Iron Chef

Authentic Taiwanese food. 排骨飯 is a must. The price is reasonable and the staffs are very nice and friendly.

Simple interior, very good authentic food. The duck in particular is pretty damn good.

This is literally the best meal I’ve ever had in my life. It’s insane. I want to live in the basement so I can eat the leftovers.

Went inside. Three workers all hanging out at a table and no customers. Waited for service at the desk and no one got up from their conversation to take my order. Left after a few minutes and will never go back.

Fantastic homecooked Taiwanese food! Run by a super friendly Taiwanese couple, the wife runs the front of the house while the husband cooks everything. We had the Dan Dan Mian noodles which were spicy delicious, and Kung Pao chicken. Both were completely unlike the normal bland chinese fare you usually find in the US. Check this place out, its a gem!

This is one of the best Chinese restaurant I’ve ever been. The owners are very nice people.
But they only receive cash.

Went again last week with two friends, again I had the waitress pick the food. Beef noodle soup, three cup chicken, sliced filet of flounder and Taiwanese meat-​balls. Loved it, can’t wait to go again…

I was sick… like a, oh HEY ALLERGIES! Come on in and infiltrate my sinus cavities, I don’t need to smell or breathe or anything! So what cures that for me? Phở… delicious acidic and spicy Phở. BUT, the only place around here to find it is in the Bpt… in an area that to be truthfully honest, scares me a little. I was not feeling like super woman on this day so I went for option B. Taiwanese beef noodle soup.
I had read really great reviews of this place and after reading up on what exactly beef noodle soup was in Taiwan, (I research every new food I eat before I eat it, well… because I’m a nerd) and realized that it was pretty similar to Phở. Not my glorious phở that I want to bathe in, but close enough for the task at hand.
Iron chef, cash only, is pretty much what you’d expect an Asian mom and pop restaurant to look like. Clean. Is this place BYOB? (i thought that as I stood waiting to be greeted). No, seriously, does anyone know if it’s BYOB?
I was greeted by a lovely woman who took my order, I said, «beef noodle soup, spicy please.»
She said,” spicy?!”. and I said, «yes, I’m sick, I need to clear out this nose.» «NO NO! NO spicy! Medium spice for you.» Well ok, I agreed, medium spice.
She asked how long my commute was and then said she would put the noodles on the side, I appreciated that.
Food came out quickly. within three minutes and I brought it home.
It was hot… now here’s the issue… it was hot in temperature only… it was not «medium spicy.» I was disappointed that I did not stand my ground and was instead mercilessly squirting sriracha into my bowl. Medium spice my… well, you know.
I dressed it up a little as I would a Phở. Just for my own personal taste. I’m a condiment whore… I need to always add something.
The noodles were not my cup of tea. For being noodles, they were good… the texture was nice, they did not clump. But for me, I prefer a thinner rice noodle.
The broth, although not medium spicy, was the standout for one reason only that I learn to appreciate in my old, starting to wrinkle and wither away, age. Collagen. Now, Collagen is a wonder drug that I want to become addicted to and this soup has it. It sticks to your lips after ever slurp and you know it’s the good stuff that mama needs to stay youthful.
After this broth experience, I went out and found as many beef bones as I could so that I could make a new, fresh batch of bone broth (if you don’t know what I’m talking about… read up like this research nerd over here.)
This broth was inspiring!
The menu looks really great… authentic…affordable…and could possibly be my new Asian spot, only if it’s BYOB ;)…

Iron Chef is a typical mom and pop family owned restaurant, unlike other restaurants here with several chefs and waiter/​waitresses. I go there frequently, and I am still not bored with the food over there. The food is delicious. You can find unique Taiwanese cuisines prepared by the male owner of the restaurant with his own secret source. Their food is so unparalleled that you can barely find any other Taiwanese restaurants in the greater new york city area which offer the same tastes. Their food has their hallmark on it, Iron Chef’s cuisines.
The only downside for the restaurants is its cash only policy.
I highly recommend giving a try if you are looking for an authentic Taiwanese restaurant.

Excellent Taiwanese! Mom and pop store with good food and great service. We got the classic foods beef noodle soup, pork chop rice and stir fry noodles. Also went for the stinky tofu… Seriously stinky… Perfect. For outside of NYC definitely 5 stars.
Also took care of recommendation for our two little kids. Will definitely return.

I’ve been here several times because the soups help chase my winter blues away. It’s such a great deal– affordable, good serving size, and delicious. Your meal also comes with a pot of tea! I usually get the Taiwanese beef noodle soup (clears up the sinuses you didn’t know you had) or the seafood noodle soup– both are delicious.
I’ve also tried the pork chop on rice with egg. Very hearty and comforting!

Be aware of the Summer hour, they now open 12 noon on weekends … CASH only too.
I absolutely love the «Shredded pork, pickled mustard green and bean curd sheet», I order it every single time. Now that they serve the «Stinky fried tofu», it is also a must for me. I am an extremely picky eater, and I like this place a lot. The food is made with pride … I drive 45 minutes just to go to this place.

Everything here is delicious. You can tell it’s a two person operation, which makes it all the more impressive that everything is cooked fresh to order. My favorite is the Taiwanese beef noodle soup, but I haven’t been disappointed in anything I’ve ordered.
One thing to remember, though, is that it’s CASH ONLY.

