Thought I'd already reviews this place. Been coming here years when I'm in the area. Is it gourmet? No. That's not what the 5 stars is about. No. It meets all expectations for a cheap (that's not a bad thing) Chinese restaurant. Now on the exceptional side is the hot and sour soup. Don't miss that. read more

Best Chinese food in Scott's Valley & the Santa Cruz Mountains! Highly recommend the spicy wontons, orange beef & shrimp fried rice. This place is consistently delicious every time we go. Nice wait staff & food comes out pretty fast. We prefer dining in but they do a ton of to go orders too. read more

Food always tastes great but a bit oily. Well, it's Chinese food so what would you expect lol. My favorite here is the garlic chicken and the General chicken. Authentic tasting! And of course, the hot and sour soup. Plenty of parking and a good space inside the restaurant. Staffs are all friendly and nice too! I'd been here so many times and everyone looks familiar now lol. read more

I have driven by this restaurant for years. I never tried it. I don't know why. I should have. My first time here and it was excellent. The service was great. The young server was very attentive and he came to the table with the best attitude. We had special requests and he handle every single one with a smile on his face. The restaurant was cozy and clean. Loved the lighting fixtures. Now, about the food. Absolutely delicious! Great flavor, large pieces of meat and vegetables. They don't skimp. The plates of food were huge! I ate on my leftovers three times. We got the lunch menu, priced just right for the huge portions you get. You get soup with lunch, we got hot and sour. It was a little spicy and I loved it. A little egg roll also on the plate. I will be going back to eat in and get take out. Wonderful service and food! read more

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Scamming customers I called today and placed an order for 5 items. I asked what the total was before I hung up. She said $98!!! I added up the cost of each dish and after sales tax was added (9.75%)the total was $83.15 When I questioned her about the high cost she couldn't give me a straight answer; mumbling something I couldn't understand about taxes. I canceled my order. That's just ridiculously expensive. I'll drive the extra few miles into Santa Cruz now for Chinese food read more

Food is truly delicious. I'm their new fan, service is amazing. Plates are big enough to feed a very hungry human read more

Chef Liu is the best Chinese food in the area!!!!! The staff is always friendly and the food is always the best. Quality has been consistent for a decade! My family has been eating here since I was little and it continues to be my fav! read more

Locals know! Always great food and portions! Their in house hot mustard will make you cry with flavor and HEAT lol!!

In one word: MEH. In a few words: Overpriced, Over-rated, Somewhat Underwhelming. Yet friendly. Quite friendly. And more clean than not. A few surprises that didn't outweigh the fails. In many words: The way to rate (American) Chinese Food restaurants is by the BBQ Pork Fried Rice, General Tso's Chicken, Fried Wontons, Wonton Soup, and the BBQ Pork Chow Mein - all nearly universal dishes that can be easy to screw up, yet lend themselves to customization and variety. We got all of these at Chef Liu and I can say that most were underwhelming, especially for the price. But not all. To be fair, there are a couple of exceptions: The Fried Wontons ($8.95) - They may seem a bit pricey, but they are rather large and you get TEN of them. They are very light and crispy and delicious (because they are light, they are less greasy than the average Fried Wonton). I would have enjoyed to have them with a Tsingtao beer - the perfect beer to pair with (American) Chinese Food - but they charge something like $6.75 for a regular sized bottle. Shame. Would've been a good combo. I give the Wontons four-and-a-half stars out of five. The BBQ Pork Fried Rice ($14.95) - For this price, we got an average/expected portion of what contained the minimum amount of BBQ pork to be legally called "BBQ Pork Fried Rice." There was even less scrambled egg, no green onion, and there was a sprinkling of frozen peas and carrots (which was a good thing: common in fried rice, but I consider them an amateur move - what I'd call "the useless colorful stuff I have to pick out of the fried rice"). This was the most expensive/"least BBQ pork" BBQ Pork Fried Rice I've ever had. If their fried rice was a pie chart: it would be entirely ivory white, with a tiny tiny maroon slice that was the BBQ pork, a tinier yellow slice that is egg, and two slightly larger green and orange slices that were the b*&%$#!t peas and carrots. One star out of five: if it were like half the price, I'd show some mercy. The General Tso's Chicken ($17.50) - A good portion justified some of the price. Seemed to be a combo of light and dark meat (don't listen to the health critic whiners - for General Tso's, go dark meat or go home). Crispy: yes. Flavorful: yes. Cooked: over cooked, to the point of being chewy/stringy (you shouldn't have to floss after eating chicken). Flavorful and crispy, but on its way to being chicken jerky. Three stars out of five (flavor saved you, Chef). The Wonton Soup ($14.75 for Small) - A normal small portion of Wonton Soup, at about 50% more than the average price (they charged what most charge for a large... Marge). Around 7-8 expected wontons. Vegetable volume was good. The broth itself was pretty flavorless - the wontons and the vegetables alone don't turn hot water into broth. The broth should be a beautiful canvas or pedestal to showcase the wontons and the vegetables and to also compete with them, not a liquid that simply allows you to technically call something a "soup." Which is the one-and-a-half point loss. Three-and-a-half out of five stars. Go broth or go home... or charge much less. The (BBQ) Pork Chow Mein (Noodles) ($15.95) - A normal portion of Chow Mein. The missing volume of BBQ pork in our fried rice can be explained by the abundance of it in the Chow Mein (which is a GOOD thing - let the pork abound!); it was very flavorful, the noodles were BETTER than average, and the BBQ pork was tender and tasty (sorry we didn't get to enjoy it in the Fried Rice). Four stars out of five (penalty for the price being around 25% higher than it should be). Tried to end this on a win for Chef Liu. ...but there are too many better and less expensive places around here. I understand that such things as Irritable Bowel Syndrome or a potential Parole Violation might limit someone's ability to travel farther to find better quality (and cheaper) Chinese Food, but there are LITERALLY TWO other (American) Chinese Food restaurants which are better and/or less expensive within WALKING DISTANCE of Chef Liu. Mic drop. I'm done. "It is just as important to know what is not good to eat as what is good to eat." -- Stupid Fake Fortune Cookie Fortune I Made Up read more

