Old Mandarin Islamic Restaurant

everything is so weird

Atmosphere: 1

Food: 2

Service: 1

Found a long hair in lamb skewers . Rice wasn’t fresh and everything was very salty so we couldn’t finish more than a little bit. We didn’t want drinks but they gave us two expired Dasani’s and when the bill came they added a 20 percent tip but we were only two people.

Service is wonderful. Price is reasonable in respect of area, quality and current economy. Food tastes is not consistent. in our last visit we found Mongolian beef was salty and lamb was not that great like other days. However we appreciate there excellent service.

Atmosphere: 3

Food: 4

Service: 5

Recommended dishes: Chicken Corn Soup, Cumin Lamb Stir-Fry Chef's Special

the staff charge tips without my consent charged me more than 35+ and I didn’t even know. don’t recommend

Atmosphere: 1

Food: 1

Service: 1

completely unacceptable how the staff charge my card tip without even asking for my consent. Charged my card over 40$ plus without even asking me. I thought I was going have a great experience with this but turned out to be opposite. Thanks for ruining my day.
Guys it’s not worth it pls don’t go here.

Atmosphere: 1

Food: 1

Service: 1

Bring them here if you want to scam someone. Everything is really expensive and not worth the money. Visit a different location, such as Chutney, which offers the best Amazon cuisine ever along with excellent customer service. With excellent prices, too.

Without even asking, this unscrupulous eatery deducted a tip from my card again without even asking me.

Atmosphere: 1

Food: 1

Service: 1

Listen everyone please don’t go here at any cost. They charge their tip of their own choice without even asking me almost charged me $46 without even asking and for the its not worth the price and doesn’t even taste good.

Atmosphere: 1

Food: 1

Service: 1

dont come here they tip themselves without asking me more than 40+plus 0/10

Atmosphere: 1

Food: 1

Service: 1

No recommend at all…. They tip themselves without asking if I should or no…. Pls don’t come here you will regret it.

Atmosphere: 1

Food: 1

Service: 1

I order chicken corn soup it was so disgusting and pricey it was full of eggs and only water no taste no chicken it looks like they boiled the water and put some eggs

Atmosphere: 2

Food: 1

Service: 4

This is a proper no nonsense place for halal Chinese food. Service is super swift and staff friendly. Prices are a bit on the higher side. So is the level of spice in the food so be careful and they even warn you accordingly. So when they mention too spicy , then believe it! Portions are large as well.

Atmosphere: 3

Food: 4

Service: 4

Truly in a league of its own.

The Cummin Lamb is a special dish, but we really loved everything we got

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Based on the reviews, it's hard to determine if Old Mandarin is among the best or the worst restaurants in SF. So I decided to check it out for myself.

From the outside, it has a simple vibe and is very up-front about being a Halal restaurant (which I appreciate as a Muslim). Stepping inside, I can admire the variety of decorations and artwork that cover the walls. My party is quickly guided to a table and provided with menus. The waiter wasn't particularly chatty, but he was friendly, professional, & prompt, which is all I look for. He collected our orders and within a few minutes, the food was ready.

For entrees, I shared the Cumin Lamb Stir-Fry and the Eggplant in Spicy Garlic Sauce, both of which were recommended in . The lamb was flavorful and satisfying, while the subtle sweetness of the eggplant was beautifully complemented by the sauce. A simple side of white rice was all else that was needed to complete my meal.

I will now touch on price, which seems to be a contentious point in many reviews.

Firstly, a few have called out the "hidden" fees that materialized on the receipt, like the gratuity. However, the menu was pretty upfront about what they included.. (Now you may have an opinion on the existence of those fees, but that's probably outside the scope of a review..)

Secondly, I am stumped as to why the prices are considered higher than expected. I have never considered SF a "cheap" place to eat, and there are far worse offenders that should be called out before Old Mandarin. My guess is that this is more expensive than other Chinese "hole-in-the-wall" restaurants, but I cannot classify this as "merely" hole-in-the-wall due to the quality and the exclusive usage of Halal ingredients. I was pretty satisfied with the portions, and the per-person cost was ~$30, hardly the worst for an occasional dine-in meal.

One point I will agree with is that they should offer free water in a glass, instead of assuming "water" == $2 bottled water. I suppose Europeans would be used to this..

Overall, I was happy with my meal at Old Mandarin and look forward to future visits. Maybe I will have to revise my review but I hope not.

Atmosphere: 4

Food: 5

Service: 5

Recommended dishes: Cumin Lamb Stir-Fry Chef's Special

Great Mongolian beef, lamb meatball soup and sesame balls for desert!

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

The cumin lamb stir-fry is great! Authentic and flavorful.