Tk Noodle Inc No 6

They changed name and gone as of now.

CLOSED; what happened to these guys?

Ok, I’ve been coming to this place for years now… used to frequent Tung Kee’s all different locations, but this one was the most convenient… even though the name changed. It’s always been a good go to place for a quick bowl of Combination Rice Stick Noodle Soup or Combination Chow Mein… and not to forget my must have plate of Fried Daikon Flour Cake With Egg and peanuts. These have always been my faves and are pretty much all I order when I go here. Yes, the soup seems to have gotten a bit bland over the years, but when you’re hungry for a good and decent bowl of soup noodles… and served fast, then it really ain’t so bad after all. The portions are good and the prices still relatively cheap. I think I remember when you could still get a small bowl of noodles for $ 4−5…yea, that long ago.
I stopped coming as often to this place after a bad experience I had a few years ago. The place wasn’t that busy, but yet I sat there for about 10 – 15 minutes waiting for a menu. I stood up and gestured the waiter for a menu, he knowledge me, then came over in some kind of a huff. He then threw the menu on my table and said «I don’t need this, ok?!!» …and walked off. I thought WTF is this guy’s problem?! I then decided this wasn’t worth it to be treated this way, so I just got up and left. This was a few years ago, and i have been back once or twice in recent years, but now business seems to be way down, its never crowded, and the staff seems to be a lot more friendly now.
I think there are better places for my noodles, but I will come back just for the quick fix… if I’m in the mood. However, this bad experience back then still sticks in my mind so I don’t frequent this place as often as I used to.

READ
This is no longer a TK Noodle Restaurant !!
The sign out on Stevens Creek says: TK Noodle
The sign outside and just above the entry says: SK Noodle
Yes, SK in the Same Logo style as TK. If you weren’t paying attention, you wouldn’t notice.
When you go inside, there are large posters all over the walls listing the TK Noodle locations, etc. Photos of the outside, etc.
You are Warned. This is not TK Noodle !!
The food and service is terrible… Please, save yourself and don’t make the same mistake that I made!

Bleh, I’ve only been to TK noodle a couple times in my life, and it’s never been my choice. However, a friend was craving chow mein or some sort of greasy Asian noodles, so we came here since we were in the area, and since Mr. Chau’s in Cupertino has long been closed.
They appoint you to one of the many tables, set two menus down, and come back a minute later to take your order. She ordered the combination chow mein, which from the photo, looked very much to the crispy noodle dish. I ordered the combination chow fun.
Our orders arrived quickly, as it was not very busy at the time. The chow mein is practically the crispy noodle dish, just more sauce? But it tasted pretty good, although for me, chow mein noodles should be softer. As for the chow fun, I take a noodle and start eating. Something tastes off… I tell my friend and she tries, and has the same disgusted look. But in my head, I am wondering, how can you go wrong with chow fun? It really had a weird taste to it, even though I had put some siracha on it. So I take another noodle that’s slathered in more of the soy sauce, and the taste is not as bad, but still, off. My friend and I had come to the realization that the noodles had gone bad. Maybe they left it out in the heat too long? Gross. We call over the waiter and tell him, and ask if we can get something else instead. They allowed us to get the taro egg cake thankfully, and this tasted much better, although my friend said the pieces used to be a lot thinner and tastier.
Again, probably wouldn’t come back here on my own time, and definitley will not order the chow fun as it has been tainted for me.

Nasty. Never come here. At first i thought the flour from the wonton soup was undercooked because the flour was hard but they brought me out a new one that was exactly the same. My friend khai had the beef stew and his meat was still bloody. Oily, oily soup! All you can see is patches of oil! Please do yourself a favor and save 6 – 10 bucks on a decent meal that you can actually eat. I left my soup untouched.

Very good prices, very good flavors, the meats aren’t too stringy/​chewy, I forgot how much I loved this place! I ordered the regular size combination rice stick/​noodle dish, #9, for $ 5.50. The total came out to $ 6.01 and he said but $ 6-​even is okay, but I gave him $ 7. Haven’t come here in years but will definitely come back, even by myself.

If rating’s were giving purely on the food and service, I would’ve given this place 1 star. The food is pretty mediocre, and if you come here often enough, you’ll realize that consistency is not one of their fortes. I’ve been here a few times when the shrimp was embarrassingly old, food on the plates were far from evenly portioned, and the soup was drowned in oil. This place’s service is also EXCEPTIONALLY bad. The dude who usually works at the cashier goes on wild mood swings and makes it a point to appear as an employee who BARELY gives a shit. Also, on more than one occasion, instead of giving me back my change, he insisted that I just forget about the change and consider it tip… are you F***G kidding me?
So now you’re wondering, why have I even gone here more than once? And where is that extra star coming from?
Convenience. I’m sure this is the only reason why people come here at all now. It’s pretty much fast food. The food comes out pretty quickly and if you’re not expecting good service, cleanliness, and top notch food, this place is okay. The prices used to be much cheaper back in the day, which is why I used to go a ton, but the prices have risen now to the point where its barely worth it. I’m certain that I only come here still because of habit.

