I would want to give this restaurant 5 stars but I am only giving it 3 because I want die hard chinese food lovers to be happy. that being said, it is good food. Â It is the location that makes it 5 stars. It is so fun to be on Balboa Island and walk the shops and to get something different than cafe food. I love the garlic chicken and aks for white meat. I love to add the onions and it is very healthy. The staff is great. The kids love the pot stickers. I would have to say the chinese chicken salad is disappointing and hope they redo that! Â Â They are fast and efficient and I love this place!
Review Source:We went here based on the Yelp reviews, despite the fact that we were dubious about finding a decent Chinese Restaurant on Balboa Island. Â We should have trusted our instincts. Â This place was pretty awful. Â The restaurant smelled funny, and the food was barely edible. Â Service was also bad. Â When I asked whether they had brown rice instead of white, the waitress just sneered at me, then said, "no" in a very condescending manner.
The problem with the food was that it just didn't have any real character. Â It was what you would expect from a Chinese Restaurant in a place that doesn't normally eat Chinese food. Â There are at least 40-50 other Chinese restaurants in Orange County that have better food, and though I would not count Panda Express among them, this place is a pretty close tie with that one.
This joint has been modified to fit the tastebuds of Americans.
Their dishes are not traditional Chinese cuisine, but it was the only restaurant we could find on this road that was open for business on 4th of July.
For a party of 4, we ordered:
-wonton soup
-honey walnut chicken
-tofu/vegetable dish
-scallop/vegetable dish
-beef noodles
-rice
The soup came out first, but we were confused because they only gave one and left. When we pointed it out, they fixed the order and came back with the rest. They pretty much use the same sauce for every dish, lol. The soup was very mediocre and tasted like a frozen meal you get at costco.
The honey walnut chicken was a winner for me. Again, it doesn't taste traditional, more lemony, but it's hard to go wrong with sugar coated and fried chicken with walnuts.
The tofu was okay, the sauce was the same as the scallops, which I enjoyed.
Beef noodles were good, too. But it was disappointing because all of it tasted very average, and something you can get at a wok place. -__-
Rice was like a pilaf, very airy.
They give you fortune cookies and almond cookies at the end, cute.
Overall, I would have liked to go somewhere else, but having been the only option, it was okay. Would I go back again? Probably not.
This place has really bad Chinese food. They claim they don't use MSG but I strongly doubt it. We ordered 7 different main courses and all were the equivalent of low grade dog food. How anyone could give this place 4 or 5 stars is beyond me. Do yourself a favor and stay away.
To be fair, the service was good. I just can't get over the terrible food.
I am definitely a fan! Â I had been waiting to try this place after seeing one day while walking around Newport. Â It looks like a bit of a hole in the wall, especially surrounded by the places in on Balboa island, but it is totally worth it.
I went for an early dinner special. Â For $7.95, I got fried rice, Kung Pao chicken, an egg roll, egg drop soup, and a fried wonton. Â The soup filled me up on its own, so I had some leftovers. Â I glanced at the regualr menu, and the prices seemed reasonalbe, and there were lots of choices. Â It was pretty empty when I went (3 other tables at first), but the staff was super friendly, and attentive! Â
As everyone has mentioned, parking is a pain, but that is anywhere on Balboa! Â
I think you should give this place a shot if you are in the area! :)
Gourmet lunch special- $7.95 main course, soup, rice, tea, and cookie.
I came here back in March while on business. Â I liked it so I came back in May while on another business trip. Â If you're a fan of Chinese food, you really can't go wrong here. Â They have all the traditional dishes, reasonable prices, friendly staff, and great location. Â Parking can be difficult but you're on an Island for Pete's sake ;-)
I overheard the owner talking about financial troubles, so give them a shot if you're in the area. Â I think this place has been here for a long time and it would be sad to see them go. Â It's probably the most affordable meal on Balboa Island.
It wasn't until I actually ate here last week did I realize that the name of this unique Balboa Island restaurant to be Shanghai Pine Gardens. Since there doesn't seem to be any other old-timey, 1970's-ish Chinese restaurants on Balboa (and you'd be hard-pressed to find them in Newport Beach in general), simply calling the place "that Chinese restaurant on Balboa" works just as well in identifying "the Pines."
