After being ranked 4th among Yelp's Top 50 Most Prolific Elites of 2025, a distinction recognizing…read moremy consistent community engagement and high-quality contributions, I decided that this year, as an All-Star Yelp Elite, I not only wanted to be the first to discover new restaurants and businesses, and bring them to the attention of the public, but also to go back and write follow-up reviews on those restaurants that impressed me the most during 2025, and Cafe Asia 2, in Roanoke, Virginia, is a perfect example of one of them. This Asian fusion restaurant in the Cave Spring area of Roanoke, is definitely one of my favorite restaurants of all times. And my first visit and review is something that I will always hold very dear. When you finish reading this review I invite you to go back and read that review and view my photographs accompanying that review, for it was a very unique dining experience that I will never forget. From the time you arrive at this restaurant the contemporary building design seems to beckon you to approach and enter. I love their unique logo design made up of letters and a number of a particular font that communicates a certain air of distinction. Once inside, you're like in another world altogether. If the outside of the building was impressive, the interior immediately captures your attention and mesmerizes you with it's beauty. When I arrived today, a very lovely and distinguished lady, dressed very elegantly, welcomed me and led me to the table of my choice. Later did I find out that she was the owner of the restaurant, and I had an opportunity of talking with her about the restaurant, its Sushi Bar, and Sushi chefs. Soon after, my friendly server, who was from Indonesia, came to introduce himself and take my order. To drink I had a Vietnamese Iced Coffee. It was served in a tall glass and tasted marvelous. As appetizer, I had the Dim Sum Platter. It contained 3 shrimp dŕhumai, 3 pork dumplings, 3 pork wasabi shumai, and 2 roasted pork buns. One of those items was extremely spicy, I had to drink water to cool down. The others tasted reasonably good. As my main entrée I had the Lobster Tail Tempura Maki. It was very colorful and tasted, and completely filled me up. My original server did an excellent job serving me the food and coming by to check on me. But then he disappeared and another server, also Indonesian came to bring me my main entrée. I think it might have been a shift change, but feel the first server should have let me know about this fact. But if the first server wad excellent, the second was amazing. He answered all the questions I had about items on the menu, and while delivering special dishes to other customers, he allowed me to photograph this food for the benefit of the readers of this review. Then, at the end, he helped me choose the dessert to have for the Grand Finale of my meal: the Banana Basket. It was amazingly delicious and had slices of bananas, kiwi, mangos, whipped cream, and strawberries. And topped with caramel and chocolate sauces. Considering its friendly and relaxing ambiance, its extensive menu with a wide range of Asian dishes, from traditional Chinese entries to a full sushi bar with raw and cooked options, and its amazing customer service, I definitely highly recommend this restaurant from my own experience. Every time I've dined there I've had an exceptional fine dining experience, and as I'm leaving I'm already looking forward to returning.

Everything we had from here was flavorful, hot & delicious! The restaurant inside is beautifully…read moredecorated, it wasn't crowded when we arrived at 5:40pm on a Monday evening. They were doing a heck of a carry out business, and know I know why. My husband had the wonton soup - he must of enjoyed them because I didn't get to try them, however that broth - oh my delicious- I finished that - easily. I had an order of the crab wontons - mostly cream cheese tasting - wish there was a bit more crab/shrimp, overall tasty. We shared our first hot pot - ribeye, carrots, peppers, stewed tomatoes served with your choice of rice - we chose the fried. Our shrimp tempura roll was yummy! Oh and we also each had a strawberry sangria although they do have other cocktails - I totally missed out on a screwdriver but the sangria was good too. Service was excellent- very nice people. Look forward to returning in the future!

Was passing through town and went here for dinner. It was great! Food was fresh, it was steadily…read morecoming out of the kitchen. Everything was hot and tasted really good. Everything was really clean and checked on regularly. Service was nice and attentive. The restaurant really did fill up as the night went on. Definitely would recommend this restaurant!

This place was just down from where we stayed. The first night we passed by on our way to another…read moreplace but noticed lots of cars and thought it must be good. The next day we saw lots of cars again and thought the same thing. This place was very clean and the food was fresh. You don't see many buffets with egg foo young on them. It had the gravy to add and was really good. Green beans were nice & crispy as was the crab rangoons. My only criticism would be the fish. Tasted like Mrs. Paul's. Added a little soy & hot chili oil and it worked.

Chicken with almonds was great. General Tso's was pretty good, not the best. Beef and Broccoli…read morenot very good at all. Hot and sour soup was great, on the sweeter side and not that spicy though. Fast and courteous staff, very clean establishment.

