Northern Cafe

Review based on our pick up/to-go experience. The food at this location is just okay, especially compared to other Northen Café that we’ve been to. Located at UTC near the back. Parking can be easy or difficult on time of day. The place is a bit dark, but kept clean. Food was ready on time and ready when we came and picked it up. Staff kind of just waits until you approach them rather than trying to be welcoming. It was a slow period too around 3PM. Can't say how the service would be if we ate there. Some foods were better than others Chongqing Crispy chicken was delicious. Good spice, and stay crispy through the drive home and was even great the next day. I’d get this dish again when I’m in the mood for that mala spicy flavor. Sautéed Bok Choi with garlic was fine for what it was. Nothing special, but a solid vegetable dish. The Zha Jiang Noodles were the most disappointing. The cucumbers really should’ve been put in a separate container for a to-go order, When it’s packaged with the noodles and meat, it just looks sad. The meat wasn’t well minced, I’ll get lumps of meat even after mixing. Some of my problems with this dish is that the meat was basically a salt bomb. Almost impossible to eat, especially when you’re getting huge lumps of overly salted meat. The dish itself has a very strong ginger flavor. It’s not well balanced so you feel like you’re eating Salty Ginger noodles some cucumber. Overall, this Northern Café is just okay. Some good and passable dishes, but a poorly executed dish soured our opinion of the place

Very family style, large portion and authentic Chinese food featuring various Chinese food options. The cold dishes are good choices. You sit yourself, choose from the menu, and order from the front. They will deliver food for you. You may need to get your own utensils at very busy times. Portion size may be too large for 2 people, so expect to get a take out box (or get your own box).

This is a very busy Chinese restaurant near campus. If you want a tablecloth and a nice conversation, look elsewhere. But, if you want tasty Chinese food with good sized portions and don't mind the hubbub, this is your place. Sauces are rich and my favorite eggplant dish always comes out perfect. Takeout is a popular option here with kiosk ordering.

Average Chinese food joint - Thai fusion soup was good, the chicken wontons were juicy, but the stir fry rice cake dish was very average. Gets busy at lunch time

I had a disappointing experience during my visit, rating it a 1 out of 10. The staff seemed disengaged and inattentive, requiring me to get up three times just to ask for basic items like napkins, salt, and a spoon. Additionally, when I requested another item, they simply ignored me. This was my first visit, and it was far from enjoyable; I felt overlooked and unvalued. To make matters worse, I had to call for assistance twice just to place my order. Given the tipping culture, it’s frustrating to feel obligated to tip, especially after such a lackluster experience. I won’t be returning.

I visited this restaurant again today, but unfortunately, it was a disappointing experience that made me feel like I probably won’t return in the future. We ordered the Lao Gan Ma chicken fried noodles. The chicken tasted very off — not fresh at all and had a very strong unpleasant smell. When we brought it up, the staff explained it was because the chicken had just been defrosted, which was not a great excuse. We ended up asking them to just give us a veggie version instead. We also ordered the Beef Hot Pot #1, but the beef tasted exactly like lamb. I even asked if they gave us the wrong meat. The server tried it, then went to check with the kitchen. They confirmed it was beef, and told us that if we wanted the fatty sliced beef, we should’ve ordered a different item. Overall, the food quality and service were not up to standard this time. It’s a shame because I had a decent impression before, but this visit really changed my mind.

The food was great, so good that we ordered two of the same dish unknowingly. Pretty small spot, but we were able to find a spot without much trouble and were even able to fit some extra baggage on one side. Even though we ordered two of the same dishes, it was still bomb and we nom nommed both plates out of existence.

It's an almost fully self-service spot, which is great, but may not be what some are looking for. They have a number of great dishes and I love the flavor of their dumpling sauce.