Shanghai Pine Gardens has a privileged position on Marine Avenue on a corner, right across from the only real franchise on the island: Starbucks. My trip here last week required a Starbucks for some caffeine and wi-fi in order to get pressing work done, however, I felt hungry and decided I would eat at the Pines beforehand and check out their lunch specials (and if you haven't figured it out by now, pretty much any legitimate Asian restaurant has a discounted "lunch menu" during the afternoon).
I was lucky enough to find a parking space facing the direction of exiting Balboa Island. I do as much of the pre-work in making the logistics as smooth as possible so that it reduces frustration later. I then saw the signage on the storefront window advertising their lunch specials. Sure enough, I knew that was the right choice to come here.
Just before entering, I noticed the decals on the door that they take ALL major credit cards, including American Express! My spirit leapt for joy and I had this beaming smile going in. The owner noticed me come in and asked if I could sit by the window. Normally, I don't like booths, but I obliged, since at least the large windows offered a more open line of sight on to the street.
Figuring that the food might be more catered to the local non-Asian tastes, I went with something spicy (after all, we're in California). I ordered a lunch special for fish fillet with spicy red bean sauce and just plain steamed rice. The house soup came out and I finished that up fairly quickly first.
I think it was safe to say that I was the only Asian person here during my lunch visit. I offered the place a certain legitimacy, and I didn't mind it. In fact, it was my pleasure to do so. I was also pretty honored that my server attempted to speak to me in Mandarin first when taking my order, before I had to break it to her that I was American-born. I did at least thank her in Chinese and stuck to the rule of only drinking tea (no water!--despite the fact that it was served by default) as a throwback to my Chinese heritage.
The fish fillet was good against the simple backdrop of steamed rice (good saltiness, texture and amount), although I recalled thinking that I wished it was spicier. But, I realized that I was holding it against naturally spicier cuisines such as Indian or Mexican food, which are also as ubiquitous in Southern California as the amount of sunny days in a year.
While eating, you'll notice the placemats they use here at the Pines: they have a Chinese zodiac informational placemat that you can read to help pass the time. Even the printing of these placemats seem as antique as the Pines itself despite the years going up to the current year 2012. While reading this informational placemat, I realized I still don't know for certain whether I'm considered a Boar or a Rat, having been born on January 26th. That date is around the cusp of both signs and, unfortunately, the personality traits of both the boar and the rat aren't necessarily similar. Additionally, it's a bit interesting when the placemat indicated with which other zodiac signs I'm most compatible with and who to avoid under both boar and rat circumstances. The situation was only made more ironic after I looked up and stared at the large, laughing golden Buddha statue immediately in front of me. It was as if he was laughing at my ignorance.
After finishing up every ounce of fish and 99% of the rice, I paid with my American Express and proceeded to walk across the street to the Starbucks. It was time to get to work.
Last night, I went here with a friend who is a regular here. Â He knew all the waitresses and even talked to the owner when we left. Â
The food was very good. We had wor wanton soup, pork mushu and shrimp with lobster sauce. Â I have been here before, but so I had all these dishes before. Â The shrimp with lobster sauce had more mushrooms, carrots and peas than before.
The service was very good. The pork mushu was even individually wrapped for the customer. I assume the service was so good, because my friend is a regular.
The restaurant has an old style Chinese restaurant feel. It might not be for everyone.
I am definitely going here again.
Been living on the island every summer of my life for 20 years now. Tried it once. May try again in another 20 years. I ate late and alone and I got shit service, but I saw so did everyone else. I got a plate of like honey walnut shrimp. Crazy thick breading and super greasy. Id rather have panda express and get the runs than go thru this experience again
Review Source:D's mom has been sick and a lot of the caregiving has fallen to us for the past two weeks. Â Saturday night we wanted to take her out, but she just wasn't up for it, so we picked up dinner from Shanghai Pine Gardens. Â It's one of her favorites.
