Finally open for dine-in (as of 4/4/21 Easter Sunday). You enter through the backdoor on the parking lot side. The front entrance is for to-go orders only. Reservation on Yelp app. Ordered - mongolian beef (good), sauteed shrimp (great), spicy wonton (the best!) Excellent service.
Karen K.
There are two Mama Lus, pretty close to each other but we chose this one to celebrate my brother in laws birthday. Food was good. Portions were big. We had a ton left over, and we eat a lot. Price was great. We ordered 6 dishes-- egg white and scallop fried rice, because I was craving, beef chow mein, beef wraps/rolls, house special fish fillets, salt chicken wings, and pork chops. I for some reason thought we ordered more veggies, but I guess not, so I had to supplement with kimchi and seaweed salad to combat all the greasy meat dishes we ended up getting. Total before tip was about $80. We usually demolish everything but maybe the portions at this Mama Lus are slightly bigger? We ended up having a lot left over. Everything tasted pretty good, but what I really appreciate is I wrote my daughters allergies while ordering online, and they called to confirm where there may be issues. I feel a lot safer ordering here than the other location. Would order again.
Stephy S.
My favorite Mama Lu's location. I should have dined here sooner! Many people have told me that the other location across the street was better because it's the original and has better food. I've dined at the other location many times and I can say that this location's food is just as good. Plus it's way cleaner and nicer inside. Servers here are friendly as well. Like the other location, you can put yourself on the waitlist here via Yelp. I love Mama Lu's food--big portions, tasty, and good prices! In the future, this will be my first choice of Mama Lu's locations to dine at. I'll definitely be back for more!
Tina C.
One of my favorite Chinese food restaurant. I recommend the: -sweet sour spare ribs -enoki with bean curd cubes -salt and pepper calamari -french style beef tenderloin -chile sea bass with preserve vegetables -clam and tofu soup The food is delicious and prior to the pandemic there always was a line to get in. The food to go tastes just as good! Highly recommend this restaurant when you're craving Chinese.
Diane H.
Love this place... Kinda pricy, but we hit it maybe twice a month for a special treat... My fave go to is the Beef fried rice $9.95 and the sweet and spicy short ribs $10... Great combo that goes together we'll... We used to get the pork juicy dumpling but lately it's been more dumpling than anything and they're kind of different than when it was open you can go inside they're smaller and not worth the price.
Azelle B.
*Late Review* Decided to order here for CNY since we've been hearing a lot of good reviews about it. Pre-ordered and pick-up was seamless! Pre ordering was idea bec there were a lot of people trying to get an order in (it was CNY eve after all) and care lined up in the side street. Upon entering, it took me back to one of fave local restaurants in Shanghai - the smell of spices, steam from the dumplings, ayis (aunties) shouting at each other and at customers lol. We ordered a bunch of stuff and the highlight would be the salt and pepper pork chops - the portion size alone is well worth it! The pork remained soft, juicy and very flavorful. Pairs perfectly with the fried rice and the sweet and sour chicken (was a bit soggy when we arrived home but nothing an air fryer can't fix). The dumplings were also VERY GOOD! Great meat to wrapper ratio and the sauce in the spicy dumpling was addicting. Definitely our new go-to chinese spot!
Tina L.
Been coming to this place quite often since Covid. I'm here mainly to get the frozen HongKong shrimps wonton. I tried from a few other places but this place have the best frozen wonton! Good price and portion about $22 for 50 wontons! Their frozen xiao long bao and pork/veges dumplings are pretty good also. Surprisingly the XLB was pretty juicy after steamed considering this is frozen. As for hot dish I like their seaweed fried fish and braised tofu. This place can get busy so order ahead of time or prepare to wait for at least 30 mins for hot dish. By the way, for frozen wonton and dumplings they only accept cash. For other hot items credit card is accepted. Yes, you can pay cash for the dumpling and CC for other dishes.
Kaelyn R.
