We loved the garlic eggplant and steamed bass! A great find for the area, hope to come back soon

This meal was pricey but felt very homemade. We ordered the chive and shrimp pancakes, pork and preserved cabbage noodles, and pepper steak. All were good. The pancake appetizer surprised me. Thought it would be a flat pancake but it's just the dim sum dish you order. We spoke to the owners and they mentioned they are retiring and closing in September so if you're a big fan be sure to get your fill in!! read more

Hot Wok Cafe - Chinese Near Me - Princeton Junction, New Jersey

Best Chinese around! super authentic food and a cozy vibe. I personally love their dumplings and potstickers but I've never had anything bad on the menu honestly. highly recommend! read more

It's the only REAL Chinese food restaurant in the big Princeton are! We're so happy to have it Food is very delicious and there are many varieties for you to choose. The new owners are very nice, warm and friendly. Highly recommended. read more

Stay away if you can! We recently got dinner, which was almost inedible. The food was tasteless which is very hard to accomplish with Chinese food. The leftovers are still in the refrigerator, but I'm just about ready to dump them. To boot it was extremely expensive. This was another example of a restaurant that was once great however, for some reason, they ran over the cliff and never made it back. On the bright side, the service is pretty good and the cashier was extremely polite and pleasant. read more

Got the meat plate appetizer which was okay, there wasnt as much flavor as i expected. We also tried the chive dumpling appetizers which was small and also not as flavorful. The taiwanese rice noodles were pretty good and the noodles soup was a pretty big portion. The food is slightly on the expensive side here. read more

Hot Wok Cafe - Chinese Near Me - Princeton Junction, New Jersey

See all

I'm a big fan of this place. Pretty authentic taiwanese style food, but a bit on the pricey side. That being said, everything I've had, and i've been there 3 or 4 times, has been good. From they poorly named black bean (fly head) veggie dish, the taiwanese pork chop and rice, the pork rice, lions head meat ball.... all have been good. I think maybe the one dish that was so so was the chives dumpling. read more

Awesome food! Has been in business for years. Love it! Love it! Love it!! I have been going there for 25 years now and same authentic cuisine. read more

I've been here several times over the past few years and every dish has been amazing. I try to get something different every time I go. The Mushu pork, pork and zucchini, crispy tofu and sesame chicken are some of the delicious meals I've had. This place Will ruin all other Chinese food for you as none of it even compares. read more

Hot Wok Cafe - Lemon Chicken - Chinese Near Me - Princeton Junction, New Jersey

Don't be misled by the dim exterior - Hot Wok Cafe is really cozy and homey, one of the better Chinese places around Princeton and definitely worth a visit. Portions are generous, and many of the dishes I've tried have a home style taste to them. The service is great and the owners are the sweetest. Their specialty is Taiwanese dishes (there's a small section of the menu dedicated to Taiwanese street food snacks). I actually also like the Sichuan dishes here; they aren't that "authentic" or mala in my opinion but I like Hot Wok's spin on them. Recommended: -Ma Po Tofu ($14.95) - good, really flavorful, and huge portion. It contains thinly sliced strips of beef but they can omit or substitute this. -Water Fish ($19.95) - this wasn't what I expected but I liked it. It wasn't that spicy, and the fish fillets are coated and tender inside. There's also celery on the bottom instead of the usual Napa cabbage. Big portion. -Dan Dan Noodles ($7.95) - noodles served with a generous amount of spicy peanut sauce. -Braised Pork Shoulder ($25.95) - it doesn't look that big in the photo but it's a huge portion of fatty pork shoulder. Recommend sharing this in a group. Also good: -Pork ribs & dried beancurd stick casserole ($16.95) - comforting, tastes like home cooking -Shredded potato ($14.95) - slightly spicy, pretty vinegary, and not excessively oily. -Lo ba bong (aka lu rou fan, $5.95) with soy egg ($1) - tasty but it's almost all rice with very little meat. It's snack/appetizer size. -Pork Thick Soup ($6.95) - another one of the Taiwanese snacks here, and I believe the only place in the area that has this dish. It's a very thick/gelatinous pork soup. It has a slight sour taste that wasn't my cup of tea personally but I'm glad I tried it, and I think it's worth trying if you haven't before. read more

