I've been a loyal customer since their original 2nd floor location to their current location. Hot & Sour Soup, Pot Stickers, Sui Loong Bows, Ja Jiang Mein, Pork Chop Noodle Soup have always been consistent. Missed their original recipe of green onion pancake and that delicious house made s&s sauce. I really miss their old recipe of the sizzling rice, BUT I understand things change and they did what they had to do, to make things run as smoothly as possible for kitchen staffing. I'm not a fan of the new concept, but just as long as they continue to serve amazing pot stickers, that is good enough for me!!! read more

I only get one dish from here (ok also sometimes the pan fried meat buns which are delicious) - the rice wine fish fillet off the Shanghai menu! It is sooo goood. Comes with a lot of fish, bamboo shoots, and wood ear in a delicious sauce that is really good with rice. Other dishes I've tried here are okay, but not that good. The duck was super salty and the soup dumplings are kind of dry and one note. read more

Thank you Moon Palace! I phoned ahead as my food-allergic teen was going to a birthday party where Moon Palace food was to be catered in. The person who answered the phone was thoughtful and attentive about my allergy concerns. She told me which dishes to avoid. My kid ate an orange chicken and rice dish at the party and said it was great and he had no allergic reaction. Thanks Moon Palace for taking food allergy concerns seriously. read more

Best potstickers, Hot and Sour soup, and egg rolls. Delicious entrees. I love the moo shu pork, but everything is delicious: fresh, flavorful, bountiful. I just ordered take-out for the first time: it took less than 15 minutes, and was hot and perfectly packaged. Yum! read more

I wasn't impressed. It was decent chinese food, but everything was just corn starch galore! (for those who don't know, corn starch is often used as a binder..AKA the sticky consistency sometimes seen in chinese food). And to be honest, a little bland. The fish and mu er (black fungus) was decent, but overwhelmingly drenched in corn starch. The chinese okra was nothing to brag about (though the waitress said that was one of their more famous things) and $35 for peking duck? ha! read more

Saturday brunch in Chinatown. We decided on Moon Palace due to all of the positive reviews for their xiao long bao (Shangai soup dumplings). After reading the reviews and hearing the rumors of a chef from Din Tai Fung, I set out to see if all the buzz was true. Upon walking in, I received a warm greeting from the wait staff and immediately noticed the well furnished décor. Oddly, the place was empty. Not a good sign when most places are packed around this time on Saturdays in Chinatown. We ordered xiao long bao, xiao long bao with crab and pork, and shanghai fried noodles. The xiao long bao was a large pork meatball with very little soup inside. The other used imitation crab and was surrounded by more pork filling around the same size. Pretty good as a steamed dumpling on its own but a far cry from xiao long bao. After eating soup dumplings in California and New York, this was very disappointing. To set the record straight, a chef from Din Tai Fung does not work here and this is not the best place in Chicago for xiao long bao. The service and interior are excellent but I would not recommend Moon Palace for Shanghai soup dumplings. read more

Moon Palace Express - Xiao long bao? - Shanghainese Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

The food was ok, but do not think I will be coming back. We decided to branch out from our regular places to try this place out mainly because of the xiao long bao, but I was a bit disappointed. The xlb skins were thick, and only 1/3 of the basket had soup in them. The sponge gourd in the sponge gourd with gluten was too bitter and had skin left on it. The gluten was bland. The hot and spicy beef was good, but nothing special. The chinese meatballs were actually pretty good in a nice sauce. The steamed egg with clam was good from the egg standpoint, but the clam was a bit sandy actually. The wide noodles in the appetizers were also pretty tasty. I think it just wasn't standout. read more

I give it 3 stars for the Shanghai Noodles. We ordered carryout the other day. Kung Pao Beef - Not much flavor and wasn't very spicy. Moo Shu Pork - It was good, but wish they gave 6 wraps instead of 4 only. Shanghai Noodles - This was good. I usually just get the Shanghai Noodles from here. A tad pricey. read more

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Moon Palace is a dim classy dark wood restaurant next to the Fire Department in Chinatown. While this restaurant attracts quite the foreigner clientele and Chinese waitresses friendly, I wouldn't rank their food as exceptional distinguished. The dishes are smaller in portion than other Chinese restaurants. The crispy chicken and sweet and sour shrimp weren't especially crispy either. The batter used seemed rather goopy and not light and crunchy enough. Otherwise a fair mom and pop business. read more

