Zen Gardens

New to Burlington and was looking for a good Chinese place– I found it at Zen Gardens! At first I was going to get take out from a Single Pebble, but I called and they said they were too busy to do take out. Zen gardens was my second option (based on Unilocal reviews) and I am glad I went here! It’s not «fancy» Chinese food and it’s not cheap American Chinese food– it’s just good Chinese food! I tried the tangerine-​glazed chicken and pork friend rice, both good. The pork fried rice was probably the best fried rice I have ever had! Portions are big, so make sure to drag a friend along with you! Will definitely be coming back!

Loved soups and tofu items. Dumplings were steamed and loved it … My son likes the fishes in lobby…

Excellent dinner. Sesame Chicken was awesome and the veggie fried rice great and had an excellent flavor. Spring rolls not so much but my rating is based on the main items. Will go back again.

Went there today, everything came out lukewarm on a cold plate, sent it back, still lukewarm. Lady in the next table had the same issue.
Did they ever hear about warming plates and hot food?
I’d never go back.

Food is very good. Service is very good. It’s not «fast food» Chinese. No buffet, food made to order only.
Atmosphere is noisy. Distractingly noisy, I think it’s the acoustics.
I will return, but only with a group of 4 so our noise offsets the others.

Traditional Chinese dishes not as good as restaurants back in China or ones in big cities, but better than average. Haven’t tried American Chinese dishes

Friendly service and good food, what else could you ask for. They also sell movie tickets to the theater across the street, Palace 9 at a discount.

Placed and order for takeout. Firstly, I was impressed by how quickly they had the food ready and waiting for us. I got about $ 60 worth of food for four people, and it was ready in 15 minutes! Everything we ordered was incredibly delicious! My favorite by far was the lo mein noodles. They were done so well! Yum! :D

Probably the best Chinese food in Burlington. Burlington isn’t exactly a Chinese food mecca and I don’t really like Single Pebble which is considered haute Chinese food for the area. I mean, it’s ok, but I don’t think it’s great and it certainly doesn’t taste like real Chinese food to me. I’ve spent a lot of time with friends in Chinatown in NYC and also lived above Chinatown in San Francisco, not to mention visiting China. Vermont is not where it’s at if you’re in the mood for good Chinese, but we aren’t totally hurting either.
Recently revisited Zen Gardens and requested some very standard American dishes. Chicken and Broccoli, Chicken Lo Mein. Nothing crazy. The nice thing about the chicken and broccoli is that they used ginger to accent the flavor and differentiate if from normal chicken and broccoli you’d get elsewhere. The noodles were also really flavorful with a good amount of chicken, flavor and crunch.
The first time I went here my boyfriend and I ordered General Tsaos. We also got Moo Shu Pork and some dumplings, etc. Way better than expected. It’s not surprising it gets such good reviews here.
The ladies at the cash register are also very friendly. This is my go-​to place in Burlington when I do crave Chinese food.

2 ½ Stars
Based on average 4 star review of this restaurant we decided to give them a try. The place was completely empty, not entirely strange for a Sunday night. There were a few asian patrons that raised our hopes. We ordered the Crab Rangoon, General Tso Chicken and Shrimp Lomein. The Rangoon was average as was the General Tso but the Lomein was greasy inedible slob, with what appeared to be boiled baby shrimp inside. The waitress asked about the food, when we made her aware of the poor quality of the Lomein, she responded with «oh sorry» and made no attempt to make it right. We were presented with the full bill, being tired we didn’t not feel like negotiating with the manager about how many strands of Lomain we had eaten to possibly get a pro rated refund. We left unsatisfied and certainly left no tip. We will not be returning.

Ordered pan flied dumplings. Put spicy garlic sauce on dumpling. Ate dumpling. All dumpling gone. Spoon fed self dumpling sauce. Spilled sauce on shirt. Licked shirt… Mmn Zen Gardens.

This was a great find, unexpected in Vermont.
Hidden away behind a fast food restaurant, it looked like it was a repurposed cowboy steak place. But that doesn’t matter as the food was very good. Would definitely go back if in the area again.

West lake soup is amazing but other dishes I got are mediocre. Plus the waitress ordered the wrong dish for me. Plus the food is expensive. Might not be here again :(

— Very nice atmosphere, awesome décor and I loved the koi in the front entrance. The servers were dressed well and were very polite. My Piña Colada was very tasty. I ordered the Pineapple Double Wonder which is a sweet dish that comes with chicken as well as beef. It actually comes served in a split open pineapple which is very unique! Everything was wonderful.

I haven’t had anything I haven’t liked here yet! The food is superb and always has a beautiful presentation. I always look forward to getting one of their delicious cocktails.
Prices can be a little high, but you are not eating at an all-​you-​can eat Chinese buffet in a mall. The restaurant is very elegant, service is very attentive, and the food is worth it.
Zen Gardens has become my boyfriend’s and my favorite restaurant in town and is a preferred spot to take all of our out-​of-​town guests.

better than thought，quite a nice and quiet place for family, fiends and even dating. Not like others Chinese resteraunt

I am a Queens girl living in VT for the past 2 years. It has been VERY challenging finding decent Chinese food. I’ve tried some takeout spots and they were meh okay. Zen Gardens is so far the best I’ve had. I had the beef chow fun and Singapore noodles, both were good. My husband has the pork lo mein; I tried some of his and that was good too. They used real pork and not that nasty dry pink roast pork stuff. The menu here seems to have some more traditional Chinese foods so I’m eager to give those a try!

Amazing again! The Peking Duck came fresh with perfect crepes. Words cannot describe how good this visit was. Bravo! Nailed it again.

Prices are on the high end and you pay for the presentation. Id rather get takeout somewhere else for less money but about the same quality. Zen Gardens is nice for a special occasion but too expensive for regular visits

Expensive. They charge by the tealot and only serve small rice bowls that are costly. Less than average food at high prices. I have had better at places in jrrkwater towns all around the country. Big city prices charged and the food was far from gourmet. The moo shi was good though with real lilly flowers and wood esr mushrooms aka black fungus. Eggplant was okay and lo mein was below par. 30 dollar meal cost almost 50 for 3 people. We eat a lot of chinese food and we will not be back. Generous with 3 star review. Oh hard to find on. a sidestreet behind a mcdonalds. Easy parking.