Tasteless food. I have had better food served in the prison chow hall. 2 pieces of broccoli in gen tso. Fake chicken, zero flavor in crab rangoon. Even the eggrolls sucked read more

I'm not going to give this place 1 star because the staff here have always been very sweet (in my experience) and the eggrolls here are actually the level of crispiness on the outside that I like. Generally though, the food is just... not great. I've come here plenty of times over the years - there was a period of a couple weeks where I was regularly on East Hill Plaza for an all day training. On those days, myself and a couple colleagues I was taking the trainings with would switch back and forth between ordering from Ling Ling Garden for lunch or the nearby Collegetown Bagels location. I hadn't been for a while (because *gestures all around*... pandemic), but I've learned that my preferred location for Chinese food (Easy Wok in the mall) has closed... so I decided to go back to Ling Ling Garden. I ended up ordering a couple dishes for a friend and I to split when I was in town and a craving for Chinese food / takeout hit... ... alas, it didn't help my craving. While the eggrolls are still good, the fried rice was pretty flavorless. The main dishes I ordered and split with a friend were also pretty flavorless. It just... wasn't good. Lacking in pretty much every way. TL;DR Honestly only worth it if you're looking for eggrolls or have minimal options because you're staying nearby. :-/ read more

Ling Ling Garden - the front desk of a restaurant - Chinese Near Me - Ithaca, New York

I've gotten to go orders from this restaurant. As far as the options there are many but I'm not overwhelmed by the food. Glad it's a convenient source of Chinese food but if seeking high quality food I can't say that this is it. read more

Stumbled upon this and was mightily impressed. The facade is nothing special, blending into the strip mall, but the staff were friendly and helped me find what I was looking for on the menu when I had questions. While the steamed dumplings were nothing special, the orange chicken was everything I wanted it to be - big pieces with orange pieces mixed in the sauce and plenty of veggies. I made two meals out of it easily and took the rest back to Buffalo. Which says a lot about my desire for the food, that I took the time to transport it home with me. I wouldn't call the interior of the restaurant fancy or very unique, but the food is good, and I would definitely visit here again. read more

Ling Ling Garden - Orange chicken, to go. - Chinese Near Me - Ithaca, New York

Poor rendation of authentic Asian cuisine. Too "ABC" for me... I do not recommend this restaurant for anyone who is interested in real Chinese food... Too pricey, Too greasy, Terrible customer service, Just say NO! read more

I was initially happy to find this restaurant. The aroma was inviting and it appeared to be busy. We didn't have to wait for our order to be taken and it was nice to see that this is a family business as there were two children behind the counter doing what appeared to be homework. Unfortunately, the cashew chicken that I ordered while spicy had no real flavor or chicken. The fried dumplings were acceptable but Wegman's have frozen that are just as good. My wife had beef and broccoli and she wasn't impressed or even sure that the meat was beef. She enjoyed the rice but only after she added beef bouillon and soy sauce to it when she reheated the leftovers. read more

Very competent, very unremarkable American Chinese food. The menu has all the classics and absolutely nothing else. Spare ribs were spare ribs. Hot and sour soup was tasty enough, if a little thin. General Tso's chicken and sesame beef were visually indistinguishable. Both tasted just fine, although both could have stood to be just a little spicier and just a little crispier. Prices were reasonable and portions were adequate, although not enormous (they cram a lot of broccoli into the entrees). I don't regret ordering it tonight because it was convenient, but I don't see any reason why I'd pick this over Spicy Asian in the future. read more

I ordered chicken and snow peas spicy. Totally bland flavor, no spice, just salty. My least favorite Chinese food I've ever had. Do not recommend this place. read more

Always awesome food. The owner is super nice and no matter when I call it's always 10 minutes ready to pick up.

