Shih Lee Good Eats

I loved Shih Lee for so long but in the last few months they must have changed management (along with all their recipes) because it is nowhere near as good as it used to be. Just as bland and swimming in oil as every other cheap Chinese place in New York now. So sad to see this one go.

I ate shrimp yesterday from this place. I had an upset stomach in the morning with runny stool. Had to sit in the bathroom for a while and still feel bad writing this review.
It seems they do not throw out bad inventory to maximize profit. Beware! I do not know what their rating is on cleanliness but even if it is an ‘A’, there is no point eating here if they do not throw out rotten meat!

This place has been around longer than me (probably) since my mother used to buy their food before my grandmother used to stay with us and cook us home-​cooked meals.
Fast forward to current times, where this place is sadly… a shell of its former days. Management has changed constantly over the years and it definitely shows in both the workers and food.
I decided to stop by since their $ 6.50 lunch offer seemed like a good deal. When I entered, this female worker just looked at me with dull, lifeless eyes… and didn’t even bother to welcome me. Er…
The lunch deal involved choosing two dishes and rice. I got chicken and broccoli, sweet and sour chicken and fried rice. They also over free tea so I decided to grab a cup since it was so chilly that day. After quickly stopping by, I went home to eat it.
Now let me just say… that is a complete waste of money. The chicken and broccoli literally had just ONE piece of broccoli. I wish I paid more attention when they gave me my food… but it’s not like I’d expect such low greenery in my meal?! Come on now.
Sweet and sour chicken was… ok. It was probably out for a couple of hours and it definitely showed. I couldn’t finish ANY of the dishes either. Yes, I was decently hungry but my body didn’t want to waste stomach space by being fill with just empty, dull food…
But hey. You get what you pay for! Just don’t expect much and you’ll be fine.

I’ve been a customer for many years and was so disappointed with my delivery order last night. My shrimp egg roll was nothing more than an egg roll wrapper and a small amount of cabbage, it was basically an empty egg roll. On to the moo shu chicken, the pancakes were dried out cracked and you could not roll them up at all so to the trash can they went. The moo shu was ok but loaded with liquid. The only reason I gave 2 stars was because in the past this place has been pretty good.

I come here time to time when I get the chance. It may seem like a regular Chinese restaurant but it’s definitely better than average. Awesome customer service, the owner is so sweet!
The price makes me very happy too.

If your in the area and need a decent meal quick, drop on by. Food is ready to serve buffet style and the price is good for Manhattan.

The food is authentic american Chinese, reasonably priced and has great service. The lunch buffet is great value but go early as all the delicious veggies go quick.
My favorites: Ox tail stew, Pork stew, Chicken curry with potatoes, the Chinese cabbage with the black mushrooms and general tso chicken They don’t have a huge selection of items if you get there after 1pm (sad face). But veggies tend to be tasty! I get half fried rice half noodles. Yummy
I have ordered delivery as well — much more expensive but more authentic chinese. Loved their soup dumplings, seafood dumplings, AMAZING chicken curry with potatoes, Loved their duck dishes also… Yummy

Definitely a tourist attraction for Chinese people exploring New York because there were like 50 people wearing the same clothes lining up to eat here – the place is so small to take in big groups and could be crowded and loud because of the group tourists. I would say the food was okay. It is cheap, so why expect a high quality?

Both cheap and tasty, Shih Lee Good Eats is a great place to grab a quick lunch! Yesterday, I came here for the first time with a coworker, and I immediately became a fan. Selecting the ma po tofu with a side of white rice and bean sprouts, it was also more than my fill. I’ll definitely be back!

Went there recently to have the Singapore mei fun. It was very salty to point of it being not being eatable.

Been a regular there for a while, cheap and taste fine. But recently, this place seems to focus more on the tourists from China. Just came back from there and saw the owner/​manager showed disgusting attitude towards those sitting there to make room for a group of tourists. Also saw one tourist blowing his nose over the trash bin, which is a couple of feet away from nearest seating table. Another spitting in there. I think I just made my last trip to this place. Sad to see the ruin of such a great lunch place for the employees of nearby UN.

I do love their food and been ordering from them for over 10 years since I moved to Murray Hill area… I know the management has changed since the owners are never there but c’mon…
I ordered few dishes where they gave me an option of changing the rice to fried rice. So I added Vegetable Fried Rice for extra cost.
Vegetable fried rice ingredient consisted of egg and onion… That’s vegetable fried rice? Even the cheaper Chinese take out has more than 2 ingredients!!! I am SHOCKED since you’re not that cheap!!!
Ordered over $ 30.00 and vegetable fried rice was not even vegetable. Maybe you should change that on your menu to say rice with egg…

This review is solely for those who are in the area. specially during week days and looking for a quick seat-​in /​take-​away chinese food for lunch.
Overall I have tried almost every chinese places in this area (since my office is right around the block) — and I would put this one as the CLEANEST and «healthiest».
The Food: Tastes good — less greasy, less oily (compared to the other places around), cheap and there is always a good variety to choose from .
Trivia: The south-​american guy at the counter can speak fluent Chinese !

Bad customer service and mediocre food. Purchased a soda on a Monday but forgot to take it with me. Went back in that Thursday for lunch and told them what had happened, the person in charge chuckled and said «it is Thursday my dear, not Monday!» Not going back :)

Review for delivery on seamless
Food came in a reasonable amount of time and is one of the better places I have ordered from. Definitely will order again. There are so many disappointing Chinese places on seamless but this isn’t one of them. They also give out reasonable portion sizes.

went in for lunch. They have a cafeteria-​style line with limited entrees and sides. Got the mapo tofu and rice combo for about $ 6.50. They weren’t too generous with the mapo tofu, but decent portions overall. I’ll come back for other entrees, but just based on the tofu and the price, it was just… A-​OK.

Love, love, love their Kung Pao Chicken! But they seem to have been closed the last 3 or 4 times I’ve tried to order. Where ARE you Shih Lee?!

I went in at an odd hour, for dinner by myself. I was the only diner in there but they clearly do a big take out business. They were really nice to me and I got a lot of food for pretty cheap. I had really basic American Chinese food dishes — dumplings, wonton soup, chicken and broccoli. Everything was fine if a bit bland. That’s all I was looking for so I was satisfied.

I like Shih Lee because fast, cheap and tasty. Ambiance is meh, so it would be better to order to go if you are alone. It is good to come with friends who doesn’t care about ambiance. However, the seats are very close to each other. When I was eating alone, stranger sit in front of me and my chair and the char of the person who sat next me was hitting each other.
However, $ 7.50 lunch is reasonable in this area. It comes with rice and two entrees. You can choose brown rice, too. It is filling and satisfying for me.

Cheap lunch specials and we got it on the weekend too, unlike a lot of other places!
Nice to see a cheaper Chinese take-​out in this neighborhood that is actually really good! Definitely plan on returning.