Everything was fine except the food. I ate a few bites and stopped because it didn't seem fresh. My friend ate his meal and was sick within 2 hours. I had stomach cramps all afternoon. I was excited to try Da Lian after the ratings, but unfortunately it wasn't a good experience. read more

We came here after seeing it on Bay Area Check Please. It was alright we got the Noodles and the Cumin Lamb. Cumin Lamb was delicious but the noodles a little slimy. I think it would have been much better if a little Krispy. Over all it was good. We probably will not come back. read more

Dalian - Garlic Noodles with Lamb Cumin - Chinese Near Me - Berkeley, California

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Excellent lamb and cabbage homemade noodle soup. Spicier than I prefer but no problem after pulling chilis out. A broth like no other. Affordable price too ($11). read more

Dalian - Now they tell me - Chinese Near Me - Berkeley, California

The food is authentic, the dining room is clean. It's easy to get to and there's ample parking. I went here alone- which is never a joy. If I were accustomed to more traditional Chinese Cuisine (or accompanied by someone who was)- this place would certainly have a higher rating. That being said, however, their menu is HUGE, and offers no descriptions of the food aside from their names on the menu. I ordered and had no idea what I was in for, although the food tasted alright. I suppose that my biggest complaint is about the lack of detail on the menu . read more

This place is possibly the best Chinese restaurant in Berkeley. Their General Chicken is the bomb, and the Szechuan Chicken wasnt that bad either! The price isn't bad as well, since I pay on average 11 dollars for my entree, with rice included. Also, their service is quick, and the people who work there are super friendly. Definitely give this place a shot if you are around that area read more

I wish I could write a better review because the people are super nice and the restaurant is comfortable. The food is very run-of-the-mill plus extra salt and many of the dishes are plain old bad :( Their won ton soup is nearly inedible- I buy it once in a while because I love won ton soup and then am reminded once again of why I don't eat here, even though I work just up the street. Also, they have an aggressive air freshener plug-in that ruins my enjoyment of eating there, even though the tables and chairs are more comfortable than many places. The one dish there that I do like is the basil seafood dish. Get that one! read more

Damn, is anyplace more sparsely visited than this one? I've walked by Dan Lian many a time on my way to Chy ya and never have I seen a customer in the entrance side of the restaurant. They just seem fill people into the spill-over other half of the shop. So, if you like this place, and I did, there is ALWAYS going to be a table. I even went right as an evening Cal football game ended, and still there were only 10 tables full. Honestly, they just have a space that is twice what they need. Solution: sell some to the uber-cramped but always delicious Chy ya! I digress.. The food was nice, tasty and fresh. There are a decent selection of veggie options as I went with a veg-only group of friends. My only concern was when we asked if the Hot and Sour soup had a veggie or chicken broth, to which the waitress said, "um, sure, I'll write a note." There was a Jon Lovitz's SNL the Liar skit "yeah, that's the ticket" feel to the response. We skipped the soup. I love the sesame seed & green onion bread. Very tasty and warm. Maybe next time I'll gets me some meat and extra sesame bread. UPDATE: 4/14/08 I've become a regular of Da Lian. I want to note that the soups are REALLY good and very fresh. The are the traditional chinese food fare, but are done perfectly and are very fresh. They are not veg friendly, but I'm friends with the chicken and his magical broth. read more

My friends and I decided to check out Da Lian the other night after getting rained out in the city. They were visiting from Santa Barbara (read: no good Chinese food!) and wanted something "authentic." Whoa- were we not disappointed!! Quite possibly the best Chinese food I've ever eaten. We kept asking ourselves if it was because we were really hungry, was it our first or second bottle of wine, etc., etc... nope~ just AMAZING food! We ordered the spinach dumplings (simple, but tasty), the crispy rice soup (again, simple, but loaded with veggies and delish), hot and sour soup (slightly spicey, but rich and complex) and the veggie fried rice (not soaked with oil but lightly fried), garlic veggies dish and Shechuan Chicken (sp?) that was SO good we got a second order!!!!! We will definitely be back. read more

