4.5 stars? Out of 20 stars right? What a letdown. Â Was searching for decent options in Fairfield for dinner and we ended up trying this place out due to the high ratings on here. Â What a mistake. Â Food was very weak, but we'll get to that later. Â Let's start with some of the positives.
Ambiance is nice enough, you walk in and there' a bar area in front of you and six booths to your left and about 6-7 four tops spread out to its right. Â Nothing too cramped. Â The other 2-3 parties also had decided to taking the booths. Â Large glass windows, but it's in an area where there isn't much to see outside. Â Keeping tabs on your car in most areas of Fairfield is a must, so it's good that you'll know of any shenanigans going on in the lot. Â Service was attentive and nice. Â
Food was mediocre at best and of the five dishes we ordered, three completely missed the spot and the other two were just barely manageable (the two beef entrees, peking beef and mandarin beef). Â Portions were also rather small, also disappointing considering the quality of the dishes. Â The Mandarin Beef off the menu was the best dish of the night, but on its own, still barely passable by people who have any semblance of what good Chinese food is. Â The house special vegetables dish was the worst dish I've ever had in any Chinese restaurant. Â The sauce was unbearable. Â Way too sour and there was just nothing, and I mean NOTHING, positive about this plate. Â
Would I come back? Â Nah. Â Appreciate the service here though, but the food was just that weak that my rating sits at 1.5 veering lower, so I have to sadly give 1 star here, which I hate to do.
Full disclosure: Mandarin is my FAVORITE chinese restaurant!
First off, the new renovation is great. New walls, updated seating, a new bar area. All in all, clean, cozy, and new. Parking has never been an issue and though you can see your car from the large windows of the restaurant, I wouldn't leave my ipod on the car seat or leave my doors unlocked.
Now for the most important and impressive part of this restaurant: the food!
Chow Mein - let's just say that when I eat chow mein at other places, I compare it to Mandarin's. It has been my favorite chow mein since I can ever remember. I always have to order it & bless my family (avid-rice eaters) for always ordering chow mein just because it's my fave. Chicken, beef, pork, shrimp, vegetable -- I don't care!
Chicken items we love: Chicken with vegetables - I know it sounds absurdly plain, but it is flavorful and delicious, orange chicken - other restaurants "orange chicken" will never be the same, Fried chicken - garlic-ly delicious.
A dish that is not on the menu but our new favorite is their Mandarin beef. It was recommended to us by the owner and we have gotten it every visit since. It is beef strips deep fried in a sweet & sour sauce that is to die for!
Soup: Order the hot & sour soup for cold winter days... It is amazing & will warm you up & make you one happy person!
Get the crab puffs, they are a 10/10 and another staple to my order. I could eat all 6 by myself, but I share so that others can enjoy the deliciousness.
Moral of the story: this place is SO delicious. I crave it in my sleep. Go try it... NOW!
want to be loud and clear. i went to this place in 1984 i was 19 yrs old, my brother was stationed at travis afb. Â these reviews must have been written by the owners, this food is no were to being what it was. i was told by the waitress who took my order that the same ppl owned this place. it sucks big time. the olders cooks must be retired, and the kids have taken over. Â maybe you guys need to go back to the little hole in the wall, up the street, thats where you did your best cooking. this was my favorite chinese place, back then. never again will i buy this cheap tasting chinese food. lower the prices your food sucks!!!!! i can't say it enough. these reviews are fake!!!! i'm surprised there still open.
Review Source:The food here is so good! My husband especially loves this place. Fast service, very friendly, quick to refill drinks, and great service is constant too not a one time thing. We've been here over and over again and the food is always great and the service is always the best! Definitely the place to go.
Review Source:Great customer service! We were hook after our first visit. We actually went three days in a row after our first visit. The food is delicious. The portions are huge! The owner, Pai, is very personable. Since we visited 3 days in a row, he recommended us something special that he makes when his family is here from China--it wasn't even on the menu! He even bought my boyfriend and I our first round of drinks. Loving their EDM music. I'm glad they do not play any rap or RnB.