It was really good. Â We ordered rumaki, sizzling rice soup, shrimp with lobster sauce, chicken with broccoli and snow peas and chinese chicken salad. Â It was enough food to probably feed 6 people, so we had plenty of leftovers.
I only ate the rumaki and chicken with broccoli and snow peas, but those items were both excellent. Â Mom loved the sizzling rice soup. Â D. really liked the chinese chicken salad.
Next time I would like to dine in. Â The only problem is that it's not the easiest to get to, being on the island, and parking is a pain.
Looking forward to going back!
On recommendations we had the lo mien and mu she pork. Â Both were fantastic. Â The sizzling rice soup had a nice flavor. Â The only downside of the meal was the flavor of the beef with broccoli. Â Service was great has a nice local family feeling. Â If I lived in Newport I believe I would find myself a regular here.
Review Source:Pro's - Food was served quickly and the restaurant was comfortable. Â Good quantity of food, and affordable. Â
Con's - We ordered 3 different meals and all 3 sat in a slick of oil and salt, and had VERY little flavor. Â I do not intend to return or recommend this restaurant to friends. Â
That said, most Chinese food (here and in China) is a combo of mystery meat, oil, and salt.  The most notable exception I've found to this is Fortune Cookies in Fountain Valley. They have  tasty and relatively healthy dishes from across Asia.
If anybody knows ANYTHING about chinese sit-down restaurants, its this-- the more out-dated the place looks, and if you see the employees cleaning green beans in a corner booth, the food is deliciously LEGIT. Â
If you disagree with this, you won't like this restaurant.
For $17.50 grand total for 2 people... (earlybird dinner special before 6pm)
We got ----
Pot of Green Tea - Strong, and delivered upon seating.
Crispy Noodles - Â BIG bowl, w' sweet & sour sauce, instantly served upon seating.
Hot & Sour soup - Perfect density of mushrooms and tanginess.
Egg Flower soup - very flavorful, and super hot temperature.
Orange Chicken - Still sizzling when I put a piece in my mouth. Â Not too sweet.
Beef w' Peppers - Meat was incredibly tender.
Fried rice - Was moist for a fried rice, good job.
Crispy Wonton - typical.
Egg Roll - typical.
5 stars for the soups, chicken and beef. Â They really were that delicious!
The FH and I eat here almost weekly, well actually we take food to go...we have determined that OC is completely lacking in terms of excellent chinese food, but having grown up in the area I will always have a special place in my heart for SPG. Â They did have a few years go by with a different chef, but have since brought back the old chef and the restaurant has gone back to what I remembered growing up. Â Yes anything breaded and fried is greasy...hello, it's breaded and fried!! you can ask for it extra crisy, and it will be much better! Â I also recommend asking for anything labeled 'spicy' to be prepared 'extra spicy' it's much better!!
Our go to order is Wonton soup with extra vegetables (someone mentioned 'pink' beef, that is actually pork, no beef in the soup) we take it home and spice it up with Sriracha and add some crumbled crispy noodles, it's really good, really basic, and healthy for a quick dinner...
BEST DISH- their house fried rice, made 'spicy', where they add chili oil with chili flakes, you can also request light oil so it doesnt end up too greasy...this is our faorite dish, especially with a touch of sriracha (if you really like it spicy) and tastes even better the next day...for whatever reason. Â This is our go dinner and we head out the door with dinner and leftovers for about $16!!
Yes, the interior hasnt been updated in at least 20 years (since I used to ride my bike here to meet my mom for lunch in the summer) it's old and drab and totally out of date, but also somehow cozy....Dont expect a gourmet meal, order your food with very specific instructions for best results and then sit back and enjoy the experience, you wont regret it!
While driving down the main drag of the island we spotted this rundown little place. Since it looked older, we figured it had staying power. How can this restaurant survive if it isn't delicious?
Well, we still don't know the answer to that question!
