Nice lil hole in the wall spot. Not super fancy but the food is excellent. Service was very good. Nice clean spot. Will come back! read more

How do you close 830 before 9 when you advertise 9. We drove from hospital and was told it's open . Horrible service!!!!! read more

Growing up in San Francisco Chinatown this scene was very common, the roasted chicken and ducks hanging in the storefront along with other meat and precooked food options. So every time I come to Sam Woo it would remind me of my childhood. Since it's a bit out of the way, I would have to plan a trip to Sam Woo. So when I'm here I would stock up on the roast duck and other meats, such as the soy sauce chicken or roast pork. There is a section to purchase roasted meats and precooked food directly and a restaurant section for dining in which can get quite noisy when filled. Everything is delicious and authentic flavors. I only wish it was closer so I can come by more often. read more

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The food is a solid six or seven out of 10. The food is usually consistent it's just a little overpriced since every entrée now is around 17+ dollars. The express barbecue side is fine you can get in there and order what you want quickly to go the sit down restaurant is your typical Sam Woo Chinese food service i.e. you'll get tea unless you proactively try to stop them and get charged for it now. Sometimes finding good Asian food in the valley you look for consistency and so this is the best we can do since all the great stuff is to the East read more

Food is prepared to taste. Quick and always delicious. Like everywhere else prices have gone up. But I can still get several meals out of it. read more

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It was 3pm. A few tables were occupied. We were seated immediately. Ordered. Served. Fast and delicious. Staff were friendly and definitely more relax . Make our late lunch experience even better. read more

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Gave Sam Woo 5 stars. Service is good. Food is great it has the kiss of the wok as they say. It's like eating in Chinatown (30-45 min drive) but local for me. Cool dine in spot nothing too special. It needs an upgrade. They're famous for their roast duck and I've had both reg roasted and pecking duck so good. It get real busy on the weekends and evenings so don't come here starving. Pretty chill vibe but once it's packed it's loud. I've been coming here for over 10 years. Highly recommended. read more

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IYKYK! Sam Woo has been serving up family-style meals for decades. They have several locations throughout SoCal. It's one of those places where it's loud because customers are ordering from the barbecue stall adjacent to the dining room, which is filled with diners at every table. Lots of wait staff are milling about, busy taking orders, delivering dishes to diners, and turning tables for the next set of guests waiting their turn. I got off a 7-day trip from Seattle and was craving roasted duck. I thought I was going to just grab-n-go on this trip but decided to grab lunch with the fam. We kept it simple with 3 main dishes. The watercress stirfried with garlic is always a staple at every Chinese restaurant meal. Their porkchops here was neither greasy or salty. It had the right amount of seasoning and crunch. Also got the beef chowfun. When ordering, the waiter will always ask whether you want dry or with gravy. I almost always prefer the dry variation. There was plenty food for 3 people and still had leftovers to take home. Not pictured here is the whole roasted duck I purchased or the glistening array of duck and other barbecued meats they sell for to go. read more

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Sam Woo, you do what you do... so well! I've been to China. I've eaten Peking duck in China. Sam Woo's duck is better than any duck I've had. The service is always quick and now that they take all forms of payment (they used to only take cash), it's now easier to eat there. The restaurant is pretty basic, but feels like you're in a China Town restaurant. I love that we have a place like this in the Valley and I always will be a Sam Woo dude. I almost always order the duck, but when I've had other items, it's good too. The roast pork is solid and the portions are big. Just remember to always ask for duck juice. Not duck sauce. Because the duck mixed with the rice and duck juice makes Sam Woo heaven on earth. read more

Sam Woo Village BBQ - Chinese Near Me - Van Nuys, California

Why Sam Woo Village BBQ? - Craving Cantonese-style food, it's been a staple for decades haha - No issues with "to-go" orders 4/5 Food - Chicken wings 3.5/5 = MUST EAT ASAP or it'll get soggy - Soy sauce sausage 4/5 = DELISH - BBQ pork 4/5 = DELISH 4/5 Service| Ambience No issues with service since I've been here a bunch of times. Always consistent 4/5 Parking Usually open enough since 99ranch shares the parking. read more

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Got to say this is our go to place that's in the valley. Food is always good and portions big. The lady at the pick up counter where you pay is always friendly. The veggie chow mein with added tofu is really good. The salt and pepper pork ribs are always tasty. The Szechuan chicken is also pretty good. read more

Saw they have a branch in Van Nuys so decided to try them. This is a legit Sam Woo! The roasted duck was tendered and moist. Got the roasted pork and the skin was quite crispy. Down to our favorite Singapore Mei fun and the flavor was just amazing. Service was good and attentive. Moderate noise level but is was good. Would stop here again if we are in this neck of the woods. read more

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Ok my go to's are the tomato beef, ask for it with egg, and the shrimp fried rice. Absolutely delicious.!!

