Jade Garden

This is our go to Chinese Restaurant and has been for years. I love the General Tso’s and the food is pretty consistent. They also have «deals» so if you spend $ 25 or more you get a bonus appetizer (spring rolls are good). They also let me sub out chicken fried rice instead of the pork fried rice. They’re fast and friendly!
My one complaint is that I’m not a huge fan of their egg rolls, but they’re not bad. Oh, and I wouldn’t eat there because it’s normally warm inside (but Chinese food is best to go anyways)

Ever so often, you get a craving for some Chinese take out. Surprisingly, Tampa has a plethora of different take out locations. After shopping through a few of them, I have finally found my favorite: Jade Garden.
Now, each of these locations pretty much offer the same menu. Sometimes, I feel like they’re all owned by one person because of how freakishly similar they are. The prices are also exactly the same as well. However, Jade Garden has the best quality of food… well on the standard of Chinese take out. The portion sizes are quite large and the food always tastes pretty fresh. Personally, I would come here more often if my diet would allow it. The service is pretty quick too. If you call ahead and order it over the phone, the food is usually ready by the time you drive over. Plus, the people there are hella nice to you too. This place also earned another place in my heart because it was one of the only places open on Easter Sunday #noncatholicstruggles.
PS. If you’re ordering the BBQ ribs, be sure to get the boneless one. I struggled hardcore with the bones today.

PROS:
–Tons of variety, even for this style Chinese
–Prices are very good, servings large
–Surprisingly fresh tasting ingredients
–Reasonable vegetarian and «special diet» choices
–Friendly counter service
CONS:
–Not much to look at, but for NY-​style Chinese, do you really care?
–A lunch buffet would rock!
LOCATION:
Tucked into the corner of the shopping center at Hillsborough Ave and Habana Ave dominated by Publix. Parking directly in front is limited and awkward to navigate but there is plenty of space in the rest of the lot.
FOOD:
I see the menu as typical of these NY-​style Chinese fast-​fry places but with an even greater diversity. The main menu has at least 160 items and that doesn’t include the 20+ lunch specials. The breakouts are standard: apps, soup, fried rice, various noodles and blocks of selections based on protein choice. Most items are available in a pint or quart size. I’ve eaten several lunches here but really like the pork fried rice, chicken curry and Singapore Chow Mai Fun. Getting beyond the menu, the real winner, for me, is that this is the best NY-​style Chinese I’ve found in my two years in Tampa. I know other Unilocalers have made similar declarations so there is something to it. I’ve also found that the ingredients seem to be very fresh (not always a guarantee, in my experience) and well-​seasoned.
Given I’ve liked everything I’ve ordered, and the enormous selections, JG deserves 4 Stars for Food.
SERVICE:
Of course you order at the counter and pay right there but every time it’s been polite and friendly. There is very little language barrier. The food prep is actually a little on the long side for the style but I’m happy to chalk that up to starting each order when its placed.
Easy 4 Stars for Service.
VALUE:
The prices for my lunches are very, very good. Few things exceed $ 10. The lunch chicken curry, with a big serving of pork fried rice, a fried egg roll, fortune cookie and a bottled water is less than 7 bucks! And it’s huge. I never finish it and it could easily be two meals. I would expect to get some limp, stale, non-​inspiring meal for that price, but the flavors are very good besides.
Definitely worth 5 Stars for Value.
ATMOSPHERE:
Also typical of the style, the front of the house is just a drink cooler and several tables. To their credit, there are actually more tables than most but take-​out orders are still the bulk of the business. Other than that, it seems clean so no issues there.
3 stars for Atmosphere
If you’re like me and have struggled to find solid, quick, cheap NY Chinese, give these guys a shot. I’m happy I did.
Food: 8/​10, Service: 8/​10, Value: 9/​10, Atmosphere: ⁶⁄₁₀

Love this place! Since moving to Tampa I have searched high and low for some decent Chinese take out and so far this is the best General Tso chicken that I’ve found in Tampa. If you are looking for NY style Chinese this is the place for you. The location is small but they are always friendly and the food is made fresh to order. I love the fact that you are able to watch your food being prepared. The lunch special is super cheap and you get tons of food for under $ 6.

