Excellent everything! Ordered takeout, Hunan Beef and Yen Ching Fried rice, not only was the food exceptional and huge portions, the service was fantastic! Very nice and quick service, will be going back for sure. read more

Obsessed with the staff. They're very friendly and encouraging. The veggie options have been great. The interior is a fun atmosphere. Sad to hear they're closing! read more

Yen Ching - Broccoli and snow peas, vegetables with tofu - Chinese Near Me - DeKalb, Illinois

Without a doubt, a keystone establishment when it comes to DeKalb dining. By far in a part the best Chinese food in town. The owners/servers/takeout attendants are the two most pleasant individuals in the world. You'll never leave dissatisfied, hungry, or undervalued. As unfortunate as it is to close this December, it will not be forgotten. Phenomenal. read more

I had a taste for Chinese food, and I picked this place since we'd been here before and wanted to go back. We were greeted and seated when we walked to the server's station. We were asked if we wanted hot tea and my wife had some. I went with water. For starters, we ordered their Pot Stickers - it came with 6, and came with a nice sauce which complimented them. The pot stickers were nicely sized, and were very tasty. For our entrees, I had the Spicy Chicken with white rice, and my wife ordered their Special Pan Fried Noodles with Shrimp. Both of the dishes were large and very filling. The Spicy Chicken had a rich sauce along with cauliflower, broccoli and mushrooms mixed in with the hot peppers. The Special Pan Fried Noodles with Shrimp were in a creamy sauce and the noodles were very good. The shrimp (always hard to cook right) was perfect. When we were done, my wife had leftovers. Our server took the time to explain how to reheat them, and still have the shrimp taste good. She also explained how to open the package and really lay out a colorful Chinese leftover meal. read more

See all

Nice staff, fresh & tasty food, and great service. It's so sad they're closing permanently this year; they work hard and totally deserve time for fun and relaxation. read more

Incredible food, cool older style Asian atmosphere, and excellent service! My favorite for Chinese!

A local small town gem. Husband and wife team that have been running this place with family charm and love. They took a big hit with the zombie apocalypse but is slowly getting back on track having their in house dining open. The food is delicious and the staff is like having lunch with your aunties who always cheer for you when you cleaned your plate:) read more

See all

Amazing authentic food along with the ambiance gets a 5 star rating! Service is always welcoming as well. read more

The ambiance, service, and food for this type of restaurant is the BEST in DeKalb County! This place has been in business for a very long time, for good reason! I highly recommend! read more

It's not as good as it used to be to be... a lot of the dishes are missing ingredients and prices are up, less food. Owner is the waitress, has been for years. Sometimes it's dark than what I feel comfortable with. When it's hot they never turn on the air conditioner and when it's cold the heat is barely on. read more

I live 8 hours away from DeKalb but every time I come up to visit friends or family I have to stop by Yen Ching to get some amazing food!! Their twice cooked pork is to die for!!! read more

Long time townie establisment. Hadn't been there in quite awhile. Atmosphere is dark, damp, hasn't been remodeled in years. Egg drop soup tasted like rice water. Our beef dish was too salty (MSG?), the chicken dish was flavorless, sweet and sour was gloppy--no pineapple or green pepper or tomato. Surprised at the lack of vegetables in their dishes. The servers were two aunties, so nice and friendly---but a casual observation indicates they are putting in far more effort (running around) than necessary. Instead of asking over and over if we need ice water refilled, just get rid of the tiny glasses. When asked to box up leftovers, it was suggested to pile them all into one container. Eww. Need to step up the game---or perhaps retirement is on the agenda ? Love the people here, but other establisments have taken over for taste. read more

Excellent displays of fresh hot food. Great Customer Service. Lots of places to sit down and eat. Best Fruit display in the whole city. Kind support staff. read more

The best Chinese food in Dekalb! Hospitable staff, lovely location, and a great menu that has yet to disappoint. They're also very receptive to special requests and will remember regulars and their usual orders. read more

The food is always so good. The service is friendly and entertaining. The atmosphere is nice. Highly recommend it.

Needed to find a new Chinese food restaurant because the one we went closed. Can't believe it took me this long to find this one because it's way better than any other one I've tried! read more

Service was great, food was very tasty. Highly recommend the braised pork. Great mom-and-pop restaurant.

