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    Hunan Chef

    3.4 (173 reviews)
    ModerateChinese, Buffets
    Closed 11:00 am - 9:00 pm
    Updated 1 week ago

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    HUNAN CHEF ATMOSPHERE

    What's the vibe?
    Moderate noise
    Casual
    Good for groups
    Good for kids

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    Teriyaki Chicken, Egg Roll, Orange Chicken, Lo Mein Noodles, Kung Pao Chicken,  General Tso's Chicken
    Kallie P.

    The food was amazing!! I loved the Kung Pao Chicken, Pepper Steak, and the egg rolls the most but almost everything was good. The grilled chicken sticks were very dry but I liked the flavor, same thing with the General Tso's chicken. My boyfriend tried the chicken wings and every type of shrimp they had and he enjoyed it all. They were quick to seat us with maybe a 5 minute wait around lunch time on a Sunday so it wasn't bad. They brought refills very fast and brought the check at an appropriate time. It's a cute place nothing fancy but good enough seating and they're quick to clean up and get more people seated. The price was really good in my opinion and I will be back soon!

    Receipt for hair in my food

    If you enjoy having anyone else's hair in your food, stop by Hunan Chef. After barely starting to eat my first plate of food, I noticed a hair in my pepper steak. I didn't want to make a big deal about it so I went up to "joe" At the register and mentioned that I had barely begun to eat when I found a hair in my food. I asked if we could leave since the two of us had just sat down with a plate and only had a few bites but the dude became defensive and claimed that it wasn't a hair. Another guy in a "chefs" hat pulls up and tries to rationalize the presence of the hair by saying that it was "too straight" to be in the food. They wouldn't have been loosing any money to just let us both walk out without paying since they toss out copious amounts of slop every night. After mentioning that it was utterly disgusting to have another persons hair in your food, they still made me pay for one person out of the two of us. I reiterated to "joe" with the glasses that he's making me pay for one meal even though we both stopped eating immediately after finding the hair. The owners can keep this nasty buffet, there are plenty out there with higher quality food. P.S. "joe" looked stunned and confused as to what to do when I told him about the incident. He said he was looking for a manager (implying he isn't one), but when I asked him to speak to one he said he was a manager. What a joke.

    HsiaoCheng W.

    So it's the start of Mid-Autumn Moon Festival. To all my brethren out there, 中秋快乐! So yeah I was feeling lazy and everyone kinda had different thoughts on what they wanted. So what better option than a buffet I thought using those critical thinking skills. Well, first let me say that I haven't been to a buffet in ages. I used to get my moneys worth in my youth and then some. I actually some of the chefs feared me as I could really sock it away. But these days I'm but a shell of my former self. And the prices have really gone up making these run-of-the-mill buffers not as much of a bargain as they used to be. There's no real specialty items on the buffet line here. So if you come think quantity over quality if you're looking for a deal. I called in advance to get an idea of the price. It's $15 for most everyone. Kids are by height. They wouldn't say how high a kid needs to be to get charged an adult. And I think it's because there's just an arbitrary number on the wall when you get there. It's pretty low. My kid easily towered it and she's not even a pre-teen yet. I think there's two tiers with the smaller (shorter) kids being $5.95 and the taller ones $7.95. Probably the taller one is 4 foot and the lower one maybe 3 foot. Just a guess. When we got there it was crowded. But not a single Asian customer. And in fact, none came in the whole time we were there. Yeah, kind of a red flag to me. Because if it's good, the first thing us Asians do is tell our Asian friends. So let's start with the sushi. Damn, it was looking so old. You know how the seaweed gets all mushy and all? Well the sushi here had gone beyond that stage. And just tidbits on each plate making it look like leftovers. The food area is tight. Like no space. I was always hitting elbows with folks when getting food. If there's a building code for that I'm sure they didn't meet it. The food is very very very average. No one dish stood out to me as being wow. Again, if you can pack it away go for quantity. Cuz quality ain't there. Everything seemed to kinda have a sweet tinge on it. My kid only has a small plate of 5 items before moving to dessert. I did only slightly better. For desert, the choices were slim. They didn't refill anything while we were there so like the sushi it just looked like a bunch of leftover crumbs. They have an ice cream machine. It came out looking icy but was actually soft. The cones were fresh too. And the fortune cookies were not stale. Service was good. And wait staff attentive. All Chinese folks. One old lady and one young man. Felt kinda sorry for them having to work on a Chinese holiday like this. Immigrant life can suck being far away from home (they has accents so I'm assuming they are immigrants). Nice folks. Tried really hard to please. Sorry for any typos or ramblings. I'm too tired to proof this post. Even though I didn't eat much I'm in a food coma. Old age sucks. Cheng'e viewing of the moon will have to wait until next year. Good night.