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I came here by myself for lunch on a Tuesday. The place was more empty than I expected it to be. It was also rather dark in the room. Anyway, I was seated quickly by one of the two waitresses that were present at the time. They were really nice. She didn't ask me what I wanted to drink though. She just gave me tea even though I didn't ask for it. On to the food. I ordered from their lunch specials. I chose the Mongolian beef for $6.75. It came with a soup (I chose the egg-drop soup) and a bowl of white rice. For the amount of food, I thought it was a pretty good deal. The price ended up around $7 with the tax which was relatively cheap considering how full I felt. The food wasn't bad. The egg-drop soup was your standard egg-drop soup. Nothing special but it wasn't bad. The Mongolian Beef was pretty good. I wish there was more beef though. Either way, it was yummy. Best part was how quickly it came out. I ordered and within 3 minutes my food was already on my table. It might be because there were only 8 other customers there at the time, but it was speedy nonetheless. The service was good. The food was good. The prices were even better.. and that's coming from a broke college student. read more

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My favorite Chinese restaurant in the city. Kung Pao, rice cakes, hot and sour soup, chicken fried rice, Egg rolls... etc. everything is awesome. read more

Went to Moon Palace recently and the food was heavenly! I had Kung Pao Chicken their signature dish, Beef Sukiyaki, Steamed jumbo shrimp, scallion pancakes and more. Food is cooked with the freshest ingredients and the flavors are amazing! A good restaurant has consistency in how their dishes taste every time you go there. Moon Palace always delivers on that front. The staff is friendly, the service fast. Chef and his wife make you feel very welcome. Their wine and liquor selection is limited but ample enough to give you a decent choice. Love going to Moon Palace often as they check all my culinary boxes! read more

I'm a big fan of this place. It's a cozy, beautiful, interior paired with delicious food for a reasonable price. Nothing else left to say! read more

Overall it was just ok, to not really that good. Im honestly not even excited about writing a review about this place. I've had a lot better chinese at a buffet in a strip mall. Don't waste your time. Oh and if anyone knows a great chinese place in the city PLEASE tell me what it is. I would truly appreciate the recommendation. read more

An out of town friend was attending a conference at McCormick and we figured that Chinatown would be an easy place to meet up for dinner. I selected Moon Palace based on the Yelp reviews and was not disappointed. The space was large and they were very accommodating of our baby stroller - specifically seating us at a table where there was plenty of room for it. Service was good - they were able to answer questions about the menu and were quick to refill waters. Also, the waitresses were really cute with my baby when she started to get fussy - coming over to coo and make faces at her. The food was mostly excellent. I had moo shu pork, which was done really well. My friend had General Tso's tofu and while they seemed a little befuddled by his request for extra sauce, they did provide it. I would say that the fried rice wasn't really worth it. Not very flavorful. The portions were quite large- plenty to take home for leftovers. I also enjoyed the cookies that came with the check. In addition to "standard" fortune cookies, they gave us really tasty almond cookies. I'm not in the area often, but it's nice to know that I have a reliably good place to eat or recommend to others in Chinatown. read more

On a good night the xiao long bao, duck and scallion pancakes are to die for, almost as good as familial relations can concoct (can never be better, right?)! However it's the consistency of achievement which is the challenge, as well as the staff - who one gets as a server can make or break the meal, with either attentive service or almost derision of inconvenience. I do realize there is definitely a cultural influence at work here, and it's no easy job to work the restaurant, but one would think there would be an appreciated pattern of better food and service with more revenues. But I digress. Get the soup dumplings if you can as well as the duck and you should be a happy camper. Hopefully it's a good night and the service staff aren't in a tizzy and forget your tea and water for the entire meal. read more

Decent place, everything tasted good. Clean restaurant, very busy so don't expect too much from your waitress. They're working hard! I'm still looking for an outstanding Chinese place! Give this place a go! Better than most others I've tried. read more

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We randomly chose this restaurant while walking through Chinatown and all I can say is WOW! The service was attentive even when the restaurant began to fill up. I'd highly recommend the cold noodles, crab rangoons, and potstickers. We walked away full and with a good buzz from the drinks. read more