Review Source:I was impressed from the minute I walked in until the minute I walked out. The renovation here is complete and I can tell you it was a 100% renovation in every way!! I can bring my family here to share a meal together, share a romantic evening with my Honey or come in and get my drink on. The atmosphere here is accommodating in every way!! I eat all over the place in Fairfield and hands down I love the set up here. I haven't even mentioned the food at this point but that is coming. Promise. I am just so amazed at the difference in the before and after of this establishment. The booth seating is circular in a very modern "Vegas-Like" interior. The tables are regular tables but they would suit me just fine. The color scheme and lighting is subdued and quite nice. Very comfortable!!
Food: Yum, Yum and Yum!! I ordered Mongolian Beef, Sesame Chicken, Pot stickers, Spring Rolls and Won ton soup. The Mongolian Beef was the best I have ever eaten. No joke. The Sesame Chicken wasn't as spicy as I usually like but one mention of that to our Server (also the owner) Pai (sp?) and he added some magic yumminess to it making it perfect!! The Pot stickers are very large and pan fried. I really enjoyed them a lot but they were so big and filling!! I recommend if ordering these you have a few hungry people ready to devour them. And devour them you will! Delicious!! The Spring Rolls were just Spring Rolls. I would be lying if I said they were the best I ever had because they are not but they are still very good. Definitely worth ordering if Spring Rolls are your thing. The Won ton soup was VERY good. Very light and not oily which I really enjoyed. It had a very rich broth.
Drinks: Yes please!! I drank a Lychee Martini and it was so so good. I will be back to try quite a few of the concoctions that Ms. T.J. makes. The Belvedere brand Vodka is very popular here and the staff seems to really know how and what to mix it with to make it perfect for you. Talk to them. Tell them what you want. They will most definitely make something special or customize something for you. I walked in here an absolute stranger and when I walked out I felt like part of the family. The Bar/Lounge area can definitely be classified as both. Such a great atmosphere!! From the upcoming event notices that I have seen, "Mandarin" may be an up an coming Club atmosphere that will attract a huge following. Interesting events coming up  that I have not seen available in the Fairfield area before to be honest. It's a great addition!!
Let me sum this up. This place is a great addition to the Fairfield Restaurant AND Club scene. I haven't been anywhere in Fairfield as of yet that I can say that for. I did not know any of these people before I came here and after I left I felt like I had made some really cool friends and I will be back to hang out with them too!! We need to support this place Yelpers. Seriously. We can't let this one get away!!
We came on a Wednesday evening, during happy hour, and ordered the Peking family dinner for 3: 33.50 which includes soup of the day, white rice, and 3 egg rolls, broccoli beef, szechuan prawns, and dry fried chicken, a couple drinks for 47
- Dramatic change! I've been here a decade ago and renovation is full effect!
- Shady exterior but "Vegas-Like" interior. It's a lounge so it has an inviting bar and nice seating. The TV with the vodka gives the club appeal.
- Dry fried chicken: A MUST recommendation. the garlic flavor is astonishing. brittle bones. 9 fried wings
- Szechuan prawns: hot and spicy. great flavor and texture of shrimp. It's a bit crispy which is interesting. They probably fried it a bit.
- Broccoli beef: average. no better than any other restaurant of same quality.
- soup: It's like a pimped out egg flower soup. LOL. lots of extra sides. nom
- egg rolls: veggies but packed with flavor without using any meat! delicious.
- Welcoming service! Always on point. Service on a platter.
- Can't wait to see how this place is like on the weekends.
Happy Hour T-Sat 500-800
- $2 domestic beer
- $6 Belvedere mix drinks. (Although their sign says "all day" LOL)
- No 1/2 appetizers! lame.
- Not too happy IMO
Since 1982! So NICE! He likes to talk about dishes that aren't on the menu...O LA LA!