I love Sam Woo. I have been coming here for years. Over the years the prices have gone up a lot. When I first started coming here, entrées were between 13 and $15 a serving. Now those same entrées are $20 and up I used to be able to order four dishes for around 45 to $50. Today I spent 65 for three entrées and it's barely enough for two people. The servings have gotten a lot smaller over the years. I understand the price of food has gone up. So I expect to pay higher prices. But if I'm gonna pay $20 an entrée, I expect to have a full meal for two people at least. And this was not that. The flavor is still excellent. And the service is bare none. I visited the takeout bar so I didn't have a lot of ambience. But the restaurant was crowded as usual. If they give us a little bit more food for the money, I'll be happy to give them a five star rating. Because I think they're worth it. read more

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Sam Woo is the only authentic Cantonese spot in the valley my family has found so far. Even though they're known for their bbq meats, I would stay away from them as the ones we tried this time and in the past were pretty meh. Stick with ordering dishes off their menu instead. It's next to a Ranch, so there's plenty of parking available. We came by for lunch on Saturday around noon, and it was mostly filled up. It's not a big restaurant, and tables are placed pretty close to each other. That's how you know the place is going to be authentic lol They have a takeout area where you can get various bbq meats and some hot deli foods, but they also have a large menu you can order from. The four of us ordered the following dishes to try: #2 two item BBQ with roast pork and roast duck ($19.95 + $2 for roast pork) #78 chicken and veggie chow mein ($15.95) #85 beef chow fun ($16.95) #129 sauteed fish fillet ($18.95) #138 fresh squid in oyster sauce ($17.95) My favorite dish by far was the beef chow fun, which came as a huge platter and had really good wok hei flavor. The other noodle dish, the chow mein, was also good with huge portions. The fish and squid were both okay, but portions were small for the price, and to be honest, they were pretty similar down to the veggies used. We probably could've just ordered one. The most underwhelming was the bbq. The duck tasted okay but the cut they gave us was mostly bone and didn't have much meat. The roast pork was way too juicy and the skin, which is usually my favorite part due to the crisp, was tough and hard to chew. read more

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Came for dinner. We got there around 6p on a week night and it was not full yet but was packed when we left. Upon entry there is a takeout area where you can order hot meat dishes and to go menu or dine in. We got complimentary hot tea when seated. The interior is a bit dated compared with other restaurants of this type but the food was delicious. We got duck and preserved egg porridge, scrambled egg with shrimp, and a two bbq combo plate of char siu and roast pork. The porridge came out fast and delicious! We ate with the chili and white paper available at the table. Next came the scrambled egg and shrimp. We actually ordered the version with rice, not the entree so the servers got us some rice but missing the gravy. Lastly came the bbq combo plate. We thought it would arrive first since the meats were all ready to go in the takeout area. It came with some hoisin sauce. The char siu was tasty. The roast pork however was not as crispy and kinda mealy so the sauce helped. read more

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Solid Cantonese spot a door or two from 99 Ranch. They have a separate BBQ to go section but I was eating on. I went with the beef with black bean sauce chow fun. It was more of a Hong Kong style with lots of gravy, which was still great. Service was great with water and tea refills. Not sure when I'll be back in the area, but this is a solid stop. read more

Sam Woo Village BBQ - Chinese Near Me - Van Nuys, California

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|[ c o m f o r t ] I'll always have a soft spot for my fav Cantonese foods and this place is my place in the valley for it! Prices a bit higher than what I'm used to for this but it's filling and hits the cravings just fine. |[ t h e g o o d z ]| Fish congee 4.5/5: so so good I eat this when I'm sick or just need some comfort in my life and it's always as good as I remember from my childhood. Chao ho noodles (we subbed shrimp in place of beef) 4/5: love the egg gravy on top, this is such a guilty pleasure item, my only wish is that they'd add more veggies to this. Fish fillet in black bean sauce 3.75/5: flavor was amazing but there was too much oil! Will prob ask for less oil in this next time. Egg plant dish (we asked for no pork in ours) 3.5/5: not bad but again way too much oil, it overpowered the dish for me. |[ o v e r a l l ]| Service is quick and efficient, parking is easy, ambiance is your typical loud Asian restaurant but that's part of the experience. xD perfect lunar new year eve dinner :3 read more

