I was really looking forward to trying Yao’s Kitchen after seeing the photos online, it looked like a nice dine-in experience with promising dishes. Unfortunately, the reality was a big letdown.
Although it appears to be a restaurant with tables and booths, it felt more like a fast-food Chinese takeout spot. We were given paper menus and ordered some classic dishes: chicken fried rice, shrimp lo mein, and a shrimp rice roll.
The rice roll was decent, but the fried rice was bland and mushy, and the chicken was dry. The lo mein had a strange aftertaste and was also overly soft, just not enjoyable overall. There were no sauces on the table, and the service was minimal. I had to call over the only staff member, who was also handling takeout orders, just to get soy sauce and a water refill. She did become a bit more attentive afterward, but by that point, my friend and I were the only guests left, so it shouldn’t have taken that much prompting.
It’s disappointing because I really wanted to like this place. Sadly, the food and service just didn’t deliver. I won’t be coming back.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 2
Service: 2
Jacques
Great food and much different from the usual Chinese food🔥🔥🔥🔥 Brazed beef noodle soup slamming
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Jessica Rivera
Worth the wait! Everything I ordered was delicious.
Food: 5
Service: 5
Monique Redondo
Delicious authentic food
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Carmen Ortiz
I took a chance because I saw the review about the rice roll and I must say this place is so worth it. The food taste fresh and so flavorful. I ordered pork fried rice, house special rice roll, salt and pepper shrimp, even the egg roll was delicious. Keep up the amazing job you guys do.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Law Mach
I grew up in the Lower East Side of Manhattan’s Chinatown before moving to 8th Avenue in Brooklyn, and back then was the only place to grab a decent rice noodle , scrap style or in rolls. Yaos kitchen is the only place I could find peanut butter rice noodles in a land of a million Chinese American fast food joints. Now that I live in Staten Island, I can honestly say I’ve found a spot that not only comes close, but actually does rice noodles better.
The steam rice noodles here are incredible—silky with just the right balance, not too thin and not too thick. The ingredients are always fresh and high quality. Some days you might crave beef rice noodles, other times shrimp or cilantro. The best part is, with just a few extra dollars, you can combine all three and create this super satisfying, almost luxurious dish that could rival even Hong Kong’s best.
Their sauce options really seal the deal. The peanut butter sauce is spot on—perfectly smooth, not too thick or too watery. If I had one small wish, it would be for a less sweet hoisin, but the soy and chili sauces more than make up for it with bold, balanced flavors.
This place feels like more than just a restaurant—it’s a part of Staten Island’s story, and I truly hope it thrives for years to come.
Food: 5
Service: 5
Staci Waters
Updated review:
Please check your vegetable quality, I was surprised it wasn’t fresh as usual. The taste was very odd. This lead to a stomach upset later that day. I have ordered multiple times from this restaurant but had a bad dine in experience on 9/22. One staff member should be mindful of their movement. I understand they wanted to get to the tablet that the other staff member had to help with the order, but you don’t have to push yourself into a customer to reach the tablet. I had to keep moving so that they wouldn’t walk into me.
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 1
Service: 1
Kristina Th
The food is absolutely delicious. My family and I come here quite often since they opened because it’s in our neighborhood. Recently, maybe in the last few months, it seems they’ve changed the person at the register. I really hope the owner/management reads this because they need to retrain this lady. She’s a young woman, so I get it that being on her phone is probably second nature to her. But should you really be busy on your phone while there are customers in the restaurant, even if it’s only 1-2 tables? That was my first experience with her. We had to wait a long time before she noticed us asking for more tea. Then again when we needed the check, and asked for a container to pack leftovers. And her overall attitude in all of our interaction was basically as if she was annoyed just talking to us.
Recently, I went to get take out there and she had the same attitude when I asked how long the wait would be. Then when I came back in to pick up my order, I was ignored even though she was staring straight at me and she just carried on with what she was doing. Yes, there were other customers there, behind me btw, but it really wouldn’t hurt to just quickly say something so your customers know what to expect, a quick “hey, it’s gonna still be awhile” or “5 more minutes”, literally anything like that would’ve been nice. Her interactions with the other customers were very much the same.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 5
Service: 1
Ning Ding
Generous portions, reasonable prices. Nice vibes, would recommend
Not much atmosphere but the food was fantastic. The fried eggplant was melt in your mouth, the snow peas were smoky and crisp and the sweet and sour tofu was exemplary. Big portions and everything was delicious. Best Chinese on SI, imho.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 5
Victoria Wong
We’re so happy to have found this restaurant on the Island! We don’t need to travel to Chinatown to get fresh rice rolls anymore.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 4
S
Mediocre rice rolls. A bit too soft & mushy for me, but my family liked them. They didn't ask what veggies or toppings and we forgot to tell them. Other food was too salty or overcooked. We struggled with slippery chopsticks, AC was too cold, drinks were too full and spilled.