I remember coming here on our lunch breaks from Armijo High School, for 2 bucks they filled a container of rice with a choice of either sweet and sour pork or broccoli chicken.
The recipe hasn't changed, it's still just as delicious as it has always been, best sweet and sour pork I have ever eaten. It comes out fresh fried and drizzled sauce so the meat isn't too soggy, but still crispy and hot. Service has always been great they family always seemed to be concerned you ate happy with your meal and taken care of, I love this place.
The food is SO good and the restaurant has a great atmosphere! Â Team In Training recently held an event at their restaurant and they were so accomodating, Pei and his staff are so great work with. Â Next time I'm in the area I will definitely grab a bite at Mandarin! Â Thanks for your support of Team In Training!
Review Source:Dining here was a nice experience. Â The restaurant is being remodeled and it's going to look great when it's finished. Â The service was good - very friendly and attentive. Â The food was delicious - hubby and I really stuffed our faces here. Â The fried wontons were just ridiculous. Â I had a veggie noodle dish that was surprisingly light and delicious. Â Hubby loved his chicken and his pork-fried rice. Â
The prices were just right.
My only issue was that because of the remodeling, the smell of paint fumes was pretty bad. Â I had a headache a few minutes into being there.
I'd definitely return if I was in the area.
We entered the restaurant from the side entrance as they were remodeling - I guess that they are going to turn the restaurant into a dance/night club of sorts.
Overall, we had a good experience - there are definitely some good things to mention, and some things that were lacking.
We ordered the potstickers, the wonton soup, szechuan beef, and the walnut prawns. The potstickers, wonton soup, and the szechuan beef were excellent, but the walnut prawns were not sweet at all - they were too salty and impossible to eat.
As for the service, it was excellent. We received two potstickers that were undercooked, and the waiter brought us two more, and credited the potstickers on our bill. Our server and waiter were very friendly and talkative, and it made for a pleasant experience.
However, it seemed that the restaurant was out of a number of items. We originally wanted the asparagus chicken, but they were out of asparagus. Additionally, a neighboring party ordered wine, but they were out of wine, and after they ordered beer, the waiter had to come back again and tell them that they were out of a particular kind of beer - however, the waiter "paid" for the beer at that point.
I'm not sure if the owner reads these, but here's a way to keep customers happy: tell them what you are out of BEFORE the customers order. That way, they don't come to a consensus about something that is out of stock - that can be very annoying for customers, and because this restaurant seems quick to compensate for unpleasantness by crediting items on the bill, it will also save the restaurant money.
Overall, due to the wonderful customer service, our experience turned out to be good, but certainly not great.
Yummy food, great service, has been open for a long time so that should tell you something. Â If you haven't eaten here yet and have been spending your money for places like Panda Express, Chinese buffets that provide an OK taste with some dishes lacking flavor... Â Do yourself a favor and treat yourself to great service, and flavorful, yummy Chinese food instead. Â =)
Review Source:So so glad we found this place! Â We were just driving through Fairfield and were trying to decide between Mandarin Restaurant and one other place. Â
We tried their lunch specials which were all great - Szechuan Chicken, Cashew Shrimp, and  Hot Spicy Mixed Vegetables.  All of our dishes had a great mix of vegetables, healthy sized portions, and very well spiced.  Mandarin Restaurant's staff is very friendly, quick, attentive and kid-friendly.  They also have big spacious booths which are great for family dining. Â
If we lived closer, this would be our go-to for place for great Chinese food!
Best Chinese Restaurant in Solano County---and me and my Family have tried them ALL! Â They even have the only Delivery---do they still do that? Â It's hard out here to find quality food that's NOT from a Chain restaurant in this Witness Protection area! Â We need more places like this!
