Special Hainan Chicken 和记海南鸡饭

The prices on their website are higher than in the store. I actually placed an order online, and for example the Hainan Chicken Noodle Soup is $13.50 in the restaurant but $15.99 on their site. I asked the staff and they first said the prices are the same, but when I showed them the website they couldn’t explain. Very confusing and not transparent.

The Hainan chicken was quite tender and juicy with firm texture but not much flavor to it. It's better than a lot of other Hainan chicken places in the bay and you can't beat the price for around $14. The ginger scallion sauce didn't have much ginger or scallion taste to it other than being salty. So now you have bland chicken and salty sauce but it's not as bad as it sounds since the texture of the chicken was good and juicy. The fried chicken gizzard was prepped right and appropriately sized. Not too much breading and the right amount of crunch and flavor. The fried tofu was okay and nothing special about it so I would skip it if it's your favorite dish. The braised duck was decent and kind of bland but the texture wasn't mushy which is common for ducks. The lemon tea was watered down Lipton black tea with slices of lemon tossed in there. It's not the authentic kind with ultra concentrated three types of tea leaves base and lemon juice infused syrup. The kind with rich lemon and tea flavor without the bitterness and roughbess in the mouth. But that's almost impossible to find in the bay unless you make it yourself. I would skip this drink if lemon tea is your thing. The service was good, everything came out orderly and fast. They have room to combine the tables for party of 6 or more. Parking is plenty in the plaza. This place offers good value in this price range for lunch and quick dinner. At under $15 a meal, this has to be one of the top Hainan chicken restaurants in the bay area.

Menu have pictures to better illustrate the items which makes orderings easy especially for 1st time patrons. Service is fast and quick, they bring you hot tea right after you sit down. This is a eat and go sort of place, not great to chat or mingle. Parking is super easy even on the weekends. The staff speaks Cantonese, mandarin and English as well. Portions are generous as well.

10/27/2025* We went for dinner and ordered Hainan Chicken, Braised Pork Knuckle, and Braised Beef Stews & Beef Tendons. Everything was amazing! All of their appetizers were great. The only bummer was that they didn't have any fried appetizers available when we were there. 9/6/2023 I tried the Signature Hainan Chicken over Rice, featuring tender Hainan chicken served on a bed of fluffy rice alongside seasonal vegetables and original broth. The chicken had the perfect color and flavor, and the chicken rice was quite enjoyable. If you're a fan of Hainan chicken rice, it's definitely worth a try!

Saw this place last night with my S.O so we decided to come here and try it. It did not disappoint the Hainan Chicken rice plate was on point and so was the marinaded duck rice plate. We also got the salt and pepper chicken cartilage the flavor was just enough spicy so nothing is overpowering. But I have say the cartilage definitely will pair great with an ice cold beer. The prices is very reasonable.

6/28/2025, @5pm new menu pricing. 12/14/2024, @ 1pm, small seating area, 4 -2 person table and 4-4 person table. Affiliated with Special Noodle. Fast service, friendly staff.

I think this is a newly opened restaurant and it’s very popular. The staff is friendly and food is good according to my friend. There are bones in the chicken so if you are not used to it you may need to think twice. Other than that, they cannot accommodate vegetarian request. The price is actually cheaper if you buy it in-store instead of ordering online. This is a good place for a quick lunch.

If you're looking for Hainan Chicken, this place has it. That's it! They specialize in one thing, and perfected it. Their combo deal always pulls me at how much food (noodle soup and chicken) comes for the price. Their ginger scallion sauce is delish; I can put it on everything. Their duck is good, too.

It's a pleasure to enjoy special hainan chicken without the long wait! The shop is clean and decorated nicely. The food is comforting, fresh and feels like home. We ordered the braised beef stews andbeef tendons as well as braised pork knuckle. All were juicy and full of flavor. The service was warm and friendly, making the experience for me even better! love it!