    Sweet ribs, General Tso's Chicken, Green Beans and Groud Beef.
    Cesar R.

    Been coming here for over 20 years and it's the best Buffett in the city. Great selection and everything is kept fresh and hot. Obviously best to go during g peak hours.

    All of these items were cold and the fist was a bit hard.
    Tia S.

    One of few halfway decent chinese buffets in the Houston area. The selection is average. This buffet doesn't have much seafood (no crawfish, crab) or hibachi but a moderate selection of chicken and beef entrees. They do have sushi, but I generally avoid sushi at chinese buffets. I only give 3 stars for this visit because all the items in the first plate I made were cold. Also, the water had a very awful after taste. I could only drink it when I had a mouth full of food so I couldn't taste it. I recommend the fried rice and orange chicken. Pretty tasty! The dining room is large but not that comfortable for a long visit; no booth seating and not many outlets. Customer service is better than most - frequent visits to the table and my server brought me chopsticks even though they were available at the buffet.

    Lauri B.

    Lots of buffet items to chose from and service is good. Buffets are a little iffy for me, but this one was pretty good. I'm not a germaphobe, but there's something about other people touching the same utensils I touch. Good news, they keep things very clean. The orange chicken was good, love the mushrooms and the eggdrop soup was really good. Restaurant is clean.

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    2 months ago

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    6 months ago

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    15 days ago

    I had General Tso; Orange Chicken; egg rolls & fried rice. The staff & patrons were friendly and helpful. I would go back again

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    8 months ago

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    11 months ago

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    7 months ago

    Wonderful food presentation always keep everything rotated in fresh easy to get in and out of friendly staff

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    6 months ago

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    4 months ago

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    Wenxin L.

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    10 months ago

    Good food! Great service Very clean and fresh. Been a while since I'd been here and it was so much better than i remembered

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    3 years ago

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    2 years ago

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    5 months ago

    Great food and service beautiful inside the restaurant and the prices are not bad and the food is always fresh and very tasty

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    10 months ago

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    2 years ago

    Best buffet in the spring Branch area. Food turns over fast and so food is usually very fresh

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    4 years ago

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    3 years ago

    Went there for lunch on a weekend one day and food was good and price was respectable. I do recommend this restaurant buffet.

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    10 months ago

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    2 years ago

    The best Chinese buffet in Houston! Food is fresh and delicious! Restaurant is very clean!

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    3 years ago

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    2 years ago

    I always have a really good experience going to Hunan Chef. The food is really good and the staff friendly.

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    2 years ago

    I love the food here, especially the moo goo gai pan, the sauce with the rice is so good, reason why I keep going back

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    3 years ago

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    Page 1 of 5

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    Hu's Cooking

    Hu's Cooking

    4.5
    (1.1k reviews)
    7.1 mi
    $$

    Look no further for authenticity, flavor, and complexity in Chinese cooking near the med center!…read more Though we opted for more "simple" dishes during this experience, you can judge a place by if they can do their simple dishes well. The mapo tofu is one of the best we've had outside of Bellaire with spicy, savory, numbing, and warmth that you expect from a good mapo tofu. Crispy popcorn chicken is a classic that's spicy, lightly fried, and crisp. It has an authenticity that other places around can't replicate and makes you keep craving more. The portions are also appropriate for their price. Service is incredibly quick, and you can order as you go and receive your dish within 10-15 minutes, regardless of how busy they are. As for the ambiance, it's loud, it's hectic, and it's simple... maybe a stretch, but makes me feel like I'm eating at a mom and pop shop in the heart of China. This place is definitely a go to if I'm convincing a friend of Houston's great food scene! Rating: 4.5/5

