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    Yao

    4.2 (64 reviews)
    Closed • 11:30 am - 10:00 pm
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    YAO ATMOSPHERE

    What's the vibe?
    Trendy
    Classy
    Happy hour specials
    Dogs allowed

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    Recommended Reviews - Yao

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    Egg custard filled swan pastries
    Juliana T.

    This review is for a private event. We chose YAO to host a dinner in their PDR. We were looking for an elevated space that served family style Cantonese food. After working with Kitty via email for several months, we had a menu set up and plan ready to go for our event for a Friday 5-8pm. We showed up on event night at 4:45pm to finalize set-up, and NOTHING is set up. AFTER we showed up, a man showed up clearly looking like he just arrived at the restaurant (he had to take off his bag and jacket before he could start setting up). No apologies for running late - nothing. And they had to set up EVERYTHING, incl re-organizing chairs, laying out wrinkled table cloths, and placing out dishes and glasses. All said, we weren't able to let our guests in until close to 5:20pm even though nearly everyone showed up on time, and had to wait outside the whole time. The service during the rest of the meal was not much better - drinks and food both took forever. In fact, 6:15pm rolled around, people were waiting up to 30-45 mins for their drinks, and not a single dish had been brought out. I asked one of the waitstaff what was going on with the food, and he goes "Oh, you want the food to start coming out?" I was so baffled by his question - we were there for a dinner and no dinner was being served! I was beyond shocked and disappointed. Thankfully, the food was great. I love elevating the Cantonese food experience. My favorite dishes were the truffle duck and tea smoked chicken. The custard filled swan desserts were also beautiful and tasty. All in all, our private event for 25 people cost $3,500, which is inclusive of a 20% tip which is WILD given the shoddy service. I left feeling both great and terrible about our dinner at YAO.

    Andrew L.

    Very nice restaurant that is a little hidden being on the 2nd floor of a hotel. We had the Scallion Pancakes, Xiao Long Bao, Half Peking Duck, Citrus Honey Mayo Glazed Tiger Shrimp and Fried Rice with Diced Angus Short Rib - all solid. Service was friendly and very attentive and nice decor.

    Interior
    Anggie B.

    A really nice place, its simple yet giving fancy vibe. And i love how there is space between tables so we're not squeezed like chicken in a farm. Great service. 4 stars for the food, some of the dishes were really good, one was just alright. Oh, they have lunch special. But the regular menu is def better. Will i come back? Yeah!

    Laura P.

    Beautifully designed interior and excellent service, this spot offers fusion Cantonese cuisine right in the heart of Manhattan's Financial District. I'm so glad I discovered this place, it brings back memories of Hong Kong.

    Peking duck
    Nicole L.

    We had Christmas dinner at Yao. While waiting for elevator two women got in and they got out first in line at the host. They didnt have a reservation and proceeded to push for one. We heard hostess said come back at 6:30 PM. Then it was our turn to check in the hostess immediately said your table is ready but can you finish your dinner at 6:30 PM! We thought it was abruptly rude and that gave the impression they were giving the table to those women in front of us. We ordered the peking duck and fish fin soup both almost $50 each for individual or half portions. The jellyfish was good but there was some sandy texture. The char siu was berkshire pork but it was not as tender as expected (we had Hayhay the previous night it was way better). My son enjoyed the shrimp and soup dumplings. We also had the sweet and sour pork with an elaborate presentation on dry ice it was ok would have been better with some taipoica coating gives it a different texture, we also had the okra and mushroom dish it was good. Overall we spent quite a bit for dinner and imagine a restaurant charging such price demanding you finish your dinner before you even sat down. The other service staff was good.

    Noodles with beef ribs (lunch). Sorry... I eat before the phone.
    Pedro Z.

    This place is located in a hotel, to get to it you access the hotel lobby and you take the elevator to the designated floor. The ambiance is chic and modern. The staff is super helpful and the food is delicious. I tried the lunch beef lo mein noodles and they were amazing. I would totally recommend this place whether it is for a quick lunch or for a date night. They have a vast menu with all the Cantonese classics combined with a great space.

    baked pork chop rice

    THIS WAS THE BEST BAKED PORK CHOP I EVER HAD I WOULD COME BACK EVERYDAY FOR THIS‼ the bowl was $32 for a very big portion, esp since it's in the middle of the financial district. 2 people could eat it and there would still be some leftovers for me to take home service is also very good and has a good view

    Pork
    Tansy W.

