Came here with my brother who loves Filipino food. My first time trying the cuisine. I got the chicken adobo which came with fried rice and it was a good sized portion. The chicken was really tender and the broth was very flavorful. The entrance was a little tricky as there are two separate spaces. The front door is actually the take out area but the dine in restaurant entrance was on the side. Don't let the simple exterior and the fact that it's in a strip mall fool you, the dining space was actually really nice inside. read more

Grand Cafe - Chicken Adobo - Chinese Near Me - Bloomington, Illinois

It's kind of the ultimate comfort food. Even though they've moved from downtown, the egg rolls taste the same as what I first had them in the early '80s. Not sure why, but no place anywhere I've ever been has been able to replicate them. Go easy on the hot mustard, it'll burn your nose if you overdo it. read more

Grand Cafe - Signage - Chinese Near Me - Bloomington, Illinois

Eat here for the first time recently and came specifically for the Filipino dishes. I got the chicken adobo and it was a very good size portion and very tasty. I did wish there was a little bit more rice that came with it, but the taste was there and very good. The restaurant was clean and the service was very good as well on my visit. If I'm back in town for work, I would stop here again. read more

This is my favorite place for Asian food in the Bloomington/Normal area. They have been in business for over 100 years and claim to have the best egg rolls. I can't disagree. Service is always on point. My go to dish is the Sichuan Shrimp (I get it made extra spicy). My wife prefers the milder dishes like the Cashew Chicken. The egg rolls are always great. Today we also tried the Fried Dumplings, they were amazing. The restaurant is always spotless and generally quite quiet. read more

I've always loved the grand Café and this new location with their newly expanded dining room is very nice. I love their lumpia and several of their Filipino dishes, like the pork adobo and the beef paras! So tasty! There's a lot of options on the menu! read more

I'll start with this is still my favorite Asian food in town, but a couple of things new guests should know.1) the chicken ramen tasted like the instant stuff, super salty bouillon, NOT a Dashi with mushroom and bonito flakes with a traditional umami flavor. Very Americanized. 2) the Halo Halo is a trifle bowl of crushed ice and sweetened condensed milk. The "fresh fruit" was something canned and cubed, not recognizable. It was super sweet. Again, the rest of our meal was amazing and this is still a favorite, but these are just thoughts before you order. read more

Grand Cafe - Halo Halo - Chinese Near Me - Bloomington, Illinois

I've been here a few times now and have enjoyed each visit. The atmosphere is nice, great service and plenty to choose from the menu. The wait staff does a great job ensuring your drinks don't go empty and the food is served promptly. It fact, it comes out pretty quickly so if you are not wanting to rush through your meal, I would suggest you order your appetizers and then a bit later order the rest of the meal. I also believe the portions are large, especially so with the soups and main courses. In a day where it is hard to find traditional, sit in Chinese restaurants this place is a gem. Will certainly be back. read more

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5-stats with a 'mea culpa'. We have not explored the rather robust (including Vietnamese options) menu here. We just know they still have the best damn egg rolls going and those perfectly crispy, peanut buttery delights, along with the rest of the main appetizer menu is HALF-PRICE on Thursdays between 4 and 6 pm! That said, hopefully I can still find a place at the bar - WHERE BEER IS ALSO HALF-PRICE! - this Thursday! read more

Grand Cafe - At the bar! - Chinese Near Me - Bloomington, Illinois

The server was good and spot on. The food was good and there were five of us. It's not the first time we've been there, because when we come up to Illinois, we usually like to go and eat! This time my husband's water glass was broke around the rim area, where you put your lips and it wasn't this server that came over. It was the older lady and she says oh yes, and laughed, so we thought she was going to bring another glass because the other four of us the glasses were fine. She never did.! I wasn't impressed with that part at all that's why you got 2 stars. Remember sometimes the customer is right and what would be the harm in getting a fresh glass of water and making sure that it's not a cracked glass! Next trip up to Illinois, I won't be stopping at your location. read more

My mom worked at the Grand Cafe from Front Street to the one on the corner of Main & Locust. She worked for Pete & Jill Lum, Pong & later for Ike. I grew up eating this food, loving the fried rice, egg food Yung & thier famous egg rolls. I was very pleased when the new owner kept their recipes the same. However, their front end service is far from excellent. The lady that answers the phone is horribly rude & unprofessional. Even when they dont seem busy, they act like they have no time to be bothered by you. They are un-organized & horribly un-professional. My word of advice, fire the lady the manages the front end & have a mandatory meeting with the entire team about service- you desperately need it. You can no longer exist off of the iconic name and history of the Grand Cafe. ​ read more

