sure everything was perfect. She is truly an asset to the restaurant and we will always try to request her when we come back.“

“Dined in for lunch as a group of 20 plus friends. Wonderful food, the meat soup filled 10 bowls, the special tea also filled 10 cups, each dish was large and ample for sharing.

All dishes we ordered tasted fantastic. Can’t recommend it enough.“

“Really enjoyed the malatang here. The broth has great flavor with a good balance of spice and numbness, and the ingredients taste fresh and clean. Portions are generous and pricing feels fair. It’s the kind of place that makes you want to come back and try different combinations. Overall a solid spot for malatang.“

“Even the setup is easy. I liked being able to pick my own ingredients and broth without it turning into a whole thing, and the bowl still came out balanced and full. The bone broth had a distinct flavor that held up the whole way through, rich but not tiring, and the add ins felt fresh with plenty to choose from. Taste was good, which stood out right away. Service was friendly too, just helpful when needed and otherwise low key. A simple meal, done with care“

“delicious place all around. They have amazing authentic chinese dishes and I love the concept of fast grab & go. The interior is super clean, their food is super affordable and delicious, and they have condiments and boxes to pack up your food to take home on the side. Great for lunch or an easy dinner!“

“I’m really glad we found this place, and it’s highly recommended if you are slightly adventurous and trying out some ethnic Chinese flavors.

Everything we ordered was excellent. We knew the crispy lamb buns (aka Chinese Burger) was going to be good, but not sure about the $20 fried pork which was #1 chef recommendations, it turned out to be delightful.

The lamb soup came out first, it was tasty and refreshing, Liang pi was cool, you don’t get it in many places. String beans were nicely done, a delicious necessity to balance out the meal.

The first bite of crispy lamb buns was a delightful surprise: crunchy layered thin bread and lamb with slightly cumin, it was an amazing feast.

Fried pork is an even more interesting surprise that I would not spoil. Ha ha. Try it to find out!

Service was fine, we were seats and water was provided quickly. Orders are done by scanning QR code, browsing the online menu, and order directly. I find this efficient but lacking some personal interactions.

We did purposely ordered a lot for the two of us, we obviously didn’t finish. I was surprised the bill wasn’t as much as I expected. We got a lot of leftovers to go and enjoyed rest at home.“

“Great hidden gem for rice‑noodle lovers in Irvine! The Xinjiang spicy noodles are rich and flavorful, and the Sichuan pepper fish rice‑noodle soup has a wonderfully fresh broth. Appetizers and the new milk tea drinks are surprisingly good. Staff are friendly and service is quick. The dining area is clean with a relaxed vibe. Fantastic value for money, perfect for casual meals or group visits. Will definitely come back.“

“Food is very appetising but I find it not spicy enough.
The Lemon Iced Tea used Jasmine based tea which I didn’t quite like. It was not stated on the menu as I would not have ordered that.
Ordering is by scanning the menu which can be switched between Chinese or English. In English mode, choice of Less Salt, Less Oil, Less Spicy was still in Chinese. Staff helped to translate for me.
Pork Belly skewer was a bit too thin. I preferred the Lamb ones which was listed as ‘Beef’.
Eggplant and Braised Pork with Preserved Vegetable were good. I got more hungry as I ate them.
Sichuan style Chive n Pork Dumplings were juicy.
Will come back again.“

“This is a new restaurant has a nice decor and comfortable seating. We ordered Peking duck (no reservation needed), Peking duck soup, and a set meal of steamed shrimp with garlic and vermicelli. The shrimp was very fresh, I was surprised. They have many opening promotions now, with 5-6 dishes on special for $9.9. The food was delicious, served quickly, and the service was excellent. We will definitely come back!“

“Amazing Food. We ordered quite a few dishes and everything was delicious! The Peking Duck and green beans were my favorite!“

“Wowwwww… tried this place for the first time tonight for dinner and I was blown away!! I ordered the Chongqing chicken and spicy pork wontons with white rice and loved everything. Service was fast for dinner time and the cashier was so kind and helpful and even gave me some recommendations too. The chicken was just the right amount of spicy and the wontons were some of my favorite I’ve had. Portions are also big enough to share. I wish I lived closer so I could come here more often. Easy parking too. I will be back…“

“I ordered the chicken leg meat with dipping sauces and broth. Honestly, the chicken was great on its own. I didn't care for any of the sauces. The rice was a bit salty but still good.

