Guys this is the next hidden gem in Chinatown. The food was SO good hello?? I'll admit the prices are definitely pricier than the usual Chinatown spots, but the presentation and plating are well worth it. The flavors were truly exceptional! Nine Garden is very modern, and when you leave, you can grab a melon flavored candy for free! Crab lion's head - this is a crab and pork meatball broth with wood ear and enoki mushrooms, Napa cabbage, and soybeans. This was so good - it was so cold out so the hot broth was perfect, and the portion is generous too. Think of the most light and comforting soup, and this will beat that. Dry-sizzling cauliflower - probably my favorite dish!! So addicting!! The chili peppers and scallions were super fragrant! Dong po pork belly - slow cooked braised pork belly cooked in star anise and rice. I wish they gave a bigger portion of pork belly and less rice, but this was incredibly tender and juicy. The meat had absorbed every bit of flavor, though I think it was on the more alcoholic side for me due to Shaoxing wine. I wanted to try this dish so bad after seeing it on culinary class wars! Beef brisket pot - such a generous portion of sizzling hot beef brisket with radishes. Genuinely delicious and just that classic braised beef with chu hou sauce taste. This is probably one of my favorite restaurants in Chinatown!! Wish it was more popular! read more

See all

3.75 stars shrimp shumai - my fave, shrimp is the perfect bouncy texture and the sauce is just slightly spicy-sweet beef and radish - beef is very tender, radish could've stewed a little longer bc there wasn't much flavor in it sichuan cabbage - delicious, smells even better it's cute and moderately sized inside, and they have the biggest money tree i've ever seen. our server was very introverted and soft spoken though, which made it a bit hard to hear her one of our water glasses had a lipstick stain on it, but everything else was clean. that's the biggest reason for docking a star read more

Nine Garden - Seating - Chinese Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

Ok food if you are dining in. Food is expensive. I don't recommend its takeout. Very Good environment as a chinese restaurant. Easy parking/ free in the back. read more

Nine Garden - Chinese Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

Food was so quick and the portions are huge! Service was great, they gave great recommendation. The location is just a short walk from Chinatown Square and there is parking on top. Loved the Yu Chiang eggplant. Will definitely be back! read more

See all

Weekends in Chinatown can get hectic and stressful due to all the people coming in and out and having dinner so it was refreshing to be in a quiet and relaxing restaurant like Nine Garden. I'm so satisfied with the portions and the quality of the food. We had the sichuan fish casserole which was HUGE and delicious. The spare ribs with rice cake was our FAVORITE and actually what drew us into the restaurant in the first place. We also had braised eggplant which was hot and flavorful. Everything we had picked from the menu was 10/10 delicious. The restaurant was also beautiful and very clean and spacious. They offered alcohol too which was nice. I wanted to gate-keep Nine Garden but it's such a disservice since this restaurant is fantastic and everyone should give it a try. read more

See all

Fantastic!! Nine Garden is what I am looking for when I crave classic Chinese cuisine. Walking in I was impressed with the modern feel of the dining room. It offered a minimalist backdrop to a beautiful meal. Our cocktails were perfectly crafted. Each item we ordered was served fresh layers of flavor. Our server was so kind and helpful. She was so sweet and professional. She really made our experience even better. The restaurant has easy street parking and there is also a parking garage. read more

See all

My commendations: Soup - 蟹肉獅子頭 Crab Meat Lion's Head Meatballs Protein - 東北鍋包肉Northeastern Sweet and Sour Pork Best with rice - 蟹肉麻婆豆腐Mapo Tofu with Crab Meat We went to Nine Garden for lunch after church. The restaurant opened at 12:00, and we were the first ones there. It filled up pretty quickly and was nearly full within an hour. All of the food was delicious, although some portions were on the smaller side. You can roughly gauge the portion sizes by the price. Here is what we ordered: 紅燒豬手煲 - Braised Pork Trotter Clay Pot If you enjoy pork hock, this is a great choice. The braised pork hock was soft and flavorful, though the sauce could feel too salty if not paired with rice. 蟹肉麻婆豆腐 - Mapo Tofu with Crab Meat Hot and spicy tofu with minced pork, perfect for eating with rice. The tofu was super soft, and the pork added a fresh balance. 五香酥肉 - Crispy Five-Spice Pork Deep-fried pork seasoned with five-spice powder. The breading was crispy, and the thin pork slices worked well with it. 椒鹽鮮魷 - Salt and Pepper Squid A decent dish, though not unique since it can be found in many restaurants. The squid was fresh and the seasoning was good, but the portion was smaller than expected. 蟹肉獅子頭 - Crab Meat Lion's Head Meatballs This is a must-o (not actually a lion head lol) A classic Shanghainese soup where the pork meatballs were incredibly soft. With the addition of fresh vegetables, this dish was comforting and suitable for both young and old. 腌篤鮮 - Shanghai Salted Pork & Bamboo Shoot Soup A flavorful soup that with pork belly and vegetables. 東北鍋包肉 - Northeastern Sweet and Sour Pork Another must-order dish. The deep-fried pork chops came out piping hot. The sweet and sour sauce enhanced the flavor of the pork while still keeping the crispness intact. Service: Although there was a mix-up with one of our orders, the staff quickly admitted the mistake and corrected it. We were highly satisfied with the quality of food and the restaurant's commitment to service. read more