Chef Liu makes excellent Hunan Beef! Also, the sizzling rice soup with the tomato base is my go-to when sick food. The combo chow mein is also very good! Try it, you'll love it!! read more

We stopped in last night for dinner and were really excited to try this tasty Chinese food. The service is really fantastic (very friendly and welcoming). We ordered the egg flower soup (yum), clay pot special, and kung pao shrimp. Everything was prepared well and we enjoyed our dinner! We will happily dine here again soon! read more

Chef Liu - clay pot special - Chinese Near Me - Scotts Valley, California

Love this place. Classic family choice for Chinese food in Scott's valley. Great service. A little pricier now, but what restaurant isn't with inflation? read more

Limited parking when they're busy. You can park across the street at a pretty empty office plaza. The interior is perfect for someone that wants to eat alone or have an extremely casual meal with your s/o. This is not a place where you expect good service and good vibes so I would avoid bringing family or friends here. They were busy with take out orders during lunch and around 12:30PM there were 2 tables dining in. The lady there who was not the owner was very kind and busy making sure everyone was getting their orders. Their fried rice was just okay. Not bad but not good. On this day the food was pretty bland but I guess it's better than being too salty. read more

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Fast takeout and tasty. We have been getting food from here for many years. Nice family business.

Food-awesome, especially the hot and sour. Wonderful service, quiet 'ambiance '. Love this place. Ask for Josh or Michael, but all are wonderful read more

Food was good. When I went to grab the soy soice, the bottle was sticky. But I didn't let that ruin my meal. However, when they brought the check, the check holder they brought it in was filthy!!! I didn't want to touch it. See pics. I have to think that if they're not wiping down the dining room, they're probably not wiping down the kitchen. read more

Chef Liu - Check holder - Chinese Near Me - Scotts Valley, California

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Disappointed with the steep increase in pricing. Even more disappointing, they were dinged on their health report.

Chef Liu is the best Chinese food in the county. Fight me. Their Hunan Beef is truly unique and is an absolute must try if you've never had it before. The interior is a bit dated and the flatware is, too. But the quality of the food more than makes up for it. Their Chow Fun and their spicy dumplings are also amazing. Always friendly and fast service. I can't recommend this local gem more. Try it. You'll love it. read more

Middle of day very slow. Hidden gem. Food excellent, wait staff exceptional. Very friendly. Went out of their way to please. Grneral Tso chicken and Mongolian Beef were perfect as were the egg tolls, pot stickers and fried rice. Way too much food but took home to eat thru week. Would definitely return. read more

We don't have many food varieties in town. Chef Liu is our favorite Chinese food. They have the standard chinese food menu. They have a large variety to choose from. The Beef Chow Fun is really good. I have recently discovered the Salt & Pepper Spare Ribs. OMG, it's so perfectly salty and the texture is perfectly crunchy! I end up ordering this dish and munching on it like a snack. I can't get enough of it. I love the mixture of jalapeno and bell peppers also. This place is also my usual go-to for ordering large party trays of food for parties. I have received so many compliments on the food at parties. They have also accommodated my request for delivery. They delivered the food at the specified time, so your guests get to enjoy fresh cooked food! They have delivered to my house, as well as when I had the party at Siltanen park. I am grateful they are so flexible. read more

