Chung King Palace

Tough review on this one. Décor and atmosphere is one star. Need to update just about everything, but it was closing time when I went in. Maybe if the lighting was better I would have seen something different.
As far as the food, I had the beef fried rice and won ton soup. Rice was hot coming out of the kitchen and could have had more beef, but for the price it was right. The wonton was not inspiring, but also very hot. Food is three stars.
Now the people. I called 3 minutes before they closed and they took my $ 9 order and said they would stay open if I could get there quickly. They could not have been more accommodating and pleasant. Tired from a trip it was one of my only options being so close. That is rare.
Don’t go expecting a culinary masterpiece, but it is typical Chinese «fast food». If you stay at the Hampton Inn downtown then it is a 30 second walk. Don’t be afraid to take it.

I was in the area and needed a quick bite to eat. I didn’t want White Castle, and was excited when I saw this place as an alternative. Once inside, I was hit with this disturbing smell. Not really sure how to describe it. Putrid, maybe. Anyways, I decided to try it out seeing there was several people eating. I grabbed a plate and headed to the buffet. I decided to try the General Tso chicken (which I normally love). Egg roll, fried rice, crab Rangoon and wonton soup. The general tso chicken tasted NOTHING like what I’m used to. It was mushy and not appealing to the taste buds. The fried rice was dry and cold. The egg roll was okay. The crab Rangoon was dried out. The wonton soup was decent, expect for not being hot. Needless to say, I’m currently at a buffet. Writing a review instead of eating. That should say enough. I also can not stomach going back for seconds. What a waste of 6.99. On the upside, the staff is nice and personable.

I’m not giving this place four stars because the décor is nice or updated (it’s not), or because the building appearance is great (it’s not), or because they are doing anything amazing or revolutionary in the culinary world (they’re not). I gave it four stars because it is exactly what it claims to be, which is a Chinese buffet.
I was there for the lunch buffet. All the dishes were fresh and tasted just as good or better than any other Chinese buffet. The waitress, whom I also believe was one the proprietors, was very friendly and attentive. The place, although dated and showing signs of wear, was clean. The lunch buffet was only $ 6.35 so I’m sure what more you could ask for at that price.
In summary if you are looking for a clean cheap Chinese buffet with a nice staff, this is a good spot. If you are looking for a fancy modern hip epicurean experience this is not your place.

This place isn’t fancy… or even, frankly, nice, but it is always offers reliably consistent food.
I have come here for Chinese buffet lunch a few times a year for at least the past 7 to 10 years. This is a family owned business. I am not positive, but I have a suspicion that the family even lives on the second floor of this 1960’s downtown storefront building in dire need of a face lift both inside and out.
The buffet always offers a few kinds of soup. There is always steamed rice and fried rice. There are always chicken, shrimp, vegetarian and beef options on the buffet. All of the food is warm and fresh. Entrée choices are prepared in small portions so that the serving trays are often refilled during lunch time.
Lunch prices are wonderfully cheap. They will serve you one entrée option from the buffet plus rice for about 5 or 6 bucks. Or you can help yourself to the all you can eat buffet for about $ 7.
I wish I could give this place 5 stars but I won’t because it is too rundown. However, it always has an A from the health department and I have only had good experiences here. So, I recommend visiting Chung King Palace for the food, not the ambiance.
Finally, this is not an ideal tourist/​convention restaurant. There are so many great and unique dining establishments along East Market Street, Frankfort Avenue and other areas of the city. This place is best for people who work downtown and want an inexpensive change of pace.

Ok, Call me weird, but I really like this place. I have been coming for so many years, I even cross the bridge just to eat here.
Love their eggrolls, and my absolute favorite is the Chicken Cashew. Maybe you came at a bad time, but my experience here has always been wonderful, from the friendly staff to the yumy food!

I ate here today with my wife and kids, and overall the entire experience made me sad.
It’s one of those places where the food tastes just like the restaurant smells, and unfortunately the place smells bad. I should have trusted my gut and just turned around when I walked in the door, but we were greeted quickly, so we just sat and ate.
I’m not going to go into much detail about the food aside from just saying that it was pretty horrible. Not a single item I tried seemed to have any thought put into it, and it all seemed very «canned» to me. The ONLY reason I’m giving this place 2 stars is the service. The 2 women working there were very friendly. She spoke with us for a few minutes about where were from and where I worked, how long I worked there, etc… She asked about our kids and why they weren’t in school (we homeschool) and was just generally very friendly and pleasant. The other woman there offered to take my daughter up to help her get some ice cream while we ate (I could have used a break from the food though!). So that’s why this place makes me sad rather than mad. They seem like very sweet people, it’s just a shame that the buffet menu didn’t have as much care put into it as these ladies seem to put into their service.

Profoundly unimpressed. Have tried this place on two seperate occasions and was disapointed both times. Walk somewhere else if you’re staying downtown.

More like King Yuk then Chung King.
Downtown good ethnic is so hard to find. I was craving some last minute Chinese food and this place was conveniently located on Market before my safe option Jimmy Johns.
We ordered standard dishes since it was our first time. They are open till 8pm and we did arrive 30 minutes from closed.
Our egg rolls were over cooked, our pork dishes were dry, the brown sauce was horrid, and none of the vegetables were decent.
We will not be back. I see that there is a buffet most of the time, I am assuming this is the only reason they are still open. Take my advice and just keep heading on to Jimmy Johns.

Meh.
I went in looking for the standard vegetarian fare at most Asian dives — mixed vegetables on white rice– to go. It wasn’t on the menu and in fact, EVERY dish had meat or seafood in it. I asked nicely if I could just have vegetables on white rice. The lady was a little confused why I didn’t want meat, but then asked me if I wanted any kind of sauce on it and headed off to the kitchen. About 4 – 5 minutes later, I received a rather sloppy styrofoam container and condiments. The veggie hunks were quite large (some almost 2“x3″), but were hot and tasty. The rice was mediocre.

Not good at all. Came here with a friend looking for a vegan meal. This is the only Chinese restaurant I’ve visited in my life that didn’t have non-​meat options (except for a few shrimp options). Ordered Kung Bao Shrimp, which was mediocre.
The décor was as cheap as could be.
At 8:45 pm (fifteen minutes before closing), they basically threw us out.
Stay away. There are much nicer options in the vicinity.