See all

Food: The pork trotter was a pleasant surprise--crispy on the outside, meltingly soft inside, and full of flavorful seasonings. I couldn't help but come back for another order. The crab lion head meatball practically melted in my mouth, and the soup paired perfectly with rice. The rib with rice cake also exceeded my expectations; the flavors were spot-on. The only downside is that I may be allergic to a certain seasoning in the rib--I've had the same reaction at other restaurants, and my stomach wasn't too happy afterward. Service: Nothing particularly remarkable, but I do hope that next time the staff could offer some suggestions or give a friendly reminder if it looks like we're ordering too much, especially since it was our first visit. Ambiance: Clean, bright, and comfortably pleasant--especially appreciated by someone like me, who has a mild case of obsessive cleanliness. read more

See all

We came at opening for lunch. They seated us quickly. There were a couple of menus. One main binded menu, a dimsum menu, and a seasonal/chef specials. The place is clean and brightly lit. We picked a couple dishes we felt we couldn't get anywhere else and of course over ordered. Lingnan salt baked chicken was flavorful, the skin was buttery. The meat was still tender. The aged fish eggplant I thought would have fish pieces but I guess it was more like the classic "fish fragrance" eggplant with a bit of tanginess from something fermented. The braised pot did end up being quite oily but it was flavorful and came out piping hot. The crab lion head soup was quite good. The soup had a lot of vegetables that were cooked evenly. The lions head was fall apart tender, though I think it had a bit too much fat because one bite was already enough. I did see some separate small pieces of crab in the soup. Least favorite was the soup dumplings. The filling was dense and didn't have too much soup. There wasn't much complexity to the flavor so it tasted too fatty without any sharpness to cut it like ginger or scallions. The vinegar couldn't even save it. The Taiwanese beef soup from the dim sum menu was worth. Lots of chunks of tender stewed beef and a lot of homemade noodles. They added some round lettuce for vegetables. This would make for a good simple meal on its own. Would come back to try other interesting dishes from their menu. read more

See all

Ambiance - modern, upscale, lights are slightly dimmed, great for dinner Service - decent service, wouldn't say staff was super attentive, food came out fairly quickly Food - Ginger Scallion Fish Fillet - love the texture of the snakehead fish fillet, lots of wok hay, can't go wrong with ginger and scallion Pork soup dumplings - the soup dumplings didn't really have a lot of soup inside, a couple were soupless Taiwanese Beef Noodle Soup - beef shank was on the drier side read more

See all

Finally tried this restaurant for the first time. Looks like it took the spot from another Chinese restaurant in the plaza where the DMV office is located. Ambiance was very modern and if you don't see the dishes, you'd think it was a western restaurant. We ordered sweet and sour spare ribs and nine garden fried rice. The spare ribs are not the typical sweet and sour taste but rather cooked with star anise flavor. It was tender, wished there were more broccoli but a bit off from its name (to be fair, the small print on the menu did mention anise). The fried rice has shrimp, calamari and scallops and reminded us of Fu Chian fried rice. Gravy and ingredients were delicious and wouldn't mind coming back for this. Price was typical with each dish between $16 to $20. Free parking on the first or second floor or street parking. Overall, hoping this restaurant could make it and business stay strong. read more

Nine Garden - Sweet and sour spare ribs are - Chinese Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

See all

This place has a massive menu and there are some unique items here I will be coming back for! Big meat dumpling in soup- excellent. The meat was tender and is somewhat firm. The soup was tasty and refreshing. Eggplant with dried fish - very nice fish aroma with seasoned eggplant. Spicy beef noodle soup - pretty mediocre. The soup was very thin and noodle was basic. Meat on the drier side. Half chicken - pretty good. Well seasoned and moist. Soup dumplings - no soup inside any of them. Very thick skin and dry. Service was also extremely slow here. The never checked in with us after we sat down. Maybe they will improve next time. The ambiance is nice and clean. read more