The interior is drab, dingy and depressing. The restrooms were comparable to a porta potty. The service was the minimum possible to complete an order. We ordered the fried vegetable spring rolls (4) which were lesser quality than the kind I buy at the grocery store in the freezer section. K ordered the sweet and sour chicken lunch combination which came with a eerily thick eggdrop soup (we weren't given any choice on soup) and hot tea (perhaps the only redeeming quality of the entire experience.) The chicken was tough, the pineapple, peppers and onions were served nearly raw and the sauce definitely came out of a bottle. C ordered the bean curd with brown sauce. The tofu was silken and not cooked only warm. The texture was like eating salty pudding. The brown sauce was unremarkable. The only vegetables in the dish were a few snow peas and raw carrots. K commented at the end of the meal that you KNOW it's a bad sign when fat people leave a restaurant with food on their plates, which seemed to be the case at more than one table. The only credit I can give this place is that their prices are significantly lower than almost every other restaurant in the area.
Sadly disappointed.
We got the wonton soup--the wontons tasted weird. The beef slices in it were a little pink.
The crispy things they give you in the beginning with duck sauce were stale.
Then we got the sizzling beef, cool dish because it comes sizzling on a fajita plate but the beef was super soggy. Soggy beef? Yes, soggy beef.
The kung pao chicken was wah wah wahhhh. Soggy, super fatty, and not spicy. Sigh.
We sat in a booth where both of the vinyl seats were ripped wide open.
The fortune cookies didn't have a fortune, they just had a statement. I mean really, telling me I like art is not a fortune, its a fact. haha.
Overall, we struck out. Or perhaps they struck out.
What we did like--our waiter was very nice. Our water was delicious. Seriously. Something about Balboa having its own water supply? Not sure if that is true but it was yummy.
We were still hungry when we left because we didn't eat much of the subpar food. But thank goodness there was a balboa bar shop steps from the chinese place!
Now if you come here expecting the best Chinese food you've ever had, sadly you'll be mistaken. However, once you see the prices (especially for lunch), you will learn to lower your expectations just a little....then you really enjoy the portions and quality you are given!
For $6.25, my girlfriend ordered crispy spicy chicken which was made with mixed veggies and came with fried rice and a wonton. I ordered the garlic beef for just $7.50 and it also came with rice. Both of our meals were huge, and both came with a choice of egg drop or Hot & Sour soup. Both of our meals were tasty and very flavorful.
Fair enough, the ingredients used may not have been the finest cuts of meat worthy of a steakhouse, nor is the ambiance very nice. But once you get past this pretense that you've got in your head, you realize that you're getting very decent food for fair prices, and the service is great. For a cheap fix, sit down places don't have more value than this.
I had wanted to come here ever since I decided it reminded me of the Chinese restaurant on "A Christmas Story". Very old school and oh so dingy. I wasn't expecting much, but I thought maybe I'd be pleasantly surprised and the food would be great! Unfortunately, my low expectations were met as I choked down salty wonton soup and saucy chicken and beef. Yeah, the food's not great and the restaurant is pretty dumpy, but it definitely has a certain charm about it. That's Balboa for you, I suppose!
I have to say that I didn't feel so great the night after eating here, though. I think I'll stick with the other charming parts of Balboa next time and maybe peek in the window of Shanghai Pine as I enjoy by frozen banana. It's safer for the tummy that way.
Man, I hate to give a one star to any restaurant, however I just cannot give this place anything better for my review.
After spending Christmas Eve dinner with my wife's family and hosting my family on Christmas morning, the two of us planned to spend our Christmas dinner away from family and just make it an "us" evening by getting Chinese take-out. Â
Thinking many Chinese restaurants would be open on Christmas Day, we were surprised when all my usual places were closed. Â After several more fruitless attempts using Yelp*, I successfully learned Shanghai Pines was open. Â
I had been to Shanghai before and was satisfied knowing we would at least have a decent meal
Located on Balboa Island, the restaurant is in a good location and has been a fixture there for decades. Â Being that we ordered to-go, we I cannot comment on the inside of the restaurant, but as Chinese restaurants go, it was average. Â
Since it was was Christmas Day, the restaurant was packed. Â Every seat was taken and there were people waiting outside. Â Usually this is not the case, but when you want to eat out on Christmas, that's what you get.
