Top 100 Chinese Restaurants (Overall Excellence) (2012)
Comments(12)
Reviewed by:
Robert H. on:
3/27/2013 2:11:00 AM
I've been to countless Chinese restaurants from Bangkok, to Hong Kong, Manila and even Tucson. I eat regularly in Chinatown San Francisco and the burbs. Some mediocre places with tasteless food are heaped with multiple plaudits by people who apparently like their Chinese food bland and uninspired. Other places which I thought were wonderful, were considered "awful" by people I shared the meal with. What I'm trying to say is that individuals have different perceptions of what is good and what they don't like when it comes to ethnic-inspired food. That's O.K by me. The majority of Chinese-style places around San Francisco I would consider a solid "3" and I won't write them up unless they are truly bad or I think there's something special about them. Hon Lin has pretty good food. In my opinion it has a good balance that will suit all tastes. The family and I have tried several things on the menu -- both American style and genuine Chinese style. We were satisfied by everything. When it came time for a family gathering of about 30 people we picked Hon Lin, and got a good deal with great service and good food. Since we had relatives and friends from assorted ethnicities we didn't try anything daring but everyone was satisfied.There's no need to go into detail on the menu since the menu is pretty much typical of local Chinese restaurants and everything we tried was good. The wait staff and the manager were very adept at making suggestions and properly describing the balance of flavor in everything we ordered. Nothing was greasy or laden with hoison sauce.Oh yes, if you want wine with your garlic eggplant, or asparagus beef, they have a decent wine list.I would recommend Hon Lin for a casual lunch or moderate size group anytime. Located in downtown San Bruno, it has a parking lot in back. That, in and of itself, is almost worth an extra star.
Reviewed by:
Heather R. on:
3/25/2013 4:18:00 PM
Best Chinese food in San Bruno!I chose Hon Lin to host my daughter's Baptism reception for 50 people (parents, titas, titos, ninangs, ninongs). One, because the Yelp reviews were great and second, it was close to St. Robert's Church (where she was baptized). When I stopped by to inquire about their banquet menu, the gentleman was very helpful. He checked their calendar to make sure the date I wanted was available and only required a $50 minimum for down payment because I was only going to have 50 guests.Our reservation was on a Saturday at 1pm. When we arrived, 5 tables of 10 were set with plates, silverware, and a bottle of coke. As soon as the rest of the party arrived, the food arrived, opening all our guests eyes and making their mouths water. I must say that the item that stood out the most was the Deep Fried Flounder with Soy Sauce. That darn fish was a freakin' hit!Everyone was done eating and out came the cake I ordered. They supplied a cutting knife and plates for everyone. And as you know, coming from a Filipino family, even after everyone's done eating, you still want to hang around and chit chat. The staff was very patient with us, cleaning around us as we sat around the tables. They also provided to-go boxes.The staff at Hon Lin provided such great service and a memorable experience. I recommend that everyone give them a visit.It's quite a bummer that they don't deliver but that doesn't stop me from picking up items to-go on my way home from work!
Reviewed by:
Alfonso L. on:
3/15/2013 6:33:00 PM
The best thing about this place is its fried rice. Rich. Fragrant. Moist. Oniony. Mixed with delicious pieces of scrambled eggs. Go ahead and splurge. Add that $1 to your $6.25 lunch plate (all 53 of them!). They won't make a frown at you, like at Jade Garden in San Mateo, when I deigned propose a fried rice for steamed rice substitution. Because maybe Hon Lin knows something: they have amazingly good fried rice that doesn't have proteins mixed in. No bits of bbq pork, or chicken pieces, or shrimp, or even mysterious combos of all three. They know that this fluff mountain of perfectly fried rice, slightly oily, mixed with onions, perfectly seasoned, is all you need to help you sop up the delicious entrée. And the best part, really. It didn't need any soy sauce!The entrée itself was a little problematic. It had decent flavor, but the method of preparation was untidy and wrong. It was General Tso's chicken. Why this instead looked like fried caramel pieces with almond shavings on top is beyond me. Truth be told, there was little in the way of chicken. Lots of breading and crispy crust of nothing, covered in a sticky, slightly sweet sauce. Better this should have been substantial meaty, all white breast or thighs or whatever. It was not.The hot and sour was competent -nothing that a dollop of hot chili sauce couldn't remedy. But I will definitely go back for the other 52 lunch entrée options and of course, that magnificent fried rice.
Reviewed by:
Christos V. on:
2/10/2013 8:14:00 PM
There website for the menu is:http://honlinrestaurant.…They don't deliver. They said they could not control what yelp shows and were apologetic about not being able to deliver. I've been here several times. The website does not say they deliver either.
Reviewed by:
Nick L. on:
1/15/2013 5:37:00 PM
We were driving by and randomly decided to eat at this place. Yelp unseen as it were. Got to be daring every so often! lolWe came at an odd hour (somewhere between lunch and dinner, luner time we'll say) and it wasn't busy unsurprisingly. Hard to judge service but I thought it was pretty good service to me.Washroom is about what you'd expect at a Chinese restaurant in case that's of interest.Hot and sour soup was hot and sour. Almost too much flavor which could be a ploy to hide the flavors of the other food that is ordered.We got some chow fun and salted fish with chicken fried rice.Both were better than expected. The slated fish rice was slightly the better, just the right amount of salty wit the rice to go down a treat.The house special chow fun was also good albeit a tad sweet for my taste.There may have been some MSG involved here, a good test is if you feel pretty thirsty a few hours later.Fast and value for money - exactly what we were after.
Reviewed by:
panda5150 on:
2004-09-21
I used to work in Brisbane, and we would take our 30 minute just for the Soup. Also the birds nest is excellent as well. I currently work in Oakland, and miss this place very much. ...?
Reviewed by:
Bernel M. on:
2008-04-27
Hon Lin is in a building that was once a bank and then a dance studio. But now it seems to be a success. The resturant is very clean and the servers very helpful. Lots of families dine there - but the wait for a seat is reasonable. ...?
Reviewed by:
anesejatina on:
2008-09-21
We had rice, wonton soup, mixed vegetable chow mein, and a great beef dish. The food was plentiful, affordable, and not too greasy. We might go back but that's a strong might; on our last visit, they began shutting down, bringing out all the ...?
Reviewed by:
Victoria E. on:
2008-10-15
Waiting time is not reasonable. Though their dishes are ok not the greatest you've taste before. Lunch special menu doesn't give enough to fill you up. ...?
Reviewed by:
cindy a. on:
2008-10-15
if you're looking for some good chinese food this is the place to go. I would recommend the Mongolian beef its really good. all of there dishes are very good . ...?
Reviewed by:
jeffrey p. on:
2009-01-23
there are many Asian food places on the peninsula but none compare to hon Lin. the service is fast and the food is really good. Fresh cooked with good ingredients make for the best tasting food around. the sweet and sour pork is the best. ...?
Reviewed by:
Anonymous on:
2008-09-24
If you order porridge from here, don't just wonder what the little black things inside of it are.. Take a closer look... ANTS?! GROSS! I get enough vitamins thank you, i'd rather not have ants in my food!?
AVG:(5.0)