I really enjoyed the food here, and it's worth it for the price you pay. Especially since the surrounding restaurants are a bit more pricey than this place. They aren't super Americanized to the point where they sell chicken wings but that was fine for what I was looking for. It's a good place to eat if you're looking to relax and dine-in. I feel that dining in and having your food served to you hot makes the experience that much better. Take-out is relatively fast, but only when it's not packed with orders and busy. Overall, I can say I would be a returning customer next time im in the area. Also, would recommend. read more

Certain traditional Chinese dishes. Price range average. Can provide Mandarin service. Great atmosphere. Fit for chatting.

Ling Ling Garden is your standard American Cantonese restaurant. Think General Tso's chicken, beef lo mein, egg rolls, and you get the idea. Lunch specials are cheap at $7.25 for a huge portion with fried rice and an egg roll or soup. Absolutely nothing special, but this particular type of Chinese food, which I occasionally do, you'll get what you're looking for. read more

Ling Ling Garden - General Tso's Chicken lunch special ($7.45) - Chinese Near Me - Ithaca, New York

Three stars is about right. It's about the same as every other Chinese food place you've been to. It was uncrowded on a Saturday night during Cornell homecoming, and quiet. The waiter was attentive, and the prices were reasonable. Are there better offerings in Ithaca? Sure. But those other places were crowded, and Ling Ling was near where we were staying. It was fine, if forgettable. read more

Ling Ling Garden - Interior - Chinese Near Me - Ithaca, New York

We really enjoyed our food from here over the weekend. Pepper steak, chicken with broccoli, sesame chicken and pork with snow peas all were delicious, with good quality ingredients. Was happy to see pork egg rolls since I don't like shrimp. Fried dumplings were also good. They only do take out and restaurant looks closed but they are in there! (With the lights low). Easy parking. Staff is friendly. Good was prepared quickly. read more

Dull. Pork with garlic sauce boasted an impressive number of water chestnuts, which bore a distinctive metallic tang of can-freshness. Spring rolls were not crispy, though this was more likely due to the necessary ride back home. Service was very prompt and polite but with limited reward. Became leftovers, probably improved by a night in the fridge. Better Asian cuisine likely found in Collegetown. read more

Surprisingly good, given it's a Chinese restaurant in upstate NY. I've spent my share of time in metropolitan areas with numerous Chinese restaurants, and while this certainly isn't one of them, it's definitely one of the go-to Chinese restaurants in Ithaca. They don't have some of the more "exotic" fare I'm used to (duck, fresh seafood, etc.), but the pork and tofu-based dishes I had were great. Parts of the dining area appear to have been converted into storage space, which doesn't help the ambiance. They are neatly clean, though, and have Tsingtao. Like Ron mentions - the name is terribly stereotypical (a given, I guess, given the locale) - and the menu features pandas and bamboo. However, give this place a shot. I liked it, and you probably will, too. But please, feel free to order something other than the typical General Tso's Chicken! read more

YUCK! No silverware for my take out. No sauces in the bag. Every Chinese takeout place gives you sauces!!!! Worst pork fried rice I've ever had. Plain and it had absolutely no flavor. I only had about 6 small pieces of chicken in my combo platter. D- Go to Spicy Asian or just find another place. Please. read more

Decent food, rude service. We went here with our young kids on a Saturday evening and were surprised the place was empty, other than people picking up to-go orders. We soon found out why. The waiter was rushed, inattentive, unhelpful and outright rude. They had no children's menu, small portion or "plain" options (couldn't even order a side of lo-mein noodles) and anytime we tried to ask a question the waiter was very rude and abrupt. We nearly walked out before even ordering, but we were very hungry and curious about the quality of the food. The rudeness continued down to the moment we tried to pay when he took one look at our Visa card and said "No American Express" and turned away. My husband had to chase him down and point out that our card was a VISA and didn't say "American Express" anywhere on it. And no, it was not a language barrier thing, just a "I don't give a shit about customer service" thing. After we left we agreed the food was a 6 and the service was a 1. As we live very close, may still get take out from Ling Ling Garden if we're really in the mood for Chinese, but I don't think we'll ever dine in again. read more