Da Lian is a nice, clean restaurant has a really lovely variety of food, some of which is more of an acquired taste than others. Don't worry, though, there are plenty of really accessible dishes that most people will enjoy. Food highlights - The sizzling rice soup is DELICIOUS. It has an different blend of vegetables like baby spinach and mushrooms, and I really appreciate that. The braised eggplant with chicken is my favorite thing ever. Sweet, tangy, salty, it has it all. The green onion pancake. My goodness. I know other reviews here have commented on it already, but I need to, like, reaffirm everyone's belief that this is an amazing dish. The smoked pork with cabbage is incredible. I never thought I'd enjoy cabbage, but nummy nummy pork product goes a long way to making everything better. Three other dishes I wanted to talk about are the pickled vegetable and lamb hot pot, which our waitress recommended as a regional specialty. I, uh, found it to be an interesting kind of thin, gamey sour-salty soup. I wasn't quite sure if this was what it was supposed to taste like, but I didn't really enjoy it. My cousins did, however, so the verdict is still out on that. Our waitress also recommended the ja jang mien, which seemed to be a noodle special. When it came, it ended up being gloopy and disappointing, in comparison to a lot of other ja jang miens I've had, and I was a bit sad. We also had a smoked(?) duck of some sort. It was a bit drier than any ducks I've had in the past, and there weren't any interesting, good flavor coming through. I wouldn't recommend it. I'd overall give the food and the money-venue-value a solid 4 stars. The interior is clean, the food is interesting, the lunches plates are a very good deal, money-wise, and it's also a nice place to take your family/friends if you want a family style dinner. The only negative I'd give to this place is that the service is a little bit inattentive sometimes, but that definitely should not deter you from trying some of the great food here. read more

If you're looking for Chinese food but want a nicer ambiance and not your typical loud type Chinese restaurant, I can recommend Da Lian. I first hear about it on the Check Please Bay Area TV show and decided to try it. Everything we had was delicious and the service was quite prompt. And, we could actually have a conversation without having to raise our voices in the least. I'll be back here, hopefully soon. read more

I saw this restaurant on a segment of Check Please. As my husband and I are always looking for good and different Chinese food, we thought we'd give this a try. We ordered pot stickers to start. They were tasty, both steamed then browned up a bit. The pot stickers are average, nothing to go on about. I think the vegetarian pot stickers would have been a better choice. But then came the soup. I ordered the lamb, pickled cabbage, noodle soup. I have no idea how they make the most delicious, rich tasting meat broth. I could easily put that in a glass every day and drink it as a beverage, it is so good. I would have liked a bit more pickled cabbage, because I like all the magic going on in my mouth: rich broth, tender lamb, lightly crunch cabbage and some spiciness. My husband ordered the garlic noodles. That's not a dish that I particularly enjoy, but I did taste the garlic noodles and it was good. The noodles were served with pork and some spinach. After eating the 8 pot stickers, split between the two of us, we couldn't finish our food. I had the leftover soup today, and that broth will still hella good. Parking is on the street, so be prepared to scout around a bit. read more

Very good food and great people. Food is very tasty, it is true authentic Chinese food. The owners are very nice and used to give me free ice cream after meals. read more

Shocking! Good Chinese food in Berkeley's Gourmet Ghetto For years I walked by the Yangtze River Chinese restaurant, looking in at the empty dining room and the forlorn employees wondering how they were hanging on. Yangtze finally gave up the ghost a couple of months ago and I wondered how long before someone took a sledgehammer to the 1970s red, yellow, and jade portal in the front of the restaurant and opened a hip gourmet ghetto nightspot. If someone could turn Apple Cleaners into Cesar and Dale Sanford's into Epicurious Garden, surely some enterprising soul could turn Yangtze River into something. Imagine my surprise when another Chinese restaurant opened in the same place, with the same storefront! For three months, I've walked by wondering what could be going on in there. This evening my wife and I took the plunge, and I'm ecstatic to report that the food is actually very good. The menu is right out of the usual Chinese playbook, but the dishes were well-prepared and attracitively presented. The General's Chicken was perfectly spiced, grease-free, and served on a bed of snow pea pods. It also included shittake mushrooms, a nice touch. Our vegetarian pot stickers were fried just so, and when the sizzling Chinese beef came to the table, the other three diners gazed at us with envy. The waitress tells us 1) that business is a little slow; and 2) that they're awaiting a permit from the City of Berkeley to take down the ghastly red and yellow and jade thing in the front. Someone probably put in for a landmark designation -- "one of the few remaining examples of haut-faux-Chinese storefront architecture west of Concord." Da Lian is competitive with most of the Chinese places in Berkeley, the price is right, and it's in the heart of the Gourmet Ghetto. Do yourself and these folks a favor and try it out. read more

