Look, it's not the greatest chinese food I've ever had, but the greatest chinese food I've ever had was my local hole in the wall, which closed down at least 3 years ago. I'm stuck chasing a high I'll never have again, and for now I have Chow Bar (and the sauce that comes with the dumplings is waaay better here).
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
J B
Will always love this place. The sesame chicken especially.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 5
Service: 5
TheJMKlemann
Good food, good service, they will bring a whole pot of tea to you
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Bobbi M
Maybe we got our hopes up with the sampler platter. We started with the sampler plate which was incredible. The crab Rangoons were delicious, the dumplings were the best with a hint of honey, the chicken skewers were melt-in-your-mouth tender. The ribs were super dry so we left those. They did have a nice sauce but like eating cardboard. I ordered the Chinese bacon and tofu based on another review. The presentation was nice and visually appealing but the flavor was non-existant. SO bland. The only flavor was the brine from canned bamboo shoots which caused the entire dish to taste somewhat bitter. The vegetables were chewy, freezer burnt and overcooked. The meat and tofu were perfectly cooked so it's such a shame the dish wasn't worth eating. Im not sure how tofu could be so flavorless. Same issues with the lo mein and general tsos, no good flavor. The chicken in the general tsos was old and hard. The lo mein was dry and bland but the shrimp was good. Great appetizers, horrible entrees, great portions. I'd recommend getting only meat dishes or appetizers as they were great. Unsure if I will go back.
Food: 3
Recommended dishes: Crab Rangoon
Mary Lasiter
Food looked old, dried out and some entrees had film on it we did the buffet, and most of the food looks old. We will never go here again.....
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 1
Service: 2
Lucas Jacob
Awesome food and staff!
Mido Sandsa
Even though I ate until I was miserable, this is one of my favorite places in bloomington.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Maxwell Crow
Visited here after seeing it on the map - the staff are very casual but nice, and I like the laid back atmosphere. I got the willow beef, which was nice and spicy, as well as the pot stickers.I also appreciated the distinction of the American Chinese food from the traditional Chinese food - most places I've been to either don't do that or just don't offer things beyond the American variants.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 4
Josiah
This food was terrible, had very little flavor and was way undercooked. The woman who handed me my food was very short and dismissive to get me out the door. I’ll stick to Sakura15 in the future where the food is great and customer service is kind and warm.
A Chinese buffet with some food that appears to me that might actually be Chinese in origin. :-) Common diets can work with their buffet: vegan, keto, gluten free. Good for families and groups as well as a quick lunch.
Dietary restrictions: Great for keto just skip the rice and breaded selections.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Tian Carol
It's not Chinese food at all. Horrible food I ever had in Bloomington. Can't understand why all the foods have so many soup in there. See pictures. Blanched chicken, pork belly, fish with pine nuts should not have so many soup in there. , even it's not China I understand, but being a restaurant should cook better than people cook at home. I can't tell here would let you disappoint. I really can’t help but write it in Chinese, it’s really unpalatable! It's not generally unpalatable. You can just buy a pack of salt-baked chicken powder and marinate it. It's better to cook it in a rice cooker than this plain-cut chicken. The point is, I don't understand why every dish is so juicy. It shouldn't be juicy like this. It’s juicy, and the juice doesn’t really match the dish itself! And that fried beef river, I don’t know what it is called!
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 1
Service: 3
YZ XW
Not good at all. Staff is rude and not nice plus one of the Asian ladies brought out some food to put on the buffet and she emptied out the fresh food from the container with her bare hands! Prices went up and the buffet is not good at all anymore. Not pleased nor happy especially when their staff are impolite, arrogant, plus putting their bare hands on food for paying customers to eat!