I hadn't been here in over 10 years. Was very pleased with my moo shu pork and will definitely be…read moreback!

Sometimes in the least expected places one can find the most exquisite restaurants. Looking for a…read moreplace to eat after an upset with 419 West Restaurant for not having enough parking spaces to accommodate their booked customers, after canceling the reservation that I made through Open Table, I drove off to a tiny strip mall next door, and there I found this place called Szechuan Chinese Restaurant. After being awarded the NC Triad Yelp Squad Yelper of the Year 2024 Award at the Yelpies Award Ceremony last year, an event that honored the highest-performing Yelp Elites, celebrating their contributions and accomplishments throughout the year, I decided that this year, as an All-Star Yelp Elite, I not only wanted to be the first to discover new restaurants and businesses, and bring them to the attention of the public, but also to uncover those found in hidden paths that for one reason or another have not reached the public in its totality. And Szechuan Restaurant in South Roanoke, Virginia, is a perfect example. As I was walking towards the restaurant after parking my car, since I hadn't had an opportunity to research it to find out if it was good, I asked one of their customers who was also headed that way and he replied: "After more than 40 years of being their customer, I haven't found a place with better Chinese food." What an outstanding live testimony to the place, I thought to myself. Then as I got closer, Their windows were displaying framed articles about the restaurant. Inside, the owner was seated at his open office located in front of the restaurant, and the walls around him were inundated with framed awards and photos related to the restaurant. The owner, very friendly and hospitable, greeted me, and explained how since Covid they no longer had table service. But you would look at the menu, order and pay there, and then the food would be taken to your table in take out containers by a young lady server. As I went through their beautiful and extensive menu, he was able to notice that I was not too familiar with many of the items on the menu, so he helped me by asking me some questions of my likes and providing some recommendations. I ended up ordering a Coke to drink. A Vegetable Spring Roll as appetizer, as well as a Scallop Roll from the Sushi Bar. And as my main entrée I ordered the Pork Szechuan Style with their Fried Rice. And for dessert they had only three options Cheesecake, Chocolate Cheesecake, or Donuts. I went for the Chinese Donuts because I always wanted to try them. After ordering and paying with my credit card, I went to their dining room to look for a table to sit at. I picked a booth next to a window to provide enough natural light to be able to photograph the food nicely. The server brought me a plastic bottle of coke with a styrofoam cup with ice. The dining room was very nice and had the most beautiful and elegant fish tank that I've ever seen in a restaurant. It's a pity that they hadn't return back to regular table service since Covid is now under control. While waiting for my food to be prepared, I walked over to the Sushi counter to watch the Sushi Chef prepare my Scallop Roll. I invite you to view my photographs and videos accompanying this review to get a better sense of the place and the quality of their food. Finally, the friendly young lady brought my food to my table on a tray which she placed on the table. Both her followed-up to see how I found the food and to see ifvI needed anything else. What can I say, the food was amazing! From the Sushi to the Pork in the Szechuan sauce, to the Spring Roll, and Fried Rice. By the time I ate the donuts they had cooled down and hardened and were a bit dry inside. While I was enjoying my meal, several customers stopped by to pick up their To Go orders that they had ordered by phone or through their website. Others came with the intention of eating in but when they found out the situation, they ordered for Take Out instead. And a family who came to eat in, left when they found out the dining situation. The dining experience is not the same eating out of plastic containers. It's like drinking wine out of a plastic cup is not the same as drinking it out of a Baccarat wine glass. I highly recommend that the owner return back to the normal way of operating a restaurant. The inside of the restaurant is much too beautiful and the food much too exquisite not to do so.

service. Even on Christmas Eve when half of Roanoke wants Szechuan and things get a little busy,…read morethey are uber-professional. Dumpling SAUCE is amazing. I think it's made fresh. I would LOVE the recipe.

best chinese food y'all gonna ever get! especially in roanoke. they are quick, they have never…read moresteered me in the wrong direction!

