HongKong BBQ Restaurant Reviews

All good despite being a chain on the west coast. plenty of Chinese restaurants in Chinatown which meant you have to be good in order to survive. we had lobster noodle, onelette and 1 vegie for $55. Try n you will not regret!

great food, never lets you down

The best BBQ pork in Chinatown. Just make sure you arrive as they pull it out of the "pit". The is good and the service is well done. Parking is very difficult.

I had the privilege to visit this Chinese establishment and I have to say their eats are cheap and good. I had their clay pot with seafood, chicken, mushrooms and roast pork and string beans with a side of rice. The meal came quickly and it satisfied our stomachs. Both my guest and I were happy with our meals. The bill was very reasonable. It came to less than 20.00 for both entrees. I have been at this establishment previously and each time, it continues to feed their guests well and not cost a huge sum,

Although Sam Woo's operates both a sitdown seafood restaurant, it also has next door a "BBQ" mostly takeout place as well. Sam Woo's is a chain in Southern California and even has its own wikipedia article! Over the years, we have tried about 4 or 5 Sam Woo's at different locations. We like the one in Irvine best. All the Sam Woo's feature very authentic Hong Kong cuisine. Their seafood is always fresh and the one in Irvine serves some of the best HK seafood dishes on the West Coast. next door, the BBQ is freshly made and is, in all respects, the best we have been able to find in California (this is really saying a lot for their quality!). Their freshly made BBQ sausage and BBQ pork is really out of this world! (speaking of the Irvine location products). I gave the "atmosphere" a 4 star because there's really not much "atmosphere" in the takeout part of the restaurant.

best wonton egg noodle soup w/ roast duck or stewed beef in chinatown

Ordered several dishes for take out including chow fun, fried rice with chicken and salted fish a fad braised beef lo mein. All three dishes were great. Very reasonably priced. Be prepared to wait as this place is generally packed at meal times.

Came here from Santa Barbara to try local authentic cuisine and was recommended by someone to get the duck. The portion that was served was generous with plenty of duck and rice and the boba tea was tasty, great local feel, thank you!

Me and my cousins always stop by at this restaurant every time we bought flowers from LA Flower Mart, their food was delicious and cheap, you can choose from 8 dollars, 10.95 and 11.95 (lunch special price)and they will serve you big plates of hot dishes,always ending up some of our food to go and their employees are helpful and nice.

Sam Woo has the best roast duck in Los Angeles or San Francisco!

If you want authentic Chinese food, you have to try this restaurant. Everything is fresh with good size portions.

We were really happy with the portion size and the overall flavor of our choices. While we chose to go medium spicy on our first visit, we would definitely go with a higher level next visit. The only drawback is the overpriced can of soda. The gratis hot tea on the table stayed really hot through the whole meal. Not sure how they did that. Mongolian Beef had good texture and flavor. A large menu awaits. Eager to get back and try some other selections.

Delicious food that is very affordable. The wait line is short and the customer service is great. The soups are tasty and rich in nutrients.

After a long day of sightseeing in La, we just want a quick bite before heading back to the hotel. Well, this place really nailed. We ordered two $ 7.95 special of steam eggs ( a real home cook dish ), the shrimps with chili paste, and beef chow fun for the side. All three dishes were very good and tasty. If you are looking for a cheap ,fast, and great meal, this is the place is for you. Else, you will be disappointed with the decor and the wait staff service .

We have been coming here for many years. Sam Woo has restaurants all over the LA area, though Tripadvisor doesn't like to break it down. We've eaten primarily at the Van Nuys, CA place, though they do have restaurants that are more the 'norm', that is, Charge and nice ambiance. The Van Nuys restaurant is not a place where you bring business associates, as the ambiance is nothing to brag about, and it is Cash Only. Servers are polite and most of them speak English well enough to take your order. Very good food at reasonable prices - not cheap prices - you will get your money's worth. You can also order food for takeout. BBQ, charged by the pound, while their specialty, is not the only items you can order, as there's rice and noodle dishes, soups, lots of choices. In this mall, there's an Asian supermarket right next door, Ranch 99. There's also a Vietnamese restaurant within the mall and plenty of restaurants within a block.

I just go there for dessert.