5/5 Parking is all you can choose (like the buffet) lol. Located in a plaza therefore there is no searching for parking. 4/5 Customer service was absolutely great from greeting, taking order and bringing food. Doesn't come back to check on customers to see if water or tea is need. 5/5 Ambiance is super cozy with a relaxing vibe that compliments the comfort food. Located in a bustling shopping center in a small shop, seating about 20 maybe 25 the most. I see 1 stall for bathroom but didn't check. The food was very delicious but a little salty for me because I don't consume salt like that. The app is also salty for me but a sip of the hot tea takes the salty away. Forgot the picture of the fried calamari which was fresh, the batter for me was too thick but love the crunchy freshness. Will order again if in the mood for something thick and crunchy. Overall this will be a stop I will make for the soup because it was amazing especially the fresh hand cut noodle. You truly will not be disappointed with the bursting flavors. Fellow foodies hope this will help with your food sear h endeavor. Until next time

Despite the 3 star rating, this is still a decent place! The servers are nice and you get complimentary hot tea with your meal. The restaurant is a bit small, but cozy. I got the knife cut noodles, which reminded me of zhajiang noodles. The egg was cold though, which was disappointing. I think the pickled ginger that came with the duck was a odd choice to include. But overall, the duck was a little bit dry but still tasty. I would come here again for a casual meal.

Had high hopes was overall a disappointment. Located inside Greenhouse Market place, it's a small restaurant close to the Jack in the Box/McDonald's size. Place has a simple menu which is more than enough for a small size restaurant. Staff here are friendly and have one restroom stall that's always busy. Unfortunately it's a huge disappointment. Not sure if it was because the Chef was having a bad day or if the sale was on sale but everything was too salty to the point where the salt covered up the natural taste of the food. The fried fish (size of smelt roe) should've been lightly season and fried but it was too salty to even taste the fish. The soup that came with the Hainan chicken was too salty but the Hainan Chicken itself was done right. The fried fish cake.. all we could taste was the salt. I hope this is not their norm.

Happen to be in San Leandro area and hankering for chicken, but not the fast food type or deep fried. So found this place. The spot is in a mall and service was friendly. We came about 1/2 hour befor closing and friendly. So, mist excellent service. We ordered of course the Hainan chicken it was pleated decently. White best meat was boneless while dark thigh/leg meat of course was with bone I believe you can order all white breastfeeding for extra fee. The dish include rice, a cucumber/wood mushroom salad in vinegarette, and CrAZy amounts of red-colored ginger (like the noncolored ginget in Jpnses sushi restaurants). That topping was basically discarded. The included soup was pretty good. We also ordered the fish cake noodle in a curry like sauce which brought back memories oh-so- briefly of Hong Kong, but the novelty wore off. Overall decent but I actually like chain such as Chicken Meets Rice much better

Great place for Hainanese chicken meals, you cannot go wring with the signature hainan chicken plate -- my go to. Great tasting chicken, chicken rice, peanuts, scallion tapenade, ginger, woodear mushrooms, and cucumbers sum up the plate. I tried the pork knuckles and duck on a previous meal. Both highly recommended. Service is amazing and the place keeps its fast convenient charm. To-go orders also happen all the time--get a whole bird on the go.

Absolutely delicious! I got the laksa with the fish noodles and it was exquisite! I had it spicy and although it could've been a tiny bit spicier, it didn't take away from the experience! The both was so good I wish I was able to bathe in it. Spicy, filled with curry flavor, each spoonful was a flood of delight dancing on my tongue and taste buds. The toppings were delicious as well. It had meatballs, fish cake, quail eggs, cabbage and many more. The fish noodles were very interesting! They tasted like the round fish meatballs you would get from hot pot or the local grocery store. If you were on a low carb diet then these noodles are for you! Al dente and had a nice bounce to them AND very filling as well. Overall, a very solid spot and I'm definitely coming back to try the other items on the menu!

I've been to Special Hainan Chicken twice and left both times thinking the food is pretty mid. Their hainan chicken is decent but nothing special. I do like the oil rice that you can get with it, which is nice and flavorful. We got the half chicken with rice on the side this time, which I much prefer over a chicken rice plate, since I'm not a huge fan of all the tomatoes and pickled ginger that comes with the plate. Both times I've been here, I've gotten the laksa noodles. The first time, I got it with their special fish noodles, which I ended up not liking very much. The texture was kind of like a fish ball in noodle form, which is not the texture I like for my noodles. I remember thinking the broth was not bad the first time I got it, so I ordered it again this time with regular rice noodles. I enjoyed the rice noodles a lot more and they definitely give a lot. However, this time the broth was lacking in flavor. I didn't have the depth of laksa at other places, and mainly just tasted like coconut milk and a tiny bit of curry. For sides, we've gotten the beef tripe and the mala shredded chicken, which were both not my fave. I remember the mala shredded chicken in particular having a weird grainy texture. The tripe was alright but not amazing - a bit too salty and not as flavorful as what you can get at dim sum. I wouldn't order these two sides again.