    My mom wanted steamed fish with ginger, scallions, and that light sweet soy sauce. Hu's Cooking…read moredelivered! When we ordered, they mentioned it'll take about 20 mins but it came out in 10. No complaints here since we were starving from an 8 hour road trip. The Dan Dan Noodles...I had high expectations but sadly this dish fell short. I recommend Hu's Cooking to use a bigger bowl and more sauce because it was difficult to mix the noodles and the sauce wasn't...saucing, unfortunately. I wish there was more flavor in this dish. The Scallion Pancake was super over-fried and oily. See image in my review. The outer parts of the pancake were fried to a crisp and only a small circumference in the center stayed chewy. I know Chinese tends to be oily but this pancake soaked up way too much oil. Half a Peking duck: super great price for so much meat. The difficulty when eating this dish is gnawing the meat off the sharp bones of the duck. Mapo Tofu with white rice: pretty easy staple, no complaints here. Dinner on a Saturday was packed but we got seated quickly and food arrived fast.

    Photos
    Spicy chicken, clear noodles with red pepper sauce, and stir fried green beans
    Spicy chicken, clear noodles with red pepper sauce, and stir fried green beans
    Open til 11:00pm on Wed, Thurs, Fri and Sat
    Open til 11:00pm on Wed, Thurs, Fri and Sat
    Hu's Cooking

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    Bamboo House

    Bamboo House

    4.4
    (738 reviews)
    17.0 mi
    $$

    IYKYK - this is probably the best Peking Duck I've had in Houston in a long time. I've done Peking…read moreCuisine for years and shifted to Arco for my duck cravings, but if you're willing to drive out to Humble (pretty much anytime you're in the IAH area), you gotta check out Bamboo House for the best Peking duck. And their other menu items are fire as well! We went on a Sunday late evening. We had a 9 pm airport pickup at IAH so it was a perfect opportunity to grab a spectacular dinner and make the 30+ minute drive out to IAH totally worth it. Parking lot wasn't too full so that wasn't an issue. While the neighborhood ain't River Oaks luxury, it ain't too scary either. We kept it simple - ordered a whole duck and Bamboo House Special Noodle with Beef. This place ain't cheap but the food is worth every penny. It was very busy that evening so it's not a well-kept secret but also proves that eventually, Houstonians will figure out where the good food is. The duck was near perfect. They serve the duck with the pancakes (as opposed to the buns like at Arco) which is my preference. The soup that comes with it was also extremely flavorful. And the house special noodles with beef - oh my. I swear it's just one really long noodle so you may be frustrated trying to divvy up the family style bowl, but the labor is worth it. So good... Can't wait for my next airport run so I can sneak in a lunch or dinner at this place. So many other menu items I want to try!

    If you are looking for the best Peking duck, look no further! Who would have expected to find the…read morebest Peking duck in Humble? I had previously visited the now closed Bamboo House on Westheimer and I remember being impressed by the food. I had to make an airport run and decided that it would be perfect timing to stop by this location. I highly recommend ordering the duck ahead of time, but we were lucky enough to snag one of the last ducks when we arrived around 7 pm on a Sunday evening. The waitress was super friendly and upbeat and the restaurant is older but well maintained. You can see where the food is being prepared/cooked and you can see ducks being cooked/warmed behind a glass window. The duck was absolutely spectacular with the perfect seasoned and tender meat accompanied by well rendered crispy skin. I love how the pancakes are paper thin and pair well with the scrumptious duck and other toppings. They also provide sugar and plum sauce as additional toppings which I thought was interesting but not my cup of tea. The duck soup was extremely flavorful and full bodied and went well with the duck. The noodles were also amazing with likely hand pulled noodles served with an abundance of tender beef and vegetables with a little Sichuan kick. I was intrigued by a strawberry chicken dish that I saw on the menu and I plan to try it the time. My diagnosis: hands down the best Peking duck in the greater Houston area!