We took the metro to Chinatown for lunch while vacationing in LA. We ordered very unadventurous dishes like Beef & Broccoli and Sweet & Sour Pork. We thought they were excellent.

We ate here based on a recommendation from a local. The roast duck and pork was excellent and that's what they do best. My gripe is that the wait staff do not speak English so there was a lot of pointing and our waiter couldnt tell me the difference in duck dishes. We also had to stop him to refill our water. I would eat here again but probably as a carryout.

Sam Woo BBQ was a household name 20+years ago in Toronto, Canada but had closed since. As we were strolling down LA Chinatown, we spied Sam Woo BBQ, our old time favouite, and decided to try it. The eatery was full and busy. The BBQ ducks, cha sius, siu yeuks hanging on their hooks looked glisteningly tempting. We ordered the duckm fresh chinese greens in oyster sauce, seafood fried noodles and flat rice noodles with beef and greens in black bean sauce.......hmmmmmmmm....fresh, hot, greasy and mei wei! Ho ho sic ah !! $34 for 4, yau pang, yau ho sic!!!!!!!!!

This restaurant has HUGE portions! We got several dishes and everything was delicious. We enjoyed it all. Would recommend the pork chops and Mongolian beef especially.

No atmosphere whatsoever but some of the best food you will find. The toast duck and bbq pork are to die for! Large portions and fair prices.

Found this jewel by accident! We had to wait a bit for a table but it was worth it. Portions are very generous and very tasty. Vietnamese tea was buy 1 get one free although the cup was half full of ice, it was good. If you are in the Chinatown area check it out.

Basic Chinese restaurant, very little English spoken. Menu is partially in English. Restaurant caters to local Chinese clientele Many different items on menu, which are not found at the typical Chinese restaurant. Cash Only

The ambiance is nothing to look at. Food is great, prices are very reasonable, portions are plentiful, service is okay. Be prepared to wait 15-30 minutes during lunch or dinner times. Note that this is CASH ONLY. Plenty of good Chinese selections on the menu, besides the usual BBQ and Roast chicken, duck, pork, etc. And right next door is an Asian market, Ranch 99. Good produce and seafood and meats usually quite lower-priced than regular supermarkets.

If you've been looking for great Cantonese food like you get in Hong Kong, this is your place. Zero atmosphere. Fantastic food. Hard to find noodle dishes like Lo Min with your choice of meat from their BBQ case (Hainan Chicken, Soy Chicken, Roast Duck, BBQ Pork aka Cha Siu, Roast Pork with crispy skin, etc.) Full range of Cantonese noodles (Dry aka Lo min, soup, wonton, Dry Fried, Crispy with Gravy aka Hong Kong Style, Shanghai Fried, Sing Chow Singapore style, etc.) All the usual Cantonese dishes are prepared properly with extreme heat that causes a slight charring of vegetables, noodles and meat, a real authentic taste. A don't miss for Chinese food fanatics who know the real stuff. Don't be put off by the hole in the wall appearance. I've seen TV stars eating here (incognito).

I have lived in China and have had Chinese food that was supposed to be authentic including Chinese restaurants from San Francisco to St. Louis to New York and DC. Sam Woo is pretty good Hong Kong style Chinese BBQ. We went for lunch on a weekday and had BBQ duck in noodle soup, tangerine chicken, mixed veggies, and moo shoo chicken. Okay, I asked for it - these aren't really the dishes that best measure authentic flavor. Still, they all had a little bit too much sugar and their flavors were a little bit shallow compared to the same kinds of dishes I have had other places. The tangerine chicken tasted like a cross between sweet and sour chicken and a funnel cake. The veggies were like steamed veggies in chicken stock. The moo shoo was smokey and salty. All very - kind of - American. If you want food that appreciates the American pallet and is still more authentic than PF Chang's, you'll find Sam Woo very novel.

The best authentic Chinese food in China town. I drive a 100 mile round trip to get this great food. Their rice and chow mein orders are huge. I then get about 2 -3 lbs of their honey barbecue pork . I have gotten the duck and Chinese sausage which is great.

Be sure not to tell everyone about this place or we will never get back in. One of the hole in the wall places with not much decor but who cares with food like this. OMG it was great Chinese food!

Came across this place while walking around. The food was really good, every dish that we ordered was very delicious. Nice and quick service too.

