Liang’s Kitchen

Even though I love me some Taiwanese food, Liang’s Kitchen seems to get everything wrong, be it with too much oil or too much salt. Initially excited for their beef noodle soup with handmade lapian noodles, the noodles were NOT good, sort of mealy and overly chewy, and the soup just tasted like soy sauce. The pork chop rice was decent, but it’s pretty hard to screw up. I usually like the green onion pancake with meat rolled inside, but each bite I took of the one from Liang’s was just a mouthful of grease. Very underwhelming, and service was rude. Will not return.

three flavor chicken
pig’s feet
green onion pancake with beef
like it! & cheap!

I had to compare this to my favorite Taiwanese place in Irvine, CA — A&J’s. And it wasn’t as good :(Sorry to compare, but if I didn’t, this place is not bad.
Dishes we had:
1) Beef noodle soup: 2 stars. [
Soup was actually really good. Their noodles are «hand-​made,» but they were soo thick, starchy, and heavy that it made me extremely full. I don’t like that feeling. That feeling = food coma all day
2) Pork chop over rice: 2.5 stars. [
If I wasn’t comparing it to A&J’s, it would probably get 3, but A&J’s minces everything together in a bowl and it’s just soo much better that way. The authentic Taiwanese style is literally supposed to be Pork Chops over rice, and that’s the way I like it. It’s still good though, fried pork crunchy pork chop with it’s sweet radish and cabbage on the side. I’m just being biased haha
3) beef pancake roll: 3 stars
[
Not bad. Pancake was crunchy, and the beef were beef shanks that had the black bean taste. It tasted a lot better with the sauce from…
4) spicy dumplings: 4 stars
[
This was probably the best in the restaurant. Spicy but not too spicy, with soy sauce flavor. Mmm, I added this sauce to the beef pancake roll and the pork chop over rice haha. Wish I ate more of this but couldn’t since the beef noodle soup made me so full :(haha
And there ya have it. If you do the math it’s about 2.875 to me ~ 3 stars. Oh A&J’s… how I miss you so. I hear there’s an A&J’s in San Jose… must try that out next! *bookmarks*

Went there last night for dinner with my friend who lives in Fremont. Since I absolutely LOVE LOVE LOVE fresh coconut juice, this alone will win them a 4-​star rating!!! I felt like I was back in Hawaii sipping juice out of a fresh coconut and then scraping off the flesh out of the inside of the coconut (yes they do provide a long spoon for you to do that too). My friend and I each had one that’s $ 3.5 each. We were hungry and thirsty and it felt like 90 degrees in Fremont last night, so we thought this was well worth it!
We had the beef stew with thick hand rolled noodles that were made in house and the dry noodles with stewed pig’s feet. The beef stew soup is flavorful but the beef was not tender enough. I hate to say that the hand rolled noodles, while looked very appealing, were not cooked long enough so were a bit too chewy. We let the noodles sit in the soup and came back 30 minutes later and they were softer but the soup was already cold so not as tasty.
The dry noodles with pig’s feet were really good. The sauce was flavorful and the thin noodles were very fresh. The skin on the pig’s feet was so tender it melt in your mouth. There were only a few small pieces in the bowl though and each bowl is $ 7.75.
The portion of the small plates were big. We wanted the pickled bitter melon but they were out. Then we switched to the stewed bitter melon and they were out too! So we ended up with the stewed bamboo shoots with mushrooms, which were a little salty. The pickled cucumbers were o.k. too.
I like the beef and tendon dry noodles at TW Bistro Café in Foster City better. But for the fresh coconut juice at Liang’s Kitchen I would come back again!

This was my second time having Liang’s Kitchen and first time at this Fremont branch. I had the Oyster Soup with Chicken, one of the 6 Winter Love Pots for $ 9.99. I don’t remember what the exact English wording was, but there’s a separate menu for it. I posted a picture. At first the soup tasted great, a healthy dose of ginger flavor and the chicken was good, but the Oysters were rather sandy. And then my face began to turn red and feel warm, a sign of how much MSG was in the soup. Perhaps it was too much. At least they can make white rice properly, that’s important. The pictures on the walls and the model airplanes hanging off the ceiling shows that someone in Liang’s Kitchen has a hobby.