How does this place stay in business? The dining room is filthy. It's always been filthy. The tables are greasy and littered with the food from the last diner. In 5 years not one window has been washed and the curtains are yellowed. My son asked us to stop in tonight because one of his teen friends said it was "pretty good". Guess what... it isn't. I ate a simple veggie dish with white rice and my son ordered the Sweet & Sour Chicken. Two hours later and both of our stomachs are churning. I have a feeling it's going to me a long night. Shame on me for trying to give a dirty restaurant the benefit of the doubt. Don't eat here. And if you're a cleaning service, give them a call. They need your help. read more

Excellent, Excellent, Excellent!!! We've been coming here for years and it's always been exceptional good! The family that runs it are all super nice (and Josh too!) They always recognize my voice on the phone and dishes come out quickly after ordering. LOVE this place!!! read more

The special fried rice and sweet and sour pork was delicious. The beef and broccoli, special chow mein and sweet and sour chicken was mediocre. read more

This is our #2 spot to get our craving Chinese food. Great staff and food. Good spot and has parking in the back! Only minutes from shopping, post office and more. We recommend this spot to all our friend's neighbors and family. read more

There are a LOT of Chinese restaurants in Scotts Valley and we have our favorite. I was here the other day because that favorite is closed on Sundays. The food was tasty but didn't compare with our standard over by the theaters ;) The hot and sour soup was all broth. Although they were able to make it spicy (our favorite doesn't do spicy) there was no chunks, it was just OK. To top it off, there was a huge chunk of egg shell in the soup, not good... Flavor was good but lacked the chunks and biting into a surprise egg shell is no fun ;( We also had the potstickers which were quite good. Our order was to go and they don't realize that the steaming in the box effect doesn't help them stay crispy, ugh. I think these would be better in the restaurant. Like I mentioned we have a lot of Chinese options is Scotts Valley and this place is NOT my favorite. Give'em a try and decide for yourself! read more

The server sat us right away and then promptly returned to our table with water and plates. 5 minutes after our order was taken, the food started showing up. We got broccoli beef, lemon chicken, pork fried rice, chicken chow mein and potstickers. All of the dishes were excellent. This was our first time here. Amazing service and wonderful food. We will be back! read more

Service was fast and friendly! Food was not good. The chicken and pork was not prepared right, lots of unchewable and tough pieces, gristle and skin. Dumplings were bland and watery. It all tasted like poor quality. We got take out so I can't speak to the ambiance. I came here years ago (like 10yrs) and I remember it being good and loved by locals. So disappointed to waste food but we couldn't finish it, it was that bad. read more

Being a well traveled person from East coast to west born in the midwest and lived in the South. This is by far THE WORST food I've ever eaten. I can't even call it Chinese food. . I'll take hospital surgery food over this any day. Rice which people reviewed as great and fluffy tasted like the inside of a refrigerator you know that couple day old taste possible freezer burn. Tasted bland and just weird. . Wings haha scrapes of mystery boned meat with no bones but did have great crunch. . Tasted old like been sitting in the freezer past their prime. . Egg rolls were egg rolls not bad but not great. . And for a whopping 30 bucks it all went in the trash after 3 bites. . 1 star cause they did make amends. $ back read more

Chef Liu - Chinese Near Me - Scotts Valley, California

I gave the second star because of kindness. She let me use her iPhone charger. I love quality Chinese food and would pay for it with no problem. I ordered the Chinese chicken salad and it was awful. Deep-fried pieces of chicken that were very chewy and large pieces of iceberg lettuce. No chopped peanuts and it was flavorless. I also ordered the house chow fun. Every single piece of meat in it was obviously frozen and very hard to chew. I am so disappointed. I hope they improve their quality of food. read more