Probably the best NY style Chinese takeout I’ve been to so far in Tampa. They are very quick for take out orders. The place looks clean, nothing fancy, just couple tables. During lunch there is quite a few people that come here, but it doesn’t stop their speed and quality of orders that come out.
I’ve tried this place out for lunch several times, satisfied each time I went, no complaints. Food is always hot, egg rolls are crispy. The food is never dry, I’ve had this problem at a few other Chinese Take out places. I recommend coming here for lunch because it is cheap, tasty, fast, and you get your moneys worth. Usually I can’t even finish the whole meal given to me. I recommend the boneless spare ribs, general tso’s chicken, or sweet and sour chicken. Everything out is good to, but those are my go to orders.

I don’t order Chinese food very often, but when I do… I want it to mimic NY style Chinese food. I stopped at Jade Garden on a Monday night after finding out that most ramen places were closed and I needed to find a take-​out alternative. Unilocal certainly helped me with this one!
I ordered an appetizer of crab rangoon, chicken lo mein with pork fried rice as well as beef & mixed veggies with white rice. I did not order ahead and stopped by around 8pm. The food was ready within about 10 minutes (as promised, which I was not expecting based on previous Chinese food restaurant estimates!). I do not think this place does delivery because it was not on their menu nor advertised on the storefront. The establishment was larger than other Chinese restaurants I’ve been to with seating for at least 20 people. It was clean and had clearly marked restrooms. The woman at the counter was very friendly and attentive. They got my order right and it came to just under $ 19. Comparable prices to other places in the area.
The food was delicious. The beef and veggies reminded me of NY style Chinese food for sure and the crab rangoon was very large. All other food was tasty and did not disappoint. I would definitely return to this place… lives up to the promise of being a NY style Chinese food restaurant.

Not one bad thing to say about this place, great location, outstanding food, and not to mention it’s hot and delicious in no time! The food is great!

Very good food. Close to 5 stars, but I just figure no place is every perfect. I have eaten here many times and food is always very good quality and tasty. I drive up from South Tampa, because the Chinese places in South Tampa are just not good.

I think for most people they are hungry as hell when they come here during lunch, therefore there was no food photos. I stopped myself and actually take a picture for all to see.
I came here based on reviews on Unilocal and the fact that it is sort of close to my work. I ordered Beef Broccoli for lunch… and with lunch special you get this delicious smokey BBQ pork fried rice, along with a pretty good egg roll. With tax I think it was $ 5.75 I’ve seen some horrific looking broccoli at some Chinese takeout in Tampa Bay Area so I was skeptical. But I’m glad I came. Everything was really awesome and satisfying. Fried rice is smokey! Broccoli is crunchy. And generous portion overall. I love Unilocal

This place is just like the New York dine in/​take out spots I’m used to… except they had their ceiling fans on (thank you very much!), and they greeted me with a smile, and it was clean, and they said thank you, and the food actually had taste to it. But, yeah, other than that it was just like NY. I had the Genersl Tso lunch special with a canned soda: $ 6.58. It’s probably a good thing this place is out of the way for me. The portions are «generous». Oh yeah, use your GPS. It’s in a large strip but it’s hidden in the back next to Boost Mobil.

I come here twice a week because you can get a lot for a little at a Chinese food place if you stick to the diet menu. The diet menu is pretty universal at these places so I wouldn’t go outta my to come here except it’s next door to work.

I drive out of my way for this place when I want Chinese food. I have eaten in once, but prefer to order my food to go. The place is clean and the servings are large. My husband loves the shrimp rolls and the wonton soup (good broth) and I order the combination chicken in garlic sauce. The chicken is always good quality. We have also tried the beef fried rice… the small is huge.
Prices are good.
You can order ahead and have your food waiting or order and walk over to Publix while you wait :)
Parking is easy.

Jade Garden was a pleasant surprise for a storefront Chinese restaurant. The shrimp in the shrimp and lobster sauce were very tender and tasty. The crab rangoon was good, as was the egg drop soup. The egg roll was OK. The fried rice was good, but a little greasy. Overall, very good and I’d eat there again.

Service was good, Place was somewhat clean. Food was good

I’ve been coming here for a while and its always great. Very clean family run business. The food always is on point. Definitely recommend the place.

I been going to these restaurant for years. Can I say their wings with chicken fried rice is #
. Every time my mom orders from there and I get home from work it puts a smile on my face. They always cook their food fresh and there’s nothing better than hot food well cooked.

I would have to say best take-​out Chinese in Tampa. I’m from Boston, so I’m used to some pretty darn good Chinese. Obviously I would stay away from somethings, but the sautéed broccoli, wonton soup, and general tsao chicken are our go to items. They do give an absurd amount of white rice with it. Give it a try!