I am actually surprised about the negative reviews. I guess I am not lucky enough to have Taiwanese food so accessible to me as it’s not as popular as Cantonese food where I live.
I went here and got the beef tendon soup and I thought it was delicious with the thick noodles.
I also tried a wide variety of appetizers. First of which was the jellyfish which was good. as well as the tofu skin. which I will say tasted better than what I had (and bigger portions) than what I had in Taiwan. I am Cantonese though so maybe it’s not the right authentic taste. but definitely tastier.
I liked this place… but what do I know.

The pork stew pancake wrap was amazing! This is what you have to get whenever you are here because soon you’ll realize every table here orders it. Nothing else compares and that’s mainly because the other entrees here are really bad. The beef curry dish was awful. The beef was gummy, and the sauce didn’t really taste like curry. The cold vegetables was the best part. That’s how bad the dish was.
The chicken rice was also bad. We ended up dumping the sauce from the original chicken dish to other dishes because we couldn’t eat the chicken. The tofu was average.
The service here was terrible. They frowned at you, never thank you for your payment, and avoid you when you try getting their attention. What makes it more awkward was that the restaurant was empty, and the employees would huddle in the corner, turn their backs to you, and pretend not to notice you. I wish I got a picture of this.

Ordered a plate of the pig ears that were spiced with red chili flakes, sauteed squids, fried rice with veggies, the fried bread roll stuffed with meat and pickled veggies and a plate of the bean curd with pickled veggies and a thai iced coffee.
I liked the appetizer of pig ears but one small plate is a lot for two people.
The sauteed squids were mild luckily they were cleaned before sauteed! The bean curd with pickled veggies, fried rice and the fried bread roll were very good.
The thai iced coffee was weak and watery.
Not as good as the Liang’s in Cupertino.

***3.5 stars***
Everytime I come back to Fremont this location seems to be on a constant rotation of restaurants serving various Asian cuisines– the latest is Taiwanese comfort food.
The prices are really affordable and there’s a lot on the menu to try — from solid must– haves like the beef noodle soup and the beef onion pancake wraps to stuff like pork knuckles for the adventurous.
I have to say the beef onion pancake wraps were BOMB– crispy pancake filled with beef and onions. The portions are really big too. I want some right now!!!
I was a little disappointed by the «Ja Jang Mein» (Black bean sauce noodles) the noodles were nice and chewy but I think I’m used to the Korean version and this was not…“saucey” enough. very bland.
As the restaurant filled up (got really busy) the service started going down. The staff seemed really overwhelmed and in a daze most of the time, we had to wait a long time just to get the check.
If I’m every craving a simple, yet delicious Taiwanese meal — I’ll come back here. I treated my family of 5 and with tax and tip it was only $ 41.

Yet another shining example of Unilocal combining reviews for a relatively new restaurant with the previous completely UNRELATED tenant. If anyone is here looking for Liang’s Kitchen, please disregard anything before February 2011, and pay no mind to any mention of dim sum and the like because they don’t serve that here anymore.
Now that we’ve gotten that out of the way, here’s a quick review of Liang’s Kitchen. Pronounced in Chinese as «Mama Liang’s,» what they serve here is your typical Taiwanese style small eats. Everything from the usual spicy beef noodle soup, cold noodles, green onion pancake, pig’s ear, pig’s foot, and various types of tofu can be found on the menu (
). A mainstay in the San Gabriel Valley area of Southern California since 1980, Liang’s Kitchen is in rapid expansion mode into the Bay, with four locations (San Jose, Milpitas, Cupertino, Fremont) seemingly sprouting up overnight.
However, to be perfectly frank, I really don’t know why and how. The fare offered here at Liang’s Kitchen just isn’t all that special, and no better than what you’d find at the myriad of cafes of the same ilk along the «Taiwanese corridor» from Fremont down to Cupertino. Even more surprising is how Liang’s Kitchen has managed to maintain a foothold in the SGV, where Taiwanese restaurants can practically be found on every block. Perhaps, they are simply living off their name recognition.
That’s not to say that it’s horrible. It’s just very run of the mill, and I certainly wouldn’t take a special trip to visit any of the four (for now) Bay Area branches considering that there are many superior non-​chain options. As far as the interior goes, it seems that they have basically inherited much of the previous dark, wooden décor from 101 Dim Sum. I’m not sure if the other Liang’s Kitchens have some sort of specialized theming though.
One thing I must credit Liang’s Kitchen for is helping to infuse new life into this previously dead plaza (although the new 99 Ranch has a lot to do with that as well). At least for now, it is bringing in some extra business to the area. How long it’s going to last is the question.