It's true what they say about Chinese food in upstate New York. I made sure to eat a lot of Chinese food on the west coast before starting up grad school at Cornell because I knew I wouldn't be getting anything good for several months. The food here can't even compare. Service here is pretty good, aside from the fact that they default to giving everyone a fork rather than chopsticks. The food is mediocre at best. I tried one of the lunch specials - roast pork with fried rice. It comes with a bowl of soup which wasn't bad, but the soup and the dish weren't all that spectacular. The whole thing is pretty cheap, but not as cheap as the (better) stuff that I'm used to. If this is the best Chinese food in Ithaca, I think I'll avoid all the other places. read more

Lunch started off really promising with delicious hot and sour soup so I had high hopes for my entree. Unfortunately, my chicken with garlic sauce was more like water chestnuts with garlic sauce. The chicken that was there was really tasty but there was very little of it! My colleagues had the chicken with cashews and fared a bit better with more chicken than mine but still heavy on the cashews. Fried rice was "meh" - I was glad to be eating low-carb and leaving it on the plate. read more

I actually really love this place but the Lo Mein needs to be more juicy. Their fried rice is pretty decent and I really like their shrimp egg rolls. read more

This place is my go-to for Chinese food. Their fried pork dumplings remind of peking raviolis in Boston. The sesame chicken is crispy and flavorful as well. The egg rolls are awesome, but I will have to say their lo-mein and fried rice are flavorless. read more

I live in Syracuse and there are lots of Chinese take out restaurants up here and I've had most of them. I was sceptical about ling ling garden when I came here while visiting my old hometown. I'm very glad to say I was surprised by this place. Everything was great, the order was spot on, affordable and made perfect. This place is better then any Chinese restaurant we've got up here. read more

I have gone here two times when I needed to pick up a check at Cornell's payroll office next door. I'm not in east hill plaza often but I have heard good things about Ling Ling so I figured it was worth a try. On my first visit I ordered chicken and broccoli for takeout with hot and sour soup. The broccoli was horribly overcooked and mushy. The soup was relatively thin, a refreshing positive compared to the cornstarchy stuff served at most places, but the flavor was a bit too sour and not hot at all. The next time I ordered one of their generic fried dishes with sweet sauce (maybe general Tso's or orange chicken). It was the typical Americanized Chinese fair. Way too sweet and not crispy enough, the chicken was a bit soggy. One big plus though is that their takeout containers are very nice. So nice you could reuse them if you want. But that's about the only thing positive I can say about this place. I would give it one star but it is edible and considering there is no really good strictly Chinese place in Ithaca, its not like I can recommend an alternative. read more

I'm a fan of Ling Lings, mostly because its convenient and I order before leaving campus and scoop it up on the way home. I've dined in a couple times and service tends to be slow. The food is good, and I have no complaints :) Its your standard Chinese food place no frills. The portions are a great size and I usually end up making one meal into 2. read more

They make a great veggie fried rice with fried tofu... omg. Fast and piping hot. Great pick up service. In this COVID-19 era, they've done a great job being a safe fast food service. Highly recommend. read more

I ordered General Tso's Tofu online, picked it up, and brought it back to my house, only to discover (after eating a few bites) that they'd given me chicken instead of tofu. I brought it back to them and showed them the original online order. I explained that I was a life-long vegetarian and that they'd given me chicken. I guess I was hoping for some sort of apology, but instead the owner just acted annoyed. (The guy that worked there was nice and tried to apologize before the owner took over). This was the second time I'd tried the place; the first time, the orange tofu I ordered tasted strangely of plastic. This is a place to avoid at all cost. read more

This is just on my experience with this restaurant if you even can call it that! We go in and order around say 7pm 10minutes later another family comes in *business is so slow* so we wait around 30min for our food and the other family gets their food within 10min! Like what the heck. Anyways when we got our food it tasted terrible just horrendous!Just saying if u have a choice don't go here, it's a waste of time and money. I would rate a 0star if possible. read more

