Imperial Mandarin

Juanita La Shell

We came in about a half hour before closing. We were going to do takeout but decided to stay. No flare place as far as ambiance. They saved all the flare for the food, because it was absolutely delicious!!! Extremely fresh, super large portions, well priced, even the egg drop soup was delicious. Our server may have been one of the owners. Super sweet and accommodating. We ordered a sweet n sour tofu that was not on the menu, no problem. I asked for an extra side of garlic because I'm a garlic freak, no problem! I will definitely be returning! I want to try allll the things 😋

Jun

authentic chinese food. our party of 6 got the family meal for 5 and added the peking duck, cooked 2 ways. everything was delicious but the pork spareribs and duck were the best

Jack Lim

The lamb braised serve in claypot is real good. And the timsum steam beef ball is authentic HK styles. Excellent choice here.

N Lee

Pretty good dim sum place, actually. Old school push carts and no wait at 11:30 am on a Sunday. Out of all the dim sum places I've been in San Diego, and I've been to quite a lot, I'd recommend this place for taste and price. Pictures included as well as receipt. Which by the way is counted by the number of lines. Tldr; tastes good, good price (~$35)

Priscilla W

I love this place! Best chinese restaurant I’ve ever tried. I’ve been going to this place since I was very young. My parents like going here on the weekends. We’ve been going to this restaurant so much that the waitress who takes are order knows it by heart. 😅

Freddie Bustria

This is my mom and dad's "go to" place to treat the whole family, for 20+ years, after Mass on Sunday's. The food is very good and reasonable. They always have lunchtime DIM SUM on Sunday's, but come early because it gets crowded. You can still order off the menu though. Our kiddos always like the Imperial House Special Crispy Noodles; Mandarin Special; Chicken, Beef, Pork Fried Rice; Salt And Pepper Chicken Wings; Beef with Broccoli, and Deep Fried Fresh Squid With Salt And Pepper off the menu. Everything is very good on the menu and reasonably priced in comparison to other Convoy St. restaurants offering exactly the same items. After 20+ years we've eaten pretty much everything on and off the menu. If something you like is missing they will try to make it for you if they have the ingredients! Did I say the DIM SUM is OUTSTANDING too and we usually order: Beef Tripe With Turnip, Steamed Spareribs With Black Bean Sauce, 3 Beef Meat Ball, 6 Steamed Pork Dumpling, Shrimp & Pork Shiu My, and Egg Plant stuffed with shrimp, and yes, grandma's fave, chicken's feet🤯. You may call in orders to take home too. Service is usually very good, however, it does get busy at times and you may have a "slightly" longer wait (Great Things Come To Those Who Wait). They take reservations too, so call ahead. Patience is a virtue, and the food at Imperial Mandarin is worth waiting for. God Bless You All!😇🙏🕊 ☦️

If you want a place that truly offers authentic Chinese vibes and food, go here. It is especially nice when most people in the restaurant eating are Asian. We've ordered takeout mostly, but highly recommend pecking duck and trying something you can't get from an average Chinese place. The family who owns it is long time San Diegans and a very nice group of people. Go. I normally rate: 1 star dont go 2 star is average food and would only go if you're in a bind, or it had poor service, or it was very overpriced for the quality of food. 3 star above average. good rating for me. id go again. 4 star is great. lots of perks and bonuses and better than the average spot. 5 star is absolutely recommend and must go for a variety of reasons.

Phil Mengden

If you want a place that truly offers authentic Chinese vibes and food, go here. It is especially nice when most people in the restaurant eating are Asian. We've ordered takeout mostly, but highly recommend pecking duck and trying something you can't get from an average Chinese place. The family who owns it is long time San Diegans and a very nice group of people. Go. I normally rate: 1 star dont go 2 star is average food and would only go if you're in a bind, or it had poor service, or it was very overpriced for the quality of food. 3 star above average. good rating for me. id go again. 4 star is great. lots of perks and bonuses and better than the average spot. 5 star is absolutely recommend and must go for a variety of reasons.

Food: 4/5 Service and Setting: 3/5 Value: 3/5 Imperial Mandarin has been a staple in my household in our rotation for Chinese dinners, almost always exclusively take-out. The interior is definitely dated and quite frankly dirty, but that’s part of the charm of eating at a cultural landmark. Service is quick and a bit snippy, but for those of you with speaking anxiety, the workers here speak great English at the front. Like most Chinese restaurants, they can customize basically anything for you and usually will not upcharge. Though I have eaten a lot of their food throughout the years, I recently only get a few items. In general, their food is solid but not mind-blowing, especially their dim sum. I will be sure to update this review as I try more and more dishes from my past. Stuffed Eggplant with Shrimp: 4.25/5 One of my favorite dim sum items can be purchased as an entree at a slight discount and a small side of rice. Sometimes they give you some stuffed bell peppers, sometimes they don’t. I love this dish so much and they make it in a way that tastes “homemade” for a lack of better terms. There is this striking inconsistency not only in-between visits, but also in the same plate of food. Some eggplant is mushy, some firm, some sweet, some sour. The eggplant or bell pepper is usually quite bland and the majority of seasoning is inside the minced shrimp filling. The texture is similar to a siu mai but a bit meatier. These parcels are deep fried and then tossed in a light soy sauce. The deep savoriness of the shrimp with the richness and smooth eggplant create a wonderful dish that is hard to recreate at home but manifests the same feelings as an honest dish. Rich, savory, umami, but not overly so embodies the tenants of Cantonese cuisine and warrants a try!