This might be the best Chinese place in Berkeley! They don't use msg and all the food is fresh and not over cooked so you leave feeling more like you have just eaten at the Japanese place next door, then a typical chinese place. The Sizzling Rice Soup is super fresh and delicious! read more

So, I finally found it....a GREAT CHINESE PLACE IN BERKELEY! The place was super-clean, the staff were super friendly, and the food was super yummy! Our favorites were the (1) hot and sour soup, (2) dry pan fried green beans, and (3) mongolian beef. We had a noodle dish that was fair. Overall, we give this place 5 stars for great food at a reasonable price. Give it a try! read more

Great place. Fresh seafood and distinct flavors. We arrived at 2:30 on a a Sunday afternoon and were the only ones in the restaurant. The dining room was clean and serene without hokey Chinese dragons or any of that sort of stuff. we had shrimp lettuce wraps for starters and the shrimp was fresh and yummy with excellent seasoning. for our meal I ordered the deluxe seafood clay pot and my companion had dragon and phoenix, both of which we shared. The clay pot was so good with real black beans visible in the sauce and extremely fresh fish. The dragon and phoenix plate was exceptional, spicy but with a heat that didn't linger to torture ones mouth. Finding ourselves a bit hungry still we quickly ordered a third plate called green onions and beef which I am familiar with as "Mongolian beef" it was excellent no matter the name. To our amazement the last dis arrived in less than three minutes, I guess because the wok was still hot and we were the only ones in the restaurant. After the meal I noted that each dish had a distinctive flavor and that they didn't all taste like soy sauce and cornstarch, which can sometimes happen in Chinese food. Overall Da Lian is a great Chinese food place in the west of Berkeley with excellent flavor and fresh ingredients. we will definitely be returning next time we shop Fourth st. read more

There are so many good places for Chinese and this is a good one, but there are few great places for noodles and this is the best one. Hand made noodles as good as you will find anywhere outside of Hong kong, Taiwan, or China. Cannot go wrong with any noodle dish, especially what Marco Polo tried valiantly to reproduce: Zha Jiang Mien- noodles with luscious meat topping. Tofu is a winner here, as is their salmon. read more

This is my go-to place for good Chinese food in Berkeley. I have been here 6 times and I would rate the visits as 3-5stars, 2-4 stars, and 1 3-star. I recommend the moo shu and the shrimp dishes. This biggest plus is the consistently good food at reasonable prices $9-14 per entree. The main downside is that the staff could check on your status more frequently. If you're looking for sit-down Chinese food, it's hard to go wrong with Da Lian. read more

Quite simply the best chinese around. I've come here about once a week for several years now. I get the same thing almost every time: vegetarian versions of Garlic hand-pulled noodles and/or zha jiang noodles, green beans in fermented black-bean sauce, and spinach dumplings. I've tried most of the veg options on the menu but return to these 4 items consistently and they always satisfy. If you're reading this review and considering going, just do it, you won't be disappointed w/ the hand-pulled noodles. The staff works hard is really sweet so be sure to tip them well! read more

I come back here because of certain dishes--I especially like the black bean noodles (Zia Jiang noodles). The lunch special is great too. Not the best I ever had, but it's one of my go-to-places and has authentic food at reasonable prices. I have had dishes here which left a lot more to be desired, though... With that being said about food, there is one waitress who hosted me a couple times who is really pushy about making me order more food if I want to split something with a friend or when I ordered family-style for a group of 8 of us and we didn't get 8 dishes. I usually need to call them over for water, any additional things, and the check. read more

