Little Chef Chinese Fast Food

Well its been almost 3 years since my last review of Lil Chef. Nothing has really changed, why change anything when it is working to perfection right? The only change I see is it looks like the containers got smaller and portions did a little bit too. But, they still are pretty generous with the portions. The staff for the most is the same. Same chinese cook and the two main chinese ladies up front. I did see a new face up front on my last visit.
The prices are still good and the food quality is still good. I still think this is one of the best fast food chinese restaurants in San Jose. I live in the Blossom/​Almaden area and I gladly drive to Campbell to get me some Chinese food. It is almost always busy any day of the week. One tip is to get there by 7:30 if going for dinner. By this time they have reloaded all their dishes or are in the process of reloading. Usually after 8 they don’t refill empty trays. They still have one of my favorite hot and sour soups. Over all they are still very good and haven’t dropped their standards in quality. Check it out sometime and happy dining !!!

Super fast which is nice. The house chicken is delicious! I’d come back here just to have more of it. The chicken fried rice was good but sadly it was pretty dry. Have yet to try anything else. Bring cash to avoid the $ 1.25 fee for cards.

My go to place for fast Chinese food, cheap.

My roommate and I always go here before we go study at Starbucks. It’s this Chinese fast food restaurant whose exterior looks like it should’ve been a burrito place. Or maybe it was that originally.
I think I like it better than Panda Express (Panda is my favorite Chinese food, I’m sorry lmao). I usually get half chow mein/​fried rice with mushroom chicken and the house chicken. The house chicken is really good, kinda reminds me of this Filipino dish called tocino. It’s got a sweet flavor to it. Although it’s good here, I wouldn’t recommend eating this often as it is hella greasy… and prolly not good for you LOL.
They give really huge portions for a cheap price. If you ever stop by, remember to bring cash since it’s cash only! Don’t be afraid to sample all the things they serve to make sure you like them!

This food is horrific. Undercooked chicken, mushy egg rolls complete with oily chow mein. Not to mention the register can only process whole dollar amounts for debit cards, be prepared to get charged $ 10 for food poisoning. Go to 7 – 11 acrossvthe atreet instead Id trust 711’s egg sandwiches over this catastrophe of a «restaurant».

The portion sizes here is out of control! U get so much food for really cheap. They broccoli chicken is my favorite! That what I only go for!!!

I was dropping off my rent check, and had driven past Little Chef so many times. I was curious to try it out, knowing it wouldn’t be amazing, but I am a sucker for low-​quality, fast food Chinese. So long as it is good.
The place does have a lot of options, which is a nice feature. It’s not 4 steamer trays, and instead about 4 different options per meat: chicken included five spice, generals, honey; And looking at the pictures, I just realized I could have gotten half and half noodles and rice.
But the food was meh. I know, you get what you pay for and this place is designed as quick and cheap, but I was hoping for it to be like House of Eggroll — cheap, hole in the wall, but questionably delicious. Not so much here.

Food is good, but gives me stomache ache everytime the past 4 times. Finally decided to stop going here. Maybe you guys have a better day than me, but 4 in a row must mean something’s wrong with the food. Even my friends who ate here 1ST time immediately have bad tummy ache. nature calls everytime eating here. Need some better chefs who can prepare food that are more sanitizing to ones health.

This is quick and always very polite service. Not great Chinese food. And seems a bit on the pricey side for what it is.

If you come to Little Chef without high expectations, you might be pleasantly surprised with what you find. Let me explain.
This is not by any means great Chinese food. But it’s fast food, and really inexpensive considering the portions which are large. But it’s not going to blow you away. There are a couple of hits at counter, but more misses.
But it doesn’t suck. So if you are craving quick cheap Chinese food, what the hell… it’s worth a shot. Hot/​Sour soup is pretty dope.

For ‘fast food,’ just as the name suggests, this would definitely be a place to go. The food does not look super appetizing, but the taste is OK. The chow mein and rice were pretty dry, but again, it is OK. It is $ 6.35 for an entrée with three dishes, but take note that one of those dishes is the chow mein or steamed rice. I chose half and half, so that still counted as one. I also got orange chicken and it was a little soggy. Would have been better with more flavoring and more crispiness to it, but again, it’s ‘fast food,’ so you take what you can get! The house chicken was good, but kind of like the same situation with the orange chicken. Lacked a little flavor, and the chicken tasted a little elastic.
Three stars because well, it’s fast food, so you automatically can’t expect gourmet here. The lady helping us was nice though and she was quick with preparing our dish for us. For that, we were grateful, but then we took the dish to go. It’s a small establishment, so plan accordingly in case you’re banking on getting a seat inside the restaurant. Parking isn’t terrible either. It’s just enough — there were a few spots open still when we parked. This was a visit on the weekend. Would I be back? Probably if I was really craving a nearby chinese food place, otherwise, probably not. The mushroom chicken looked good though!