The setup felt a little odd. There was a loud speaker on loop reminding Uber and DoorDash drivers to pick up orders in the back. It was super annoying. I really think they would benefit from having a host instead of relying on that speaker.

That said, the place itself was cool, and I liked that you can order from several different shops all through the same kiosk.“

“Food is delicious!!! We went during lunch on a Tuesday and it was pretty full. Most were Chinese. You know the food is authentic when their own people are there. I just found this place recently and now I've become a fan. Their Xiao long bao is huge and so good. People say they are a din tai fungus dupe but with better prices. Also their beef scallion pancake was humongous and sooooo good. We also got their orange chicken which was one of the best I ever had. Everything we got here was so good. Eve loved their cold bar where we got cucumbers, pig ear(personal fav), and tofu. Everything was just 👌“

“If you’re craving jjangmyeon in Irvine, this is the spot for you! They’ve got tons of the classic dishes that pair perfectly with jjang and its flavors. Plus, the portions are generous, the service is top-notch, and you’ll feel like you’re in Korea because you’ll only see Koreans enjoying their meals here.“

“This place is super convenient for work trips. It's right next to my office!“

“The hotpot I eat most often with friends is Lao Pier. The first time I ate flying pancakes was at Lao Pier. Now that I think about it, it still tastes delicious.“

“IG/TT@eatwkris

has one of the best beef noodle soups. The noodles were cooked perfect and soaked up the tasty broth. The meat though is just okay but I’m here for noodles and soup. I’m not sure why they don’t have pickled veggies inside but the soup was still so sour and savory I loved it!! You can also adjust your spice level and they load it with peppers and it is definitely SPICY. it’s more fusion than traditional but I thought it was so good.“

“I just wanted to take the time to really thank Pick Up Stix at the Lake Forest location. I always have had a great experience here - whether it be for the food or the customer service.

Recently, I decided to venture off my usual choice - Chow Mein - which I think is the best ever. Unfortunately, the new dish I ordered was subpar, I called the restaurant and spoke to a nice lady (I forgot her name unfortunately), she went above and beyond just replacing the meal. And I really appreciated it. Customer service like this is now rare - but she was so nice about it. A) didn't make me feel low or stuck-up (I hate that feeling esp when the vendor makes the mistake) - this was not the case here B) replaced the meal with another of my choice C) And added a generous extra item on the house

Thank you so much! My family loved the dinner - per usual :)“

“👍👍👍👍, very clean and nice. Good service too.“

“Good food and fast service.“

“Chicken pot thing was weird. Noodles were bomb!!!!!!“

“Really great noodle restaurant in Los Angeles! I love Chinese Bamboo Spicy Noodle Soup. Oh my god! It hit me home whenever I tried it! would highly recommend the restaurant! They really have authentic Chinese noodle soup which you cannot find anywhere else. I always go there when I am in LA.“

“I genuinely recommend the First Sandwich. We ordered from here multiple times, and they never disappointed us. The food is fresh and tastes amazing. I love the avocado walnut salad; it’s very refreshing. The sandwich is flavorful. The clam chowder bowl is creamy and well balanced. They gave us so much food with reasonable price. The owner is always so kind and attentive. Highly recommend!“

“Great food, friendly staff and clean atmosphere.“

“Tomato broth hot pot here is the best! Despite the name, they offer non-spice broth options. 😋 I really love malatang and would usually get this and heytea on the same night. I think they price everything fairly and they give you good portions. The staff are equally friendly and they also offer take-out options if you wanna order to go or doordash it.“

“kindness. Moved to Irvine from the San Gabriel area. In comparison, the food here is delicious and the price is very reasonable. It feels cheap and the food tastes delicious. Of course, it may be that I am too hungry. Overall, I am very satisfied with this meal. Good reviews. Will come again.“

“I ❤️ their boba! I traveled 30 min to go here!“

“We came for late night, post-concert dinner. The food were all very tasty and well seasoned. Got teriyaki chicken skewers, pork belly skewers, beef shank clear vermicelli noodle, fried chicken bites. All very delicious! Service was a little slow bc they were understaffed in the late hours, so it’s expected. The food came out hot and did not disappoint our late night cravings. Highly recommend for post-concert eatery:)“

“The food here is amazing and they give you your money's worth. I am used to going to panda express and getting a 3 item plate and still feeling hungry afterwards. I ordered a 2 item plate from here and was unable to finish the whole thing. Now I have some tastey leftovers. The quality of the food is also very good!“