Small place that does Chinese Chicken. We got the Braised Beef Stew, Mixed House made Meatball, Signature Hainan Chicken, and Shredded Chicken. Rice was very good and the hainan chicken satisfied my craving. Also the soup was flavorful. The beef was tender and juicy. The shredded chicken was a bit too salty though. But they have good prices here for what you are getting. If we were in the area we would come back. Service was a bit harder, they barely speak english but were nice. Pretty clean on the inside. Private lot in front

We went to the newest branch off thus restaurant in Millbrae. The chicken is very good tender and moist and the oily rice which I couldn't resist. Service is polite and very quick which we appreciate. It's a small place but clean and bright. We ordered the classic chicken and rice dish , the chicken with rice noodle soup the shrimp balls and beef tendons. The portions were massive. The noodle soup would have fed two - 3 people. Great prices - you'll see a lot of Chihese retirees eating here.

place is not that big and always crowded. easy to find parking spaces because inside a shopping area. staffs are nice and put high expectations on foods. i will say taste for hainan chicken is just mediocre and even the soup. the duck is just ok. tried to get the fish menu but may be it is just for dinner. overall, three stars from me...

This place is located in the Greenhouse plaza, on the same side as Great Clips and Happy Lemon, right when you enter the plaza on the McDonald's and Jack in the box side. There's a lot of parking around which is a huge plus. The store itself is pretty small and only has a handful of tables but I saw a lot of people ordering their famous Hainan chicken by the whole, and to go. I'm ethnically Teochew so I was pretty excited to see a lot of items they have on the menu, but they're famous for their chicken so I had to try that. The duck looked good too so my cousin and I shared half half on the chicken and duck with rice dishes. We also got the tofu appetizer. Tofu: I really liked this dish. It was super crispy on the outside and super soft on the inside. The sauce that they marinated the tofu with was the right amount of flavor that wasn't overpowering or takes away from the crunchiness of the tofu skin. Duck or Hainan Chicken with rice: both of these dishes were good but nothing to brag about. If I'm craving duck or chicken, for the price, I would come here. It has a nice portion size that kept me full. They were both juicy but relied a little bit on the sauces that come with it for flavor. The chicken came with a side of crunchy peanuts which is one of my favorite sides. It was a pretty average experience. They have other teochew dishes that I'm excited to come back and try because it all reminds me of childhood.

Went back for a second visit to try other dishes. This time we ordered the fried shrimp ball and fried fish(Capelin) for appetizers, and we tried the combo beef noodle bowl, Laksa noodle, the signature Hainan chicken again, and the special Hainan chicken combo (with noodle instead of rice). The signature Hainan chicken was still good. However, my wife didn't like the noodles that came with the special combo. She said the broth was bland. We like the fried shrimp balls but wish they would give a salt and pepper mixture to enhance the taste. The fried capelin was OK. We probably wouldn't order that again. The combo beef noodle and laksa noodle were just OK. I guess we should just stick with the Hainan Chicken as that is the stand out dish here. I noticed this time they automatically added a 18% service charge for our party of five, and I didn't like that.

Wow amazing!! Chiu chow combo brined free range duck combo 10/10 - soooo tender not gamey - flavorful soy saucy but not too salty - way better than your roast duck - comes with garlic vinegar - comes with bowl of their original soup (SO GOOD CHICKEN BROTH) Special hainan chicken combo 10/10 - tender and perfectly flavored - chicken rice is amazing - comes with roasted peanuts, black fungus cucumber salad (so refreshing and sweet vinegary), and sushi ginger??? - original soup (chicken broth) Pork knuckle combo 10/10 - tender and "super flavorful" says my dad - really good portions - comes with original soup Seafood soup combo 10/10 - soup is really good here - seafood portions are pretty well sized - we chose vermicelli and it was cooked to perfection ATTN: FREE ITEM FROM YELP CHECK IN!!! Mala shredded chicken 10/10 - was not Mala but very mildly spicy - the onions were very delicious and cut through the buttery tender chicken - very well flavored and balanced Overall, service was decent. The door is hard to pull so pull HARD (lol they wrote that in Chinese on the door). The food is delicious and they gave us hot tea when we arrived. Perfect place to take your Asian parents or someone who wants to try hainan chicken for the first time! Would definitely come back. This whole meal was around $60 which is amazing for the Bay Area.