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This is truly my very favorite authentic Chinese place in the San Fernando valley When I am on the west side in Los Angeles, I go to Hop Woo, so good! I usually take duck lo mein with a broth: oh my God, it's so light and very delish Usually i order also a half duck to go The only problem with that place and the 99 Ranch supermarket is that the parking lot is overwhelmingly crowded, and the wait is 10 to 20 minutes for a parking space! Otherwise, that place is very good and delicious and I love going to eat there... even alone! read more

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Sam Woo is the kind of restaurant craved by people who've had the privilege of eating authentic Chinese food and barbecued meats in nondescript storefronts and underground tea rooms run by people who barely speak English. The decor is simple and traditional, and though well-maintained, it's unchanged from decades ago. And that's what you want -- to walk into an atmosphere that feels lived-in rather than recently off-loaded from some nearby restaurant supply warehouse. It's always busy here at lunchtime, so be prepared to wait; though if you're willing to share a table with strangers, you may get seated sooner. And why not? The communal approach lightens the mood, and you can see what other people are eating so you can make plans for next time. The staff is friendly and fast, working hard to keep up with the crowds. They have a full menu of Chinese food here, with most of the expected dishes you'd find everywhere, but also quite a few options that are less familiar. No matter what you choose, the food is prepared quickly with care and arrives steaming hot. Flavors are deep, rich and layered, and portions are very generous -- no one leaves without a to-go bag. But the star of the show here is the Barbecued Meats, which (aside from pork & spare ribs) are not usually offered at most neighborhood places. Sweetly glistening pork shares space with a crispy-skinned "roasted" pork, along with roasted ducks and chickens, Chinese sausage, assorted fried chicken and pork chops, and a variety of sauces that add sweetness or spice as desired. Today I went for my favorite lunch: a combination plate of BBQ and Roasted Pork over Rice. The Roasted Pork is juicy, with a punch of allspice that pairs nicely with the slivers of crispy skin laid atop the slices of meat. The accompanying sauce is mild, with a slight tang that rounds out the bite. By contrast, the BBQ Pork has the familiar sweet glaze and semi-toughness, though here at Sam Woo the meat is nicely marbled and more melting than you'd get at other places. The flavor is pretty perfect as is, but I enjoy adding dabs of chili crisp to every other slice for an extra slap of heat. The bed of white rice is properly cooked and blends well with any or all of the sauces you're playing with. This is a no-cards place, so don't forget to bring your cash. Also bring your appetite and your sense of adventure -- it's a great idea to order at least one thing that's new to you, because when you're somewhere that actually offers you the opportunity, you should jump at it. read more

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Affordable and yummy family style food as always. Been coming here for years. This time we got the sole fish, sauteed spinach, salt and pepper pork chop, beef chow fun, beef tenderloin, and chicken fried rice. Everything was served fresh and hot. Servers were really fast and they love recommending their favorites too. Very casual vibe but I crave for this spot all the time. I love coming here. They also have yummy pecking duck as well. I recommend this place for family sized meals since it's all shareables. read more

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My sister was nice enough to grab me food from here when she stopped by there. I never been to Sam Woo so I looked at their menu online. The menu is almost like any other Asian restaurant, so they'll have their noodle soup, bbq dish, fried noodles and more. I saw that they had Mongolian beef here so I wanted to try that. Since I had rice at home, I asked for it to be la carte. I like the container they used for the beef because it has little holes so the steam won't stay in the container and continue to cook the beef. You get a good portion of beef and I thought it was delicious. The Mongolian beef was tender and marinated great. I would order it again from here. I been to the plaza where this restaurant is in before and parking can be difficult because of the market that is here. read more

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I had a dinner party to host and wanted duck on the menu, but honestly--I just didn't have the time to make it myself. Funny enough, I remembered my nail tech had brought me duck one day while I was at the salon, and it was SO good--super fragrant, well-seasoned (almost like a subtle clove spice), juicy, and especially flavorful around the bone. I couldn't stop thinking about it. So the next time I saw him, I asked where it was from, and after a little thinking he said Sam Woo. He mentioned the San Gabriel location, but told me to just look it up. Turns out... there was one right next to 99 Ranch, which I go to all the time--and somehow I had never gone in before. I walked in, placed an order for three whole ducks and two large trays of rice for my dinner party, and the staff was incredibly helpful in guiding me on portions. Everything was ready within about an hour (perfect timing while I grabbed groceries next door), neatly packed, and one of the staff members even helped load everything into my car--which I really appreciated. And the duck? Just as amazing as I remembered. Juicy, flavorful, perfectly seasoned, and a total hit at my dinner. Super clean establishment, kind staff, efficient service--I will absolutely be back. Next time, I'm actually sitting down and exploring more of the menu. read more