NORTH BERKELEY CHINESE SERVES NICE VARIETY AT SURPRISINGLY GOOD VALUE Before there was even a menu on my table there was a hot pot of tea. Always a plus. At many restaurants I'm reluctant to order just a lunch special if I'm really hungry, but I decided to give it a try here. I asked for the chicken with asparagus and immediately they brought me a great hot and sour soup and a boring salad. My entree turned out to be huge and there was even an interesting variety of things on the plate. Ultimately, an even $9.00 (including tip) got me all of this: -water -unlimited tea -soup -salad -chicken w/ asparagus -rice -some kind of puffed crackery thing -an orange -a fortune cookie All in about 25 minutes. Also, I got to invent an unprecedented Chinese dish: puffed crackery thing stuffed with chicken and asparagus. Four stars because the food was good but not spectacular, although I plan to come back with friends and try a lot of other things. read more

Da Lian is one of the most authentic Chinese noodle stores in the bay area that I've visited. Be warned, the serving sizes are absolutely huge! The service is what you would normally expected at a restaurant, and the food was delivered to my table fairly quickly. I definitely recommend coming by for a quick lunch with friends. Take out would be a good go! read more

This place has a really nice atmosphere. We thought the prices would be on the higher end of things but actually, they were pretty reasonable and you get a lot to eat here. There are lots of items to choose from so there's something to please everyone on the menu. My chow fun lacked the usual flavour/gravy that most other places make use on it. The other dish was really tasty and spicy though so we used the sauce on the chow fun to make up for its blandness. They also serve you pretty fast. We paid a little under $25 with tax and tip for two items and an order of brown rice. That's not too terrible considering we probably would've paid more than that if we chose a different place. They also have dim sum on the menu which might be good with a group of friends. read more

A friend brought me along as his entertainment for a group dinner (thanks a lot!) At first I was thinking "Are these people really THAT boring that you insist on taking me!?" Then he said "Hey, at least you're not paying. Don't worry, I've got it" so I figured, eh, free meal. Can't complain, can't turn it down. Group of 10, 7 dishes family style, the damage: $120 I didn't eat the veggie potstickers (I am sooo sick of potstickers. I make them from scratch with my mother all the time and our freezer is freaking stocked full of them!) so I opted to try their deep fried crab with cream cheese puff thing. I have no idea what it was called because I didn't get a look at the menu but it wasn't all that tasty. I don't think I even tasted any crab! It was also fairly dry for something that supposedly has cream cheese and has been deep fried. They ordered 2 sweet an sour dishes - I couldn't figure out what type of meat the two dishes were (ouch, that's pretty bad...) I shouldn't have even bothered, I don't do those sweet and sour dishes. Gross. My friend ordered a seafood claypot and I admit that was good although I only ate a scallop. I wasn't that impressed so I didn't eat much. At least my water glass was always filled (I never saw the bottom!) and there was always tea in the pot. I guess northern Chinese food isn't for me. I remember I didn't like the food all that much when I was over in northern China anyways. Waaaay too salty. It seems to overpower the natural taste of the veggies/meat. That's how I felt tonight at Da Lian. I'm sorry, it tasted like Panda Express but with excellent service. Went to a house party later and filled up on some San Tung noodles and chicken. =) read more

Food's decent. Prices ok. Nice atmosphere. Then I came here with my girlfriend and they Denny's-ed us. Da Lian, like George Bush, doesn't care about black people. If you want Canto-American food, go to King Dong (tee-hee) instead. The food is better. Nothing at Da Lian can stand up to the salt and pepper chicken wings at King Dong. Also, King Dong does not look down at miscegenators like us. read more

I came here for the sizzling rice soup and it was as delicious as I had remembered (albeit a little crumbled... the rice I had back home came in a solid square slice). I would recommend the "Fire Glazed Tofu"! And by fire glazed, they mean SPICY SPICY. Finally! Spicy Chinese food! I've missed this. The chefs also seem to be a big fan of water chestnuts, which wasn't too bad either since they didn't taste out-of-the-can. Overall, the restaurant (and the majority of its patrons) were rather Americanized and heavy on the kung-pao everything, but the food wasn't bad. It's the best Chinese food I've had in Berkeley yet, but that doesn't say very much. read more

