Kirin

Excellent flavors and AMAZING value! This little restaurant packs huge, fresh and crisp flavors into a very affordable menu that is served family-style with enough food to actually feed your family. We travel frequently and have struggled to find these flavors and quality in the north of San Francisco. We ordered 2 entrees and vegetables and received enough food for a family of 4!

I was disappointed. I finally got both my kids out for lunch, and we were the only ones there. I ignored the slightly strange vibe I got when I expressed that we'd be eating in. The food was actually pretty good, but after only about 10 minutes my weird kid asked for a box which led the lady to immediately scoop up everyone's food in her arms and take it away. I was like halfway through my beer and my other kid hadn't even finished a tiny bowl of soup and there was our stuff in a bag on the table with the check. It was weird and disappointing. I am kind, so I smiled and expressed no dissatisfaction, but I suggest takeout only.

The best fried rice I’ve ever had! Don’t let the color of the rice fool you, it’s full of flavor! I used to visit Santa Rosa frequently and I would always order delivery or take out from this place. Their hot and sour soup is really good too. I haven’t been to Santa Rosa in a few months, but I would definitely make the drive from Sacramento just for the rice haha.

I am not joking when I say, this is THE BEST Chinese restaurant ever! The food, AMAZING, the Service, AMAZING, the atmosphere? AMAZING. The hot and sour soup is perfect, and I love all their sweet and sour dishes, the sweet and sour pork is my favorite, and the chow mein is beautiful. Me and my dad come here almost every day. Never had a bad experience.

Kirin Chinese Restaurant has the most delicious Chinese cuisine. Mouth watering soup with giant meat filled dumplings, fresh vegetables, broth with chicken and vegetables. Grilled meats with asparagus, green onions, splendid menu with astonishing dishes. My daughter loves this restaurant, especially Beef Chow Fun Noodles.

It was my birthday recently, and my wife and I decided to go somewhere special. We decided on Kirin. Like its name, Kirin is a mythical creature that has been a messenger of good luck for the Santa Rosa area for many years. We both ordered our favorites, Wor Wonton Soup, Combination Fried Rice, and Hunan Chicken. Each dish was one incredible taste sensation after another. The service is always exceptional, and the overall dining experience is off the charts fantastic.

Love the staff. Very friendly and great food. Our go to favorite place for Chinese food.

A family tradition for us! We eat here once a month, and the food is absolutely delicious and the service is amazing! Highly recommended to anyone looking for an amazing Chinese food experience!

Great service from our server Moon She made my mom's birthday extra nice. We ordered egg rolls, Kirin beef, snow pea chicken , combo chowmein, edamame and walnut pineapple prawns . Good food and great service. Thank you Moon!

The food was absolutely THE BEST I've ever had! Amazing!! Service and ambiance were great as well.

ordered orange chicken to go, and upon arriving home found out we got a container of plain tempura chicken pieces. No orange chicken sauce. No sauce of any kind, and the tempura wasn't fried all the way through (i.e., soggy batter next to chicken). If you want orange chicken, go somewhere else.

Right off the bat- outstanding service, very kind and polite. Good etiquettes all around. Atmosphere, food, lighting and parking was a pleasant flow. We made a phone order and the order was ready in about 15-17mins. They have a lot of regulars, I heard the server called the customers by their names. Very good rapport. Definitely a place I would recommend for authentic Chinese food. The hospitality is no match to others. Thank you.

Food is good and consistent. Our go to when we don't feel like cooking :) we've tried a variety of items on their menu and have liked it all. Definitely recommend.

This is the best Chinese food in Santa Rosa! Szechuan beef is really good here. The owners are very friendly and make the dining experience pleasant.

The food was all stellar! We got the hot and sour soup, garlic pork, Kung pao, lemon chicken and sweet and sour and each was amazing! The restaurant staff was super attentive. Clean and well run. Also amazed at the generous portion sizes for the price. Highly recommend them.