It has been my favorite takeout place since it opened. Can't go wrong with the Hainan chicken with rice. I have tried the lasai seafood noodles, not as great and too spicy for my taste. The soy sauce duck rice is my alternative choice. The fried calamari can skip, tiny tentacles wand full of crumbs. Service is always good and efficient. Normally phone order is ready in 10 minutes. Small interior. This place fills up quickly during lunch peak and dinner peak time.

Excellent! after leaving california, I was craving something spicy and juicy, and Hainan delivered. The service is great, the food comes out fast, and the prices are very reasonable. The seafood combo with tom yom broth is absolutely delicious and a big thumbs up for the braised pork knuckle!

We ordered the specialty hainan chicken rice, the chicken came out average, but the rice is a huge disappointment, it is a mixture of cook and uncooked rice. How could that happen when rice is the very basic of Chinese cooking.

Came here on a Sunday early evening for dinner with my mom. We got seated right away and ordered the Signature Hainan Chicken over Rice and hainan chicken with Lai fun. If you check in on Yelp, they give you a complimentary appetizer of shredded chicken or cucumbers. We chose the shredded chicken mild spicy and it was ok. The Signature Hainan Chicken over Rice was delicious! The chicken had great flavor; rice and soup went well together alongside the chicken and side of cucumbers. Lai fun was also good but thought the rice was better. You can also choose from a wide selection of noodles to go with your chicken. Service was super quick. Prices are reasonable and portion sizes are good. If you're looking for a casual dinner spot or craving Hainan Chicken, highly recommend this spot.

Love this place! My friends and I come here for diinner every other month- it's basically a tradition now. Everything on the menu is delicious, and we\re always trying something new! I honestly which i could give more than 5 stars because this place is that good. My favorites? the chiu chow brined free range duck and the seafood combo. The spice in the seafood combo is just right - I have to get it every time. So good! Highly recommend!

A small little Chinese restaurant that specializes in hainan chicken. I ordered their hainan chicken rice plate and it accompanied by the usual fragrant rice, peanuts, a bowl of soup and side vegetables. I found it interesting that they also served it with Japanese style pickled ginger. Their"oily" rice was very bland and hard, while the chicken was quite good. Best of all, it only costs $14. I also ordered a few appetizers and they were quite good (i esp. liked the fried fish balls and fried squid tentacles). Will definitely come back again to try their other items.

This place never misses and each dish is packed with flavor, fresh ingredients and tender meats. I grabbed 3 beef tendon noodle soups and a hainan chicken with rice and it was a huge hit~

Good portion size and does the job! Broth is very smooth and mild tasting. I got the noddle soup, but wish it came with some different veggies (has spinach/mushrooms/corn). The veggies gave more of a "ramen" feel to it. The rice plate - the rice was a little bland vs some other places i've tried. The scallion/ginger sauce was okay, felt like it was missing something (or needed more ginger?) Service was good, the place is a little small, so be prepared to wait or do takeout. Also got the cartilage, and was so good!!! Definitely getting that again.

Still a line to wait for table after 130pm on New Year's Day, waited about 20 mins and food came quickly and in very reasonable portions and most importantly, taste very well~ Nice local spot for Hainan chicken lovers (can order the chicken combo over rice or noodles). If you are going for noodles, they have options on their menu for different types of broth and noodles. My mom already decided what to order next time~

Heard about this from a friend who said they have a nice mix of noodle soups. We've been to this mall so many times and didn't even notice this! We got the laksa broth with seafood and fish noodle. Laksa was very very good and goes perfectly with the seafood. We also got tomyum broth with seafood and rice noodles. This was excellent too. Nice friendly service and fairly easy parking in the mall. Gonna keep coming back soon!