I will not be returning to this restaurant, though it saddens me. Food is great. Service is HORRENDOUS! The lanky man--rather small child masquerading as a man-- behind the register has serious issues. I've been in before and found his service quite pleasant, albeit a bit off-putting. However, boy did someone have his panties in a twist tonight! My sweet 60 year old mother, who has been battling cancer for the past few months, ordered some soup for takeout. I went in to pick up said soup, and waited patiently while this dude rolled his eyes at another customer on the phone. When he was through, he decided it would be a good idea to tell me that my mother was very annoying. I was unsure what to say, but then he proceeded to rant about how she asked too many questions and only ended up ordering one soup. For context, she asked three simple questions about the soup ingredients--and as she is recovering from a major surgery, she has to be careful. Regardless, I've worked in customer service for a number of years, and am at least 20 years younger than this fellow. Yes, customers can be annoying. But THIS IS YOUR JOB. THIS IS THE LIFE PATH YOU CHOSE. Would it have really been so difficult to keep your thoughts to yourself for one literal minute, while I paid for soup? Well, tiny, sad man, I hope it was worth it. You must be sad. Because, with the energy that you're putting out into the world, you're asking for misery. I hope you can learn to look inward, get some therapy, and act like a real adult. I hope you find happiness. And I hope you get something nice for yourself with that $0.00 tip :-) read more

Came here for lunch for our friends birthday and it was a treat! I had the black bean beef and it was the best black bean dish I have ever had. The vegetables were perfectly cooked, which is rare when meat and veg are cooked together. They still had some crisp, there were onions, green beans, bell pepper, and zucchini. Such a flavorful and satisfying dish. The lunch menu items are a large portion and the waitress was so helpful and kind to us. My kids asked her so many questions. read more

The food is so good and everyone there is so friendly and helpful , if you're in the mood for a tasty dinner definitely give Chef Liu a go!

I love this restaurant. a family own and run. All are very happy to see and feed you great food. The vegetables have always been fresh and crisp. Orders are filled quickly and hot. I will be coming back for more, just like I have been. Go try them for yourself read more

This is always a family favorite for us. Love the soups and cream cheese wontons! Friendly and fast service.

The service for the food was quick. It was reasonably priced and a quiet place. The customer service was very good and the food had great pot portions. The rice had a nice smokey flavor, and their sauce was very tasty. They had large portions, too. read more

Chef Liu is a nice little neighborhood restaurant that's doing everything right; almost. The service was friendly, attentive and spectacular in all ways. One downside is that the menu has not taken vegan & vegetarian diners into consideration. To my delight the staff there created a custom dish for me that was fantastic. The tofu-eggplant stir-fry that Chef Liu concocted was out of this world. There's a photo of this dish included with my Yelp tip for Chef Liu. They should really add it to the menu. It's disappointing that this restaurant has yet to offer vegan mock meat proteins. Products from Gardein, Beyond Meat, Yves & Tofurkey are available in bulk from restaurant suppliers. It'd be easy for the restaurant to get the new ingredients as well. Vegan vegi-protein crumbles are similarly easy to find. Places like Chopstix in Felton offer vegan Chinese options currently. It's not a stretch to have these available in this day and age. In case the business owner/manager reads this review I've supplied a link to a resource that explains exactly how to get these veggie protein bits: The full list of restaurant suppliers is on page 17 here: http://www.mercyforanimals.org/VRGFRNational.pdf Felton & Scotts Valley have a lot of vegetarians. Please appeal to us by revising your menu with an alternative outside of simple tofu. read more

Chef Liu - Custom vegetarian eggplant dish. It's not in menu but they'll still make it for you - Chinese Near Me - Scotts Valley, California

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Normally, I write pretty long reviews. But here I have no great story of awesomeness to relate, nor any tragedy to tell of. In Santa Cruz, let's face it, the Chinese food is terrible. Chef Liu has emerged as the best option. Their food is possibly above average, generally, and way above average for Santa Cruz Chinese food. So, if you are looking for great Chinese... you will need to look a lot harder. That said, you won't find it, so I'd recommend you just enjoy Chef Liu. It's my go-to place for Chinese in the area. Because of the pandemic, it's all take-out for now, but no lower quality as a result (unlike *some* local Chinese restaurants that I will not name here...) and I'm grateful for that as well. They are good. Support them. They have good food and are soldiering on in difficult times. I'm glad they are here. read more

I've been eating at Chef Liu for the most part during the pandemic. My boyfriend and I loves the chicken chow mein , I love the potstickers, we also love the the cream cheese rangoons . As for our meat we usually try something new each time we do take out. Definitely recommend Chef Liu. read more

Came here with my best friend who lives in Scotts Valley. At first I was a bit skeptical of this restaurant because the building looked very run down but she kept saying that it was the best Chinese restaurant ever. I gave it a shot and came here with her and I am so glad I did! The chicken chow mien and the fried rice are delicious! The food came out in less than 10 minutes after we ordered. My only complaint is that the chairs were very uncomfortable. Other than that, the food was delicious and the service was great! read more

Food is delicious. Flavors are intriguing. Textures are spot-on. Quantity is quite generous. Service is charming and efficient.