This review is soley for their frozen dumplings. For around $45 +tip I took home 50 pieces each of their frozen XLB and Hong Kong style wontons and it was worth every dollar. Be sure to bring cash as their frozens items are all CASH ONLY and on a walk-in availability basis. I know everyone prepares their dumplings differently but for the first timers: -I steamed the XLB over some cabbage for ~10 minutes and they came out perfect! -For the wontons I boilled for ~8 to 10 minutes (until the insides were no longer super pink) then tossed them in some homemade chili oil and soy sauce. I'll definetly be back for more in a couple weeks!
Jon C.
In wanting to support local businesses, I thought I'd give Mama Lu's another try today. But after today's order, I'm reminded why I haven't been back in a while. I went around 5 p.m. and it didn't seem busy. In fact, the only positive part of this experience is that the order was ready when I arrived. Now that we've dispensed with the only pleasantry... ...Let's go straight to the food and what I ordered: The best thing in this order has to be the Seafood Tofu $13.99, It was okay, nothing to write home about. The things that were not very good: Juicy Pork Dumplings $12.99. This is nothing like Din Tai Fung. The dough is heavy/thick and by the time I got it home (45 minutes later), it was hard and I had to re-steam it. It's juicy but not very much flavor. Garlic Flavored Bean Seedlings $14.99. The vegetable is definitely not fresh. It has a tint of yellowness/pale green coloring and the texture just doesn't explode or it's not "crispy" (mm gow chuy in Cantonese, not sure how to translate that) The things that I pretty much threw away after a couple bites or had to recook myself: Green Onion Fried Pan Cake $5.99. This was so over done. It was hard and burnt. Not very much onion in it at all and no flavor. Salted Fish and Chicken Fried Rice $13.99: Where's the salted fish? The rice was mushy as they cooked it with too much water. No flavor whatsoever. I had to re-pan fry it in order to dry it out and added my own salt for flavor. Peking Sauce Pork Chop $12.99: while the potion is huge, the oil that they used to cook it was definitely not fresh. So there's a bitter after taste which even the sauce couldn't drown out. Salt and Pepper Calamari $13.99. This is the worst of the worst. There's no salt and pepper taste, imagine the after taste without any sauce. It was overcooked and the oil they used for this was definitely not fresh...more like week old oil. Needless to say, I will not be going back to Mama Lu's anytime soon or in the future for that matter or even if someone else were to pay. I wouldn't want them to waste their money. This place isn't even ma ma day (average in Cantonese) or ma ma foo foo (average in Mandarin). Sorry Mama Lu.
Jem K.
|| During Pandemic || 1. Called to order for pickup instead of having it pickup... i figured it's much cheaper that way. 2. While waiting, got ourselves some boba 3. Proceeded to the front of the restaurant to pay and pick up. 4. They offer frozen XLB, meatballs, etc. 5. We used credit card to pay for our meal. Cash for the frozen ones. 6. We started eating the xiao long bao before heading home... since it's still hot and fresh and they dont stick together much. 7. Would probably skip the coconut bread (personal preference) too bready for me.
I've been a customer since I was in high school and it's always a solid spot for family style meals. THE PROS: My favorites include the seaweed fish (must get!!), juicy pork dumplings, golden fried shrimp, sautéed string beans, peking sauce pork chop, and beef wrap. The crispy fried coconut bread w/ condensed milk is also pretty good if you want something a little sweet and filling for dessert. Prices are average. Also, something pretty unique is the beef noodle soup here. It doesn't taste like traditional beef noodle soup.. so this can either be a good thing or a bad thing depending on your tastes. It's very reminiscent of the Bull Head satay bbq sauce and has that kind of spice that isn't really spicy but just hits your throat. They give hellllaaa noodles for this though hehe. THE CONS: I don't know if it's just me but every time i've gotten the spicy wontons from here, they haven't been good so I would probably pass on those. I also remember not really liking the shanghai rice cakes. Service is pretty typical of an asian restaurant in the area but everyone's hardworking and diligent! Lastly, since the space is pretty small, the wait time for a table pre-COVID was usually pretty long - around an hour or so. When we got takeout on NYE 2020, our order also took an hour to be ready for pickup.. and when we got home, our food was barely warm :( Despite this, Mama Lu's is always a reliable spot for good chinese comfort food and I would recommend coming here. Bonus points for being next door to Tea Brick!! :)
Gifty W.