Service friendly. Food was made with fresh vegetables and good sauces. The restaurant was very relaxing.

Had not been to Kirin's in a while. Impressed tonight with the food quality and tasty preparation. Good local Chinese restaurant that's perfect for a casual night out. Attentive service, fair family prices and nice atmosphere. Will return next week.

Not bad, not great. Westernized. Very kind and attentive servers. But the food is just average and boring. I am spoiled from living in Vancouver and having authentic Chinese food. I won't return.

Delicious food. Generous portions (took a lot home). Excellent service. My favorite Chinese restaurant in the area. Recommend the shredded pork in garlic sauce.

Okay I've heard about this place for years but this was the first time we tried it. Food was bland. Sweet and sour sauce was runny and tasteless on chicken. The chow main was okay. Fried rice okay. The biggest problem we had... the next day we all felt absolutely drugged. Like our bodies felt like a million pounds and soooo tired and could barely make it through the day. That was all 5 of us. My 13 year old was passed out on the couch at 4 in the afternoon. Does this place seriously still use MSG???? We normally eat Chinese at the place in Calistoga shopping center and never ever feel like the crap the next day. Do not recommend.

I must give them a five star, of course, because we keep going back for more. I usually order the almond chicken. We got into the habit of doing takeout ever since Covid and we should probably change our ways. They have a very friendly decor inside and maybe we should stay a while. The kung pow chicken is good, but I'm never sure how strong it's gonna be. How much POW is it going to be in there? You just need to tell them. We will be back.

They have a new cook and completely changed how they make the general chicken. Now it is mostly fried batter and no meat. It used to be so good. I hope they go back to making it how they used to.

Im sure what happened to the quality of food from this restaurant. I came back recently and the food was nothing like how it use to be. Sadly, it just wasn't good.

Per our annual tradition of Chinese food on Christmas, we were excited to be able to order from Kirin this year. It had been many years since our last visit, yet, after yesterday, not sure why we waited so long! We ordered online around noon and the earliest pickup available was 4:50, which was perfect for us with 2 little ones who usually eat dinner around 5. When I arrived, there was a line almost out the door, just for pickup orders, however, I was in and out with our food in less than 10 minutes, a testament to the extremely busy person alone on to go orders. The poor person running take out was receiving call after call, and working through the immense line of folks coming to pick up, but they did it quickly, and well. Upon returning home and finally sitting down to eat (almost an hour after pickup) the food was fantastic, some of the best in Sonoma county. Despite their beyond packed restaurant and myriad of pick up orders, the quality was still fantastic, and the amount of food, for the price, was reasonable. I recommend a visit to Kirin the next time your Chinese food craving hits, the fact they only have 3.5 stars on Yelp is a shock to me, especially when other local spots are rated higher but their food isn't even close to the quality Kirin produces. Give it a go!

Went there for lunch. Ordered the Generals Chicken. It came with a cup of hot a sour soup, one crab lagoon along with chow main and a fried rice. All in all I thought it was a great meal and reasonably priced. Definitely going to lunch there again.

What's good here? Literally everything! We have been fans of Kirin since moving to the neighborhood back in 2017. Why are we fans? Obviously for the food and friendly service, but also appreciate the super fresh ingredients that (unlike other establishments) wont leave you feeling bloated. Kirin also is accomodating with special requests and/or modifications to your favorite dish. Speaking of favorite dish, if I had to choose one it's their incredible kung pao chicken which is cock full of crunchy water chestnuts and peanuts. Let's be real here, most Chinese restaurants skimp on peanuts, where not here! And you know you love peanuts. Really though, as I said earlier - everything is amazing. We make a point of ordering something different each time and no dish has ever disappointed. Take out travels well, and leftovers reheat to near perfection.

Service was very attentive The food unfortunately disappointed. Those who like what we consider old school California Chinese food are probably happy with the menu. Probably not a good opinion from us as we like the "real thing" as we see it.