Ordered the special fried rice. Tasted like it was reheated and old. The meat had a bad flavor to it. Didn't call the same night but went in the day after and they wouldn't refund nor replace it was something else. She said she had to call the owner for approval. Then she went to the back to ask someone and they said no. Even with a receipt. I told her to throw it away! Who does that. Bad for business! read more

as a LONG TIME patron of Grand Cafe (40 years), I'm sorry to say the food quality is SO POOR these days. The only thing redeeming about Grand Cafe today is still their egg rolls. read more

Great egg rolls great food expensive as shit but well worth it we eat there as often as we can afford to do so

This was our first visit to the new Grand Cafe dine in restaurant. It had been a while since we had eaten here and we found it to be a delicious meal that didn't disappoint. We started first with what they have been known for - their egg rolls. While I'm not an egg roll expert, I do believe their claim of having the best is legit. The exterior wrapper was fried perfectly where it was crispy but not so much that it was overdone. The filling was flavorful. My husband had the Special Low Mien featuring beef, chicken, shrimp. The sauce had a great flavor to it and the noodles were cooked perfectly with the right ratio amount with the rest of the dish. The portion was generous and he had a good amount to take home. I took advantage of their expanded menu featuring Filipino dishes and tried the Pancit Bihon. The chicken was thinly sliced (my favorite), the noodles were thin and light like angel hair pasta. The sauce had a delicious flavor that didn't overwhelm the dish. The portion on this dish was so generous. It didn't look like I had eaten much when we went to box it up to take it home. All of the left overs warmed up well and were enjoyed as lunch the next day! They've done a nice job in creating the sit down restaurant. It has modern industrial feel with the exposed vent work and the clean finish with their decor. The waitstaff did a great job of making sure our beverages stayed full and we were enjoying our meal. I'm glad to see how the Grand Cafe has found a way to stay in Bloomington and sharing their delicious food with the community read more

Grand Cafe - Pancit Bihon (Filipino Noodles) - Chinese Near Me - Bloomington, Illinois

Good food. Love the Fried Rice and Egg Rolls. ............. Quick and easy Pickup................................................ read more

Stopped in on my lunch break, literally the first person in right at open, got the pork skewer meal and an egg roll. The only thing that was warm by the time I got my food was the egg roll. It's a freezing day, the last thing I want is luke-warm meat and rice. The flavor was just ok, service was fine, and the place was clean, but I'm not going back to someplace that serves almost room-temp food. read more

I used to love Grand Cafe. Their pork adobo was my absolute favorite food, I would order whenever I was sad and eat several bowls of adobo and rice. But now... in the past few months the recipe/taste of the adobo has changed and i can barely stand to eat it now. I'm quite sad and I wonder why they would change it when it was already delicious :( read more

Egg rolls are the best in town. Food is great also. Service was good, and they offered Culligan water!

We had a party of 6 for walk-in on Christmas Eve. Our expectations were met and then some! The reviews weren't good but our family said the appetizers were amazing when they were there previously. The place was full and only one waitress who was joined by someone called in! Our food came out pretty timely considering our party and how busy the place was. The waitress even commented that they had stopped takeout orders with the number of in-restaurant patrons. Our appetizers, egg rolls, lumpia and the appetizer platter were all super tasty! Although our entrees were served staggered and my Happy Family dish didn't come until we were ready to leave, everything we had was good! My husband enjoyed his Hot and Sour soup and the pancit. (We even the leftovers we had today!) We definitely understood being understaffed and getting a large crowd early, but we truly felt the waitress did her best to deliver all we needed. When we get back to BLONO, we will stop again for some great Asian eats! read more

Objectively, the grand café is just not good anymore. There are half a dozen Chinese places that are exponentially better. Sadly as it has turned over locations and ownership the quality has gone down dramatically. The eggrolls are not what they once were. My father-in-law and I both couldn't even finish one of them. The cabbage inside was not chopped up at all and it was almost like they were mixed with mayonnaise with how thick the sauce inside them was. Fried rice, broccoli beef, pepper beef, sweet-and-sour chicken were all extremely disappointing. Bland, one-note, unsavory. read more

Ate here with my fiancé and the portions were smaller than I'd expect for the price. Lots of rice but not much for the entree. Of course the egg rolls are very good! read more

Wow, what a disappointment. We've enjoyed their food for years, but I'm afraid today was our last time. My husband and I both ordered sesame chicken and, of course, egg rolls. Sesame chicken is one of my favorite Asian dishes, but unfortunately, Grand Cafe must not have the recipe. There was NO sesame flavor at all, and there was more breading than chicken. It definitely tasted like the sweet/sour sauce. Sprinkling a few sesame seeds on top does not make it sesame chicken. Not just that, but the egg rolls that we usually enjoy tasted like peanut butter. They've truly gone downhill. We won't be going back. read more

