Went on 2 separately occasions. First with friends for dim sum, good experience overall but customer service was not so great. Second time around with family for a dinner event, not very good experience on the customer service side. The food is good. Customers service is not very attentive. They will just leave you alone until you need something. Though, you will have to wait for a while to get something done. read more

We were craving beef noodle soup and saw this restaurant with a grand opening sign so we decided to give it a try. Getting seated during dinner time was not a problem and there was ample seating throughout the restaurant. The servers speak mainly Chinese (Taiwanese and another dialect), so Yelp definitely came in handy to look at as we didn't know what some of the dishes were. We got the beef noodle soup and house chicken. We also got the braised pork with rice to-go. The beef noodle soup was tasty. There was lots of tender beef and tendon, bok choy, and fermented sweet mustard greens. Noodles were the traditional thick noodles. (However, I've seen pics on Yelp with more of the round spaghetti-like handmade noodles so wondering if they still serve that). The broth was savory without the mala pepper taste. Overall a very well put together dish. The house chicken was flavorful with bone in chicken. It had a savory soy glaze taste. Overall, these meals remind us of home cooked meals at home so it's a plus! read more

Chef Cho - Beef noodle soup - Taiwanese Near Me - Newark, California

Had few dishes here to do, the diced pork with save over rice were good, the spicy intestines with pork blood was delicious, portion is a bit small but flavorful. Will return!! read more

Honestly, this place has such delicious food. Super friendly service and great pricing. Best of all, piping hot yummy dishes reminiscent of Taiwan. A must try! read more

Chef Cho - So good. Authentic Taiwan night market food. - Taiwanese Near Me - Newark, California

Fried rice was perfect with stirred smell and taste. Stinky Dofu taste crunchy which is good and smelly but it can feel a little bitter flavor at the end. Soup was ok fish inside was really good. As a Taiwanese dishes restaurant here already good enough! read more

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Taiwan chicken fry-4/5 Mapo Tofu-4/5 Sichuan Beef Noodle Soup - 4.5/5 They were very kind and friendly. Would definitely come back again read more

I hold a very high bar for Taiwanese food, so for Bay Area, it's pretty decent. We ordered 4 dishes including tip it's around $60. The Pork chop rice is just ok, the meat is pressed really thin. The owner is very friendly, food service is fast, table plate setting is clean. Stinky tofu was surprisingly good, its stinky but it's not so pungent smell. Overall It's satisfying. read more

Chef Cho - Excellent Stinky Tofu - Taiwanese Near Me - Newark, California

I got a simple braised pork snack to go for late lunch. I went because I had good memories of being at the 六合夜市 in Taiwan. They were really sweet with me and made me feel comfortable for the couple of minutes i was there ordering and waiting. My food came out literally 2 minutes after i ordered it. I didn't expect there to be pork floss, an egg, and some pickled vegetables for such a good price! Those were the best. I was so happy. I think the only thing I wasn't too pleased about was the amount of pork and juice over my rice, but that would probably vary on your visit. Don't expect the fattiest pork either, although it has some good fat pieces. read more

Chef Cho - braised pork over rice - Taiwanese Near Me - Newark, California

Worst Taiwanese restaurant, they have extremely unhygienic kitchen conditions. The restaurant does not maintain cleanliness. The restaurant smells like garbage and stinky tofu is awe-full. I was sick after eating here . Please avoid eating in this restaurant. read more

Came by for dinner the other night and it was a mediocre experience. The restaurant is located in a deserted new mall and we were basically the only table dining for the night... Started off with the oyster pancake which was decent. It was crispy and the sauce was decent. I couldn't find any oysters though... The beef noodle soup was so-so. It was a touch spicy, the noodles were plentiful, but the beef was quite tough... The large pea sprouts with mushrooms and fried tofu was surprisingly decent. The fried tofu was fresh and the large pea sprouts were tasty. Parking was plentiful as the mall was at maybe ~10% occupancy...so was the parking lot... read more

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A bit understaffed, but the staff was friendly. Food great. The oyster pancake was a bit too fishy tasting for me, but maybe that's a matter of personal preference. My friend thought it tasted good. The bathrooms were super smelly. For a place that says grand opening outside, I expected a cleaner bathroom. I took my kid to the men's bathroom and that smelled like a sewer. My wife then took my kid to the women's bathroom and reported that the women's bathroom was better, but still pretty bad. Usually, a dirty bathroom is a huge red flag for me, because it sets the standard at which food is prepared at the establishment. But I give them some benefit of doubt as business is just starting off. Please do better! read more

My first time at Chef Cho, and it was an amazing experience. The employees are very welcoming, and made us feel like we were a family. They answered any questions about the menu and also had great food suggestions. The food were delicious, and I even got to get a dessert drink. Very pleased and definitely will be back. read more