I’ve been here about four times, and every time, there is this one asian waiter who is ALWAYS in a bad mood.
One example: He came over and asked if we were ready to order, I asked my husband who was looking over the menu. 1.5 seconds later, the waiter is gone… He does this twice more, each time leaving without a word, and not waiting much at all, not even stopping at our table when he asks for our order on the last time.
They were by no means busy either…
GET ANOTHER JOB DUDE!!!

Foodwise, this place is probably a 2 but for convenience, speed, and price, it gets the 2 extra stars.
The soups are tasty in that MSG-​laden way and the noodles always stick together but everything is always consistent — you always know you’re going to get that same medium quality food.
My go-​to dishes are:
#1: Combination soup with rice stick noodles — pork, meatballs, shrimp and noodles in a clear broth. Comes with these crunchy bits of fried goodness (possibly fairy dust or pig skin… same thing in my estimation).
#5: Beef stew and tendon with rice stick noodles — also comes with mushy stewed carrots that make me think I used to be at least part rabbit. This red, slightly gelatenous (from the tendon) soup is very hardy and great on cold days.
Multicolor drink: Green, red, yellow, and clear (not really a color but English proficiency is not my primary concern here) with condensed milk. Mungbean cakes, tapioca seed, some sort of jelly… all wonderful things to eat through a straw.
I’m sure other things are great but these dishes are enough to keep me coming back 2 or 3 times a month! The best kind of Chinese fast food!

This is a place me and my GF go when we want to have a day out, since we live over the hill in Santa Cruz.
Overall:
Acceptable staff, short waits, good tea, good music, decent enough food although it could be a little more flavorful, pretty lights, great parking. Never gotten sick from here.
In Depth:
I like the atmosphere, it’s really quite airy and casual considering how close you sit to the tables around you (doesn’t feel crowded). The main guy who runs the register is awesome, but some of the waiters are pretty grim and do not smile, though they are quick. I only order one meal here, which I have them make for me special every time. They never remember me (which I don’t blame them for, since I don’t go that often), but they always tell me what I want is not possible to make until I remind them that I’ve gotten it there before, and I know it will cost extra.
They give you tea right away, and I like it very much. I believe it’s jasmine tea and with a bit of sugar it’s quite a treat to sit around drinking out of the «traditional» handleless teacups as you wait for your food.
I get the Combination plate over an order of Fried Rice. It’s hearty and hot, and generally arrives within 10 minutes. It has shrimp, beef, pork, chicken, cabbage, broccoli and carrot over combo (pork/​chicken/​beef/​shrimp) fried rice. The meats are well-​cooked and tender, and the shrimps have flavor and go very well with the sauce they use. The meats are easy to eat and each have a unique flavor, but all sometimes have a bit of gristle.
The rice is generally fine, but one trip I had rice that was harder than it should have been. It’s heavy rice though, and I like that. It has a hearty sauce mixed in, but I always like to add a little bit of soy sauce and plum sauce to liven it up a bit.
The soups are incredibly greasy and fatty, but have a lot of flavor. I’ve tried both the beef meatball noodle soup and the roast duck soup, and both have had body and lots of grease. They taste good however and the broth is pretty addicting to drink, especially with a little bit of soy sauce and spicy sauce in it.
Worth the time, in my opinion, if you like to experiment with soups, but be ready with the condiments, as things usually need a bit of livening up. And while the solid orders are decent enough, they are *very* few, so you’re better off looking for non-​soup meals elsewhere.

A few of my friends really love this place and crave it all the time so I decided to join them, despite my negative memories about this place from a couple of years ago. Anything is worth a second chance right?
Wrong. Their broth was greasy, yet lacked any flavor, as did the meat. Portions are decent but not enough to justify the bad quality of the food. The level of cleanliness of the place and their silverware is another strike against this place for me,
Sorry friends who love this place, I probably won’t be coming here anytime within the next few years, that is, until someone tricks me to go with them again only because I’ve forgotten how bad their food is.

This place is like noodle fast food. You get a quick fix and it doesn’t taste bad. Sure, it’s probably not the healthiest or the highest quality, but that’s what you should expect when coming in so it should be no surprise.
I got the combination noodle (#1) that had shrimp, pork and meatballs. The broth was salty and probably MSG filled but that’s what make it taste good. The noodles were a little too soft but still satisfying. The pork was a little tough and the shrimp still had a black vein, but overall it’s still mildly enjoyable. I like the fried oily bits on top.