We came to Chinatown for lunch and I'm SO GLAD that this was the restaurant we chose. I love shrimp toast and it's so hard to find good shrimp toast in Minnesota; the shrimp toast here was perfect, as were the fried pork wontons. For my main course, I had the shrimp and scallops with a spicy garlic sauce: DELICIOUS. The shrimp and scallops were perfectly cooked, and the vegetables were a great, fresh addition to the seafood. The restaurant itself is clean and very modern and the staff is attentive. read more

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Was hoping for authentic Chinese food and this was basically just better mall Chinese food. It's a real shame it being in Chinatown (Chicago) read more

Decent shanghaiese restaurant, was a bit surprised that it was rarely heard about in the Chinese circle though it has been around for years. Since I'm not Shanghaiese, I can't really judge how authentic their cuisine is, but I have to say the food is decent. Their soups are all pretty good, I always liked yan du xian, but their broth is not as thick as I expected. They have zong zi (the Chinese tamales) during May/June season, with meat as stuffings, which is pretty good read more

In a word...AMAZING I've eaten Chinese food at restaurants all around the country and this place is one of the best! Took my kids who both love Chinese food along and they both enjoyed it as well. My son who is a connoisseur of Sweet & Sour chicken was abit disappointed because the dish came out with sauce on it versus on the side as he prefers...but he ate it. My daughter was thrilled to find green onion pancakes on the menu and also tried a delish Hot & Sour soup for the first time. My salt and pepper Fish was incredible. We will be back. Thanks EARL for the Plug... read more

Fabulous meal. The waitress gave us enthusiastic recommendations - including the amazing bao, Szechuan-style chicken, and a few other entrees - and the meal did NOT disappoint. I can't wait to come back!!! read more

Placed an order through GrubHub and it never arrived. Called GrubHub customer service and they confirmed this restaurant uses their own drivers. The telephone number provided is linked to someone's cell phone and the voicemail box was full; unable to leave a message or get a status. I had four people waiting for dinner only for them to leave hungry because the order never arrived. Ridiculous. read more

Very good service and great food! We loved the chicken aubergine - it was tender and tasted great so was the soup dumplings! The dong po pork was great too - it tastes like confit pork, and was very tender and flavorful! I wish they deliver further to our home with chobus than what they do so we can order for delivery too! read more

100% the BEST egg rolls in all of Chicago. It's not even a contest. Also recommend the chicken/broccoli.

I've been going to the Palace for decades & have actually brought an Academy Awards winner & a few other famous people there. In my opinion it's the best place going where there's many good places. Food has always been fabulous & I will continue to go this amazing restaurant. read more

BEST food in Chinatown. We've ordered take out during the pandemic, and it's always perfect. They're open again for indoor dining. Great service given everyone is trying very hard to get back to "normal", (so cut some slack if you have to wait an extra 5 minutes). We haven't been out to a restaurant in a year, and we're glad we chose Moon Palace! Their food is still delicious, well prepared, and they have a really unique menu. Grateful they made it through this difficult time for restaurants in Chinatown, and look forward to dining in again soon! Throw a dart anywhere on the menu! You'll enjoy whatever comes out from the kitchen. read more

The food was good, but I wouldn't go back. Service was slow but the waitress was so kind and very helpful! read more

Moon Palace Express - Chicken fried rice - Shanghainese Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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We tried this place but the food was inedible. I ended up throwing it away. There are too many other good Szechuan restaurants to come here!

Got the diced chicken with dry chili, orange beef, and vegetable fried rice. I'd recommend every one of those. Easily some of the best Chinese food I've ever had. read more