Came here on a Sunday lunch Place is packed but the table turn around is quick Only will be seated when all party is here Tried the special chicken noodle soup with the spicy coconut soup. Not disappointing. Soup base is rich and a little spicy filled with good tasty favors Portion size is healthy. A place for a quick stable chicken noodle soup. They have many options of tasty snacks too

Pretty frickin' legit Hainan chicken! My parents got a whole chicken and it was enough for a couple of meals between the four of us. They use the traditional yellow chicken here, which has less meat in it than the run of the mill chicken. Very flavorful paired with the ginger scallion sauce. Get it with the rice! I was not a fan of the noodles.

This place is a hidden gem inside a strip mall. They specialize in Hainan chicken, you can get it with rice or soup noodles. The place has limited seating so either come when it is not so busy, or get to go. The hainan chicken is traditional with bone and skin only. If you opt for the noodle soup options. you can pick 4 different soups, and various type of noodles.

Came here on a Wednesday for lunch and it was packed and had to wait about 20 minutes to get seated. Great value for the food you're getting and the quality is really good - no msg in their soup! What we ordered: - salt and pepper capelin: really crispy and tons of roe inside! - mala shredded chicken: has a tiny kick of spice, if you eat spicy food you probably can't even feel it. Has great mala flavor and was surprisingly really good - special hainan chicken combo, thin rice noodles w/ original broth: a very light broth, not my favorite. Chicken was very good - not too cold, skin was springy, it had a ton of meat, moist, and the ginger scallion sauce was really good! - special combo (laksa) w/fish noodles: a light laksa broth and not as rich as the laksas I've had before. Still good flavor especially when I let it cool down a little bit. The fish noodles were like fish balls squeezed into noodle form! The broths were a lot lighter than expected probably because they don't use msg. The taste of the broths got better over time because we let the broth cool down and we could finally taste. I only regret not getting the hainan chicken with rice so I couldn't try the special rice! I'll definitely be coming back!

B03. Braised Beef Brisket & Beef Tendons Noodle Combo - only 1 broth option now, good amount of meat and tendon, cooked well soft, flat rice noodle good.

***4.75 STARS*** My first and last meal when I traveled to Oakland for Labor Day weekend was food from Special Hainan Chicken (SHC). After a 5-hour flight, I landed in Oakland International Airport and was picked up by my pseudo siblings. My inflight snack was underwhelming where I was hungry while waiting for my ride. I was hoping we'd stop by at a convenience store to grab something to eat but I was surprised by an array of carryout food from SHC that blew my mind: Hainan Chicken (this was earth shattering where it was probably the best that I've had on US soil), braised tofu, pork intestines, five spice honeycomb tripe, pan fried fish cake, beef brisket/beef tendon with look funn noodles and seasoned wood ear fungus. The food was overall good, but that Hainan Chicken stood out. For my last meal in Northern California before flying back home the early next morning, I suggested to my pseudo sibs to eat here before 2 of them were to drive back to SoCal later that evening. SHC closes at 8pm so we snuck in 4 rounds of mahjong and made our way to SHC shortly after 730pm. I tried to order ahead of time over the phone, but staff advised me to order our food there because all tables were occupied when I called. Upon arrival, several tables opened up and we sat near the entrance. SHC is not a large restaurant but has modern decor with digital menus on the walls. We decided to all order a different dish and share and my eyes landed on their Laksa, which I absolutely enjoy. I enjoy personalizing your bowl of noodles as you select the broth, protein, and type of noodles. I was intrigued by their hand-cut noodles but personally prefer vermicelli paired with Laksa broth. We also got sides of braised pork intestines and deep-fried shrimp balls as appetizers. Food didn't take that long to come out. Prior to receiving my Laksa, once again I ate the Hainan Chicken - - so tasty and great texture. I also sample the braised pig's feet, which was flavorful and gelatinous. I'm no longer a fan of pig's intestines as I've been scarred eating them not thoroughly cleaned. I did eat a few pieces which were very tender with a subtle briny flavor. The beef brisket/beef tendon was nothing to write home about - - it was just average for me. Not sure about the usage of corn and spinach in the bowl. Our shrimp balls came, and my buddy warned us not to eat them as it was precooked and not thoroughly heated all the way as the center was still cold. The staff apologized and took the plate back. Later, another plate of shrimp balls was delivered to our table, and they were piping hot. It came with a sweet chili sauce that I didn't care for. The shrimp balls were delicious just by itself. My Laksa bowl of noodles finally came and after documenting my noodle pull, I sampled the broth, which was pretty good, but I've had better. The broth lacked depth and heat (spice), but I recognized the creaminess from the coconut milk. The Laksa came with beef meatballs, shrimp, deep fried tofu, quail eggs, and spinach inside. My siblings tried my Laksa and commented the broth was flavorful. I didn't see any chili sauce nor satay sauce on the table as my bowl needed more heat. I was hungry. I didn't bother asking the waitress for it, so I just ate the Laksa as is. Service was what you'd expect at your typical Chinese restaurant where the staff didn't go the extra mile. They close at 8pm so the staff seemed more excited with closing and going home. One of my siblings ordered food to take back to SoCal and forgot to order some seasoned rice where she was told they were all sold out. I noticed the staff closed the register as she was counting large bills while we were still eating. Overall, a great find thanks to my pseudo sib who lives in Alameda. Food was tasty and prices are reasonable. Next time I go back to NorCal I'm going to request eating Hainan Chicken from SHC. It was that good. 2023 #65