I had a large order for a birthday dinner, I called around 215 so I could pick up the order at 5 PM. Staff was amazing. Food was delicious, hot and ready at 5 PM as I had hoped. They also threw in a on the house, dessert! My favorite dish Was the pineapple walnut prawns, and hot and sour soup! Thank you, Kirin!

Best Chinese in town! Love their hot and Mongolian beef, plus their service is always awesome! Clean and nice establishment. Only wish they had more locations!

This used to be our favorite Chinese restaurant in Sonoma County. It compared well with the ones in San Francisco. However, since the origin owners sold, it has been hit and miss but never as good as before. Dishes often have the same sauce whether they are Cantonese, Szechuan or Hunan. Service is generally good. Ambiance is ok but nothing special.

Very nice people, haven't been able to try many things yet but I love their Hot and Sour Soup! It's on the sweet side, but I crave it badly!

We haven't been here in probably 10 years but our memories of this place were very positive. Since my favorite Chinese restaurants are not operating during this time of Covid-19, we decided to give Kirin a try. Hubby ordered pork fried rice and wor wonton soup. He declares it's the best fried rice of any other local restaurants around. Excellent flavor, pork was tender, and the rice was very fresh tasting. The soup was abundant with wontons and the broth had good flavor on its own. Me - all I wanted was hot and sour soup and was very disappointed. It significantly lacked the "hot/spicy" and there was a sweetness I have never experienced. I did not like it at all. Aside from the usual suspects (bamboo, green onion, egg, tofu, black mushrooms), there were frozen peas and carrots, tough mushrooms, shrimp, pork and like I mentioned, the broth was syrupy sweet. I just couldn't. Anyhow, there's no balance for my impressions as service was obviously nonexistent. I can only base it on the food and well...good thing my hubby loved his dishes. :)

This use to be our favorite Chinese restaurant! We recently we went there and were very disappointed. The hot n sour soup and pot stickers were bland. The General Chicken you couldn't put a fork in them as they were so tough. It was Friday night n there were very few people there!

Food is good, consistently slow service, friendly service. Wish I could give a better score but slow service really killed my mood on several trips to this place.

I eat here regularly and have never been disappointed. My favorite dish is their cherry pork.

I can't say how happy I am that this restaurant has made it through the pandemic! I know it changed ownership several years ago, but I remember in the months after the transition of ownership, I still found the previous owners involved, making sure their recipes were followed and standards upheld. It was a busy lunch hour today and there were two servers, but the service was speedy and the food came out hot and just the way I remembered it. Kirin Beef has some of the flavors of a Beef Bulgogi, but it's served with sautéed mushrooms on a bed of crisp shredded lettuce. It's such a tasty combination. And the fried rice is my FAVORITE. Truly. It's fluffy and the egg they mix into is the perfect finishing touch, rather than being overcooked, as egg in fried rice tends to be, it's like having bits of perfectly done scrambled eggs mixed into fluffy rice. The chow mein and crab wonton aren't my thing, pretty much anywhere, anytime, so I'm not going to knock them down for that. The whole meal offered a generous portion that left me with enough for lunch and dinner for $12.75. (Granted, I'm aware I have a smaller appetite than some.) I only had 40 minutes to catch lunch before I needed to be at a job interview, but I didn't even have to rush the staff along. Everything was attended to promptly. My only regret was that the container for my leftovers was styrofoam, which always makes me regretful. All the same, I know how much restaurants have had to struggle to manage costs and supply chains through this time and more than anything I'm just delighted to find their doors open!

Consistently good American-Chinese food. Very friendly staff. Nice location. Parking gets tight sometimes.

Absolutely love Kirin! I have been a loyal customer for 15 years and also deliver for a food delivery service regularly. They are always super efficient, friendly and the food is amazing. Best in Sonoma County. Thank you Kirin.