The hunt for soup dumplings is still going strong. Being from New York I really didn't appreciate soup dumplings as much as I should have and coming out to Chicago I miss it so much. I researched a bunch of places in Chicago that supposedly have the best soup dumplings and Moon Palace came pretty on top. They also had peking duck for a great price which intrigued me even more! I rarely if not never see them on the menu of a shanghai restaurant. I made a reservation on opentable super easily a few days before and had high expectations! The place is very close to the train station about 2 or 3 blocks so it's very convenient to go to and you don't need to uber it which I find I have to do a lot being in Chicago. I came on a Thursday night and it was fairly empty, there were about 4 tables already taken. The waitstaff were super nice! We ended up ordering soup dumplings, peking duck, and string beans. I was happy that the dish came with rice as well. The soup dumplings came and I was so happy. They looked the part because at other placed they were about half the size but Moon Palace got it. When we attempted to eat the soup dumpling though there wasn't the beautiful flavors that my boyfriend and I are so use to when we eat at place like Joe Shanghai or go to flushing or chinatown in New York. The meat was also lack luster as well. Really disappointed about this because if the soup dumplings were on point I would be here every weekend! The peking duck came and that was the best part of the meal. I loved the wrappers it came with. I noticed in more americanized placed they use this thicker dough to put the peking duck in and I hate it but this place uses the wrappers that are normally given at a shanghai restaurant. They also gave us a good amount of meat. The peking duck could have easily been split between a group of 3 or 4 people! We also loved the string beans. Although, it was noted to be spicy it wasn't overly spicy at all! So don't be scared about that. Even though we are still on the hunt for a place that makes a solid soup dumpling we will probably return for the delicious peking duck and vegetables. The prices are also pretty good and the decor makes it look much fancier than other restaurants in the area. They also have a full bar if you wanted to have some beers, wines, or a hard drink! read more

Moon Palace Express - Shanghainese Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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You know how you go somewhere and you have a meal in the mail is so good you can't wait to go back and have it again why did that at Moon Palace the mind you have been here several times in the past I gave it a break because I had a bad experience but then I came back maybe a month ago I had a good experience well came back today and I had a bad experience. The shrimp taste like they're spoiled, I asked for extra sauce its sweet no one's come and checked on me I will not be coming back and and when I told him about the shrimp tasting funny the texture and the spoiled taste they gave me $3 off my $20 bill so I might call the Board of Health read more

Get the dumplings...for $7 you get 10 HUGE, lovely little pockets of dumpling divineness. It's a meal in itself, or a VERY large appetizer...either way, you'll be satisfied. Crab Rangoon: very satisfactory, with lots of crab (or imitation crab, but still..much more than just a glop of cream cheese. Not that I argue with glops of creamy cheese, but some substantial crab really puts it over the top...) I sampled some of the Crispy Duck, my first ever...hmmm, not sure if I'd get it again, but it was prepared well and came in a very large quantity. The bones irk me a bit, too much work. I ordered Pork Moo Shoo, and it was very good, came with a lot of rice, and those darling little pancakes. Mmmmm, Chinese burritos! Service was a bit curt, but overall satisfactory...def a good option in Chinatown (my first ever, so it shall get a special place in my heart!) My fortune cookie had a blank fortune, so I suppose that means I get to write my own :) read more

The best place in Chicago to get Xiao Long Bao, hands down. It's not street food in Shanghai or Taiwan, but it's the closest you'll get in Chinatown. You have to remember it IS Chinese-owned so that means service is non-existent, and the waitresses are not going to ask you about where you're from or how your day was. However, a) the food speaks for itself and b) it is a nice place to people-watch as I've often seen many Chicago tourists wander into this place and leave satisfied c) last but not least, it's a nice place to take whities who are used to crab rangoon and egg foo young as the inside looks classy, and they have upscale Panda Express options too read more

One of my favorite reasons to eat out is to have something I can't cook myself. OK, maybe, I could have made the shrimp and pork buns (but it would have made me grumpy, whereas the waitress was friendly.) But the fantastic Jelly Fish with Turnips - I wouldn't have known where to get the ingredients, and it was so crunchy and delicious with just the right amount of sesame. And I don't begin to know what was in the Shanghai Style Eel Fish, but it was delicious. Chinatown is not far away. I keep forgetting that. It's right down the Red Line from Lakeview and Lincoln Park, and with a car, it's a breeze. And there's parking. Actual free parking! read more

*sigh*.... I really wanted to LOVE this place. I heard SO much about it! I heard that the Xiao Long Bao was the best! But...was disappointed. I've had some of the BEST xiao long bao, probably in the world. One time at the YuYuan market in Shanghai three years ago. And then again at Ding Tai Fung in Toronto. The meat in the bao tasted good, but there wasn't enough soup in it. It's supposed to be a soup dumpling and its supposed to ooooze out of the dumpling. I didn't really get that. I also though the dumpling dough was WAY too thick. and the dumpling itself...way too big. But I guess it's just a portion problem we have in America. I then ordered a pickled veggie and sliced pork noodle soup. Hmm..not how I imagined it. The veggie and pork tasted good together but the broth was SO OILY. Which, I didn't expect. I've had this dish before in Shanghainese restaurants in Toronto but it wasn't like this. I guess I'll have to try it again with more people so I can try some of the other stuff. I thought it was decent priced. 10 xiao long boa 1 bowl of soup $17 including tax and tip. I had some leftovers. read more