I was home for Thanksgiving and our family decided to try out this restaurant here. First of all, I do recommend checking in on yelp first because it gives you a free side dish. It just happened to be one of the ones I was eyeing, the mala chicken. Everyone greeted us, and was very friendly, the place was very clean and sparse and simple. We decide to order the mala chicken, the tripe, and the braised, short ribs and tendons as a side dish. I decided to order the hainan chicken since this was what this restaurant was named after and my parents ordered the hainan chicken with the fish noodles. I was also informed by my family that the pork knuckle was amazing, however, it was not something that I was able to try this time. The broth from the noodles was very light and refined. The noodles itself was very interesting. It was quite tasty and subtle. As for my hainan chicken, I did not feel that there was enough of the juices to flavor the rice like some of the other places that served hainan chicken. however, it was quite tasty. Their ginger scallion oil was spot on, much better than what I could even make at home. The mala chicken was subtle. It was not over powering in flavor, but very balanced. I felt that the tripe was too salty for my personal taste, and the braised short ribs was to die, for it was so tender, and it was perfectly seasoned. Next time I would have chosen the braised short ribs over rice instead of the hainan chicken here. Overall, this is a nice little restaurant with a lot of great options, and I would love to come back here to try some of the other items and their special seasonal items. And most likely will order the brace short ribs with rice.

They still accommodated us even with only 20 minutes left before closing. The crafted soup combos offer plenty of options and its so really good ( special combo is the best :) ), service is excellent and the food was authentic and delicous. Defntely recommened

Be careful with this place. I order food through their web-site and they claim they did not get the order despite they have charged my card. They claim that the system might be down and will not give my order claiming they have not received the order despite I show them the email confirmation including the confirmation of payment. They connect me with video call with their manager and the manager does not want to take the responsibility of their down system and did not give my food. Be careful with this place. Bad business practice and manager. Attached is the proof of order etc.

Love the special Hainan chicken soup here. It always hits the spot especially when I'm not feeling well.

Definitely avoid this place. Food was not really hainan and the most embarrassing thing is that the employees there are the most rude people you'll meet in the service industry. They kept repeating that the tip is not included in the payment - another way of saying "tip me". I was about to tip with cash when the server repeated for the 5th time how my card payment didn't include tip. Finally responded with "you know tipping is not mandatory right?" And then she responds with "i know; just reminding you if you want to tip or not, it's up to you". Of course I won't tip at this point! Who the hell would tip after your insistent nagging about tip? Learn to shut your mouth and be humble you even have a job. Second; if you don't feel like your being paid your work; then quit your stupid ass job and find something better. Last, MANAGEMENT should really do some retraining on your staff; or better; fire these ones and get better employees. AVOID THIS PLACE.

Coming in at dinner time, the restaurant was busy & pretty packed. I got lucky getting the last up-to-four party table. Inside is spacious and has plenty of room to move between tables. The restaurant is located in a plaza so parking is not an issue. I got the Signature Hainan Chicken Over Rice, and it was good! I would rate it an 8/10. The chicken is tasteful, especially in combination with the other garnishes. This dish also came with soup too, which was warm (less hot than I wanted) and tasty. The service was good as well. The workers were fast in cleaning after each table when leaving and checking in on the customers which was nice. Next time I come back I would want to try their duck!