See all

A shout-out for the hot wok cafe! My review might be a little outdated. My wife and I lived in the Avalon apartments across the street in the late 90s. This place was our go-to and the food was consistently outstanding. Lots of family outings and lots of memories. The owners were the sweetest folks and were great to my kids, I don't know if it's the same owners, but this place was legendary back in the day. Hope it still is! read more

Been going here for 26 years. It is run by great people. Consistent quality and recipes

Eh it's really pricey and honestly not delicious at all at least for me. I regret spending 70 dollars for such a sloppy and pricy lunch. But I feel very comfortable with the service! Very nice and gentle lady read more

Hot Wok is THE BEST Chinese food restaurant in the area. Food is tasty, prices are reasonable, and service is wonderful. We moved from W. Windsor and miss it so much, that whenever we're back in town (from CA!) we make sure we stop in. read more

I walked in and asked if they had egg rolls. I said great, then I'll sit down to eat. The employee said you can only sit for a 10 minimum. (In my head all is going thru my head is that you're cheap, you're not paying the percentage on the credit card machine, you have no restaurant etiquette, and you're only in this business to write stuff off.) Plain rude is what that was. But anyway there's more. I said I wouldn't sit down to just eat a single egg roll, but wanted to add that to my meal. So she sat me down. I ordered pork fried rice with extra egg and wonton soup. * They guy said it's a $2 up-charge for a single egg. (You got to be kidding me) * The wonton soup was as clear as day, no stock broth, no flavor lol taste just like water with shaved scallions sprinkles. * The pork looked like shavings off of the fatty end of bacon strip pieces * The lady next to me asked for an extra box to separate one of her foods to take home and the server said no that THAT'S TOO EXPENSIVE. (Lmbo aw hay'll. I said she can take mine in place.) I disregard restaurants who have no idea experience in what it takes to run a business and treat people with gratitude. Whether if you're authentic or not you were able to get your loan in America and know English and so that you can make money. The people are what makes you money, by the love you put in the food and gratitude you give to your guests, not your cheap, frugalness and instead making us look like the dumb ones in the end. read more

Hot Wok Cafe - Pork fried rice. All fat from bacon strips. Gross. - Chinese Near Me - Princeton Junction, New Jersey

Stop by this spot for a no frills Chinese takeout that stays true to its roots. The space is small, but cozy and of course, size has no impact on takeout speeds. I always order the fried tofu appetizer to start. The tofu is delightfully flash fried, providing a perfectly crisp exterior. For an entree, we got the spicy pork with bamboo shoot dish... delicious! The dish seriously packs a punch of heat; so for spice-lovers, do give it a try. Solid spot -- strongly recommend. read more

Hot Wok Cafe - Spicy Bamboo Shoot, Fried Tofu - Chinese Near Me - Princeton Junction, New Jersey

The young man server with the long hair was extremely unprofessional and rude, and need to learn what customer service means. Since he enjoys confrontation and fighting, he should join a MMA gym, and not take his aggression out on customers. I was out with a large family party and had three of my children there. My son was horsing around and hit his head, and I was disciplining him, asking him to suck it up. My wife and parents were attending to him. The 20-something server, a man of considerable size, decided to lecture me, scolding me to "be empathetic". I told him to mind his business and he proceeded to get aggressive in a physically threatening manner. He stormed away after yelling, and I repeated to him to mind his own business and he ran at me as I was walking away. I thought I was about to get attacked. Come to think of it, the entire time he was serving us, he was acting like a hot head with a loud, aggressive voice, like he was having a bad day. I called the restaurant to complain and the mother of the waiter answered (owner probably) and told me she saw everything and his son behaved inappropriately. We did not even adjust the tip, we only wanted the owner to be aware they have employed a hot head and need to fire him before he picks more fights with parents with crying children. read more

this place is amazing! the food is very delicious, and fresh. the service is also pretty fast. the staff is very friendly and assist you quickly. i would definitely recommend the sesame chicken and crispy tofu! read more

Hot Wok Cafe - crispy tofu (appetizer) - Chinese Near Me - Princeton Junction, New Jersey

