China Chef

My bf went to get food half hour before they closed they charged him $38 for two meals and a 4 count of crab Rangoon they had him sit there for 10 mins then said they couldn't make the food cuz they were about to close and kept asking to refund him my bf ask then why did u take my order and make me wait and ask why it was so pricey they said it was $15 per person and the menu thats online is a 3rd party menu what does the even mean. the food is bland no flavor even the fried rice all you taste is charred from the pan they used its not edible The chicken & broccoli is like chicken water with barley any chicken the chicken is white. this the worst meal ever never coming here again never had a problem like this before

Wonderful! Best Hot & Sour soup that I have had anywhere! Egg rolls were great, the entre was a generous portion. And the service was great in this family run restaurant.

Very bad service! I have ordered several meals from this company!!! And when I say, I mean several! Majority of the time something is always being forgotten. Or the older lady who answered the phone can barely speak English and messed up on orders all the time! And they have a little boy that messed up on orders too, and always apologizing! I have had enough I went back for a refund! Because my order was totally wrong!! When I got there The little boy said where is the food I said the food that you messed up on you want me to bring the food back so you can throw it away? I said, but you put the manager on the phone in the manager is just going to give me a refund. The manager said nothing to me about bringing the food back however, I have no problem with going to get it Then the little boy states, let me go get the manager because I told you to bring the food back. The manager comes up to me and then states where’s the food I said you didn’t tell me to bring the food, but I will be willing to go get it. You just offered me my refund.. He then began to tell me that all I do is complain? complain are you serious? All your mother does is messed up on the order and your son messes up as well. Matter of fact he almost forgot my rice. How do you forget a rice with the meal? he then said you know what here’s your money. I don’t want your service anymore! I said oh you’re not getting my service anymore where are the people that was running it before you? Much better service!!!! Food was even fresh and hot! How is my food code if I just ordered it five minutes? He stated that we have been here for 25 years and we’re not going anywhere! Well, you won’t get a damn dollar for me again! I have noticed that they do not allow people to come in. You can only pull through the drive-through! They want to take our money but yet feel unsafe around us.ummmm .lol Very bad service trust me I’m an open person and very nice but this place is definitely rated a 1 Out of a five!!! They will smell and take your money and get upset if they mess up? So you mean to tell me that $18 was worth you losing a customer that orders several times a week from you? Wow !!! Are you serious as I’m watching through the window looking at the dirty atmosphere? How’s it even dirty when you don’t even allow customers in?lol This place is horrible! Please spread the word you’re better off by going to Hy Vee on the southside then this place on Southwest ninth China chef sucks! The first rule of thumb is to me is customer service. If you don’t have that you will not get my money bottom line.!

Called ahead for pick up and was told 15 minutes which ended up being spot on. Egg drop soup is always good, orange chicken and sweet and sour chicken are our go to's, cashier at the pickup window was fast and friendly. Wish they'd open the dining room again but still good food!

Incredible food and the sweetest folks running things at China Chef Restaurant on SW 9th! ❤️ I’ve recently had takeout, but I’ve dined in before too, and every time, the food has been consistently amazing!

Loved the dinner for two option. Everything was so yummy. We will definitely be back soon

Fast delivery and nice delivery guy but terrible food. The delivery guy warned me about the plain lo mein and told me to fold it in with the chicken but the chicken was so dry there was no leftover sauce. Also ordered crab Rangoon wontons and there was absolutely no cream cheese in them. Too expensive to waste all of this food but quickly lost my appetite after eating the chicken and lo mein. I’m sorry but you guys need to be more clear about how you make things. Waste of $40.

I gotta say the food was super good, seasame chicken and egg rolls were 10/10 perfect. Kaila was my waitress and she went above and beyond. Highly recommend this place.

Solid little Chinese joint. Went here on a slow weeknight and found the service super attentive and friendly. My kids loved the Sesame Chicken. Entrees came with egg rolls and soup as well! We all loved the Crab Rangoons. I got Empress Chicken which was really mild. My partner got Shrimp in Lobster Sauce. All of it really good. Basic Chinese restaurant decor and ambience.