The numbering on the menu’s rather strange, but the food is good! (Or at least, the food that we tried? What’s with all the bad reviews? :[ It almost makes me doubt my tastebuds. Just kidding. I trust em’.)
The chicken cold noodles and beef wraps are my favorite. :D We also tried the beef soup noodles and the three flavor chicken with rice. Prices are pretty reasonable, especially for the chicken cold noodles (~$ 5?! :O!!!).
Service is somewhat of a hit or miss. I came here twice within 12 hours. lawl. Just for the record, I’m not quite that much of a pig. …or maybe I am, the first time I came here was for my second dinner, and then my family came here for an early lunch. heh. Anyway, when we came here for dinner, the service was fine – pretty quick. When we came for lunch the next day, it was a lot slower, but given that they were almost packed full, that’s pretty understandable.
The food is good; I’m a major fan and wish I knew how to make this food, because I end up craving it a lot. :’(I’d like to come back to try the dan dan mien sometime. :]

Taiwanese comfort food served here… Awesome spot to grab some beef and tendon with handmade flat noodles (great cuts of beef stew and tender tendon with fresh chewy flat noodles). My colleague ordered up a beef wrapped in onion pancake (awesome savory meal in itself) for us to taste as well. So many choices on their menu that make me want to come back to check out their other dishes. He ordered up the Beef and Tendon Soup with a side of onion pancakes (great for dipping).
I was told they have 2 other restaurants (San Jose and Cupertino). Place is decorated with old school war planes hanging off the ceiling (not sure why). Place was packed when we arrived during lunch hour, so arrive early to get a table.
I must warn you about the MSG, as I must have drank a gallon of water afterwards… But, I can overlook it for the many different selections that look so darn good in the photos. After reading Andrea L’s review, I will try asking them for no MSG next time around.

YUM YUM… service is okay here… the food is yummie I love eating Taiwanese food!!!
Had this place in southern California… it did taste better in socal… but glad they have one up here…
I love this place for the Beef onion pancake yum yum! see picture… def is the thing to order here…
You get a certain percentage off your bill if u pay by cash…

We actually passed by this place before but never went in until we saw the grand opening signage. We figure, why not.
This is a taiwanese restaurant and the food was just ok, nothing special. Unfortunately I ordered something that wasn’t taiwanese. I recommend you stick with the noodle soups and not things like curry. The pig feet noodle and pig ear was ok. The stewed tofu was pretty tasty.
Food — 3
Service — 3
Price — 4
Cleanliness — 2 (bathrooms were nasty)
They accept c/​c for tickets over $ 20.

It’s embarrassing how many times I’ve been here already (the grand opening sign’s still up). So glad it’s finally on Unilocal!
I’ve had two things here-​the thick beef noodles and their onion pancakes (there are plenty of other options to order but I’ve already found my regulars). The portions are pretty big for the price, the thick noodles are chewy and filling, and the onion pancakes are crispy, thin and not greasy. If you’ve been to A&J in Cupertino, this is a pretty good alternative if you don’t feel like driving that far to get your beef noodle fix.
Atmosphere-​wise, this place is a little all over the place (there’s airplanes hanging off the ceiling, a giant logo on the wall, and random booth seats, but it doesn’t take away from the food. It’s also never completely packed even around dinner or lunch time (but it’s also relatively new).
Service is pretty fast, the servers prefer to speak Mandarin, and there’s a $ 20 minimum for credit cards.