Review Source:We went here for dinner last night and each had a fantastic meal: Â Lemon Chicken for me and Sweet & Sour Chicken for my husband. Â Sharing the combo fried rice was a good idea, as it was piled high and had lots of meat and shrimp - very filling. Â I also ordered their tasty Chicken soup with Sizzling Rice (or Crispy rice ?) Â It was really yummy and my veggie-hating husband enjoyed it, as well. Â The restaurant is family owned and operated and extraordinarily friendly. Â Go there to have a tasty meal and smile along with the Mandarin Restaurant family staff...you will be glad you did! Â Â (o:
Review Source:My leftovers and I just got home from am amazing meal at Mandarin. My husband, good friend, and I headed over tonight after reading that Mandarin makes their pot stickers (as we Westerners call them) from scratch; batter and all!
So of course we ordered those pot stickers; two orders in fact. So between the three of us (and we are a group of food loving fatties) we could only down 9 of them :(
But that is not because they were bad. Oh no. They were huge and amazing. These were so large, and full of so much yummy meat, it was as if someone made a huge meatball and wrapped it in dumpling. So good. And the dipping sauce was different than usual, and equally delicious.
The menu had a lot of offerings, but was not overloaded with so many options like the average run of the mill Asian eatery. Each item was special! The menu housed the typical fair: Mongolian beef, lemon chicken, sweet and sour pork. We ordered lemon chicken, which had surprisingly rich flavor, but nothing so overpowered that you'd hesitate reaching for another helping. The Mongolian beef, as my friend put it, "was the best he's ever had." The curry, had by my curry loving husband, to him was incredibly satisfying.
The menu also had some things we'd never seen before, that we felt were worth trying: Dry Battered Chicken and Drums of Heaven.
The Dry Battered Chicken were basically bone in chicken wings; but, as I said before, they were special! These wings were larger than usual, and well endowed. They were drenched in a light layer of sauce, and covered with fresh minced garlic. Oh they were amazeballs! They tasted like garlic butter bread sticks stuffed with chicken. They came atop some equally delicious chopped bell peppers and onions. Mmmm!
Drums of Heaven; let me break the name down for you. If it were just based on looks, I'd call these guys Maracas from Heaven, because these chicken drum sticks were huge! But the Heaven part is correct: they were heavenly! They literally were itty bitty bones with a giant round balls of egg battered chicken deliciousness attached at the tip.The batter was thick and crispy, and covered a huge amount of chicken meat. I think there were about 8 of them on the plate, drowning in a spicy red sauce. I can't tell you what the sauce tasted like, other than DELICIOUS. And when I say spicy, well, it is spicy enough for you to say "oooh, that's spicy" but not enough for you to whine, "my mouth hurts and my lips are burning." The spice was just right. Thanks Tonya T. for the suggestion!
Other things that may win you over:
Cost - We ordered 12 pot stickers, Â lemon chicken, beef curry, Drums of Heaven, dry battered chicken wings, and Mongolian beef, with three servings of rice = $60. Very reasonable!
The digs - The place is large and spacious, so we felt pretty comfy and cozy in our large booth. Still, it's nothing fancy at all, and the decor and furniture is dated. But who cares? I go to restaurants to satisfy my tummy, not my love for interior design.
The service - Mandarin is family owned and operated, and they made us feel like a part of that family. We never felt overly bothered, but we were never left waiting for water, tea, or anything else we may need. The servers were attentive and friendly. I loved hearing about how the chef (our server's father) has a story behind what he makes, and puts a lot of passion and love into what he cooks.
Please don't let the fear of another bad Chinese place ward you from partaking from this amazing restaurant. Trust some folks who have sampled much of what Fairfield/Suisun has to offer: Mandarin was a surprised, and we were VERY happy we went here instead of one of our regulars.
I have lived in Fairfield for 17 years and have never eaten at this restaurant.being a SF native we are used to authentic chinese food. And there just isn't any in solano county. I had a cold and was looking for some good hot and sour soup so I yelped this place. The soup was yummy and fresh. For 6 bucks it was not bad and plenty for 2 people. We also had the pots stickers and they were also very good. My hubby had a lunch special of broccoli and prawns with fried rice. The portion was generous and fresh. The fried rice was just ok, but the shrimp and broccoli were good. The waiter (I think owners son) was friendly and chatty. We will definately come back and try hong kong noodles and salt and pepper pork ribs.