Sam Woo Village BBQ - Whole ducks, steamed rice - Chinese Near Me - Van Nuys, California

I grew up eating Sam Woo in San Diego, and I love living nearby one throughout my journey through SoCal. Sam Woo is a no frills and consistent place for good food. This is my third time here and it satisfies my craving each time. Got the roast duck this time and it was solid with good flavor. Unless you happen to get it fresh, the skin won't be crispy. The duck doesn't need the provided plum sauce, which is how I prefer it. I do think the soy sauce chicken I had last time was better. Noodles have good flavor and they always pack the container. I usually alternate between the chow mein and chow fun depending on what I'm feeling. Chicken feet has good black bean flavor and is super tender. The pig ear flavor was really good, but it was sitting too long so the skin was too soft for my taste. read more

Sam Woo Village BBQ - Roast duck, chicken feet, pig ear and chow mein - Chinese Near Me - Van Nuys, California

The closest thing you'll get to classic Cantonese food in the San Fernando Valley and perhaps all of West LA (aside from Hop Woo and newly-opened Mama Lu's Dumpling House). They were busy for CNY Eve, but the service was still impeccable. We ordered an abundant amount of food to celebrate: 5/5 I'm going to save myself some time by giving an all-around 5/5 for all the dishes. Everything was hot, delicious, and served in generous portions: - Pork Chop with Spicy Salt - Fish Fillet with Spicy Salt - Peking Duck (Whole) served with prawn chips, buns, and condiments - Sautéed Spinach - Beef Chow Fun with Soy Sauce As long as they're open, I will always come back to Sam Woo with my family. read more

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If you're looking to get a gratuitous volume of food, then take a long nap, then Sam Woo is the place for you. They will load you up with a hefty portion of duck, chicken, and crackling skin. Absolutely fantastic and always made very quickly. read more

This is OG Chinese restaurant that was famous for roasted duck. I used to like their roasted ducks but recently I found a few other places that can do better. The skin has less fat. My favorite roasted duck spots are not around here so this time it just need to Seattle with this one. I went into to-go section and greeted by employees and got help immediately. To go section has no seating area. I ordered a whole roasted duck to go. They chopped it up quick and packed it for me. read more

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Best authentic Chinese food. Tasty and fresh. Many selections in menu. Service is quick. Servers and polite if you are not rude to them.

If you are looking for a casual old school Cantonese BBQ spot, hard to go wrong with Sam Woo. The restaurant doesn't try to compete with the newer style Chinese restaurants. It is perfectly happy to do their way of Chinese cooking, which has been consistent since 1979. I've been enjoying Sam Woo since the early 80's. My guilty pleasures are the three BBQ meat rice plate and fried pork chop with scallions. Huge portion of three different succulent BBQ meats with plenty of left overs. Another one of my favorites is the deep fried house noodles. There are a variety of rice and noodle dishes to try here. Enjoy read more

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This is next to the 99 Ranch Market, so I popped over to check it out. In the to-go area, the variety of BBQ meat looked tantalizing, so I got a pound of roast pork for less than $18 after tax. The skin was thin and crispy. The meat tasted clean with just the right amount of seasoning. My portion was very lean yet not dry at all. It hit all the important criteria and earned a top spot on my list for roast pork going forward. read more

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Everything I've had here is good. Authentic Asian food, you can't go wrong especially for Asian food in the area. Portions are big. You can see the workers making wontons by scratch. I pretty much eat here once a week because it's that good. Once you enter, you'll see a to go area where you can get express food and bbq but if you go to the right and wait, someone will help you. As soon as you're seated, they give you tea and they're so accommodating. The ambiance is more casual and relaxed. Service is good and the food being authentic is unheard of yet here we are! Parking is a huge lot since it shares a plaza with 99 ranch market. read more

Sam Woo Village BBQ - Duck and egg noodles - Chinese Near Me - Van Nuys, California