Delicious! This review is for 501 W Garvey location. We ordered takeout due to Covid and the pick up procedures felt really safe and considerate. Spicy dumplings were the hit of the meal and the beef wrap is tasty also. Looking for an excuse to go back soon!
Richard O.
I've heard so much about this place on yelp, so today I finally came and ordered take out. I've ordered the pork dumplings, beef wrap/rolls, spicy wontons, hot & sour soup, and some chow mein. I am not Chinese; I'm Korean, but I like trying new things. The pork dumplings are noticeably bigger than Din Tai Fung and they're $3 dollars cheaper. They taste almost the same, so if you consider good value-Mama Lu's a winner. I didn't take pictures of the food, because I ordered to go, and I don't want to take pictures inside my home. However, when the Covid19 pandemic is over, I'd like to comeback and take pictures on my own at the restaurant. This place might be my favorite Chinese restaurant.
Jennifer N.
There are several Mama Lu's Dumpling House, but this one is at 501 W Garvey. Due to COVID, there's no seating available so I ordered take out. The lady made sure I knew which location I was ordering from before I placed my order. I got the following: -juicy dumplings -spicy dumplings -beef wrap My fav was the juicy pork dumplings. They were so good and flavorful. The beef wrap tasted like a bowl of pho in a wrap, unique, but not for me necessarily. The spicy dumplings were good, but when it sits in the container, it all clumps together and is cold. Not my fav, but still good. I want to try the other menu items but definitely be back for the juicy pork dumplings.
Angela C.
I have been trying to find a Chinese food location that was similar to New Lucky Seafood Restaurant since they have been closed for a very long time. The prices here were very reasonable and the portion of the food was more than I expected it to be. However, they do not give free rice. They charge $1.50 for small rice and $3 for large rice. I recommend trying the Salt & Spicy Pork Chop, Sautéed String Bean, and Kung Pao Shrimp. They are really delicious and flavorful. The string bean is a little spicier than I thought it would be, but it was still good. The juices in the Kung Pao Shrimp tasted really good with the rice. I want to come back to try the veggie egg rolls since my co worker said it is really good and it comes with sauce too. I am looking forward to come back here again for these dishes as well as try new items.
Finally open for dine-in (as of 4/4/21 Easter Sunday). You enter through the backdoor on the parking lot side. The front entrance is for to-go orders only. Reservation on Yelp app. Ordered - mongolian beef (good), sauteed shrimp (great), spicy wonton (the best!) Excellent service.
There are two Mama Lus, pretty close to each other but we chose this one to celebrate my brother in laws birthday. Food was good. Portions were big. We had a ton left over, and we eat a lot. Price was great. We ordered 6 dishes-- egg white and scallop fried rice, because I was craving, beef chow mein, beef wraps/rolls, house special fish fillets, salt chicken wings, and pork chops. I for some reason thought we ordered more veggies, but I guess not, so I had to supplement with kimchi and seaweed salad to combat all the greasy meat dishes we ended up getting. Total before tip was about $80. We usually demolish everything but maybe the portions at this Mama Lus are slightly bigger? We ended up having a lot left over. Everything tasted pretty good, but what I really appreciate is I wrote my daughters allergies while ordering online, and they called to confirm where there may be issues. I feel a lot safer ordering here than the other location. Would order again.
My favorite Mama Lu's location. I should have dined here sooner! Many people have told me that the other location across the street was better because it's the original and has better food. I've dined at the other location many times and I can say that this location's food is just as good. Plus it's way cleaner and nicer inside. Servers here are friendly as well. Like the other location, you can put yourself on the waitlist here via Yelp. I love Mama Lu's food--big portions, tasty, and good prices! In the future, this will be my first choice of Mama Lu's locations to dine at. I'll definitely be back for more!
One of my favorite Chinese food restaurant. I recommend the: -sweet sour spare ribs -enoki with bean curd cubes -salt and pepper calamari -french style beef tenderloin -chile sea bass with preserve vegetables -clam and tofu soup The food is delicious and prior to the pandemic there always was a line to get in. The food to go tastes just as good! Highly recommend this restaurant when you're craving Chinese.