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 1
Service: 1
S A
I was in Bloomington for a 5 day conference and I came to this restaurant 6 times (I arrived on a Sunday afternoon). I think the name might sound unappetizing and the atmosphere and prices might make one suspicious of the quality of the food. But let me tell you, if you know what to order and also like spicy food, the food is some of the best I've had. And I've had food in Beijing, Chongqing, Xining, and some town in Gansu in China which covers a somewhat diverse range of Chinese cuisines.The two that I loved the most are pictured below (rice not pictured).1. 水煮三样 ("Water Cooked" beef shank, tongue, tripe)Don't mind the English translation which doesn't do this justice. The shank and tongue was extremely tender and flavorful. The tripe had the perfect springiness when you bite. And after you've had the main components, there is some stewed cabbage beneath to round things off. If you enjoy spicy food, I think you should try this.2. 干煸肥肠 (Stir-Fried Fatty Intestines)The outside is crispy, the inside more chewy and it just packs a great blend of spicy flavors. The vegetables pair well.Not everyone is used to some of these less commonly consumed parts of the animal but if you're feeling adventurous, give it a try. And both cost less than $18 after tax (in the summer of 2023). If this were served in NY, they could charge $25 at least and I would still happily pay.The atmosphere is certainly not that of fine-dining but personally, that's fine with me. It was quiet and peaceful and I read some Far Side comics by Gary Larson during one of the dinners.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 5
Service: 4
Sam Auyeung
I was in Bloomington for a 5 day conference and I came to this restaurant 6 times (I arrived on a Sunday afternoon). I think the name might sound unappetizing and the atmosphere and prices might make one suspicious of the quality of the food. But let me tell you, if you know what to order and also like spicy food, the food is some of the best I've had. And I've had food in Beijing, Chongqing, Xining, and some town in Gansu in China which covers a somewhat diverse range of Chinese cuisines.The two that I loved the most are pictured below (rice not pictured).1. 水煮三样 ("Water Cooked" beef shank, tongue, tripe)Don't mind the English translation which doesn't do this justice. The shank and tongue was extremely tender and flavorful. The tripe had the perfect springiness when you bite. And after you've had the main components, there is some stewed cabbage beneath to round things off. If you enjoy spicy food, I think you should try this.2. 干煸肥肠 (Stir-Fried Fatty Intestines)The outside is crispy, the inside more chewy and it just packs a great blend of spicy flavors. The vegetables pair well.Not everyone is used to some of these less commonly consumed parts of the animal but if you're feeling adventurous, give it a try. And both cost less than $18 after tax (in the summer of 2023). If this were served in NY, they could charge $25 at least and I would still happily pay.The atmosphere is certainly not that of fine-dining but personally, that's fine with me. It was quiet and peaceful and I read some Far Side comics by Gary Larson during one of the dinners.
Fire Chinese
Food: 5
Look, it's not the greatest chinese food I've ever had, but the greatest chinese food I've ever had was my local hole in the wall, which closed down at least 3 years ago. I'm stuck chasing a high I'll never have again, and for now I have Chow Bar (and the sauce that comes with the dumplings is waaay better here).
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Will always love this place. The sesame chicken especially.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 5
Service: 5
Good food, good service, they will bring a whole pot of tea to you
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Maybe we got our hopes up with the sampler platter. We started with the sampler plate which was incredible. The crab Rangoons were delicious, the dumplings were the best with a hint of honey, the chicken skewers were melt-in-your-mouth tender. The ribs were super dry so we left those. They did have a nice sauce but like eating cardboard.
I ordered the Chinese bacon and tofu based on another review. The presentation was nice and visually appealing but the flavor was non-existant. SO bland. The only flavor was the brine from canned bamboo shoots which caused the entire dish to taste somewhat bitter. The vegetables were chewy, freezer burnt and overcooked. The meat and tofu were perfectly cooked so it's such a shame the dish wasn't worth eating. Im not sure how tofu could be so flavorless.
Same issues with the lo mein and general tsos, no good flavor. The chicken in the general tsos was old and hard. The lo mein was dry and bland but the shrimp was good. Great appetizers, horrible entrees, great portions. I'd recommend getting only meat dishes or appetizers as they were great. Unsure if I will go back.
Food: 3
Recommended dishes: Crab Rangoon
Food looked old, dried out and some entrees had film on it we did the buffet, and most of the food looks old. We will never go here again.....
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 1
Service: 2
Awesome food and staff!
Even though I ate until I was miserable, this is one of my favorite places in bloomington.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Visited here after seeing it on the map - the staff are very casual but nice, and I like the laid back atmosphere. I got the willow beef, which was nice and spicy, as well as the pot stickers.I also appreciated the distinction of the American Chinese food from the traditional Chinese food - most places I've been to either don't do that or just don't offer things beyond the American variants.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 4
This food was terrible, had very little flavor and was way undercooked. The woman who handed me my food was very short and dismissive to get me out the door. I’ll stick to Sakura15 in the future where the food is great and customer service is kind and warm.