Linda Blanchette
Food was delicious, plentiful and authentic. The staff were attentive but not hovering. This is a welcome addition to neighborhood dining.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
No Name
Best Chinese on the island hands down always delicious and affordable great service
I was really looking forward to trying Yao’s Kitchen after seeing the photos online, it looked like a nice dine-in experience with promising dishes. Unfortunately, the reality was a big letdown.
Although it appears to be a restaurant with tables and booths, it felt more like a fast-food Chinese takeout spot. We were given paper menus and ordered some classic dishes: chicken fried rice, shrimp lo mein, and a shrimp rice roll.
The rice roll was decent, but the fried rice was bland and mushy, and the chicken was dry. The lo mein had a strange aftertaste and was also overly soft, just not enjoyable overall. There were no sauces on the table, and the service was minimal. I had to call over the only staff member, who was also handling takeout orders, just to get soy sauce and a water refill. She did become a bit more attentive afterward, but by that point, my friend and I were the only guests left, so it shouldn’t have taken that much prompting.
It’s disappointing because I really wanted to like this place. Sadly, the food and service just didn’t deliver. I won’t be coming back.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 2
Service: 2
Great food and much different from the usual Chinese food🔥🔥🔥🔥 Brazed beef noodle soup slamming
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Worth the wait! Everything I ordered was delicious.
Food: 5
Service: 5
Delicious authentic food
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
I took a chance because I saw the review about the rice roll and I must say this place is so worth it. The food taste fresh and so flavorful. I ordered pork fried rice, house special rice roll, salt and pepper shrimp, even the egg roll was delicious. Keep up the amazing job you guys do.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
I grew up in the Lower East Side of Manhattan’s Chinatown before moving to 8th Avenue in Brooklyn, and back then was the only place to grab a decent rice noodle , scrap style or in rolls. Yaos kitchen is the only place I could find peanut butter rice noodles in a land of a million Chinese American fast food joints. Now that I live in Staten Island, I can honestly say I’ve found a spot that not only comes close, but actually does rice noodles better.
The steam rice noodles here are incredible—silky with just the right balance, not too thin and not too thick. The ingredients are always fresh and high quality. Some days you might crave beef rice noodles, other times shrimp or cilantro. The best part is, with just a few extra dollars, you can combine all three and create this super satisfying, almost luxurious dish that could rival even Hong Kong’s best.
Their sauce options really seal the deal. The peanut butter sauce is spot on—perfectly smooth, not too thick or too watery. If I had one small wish, it would be for a less sweet hoisin, but the soy and chili sauces more than make up for it with bold, balanced flavors.
This place feels like more than just a restaurant—it’s a part of Staten Island’s story, and I truly hope it thrives for years to come.
Food: 5
Service: 5
Updated review:
Please check your vegetable quality, I was surprised it wasn’t fresh as usual. The taste was very odd. This lead to a stomach upset later that day. I have ordered multiple times from this restaurant but had a bad dine in experience on 9/22. One staff member should be mindful of their movement. I understand they wanted to get to the tablet that the other staff member had to help with the order, but you don’t have to push yourself into a customer to reach the tablet. I had to keep moving so that they wouldn’t walk into me.
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 1
Service: 1
The food is absolutely delicious. My family and I come here quite often since they opened because it’s in our neighborhood. Recently, maybe in the last few months, it seems they’ve changed the person at the register. I really hope the owner/management reads this because they need to retrain this lady. She’s a young woman, so I get it that being on her phone is probably second nature to her. But should you really be busy on your phone while there are customers in the restaurant, even if it’s only 1-2 tables? That was my first experience with her. We had to wait a long time before she noticed us asking for more tea. Then again when we needed the check, and asked for a container to pack leftovers. And her overall attitude in all of our interaction was basically as if she was annoyed just talking to us.
Recently, I went to get take out there and she had the same attitude when I asked how long the wait would be. Then when I came back in to pick up my order, I was ignored even though she was staring straight at me and she just carried on with what she was doing. Yes, there were other customers there, behind me btw, but it really wouldn’t hurt to just quickly say something so your customers know what to expect, a quick “hey, it’s gonna still be awhile” or “5 more minutes”, literally anything like that would’ve been nice.
Her interactions with the other customers were very much the same.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 5
Service: 1
Generous portions, reasonable prices. Nice vibes, would recommend
House special rice roll is decent.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 3
Restaurantji Recommends
Not much atmosphere but the food was fantastic. The fried eggplant was melt in your mouth, the snow peas were smoky and crisp and the sweet and sour tofu was exemplary. Big portions and everything was delicious. Best Chinese on SI, imho.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 5
We’re so happy to have found this restaurant on the Island! We don’t need to travel to Chinatown to get fresh rice rolls anymore.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 4
Mediocre rice rolls. A bit too soft & mushy for me, but my family liked them. They didn't ask what veggies or toppings and we forgot to tell them. Other food was too salty or overcooked. We struggled with slippery chopsticks, AC was too cold, drinks were too full and spilled.
Food was delicious, plentiful and authentic. The staff were attentive but not hovering. This is a welcome addition to neighborhood dining.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Best Chinese on the island hands down always delicious and affordable great service
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
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