See all

Stopped by for a quick lunch on a weekday and the place was pretty busy. It's a small shop with a good mix of traditional and Western Chinese food. I got a bowl of the braised beef noodle soup. It's a big bowl but unfortunately it's mostly noodles. They lay all the beef on top to make it look like a lot at first. The soup was okay, nothing great and I think it tasted better after I added a little hot oil to it. It's also topped with a bunch of raw garlic so be prepared to chew some gum after. This place has been around for a long time and most of their customers are regulars. I think it's worth a stop if you've got a few people with you to get a bunch of dishes family style. read more

Hot Wok Cafe - Braised Beef Noodle Soup - Chinese Near Me - Princeton Junction, New Jersey

update - they do have nice ingredients here but it is just a-okay. There are times I've gone here and was overwhelmed with flavor and other times it was just okay. Like today I paid $18 for broccoli...........The menu is a little pricer than i'm use to paying for take out Chinese I will probably go here again but the only thing I like constancy wise is that the food never seems greasy or mushy. It's always crunchy and fresh(y). I'm on the fence because of my dine in experience today - i tried to step outside the box and try something new on the menu and it just all didn't go well. :/ read more

Hot Wok Cafe - Sitting in the waiting area :) - Chinese Near Me - Princeton Junction, New Jersey

See all

This used to be our go-to local Chinese spot but the prices have gone up and the quality has gone way down. Las night, we paid over $50 for two basic menu items and an appetizer and only the mu-shu vegetables were even remotely acceptable. The chicken with broccoli was flavorless, and the dry fried string beans were prepared with old vegetables and bore only a vague resemblance to the savory dish we ordered and enjoyed so many times in the past. I know that the pandemic has been a huge challenge to all of our restaurants and hope that the Hot Wok was just having a bad day. But it will be a little while until I work up the courage to give them a second chance. read more

I've was here primarily for lunch. The lunch menu consists of the typical Chinese fare and all meals include rice and choice of soup. My standard order is the Eggplant and Chicken with garlic sauce along with the hot and sour soup. The preparation and portion size were both good. read more

Friendliest staff. I always miss this place when I'm away. The food is honestly unparalleled. The pork shoulder is always a hit and the lo mien is always a staple. read more

The staff/ owners are very friendly and the food was amazing. I would strongly recommend you stop by and give the restaurant a try.

Drove by this shopping complex a number of times but never stopped in for food. Came for dinner takeout on the weekend. The person answering the phone was so friendly and delightful. I ordered the Kung Po chicken and asked for it to be extra spicy. I was disappointed that there was hardly any spice when I ate it. I also found the food was a little overpriced for what you get. Would consider going back but would likely try another new place first. read more

2.5 stars Took out sesame chicken & beef lomein for dinner. I was craving for regular lomein you get in most chinese restaurants. But this was made with fettuccine like noodles with very little beef, no bean sprout and barely any vegetables. It cost me $26. I don't think it was worth the price. Was very disappointed. read more

Hot Wok Cafe - Chinese Near Me - Princeton Junction, New Jersey

One of my favorite Chinese restaurants in the area! Their food tastes authentic and servers are friendly. The cold noodles with sesame sauce are also to die for; I get them every time I come :))) their veggies are also cooked really well and are actually very flavorful. read more

Hot Wok Cafe - Sizzle Duck Crepe Appetizer - Chinese Near Me - Princeton Junction, New Jersey

Oh please. This is the best Chinese restaurant I have ever been to. And I live in Queens, NY which is arguably home to some of the most authentic Chinese food in the US. It's a delicate combination of nostalgia and TRUST in the people who have been filling my belly for 10+ years. I love this restaurant and ordering takeout for a Friday night dinner has become an honored and time-proven tradition for our little NJ family. 5 year olds clamor at egg rolls & their dumpling recipe is a national treasure. I love Hot Wok Cafe. Cannot wait to eat it this evening. YUM!!!! read more

Excellent and authentic Chinese you would find in HK. Been eating there for 20 years and never had a bad meal.Great service and friendly staff read more

Nice take out place. Spinach is really nice... still have some level of authentic Chinese food.