Even if my server poured my hot and sour soup into my eye sockets I would still like this place. There is nothing, and I mean nothing, like polishing off 12 dumprings, uh I mean dumplings, just for starters. My server of choice is Sour Apple, or so she calls herself, and she has the quickest lip this side of Jiangxi. She always has recommendations ready for me and even has my sweet and sour soup and dumplings ordered when she sees my fat ass walk through the door. Sweet and sour soup, XAIO LONG BAO DUMPLINGS!!! salt and pepper shrimp, bok choy with garlic, sesame chicken, etc.... The list goes on and on and on... Just ask the waitress for a reco and she will be happy to send something tasty your way. The place is clean, the food is fresh and doesn't leave you sweating MSG out of your pores when you are done. The only thing that needs work is the removal of the waving kitty clock and the endless John Mayer CD playing. I mean John Mayer on repeat - at a chinese restaurant??? I never realized how hard it is to use chopsticks listening to the white man's music. read more

They are Liars. I'm currently planning my wedding and so far I've been fairly laid back about everything. I try my best to have a go with the flow attitude. I thought that our family and friends would enjoy a chinatown rehearsal dinner, so I called around seeing who could accommodate 70 people and not require a per head minimum. Not many places did, but when I called Moon Palace, a woman answered and said Yes! we can definitely do that, no worries. I just had to call a couple weeks before hand to confirm the menu. Ok yes, my bad for not getting a contract, so two weeks beforehand, I called and spoke to the owner Jones to reconfirm. He said he didn't see me in the system, but they definitely could still accommodate. AWESOME. I reconfirmed and asked again, so I don't have to do a 10 course meal with a per head charge and he said no, you can order off the menu for each table. Great! I let him know that I'd be coming in a couple days to have dinner, review the menu and confirm what we'd be ordering so they could prepare for us. My BM and I go to dinner, order our dinner and we start eating - the food is great! Jones comes out and shakes my hand and we start talking.... All of a sudden, he had said that he was confused, that it would now be $60 per person because he'll have to shut down the restaurant for this event. WHAT? (I said that to him) I then let him know that I could definitely not afford that, so he said well what about $40. He then told me that he had gotten confused and thought my phone call was a big catering order, because people ask for catering all the time. I said NO - that is incorrect, how could you think it was catering, when we were discussing seating 70 people and if it fits in your restaurant.... I told him that if we couldn't go with the original plan of ordering off the menu, that I would not host my event there. He then told me that if it was 50 people or less he'd do off the menu because if it was only 30, he could fit it in (yes you read that right, he first said 50, then said 30). I said, so 50 or 30, he replied 30. I again said, no that won't work, I will not be having my dinner here. After a little while, he came by to say - ok here's the "deal" if you do your dinner 9pm or after, we can do it. I AGAIN said, no I will not have my dinner here, because it is not what we discussed. He went on to continue about how he'd have to pay an additional shift of employees, just to service my group. After our interaction with him - we couldn't even eat, although we were starving... we were so furious. What did he miss out on? Definite business and loyal customers - my family and friends will frequent a place if it really has impressed us. The food is good and the place is pretty cute, but I REFUSE to patronize a business that goes back on their word and doesn't do what it takes to impress a customer. I've told all 70 people that Moon Palace backed on my rehearsal dinner. Talk about bad customer service. read more

Best. Dumplings. Ever. Well, maybe not ever. Maybe not even in the city. I'm willing to concede that surely somewhere in Chicago there are better dumplings. But maybe not for sale. Wherever these allegedly better dumplings are in the city, at a better value, I'd like to know, because I have not found them. Now, the service at Moon Palace is hardly service. I hate that the staff sits around a large, round table, in plain view of guests. And I've had some hits-and-misses with a couple of their other dishes, but all in all the dumplings are worth stopping in for. Just ignore the staff. The location is convenient for visitors to Chinatown: close to the Red Line, across the street from South Wentworth, perfect for a dumpling snack. read more