I came here again, and everything was so good! The place was definitely packed around 12:30pm, so there was a lot of customers waiting to get seated. After putting my name down, we got a table within 15 minutes.
We ordered the following:
1. Stewed bitter melon — I didn’t try this
2. Beef and Tendon with thick noodles (dry) — This is my favorite dish. Noodle is very chewy. The beef and tendon are very tender, too.
3. Pork ribs steamed in banana leaf — the pork was a bit salty.
The service was great. The food came out fairly quick, too.

Liang’s Kitchen originates from taiwan and dates it’s founding to the 1950’s. Liang’s occupies ½ of the space that dim sum 101 used to occupy.
sampling:
–assorted sweet rice cake (4.25)
glutinous sweet rice with red bean paste inside. rice chewy, not totally cooked. dessert, recommended only if you really want to go «native».
–lotus leaf wrap pork ribs (6.75)
interesting, tender meat on ribs
–salty pork stuffed chili (4.75)
think chili relleno with salty meat loaf stuffed inside. pretty good
–pancake wrap with beef (6.75)
marinated lean beef is wrapped in a savory, thin onion pancakes. recommended.
–beef noodle soup (6.95)hand pulled noodle sliced
*soy sauce based broth with chili and msg. noodles are taiwanese hand pulled noodles. actually it looks like shaved noodles (larger then knife cut) and tasted like ho fun.
*the few pieces of beef were tender. few veggies were crunchy, fresh.
leftovers
–served cold tea
–order by checking boxes on check off list.:
–lots of service personal but food came out slow after a few dishes. (thus 3 stars)
–food quality inconsistent
–recommend: beef noodle soup and pancake wrap with beef
chinese lessons mandarin
pancake wrap with beef niu rou juan bing

It’s exciting to see that Liang’s Kitchen is expanding into the South Bay and East Bay. However, I have to say that having eaten at this location was a bit disappointing. The Liang’s in Cupertino and San Jose are better.
All the noodles here, especially the thick house made ones, are delicious.
However, I was highly disappointed by the braised oxtail and the lotus leaves wrapped pork. They were both cold on some parts and warm in some parts. Clearly — these were already pre-​cooked and just re-​heated — the worst part is that they weren’t even heated thoroughly.
If you want something fresh get something with noodles or the beef wraps… but all the specialty dishes are pre-​made — I understand that the majority of these dishes may take up to several hours, but couldn’t they at least prep it fresh a few hours ahead rather than re-​heating.
Service was good though and energy was good. I think since they’re new though they’re still trying to get the hang of running this place smoothly. Will re-​visit again!

Dim sum out of Oakland and SF is so mediocre. Well, Mayflower in Milpitas has its good days.
We had all the basics: cheung fun, ha gow, siu mai, gau choi gao, lo bat go, fung zaau, char siu bao, nai wong bao, and then some gai lan and crispy noodles. Everything was OK. It’s not the most fresh but if you’re having a craving that is so intense you cannot drive 5 – 15 more miles, then eat here.
They have a lot of four seat tables so for our group of 10, the wait was a little longer. I would say we waited for about 30 – 40 minutes on a Sunday afternoon. What I would like to note is that the food here is CHEAP. We ordered tons of dishes (lost count) for our group and it only came out to $ 10/​person which included tax and tip.

Not bad, but not that great… dimsum.
The wait wasn’t too long on a Sunday morning. There’s not a whole lot of variety with their dimsum dishes. The carts didn’t come out continuously from the kitchen. Some dishes could have been warmer.
What 101DX has going for it is the price. However, low cost means less shrimp in the dumplings, not much ingredients in the porridge, not the freshest veggies, etc.
The one dish that’s worth noting is their taro bun. It’s reminiscent of the elusive taro buns of HK Saigon in Sunnyvale. They’re not bad, but the taro filling is not as creamy and smooth as those of HK Saigon.
101DX is worth a try, if you’re in the neighborhood.