Sometimes we find in the least expected places the most extraordinary food. This is the case when I…read morefelt like having Chinese food delivered and I went to explore a Chinese restaurants that delivered through Door Dash. While examining their menus and viewing the photos of their food, I suddenly saw one of my favorite Chinese foods in their menu: Chicken on a Stick (4 pc) with Pork Fried Rice. And Egg Roll. After being awarded the NC Triad Yelp Squad Yelper of the Year 2024 Award at the Yelpies Award Ceremony last year, an event that honored the highest-performing Yelp Elites, celebrating their contributions and accomplishments throughout the year, I decided that this year, as an All-Star Yelp Elite, I not only wanted to be the first to discover new restaurants and businesses, and bring them to the attention of the public, but also to uncover those found in hidden paths that for one reason or another have not reached the public in its totality. And China Lite in Northwest Roanoke, Virginia, is a perfect example. Little did I know that this unseen, hole in the wall, Chinese Restaurant would have one of the best Chinese food that I've ever had in Roanoke, Virginia. It was already late at night, around 9:30pm and I worried if maybe the food would not be as fresh because it was already so late at night. It was delivered around 10:15pm by a very pleasant Door Dasher. It came inside a simple plastic bag and the container kept it real hot and smelling amazingly delicious. Inside with the food, it had several little plastic bags of Soy sauce, Duck sauce, and one of Hot sauce. It also contained napkins, a white plastic fork, and a Fortune Cookie. Everything seemed perfect. I could notice the care that the people working in this restaurant had put in, while preparing my delivery order. When I opened the container, to my surprise, it contained four of the most plumpiest Chicken on a Stick that I have ever seen, and cooked just right. The Pork Fried Rice was cooked to perfection with actual small chunks of pork that you could see and taste.The taste and texture was just like a good Chinese Pork Fried Rice should taste. The chicken was juicy, tender, and cooked just right. I invite you to view my photographs accompanying this review to get a better sense of the food. Needless to say the amount was plenty to more than fill me up, but it was so good that I ate it all, including the amazing Egg Roll. In conclusion, I highly recommend this Chinese Restaurant for their wonderful food and attention to detail in packing it up with care and all the condiments you would expect from a Chinese restaurant. And I look forward to visiting the restaurant in person to have more of their wonderful food and an outstanding dining experience.

so much selection there was something for my whole family. the bathroom was nice. staff where kind…read moreand helpful

I happened to go to Tanglewood Mall to pick up an order I purchased at Belk's website of an Izod…read morePolo Shirt which was on sale. And after I did so I decided to go try out the Red Palace Tanglewood Chinese Restaurant. Now there is another Red Palace Chinese Restaurant in the Roanoke area: The Red Palace Valley View, which is actually my favorite Chinese Buffet Restaurant and at first I thought that they were from the same owner, but I found out they're not and should not be confused. I invite you to go read my review of that one and view my photographs after you finish reading this one, and you will immediately notice the great difference between the two. Just go to The Red Palace Valley View. This Red Palace Tanglewood is located next to Kroger Supermarket at the Tanglewood Mall. When I arrived I parked my pearl white Lexus in the parking lot located on the right side of the restaurant and then went walking to the front door. The building structure of this restaurant didn't look as magestic as the other one, nor the entrance either. As I entered there was a nice size fish tank with the water not too clean the Gold fishes color white.Then there was a nice looking counter station behind which was a friendly young gentleman cashier and To Go order taker and the place for customers to pick up their Take Out orders. The counter had an impressive golden Buddha on top. A friendly young lady came to greet me and take me to my table. She took my drink order and told me to go ahead and enjoy the Buffet. I ordered a Dr. Pepper to drink which was brought to me with very little ice and I was never asked if I wanted a refill. The few ladies filling up the trays got in the way of the customers, without even smiling or saying excuse me and would put a new tray of food but then would throw the old one right in with the fresh one and Mixed them together. The Buffet stations themselves were old and refurbished. Most of the food looked luckwarm from having been sitting there too long. The shrimps looked tiny, as well as other of the food items. The fried rice lacked color, ingredients, and flavor. The sauces were watered down. And there were not to many food items to pick from. The items lacked flavor and even though they were edible, they were not enjoyable to anyone who knows what genuine, high-quality Chinese food is all about. Even the elephant ears with the desserts were stale. What a difference from the Valley View Red Palace, which is actually not associated in anything with this one. If anything I got from trying this one out was not to ever return and to let all those who read my review know that it's not worth it. Save yourself from going through a horrible dining experience and go dine somewhere else.

Finally, an Asian restaurant that is on par with what I consider to be the best place in my mind…read morefrom my childhood (Young Chows in Beckley WV). The sauces were tasty. The meats were prepared perfectly and were tender and flavorful. The rice was fantastic. The service on Christmas Eve was prompt and courteous. My wife had the Peking duck, which was probably the best Peking duck we've ever had. We will definitely be coming back here when we return to the Roanoke area.

Since they've started their noon buffet we've been regular customers. Their evening meals have…read morebeen the best in town and now their noon buffet challengs their evening meal. Great food, always hot and very good service with minimal waiters/waiteresses. The noon buffet is medium priced for this time of day.