Disappointed, if your looking for authentic Filipino cuisine this is not it. Sinignag is good , kaldereta is okay & chicken adobo is not nearly as good . read more

Thank you Grand Cafe for making the best Filipino food I have had in a very long time!! It was so amazing! We order the chicken adobo, the beef kaldereta, and the crispy pork belly! It just brought back memories of living in Chicago! Will definitely be ordering from here a lot. read more

This was my favorite restaurant since moving to Bloomington in 1997. In the past couple years, the egg rolls have become very inconsistent, sometimes nothing but bland cabbage filling. My last couple take out orders, the containers were only 3/4 full. My biggest issue now have become their prices!! I have a 2 year old take out menu at home, and comparing the current prices, almost everything has doubled in price in 2 years! Fried rice was $8 and is now $16, same with egg foo young and chop suey. An order of 3 items gets you to $50 in a hurry. I think my 28 year run of being a regular customer has come to an end. read more

Bland. Expensive. Very small portion sizes for the price. Flan was chunky. Gen Tsos did not taste like any general Tsos, and not in a good way. The sweet and sour sauce was gelatinous and tasted weird. The lumpia was tiny and bland. Fried rice was rice with soy sauce on it. Main entrees were watery. Crab Rangoon and pancit were good. Do not recommend. read more

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Went for lunch and the service was painfully slow and there isn't a lunch menu. It seemed pricy for what I got. Over all...meh... not sure I'll be going back. There is too much competition in town to be mediocre. read more

The Grand Cafe claims to have been serving the best egg rolls since 1921. After visiting them for the first time last week... I honestly believe them! They are the best egg rolls I've ever had! My wife had the sweet and sour shrimp. She loved it! They add bread and butter pickles to their sweet and sour dishes, and it surprisingly works! I loved the orange chicken. I suggested that they put orange beef on the menu, and our server said that if I ask, they can do that! Nice to see a restaurant that can be flexible like that! On top of all that, I loved the back and red decor! Will definitely be back! read more

The owner there was horribly rude on the phone Taking an order. My daughter picked up the order and he was still rude and snatched the food out of her hand when she questioned him about his rudeness. I called the establishment and I got hung up on. This place is a disgrace. read more

I was very disappointed! My friends and I went there because previously they were there. They thought it was good so I am opened to try it. We were there around 11:30 for lunch. No one was there. We sat down and I thought I try something different. I ordered the crispy pork belly. It came out so dry and kind of chewy. It was not hot at all. We got the check and ask for boxes. The hostess and the waitress said sure. Came back with 1 box for each person. We politely asked to have another box. She came back with a styrofoam flimsy box. Wouldn't you think that she would give you a bag? No, have to ask again. She came back with 3 paper bags. Excuse me, can you give me a plastic bag like from the grocery store? Yes, she came again with 1 plastic bag. I asked for a new fortune cookie because mine was broken and open! This was my first time there and don't think I would be back. read more

Grand Cafe - Crispy pork belly - Chinese Near Me - Bloomington, Illinois

Terrible terrible terrible CHINESE FOOD. I ordered my favorite, Egg foo Young. It was so hard that the fork wouldn't go through! Sooo chewy that I could digest it. I got sick the whole next day. I gave it too my son and he said IT WAS BLACK INSIDE! It looked so gross he refused to eat it! The Crab Rangoon was EMPTY!!! WORST FOOD I'VE EVER EATEN ANYWHERE! read more

Not the same Grand Cafe it used to be but then nothing is. Egg rolls weren't bad but not as flavorful and the Pork Bbq special and Chicken chow mein was not good either. Not much taste and weird consistency. Proves you can't go home. Plus the prices were outrageous for what we received but that's par for the course these days as well. read more

Service wasn't great, but we got take out so it didn't hurt our day. We got the crispy pork belly, beef and broccoli, and chicken chow mein for entrees. Also ordered some lumpia and crab rangoons for appetizers. Plates were on the pricier side at $15-$18 each. I truly believe that not a single seasoning exists in that kitchen. The pork belly, beef, and lumpia were all just cooked meat thrown into a dish without a pinch of salt or spice to the wind. Anything "crispy" was soggy and tough(ate no more than 15 mins after being handed the bag). Chow mein is not the traditional chow mein most would know. It's more of a chop suey with some crispy noodle chips on the side... wouldn't recommend. Save your money. Panda Express would be a better option than this, and that's not intended to say that Panda Express is superb or authentic in any way/shape/form. read more