Called for a small pork fried rice with no vegetable and one egg roll. $17.00!!!!! smaller then a pint. The restaurant took it upon them selves to decide to give the lunch special instead of what I called and order then said they would have to refund me and explained how long it would take so I had to just accept what was made as I was on a lunch break and that's why this was called in. Will not go back food was not great rice was extremally soggy and not "fried" at all "mush pork rice with egg" is what I received. read more

Expensive and not fresh food. They also charge over 4% for credit card payment. I always pay restaurants with credit card and never had to pay this fee. The shrimp pancakes are very small and deep fried from frozen food. The Beijing noodles are not fresh nor hand made, it's simply prepackaged dry noodle which I can boil at home, the sauce is not authentic neither. The hot and sour soup is more liquid and diluted, not as thick as it should be. Lunch special is $15 and the frozen pancakes is $8, the Beijing dry noodle is $15. They also don't pack chopsticks unless you ask for them. Overall, bad food and highly over priced. Won't be going back again. read more

Stay the hell out of this place. Worst Chinese food in the world. The place is a dump and filthy as all heck. I ordered the pork lo mein and..... check this out....it wasn't lo mein they brought me, but LINGUINE!!! There was almost no pork in it, just a teaspoon or two of minced pork. Big chunks of cut up vegetables. It was like a linguine chop suey. My wife asked for chopsticks, and the waitress said to her, "What about him?" 'Nuff said? See y'all in the future at a different Chinese restaurant! read more

After almost one year away from Hot Wok Café it is nice to know that everything appears the same here. Menu, staff, quality lunch, customers. I returned for a business lunch today, and was greeted warmly despite the passage of time. If anything is different, perhaps their "off menu" menu is larger and offering more Taiwanese and other specialty dishes. I would explore that further for dinner, but at lunch, the old standards continue to work for me. See my prior review for that information. Good to see everyone again. Have to make it back here more often. UPDATE: APRIL 10, 2017 - Not working in the area for a couple-three years, so it's harder to make it for lunch. Returned this week for a nostalgic meal. Looks the same. Ownership seemed pleased to see me and we had a brief chat. Ordered the old standard; Crispy Sesame Chicken and Won Ton Soup. I'm thinking there must be someone new in the kitchen, because both dishes had less flavor than remembered. The DU in the soup were still thin skinned and tasty, but the broth needed salt. The chicken was ample, but not as interestingly addictive. Still quality, but should be sampled by the chef to make adjustments and bring them back to their peak. read more

Hot Wok Cafe is not the typical hole-in-the-wall take out Chinese place. Sure you're going to pay more, but it's high quality food. My wife and I have eaten at Mizu a Japanese restaurant next door dozens of times in the past year we've lived in the area (Mizu is our favorite sushi restaurant in the area). We finally decided to give Hot Wok Care a try and were very happy with the experience. The food was very fresh, and came out quickly. The staff is courteous and friendly. I inquired about a the Szechuan Wonton appetizer that was hand written on the menu and the owner/manager gave me a sample of it for free (and it was delicious). I'll definitely be coming back here often. read more

Being brought here by my coworkers in Princeton to this place as a surprise and it indeed turned out to be a surprise! Loved every single dish that we have ordered. We started with the duck crepe with scallion - the duck meat was so crispy and sauce flavorful. As entree, we got the pork rib with beancurd as well as the lamb. The beancurd was able to completely absorb the meat soup, well done! Wish they could also bring the dessert into the menu; equally good without it. Will introduce more of my friends to come and visit for sure! read more

Hot Wok Cafe - Chinese Near Me - Princeton Junction, New Jersey

See all

Excellent, authentic Chinese food. This is a family run place which generally gets the food right. They are amenable to changes and customizations to orders (like mine - where I wanted grilled chicken with my sesame chicken instead of fried). The only reason this place isn't a 5 is because it's somewhat of a 'hole in the wall'. The menus are handwritten (which could be a positive and negative) and amenities are below average while the cost of the Chinese food is above what other Chinese restaurants charge. Nevertheless, I cannot discount the quality of the food itself. I've been here several times including for lunch and dinner and it's usually very good. read more

Amazing food. Great service. Always hot and ready quickly. We've never had a bad meal here.

As always, a wonderful takeout meal from Hot Wok today! The best fried rice and hot&sour soup. And, of course the wonderful service from John & his family. This restaurant has been our family favorite for the last 18 years. read more

Great service the food is very authentic home cooked food. The shredded beef with chili long peppers is really good.