I have been here several times and the meat is inedible. The sweet and sour pork was so chewy it was like eating cartilage. Another time I ordered just potstickers and they did not seem fresh?? Extremely chewy and not hot. I want to like this place as it is next to my work but I can't do it. The only thing that is good is the service. It feels clean and has a nice atmosphere but my experience with the food has not been good.

The signature Kirin beef alone is reason to go here! The walnut prawns and lemon chicken are pretty delicious also! And portions are very generous great for sharing! Highly recommend this neighborhood fave. Service for our few pick up orders has always been perfect. They're bit pricey but so is everything so we deal with a few extra bucks to help the next hard working neighbors.

I've been eating here for years and always loved this place. The last couple times haven't been as good, but but last nights dinner was just awful. I had pre-ordered but the food wasn't ready when I arrived so they brought me water while I waited, the water tasted like dirty dishwater and there was something black in my ice. As for the food: Chicken chow mein and pork fried rice flavorless, chow mein beyond greasy. Orange chicken dry as a briquette and rock hard. Sweet-and-sour pork soggy with breading literally falling off and very greasy. The other couple items were just OK I will say the potstickers were terrific but unfortunately none of us felt well after eating here so I think this was my last time dining at this establishment.

Kirin is the best Chinese restaurant in southeast Santa Rosa. I really enjoy going for lunch and sitting outside. My favorite dish there is vegetables with shrimp. I like it spicy! The veggies are fresh and plentiful, the "shrimp" are BIG and also plentiful. The ladies that serve are very nice and efficient. I can't think of anything that's not great!

I have had Chinese food all over the country and this is by far the best. Fried rice light and fluffy. Chicken basil wontons are a must. The pineapple walnut prawns are crispy and pair well with just about anything. Mushu at the table with wonderful service.

Our favorite in Santa Rosa til 5/10 take out of Mongolian chicken which had lots of gristle. (Maybe that's truly how it's done in Mongolia, but we are used to simply chicken meat.) Hope this is not indicative of how the new ownership is dealing with quality.

The customer service was very good. The food was delicious. The portions were very fair for the price. I would definitely come here again.

Over the past 5 years Kirin has been our go to Chinese restaurant. Tonight might have changed everything. Arrived a little before 8:00 and didn't get out until a little before 10:00. Ordered: Chicken wings spicy, Moo Shu pork, a cup of hot and sour soup, and steamed rice. Chicken wings came not spicy. Moo Shu pork was more scrabled egg than pork (2 table spoons), the hot and sour soup was more sweet and not hot at all. Best part of the meal was the steamed rice...not a good sign. Worse when I pointed out the issues with the chicken, they said "oh, the chef must have forgot. He took the wings back a added the sauce, but it wasn't hot at all, nor was it warm and the chicken was dry. When I pointed out the minuscule amount of pork, he pointed to a few tinny pieces. The pancakes were soggy broke appart to the touch. I must admit they were very busy for the hour and understaffed considering the take-out being ordered, but two hours. The Ambiance was pretty typical for Chinese.

Wow. Just had takeout from there and it hit the spot. Best bets: Mongolian beef and pork mu shu! And it was super reasonably priced. Def going to be my rainy day takeout spot.

Great service the food is decent, looks appetizing. Great value but it's not outstanding

Kirin is one our favorites, they're fast and delicious for pick up or dine-in. The hot and sour is one of my all time favorites... and they're always so pleasant!

Ordered Kirin's through Doordash within ten minutes of them closing- which can sometimesbe a bad thing when ordering through DD, as restaurant staff can get annoyed at your timing and take it out on your order. Not the case here! Got the Mu Shu Vegetables and Meatless Egg Rolls. Excellent flavor and quality. Not salty or greasy, and everything was super fresh and hot. They care about their quality and customer requests and do not skimp on take-out/delivery service like some places. I will definitely order from them again and highly recommend. The only reason I did not give 5 stars is because I have not been inside and cannot rate the ambiance. But I have no doubt that is great too. Enjoy!