I had a lovely time at Yen Ching tonight! I have been wanting to try all of the restaurants in DeKalb and this is one of the last ones on my list so I gave it a shot. What I ordered: I had the braised fish combo. The fish was delicious and came with an assortment of veggies, rice, and an egg roll. I really enjoyed the sauce on the fish. I'm not sure what kind of sauce it was. I also appreciate how they brought out tea for the table as soon as we got there. It was delicious! What really stood out was the service! The lady that took care of us what so sweet and attentive! She really took care of us! I told her I wasn't starving and she suggested I get the combo since it's a smaller portion. Also the inside is decorated like a traditional Chinese restaurant. I was not expecting that! This is probably the best Chinese restaurant in DeKalb! read more

See all

We went after my daughters graduation ceremony and had 9 people to feed. We went with the family dinner for 9 and added an extra order of Crab Rangoon and orange chicken. There was plenty of food to feed everyone and my daughter took a big container home with her. The waitstaff was very nice and attentive. The price was $200 including tip. read more

My good friend from Savannah came by on his way through Illinois, to meet me in person for the first time. He judges a town based on their Asian restaurants. I had heard great things about Yen Ching. We had the best time there. This was last year, but I kids you not, this was the best I've had in the area for food and service. The banter between the waitress and him was hysterical. She was SO funny. I loved the food I had. I can't remember what it was at the moment, but the fried and steamed potsticker were awesome as well. The amount of food they give you is incredible. He's coming back again soon and we're going here. I can't wait...well, maybe we'll go as a family soon, before he gets here. read more

This place has always been the best Chinese food! And also the experience of going in and talking to the owners makes it even better. They are very truly so very Kind' read more

Food has always been amazing here. It is a bit pricy but for the portion and the quality I believe it is absolutely worth it. I contend that the quality of food is worth the wait in serving time. It is a small family owned business of quite literally two sisters and their husbands. I think that for the popularity of the restaurant, the length of time it's been standing and everything in between, both the ladies do an incredible job between the two of them. They are super friendly and work really hard to get everything out at once instead of piece meal. I would recommend if you are on a time constraint, but in every other aspect, definitely support these guys!!!! read more

I was surprised. I haven't been here in like 25 years. It was a relatively small menu for a Chinese restaurant , but I usually find that allows them to focus on quality. I wasn't disappointed. My daughter loved the lo mien. My wife enjoyed her orange chicken. I personally enjoyed my appetizer platter. I highly recommend this place. A little old and outdated, but so am I. read more

Fewer cockroaches in the food. Shirts for the cooks. Clean up. Owner takes no responsibility for unacceptable food service. Poor attitude if you don't fawn all over her. Utterly disgusting. read more

Best Chinese food in the area! It is pricey, but their portions are large. Always have leftovers.

Great service,friendly and the food was delicious. We had sweet and sour chicken and it was sooooo good.

The best fried rice I have EVER HAD! They had the biggest, tastiest veggies. This is THE best Chinese place around. I'm not kidding.

Food was very bland at this location the restaurant looked really beautiful inside. It was the first time coming to this location. It was 30 minutes before closing, I asked if it was still okay to order carry out. I understood that it might be too late to order. One person said yes we can order and she handed us menus, and then another person took our order. She was already frustrated the moment we started ordering. We asked about sizes and she raised her voice "there's only one size", we asked how many it feeds and she repeated herself we only have 1 size! She turned and mumbled in frustration trying to show us the size of the box even though she showed us 2 different size boxes. I understand there might be a language barrier where certain words don't come out the way they are actually intended, the body language was saying a lot. She had to let us know that they were closing and there was a ton of things they needed to do before closing and the dinning room was completely closed. I reminded her that we asked if it was still appropriate to order take out and the other lady happily said that it was okay. She then said oh. I understand it's close to closing that's why I asked if it was still appropriate. I didn't appreciate how frustrated she was with a condescending attitude , just so that we could be very uncomfortably rushed to order some mediocre food, overall the service was poor. read more

Don't let the exterior fool you. Everything here is wonderful. It is family run. I especially like the mu shu pork. Service is personal and accommodating. read more

Love this place. It seems that others don't understand the owners and their culture. The food is great and I love the interactions.