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It's our 1st time to this place and both me and my husband love it. My husband love the spicy Szechuan beef noodles. I had the Oyster meesua and it was good. The eggplant was perfect. Service was excellent and ambiance was ok. They are still in a stage of setting up since it relatively a new place. If you like Asian cuisine, this is the place to go. read more

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We were looking for restaurant that sells stinky tofu and this place came up with the search. We got there at 2, there are no signage of any kind for operating hours and they told us "we are closed" what a let down, they mention they will reopen at 4:30pm so we went to Feng Chai to get tea. When we returned at 4:30, got seated, took their single server a while for service, we order 2 of stinky tofu, 2 of popcorn chicken, oyster pancake and breaded ribs. Nothing stands out about their flavors or presentation, most of it is made in a hurry ( there are only 2 tables in the restaurant) oyster pancake was soggy and oily, popcorn chicken was lack luster, taste very salty even Quickly has better flavor then them. Stinky tofu showed up, the initial impact of smell was okay but quickly dissipate, the sauce it came with is just salty& sweet doesn't have the much needed spicy sauce or hoi sin sauce to accompany, they taste weak also lack luster as far as flavor goes, I got better stinky tofu with the frozen "cheung sar" black Stinky tofu from grocery store. We probably wouldn't go back, the weird part of their outer decor had sushi signage outside of their restaurant, we were like huh Taiwanese place has sushi signage?? That's just cheap and lazy. 2 stars would be a generous rating. read more

Warm, Friendly owners with authentic Taiwanese street food. The food is the same as compared with our recent trip to Taiwan. The stinky tofu, beef cakes, dumplings are as authentic as it gets. There are many items to try. Service is reasonably fast and menu items are English friendly. read more

Location: There are quite a few Chinese/Taiwanese restaurants in nearby plazas, but Chef Cho is located in its own plaza with up and coming/smaller businesses residing in its plaza. Service: My family came by at around 2, and saw that they closed at 2:30 on Yelp. We left a couple minutes after 2:30 but the employees were not pressuring us to leave, which was considerate. We got our food in a timely manner, so no complaints. Being a Taiwanese restaurant, we ordered some Taiwanese street foods. Food ordered: 1. Taiwanese Hot Dog (4/5) - Since the menu has no pictures and little descriptions of dishes, this was an iffy order. This was actually recommended to us by the waitress. The Taiwanese Hot Dog is actually a sweet Taiwanese sausage with a slice of fresh garlic, wrapped with sticky rice that is held together with a fried large intestine casing (which has no flavor as it is just used for holding the rice shape. 2. Stinky Tofu (4/5) - I love stinky tofu. The more the stank, the better. Chef Cho's stinky tofu texture was fabulous, with its crunchy exterior and firm yet delicate interior. Furthermore, the stinky tofu was not too stinky (even though I like a lot of stink), and the sauce was pretty standard. This also comes topped with some pickled veggies, and this is where the -.5 comes in: I felt that the cabbage was overly sour. I love a good pickled veggie, but the cabbage was a little too sour for my liking. 3. Squid Potage Vermicelli (4/5) - This is my Taiwanese mother's must-eat dish whenever we visit Taiwan and its night markets - potage vermicelli. We decided to try the Squid version and it was great just unexpected to me that the squid is not just tossed into the soup, instead more of a squid fish cake mixture shaped into an oblong ball. Consistency wise, the potage was good and similar to those you find in night markets. read more

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Friendly service, good taste! Highly recommend: Hot and sour soup Squid potage noodle Stinky tofu read more

Chef Cho - Taiwanese Near Me - Newark, California

This place offers Taiwanese street food 小吃 and signature dishes. It's located not too far away from Little Taipei and the Marina shopping center, less than half a mile down Warm Springs. There are plenty of parking, especially on the weekend, as there are no other restaurants or entertainment business around. We tried the basil eggplant (4 stars), gua bao (Chinese hamburger with a thick slice of pork belly, ground peanuts and cilantro, 4 stars) and fried intestine stuffed with green onion. Food was pretty good and service is rushed (just like any Chinese restaurant). I will come back with a group of friends to get the stinky tofu dishes read more

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Updates regarding stinky tofu; the stinky tofu is back to their original stinkiness, if not more, which is STINKY-ly GOOD! read more

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I am so happy I found this place! Being Taiwanese I am very picky about my Taiwanese food and I can proudly say this restaurant meets my standards. If you like stinky tofu, this place has the best stinky tofu hands down. Yes it stinks and it's not for the faint hearted but it tastes authentic like you would find in Taiwan night markets. I also recommend the beef noodle soup and the small sausage in big sausage. Usually small sausage in big sausage is a small dish that you can finish in couple bites but this place has the biggest portion I've ever seen, like hotdog size. I can't even finish it all by myself. This restaurant really reminds me of authentic night market foods in Taiwan. They have a diverse menu and lots of delicious dishes. You can tell they pay attention to taste and details when cooking them. read more