Best true Chinese for very little money

We were in Los Angeles and decided to stop by our favorite restaurant in Chinatown. Sam Woo has been around for a long time. We started going there in 1989 and have either their soy sauce steamed chicken or duck. The food is fresh...it's like they have a supply of fresh chicken coming in from the market down the street. They prepare it so it is absolutely delicious with side dishes of rice and steamed choi sum vegetables.

if you want Chinese BBQ, you can get a combo to try different type at once Their wonton soup is very good as well.

We happened upon this place. It was busy and had a small line at 6 PM. Brightly lit, it was noisy but unusual for a big Chinese cafe. The usual bbq items were good and fresh. Other menu were standard cafe items which were quite extensive. Waiters were very busy, though they seem able to keep up. I have been to better cafes of this sort in San zfrancisco and Vancouver. If you need something hot and quick it satisfies. Not for a slow meal with conversation.

Anytime and every time I am in town with friends of family. Sam woo is one of the places we must eat at. The food is great. The servers are fast and friendly. great prices for delicious quality Chinese food. Only downside is finding parking in the middle of Chinatown.

First time ever having Peking duck, and Sam did not disappoint. I highly recommend if you are visiting Chinatown.

HUGE PORTIONS AND VERY AUTHENTIC SOUTHERN CHINESE FOOD. 10/10 recommended! But it’s huge, three of us didn’t even finish the food down below. !

been coming here for over 10 years. You always get a TON of food for every dish. This meets the 3.5 star rule for good chinese food. If you dont know what the 3.5 star rule is, look it up!

And unlike some of the other places , in Chinatownn, theu did not greet me with "No we don't sell chinese fortune cookies.' I looked at the girl in horror "I didn't gCOME in for fortune e cookies I replied. You can go in and look at the items and decide what you want....good value for the money.

I love this place. If you're looking for heaping servings of delicious food and great service.. this is the place to go. Casual dress. Excellent duck, bbq chicken, and pork. Delicious rice dishes and soups also. Priced reasonable. S.D. Glendale, CA

This Sam Woo restaurant has been there for many years. It was good to come back for mementos sake. The BBQ was tasty as before.They also serve all kinds of boba drinks but those were just average. It's an authentic Cantonese restaurant. Highly recommended.

I used to go to Sam Woo's all the time since I worked close by. Used to love their food and was treated like family when I went in there. Was greeted by name and a big smile. I stopped going for awhile and the last time I went was terrible. We were the only non Asians in the dining room and were basically ignored. When we finally did get service, it wasn't very friendly. Will never go back. Besides, when we were leaving, we saw several of the employees behind the restaurant smoking. It just doesn't look very clean any more. The employees aprons were dirty. Very distasteful.

Great little place for Chinese food in China town Good for sharing food, the portions are big. You can take home food like a whole cooked duck or other items Service prompt and efficient and price affordable

If you're in the LA Chinatown neighborhood, Sam Woo Restaurant is the place for good Chinese food. Service is good although the place is basic.

First time visit to Chinatown...very unique menu items but more than enough things to choose from. Portions were huge...we left more food than we ate. Restaurant was really clean and seem to have lots of locals eating there. Staff was very nice. Would definitely eat there again.

I ordered chicken and vegetable on rice, that dish was just okay. I order mango black tea which was good. The servers were very friendly and attentive.

We chose this place because it was just around the corner from the hotel and the customers looked local, always a good sign. Pretty basic décor, but sparkling clean, we were soon handed a menu by the only member of staff that appeared to speak English. Food came quickly, and the portions were enormous. We ordered pork chops and beef noodles, both really lovely, but we came nowhere near finishing them. Unless you are massively hungry, best order one between two, then more if needed. There is a basic selection of drinks.

We were strolling through Los Angeles' Chinatown and were told the food was very good at Sam Woos so we decided to try it. I ordered the Chicken and Cashews and was very pleased with the dish. It was lightly seasoned and very plentiful. Haven't had better anywhere. My wife ordered the Duck dish which consisted of a duck leg chopped into pieces over a bed or rice. Not the best she had. The restaurant does not take credit or debit cards, cash only, so I had to sprint to the local Bank of America just down the block to cover the bill. The atmosphere is very casual with many locals eating here.

Great no frills Chinese BBQ