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 1
Service: 1
Restaurantji Recommends
A Chinese buffet with some food that appears to me that might actually be Chinese in origin. :-) Common diets can work with their buffet: vegan, keto, gluten free. Good for families and groups as well as a quick lunch.
Dietary restrictions: Great for keto just skip the rice and breaded selections.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
It's not Chinese food at all. Horrible food I ever had in Bloomington. Can't understand why all the foods have so many soup in there. See pictures. Blanched chicken, pork belly, fish with pine nuts should not have so many soup in there. , even it's not China I understand, but being a restaurant should cook better than people cook at home. I can't tell here would let you disappoint.
I really can’t help but write it in Chinese, it’s really unpalatable! It's not generally unpalatable. You can just buy a pack of salt-baked chicken powder and marinate it. It's better to cook it in a rice cooker than this plain-cut chicken. The point is, I don't understand why every dish is so juicy. It shouldn't be juicy like this. It’s juicy, and the juice doesn’t really match the dish itself! And that fried beef river, I don’t know what it is called!
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 1
Service: 3
Not good at all. Staff is rude and not nice plus one of the Asian ladies brought out some food to put on the buffet and she emptied out the fresh food from the container with her bare hands! Prices went up and the buffet is not good at all anymore. Not pleased nor happy especially when their staff are impolite, arrogant, plus putting their bare hands on food for paying customers to eat!
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 1
Service: 1
I was in Bloomington for a 5 day conference and I came to this restaurant 6 times (I arrived on a Sunday afternoon). I think the name might sound unappetizing and the atmosphere and prices might make one suspicious of the quality of the food. But let me tell you, if you know what to order and also like spicy food, the food is some of the best I've had. And I've had food in Beijing, Chongqing, Xining, and some town in Gansu in China which covers a somewhat diverse range of Chinese cuisines.The two that I loved the most are pictured below (rice not pictured).1. 水煮三样 ("Water Cooked" beef shank, tongue, tripe)Don't mind the English translation which doesn't do this justice. The shank and tongue was extremely tender and flavorful. The tripe had the perfect springiness when you bite. And after you've had the main components, there is some stewed cabbage beneath to round things off. If you enjoy spicy food, I think you should try this.2. 干煸肥肠 (Stir-Fried Fatty Intestines)The outside is crispy, the inside more chewy and it just packs a great blend of spicy flavors. The vegetables pair well.Not everyone is used to some of these less commonly consumed parts of the animal but if you're feeling adventurous, give it a try. And both cost less than $18 after tax (in the summer of 2023). If this were served in NY, they could charge $25 at least and I would still happily pay.The atmosphere is certainly not that of fine-dining but personally, that's fine with me. It was quiet and peaceful and I read some Far Side comics by Gary Larson during one of the dinners.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 5
Service: 4
I was in Bloomington for a 5 day conference and I came to this restaurant 6 times (I arrived on a Sunday afternoon). I think the name might sound unappetizing and the atmosphere and prices might make one suspicious of the quality of the food. But let me tell you, if you know what to order and also like spicy food, the food is some of the best I've had. And I've had food in Beijing, Chongqing, Xining, and some town in Gansu in China which covers a somewhat diverse range of Chinese cuisines.The two that I loved the most are pictured below (rice not pictured).1. 水煮三样 ("Water Cooked" beef shank, tongue, tripe)Don't mind the English translation which doesn't do this justice. The shank and tongue was extremely tender and flavorful. The tripe had the perfect springiness when you bite. And after you've had the main components, there is some stewed cabbage beneath to round things off. If you enjoy spicy food, I think you should try this.2. 干煸肥肠 (Stir-Fried Fatty Intestines)The outside is crispy, the inside more chewy and it just packs a great blend of spicy flavors. The vegetables pair well.Not everyone is used to some of these less commonly consumed parts of the animal but if you're feeling adventurous, give it a try. And both cost less than $18 after tax (in the summer of 2023). If this were served in NY, they could charge $25 at least and I would still happily pay.The atmosphere is certainly not that of fine-dining but personally, that's fine with me. It was quiet and peaceful and I read some Far Side comics by Gary Larson during one of the dinners.
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