Honestly the most authentic Taiwanese food you can find in Bay Area! The service is also top notch. Feels like home. Food came so fast. Everything is so affordable and also high quality. We had six ppl and ordered sooooo much (some are not included in the pictures) but only cost $30 each including tax and service fee. Highly highly recommend!! Will definitely come again! read more

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10/10 food was amazing. We needed something like this in our area. The service was quick and prompt and got our orders quickly. Good came out piping hot and they have stinky tofu hotpot! Most places only have the fried kind. My new go to spot and weekly rotation. read more

Cash only or at least that's what the sign read on 4/19/18. Beef Noodle Soup review only. The parking lot was small and this place was hidden. It was behind the Warm Springs storage and away from plain side when driving on Warm Springs. There was only 1 table with three people there when we came around 8pm on Thursday. My brother and I both ordered the House Special Beef Noodle Soup ($9.95) since we wanted to try this place out just for the beef noodle. There were probably other things that were good on the menu. After a little while later, our food came out. The House Special Beef Noodle Soup was served in a large bowl that would be enough for one person. The broth was flavorful but was piping hot (temperature-wise). The meat was a little tender and the noodles were good. I was full after I finished it. Good beef noodle soup here and hopefully they will be around since their location is a little hidden. read more

Chef Cho - House Special Beef Noodle Soup - Taiwanese Near Me - Newark, California

This is probably one of the best Taiwanese restaurants in the area! Food Pretty much any Taiwanese dish you can think of is probably in the menu, and the seasoning and texture is just right. If you've been Taiwan, the taste will be very familiar. Service The owner is very kind and sweet, but he is mostly the main person serving and taking orders. If there is a lot of people, the wait time could be pretty long. Ambiance Pretty standard looking, nothing offensive or particular about the interior. It's clean so I'm happy with that. Overall If you haven't had this place, I highly recommend trying it if you are looking for some good Taiwanese food! read more

Just fyi I couldn't find the location from this Yelp map. There was no large Chef Cho sign. When looking at the restaurants, it's on the right of golden bear education. Hope you find it! Food was good! read more

Authentic Taiwanese food. Friendly staff and excellent food. Would definitely recommend anyone in the area to try this place.

Service, interior cleanliness, variety of foods: all great. What's just mediocre is the actual food. It's just lukewarm, not totally authentic --feels like a blend of Taiwanese, Chinese, Korean, Panda Express? Was really excited to try given the ratings, but it's only alright. For Taiwanese I'd go to the nearby Harbor House. read more

Chef Cho - Bitter melon soup, pottage soup-good Boiled vegetables, minced pork noodles, sausages, stinky tofu-okay - Taiwanese Near Me - Newark, California

Authentic Taiwaness street food. Every dishes were great except the oyster dishes, that uses frozen oysters, probably there is no fresh oysters available like in Taiwan. The service was superb!! read more

The food is very average. The famous sticky tofu is just ok. The service is good. The waitress is very friendly. The price is average.

I got the short end of the stick because my servers were deceptive and not very attentive. I ordered the rice cake cooked in a barrel, Taiwanese hanburger, and beef noodle soup ...otherwise known as numbers 1, 14, and 79 on their current menu. I've had better beef noodle soup. The noodles were soggy, my guess is they diluted the ingredients or were too busy multi-tasking to notice the volume of water. There broth and meat itself lacked flavor, I could only taste the spices. I've never had the hanburger before, but no complaints. Bread and pork. Nice appetizer if you're planning to share dishes. They serve this dish in twos. Unlike previous photos, my rice cake cooked in a barrel was not served in such shape. My server set the plates down and left promptly. I manage to get her attention to return to my table and asked what this rice dish is. Server: this is rice cake cooked in a barrel Me: are you sure? this is not a barrel. Server: this is rice cake cooked in a barrel Me: but it's not a barrel Server: *irritated* this is rice cake cooked in a barrel A proper explanation of "yes, I apologize that our chef couldn't locate the proper instruments today but these are the ingredients for the appetizer" would've suffice rather than an attitude. read more

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Stinky Tofu is stinky Would come again when crave for it. Ordered a plate to dine in and order to-go. Air fried the order at home and the hole house stank. Next time would just eat it there. read more

Delicious Taiwanese street food served in a casual bistro. The servers and staff are all very friendly and make you feel at home, and indeed it has the feel of a family owned, hole in the wall shop. We especially like the male waiter, he so skillfully puts you at ease. I come here often for their fried stinky tofu, the best in the Bay Area! It pairs so well with the pickled cabbage it comes with. Every time I come I try to bring people with me to introduce them to this low-key but excellent local small business. I got my dad hooked on their Gao Bao, or Taiwanese hamburger, he says it tastes just like the ones he had in National Taiwan University! You can ask for the sweet peanut sprinkle on the side. They offer a large menu so there is always something new to try out, but my go-to is always the street snacks section and the stinky tofu, as that is their specialty. read more