Love this place... Kinda pricy, but we hit it maybe twice a month for a special treat... My fave go to is the Beef fried rice $9.95 and the sweet and spicy short ribs $10... Great combo that goes together we'll... We used to get the pork juicy dumpling but lately it's been more dumpling than anything and they're kind of different than when it was open you can go inside they're smaller and not worth the price.
*Late Review* Decided to order here for CNY since we've been hearing a lot of good reviews about it. Pre-ordered and pick-up was seamless! Pre ordering was idea bec there were a lot of people trying to get an order in (it was CNY eve after all) and care lined up in the side street. Upon entering, it took me back to one of fave local restaurants in Shanghai - the smell of spices, steam from the dumplings, ayis (aunties) shouting at each other and at customers lol. We ordered a bunch of stuff and the highlight would be the salt and pepper pork chops - the portion size alone is well worth it! The pork remained soft, juicy and very flavorful. Pairs perfectly with the fried rice and the sweet and sour chicken (was a bit soggy when we arrived home but nothing an air fryer can't fix). The dumplings were also VERY GOOD! Great meat to wrapper ratio and the sauce in the spicy dumpling was addicting. Definitely our new go-to chinese spot!
Been coming to this place quite often since Covid. I'm here mainly to get the frozen HongKong shrimps wonton. I tried from a few other places but this place have the best frozen wonton! Good price and portion about $22 for 50 wontons! Their frozen xiao long bao and pork/veges dumplings are pretty good also. Surprisingly the XLB was pretty juicy after steamed considering this is frozen. As for hot dish I like their seaweed fried fish and braised tofu. This place can get busy so order ahead of time or prepare to wait for at least 30 mins for hot dish. By the way, for frozen wonton and dumplings they only accept cash. For other hot items credit card is accepted. Yes, you can pay cash for the dumpling and CC for other dishes.
This review is soley for their frozen dumplings. For around $45 +tip I took home 50 pieces each of their frozen XLB and Hong Kong style wontons and it was worth every dollar. Be sure to bring cash as their frozens items are all CASH ONLY and on a walk-in availability basis. I know everyone prepares their dumplings differently but for the first timers: -I steamed the XLB over some cabbage for ~10 minutes and they came out perfect! -For the wontons I boilled for ~8 to 10 minutes (until the insides were no longer super pink) then tossed them in some homemade chili oil and soy sauce. I'll definetly be back for more in a couple weeks!
In wanting to support local businesses, I thought I'd give Mama Lu's another try today. But after today's order, I'm reminded why I haven't been back in a while. I went around 5 p.m. and it didn't seem busy. In fact, the only positive part of this experience is that the order was ready when I arrived. Now that we've dispensed with the only pleasantry... ...Let's go straight to the food and what I ordered: The best thing in this order has to be the Seafood Tofu $13.99, It was okay, nothing to write home about. The things that were not very good: Juicy Pork Dumplings $12.99. This is nothing like Din Tai Fung. The dough is heavy/thick and by the time I got it home (45 minutes later), it was hard and I had to re-steam it. It's juicy but not very much flavor. Garlic Flavored Bean Seedlings $14.99. The vegetable is definitely not fresh. It has a tint of yellowness/pale green coloring and the texture just doesn't explode or it's not "crispy" (mm gow chuy in Cantonese, not sure how to translate that) The things that I pretty much threw away after a couple bites or had to recook myself: Green Onion Fried Pan Cake $5.99. This was so over done. It was hard and burnt. Not very much onion in it at all and no flavor. Salted Fish and Chicken Fried Rice $13.99: Where's the salted fish? The rice was mushy as they cooked it with too much water. No flavor whatsoever. I had to re-pan fry it in order to dry it out and added my own salt for flavor. Peking Sauce Pork Chop $12.99: while the potion is huge, the oil that they used to cook it was definitely not fresh. So there's a bitter after taste which even the sauce couldn't drown out. Salt and Pepper Calamari $13.99. This is the worst of the worst. There's no salt and pepper taste, imagine the after taste without any sauce. It was overcooked and the oil they used for this was definitely not fresh...more like week old oil. Needless to say, I will not be going back to Mama Lu's anytime soon or in the future for that matter or even if someone else were to pay. I wouldn't want them to waste their money. This place isn't even ma ma day (average in Cantonese) or ma ma foo foo (average in Mandarin). Sorry Mama Lu.