    Absolutely amazing. One of the best Chinese restaurants in NYC. Great food and great service. My favorite dishes were the Peking duck (amazing), the steamed Dungeness crab with meat (pork), and the egg custard tart dessert. The salted chicken was also very good and quite unique. Everything else we got was also tasty, including the snow pea shoots with chanterelles, the cauliflower, the pork, the pumpkin dessert, and the swan custard dessert. The service is also amazing. They were constantly swapping out our plates and refilling our waters. There is also some fancy $350-some-odd meal per person you can preorder two days in advance. Not clear what it includes. And there's a beautiful inside as well as some private dining rooms, I believe. Highly recommend. Can't wait to return!

    Duck
    Erin H.

    A nice place for group of people, a little bit fusion Chinese dishes, not limited to Cantonese at all. High recommend Mapo tofu and Peking duck is great! Specially it's hard to find a good Peking duck in the city. The environment also comfortable and quiet. The only downside is the elevator share with hotel, sometimes need a long waiting time!

    Michael C.

    Amazing food, yes it is not cheap compared to other Chinese restaurants but it is not more expensive than other cuisines at this class and finesse level where food, service and ambiance is part of the experience you are looking for!

    Scallop fried rice is good
    Kim F.

    I had the cucumber salad, scallop fried rice and vegetable dumplings. Food is not bad but the service is horrible. They have full bar but tell folks they can't order drinks because they have no bartender. They have a side of pickled radish that comes with the meals that I wanted to take to go and was told I have to pay 6 dollars for it. Needless to say I left no tip. I was staying at the hotel and ate the same meal the day before and there was no bartender then and when I asked for the pickled radish they told me that it had been put up already because it was close to closing time and they didn't know where it was. So I do really like the fried rice but I do not recommend this place nor will I return! The ambiance and decor was is nice but not enough for me to go back!

    Josephine L.

    Welcome to Yao, where Cantonese cuisine gets a modern makeover and your taste buds embark on a Harold and Kumar flavor adventure. The decor is prettier than the Met on a first date, and your wallet will likely hate you at the end of the night, but at least you're in for a truly sumptuous meal. Let me take you on a culinary rollercoaster through some of their best dishes: - Marinated Jellyfish with Sesame: My litmus test for most Canto spots. Nothing wrong with Yao's, except that it's too small. - Grilled Berkshire Pork: Presentation much? This dish was meant to be 'grammed. Imagine pork so succulent it's like biting into a cloud of happiness. Char siu never looked so sexy. - Traditional Chinese Salt-Baked Free-Range Chicken: If chickens had a spa day, this is what they'd look like after. Tender, juicy, and bursting with flavor, this chicken is so good, it's probably the reason why the phrase "winner winner chicken dinner" was coined. - Fresh Whole Sea Perch with Bones with Dried Tangerine Peel and Douchi: Dive into a sea of flavors with this dish! Plus, picking through those delicate bones feels like a culinary treasure hunt. - Mapo Tofu with Lobster: I hate how much I loved this. Silky tofu meets crunchy lobster in an actually spicy sauce that doesn't skimp on flavor. $68 is painful, but it hurts more not trying this. - Beef Brisket with Turnip in Clear Broth: Like a warm hug on a cold day. The beef melts in your mouth, and the broth tastes like Fri evenings with mom. - Snow Pea Leaves with Chanterelle: Crisp, vibrant snow pea leaves paired with earthy chanterelle mushrooms--it's a green dream come true! - Stir-Fried String Bean with Minced Pork and Kale Borecole: A classic for a reason, and Yao's is generous. - Fried Rice with Scallops and XO Sauce: Flavorful and perfectly cooked. - Fried Rice with Diced Angus Short Rib: Also flavorful and perfectly cooked. I'm not sure which fried rice was my favorite, TBH. - Pumpkin Cake: Yes, we desserted. This cake oozed sweet egg yolk that made me want to cry, it was so tasty. - Sesame Ball with Red Bean Paste: Another classic for a reason. You get five balls in this order, so it's perfect for sharing. Not too oily either. - Custard Pastry in a Swan Shape: Get this just for the 'gram. But also, it's actually quite crispy and delightful. Fly, my pretties, fly right into my mouth! - Portuguese Egg Custard Tart: Yao's best dish, bar none, and quite possibly the best egg tart in all of NYC. Made fresh every day and already their most popular dessert. My Macanese grandma would not only have approved, she would've ordered 12 more to take home. I didn't want to love Yao because, let's face it, "elevated" Chinese food almost always subs presentation for flavor, but Yao managed to avoid that for the most part while providing a gorgeously modern dining experience.