Now to our order. Â We arrived around 7pm and pushed our way through the crowd to place an order with the front receptionist. Â We ordered the Won-Ton soup, vegetable pan fried noodles, shrimp and vegetables, spicy shrimp and beef and broccoli. Â We were told it would be about a 30 minute wait. Â "No problem," we just window shopped to kill the time.
Our biggest mistake occurred when we failed to look inside our to-go bag of food. Â Instead, we just jumped in the car and drove home. Â
Excited about our feast, we opened up our bag and discovered that they forgot to give us our white rice. Â Ugh! Â What do we do now, drive back? Â Make some? Â Call and complain? Â Nope...we're too hungry.
First we divided up the soup and began our meal. Â In fact, the Won-Ton soup was probably the best part of the meal. Â Good amount of veggies, won-tons, shrimp and even some pork meat. Â Not overly salty, but typical won-ton soup flavor. Â
Next came the vegetable pan fried noodles. Â These guys were a soggy mess. Â The sauce and the oil was dripping off the noodles just placing it on my plate. Â The taste was decent and we overlooked the liquidity of the dish as perhaps standard with the restaurant.
Now it was time for the three main entrees: Â Shrimp and vegetables, spicy shrimp and beef and broccoli. Â If I thought the oil and over abundance of sauce was prevalent on the noodle dish, I was in for a treat with these three. Â I couldn't believe it, but over 1/3 of the to-go box was filled with sauce. Â To make matters worse, the taste of all three entrees was identical to one another. Â We might as well have ordered the same three items. Â BLAH! Â The taste was far from great as well. Â No garlic, no spice, no flavor period. Â We wound up throwing most of it away and chalked it up as a loss. Â Terrible! Â Even the fortune cookies sucked. Â It should have read, you will get severe diarrhea tomorrow. Â That fortune came true.
Please folks, stay away from this place. Â Yuck!
The culture of Balboa Island is sadly lacking in a lot of areas. Most of the places, especially the restaurants, are very Southern California - high in price, low in taste.
As a whole, I'd have to say that Shanghai Pine Gardens is one of my favorite Chinese restaurants in the whole of Southern California. The dishes actually served don't go that far out of the norm for Chinese restaurants, however the taste usually does. I've yet to have any dry fried rice that is remarkably common with other restaurants. And most everything else usually isn't so greasy that you feel like you need a bath after you eat. Overall, it's good food.
The service is about typical. Nothing horrible, nothing outstanding. The prices are about on par with other Chinese restaurants, if not slightly higher because of the location. This place has been here for years, though, and it'd be nice if it stays that way.
I would have to say the biggest draw to this restaurant is the fact that it's a place that actually offers something different on Balboa Island - it's not a kitschy craft shop or some hoity-toity expensive restaurant.
It's just plain ole' good food.
Shanghai Pine has been in business for years which definitely says something. Although it may not be the most authentic Chinese food, everything I have had there has been good, fresh, and well prepared. I have a weak spot for the little crunchies they serve on the table with the sweet and sour sauce.
Perfect for lazy days when you need to call in an order to go!
My friend and I ordered the Moo Goo Gai Pan (white chicken and vegetables) with water chestnuts and the Curry Chicken.
We both have food for a couple extra meals all for less than $20 :)
I needed to let the public know that my husband got food poisoning from eating at this restaurant just yesterday. He ordered the beef and broccoli. Â It's a shame because this place has been around since the 70's, and is a cherished landmark for this community. Â I honestly wish I could have said something a bit more positive here, but he is very ill and whatever it was, (cross contamination, bad meat) needs to be addressed. Â I feel I have to give at least one star primarily for the way Peter, the restaurant manager handled my phone call today. He was extremely sensitive to the situation, and told us to please come back and he would refund our money. He also urged me to take my husband to the doctor and that their insurance would cover his visit.
Review Source:Went to Balboa Island and wanted some good food.. we were gonna go to Italian, but then we smelled the food here and basically were dragged in by the smell.
Anyways got in, no one else was Asian. I'm not being racist... just that good Asian restaurants normally have lots of Asians in them.
Everything seemed like it was from Rush Hour.. even the place mats...
Appetizer was fried wonton with chinese ketchup. Interesting.