I always enjoy ordering from China Chef. Always friendly. Quick service. And delicious food! I have never personally eaten there, but their take out is packaged well and makes it home in one piece. It's the Chinese restaurant I recommend to all of my guests and I will keep eating there!!

People were very rude. Food was overpriced because they gave us stuff we didn't ask for and then yelled at us when we tried to explain that. Food was horrible too, not good Chinese food at all. Will never go again.

Best Chinese/Asian I've ever ordered in Des Moines. They modified my order as requested and their umami is on point! I'm picky about my Asian food, and this place checks all the boxes!

So, I'm sorry I haven't updated my review sooner but life has gotten the best of me. We have ordered from here three times since they re-opened since the fire and I must say that I must have ordered the wrong things before or I must have just caught them on the wrong day. Everything that we have ordered since has been delicious and worth it. We have told them numerous times that we wish that they delivered out west to our side of town (West Clive/Waukee) because we need more Asian options out here! Due to COVID-19, we have only ordered to-go or delivery to my parents house on the SS but it has been excellent service and the food has always been good. For food-wise, our favorites are Kung Pao Chicken & Shrimp, Kung Pao Beef and their Egg Drop Soup. My Grandma loved their Egg Drop Soup. Before she passed away at the beginning of this year, my mother or someone from our family would sometimes stop by and pick up their Egg Drop Soup for her on our days to go see her. It makes me think of her and miss her. But in a good way.

Food never disappoints. Everything I've tried is great. Quick pick up for to-go orders. Service is always friendly. Best Chinese food in the city, in my opinion.

I highly recommend this place. Theirs food is quite authentic. Appropriate pricing. I love the orange chicken

It's rare for me to give a place 5 stars, even rarer that it was a Chinese place on the southside but holy crap! Drop whatever you're eating and go here. This is a non-descript building with a decent parking lot that has recently been remodeled due to a kitchen fire. I had the $8 spicy orange beef lunch that came with soup, egg roll and rice. I chose egg drop soup and it tasted homemade. It was thick but not gelatinous, with corn, carrots and onions and lots of black pepper. Definitely one of the better I've had. I switched out the egg roll for a crab rangoon and it was delicious. I opted for steamed rice which was 2 big scoops along with my large portion of deliciously cooked orange beef. The beef was perfectly crunchy and had a great orangey flavor. The service was very prompt and friendly. When we paid our bill we chatted with the guy and he told us they deliver downtown, so we're excited to have it afain. Terrific surprise for lunch and now I'm going to go into food coma! Go eat here and support local business!

Fast, tasty, and priced to sell! The folks who run this place know how to keep customers coming back, and remember them too! Multiple times I have found "bonus apps" inside when I arrived home. Check out China Chef and see for yourself!

There is a guy that works there who is incredibly nice and half the reason I go back! The food is good and my favorite is the crispy duck and the wontons. It's drive through only and the food comes out like, 5-10 minutes after ordering. Super fast. My only complaints is that the egg drop soup tastes only like black pepper and the wonton soup tastes like water, seriously just water. Otherwise the food is good, some items can be a little bland but it's good

This is one of my first ever Yelp reviews. I am from out of state and stopped by China Chef for dinner after a long flight. This place is FANTASTIC. It's very non-descript but the food is some of the best Chinese food I've ever had. Made to order and generous portions--we had enough leftover for lunch the next day. The folks working there are so kind, welcoming, and friendly. They went out of their way to explain the menu and gave dish recommendations, and were just a delight to talk to. Overall, this was a GREAT welcome to Iowa.

Orange chicken and fried rice lunch combo -- comes with egg roll and choice of soup. I got the hot and sour. Decent portion and lots of garlic in the sauce. Ordered crab rangoons - order comes with 4. Hot and thick wrapper. Very good. Plus they have a drive up window for to go orders. I would order again if on this side of town. Quick service.

Make sure you ask for chopsticks when you order from the old lady. Because if you ask the young guy that gives you the take out, he'll give you attitude. Why do I even have to ask for chopsticks? It's Chinese food. Spicy dishes are not spicy at all. Don't get your hopes up over here.

I at one time loved this place however when I placed my order last night (7-27-22) I was shocked to learn how high they raised their prices. After learning they wanted $70 for only four people I cancelled my order. Love Orange Chicken but at $14 the answer is No!