    Roasted black angus short rib

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    Uncle Lou 快樂人 - Chicken Lo Mein

    Uncle Lou 快樂人

    4.2(705 reviews)
    0.7 mi•Chinatown
    •$$

    This is a great restaurant to bring family! The portions are huge and are meant to share for the…read moretable. I arrived around noon on a Saturday and luckily there was no wait. Complimentary tea is served for the table. I ordered the L2. Crispy Garlic Chicken, 102. Yin Yang Chow Mei Fun, 2. Har Gow and white rice on the side. The chicken was my absolute favorite! It was perfectly crispy and so tasty. The mei fun and har gow were wonderful. Service was spectacular and food arrived quickly. Overall, the chicken stole the show for me and I definitely will be returning to get another order of this.

    I'm a big fan of Cantonese cuisine, so I was excited to try Uncle Lou's! I went on a weekend…read moreevening, and they were PACKED. There was a wait list, tons of reservations, and the whole place was hustling and bustling. The food smelled amazing, and the ambiance was lively and fun overall. We were excited to eat! We were walk-ins, so I appreciated that they were able to get us in. The hostess was running a very tight ship - very "no BS"/no nonsense ... and hey, I get it, it was crazy, but at times it erred a bit unnecessarily rude? It just left me feeling a bit off, but not the end of the world. Food-wise, we tried a lot of different things. The highlight was honestly the scallion pancakes. They were DELISH! Not too doughy, not too dry, and the vinegar dipping sauce was amazing (I know it's just the standard vinegar but dang it's so good). It was a classic really well executed. The steamed pork dumplings were also quite yummy. For our mains, we got the garlic baby bok choy, beef chow fun, and kung pao chicken. The beef chow fun looked amazing and we had heard really good things about it, but unfortunately it was a little dry and lacked flavor... just sort of bland? We ended up pouring some of the vinegar sauce over it, which helped, but I was a little disappointed because it looked so good. The baby bok choy was really loaded it up with garlic chunks and was also yummy and a good portion. It was juicy and had a great texture, but my only note was that it felt like it needed just a little more seasoning or salt? Overall, though, it was good. The kung pao chicken was INTENSE. I knew it'd be spicy, but truthfully it was my first time ever trying it and it was a tad difficult to eat without rice. The chicken thighs had a texture that felt a little gummy to me? I wished the chicken had been a bit more browned too. The peanuts and veggies rocked, but the sauce and chicken were huge misses for us. I typically would never send anything back, but my friend insisted as it was tough to enjoy. They did take our dish from the table... but then a manager brought it back and was a bit condescending towards us saying they didn't do that and everyone knows it's a spicy dish... which, I'm trying to be fair about because he didn't know it was my first time, but it just again felt unnecessarily rude. I hate wasting food, so we kept it and took it home rather than let it go to waste. I just thought the whole interaction was a little strange. Truly - I wasn't really looking to get something for free. We just didn't enjoy the dish and were trying to figure out what our options were and it basically felt like he just came over to make us feel small instead of problem solving together. Weird. I'm always one for second chances so I'm hoping to try it again, but I would highly recommend making a reservation to ensure a calmer experience.

    Photos
    Uncle Lou 快樂人 - The dining room, how cute is that??

    The dining room, how cute is that??

    Uncle Lou 快樂人 - Eggplant in garlic sauce

    Eggplant in garlic sauce

    Uncle Lou 快樂人 - Steamed pork bun

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    Steamed pork bun

    Congee Village - Cold Dungeness Crab

    Congee Village

    3.5(1.9k reviews)
    1.2 mi•Bowery, Lower East Side
    •$$

    I came here on a Thursday night around 7pm A lot of the…read moresmaller tables were already filled We ordered and the food came very quickly. We ordered the shrimp with walnut broccoli, beef chow fun, cold jellyfish and giant steamed oysters, The oysters were the size of my hand and very good! Cold jellyfish has a little hint of spiciness but very mild. The beef chow fun and shrimp are staples and cooked well and delicious. I will definitely be back

    I haven't been to Congee Village in years. Honestly, I thought they fell off the radar and no one…read moregoes anymore, so I was surprised that we walked in to dinner and they were packed. We had to wait for about 10 minutes and got our table for two upstairs. My wife was craving the lobster sticky rice so that's what we came for. We added the rice roll casserole and the mushroom with pea shoot leaves. The food took a few minutes to get to us but was overall ok. Nothing mind blowing but it scratched the itch. The service, however, sucked. They gave us another table's congee which we informed them we didn't order. And after our food arrived, we never saw the waitstaff again, until our check. I couldn't even get a refill on my water. And when the manager gave me my check she pressured me to give them the tips in cash and not charge it. I said fine but truthfully I tipped them more than they deserved.

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    Congee Village
    Congee Village - Snow Pea's Leaf with mixed mushrooms.

    Snow Pea's Leaf with mixed mushrooms.

    Congee Village - Sauteed Lotus Root with Bean Paste

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    Sauteed Lotus Root with Bean Paste

    Yao - cantonese - Updated October 2026

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