|| During Pandemic || 1. Called to order for pickup instead of having it pickup... i figured it's much cheaper that way. 2. While waiting, got ourselves some boba 3. Proceeded to the front of the restaurant to pay and pick up. 4. They offer frozen XLB, meatballs, etc. 5. We used credit card to pay for our meal. Cash for the frozen ones. 6. We started eating the xiao long bao before heading home... since it's still hot and fresh and they dont stick together much. 7. Would probably skip the coconut bread (personal preference) too bready for me.
Restaurantji Recommends
I've been a customer since I was in high school and it's always a solid spot for family style meals. THE PROS: My favorites include the seaweed fish (must get!!), juicy pork dumplings, golden fried shrimp, sautéed string beans, peking sauce pork chop, and beef wrap. The crispy fried coconut bread w/ condensed milk is also pretty good if you want something a little sweet and filling for dessert. Prices are average. Also, something pretty unique is the beef noodle soup here. It doesn't taste like traditional beef noodle soup.. so this can either be a good thing or a bad thing depending on your tastes. It's very reminiscent of the Bull Head satay bbq sauce and has that kind of spice that isn't really spicy but just hits your throat. They give hellllaaa noodles for this though hehe. THE CONS: I don't know if it's just me but every time i've gotten the spicy wontons from here, they haven't been good so I would probably pass on those. I also remember not really liking the shanghai rice cakes. Service is pretty typical of an asian restaurant in the area but everyone's hardworking and diligent! Lastly, since the space is pretty small, the wait time for a table pre-COVID was usually pretty long - around an hour or so. When we got takeout on NYE 2020, our order also took an hour to be ready for pickup.. and when we got home, our food was barely warm :( Despite this, Mama Lu's is always a reliable spot for good chinese comfort food and I would recommend coming here. Bonus points for being next door to Tea Brick!! :)
Delicious! This review is for 501 W Garvey location. We ordered takeout due to Covid and the pick up procedures felt really safe and considerate. Spicy dumplings were the hit of the meal and the beef wrap is tasty also. Looking for an excuse to go back soon!
I've heard so much about this place on yelp, so today I finally came and ordered take out. I've ordered the pork dumplings, beef wrap/rolls, spicy wontons, hot & sour soup, and some chow mein. I am not Chinese; I'm Korean, but I like trying new things. The pork dumplings are noticeably bigger than Din Tai Fung and they're $3 dollars cheaper. They taste almost the same, so if you consider good value-Mama Lu's a winner. I didn't take pictures of the food, because I ordered to go, and I don't want to take pictures inside my home. However, when the Covid19 pandemic is over, I'd like to comeback and take pictures on my own at the restaurant. This place might be my favorite Chinese restaurant.
There are several Mama Lu's Dumpling House, but this one is at 501 W Garvey. Due to COVID, there's no seating available so I ordered take out. The lady made sure I knew which location I was ordering from before I placed my order. I got the following: -juicy dumplings -spicy dumplings -beef wrap My fav was the juicy pork dumplings. They were so good and flavorful. The beef wrap tasted like a bowl of pho in a wrap, unique, but not for me necessarily. The spicy dumplings were good, but when it sits in the container, it all clumps together and is cold. Not my fav, but still good. I want to try the other menu items but definitely be back for the juicy pork dumplings.
I have been trying to find a Chinese food location that was similar to New Lucky Seafood Restaurant since they have been closed for a very long time. The prices here were very reasonable and the portion of the food was more than I expected it to be. However, they do not give free rice. They charge $1.50 for small rice and $3 for large rice. I recommend trying the Salt & Spicy Pork Chop, Sautéed String Bean, and Kung Pao Shrimp. They are really delicious and flavorful. The string bean is a little spicier than I thought it would be, but it was still good. The juices in the Kung Pao Shrimp tasted really good with the rice. I want to come back to try the veggie egg rolls since my co worker said it is really good and it comes with sauce too. I am looking forward to come back here again for these dishes as well as try new items.