I think they must have gotten a new chef recently, because I went on Valentine's Day (the bf and I are classy individuals) and were extremely impressed. The vegetables were all very bright-tasting and freshly-steamed, the General Gao's Chicken crispy and flavorful. Nothing was soggy, greasy, overcooked, or any of the other bad things that lots of Chinese in the US sometimes can be. Yeah, it's Americanized, yeah there are pandas on the menu. Who cares? The food was great. Service was also quick, space clean, et cetera. read more

I always laugh when I think of ling ling gardens. If you're looking for authentic Chinese look somewhere else. But if you're looking for some of that greasy Americanized Chinese stuff then look no further. read more

I have never been treated so rudely from the very beginning. The person behind the counter seemed very annoyed about doing their job and made us feel extremely unwelcome. When the food came one of the orders was wrong, they refused to make it right. As if all that wasn't bad enough what we were served was sub par even by this class of restaurant. read more

Ithaca Yelp is weird. It's damn good Chinese takeout-- I've never had a single problem. Always quick, generous portion sizes, and pricing is spot on. It's my go-to Chinese food spot while I'm in Ithaca for school. read more

We've been ordering takeout from them for YEARS. As far as Chinese food goes, it is very Americanized. After trying other places in town, I've concluded that Ling Ling is tops in the soup department. They may not make their own stock, but it tastes like it. All their other dishes are ample, and full of vegetables and meat. I'm sure the Sysco truck makes frequent deliveries there - is there a Chinese restaurant in town that can deny using pre-cuts for veggies and meat? But, after almost ten years of going there weekly (I like soup, clearly) I can tell you that it's clean, and I've not once gotten ill after eating their food. You might not think that's a valid aspect of a review, but I can't make the same claim for some of the other Chinese food restaurants I've tried in town. read more

Ordered take out, and I was so pleased with the freshness of the food! When I got home I even had to wait a minute before I ate because it was still so hot. Beef lo mein was very tasty, and crab Rangoon was delicious. Sesame chicken was very good too! It's nice to know that on a Friday night they are making everything fresh to order as it seemed. read more

Great dumplings and good food but the server at lunch was beyond rude and totally killed the experience. With great service I would have given four stars! Food is always hot and fresh, the general chicken is the best in town. read more

All around good Chinese food. Prices are fair and for the amount of food you get Id say it's definitely a good deal. I've had one of their combination plates and it was very tasty. I'd recommend for anyone looking for good take out Chinese. read more

Nice place, the food was decent (not the best, but considering this area of ny, it was quite welcome) and the prices were fair. Service was very quick, which was the best part. Plenty of parking, walking distance from Best Western University Inn close to Cornell University. read more

Surprisingly good Chinese for upstate NY. My Chinese wife even liked it. We came in just expecting some passable food on a rainy day. The decor was not great. What we got was generous portions and fast service and pretty decent food. My wife even wanted to go back the next day. read more

The food is bad. The cup is dirty!! (traveling here and accidentally choose this restaurant) I ordered a lo mein, which is not tasty at all. It just like some noodles plus some salty soy sauce. The shrimp is not fresh. Not professionally cooked. Shrimp is not fresh. I cannot imagine how long time it was in a refrigerator. A big piece of stain is left on the rim of the cup (possibly from someone's mouth errrrrrrrrrrrrrr) I did not take a sip of water from the cup. read more

It's not Americanized Chinese food, it's just bad food. I'm not a picky eater, and I don't care if the waiter is nice to me, but the food is just so awful. The szechuan shrimp had some sad looking chewy shrimp, and tasted like hot sauce had been drizzled on top. The noodles tasted like salt and grease. If you're looking for actual, delicious Chinese food in Ithaca, I would recommend de Tasty Hot Pot. read more