I had been craving shrimp fried rice and a Facebook group recommended China Chef. Since I was on the south side, I decided to give it a shot. I called ahead for take-out and they said it would be ready in ten minutes. When I got there, approximately 10 minutes later, my order was ready. It smelled great in the car and I was tempted to tear into it. The lunch comes with your choice of egg drop, wonton or hot and sour soup, an egg roll and the entree. I chose the wonton soup and while it was hot and not very greasy, it was also bland. The wonton was huge but mostly wrap and the filling had very little flavor. The egg roll was tasty, hot and crunchy. It came with sweet and sour sauce but it didn't need any. The rice was among some of the better fried rice I've had in Des Moines. It had a great flavor and large pieces of shrimp. There were at least 5 and they were a mouthful by themselves. The whole meal, which was enough for 2 days of lunches was only $7.50. A steal! I will definitely be back and look forward to trying other items from the menu.

NEVER A DISAPPOINTMENT! After what seemed like forever they've finally reopened after the fire. Before the fire we were primarily delivery customers, but after the long wait we had to go to the restaurant and see the changes. WOW! The interior is no bigger, but I think a couple more tables. The decor is more modern than before, tasteful, but not over done with ethnicity, very pleasant! I didn't actually go in the restrooms but from what I could see they got a great makeover as well. Unfortunately I was so excited about the food I forgot to take pictures. It was a little strange to sit there and not be cold, so I assume they've replaced the HVAC system as well. We went Friday around 6. I've never seen that parking lot so full! Even before it was China Chef and the ice cream place was there! There was a line out on the enclosed entrance area. We were seated within 5 minutes, but we were warned that our entrees could be an hours wait. The wait was interesting! First there was the menu! The food on the menu...all the options we have always enjoyed with a new feature of Pho as well as a few other new dishes. Amazingly the prices didn't go up as much as I thought it would, and I heard other customers express the same thing. We ordered the assorted appetizers for two. The egg rolls and crab Rangoon a were heavenly! My son was a little bit disappointed that it's no longer served over flames. He got over it! We both got the egg drop soup and we are reminded of how it should taste! Soup with flavor! Chicken Fried Rice, for my son, it looked good. He said it was as good as he remembered, but he wished it had a few more peas and carrots. I had Garlic Shrimp. NOT SPICY! Big shrimp cooked perfectly, not rubbery. Lots of mushrooms and water chestnuts. The garlic sauce was PERFECT, not spicy, not sweet, the perfect consistency and plenty of it! After we ordered we realized we should have ordered our to go order at the same time! Customers were walking in to make carry out orders because they were unable get thru on the phone. Carry out orders were taking around 2 hours!! We counted 4 people answering the phones, but never heard how long delivery times were running. The staff... I COMMEND THEM FOR STAYING CALM AND PLEASANT! There was more staff than I'd ever seen before! Many new young faces, as well as the familiar faces and voices from before. Even though we were told an hour we were actually done eating within the hour. Our to go order was another story. I think we waited another 20-30 minutes for it. Which was a shorter wait than others had to wait. We both brought home leftovers, but I'm most excited to tell you about the to go entree! We brought home a new Chef's Specialty, Royal Beef! The menu description is "Tender beef deep fried and then blended into a savory sauce with a touch of garlic flavoring." THAT IS SUCH AN UNDERSTATEMENT! It should say tender beef.....with a heavenly, smooth, yummy, tasty and all kinds of good descriptive words!! We also brought home Pork Lo Mein for my cousin and a dozen egg rolls. I think this review is probably a little longer than it should be, so I'll stop now, but I want people to know how great this place is! So if you have never tried it and are going to now, please be prepared for the wait time or wait until things are back to being more normal for them. Delivery times used to run 45 minutes at most, and usually less than what you are told when ordering.

Great food great service and cozy environment also prices perfect. Take the time to check this place out!!

Take away was available which is what we wanted. The food was fresh and very good. Plenty of shrimp in my dish. Dinners come with soup.

Best Chinese food in Des Moines, no contest. It's worth the drive to the south side. The drive thru menu makes pickup a breeze and the family that runs it is so friendly. The hot and sour soup is incredible, as is the sesame shrimp. Wish they would take the tails off, though.