There are secrets to making a great hot and sour soup, and Kirin Restaurant has mastered them. The food at Kirin is very good. Ample portions for flavorful Chinese cuisine are offered at a reasonable price. But it is the hot and sour soup that separates Kirin from other restaurants offering similar fare. We placed an order for kung pao chicken, chicken chow mein and broccoli beef. All the entrees were delicious, and plentiful. Kirin does not skimp on their portions. The broccoli beef was slathered in sauce, which caused the broccoli to be a little soggy. The kung pao chicken was also swimming in sauce, though a very luscious, sumptuous sauce. The chow mein was filed with plump piece of chicken, and crisp vegetables. A good hot and sour soup should be hot, with the heat supplied by not only the temperature of the soup, but by the spice. Kirin's hot sour soup delivered on both counts. And this after transporting the soup fifteen minutes across town. The tofu, mushrooms and sprouts swim in a delicious concoction of liquid love. But the true testament of this soup's greatness was in the bonus surprise of whole shrimp found in the soup. We were taken aback, as neither my wife nor I have ever had a hot and sour soup with shrimp in it. I felt like Indiana Jones discovering the lost ark. Unlike an episode of Seinfeld, this soup is a meal. Due to Covid-19 restrictions, Kirin offers only take out orders. As you walk into the lobby, you notice a very large sheet of plastic with a small cut out separating the lobby from the kitchen. Pretty ingenious. It protects both the patrons and the staff. So, if you have a hankering for so decent food at a reasonable price, check out Kirin Restaurant.

Friends suggested we eat here for good Chinese food. This was awful. I had the orange chicken, and it was too breaded, chicken was chewy, sauce was thick and somehow flavorless. It was inedible. Egg rolls had no flavor, and sauce was terrible. I'm not that picky, and I couldn't eat it. Terribly disappointing.

I've been coming here for many years, and it's probably one of the better Chinese restaurants in Santa Rosa. A favorite is Mongolian Beef. I also like the Chicken Basil Won Ton, Broccoli Beef, and the egg rolls. Tonight they didn't put many chiles in the Mongolian Beef so it wasn't very spicy at all. Next time I'll make sure to ask for some more to be added. The service in the past has been mediocre, and the two male owners have a way to make you feel you're a bother, but the females are always very nice. I actually stopped coming for a few years, but then decided to try again.

We wanted a good take out meal. This wasn't it. Most of the food had no taste at all. We did order the wor won ten soup and with a number of packets of soy sauce and mustard it was almost passable. We ordered on line as advertised and when my husband went to pick up the food they said they did receive it. He reorded everything and sat there for another 40 minutes. We agreed this was the worst Chinese food we ever had.

I've been coming here for many years, and it's probably one of the better Chinese restaurants in Santa Rosa. A favorite is Mongolian Beef. I also like the Chicken Basil Won Ton, Broccoli Beef, and the egg rolls. Tonight they didn't put many chiles in the Mongolian Beef so it wasn't very spicy at all. Next time I'll make sure to ask for some more to be added. The service in the past has been mediocre, and the two male owners have a way to make you feel you're a bother, but the females are always very nice.

We love Kirin's! After reading they're under new ownership or whatever, I had to find out for myself if anything had changed. Have to say, it's still as amazing as I remember. We went on Halloween and it was decently slow. Personally, I prefer it that way. We ordered pot stickers, cheese crab puffs, lemon chicken and the Kirin beef. Everything was delicious! The Kirin beef is way better than I expected. I normally get the lemon chicken and call it a day but now I may have a new favorite. Our server was super nice and polite, we didn't wait extended periods of time for anything, everything was great! This might become our new Halloween tradition now.

Holy freaking guacamole! This place is amazingly we live down the street and have never been here. But wow will we be coming back on the weekly. Very affordable, flavorful, and good portions. I've been a chef for 12 years and am very impressed!