Food is decent. It’s not amazing, but it’s your regular Chinese food. The amount of food for the price is pretty good! The service is okay, except there is a worker there who is just flat out rude sometimes. Maybe it’s just her facial expressions or she just hates working there. Either way, I try not to let it bother me that she can’t put a smile on her face. Oh well, I get my food and I get out. There isn’t much seating anyways.

Hole-​in-​the-​wall fast food joint with tasty food and generous portions. Under $ 10 for two entrees, fried rice, an egg roll and Thai iced tea. Order at the counter and eat at the tables. Always seems to be busy. It’s like a much more authentic version of a Panda Express — and I think the food tastes better.

I like this place for the price and sesame balls! I can’t say much for the service or variety. If you get there within an hour of closing your choices will be even more limited. Eh. You get a lot of food for the low price.

PARKING they have a small lot that can often get full
SERVICE not very desirable but fast and sufficient enough
FOOD AMAZING
I eat here at least twice a month my favorites are the Chinese chicken salad; nothing special, pretty plain and really good.
Chow mein; spaghetti sized noodles, not like that panda express crap. Mostly noodles and little vegetables.
Fried rice; one of the best, not too greasy and the right amount of vegetables
House chicken; not breaded in a sweet sauce
BBQ ribs, sweet sauce coated pork pieces
Beef n broccoli; always fresh, NOT all fat meat, great flavor

Love the Honey BBQ Ribs! Full dinner for under $ 6.00!
They only take cash but you can also use their ATM FOR CASH.
Last hour they are open they run out of some entrée items.

I’m not the greatest fan of Chinese food but the place give huge portions for $ 7! Definitely a place to go. I got half chow mein and rice, the house chicken, and beef broccoli. I really enjoyed my dinner and when I brought it to school people kept asking me where I got the good from. Everything really looked good and again I’m a huge fan of the portions they provide.

Let’s face it, alright guys? Some people have weaker stomachs or minds, and can’t handle all the flavor that is Little Chef. The LC faithful know how amazing it is here. Everything here is delicious. The prices here have been raised lately, but you can still get a meal almost big enough to feed two people for under $ 7.
Sometimes it feels like the staff are just here too do their job, and that’s fine. I come here for lunch, not to make friends.
They really don’t hold back when scooping their food into your tray. They give you plenty of food, unlike Panda Express, who will shake food out of their serving spoon to give you less.
The biggest downside is that they really only accept cash, because using card is a hassle here, and comes with a fee. That’s why ⁷⁄₁₁ was invented. It’s right across the street, and they do cash back, so you can get yourself a drink too.
Favorite vary between Five Flavor Chicken, House Chicken, Orange Chicken, Beef Broccoli, Honey Barbecue Ribs, Mongolian Beef, Schezuan Chicken and Kung Pow Chicken. Egg rolls here are good too. Told you everything was good haha. I usually stick with half and half streamed and fried rice. And if you want a good Thai Iced Tea, they have that here too.
Panda Express is garbage, btw.

when im around valley fair. i usually stop by this place for their thai tea. its the one that is homemade and not the can one. for $ 1.75, you can spare that change to try it out
$ 6 i think… is for their 2 sides combo which is sooo much cheaper than panda express. if you are trying their food, make sure to give the spicy ribs a try. i usually like eating that with plain white rice

We live just a few blocks away from here.
When we’re in the mood for some quick Chinese food, we usually drive over here.
I do enjoy coming here. The food is good and it’s pretty affordable. The give a nice size serving for each entrée as well.
I would give 5 stars, but when you order something with veggies (broccoli beef) you will get 99% broccoli. No joke. I’ve gotten this twice and it happened the same.
I will say that the following are yummy.
1. Mushroom Chicken– Distributed evenly, lots of yummy mushrooms!
2. Orange Chicken– Good and tangy.
3. Kung Pao Chicken– Spicy with lots of zucchini
4. BBQ Spare Ribs– Very good, they also have a spicy version that always seems to be running low
5. Chow Mein– Lots of thick noodles
6. Fried Prawns– Nice, big, hot and juicy
7. Thai Iced Tea– Pre-​mixed, but tasty other wise.
TIPS:
CASH ONLY
If you’re ordering anything meat & veggie, expect mostly veggie.
Parking lot is tiny, Can get busy around lunch/​dinner time.