We decided to stop for early dinner so I didn't have to cook : ) We placed our order by phone and then headed to pick up. As soon as we pulled up to the window it was ready. Bonus! So happy that they are closed for dine in, We're trying to stick to places that aren't completely opened due to Covid. Bonus #2! Our soup container cracked as we got it into the car and they promptly replaced it and gave us a couple egg rolls for the trouble. Bonus #3! We ordered 3 meals (sesame chicken, orange chicken, veg beef) and they were all amazing. The service was so friendly and fast, I can't think of one negative. Try this place!

I have been coming here for 15 years, best Chinese food you will ever have. Can't go wrong with the sesame chicken, and hot and sour soup, with a order of crab ragoons. Staff is so friendly! Best place to eat!

Ordered take out last night. Tried something new, the Garlic Beef. My new favorite! The beef was tender, fresh mushrooms and chestnuts in a garlic brown sauce. Drive up was fast and friendly. The egg drop soup was wonderful as well.

Another lazy day, had my food brought to work from China Chef. I did not get to see what the inside of the place looks like so I'll have to do an update if I ever decide to eat in. I was not expecting much because they appeared to be a small Chinese fast food place. I was surprised at their food quality, it was pretty good for Chinese fast food. I got the Sesame Chicken with fried rice, crab Rangoons, egg rolls, and I think egg drop soup. Everything was flavorful and fantastic, the chicken was made well, tender and tasty. The eggroll and crab Rangoons were good, not amazing, but good. Fried rice was average and the soup was good. I would try this place again, but it is really nothing special, I can get this food at other places that taste the same.

Since reopening, the food was delivered hot and fresh! Exactly how it was before! Great job China Chef!

Fantastic egg rolls and the best egg drop soup in town sesame chicken and sweet and sour items all good ask for new item "sweet and sour wings"!!

The best tasting Chinese food in Des Moines!! This is our favorite spot - super friendly and drive through pickup is as convenient as you can get !

We love this place. Delicious food, and really friendly service. The lo mein is delicious, and the crab rangoons and spring rolls have always been crispy - even when we do pick up and delivery! They have the best egg drop soup I've had. There's some corn and fresh tasting carrots in it.

Got the orange and sesame chicken with crab Rangoon. Food was fresh, hot, and fast! Got our food 20min within ordering it

My coworker has been getting food here for a while now so I decided to give her some money to pick me up some too. I got the Mongolian beef and it came with a soup (hot and sour or egg drop) and an egg roll. All of that for $7. It was pretty tasty, the beef had a nice slight char to it so it had a little crispiness to it. I wished they gave you a little more of the main entree though. The hot and sour soup was good, more of a peppery taste to it though. The egg roll wasn't all veggies so that was a plus. They have a drive through window too if you're lazy to get out of your car :)

Best Chinese in Des Moines. Awesome family that knew our regular order. Always brought me a plate of crunchy noodles for my hot n sour soup even though most think it's weird. We miss it and wish them well.

Wow! Great reviews & did not disappoint our family! Nothing special on the outside or inside but delicious food & good service.

This is my Chinese spot to go to I go here at least once every week amazing food and amazing service

Fantastic food. The place looks like a hole and your vinyl table cloth may be a little sticky but the food never fails. Hands down the best Sesame beef in town (add some veggies-it'll blow your socks off) but everything I've had there has been great. The service is always spot on and the staff is happy to change out veggies/meats, swap a crab Rangoon for an egg roll, ect. We were crushed when we moved and discovered we were out of their delivery zone but we make sure to drive across town frequently to get our China Chef fix.

Had a take out order as suggested by the hotel staff Was very very good. The order was taken quickly and delivery was super fast! Pot stickers, egg drop & hot n sour soup, Sesame Chicken and Garlic chicken. All was Cooke excellently, chicken was not over cooked and the favors very nicely done. Portion size was large and pricing very reasonable. A very successful meal indeed.