    Photos
    Inside
    Inside
    Twice Cooked Pork Belly
    Twice Cooked Pork Belly
    Peking Duck

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    Peking Duck
    China Garden

    China Garden

    4.0
    (403 reviews)
    8.1 mi
    $$

    Idk the ladies name that served us but she is hilarious! There was also a Hispanic gentleman there…read moreand he was funny and very attentive as well. I wore my margaritaville Rockets shirt for the game and they kept calling me margaritaville. Before we even sat down, they offered wine. "Would you like some wine, or do you need something stronger?" Hahhaa Our waitress suggested one plate for us to share since we werent really hungry. The eggrolls are huge and very good. They make their own spicy mustard and sweet/sour sauce and its already on the table for you to enjoy. Let me tell you... Our sinuses were cleared after we sampled the spicy mustard. The food was delicious but the personalities were 10/10

    I was craving Chinese food today, and this spot popped up as just a mile from my job with good…read morereviews, so I decided to check it out. Lucky for me, they have their own parking lot, which already made everything super convenient. I walked in around 1:30 PM and was back out by 1:55 PM, so the service is definitely fast and friendly; perfect for a lunch break. The lunch menu has a huge variety of options, and every plate comes with fried rice and a pretty big egg roll. I honestly didn't know what to expect, but the quality of the food was fantastic. I can totally see how they've stayed open for 50+ years. I ordered the beef and broccoli... which honestly should be renamed to beef and vegetables, because it came with broccoli, carrots, and onions. Not complaining, though! The beef was tender and kind of reminded me of a beef fajita texture with how flakey and tender it was. The sauce was savory with garlic and soy sauce flavors and I really liked it. The veggies were cooked perfectly for my taste: still a little crunchy and not soggy. My only complaint was the onion. They were a bit too crunchy and raw, which made them super spicy and pungent, so I just moved them to the side. The egg roll was good, too! It tasted freshly made with cabbage that still had some crunch, which I love. Portion-wise, it was absolutely perfect. I finished everything except the onions and left feeling satisfied. Not heavy and not carrying leftovers, which I appreciate because some Chinese spots over serve. I paid about $20 including tip. Overall, I would 100% recommend this place and would definitely come back for lunch again.

    Photos
    Entrance
    Entrance
    Veggies are always fresh.
    Veggies are always fresh.
    Entry

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    Entry
    The Rice Box

    The Rice Box

    3.8
    (1k reviews)
    5.6 mi
    $$

    Service is always good and friendly. Best chicken and fried rice I've ever had. Every location in…read moreHouston is comparable to the other. Great food.

    Box of rice Haven't…read morebeen here in almost 8 years. 1st experience was great, second was terrible so I didn't go back. My friend Aurora wanted to meet Donna early dinner and gossip session and she really liked this place. (We tried having a team lunch at the Rice Village location during the cold front last Oct but they had no heat so we opted for a warmer place but she grabbed a to go on the way home) Here we are for a late lunch 3:45 pm on a Friday. Parking was none had to drive around the block and saw some movement and bam, someone was leaving. We ordered at the bar, staff was super nice and opted to sit outside. Did not realize they deliver to the table. Order: Mongolian beef combo with fried rice and egg roll $14.99 The food comes in takeaway style containers. Win. Mongolian beef (2.5/5) - slightly over sauced for me; beef was pretty tender and there were carrots and edamame which is not the standard so maybe that's what makes it fusion? Fried rice (3/5) - standard style fried with small pieces of bean sprouts which I love so that was a nice surprise Egg roll (3/5) - I assume it was chicken because I didn't realize there was a choice) - it was crunchy and soft on the inside which I like, and pairs well with sriracha (did not eat till I got home) They seem to do a whole lot of take away. The staff were nice and hard working. I was excited when they first opened bc they had chow fun on the menu and being HK Cantonese, I love that dish but when I ordered it the 1st and 2nd time eight years ago instead of bean sprouts they had cabbage and that alters rhe flavor tremendously. I see why it's popular among the people but just don't think it is for my taste.

    Photos
    The counter/bar area
    The counter/bar area
    The Rice Box
    The Rice Box

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    Hunan Chef - chinese - Updated July 2026

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