Very bad experience. Food smelled bad when it arrived to the table and I continued thinking it's just the smell of the food but the meat was rotten. I stopped eating, paid for my food and left. Do not eat here read more

Tucked away in a small retail shopping center in the middle of an industrial district is the new reincarnation of Liu He now called Chef Cho. The new restaurant is much bigger but the interior decor is still a basic Chinese restaurant and is hard to find. The menu is Taiwanese cuisine. I think the food has improved since the last time we dined in the old San Jose location. We ordered the following items: Ban Wan 4 stars Oyster pancake 2 stars small the only miss of the five items we ordered. Salt and Pepper Chicken with fried basil leafs 5 stars excellent Fish cake 3 stars decent very basic Squid pottage with rice vermicelli 4 stars huge bowl very good Being newly opened there is plenty of room for improvement. At least the food is good. There was only one server who was overwhelmed serving 7 tables. Cash only. Lots of parking in the empty center. read more

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Chef Cho (formerly Liu He Snacks in San Jose) takes over the space of Q Cafe in Fremont. I heard that Q Cafe, which served Dim Sum, recently shut down and was taken over by a Taiwanese tapas style restaurant. I went to try it out on a Thursday afternoon (12:30ish), and the place was packed! I put my name on the waiting list, but after 15 minutes, I decided to try it out the next day -- only earlier. Good sign that the place was busy. So I returned Friday a little after 11 -- I was the first guest. I was seated, and the waitress serving me was friendly and helpful. She explained that it was now a Taiwanese restaurant which opened 3 weeks ago. I went with the Yelp suggestions and ordered the Sticky Rice in a barrel, Oyster Pancakes, Taiwanese Hamburger (Gua Bao), and Dry Sautéed String Beans. As my dishes came out in relatively rapid succession, people started coming in. By the time I left, the place was packed again. The food was good. Since I had never been to the San Jose location, I don't know how it was there. But based on how my food tasted and the bustling crowds coming to have lunch, I'd say this place is worth checking out. I'll be back to explore more of their menu items. read more

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I won't drive over 40 min to this restaurant anymore, since they stop serving sticky tofu, which the reason it brought me here the first place. Dame read more

The food has been consistently good on our visits although not quite to elder parent-approval levels but good for my ABC tastes The service this time was really slow as we came on a Monday holiday and seems they were staffed up only expecting usual Monday lunch traffic and the place was packed. The poor lady manager was running things solo the best she could but rarely able to leave the cash register as the line for to-go orders was often 57 people long thru the lunch rush. We ended up grabbing an order check ad writing our own order and bringing it to her to send into the kitchen Even then our lunch took two hours:(. So this time lost a star. Ambience is actually very warm and welcoming and many guests are regulars Some even helped help refill tea for other tables as well as get cups and to go boxes when the manager was overwhelmed. It wasn't until mid lunch hour that two other staff members showed up to help alleviate some pressure. But throughout all this, the customers stayed patient and the overall restaurant was clam and pleasant. Will still return as I think it was a one-off situation But it is a small family run biz and so keep in mind it's more likely to occur on holidays. read more

So sad this place closed! I wish I had the chance to eat here more. Husband and I ate here for our first wedding anniversary. He was planning, asked what I wanted, and I told him to surprise me. We came on a Sunday night and I was pleasantly surprised (especially since he's not a huge fan of Taiwanese food!) We ordered - house special beef noodle soup - cumin lamb - hakka stir fry - stir fried water spinach with garlic Everything came out quickly and was very authentic and tasty. Service was great--the waitress was quick to address any needs we had, refill our tea, etc. She was particularly friendly once she found out I grew up in Taiwan. There was a good number of people in the restaurant but the waitresses were able to manage them all well, from what I saw. Again, I'm sad this place closed...goodbye Chef Cho *sniff* read more

Absolutely delicious home cooked style food! I highly recommend keeping the stinky tofu on the menu. I was searching for something unique to try and stumbled upon this gem. Although I was initially hesitant due to the lack of customers, it could be that I came in very close to closing time. My friend convinced me to give it a chance. We ordered the beef noodle, stinky tofu, and oyster pancake, and every bite was a delightful treat. I'm glad I found this gem. I will be back with more of my friends. read more

Authentic food made well. Friendly owner. Tables are spaced well so you don't need to fight for elbow room. Price is low considering how big of the portion you get! Only thing to complain about is it's too far from home so we don't get to come more often read more