Da Lian is great, it's definitely one of the better Chinese restaurants in Berkeley. Da Lian has a lovely and well-kept interior, with great service and a complete menu. Their dishes have a very clean presentation, and are rather light (less thick and oily, etc.) compared to other Chinese restaurants. As for specific dishes, I've come here multiple times, and I've always gotten the Lamb Stew in a clay pot. That dish has always knocked my socks off, with the healthy amount of pickled vegetables and shredded lamb. It's a great starter, and a great representation of the style of Chinese food (specifically, Northern Chinese cuisine) that these guys do. Their Da Lu mein is amazing too--it's essentially one big bowl of noodles, with a few pickled vegetables, and about 20 clams. The clams really infuse the broth with a lot of flavor, making it super tasty without being super salty or anything. A great dish for a foggy or rainy day in Berkeley. If you're sick of the other 100 garbage Chinese restaurants in Berkeley--you know, the ones with unauthentic, greasy, salty food--then give Da Lian a try. read more

It's hard enough to find a restaurant that serves Northeast Chinese cuisine, let alone a good one. Completely irrelevant, but their printed menu used to say "Da Lina". We used to always called this place "Da Lina Inverse". Yeah yeah, I know we're nerds, but it was still amusing to us. More importantly, though, their food is very good, their service is fast and courteous, and most shockingly (to me at least) their restaurant is CLEAN. It's so hard to find a Chinese restaurant that is clean without going to an Americanized place like PF Chang's, but this place definitely does not have that grimy Chinese restaurant feel to it. The lunch specials are a tremendous deal. For under $7-8 you get a salad, hot and sour soup (theirs actually tastes like real Northeast style soup), and a rice plate with pretty generous portions. The food has always been fresh, and best of all it's not oily and greasy as hell. This place is just top notch for price and quality! read more

My favorite place to get Chinese noodles in Berkeley! Their noodles taste pretty authentic and the portion is definitely big enough for two meals, tho I've also had it in one meal because it was too good to stop (esp the zhajiang noodles)! I took off one star tho because the rest of their menu is pretty lackluster... read more

I just re-visited this site (after coming here about a year ago) and am so mad at myself for not finishing this review. Here's what I wrote before: I lived in northern China for almost a year, and find Da Lian Restaurant's food to be the most authentic northern Chinese cuisine in Berkeley. It is flavorful and well-prepared, and the staff are friendly. If the prices were just a wee bit lower, I'd be there all the time. Highly recommended. Here's what I've got to say now: PLEASE go to this restaurant. The staff are wonderful, the food is wonderful, and you will feel wonderful after you eat it. People in Berkeley seem to love the crap that Great China serves and I just don't understand. Da Lian is so much better. Light, tasty fare that gives Chinese food the culinary credit it deserves. Don't be fooled by the empty feeling in there -- it's a big space, and Berkeley is not known for its Chinese food. With more places like Da Lian, it soon will be. read more

The food is great. very tasty. nice atmosphere relaxed. The decor very reserved and comfortable and Modern. Clean.

Food tasted a little too Americanized for me.

With a bunch of free restaurant.com coupons lying around, I was looking for a place to try in Berkeley that accepts them. I must admit I do feel bad for the restaurant, since they don't get much out of it except for exposure. However, it was worth a shot after reading the Yelp reviews. Once entering the place, we noticed most of it was empty, and considering the fact that this was a Friday night, I was quite surprised. First came the Sizzling Rice Soup, which was something I've never tried before. The broth was pretty bland, but the sizzling rice added a nice texture to it. Basically, it was so-so. The first dish we received was the Peking Duck, which looked different from what I was expecting. It came with pieces of duck along with large buns and plum sauce. I was more used to the flat slabs of dough that are typically given, and had a tough time figuring out how to properly stuff the bun with duck. Eventually, I ended up eating them separately. Both were well prepared, but the buns kind of ruined it for me. Next came the Honey Walnut Prawns, which were typical of any Chinese restaurant. The portions were decent, and the prawns very well prepared. In the picture, it may seem like a large pile, but it was on a base of cabbage, which added to the effect. The Lamb with Green Onion had a lot more vegetables than lamb, which was pretty disappointing, but well prepared nonetheless. Overall, the service was pretty quick, and the food was so-so. I'm not sure if I'd come back without a restaurant.com certificate. read more