This is a good place in South Des Moines. A few of the sauces are a little too sweet to me but they Deliver for 2.00 in Des Moines, Lakewood and Norwalk. Here is the full Menu below: Appetizers Egg Rolls (2) $2.25 Fried Wonton (6) $2.95 Crab Rangoon (4) $3.95 Fried Chicken Wings (8) $5.95 Fantail Shrimp (4) $5.95 Shrimp Toast (4) $5.95 Pot Stickers (6) $5.95 Siu Mai (6) $5.95 BarBQ Spareribs (4) $5.95 Satay Beef (4) $5.95 Assorted Appetizers (For 2) 8.95 Soups Egg Drop Soup 2.25 Hot and Sour Soup 2.25 Wonton Soup 3.25 Chicken Sizzling Rice (for 2) 5.95 Shrimp Sizzling Rice (for 2) 6.95 Hot and Sour Soup (for 2) 6.95 Assorted Vegetables (for 2) 3.95 Lunch Menu $5.95 1 Almond Chicken 2 Broccoli Chicken 3 Cashew Chicken 4 Chicken Vegetable 5 Empress Chicken 6 Garlic Chicken 7 Hunan Beef 8 Kung Bao Beef 9 Mongolian Beef 10 Sweet and Sour Chicken 11 Sesame Chicken 12 Chicken Snow Pea 13 Hot Braised Pork 14 Kung Bao Pork 15 Pork with Veg 16 Twice Cooked Pork 17 Sweet and Sour Pork 18 Beef with Veg 19 Broccoli Beef 20 Kung Bao Beef 21 Mongolian Beef 22 Hunan Beef 23 Pepper Steak Lunch $ 6.75 24 Cashew Shrimp 25 Hunan Shrimp 26 Mongolian Shrimp 27 Kung Bao Shrimp 28 Shrimp Veg 29 Sweet and Sour Shrimp 30 Chow Mein (Beef, chicken, pork, veg, shrimp) 31 Lo Mein (Beef, chicken, pork, veg, shrimp) 32 Specialties ( Orange Chicken, Orange Beef, Royal Beef, Governor's Chicken) 33 Fried Rice (Beef, chicken, pork, veg, shrimp, Combo) Chef's Specialties 701 China Steak $12.95 702 Kung Bao Chicken and Shrimp $12.95 703 Governor's Chicken $10.20 704 Orange Chicken $10.50 705 Sesame Chicken $8.95 706 Triple Delight $12.95 707 Shrimp and Beef $ 12.95 708 Scallops with Beef $ 12.95 709 Orange Beef $10.50 710 Sesame Beef $10.50 711 Royal Beef $10.50 712 Crispy Duck $11.95 713 Szechwan Prawns $12.95 714 Yu-Hsiang Lobster $15.95 Chicken - $8.95 101 Almond Chicken 102 Broccoli Chicken 103 Cashew Chicken 104 Chicken with Snow Pea Pod 105 Chicken with Veg 106 Empress Chicken 107 Garlic Chicken 108 Hunan Chicken 109 Kung Bao Chicken 110 Moo Goo Gai Pan 111 Sweet and Sour Chicken 112 Yu-Hsiang Chicken Pork $8.95 201 Hot Braised Pork 202 Hunan Pork 203 Kung Bao Pork 204 Pork with Peking Sauce 205 Pork with Veg 206 Sweet and Sour Pork 207 Yu-Hsiang Pork 208 Twice Cooked Pork Beef $8.95 301 Beef with Mushrooms 302 Beef with Snow Pea Pod 303 Beef with Veg 304 Broccoli Beef 305 Garlic Beef 306 Home Style Beef 307 Hunan Beef 308 Kung Bao Beef 309 Mongolian Beef 310 Pepper Steak 311 Yu-Hsiang Beef Shrimp $10.50 402 Cashew Shrimp 403 Empress Shrimp 404 Garlic Shrimp 405 Hot Braised Shrimp 406 Hunan Shrimp 407 Kung Bao Shrimp 408 Sesame Shrimp 409 Shrimp with Lobster Sauce 410 Shrimp with Snow Pea Pod 411 Shrimp with Veg 412 Shrimp with Velvet Sauce 413 Sweet and Sour Sauce 414 Yu-Hsiang Shrimp Egg Foo Young Veg $8.95 Chicken, Pork, Beef $8.95 Shrimp $10.50 Combo $9.95 Mu Shu Beef, Chicken, Pork or Veg $8.95 Shrimp $10.50 Combo $9.95 Seafood - $12.95 501 Happy Family 502 Hunan Scallops 503 Kung Bao Scallops 504 Scallops with Snow Pea Pods 505 Scallops in Velvet Sauce 506 Seafood Sizzling Rice 507 Yu-Hsiang Scallops Vegetables - $8.95 Eggplant in Garlic Sauce Mixed Veg Yu-Hsiang Broccoli Snow Pea Pods Fried Rice Beef, Chicken, Pork or Veg $8.95 Shrimp $9.95 Combo $9.95 Chow Mein Lo Mein ______________ Beef, Chicken, Pork or Veg $8.95 Shrimp $9.95 Combo $9.95