With a name like ‘Iron Chef,’ one has high hopes. Add to that «Taiwanese cuisine,» and I was immediately intrigued. As a daughter of Taiwanese immigrants, I crave my Dad’s amazing cooking. When a colleague had asked if I had been to Iron Chef, I immediately Unilocaled it and thought the menu was interesting. Some of the staple Taiwanese fare was there — beef noodle soup, rice cakes.
I got take-​out here and ordered four dishes:
— House special rice cakes — stir-​fried with mushroom and chicken. Had a good smokey flavor, I’d order them again.
— Minced pork on rice (Taiwan style) — for those of you who have been to Taiwan, a lu rou fan, but a far cry from the real thing. The minced pork was way too dry and unappetizing.
— Pea shoots with garlic — a special; the best thing we had.
— Sweet and sour pork shortribs — the sauce was way too sickly sweet. The pork ribs were not cooked long enough, the meat was dry and too chewy. My dad’s version of this dish takes hours to slow braise, and the meat just falls off the bone.
I did like how we got the option of having brown or white rice.
I loved the feel of the place — the Chinese zodiac menus on the tables, the husband and wife duo as back and front of the house, but the food just didn’t measure up, sadly. As someone who doesn’t have a car and has to either zipcar or rely on friends to make the trek out to Orange, Iron Chef isn’t necessarily worth it. Granted, I’m incredibly biased and spoiled due to my dad who is THE Taiwanese Iron Chef in my book, but objectively the food wasn’t that outstanding (said my dining companion, who is not a Taiwanese food expert). Sadly, I’ll keep looking for good Chinese food in New Haven.

I have been her twice and had for delicious noodle soups. It is a Taiwanese restaurant which has a little different flavors than regular Chinese. The reviews will tell you it’s very busy but has been very quiet at lunch when I have visited.
The first time I went here I had a delicious and very clean and warm in my stomach pork noodle soup with mustard greens. It just made me happy and really want to come back.
The second time I went with the waitresses suggestion of the Taiwanese Beef Noodle Soup. Tons of character. Very spicy and savory. Better even than any Phở I have had. There was also a very sweet family next door. The young child was happy and silly, the husband a math professor at the University of New Haven a nice guy. The wife was from Taiwan and the owner gave him a contact. He said the food was as good as his in laws.
One of the best Chinese/​Asian places I have ever gone. It’s worth a trip. Remember to bring cash, they are cash only. Delicious.

This place serves very authentic Taiwanese food! I ordered sauteed water spinach with beef in Taiwanese Sa Cha sauce and it was amazing. The vegetable dumplings were just the way my grandfather would make it. I would highly recommend this place.

I wanted to like this place a lot but unfortunately didn’t have that great of an experience. Perhaps I was expecting more but I only thought the food here were decent. Plus the fact that they were very understaffed when we were there on a Friday night we ended up having to wait about 45 minutes for our dishes to be served.
I think it was probably an unexpected busy night for them where by the time we were eating almost all of the tables were full and they really only have a chef plus a server working in the back helping out. Also this place is cash only unfortunately but for us it wasn’t an issue but definitely something to be aware of. The location is very conveniently close to 95 and it was easy to find.
I really want to give this place another chance since they are a mom and pop style restaurant that are serving authentic TW food in a suburban CT town. I hope the next time when I have chance to visit they would be better equipped for the crowd.
As for the food themselves since we were in a large non TW group I didn’t really try out the traditional Taiwanese dishes that I usually do but my favorite this time were the Spicy Lamb and the Sour Fish Soup. Being a TW myself would want to come back to this place again when its not so busy to try out their traditional line up. Hopefully I can reach the same conclusion as others have written here.

Having just moved to New Haven, I was not expecting such an authentic Taiwanese restaurant! It rivals those in Monterrey Park or Mountain View.
Their pork chop rice and stinky tofu were spot on. Be sure to ask for the Taiwanese kimchee (pao choi) to go with the stinky tofu.
It is more pricy compared to most taiwanese places, especially for lunch. But it’s CT, so I would happily pay it. Be sure to bring cash though, no credit cards here.

You know it is authentic when you cannot find American Chinese dishes in the menu (eg Sweet-​and-​Sour/​General Tsao chicken/​tofu/​whatnot…)
I loved to order take-​out from them when they were in their West Haven location. Luckily my husband saw their sign at the new location and told me that they are back.
I tried many of their dishes– pork chop over rice, pepper and beef, beef noodle soup, and best yet, their hot and sour soup… Their food reminds me of restaurants in Taipei a lot.
As a transplant from Taiwan myself, I will say this is hands down the best Chinese/​Taiwanese in New Haven COUNTY. All the others are either too salty too greasy, or just catering to people who equate Chinese food with General Tsao.

I have been a fan of Iron Chef since they were in West Haven. I am from Taiwan and know that it is often difficult to find an authentic (let alone decent) restaurant in the suburbs… so I was super stoked when I found out about this place.
Now…this isn’t your typical gross «chicken with broccoli» or fluorescent yellow egg drop soup place-​the food is almost always fresh (in fact, I have called on several occasions where the chef was out in Flushing buying the produce for the week).
I had a small party recently and wanted to order a boat load of food from Iron Chef. I called about 3 days ahead and the staff members were super accommodating and helpful. Some of the dishes ordered included Tilapia in Hot Oil, Three Cup Wine Chicken (a Taiwanese staple), Sweet Sausage with Bamboo shoots and Tofu with preserved Eggs. My guests enjoyed every dish (except the stinky tofu-​that was only enjoyed by yours truly).
The only downside is that they (still) do not take cards and the food can sometimes take a while (I think there is only 1 chef in the back). Plus, this is not the type of place you go for ambiance. As long as those things do not bother you, Iron Chef is still highly recommended for anyone who appreciates good Chinese/​Taiwanese cuisine.