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Not too shabby for an Americanized Chinese restaurant!! We were pleasantly surprised by the interior as it is much cleaner and much nicer than your average Chinese restaurant. There's a pretty good wine selection at a decent price ($20-ish for a bottle). We ordered: -Sizzling rice soup: Really good, rice was nicely flavored and crisp and the soup was well flavored as well. Not so generous on the shrimp and chicken (1 piece of each apiece for 2 of us.) -Green beans: Really wanted to order some other sort of Asian vegetable but they had a really limited selection of the general green beans, bok choy, etc. Like I said, very Americanized. -Chicken in Lettuce Wrap: This was what I was craving and what we had come for! It was really good, well cooked and the plum sauce was great! -Seafood Clay Pot: Very good - pretty generous with the seafood and the sauce was good too. Not the most amazing of clay pots but it did enough to satisfy a craving. All in all a good experience. Prices were a little steep for a Chinese Restaurant but I suppose were were paying for a more enjoyable atmosphere and better service. read more

It was so good. So good. Fire-something tofu was finger-lickin' good - perfectly fried. Chicken on a sizzlin plate also yum-yum. Hot and sour soup - was both hot AND sour! Affordable, but clean/zen atmosphere. Not your typical chinese. read more

The first time I came here was for a large party, for which we ordered ahead of time. The staff was really helpful about accommodating a large group, and offered suggestions for our wide variety of dietary restrictions. Everyone loved the food and the atmosphere. Since then, I have been back many times with my boyfriend, and though we have tried a lot of different things on the menu, we consistently order the dry sauteed green beans with tofu added and the sesame bread with green onions. These two dishes are always delicious and keep us coming back for more! read more

This place used to be "the Chinese place next to Cha Ya with the circle windows". Now, it's just "the Chinese place next to Cha Ya". The food is real tasty and cheap! We got the hong shao dou fu (braised tofu, comes with broccoli, gai lan and snow peas), mu shu bean curd, and veggie potstickers. They play some great Chinese pop that reminds me of my parents singing karaoke in the 90s. [Otherwise] the atmosphere is pretty pleasant. read more

This place seems to be on the edge of the "Downtown Berkeley food at North Berkeley prices" category. I came here for lunch last month based on the Yelp reviews. I ordered one of the lunch specials, and found out that they contain exactly the same thing as the lunch specials at Mandarin Garden. I honestly couldn't tell much of a difference between the two restaurants' dishes, except for the cost (Da Lian is slightly pricier). That's not to say that the dishes tasted bad or that the prices were exorbitant. But since I live near Mandarin Garden, Da Lian doesn't offer much of an incentive to head up to North Berkeley. read more

Many of my friends hate on Da Lian, and it seems like not many others like it because the restaurant is almost always empty. Okay, so it's no Great China, but the food is surprisingly good (simple, tastes healthy, good portions) and definitely affordable, although the prices used to be lower before they expanded next door. Whenever school was getting crazy, we'd always call ahead, place an order for green beans and walnut prawns, and then swing by and pick it up - all in less than 15 minutes. Their service is ridiculously fast! In our last year at Berkeley, my boyfriend and I started eating at Great China more often, but if you want good food that almost tastes homemade and won't require you to wait, try Da Lian. read more

Amazing Restaurant. Favorite Chinese in North Berkeley. Highly Recommend Mon-Sat. for the Lunch Menu (11-2:30). 7-8 Bucks for high quality service, amazingly fresh vegetables, side of Hot and Sour Soup and a Salad. I Recommend from the Lunch Menu: 1. Green Beans with Shredded Pork 2. Beef with Broccoli (honestly, I'd never recommend this anywhere else but it is very good here because of the fresh Broccoli and well seasoned Beef) 3. Hunan Beef read more