Anyways, we got the Honey Walnut Shrimp, Hot and Sour Soup, and Kung Pao Chicken.
The Honey Walnut wasn't that good - it was soggy. Hot and Sour Soup was pretty good - it was my favorite from the night. The Kung Pao Chicken was not good - the chicken didn't taste like anything. Neither did the sauce. Weird huh?
Anyways I guess this place has food that is catered towards old-school Chinese-American taste... well that's what I'm getting from the reviews. But I dunno, it really is different from the food they serve in San Gabriel Valley, which I think is better!
This is the place for some old school 70s-90s style Chinese cuisine. And if you're up this sorta cuisine, this is definitely the place to stop by.
There's an old school feel even with the decor, tableware and the menu includes your Mu Shu Pork, Orange Chicken, Hot and Sour Soup and all that good stuff. Nice staff and good prices. Great for coming with groups. Good food.
This place is purely good for comfort Chinese food. Simple as that.
Half of the experience, the service, was the worst I've ever had, I've been to complete dives with
nicer service. The restaurant itself is dated, old and extremely cramped, which is understandable since it's Balboa Island.
My colleague asked if she could have both steamed and fried rice and the waitress looked at her like she just landed from Mars with an evil glare, I guess that's just not how they run their business, fine.
After getting our food (which was priced OK, plus points for that) my colleagues got what they ordered and 7 minutes later I got my food, they were basically already done when I received my food.
The food they ordered didn't taste like much at all, they both had the chicken and it was really dry and way too well-done without any taste at all. I ordered the Szechwan shrimp, which to me, wasn't spicy enough but completely edible.
After we were done, they gave out the check and we put our money on the platter and waited for 20 minutes, nothing... So we left to go to the cash register by the door... ...nothing! Waited for 7 more minutes and our waitress came out and rang us up.
She said "Put your total here" and pointed to the row on the receipt for the tip ... I dragged a line through it and put my total under... I don't know whether she was trying to rip us off or just didn't know how her own receipt worked.
To summarize; I would rather starve than coming back here.
Shanghai Pine Garden has been a family favorite since it opened on the Island in the early 1970's. Yeah we missed La Ramada, the Mexican restaurant it replaced, but the people at the Pine Garden quickly converted us to fans.
We don't often eat in any more, more take out these days, but always the same good food and the same great attitude and service.
We tend to like the spicier Szechuan type dishes, but the DW always like Buddha's Feast vegetarian dish, while I am partial to the string beans in garlic or sauteed spinach for a vegetable.
The House Special Lo Mein is another constant.
Stepping into Shanghai Pine Gardens is like being encased in temporal amber. It's unapologetically old-school Chinese, complete with the bowl full of fried chow mein noodles with the hooker-lips-red sweet sauce for dipping.
The food was straight from the 60s and 70s -- shrimp with lobster sauce, moo goo gai pan (what the hell is that, anyway?) and sweet and sour chicken made with that same HFC red sauce that comes with the noodle snack.
My wife and I chose the lunch combinations (a bargain at $6.50), which included a choice of soups, (fried or white) rice and a won ton. For the soup, we both chose hot and sour soup. I tend to judge Chinese restaurants by the quality of their hot and sour soup which, in this case, wasn't bad. I gave them some points for that.
For an entree, I had pork and vegetables in a brown sauce. It was pretty good. My wife had the sweet and sour chicken. Tasted it. Probably wouldn't order it again, but it wasn't horrible.
Overall, both dishes weren't bad, but neither were anything to get worked up over. While I've had better, there's something to be said for a place that's been around as long as this one. And it holds its own against the corporate chain-ese joints that litter the malls and entertainment districts.
No, Shanghai Pine Gardens takes one back to a simpler time. I was reminded of this as I sat in the corner booth next to the window -- a prime people-watching spot. This, along with the reasonable prices and decent service, makes going to Shanghai Pine Gardens worth the trip back in time - even if it's only for a short while.
This has always looked like a place you want to try - a classic - been there forever...