GGGGGRRRRrrrrrrrrr! This place made my husband and I SO angry! Food was incredibly average and boarder line flavorless. Service is non-​existent. My three year old was choking so I flagged down a staff person for a glass of water. The water never came, I tried to catch the person again and was ignored. Then my three year old started to choke on his noodles again which lead my husband to stand up from the booth and Unilocal «Can I get a water PLEASE!!» We left without ever finding water, no staff ever acknowledge us or our frustration. A nice women in the booth next to us commented on the place being «a challenge»
Walk 100 feet to Phở Minh next door to the Marina Market, it’ll save your life!

I’m no expert on Vietnemese food. But we came here for a quick lunch and I left full and fairly happy.
Walking in it’s a bit dim/​tad dingy and it feels like a cafeteria. I walked up to what I thought was the counter, don’t, they seat you — I had no idea and looked pretty silly. For 11:30am on a Saturday the place was a ¼ full and we were seated easily. It’s a big place, a really big place with tons of booth seating.
I got a standard phở and the price wasn’t crazy cheap but it wasn’t expensive either. Large amount of food for the ‘small’ I ordered. The beef slices were ok, the mixed noodles fine but not great. The broth a bit bland so I spicied it up on my own. In general was it amazing — no. But it was quick, affortable and ok.
Staff was fine, not my best friend but quick and efficient.
Plenty of parking at this location, inside the Target shopping center.

This was the first and last time I’ll ever eat somewhere before checking Unilocal.
This place is embarrassingly bad. Not only is it completely dirty and unkept, but the food is horrendous. I took one bite of the hard, crusty vermicelli noodles in the watered-​down broth and knew I made a mistake.
Plus, they don’t take credit card.
Complete. Disaster.

Man what happened to this place. The broth is like barely flavored water now. They still give you plenty of protein but I gotta have my broth.
My tip: Don’t take shortcuts and people will come back…

I actually like TK noodle a lot despite what most people seem to feel about it. It is definitely cheap and very fast so great for your money if you’re having a busy lunch. I used to work across the intersection from this place so it was a great choice.
My favorite dish there is the rice noodles dish, but I also heard their fried noodle dishes can be pretty delectable as well.

I remember going to the original Tung Kee Noodle in San Jose almost 20 years ago. At the time, it was a phenomenon and super crowded. The rice stick noodle soups (at affordable prices) were a hit and soon, numerous more locations began to pop along the Peninsula. Today, you have TK Noodle, Tung Kee Luu Noodle, and Luu Noodle which I believe all sprung from the original but are run by different owners.
Seeing the average 2 star review on Unilocal,it’s almost sad to see how badly the chain has fallen in recent times. Outshone nowadays by Japanese ramen and even by the related Vietnamese phở, Tung Kee likely suffered from aggressive over expansion and also the selling of various branches to different owners who kept the name (or some variant thereof), but not the standards. For example, I consider Luu New Tung Kee Noodle (now called Luu Noodle) in Mountain View to be one of the worst branches.
Anyway, back to TK Noodle #6. Like their original #1 branch that I haven’t been to in a few years, TK Noodle #6 relies on its strengths of consistency, speed, and affordability. No matter how many times I go there, the noodles are always tasty, hot, and out within minutes.
My particular favorites here are the Beef Stew Rice stick noodles and the Combination Rice Stick noodles. I’ve had a daikon dish and rice dishes, but don’t believe these are the restaurants strength.
In many ways, TK Noodle pioneered the concept of fast-​food noodle soup. As fast food, it delivers and does so at a price that won’t break the bank. As a sometimes foodie, I’ll probably get some grief about giving TK Noodles 3 stars, but like McDonald’s and Popeye’s Chicken, fast food can deliver a satisfying meal too. TK Noodle #6, like all branches, accepts cash only.

Someone told me that TK Noodle was the cure all for a previous night out of drinking. So after last night, I remembered them mentioning this urban legend and dragged them go have lunch with me here to prove his point.
We came here around 1:30pm and there was an odd odor about the restaurant. That and they started with only giving us one teacup. The place was relatively empty. Apparently there is only one thing worth eating here and that was the noodle soup (#1). Something about the combination of MSG and clear soup broth was supposed to hydrate you and make you feel a lot better.
I dunno if it really worked for getting rid of the headaches that be, but it was indeed pretty good eats. The MSG levels were perfect, which normally makes me a happier person in general. And all who know me know I love me some MSG. Service was slower than phở, and because of the smell, I gave it this rating.
Afterwards was still sleepy, but at least I was hydrated and decently full.