Get the laksa. I've gotten food from here twice. Both time, I got food to go. I still went in though, and Special Hainan Chicken has been almost full with at least half the patronage older Asian people by parents age. This is a great sign. I learned my lesson this way. I love elders. The first time, we got the hainan chicken rice. It was fine. The important thing is, when I picked up food the first time I saw every single table of ayis and susus eating at least one bowl of laksa. CLOCKED AND NOTED. The next time we ordered, I got the laksa with house special fish balls and OMG THEY WERE RIGHT. Thank you to my memory and observation skills. The laksa is fragrant and not too spicy but very flavorful. I am a taiwanese person who like only the most mild spicy, and this was excellent. You can add chili and stuff if you want. We also got the braised beef. Delicious! The noodle? Yummy. You can get anything else to compliment the laksa.

Authentic, delicious, fairly priced, and filling! I don't really venture into San Leandro much but now I might have a reason to come out here. It's refreshing to see some amazing niche restaurants open up and continue to succeed by serving their signature dish. It's a testament to them doing their craft extremely well. Well needless to say, the Hainan chicken rice plate is indeed special. The chicken is moist and packs a ton of flavor. The ginger spread that comes with it is on point and really complements the chicken. We also ordered the braised beef rice plate and the meat and tendons were really tender and flavorful. Their cooking method thoroughly softens the connective tissue and produces delicate bites that melt in your mouth. With any of the rice plates, you'll get a serving of fish tofu soup, a salad mixed with pickled cucumber, cherry tomatoes, wood (tree) ear mushroom, and a generous portion of rice. They also have half or full duck or chicken available. We ordered half of the brined duck and it was delicious. Not too fatty and the meat was very flavorful. The vinegar sauce that came with the duck paired really well. The portion was perfect for half a duck; if we ordered the full, I would make sure to have two of those little cups. As part of the Yelp check in offer, we also received the shredded spicy chicken dish. It was yummy! The spice is very short lasting and just adds a bit of flavor to the bite. The staff were very friendly; they spoke English and Cantonese. I am sure they can speak Mandarin as well. There are a few tables to sit at but most individuals I saw were ordering takeout. Seems like a popular spot for take out and and the items they ordered were packed really well. In terms of parking, there's a huge a lot but it still requires a bit of walking since the restaurant in toward the entrance of the mall. Overall, the food here is worth the visit. Given the quality of food, portions and the price, I would say you would definitely be satisfied with the visit.

My friend and I came on a Monday afternoon and they were packed. I would come before you get hungry during lunchtime as you will likely have to wait for a table. Everything we ordered was delicious and well seasoned. We were pleasantly surprised that the appetizers were just as good as the entrees. The capelin were crispy and flavorful. The brined tofu had a nice fried skin but were still soft on the inside. The duck was good, but felt like it had more meat than bone. I probably prefer the hainan chicken just for that reason alone. I'll definitely be back to try more of their dishes. Remember to check in for your free plate!

I'm so disappointed with this place. Everything was tasteless and even their own "specialty" wasn't even special. The best thing was the cucumber and peanuts. They couldn't even do the sauce right to save the bland rice :( and the broth tasted and looks like milky water.

The place is small with limited seating. The Hainan chicken was good, but with bone-in pieces, the portion felt a bit light. I'm not particularly a fan of the side dishes that come with the Hainan chicken; the ginger didn't pair well with the dish. Since it's more of a fast dining spot, the service was quick and minimal.

Food is relatively good. We usually do takeouts. However decided to come and try with a friend. We got their number 1 special and also fish cake. Fish cake was oily and also on the dry side. There was not much service at all. So I left a minimal gratitude for them. The worker came chasing out asking why I left such a small gratitude. It really really caught me off guard she did that, it was 15% already when they had no service at all. Who would come running out after their customers questioning why you left such a small gratitude. I don't think I would return again with such rude customer service.

The quality of their soup broth is exceptional, free from MSG. The noodles exhibit an ideal texture. The service is commendable, and the pricing is reasonable. I look forward to revisiting to sample their other noodle offerings.