weve been with these guys for awhile and always get a ten tip i food sunday night was overcooked and the fried wontons were burnt called and told them about it his excuse was they were busy and asked why i waitedf so long to tell them were done with this place i will miss it

This is a review on carry out. We go here frequently to eat in and it has always been good. However, the last two times I've ordered takeout the sweet and sour sauce is like water and no flavor. Do they do this on purpose? Very disappointing.

It's small which is great not a lot of commotion to disturb your dining experience. The wait staff is nice and quick to get you what you need. The food is very good and not overly expensive. And you will most likely be taking some home with you... the only thing I didn't care for and will not be using again is their bathroom not very clean so go before you get there.

Absolutely Horrible, 1st time ordering asian in years so i had ordered sampling of many things, according to menu total of $54, but it showed up at $63, i paid $68 total including tip, they did not bring soy sauce(i had made sure to tell them i wanted extra sauce) Wings showed up Cold(not even warm) instread of shrimp dumplings, i got pork which i don't eat, and sweet/sour sauce cups were open and had spilled all over inside of bag. so they overcharged, did not receive correct food, and what arrived was cold. unbelievable, if you are from restaraunt and want to get a hold of me to at least attempt to fix this, my email is habusharkh79@gmail.com so u know this isn't a fake reveiw

This place is awesome been a customer for along time food is good and hot service is awesome very friendly they always get a ten dollar tip well worth it

We were passing through Des Moines, heading to California. Hubby looked up China Chef on Yelp. It had great reviews. The lunch specials are a great deal with a cup of soup, egg roll and hot tea included. I highly recommend. Everything was fresh and tasty.

Awesome for lunch. Recommend getting the empress chicken extra spicy...it is a great lunch special with soup, egg roll and rice for under $6.

I had a rough night last night! Came home from work did not eat at all. This morning I woke up and was like "Chinese sounds so good right now!" So I looked up Chinese delivery. This was the only place open! I have work at 1:30 and usually get ready around 11:30ish. My food came quicker than I expected. It was soo good. The employees were so kind and nice on the phone. I didn't know the food was gonna be this good!

Awesome food and the delivery service was amazing! We work downtown and will be ordering again. They also have amazing prices and their customer service on the phone was fantastic!

Absolutely great takeout. Very flavorful. If there is anyone as good in Des Moines, I have not found them yet! Dr. K

This is my favorite chinese place on the southside. Food is always great. I keep it simple and always order the same thing. The taste is consistent and thats what keeps me coming back

I guess my experience was uncommon. i got delivery and the order was wrong so when i called them they were rude and told me not to touch any of the food cause they were sending a manager to my house. (Just so you know we ordered pizza and we were cleaning up after dinner when they finally showed up) So 45 min later some kid showed up and he was complaining about working for the company "because the woman answering the phone has a boyfriend that works there and he gets all the deliveries..." It was a circus! anyways they brought me cold food the second time and refused to refund and take the food back. so we will not be ordering from them anymore.

Fav south side Chinese delivery. Huge dinner portions too!!!! Sesame chicken, peppered steak, pot stickers, YUM

Ordered kung bao chicken and shrimp, pepper steak, egg rolls, wontons, crab rangoon and hot and sour soup. Everything arrived very fast. Quoted me 45-60 minutes, only took 25 minutes. Everything was hot, fresh, and satisfying. Good size portions, good flavor consistently and friendly service. I've never had a negative experience here. I always order delivery and have never been inside the restaurant so I can't speak to how eat-in service is. I always have enough leftovers for a midnight snack or lunch the next day. Solid place for American-Chinese food.