Use to be an all-around okay place to go. Potstickers are yummy. Hostess is always "nice" but will treat you with veiled disrespect, if you say anything regarding it you will be ignored. Shameful hospitality. Recently discovered they are very homophobic and especially transphobic. The woman refuses to gender someone properly if she doesn't think you are as you appear to her. Italian women can be seen as relatively masculine. You will get sir'ed* and it's pointless and exhausting when all you want is a warm meal and basic respect out of the service. read more

Food was ok. Service not great. Forgot some of our drinks. Other tables that got there after us (with more guests) received their food before us. One of our dishes was incorrect. Grub hub pickups/phone ordersl taken care of before customers in restaurant Not a great experience. Overpriced for what you get. Needs more servers or someone to take care of phone/pickups/register. One lady doing it all. Wouldn't recommend. read more

This was my first visit here, but it will certainly not be my last. My boyfriend and I stopped by for lunch over the weekend. Yen Ching is family owned and operated, and the service is so friendly that they make you feel like part of the family. The owner, as some of the other reviews have noted, is eccentric in the best way possible as well. The food here was some of the best Chinese food that I have had, and on par with the Chinatown in San Francisco. Much better than anything I have had in Chicago's Chinatown area. My boyfriend had the sweet and sour chicken, while I had the beef egg fu hun. Both turned out delicious, as were our steamed dumplings and egg drop soup. Speaking of which, the egg drop soup tasted different from any other I have had - I found it even reminiscent of chicken noodle soup. I have tried several of the other options for Chinese food in Dekalb, but they really do not compare. Yen Ching is without a doubt the best Chinese food in Dekalb, and possibly Illinois! read more

Yen Ching - Beef Egg Fu Yung - Chinese Near Me - DeKalb, Illinois

Graduation @ NIU in early May & chose this location for the celebration. Place is along the Historic Lincoln Highway and quite the talk of the town! Yen Ching, has been voted 7 years in a row as the best in Dekalb, IL When you enter, a huge Budha is on right & 2 warriors made of stone are intensingly eye-catching on left. "Hello Welcome to Yen Ching this sweet lady says! *Decorum is pleasant, vibe is mello, conversations aplenty.* We were seated at a huge round table with ample room amidst all of the graduation parties. Family cozy and very friendly. Totally recommend you plan a visit especially when you're in the Dekalb, IL area. *Ample Menu of All Sorts reasonably priced $-$$ *Crab Ragoon weren't sweet but very good *Tea is served, dishes are huge portions for main dishes as well Soup Bowls seem endless. We just "pot lucked our dishes on the center lazy Susan to share this celebratory feast! Good times, Good Food! read more

See all

This place is always good Husband and wife owners are great. We make it here only once a year and she remembers our appetizers order every time. Sizzling Rice Soup is sooooo good! Not on menu anymore just ask for it 2 orders of potstickers (the best thing on menu) 1 order Crab Rangoon Dinners are huge portions that are enough for 2, but we all order our own and share with enough left for lunch tomorrow read more

I was a frequent visitor of this establishment during my stay at NIU between 01/2008 and 06/2010. I had not been back to DeKalb in over 11 years, but made the drive today with my wife and son. This was the only place to even consider for stopping in for lunch, and after 11 years, they exceeded every expectation I had. The food was served hot, fast, and delicious. The atmosphere was just how I remembered it with the same friendly service. I wish it wasn't 2 hours from where I lived. Best Kung Pao Chicken I've been able to find in Northern Illinois. read more

Great food, great service always on time my family and I we moved 3 years ago and when we found this place we we're amazed

The food was fair. Service was not. I asked for a straw, and then I was lectured about why I shouldn't use one. Asked about rice servings, and was told to share with another member of my table, and how in china rice servings are small. All in a very condescending manner. The place is in desperate need of a remodel. I would not recommend. read more

Food was so bland. I've tried eat in and takeout and everything had very little flavor. Also the tables and chairs are "sticky". The decor is dark and dingy. The last time I was there there were too many "RULES" to how I should turn the lazy susan and how I should dish out my food and she insisted I share with other people in my party. It was so weird. and I felt very disrespected and talked down to by the owner /server. I'm not going back. read more

There is no better Chinese in Chicagoland, period. Marilyn and John know there stuff. Both are friendly whether you have been a customers for years or your first time there. The food is prepared fresh when ordered, not mass quantities to be divvied up as ordered and suggestions and explanations are simply a question away. We started to lovingly refer to this as "crazy Lady Chinese" because of Marilyn's exuberance. Her sister and their daughter, who help when home from school are equally as friendly. It is almost like you neighborhood bar experience, just a little classier. Highly recommended and the sizziling rice soup and crab ragoons are must have. read more