See all

Who the _ rated this place high?! They must've been high. Fried rice was below average, egg rolls were kinda gross tbh, and sesame chicken was blekh. Just not that great Chinese food in Chinatown. Ain't that shame. WAIT, "nice atmosphere" though. You know, nice lights, decor, seats, and bar area FOOL the goofies, the fakes, the ones dressed up to be fake. NEVER ME, I go by quality of food or whatever the place is supposed to be about. read more

Nine Garden was revisited and there are some changes. Apparently they won an important award. The 2026 Banchet award to the best Heritage Restaurant. They bought out a new menu that surprise everyone. They have a signature dish lobster with sticky rice that really stand out and only cost $38. I have enclosed the new menu and they are now open at 10 am with breakfast. For those looking for a place that is very pretty on the inside for a date night or have a large gathering with plenty of spaces I think Nine Garden is the place. Also plenty of free parking in the mall where it is located read more

See all

Every dish carries their care and passion. Fresh ingredients, carefully cooked, just to bring you the most delicious experience! Come and taste their new dishes...service good Beautiful and comfortable environment read more

See all

The food was amazing! First time trying Shanghainese cuisine. We got a lot of food but 2 of the main entries we got that worth mentioning is the lions head soup and the dong po pork belly. The service was good. Easy parking with direct entrance to the restaurant and reasonably priced. read more

See all

We came here on a hot tip from Chicago Magazine and tried the cold-smoked fish, the soup dumplings, the crab lion's head soup, and the yu-shiang pork. It was ... fine? The soup dumplings were neither the best nor the worst I've ever had -- the portion size was a little small and the dough was a little thick but I would have happily eaten more. The smoked fish was interesting but I didn't feel compelled to have more than a couple of bites. The soup was good but nothing about it blew me away. And the yu-shiang pork was kind of sweet and bland, notwithstanding the chili-pepper next to its name on the menu. I don't feel like we were cheated out of our money or anything, but in a city where you have so many super-delicious Chinese restaurants on the South Side, I can't imagine why I would come back. read more

Very nice Chinese dishes! The tastes perfectly resembles the dishes in China. Totally satisfied with the quality of the dishes! The service is nice, and orders are taken swiftly. The environment is very cozy. I would rate this meal a read more

See all

This is our first time visiting since they opened and I'd say I'm pretty satisfy with the flavor of everything! We ordered a total of 5 dishes: pickled pork belly, sour pickled fish, sweet and sour pork ribs, cumin lamb chop, and soup dumplings. The sweet and sour pork isn't fried like everywhere else but still tasty. I absolutely loved the sour pickled fish as they're smooth and tasty with much less oil in the dish than anywhere else I've tried! The cumin lamb chop has such an amazing flavor to it!! Overall I loved this visit and I'd love to come back for another try. The design of the restaurant is modern and gives off a very calming vibe. Service is efficient and nice. We all enjoyed our experience tonight! read more

See all

This place is pretty new. The parking garage attached to the complex has parking both upstairs and downstairs. If parking downstairs, you have to walk out to the streets to enter the restaurant. The décor inside seems simple and solid. It is not that big if you have a large party of 10. Cuisine is more spicy or Northern dishes. I ordered the Dry Sizzling Pig Trotter and Spare Ribs Rice Cake to go. Both are from their specialty dishes. Both dishes are decent portions and the turnaround time was very fast when I ordered around 5:30pm. Pig Trotter is very spicy as there are loads of dried red pepper. The rice cake went through an oil bath first, so it is not sticky. This dish is flavorful, but a little on the sweet side. read more

See all

On the edge of the heart of China town sits this obscure restaurant called Mine Garden. The staff was fast, attentive and professional. The ambience was comfortable and cozy yet alive. People coming and going with take out orders,which must mean the food is good. They have a nice little bar area for a few extra seats. I ordered the shrimp won ton soup, which was a lot for one person but it with steaming hot and delicious.. caught me off guard how delicious. Light skin, snappy shrimp inside broth was refreshing. Next dish I order was the garlic shrimp prawns over steamed vermicelli . The shrimp/prawns were sautéed and butterflied with a wonderful garlic sauce on them. The steamed vermicelli for me was just decorative. The shrimp again tasted fresh was snappy and surprisingly delicious again. Wonderful food. read more

Nine Garden - Garlic shrimp over Steamed Garlic Vermicelli Prawns - Chinese Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