Review Source:I have frequent eater miles at Mandarin! The family who runs this restaurant is top-notch, they treat you like you're family!
I usually order the asparagus shrimp and everything else shrimp...All I can say is that you would not be disappointed. I've been coming he for years and they've never let me down.
I have been looking for a good Chinese place for a year with little success until I decided to check Yelp. Â Tried Mandarin Restaurant and my whole family loves this place.
We have tried several dishes so far and have greatly enjoyed them all. Â In addition, the portions are over-sized and fantastic for leftovers.
Finally, the owners are so nice and helpful. Â They don't make a spicy orange chicken but the gentleman who helped me suggested a different dish that was wonderful and very spicy. Â I place my to go orders at the restaurant and the food is ready within 10 minutes.
I live in Vacaville and will now always travel to Fairfield for M.R.'s delicious crab puffs and entres.
Thank you yelp!
The best chinese potstickers I have ever had. Â They are made with homemade dough and are stuffed full of ground pork. Â
Try their Ja Ja Mein. Â Most people don't know about this chinese noodle dish. Â You get a large bowl of handmade noodles, which is a lost art. Â They make a black bean paste based sauce with beef, shrimp, zucchini and onions that you get on the side. Â Mix it all together and you have a mainland chinese dish that is awesome. Â If you want to try something different, order this with your friends and tell them you are 1/4 chinese.
Excellent restaurant! We entered for the first time with 7 and 4 year oldin tow. We were welcomed to our table and given the menu. We ordered the pot stickers came out quickly 6 on the plate. We tucked in and they were delish. Then came my mongolian beef, it had a slight sweetness that I liked, could have done with a little less onions and more beef but it too was delish. Finally came my husbands chicken chow fun. The noodles were light, not doughy like they can be at some places. The chicken was tasty and there was lots of it. So overall, kids included we would give it an 8 out of 10. And most definitely we will come again to try some of the other dishes. It's family owned and we really like to support local business. Give it a try!,
Review Source:Wooooooooooh! This place is good ya! Is it because the owners know my name, smile, kick up a convo, and serve great food??? That could be it ladies and gentlemen!
The { drool } pot stickers are soooo good with the home made sauce. I love the egg foo yung as it has fresh veggies and a savory sauce that makes you bend your fork. With that being said get off your duff and head on over!
Ive been coming to this place for more than 15 years now and it IS as good as it gets. Â I love the family.. and the father takes a lot of pride in what he puts out of his kitchen and it shows.
Home made pot stickers that are RIDICULOUS (in a good way)..  using best peices of chicken.  Awesome lunch specials  (lemon chicken is great)
I cant remember the name of my new favorite dish (wanna say its sesame chicken but i may be wrong). Â
Love this place... customer for life!!
I remember walking to Mandarin Restaurant in High School for our lunch period. Now don't quote me but I want to say a take out container packed with either chicken fried rice or chowmein was only $2! Not bad for a high schooler on a lunch money budget right? lol...
Now as an adult with money of my own I was able to rent out Mandarin for my daughter's baptism reception. The restaurant is equivalent to Princess Garden but the Fairfield version. The owner was incredibly helpful in planning the reception and making sure that all we had to do was show up come my daughter's special day.
Prices are incredibly reasonable to dine in or even to use their restaurant to host the event. Portions and quality are satisfying.
i gotta be honest with you. Â this place is pretty fricken good. Â we used to come here all the time when i was younger. Â my dad would ALWAYS default to chinese food whenever we'd eat out, narrowing it down to either this place, or one other joint that's not even there any more, the great wall. Â so because of all my chinese food outtings, i developed a resentment for chinese food. Â HENCE, leaving this place with 3 stars...
it's nothing personal against this place. Â i just have my own demons to deal with.
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