So we finally did the usual Holiday at the Chinese food place ritual. Â I really love New York Style Chinese and was hoping this was going to be similar based on some reviews. Â But I'd have to say it was just OK...
The prices are definitely good - there is an early bird menu - great prices and nice combo option. Â However, the food was just so-so. Â Not terribly flavorful. We ordered General Tso's chicken, while not on the menu, they said they could make it. Â So maybe that was our fault.
I'd go back to try another option - maybe the Orange Chicken.....
I love this place. There really is no good Chinese restaurants in Irvine (all pretty commercialized or supper expensive). Here the food is fresh, hot, delicious, and CHEAP. If you go before 6pm for an early dinner, then the prices are even cheaper. And the portions are huge. There is always leftovers (YUM!) My all time favorite here is the Honey Shrimp with walnuts. It is so crispy and sweet. Everything else that we have had here is also great.
The only bad part is parking...but we've always gotten lucky two to three blocks away...just as long as you are not in search for the "perfect" parking spot and enjoy your stroll through all the beautiful house fronts...then you will be fine!
Pretty inexpensive, generous portions, and the food isn't bad. Â The lunch deals are very good. Â They serve lo mein, which is reminiscent of east-coast Chinese places. Â Don't expect super fancy or authentic Chinese food. Â This place definitely caters to Americans, but for what it is, it's nothing to complain about.
The only one negative thing I'll say is that while our waiter was friendly, he was pretty inattentive. Â I asked for chopsticks and never got them, and he didn't come by once after we got our food.
My friend took me here for lunch today. Â I've driven by this place soooo many times but never had the reason or opportunity to try them out until today. Â I was pleasantly surprised by the quality and quantity of food that was served. Â And the price!?? Â Where else in the O.C. OR Balboa, can you have lunch at a sit down restaurant for $5-6 nowadays, right? Â So, that alone is a reason to come back here. Â Food tasted clean and fresh, not too greasy. Â I didn't get a heartburn after I was done eating nor felt heavy and gross. Â
I wouldn't make a special trip to go there but if I happen to be in the area and need a quick and cheap bite, I would definitely consider them!
Don't be fooled by it's decor... it's soo old school and I just love this restaurant. I've been coming here for years and often my beau and I have to get our monthly fix of this place.
We're pretty much creatures of habit and order the same things but you cannot go wrong ordering the following because it's our faves:
-Chicken lo mein (so darn yummy, my mouth is just salivating just thinking about it)
-Orange chicken (it is the bomb! out of the 100 times I've been here, only twice was the chicken not at it's freshest and a bit tough. But always tender and has a great crisp taste!)
-Buddha's Feast (you can't go wrong with a mix of sauteed veggies)
-Vegetable fried rice (all of their fried rice dishes are great)
-Kung Pao Chicken (Yum)
Great factors: service is super duper quick and piping hot!, food is even better as left overs, depending where you sit, you get to people watch (great location), and the little bowl of crunchies with the sweet pink sauce (It's a great way to start munching on while waiting- what wait?- for your food). We pretty much know all of the servers and they are most nice and helpful.
After you finish your meal, there are tons of little shops and ice cream parlors to choose from for dessert. Personally, I love a good walk along Balboa Island and house watching after my meal or catch, the mere $1 per person, car ferry to walk on the beach.
You just can't go wrong with this place, I highly recommend it.
They get 5 stars alone for the won ton soup and sizzling rice soup. I have eaten here since I can remember as a child, its one of my favorite Mandarin Chinese restaurants. Their Mu-shu is great. Also, they seem to do paper wrapped chicken in just the right way.
Its a good place to sit in the booth and watch the tourists cruise the island. Also, good for larger parties, they have a back table with a lazy susan thats great for sharing larger portions.
We love Shanghai Pine! Â If it weren't for parking difficulties, this place would get five stars.
The service is always excellent (little, old Chinese men), the prices decent, and the atmosphere unforgettable.
Get a booth by the window (so you can see all the Balboa Island foot traffic) and order hot tea, sizzling rice soup, orange peel chicken and Buddha's feast vegetables. Â We always leave with dinner for the next night - the portions are generous, as with most Chinese places.
PERFECT date place.
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