See all

We received an email from the owners of Shang Noodle that they had opened a new restaurant here. They also included a 20% coupon. So we decided to try it. We parked for free at the garage. There is a door that opens directly into Nine Garden from the 1st floor garage. It had a modern decor, white walls and dark wooden panels. The service was quick since we were the first ones there for lunch on a Saturday. For appetizers, we ordered the salt and pepper calamari, steamed pork soup dumplings, gyoza like fried chicken dumplings, and fried chicken wings. We would order the calamari and the fried chicken dumplings again. They were delicious. The calamari came with fried vermicelli noodles and other fried items like garlic and so on, which made it flavorful. Each bite of the fried chicken dumplings were bursting with flavors. But the fried chicken wings lacked flavor. We ordered the wood ear fish filet dish, which was nice. The vegetable dish was also refreshing with lots of sliced water chestnut and bamboo. It was interesting. Overall, it is a nice place to dine. read more

See all

Really really like this place! Under the radar likely because it is located at the canal plaza. Free parking lot is a plus. :) Menu is simple and not overwhelming. We have ordered the crab dumpling soup, chicken in small pot soup, pork belly, fried pork chop which is similar to sweet and sour pork. My kids like the fried rice and ramen noodle with beef rib and beef flat noodle dish Get the eggplant! I can never master the technique of cooking it at home chinese style so we really do enjoy their version They have a lychee drink and dragon fruit drink which is also a nice non alcoholic option. read more

My wife and I read in the Chicago tribune a story about the Banchet award winners. Nine Garden was a winner. We were the losers. Whenever I try a new place I like to try many dishes. I ordered five dishes, but received only four. Bad start, but still high hopes. Two of the dishes ordered tasted like they were prepared yesterday and microwave reheated. The meat was dried out, tough, and lacked flavor. The dishes were dry, stale, and blah. The other two dishes were actually worse. One was dull and uninspired; if I want leftover flavors of frozen grocery store Chinese food I don't need to pay a premium for it. The other tasted like they added coffee grounds to it; burnt and bitter. To make the experience worse, the meal was delivered through a service. Nine Garden did not pack the order well. There was only a paper bag to carry the items. Upon removing the items from the carriers insulated bag, the paper ripped and spilled everywhere. I had to provide my own bag to carry up to my apartment. I have eaten from many of the Chinatown restaurants. Some good some bad. Nine Garden was one of the worst. I have no idea how they have a high rating or have won any awards. read more

Every dish is delicious, the environment is clean, and the service is warm. It is an ideal place for friends to dine together. I will always support this restaurant. read more

See all

Short ribs, dongbei crispy pork, rice wine fish fillet, string beans, beef chow fun, crab lion soup, and spicy beef salad were all excellent. Nice decor free parking. New spot Is worth checking out read more

Cant take a picture because we ate everything!!! So delicious, and better than China town. Free parking garage is a plus. Second time back. Five stars!! read more

It's a different kind of favor, that I'm use to. It wasn't my cup of tea, but it's something that you have to try for yourself to make that decision. Service was nice, but the food lack favor to me. Don't think that I'm going to make it back anytime soon read more

Been looking for an authentic Shanghainese restaurant in Chicago and this really hit the spot. The flavors are super authentic and reminds me of childhood, the portions are really generous and the prices are fair. I will definitely be coming back on a regular basis, looking forward to trying more dishes! read more

This is definitely the most authentic Shanghainese restaurant in Chicago. The crab lions head hit the spot for me and my 11 months old couldn't get enough of it (also a very family friendly place). We had couple cocktails that were pretty good too. Will have to come back and try more dishes! Hope they put more Shanghainese dishes on the menu! read more

Really solid and authentic Shanghainese food. Highly recommend the crab lion's head soup, short ribs rice cake, and rice wine fish fillet. My friends also ordered from the cocktail menu and thoroughly enjoyed their drinks too. Great ambiance and attentive service. read more

Food is amazing the ambience is great but the service is lacking the servers aren't really attentive because they are servicing all the tables at once they don't have their own sections for manageability sake, so food and ambiance is is amazing but service is a coin flip read more

The ambiance was amazingly chill, just what I needed on a weekday evening. The staff were all very friendly and patient when it came to all my questions about the food. The food and drinks were all delicious, with tasty dessert options for those with a sweet tooth after a meal. I would highly recommend this restaurant to anyone, as I believe the menu has something for everyone read more

Place an online order and went to pick up the food but some of their dessert item was either don't have it or sold out. And the funny thing is they can't give you a refund on the spot but have to wait for 2 weeks which I find it ridiculous. At the end I just call the credit card center to dispute the portion of the charge. Overall I think the food is just okay in my opinion but need more servicing skills! read more