Whenever I come across a restaurant that offers Hainan chicken, I'm on it. So, I'm pretty discriminating about the quality of the chicken. Special Hainan Chicken really does Hainan chicken well. The meat is cooked just right - not over- or under-cooked, good "bounce" to the meat, not over-salted, nice plump chickens, and you can specify white or dark meat. I also appreciated that the broth is not over-salted. I tried the Special Hainan Chicken Combo, which includes noodles in broth with the chicken, instead of the usual flavored white rice. You have a choice of broths (I stuck with the Original) and noodles (I love knife cut noodle). There's spinach and fishcake with the broth, but you don't get the traditional rice or marinated cucumbers (although it does come with peanuts). At $12.90, that's a hard-to-beat bargain! There are a lot of other things on the menu which I'll try in the future, but I'm all in on the chicken combo. Some deets: there are menus with erasable markers, but we just gave our orders to the waitperson. You have to park in the lot on the other side of the road that fronts the restaurant and negotiate a landscaped median. We were given a check and paid with a credit card, which was run at the counter. This is a serious Hainan chicken place. Highly recommended!

I went to this place after work a few weeks ago. The restaurant was very clean and the waitresses were friendly. To order you either go to the cashier or have the option to dine in. I chose to dine in. To order you had to circle what you wanted on the menu. I ordered the Hainan Chicken with oil rice. I substituted the veggies for more oil rice. The food came out quickly and I was surprised they gave me hot tea and soup with my order. There was a savory ginger and green onion paste to eat with my chicken and peanuts. The food was great overall but it was tough to pick the meat from the bones if you're just using chopsticks. I recommend this place!

The Hainan chicken was quite tender and juicy with firm texture but not much flavor to it. It's better than a lot of other Hainan chicken places in the bay and you can't beat the price for around $14. The ginger scallion sauce didn't have much ginger or scallion taste to it other than being salty. So now you have bland chicken and salty sauce but it's not as bad as it sounds since the texture of the chicken was good and juicy. The fried chicken gizzard was prepped right and appropriately sized. Not too much breading and the right amount of crunch and flavor. The fried tofu was okay and nothing special about it so I would skip it if it's your favorite dish. The braised duck was decent and kind of bland but the texture wasn't mushy which is common for ducks. The lemon tea was watered down Lipton black tea with slices of lemon tossed in there. It's not the authentic kind with ultra concentrated three types of tea leaves base and lemon juice infused syrup. The kind with rich lemon and tea flavor without the bitterness and roughbess in the mouth. But that's almost impossible to find in the bay unless you make it yourself. I would skip this drink if lemon tea is your thing. The service was good, everything came out orderly and fast. They have room to combine the tables for party of 6 or more. Parking is plenty in the plaza. This place offers good value in this price range for lunch and quick dinner. At under $15 a meal, this has to be one of the top Hainan chicken restaurants in the bay area.

I've been here a couple of times for dinner, and I keep ordering the special Hainan chicken dish because it's so good. Service is fine. Plenty of parking in a large and busy San Leandro shopping center near the Nimitz freeway. There's no parking right in front of the restaurant, but there's parking right across the roadway in front of the restaurant, so be careful crossing the roadway because there's plenty of traffic of drivers coming in and out of the shopping center parking lot. I can't give this place more than three stars because it's like one level above fast food. But it's very tasty and I'd eat here again for sure.

My bf and I have been meaning to try Soecial Hainan Chicken for a while. We finally stopped by for lunch this past weekend on Saturday. The wait time was short, but the restaurant can get busy since it is not a big space. There was a lot of to go orders and a lot of families eating here so that was a good sign. We ordered the Hainan chicken plate, chiu chow brined duck plate, and chefs special fried smelt. The Hainan chicken was so good. The flavors of the yellow princess chicken was delicious and the rice was flavorful from the broth of the chicken. The chiu chow duck was a bit dry depending on the cut of meat. I was surprised because duck is usually not dry because it's dark meat. The duck paired well with the vinegar sauce that came with it. The rice was dry on that plate. You also get a bowl of soup that comes with your meal. It was a seaweed and bone broth soup. I would come back for the special Hainan chicken plate or a Hainan chicken to go. Don't miss out on this hidden gem in this plaza.

I really enjoyed our dinner. We had the chicken and duck. The cucumber salad was so good. This will be my new goto!