Usually I have to wait around an hour for a table here, but came in and got seated pretty fast before a huge wave of people came and had to wait a while, the highs of being a victor make food only taste oh so much better (joking). Unfortunately had to wait then maybe 15 minutes to actually get a waiter to look at us and put our order in, but there were like 2 people manning the whole restaurant trying to flip tables. Got the (these are butchered names, I don't remember it in English) French beef, shrimp noodles, and seafood pot. All absolutely delicious. The French beef is so peppery and savory, the heat from the meat slowly cooks the cabbage on the bottom in its sauce and it's so good. Noodles are bomb, amazing texture, amount of shrimp, just great. And then the seafood pot has an amazing variety of things, the shrimp is so sweet and juicy, tofu so soft, standing ovation. Food comes out pretty fast once you order it, and it was staggered perfectly that we could enjoy each dish in its full glory before the next came out. The hot food counter also is spectacular in everything, always love taking even more home for later. read more

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I bought 2 lbs. of char sui, some deep fried chicken wings and the house special chow mein - all excellent to a big family birthday celebration. Parking lot was packed on a Sunday. read more

Once again, as always, an excellent meal for four people. The hot and sour soup was especially delicious tonight. The roasted duck, sauteed spinach and French style filet mignon were very good dishes. We love this place, we love the service, it's always clean. We had to wait about 15 minutes, well worth it. A really, really delicious meal. If you're looking for authentic Chinese, in San Fernando valley this is the only place as far as I know. read more

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Went to this place with my brother. I was in the mood for some tomato beef which I use to make at my parent's restaurant. This place made it pretty good. The sauce was slightly on the thick side but the taste was good. It reminded me of this dish from my past. I also had the duck and bbq pork dish. The food came out fast and the service was ok. Ambience wasn't the greatest but for a Chinese deli restaurant it pretty much the same as the ones in Monterey Park and Alhambra. Give it a try. read more

Sam Woo Village BBQ - Tomato Beef - Chinese Near Me - Van Nuys, California

The Sautéed Fish Fillet and Sam Woo Hot Pot were good. Both dishes had a lot of sauce. Portions were generous enough for sharing. read more

Sam Woo Village BBQ - Sam Woo Hot Pot, Sautéed Fish Fillet - Chinese Near Me - Van Nuys, California

The food is tasty, savory, and when dining in; you will see a room full scrumptious plate! So many choices, and I had the privilege of having duck for the first time. So soft and buttery. The spinach was fresh and light. Both were quite filling. There's spacious seating available for not only me but your friends as well! The crew was so prompt and attentive, I could not believe how they were able to service so many people in quaint spaces, during times of sparseness. read more

Sam Woo Village BBQ - Chefs recommendations - Chinese Near Me - Van Nuys, California

We're baaack!! Food is still delicious!! This review here is not about the restaurant per se, it's about the parking lot on Sundays now, we got here about 11:30am give or take 5 or 10 minutes, well...there used to be an Office Depot store here, if not Office Depot, it's one of those office supply stores and they closed down, so now on Sunday mornings there is church service and apparently when we arrived there is no parking AND for some reason there was a section that was chained off with sign NO PARKING!!! Anyways we left to go get Boba and waited there till 12:20pm, when we got back, the chains were down, so we think that is when it goes down. I just wanted to share this. As for the restaurant service, it was good today and we got our food at reasonable time which is awesome because they were busy. For those who are new to this place, this is a casual place and also when you come in, just fill in how many are in your party on the clipboard with numbers next to it. Also write down the number you are at on the blank paper next to clipboard so when you hear your number called, it's your turn to be seated. read more

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You come in and you are greeted by one of the many servers when they see you. Then you can place your name on the list yourself, or they can do it for you. When a table is ready, they will call you, guide you to your table, and start taking drink orders within a very few short minutes. The inside is large and spacious, with plenty of seating. However, on occasions, it does get filled, so make sure to get there to place your name on the list. They have large tables to accommodate larger groups too. Drinks come quickly. Food comes out really fast too, and it comes as it is made, so don't wait for all the food to come, otherwise some will be colder than others. My recommendations are anything from the bbq side, such as roasted duck or pork, bbq pork, or chicken wings. If you are feeling a want for a noodle soup, try the wonton noodle soup. They hand make their wontons in the restaurant. Or even better, add duck to your wonton noodle soup. It comes with egg noodles. The fried stuff... spicy fried calamari, pork chops, or fish, yummy. Honey walnut shrimp too! Don't forget to get some seasonal greens too. Definitely come here for some authentic Chinese food. read more

The food here is better than some other places on Chinatown. The quality and flavor is on point. I recently took my son here sharing my memories growing up. I wanted to share with him that great food turns moments into history, creating memories that bring us closer together. The service was always a welcome. Inside is clean and the food showcased is always makes us hungry. Parking can be challenging and tight. Overall, excellent Chinese food in the Valley that delivers quality without the time and effort of traveling to Chinatown or the San Gabriel Valley. read more

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