The food was really good and the service was very nice. My only thing was the portion size is WAY off. Everyone I saw walked out with a take home box. Why so huge? That can't be good from a food cost perspective. Still.... Very good and highly recommend! read more

Had a dine in dinner. Restaurant is grossly understaffed! 2 waitresses for the entire restaurant. That number is probably sufficient on a slow day. However, waitresses had to do it all...seat guests, take orders, make and deliver ALL drink orders (NO BARTENDER!) and bus tables. Waitress we had did not know how to draw a draft beer (1/3 was foam) or make a cocktail (attempt was made but very bad.) As a result, waitresses can not give prompt, quality, courteous service. It took a long time to get inital drinks, to order food, and to get our food. After delivery, we were never asked if everything was OK. Food was slow arriving and lukewarm. As noted no one checked and it was difficult to get anyone's attention. The food tasted OK considering the temperature. Our dining experience lasted and hour and a half! Overall, this is not a well staffed restaurant and is poorly managed. read more

Had the worst waitress in all of Bloomington-Normal tonight. We were kept waiting at the hostess station without even a greeting or explanation. When we were finally seated, our waitress gave only the bare minimum attention. Usually, the egg rolls are brought out before dinner and are hot and delicious. After a long wait for food, she brought our egg rolls out with dinner and they were cold. She didn't check back to see if we needed anything, did not check to see if we wanted to refresh our drinks. Nothing. We finally sat there after we got done eating until she finally got around to getting back to our table. When I mentioned our disappointment at the poor service, she "apologized" while rolling her eyes. Honestly, this person is a poor representative of a decent business. We won't be back. Edit: I feel I should add a point about the food. Yes the egg rolls are better than average. The rest of the food? Average to pretty tasteless. We've come here looking to find a substitute for Mandarin Garden that recently closed, but the food here really isn't in the same category. We've tried different things hoping we would find something that stood out, but most has a flat, soy sauce flavor with little real flavor. You can get similar at a strip mall Chinese food outlet for a lot lower price. read more

I went on a Friday night for dinner with my family to the new dine in side of the restaurant. The interior was very nicely done. Unfortunately, the food and service were not great. I loved the egg rolls and egg drop soup. I would pass on the egg foo young and sweet and sour chicken the next time I go. Both were lacking in flavor. I'd like to ask for recommendations for entrees the next time. read more

Carried out a mini lunch special of General Tso Chicken meal was terrible! The chicken was so tough unable to chew, two small pieces of broccoli, 1 slice of carrot and no sauce. It was a lunch of rice with a scant side of General Tso Chicken. Contacted Grande Cafe to return to restaurant for a replacement lunch. The owner declined to replace lunch. Do not waste your money or time going to restaurant or carrying out! I have been a longtime customer, who will not be returning!! read more

Oh my gosh I just ordered sweet and sour chicken delivery, an entree I've ordered a hundred times, and instead of getting it in 3 separate containers- rice in one, chicken in another, and sweet and sour sauce in the third. Tonight I got it with chicken (fried chicken pieces) with the sauce poured on top in a cardboard box container; the chicken was literally drowning in sauce. Chicken was soggy and gross. I was told "we always do it that way unless you order with a request for on the side." I've NEVER had it delivered that way. I've NEVER requested on the side. There's not even an option to order on the side. Don't bother to order this item! Unless you can figure out how to with special instructions. Gross.... read more

Grand Cafe - Sweet and sour chicken drowning in red sauce - Chinese Near Me - Bloomington, Illinois

Looking for new Chinese resto since Imperial Buffet closed. Found it interesting to find a Filipino restaurant in the area. Hubby & I gave it a try. We usually get our filipino food fix up in the suburbs. To our surprise the food exceeded our expectations! The palabok was not just topped with the usual crushed pork rind. It was actually chunks of crunchy lechon kawali (pork belly)! Was mentioning to the hubby a few weeks ago that I was craving for pork BBQ (filipino style, in skewers). Got a good deal of 2 pork barbecue with fried rice and lumpia. Then came the dessert. The halo--halo was served in a huge bowl! Definitely had our fill, plus take home for the leftovers. Good thing we came early because more customers came for dine-in and takeout. The place was hopping but unfortunately, they were short-staffed. Note to self: come before the dinner crowd. Otherwise, it's all good! read more

Grand Cafe - Palabok Pancit (Filipino Noodles) pork Bar-B-Que Pork Special - Chinese Near Me - Bloomington, Illinois

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