Loved the meat selection and the portions are huge. Very friendly staff and easy to order!read more

Show Hotpot is a convenient hot pot spot inside a food court, especially when you want something…read morequick and warm. This isn't self-serve--you order, and they build the pot for you. The soup base is solid and flavorful, but the quality can be a bit inconsistent depending on the day. Service is fast and friendly, which makes it an easy stop. They're also open later than most food court spots, though not as late as some other hot pot places around Irvine. The food court itself could use a bit more upkeep, but overall it gets the job done when you're craving hot pot without the full sit-down experience.

Good food and decently priced…read more NOTE: This is NOT the same restaurant NOR the same ownership as Spicy City of San Diego. They share the same name but are different owners. The kids had the crispy chicken (not spicy) which comes with fries. They liked it. The adults had the stir fried cumin lamb. It was crispy but on the tough side. They really enjoyed the fish with green pepper sauce soup. It was spicy for traditional sichuan level spicyness. The chinese peppercorns were prominent. The fish was tender and flavorful. The baby bok choi was tender, savory and had good texture. We also had the cold dish of beef and woodear mushrooms with chili peppers. A very nice appetizer. The restaurant was clean and the service was fast and friendly. This is a good go-to for chinese food that will feed the family but wont break the bank.

The food here is delicious and the portions are very generous…read more We chose two items from the display case, ordered two servings of rice, drank two beers, and the total for two people was about $35. We were very satisfied.

Food was much better than I remembered (not that it was every Bad)…read more Service was also much better than I remembered (not that it was every Bad). I would most definitely come back and I Love that it is open late, especially in Irvine!

Soup cravings are real! This restaurant serves up a big bowl of you need a big hug in a bowl. The…read moreservice is decent and the ambiance is super quiet. I wouldn't recommend this place if you have rowdy toddlers or babies crying. It's relatively small! Ordered their Guilang Hot & Sour Beef soup which had the perfect amount of acidity and chew on the noodles. We also got the Tomato Beef but it felt like it was missing something. The chicken wontons were decent, came in a seafood soup base. The last dish was the dry shaved noodles with beef rib which was delicious! However, as it got cold, it felt boring. Portions are big so I suggest sharing with someone and ordering an appetitizer like their beef roll.

I was craving Chinese and since I'm super indecisive, I "Eenie Meenie Miney Mo'd" it and landed on…read moreNorthern Cafe. The reviews were good, but these days I don't solely bank on them. IYKYK. ;) Ordered the orange chicken, Lao Gan Ma fried noodles, and the beef roll. The orange chicken was really good, but I fell in love with the beef roll. The bread was flaky, the beef was incredibly tender, and it was packed with flavor. I'd order that every single time. The noodles were good, just not my favorite of the three dishes. That's not a knock on them. The other two were just that much better. Folks, this was takeout! I figured it wouldn't be nearly as good at home as it would be fresh at the restaurant. Wrong!. By the time we got home, everything still tasted fresh and tasted *chef's kiss*. AND the leftovers were just as good the next day. The orange chicken crisped right back up in the air fryer, the noodles reheated well on the stovetop, and nothing tasted like it had spent the night in the fridge. I'll definitely be dining in next time. Northern Cafe: 10/10!

NORTHERN CAFE @ UNIVERSITY CENTER…read more The food was so yummy and it was so convenient to get, love that there was plenty of spots to sit too! The food came out in about 5 minutes and everything was pretty good. Overall 5/5 would get again

This is probably the most underrated spot inside Diamond Jamboree. The menu is beautifully diverse,…read moreshowcasing Chinese comfort food and hand-pulled noodles at their finest, with something for everyone. Everything I've tried here has been delicious. The flavors are robust, well-balanced, and consistently satisfying. It's tucked around the corner between some of the more heavily trafficked spots, but in my humble opinion, this place is the real star of Diamond Jamboree. Can't recommend it enough.

Came here on a Saturday evening for dinner with a friend. Be warned that there's no parking!!! Not…read morein the main lot nor a single spot open in the parking structure - then I had to 3 point turn at a dead-end and no spots coming down either. I got extremely lucky with a spot right in front - with a car leaving just as I was getting extremely frustrated with constantly driving around and no open spots. Great location & great plaza though with so many options and so much going on here - that's why it's so crowded! Ambiance - interior is beautiful and vibes are nice. Most restaurants had a long wait - but this one, we could get seated at an actual booth immediately. Service was good, very friendly and attentive. My friend and I ordered Beef Skewers, Chicken Skewers, & Mapo Tofu & Ground Pork with Rice, Orange Chicken, & Black gold molten custard buns. Food was great - good value for good portion sizes. But orange chicken was a little too sweet. Would definitely recommend and would likely come back!

This is ghost kitchen location and I'm usually skeptical with ghost kitchen restaurant, but I tried…read morethe one in Stanton and it's been my favorite one of my favorites actually for hainan chicken rice and I feel like the rice is solid. It It could have been better tho because it's a little bit dry but most importantly is a very flavorful rice which what chicken rice is supposed to be. The food came up pretty quick and like Argo's kitchens they have their own pick up ways or methods and it's pretty easy to do as well plenty of parking in the plaza. Staff is very nice to give me extra sauces. The pickup place is designed to pick up other ghost kitchens restaurants in the same building so they have some instructions on that.

Amazing hainan chicken rice!…read more This is an establishment combined with other restaurants where you simply pick up your order after placing it via kiosk or app. Service is relatively quick and there are employees to help with the push of a button. We got the combo hainan chicken rice and it's simply delightful! Super juicy chicken combined with their homemade ginger scallion oil, sweet&spicy sauce, and light soy sauce make for an extremely flavorful meal. This place always hits the spot! Highly recommend for those in the area looking for some good ol' hainan chicken rice!

Food is amazing, remind me home taste! Service is very good…read moretoo, staff is very friendly. Strongly recommend!

Quite a fun place to eat, and one of the few places in SoCal where you can find stinky tofu…read more(although this isn't Taiwanese style, which is what I'm accustomed to.) Gotta say, the vibes of this place are absolutely crazy. Kind of in a good way, kind of in a weird way? Neon lights and sparkles like we're in a space themed cafe, karaoke and a clay soldier against the wall. It's bananas, but it's also got a lot of character, so I'm not complaining. Stinky tofu was delicious (smelled and tasted like sewage to a friend who isn't a fan, so I'm also here to say it tastes authentic!) I was less of a fan of the lamb skewers, which were much more fatty and less meat that I'd prefer (hence docking the star), but the stir fried noodles were excellent and quite delicious. Skewers are kept warm by a system of tea lights beneath an iron rack - not sure if it was all that effective, but again, it was fun! Service was excellent all around, friendly and attentive!

Classic hunan food. My family has been coming here for at least 8 years I think, ever since we…read moremoved from China. The inside is not very fancy but food always hits. Really recommend if you like spicy food!! Food comes out fast and always friendly service.

I ordered take out and asked for the spoons, the woman said "no spoons"…read more What the fuck! You expect me to eat soup with my bare hands!! Horrible customer services. No wonder, the restaurant is so empty. Not many customers. 我要勺喝汤、那个女人不给我！她说没有勺！她妈的！刻薄到極致！难怪他的餐厅只有几个客人！