Love that Mushu! Started with the Hot and Sour Soup and Spring Rolls, yum!! The soup was thick and full of flavor. The spring rolls were hot and crispy on the outside and a little mushy on the inside. I ordered the Mushu Pork and Beef Chow Mein to split. The Beef Chow Mein was good; the beef was tender and the noodles had nice crunch veggies in it. The Mushu Pork was delicious! Lots of flavor rolled into those tasty burritos; and the hosin sauce just added to the already great flavors. The service was excellent! Not only in the timing of food delivery but in the amount of 'check-ins' to see if I needed anything else. Definitely coming back for more!!

Wasn’t that early in the morning, almost noon. Only one old lady staff, eating her first meal in the back while serving food to two or three tables with takeouts. I wouldn’t say excellent service but overall some great and somewhat authentic food, Personally love and tried a lot of authentic Cantonese food/dim sum/HK style cafe in Vancouver & Richmond(CAN), Hong Kong. Although quite oily, the shrimp toast was great! Apparently not a lot of places still have it! The steamed bbq pork bun(chasiubao) is...strangely oversized, and the biggest I’ve ever seen in my past experiences with dim sum. The pork is kinda old and hard to chew, also still got a little smell to it, not happy with that. Beef meat ball was good. As well as the steamed rice noodle roll with shrimp, a little bit thick and should be on the thinner side.

Good Hot and Sour soup. Also had Beef chow mein and Moo Shi Pork which was delicious. First time ever to have server offer to wrap the Moo Shi for us, plus brought extra plum sauce. Was definitely a plus and appreciated. Loved the flavor of their tea as well. Service was fast and efficient.

Justin Fan

Food: 4/5 Service and Setting: 3/5 Value: 3/5 Imperial Mandarin has been a staple in my household in our rotation for Chinese dinners, almost always exclusively take-out. The interior is definitely dated and quite frankly dirty, but that’s part of the charm of eating at a cultural landmark. Service is quick and a bit snippy, but for those of you with speaking anxiety, the workers here speak great English at the front. Like most Chinese restaurants, they can customize basically anything for you and usually will not upcharge. Though I have eaten a lot of their food throughout the years, I recently only get a few items. In general, their food is solid but not mind-blowing, especially their dim sum. I will be sure to update this review as I try more and more dishes from my past. Stuffed Eggplant with Shrimp: 4.25/5 One of my favorite dim sum items can be purchased as an entree at a slight discount and a small side of rice. Sometimes they give you some stuffed bell peppers, sometimes they don’t. I love this dish so much and they make it in a way that tastes “homemade” for a lack of better terms. There is this striking inconsistency not only in-between visits, but also in the same plate of food. Some eggplant is mushy, some firm, some sweet, some sour. The eggplant or bell pepper is usually quite bland and the majority of seasoning is inside the minced shrimp filling. The texture is similar to a siu mai but a bit meatier. These parcels are deep fried and then tossed in a light soy sauce. The deep savoriness of the shrimp with the richness and smooth eggplant create a wonderful dish that is hard to recreate at home but manifests the same feelings as an honest dish. Rich, savory, umami, but not overly so embodies the tenants of Cantonese cuisine and warrants a try!

Javier Santos

Love that Mushu! Started with the Hot and Sour Soup and Spring Rolls, yum!! The soup was thick and full of flavor. The spring rolls were hot and crispy on the outside and a little mushy on the inside. I ordered the Mushu Pork and Beef Chow Mein to split. The Beef Chow Mein was good; the beef was tender and the noodles had nice crunch veggies in it. The Mushu Pork was delicious! Lots of flavor rolled into those tasty burritos; and the hosin sauce just added to the already great flavors. The service was excellent! Not only in the timing of food delivery but in the amount of 'check-ins' to see if I needed anything else. Definitely coming back for more!!

Alan C (ICE)

Wasn’t that early in the morning, almost noon. Only one old lady staff, eating her first meal in the back while serving food to two or three tables with takeouts. I wouldn’t say excellent service but overall some great and somewhat authentic food, Personally love and tried a lot of authentic Cantonese food/dim sum/HK style cafe in Vancouver & Richmond(CAN), Hong Kong. Although quite oily, the shrimp toast was great! Apparently not a lot of places still have it! The steamed bbq pork bun(chasiubao) is...strangely oversized, and the biggest I’ve ever seen in my past experiences with dim sum. The pork is kinda old and hard to chew, also still got a little smell to it, not happy with that. Beef meat ball was good. As well as the steamed rice noodle roll with shrimp, a little bit thick and should be on the thinner side.

Russell Santos-Weaver

Good Hot and Sour soup. Also had Beef chow mein and Moo Shi Pork which was delicious. First time ever to have server offer to wrap the Moo Shi for us, plus brought extra plum sauce. Was definitely a plus and appreciated. Loved the flavor of their tea as well. Service was fast and efficient.

The Imperial Duck I had was the best ever. My dining companion did not like his Szechuan Beef and did not eat it. White rice was good and included with entrée. Spring rolls and dumplings were OK. Hot tea in a pot was made with loose tea, not a tea bag. Service was attentive, if not particularly friendly. Typical Chinese service for the non-Chinese. Ambience was austere, almost cafeteria-like. Was not crowded on a Sunday night around 6 pm. Parking is difficult in the large parking lot for this business park with at least 5 Asian restaurants.

Both beef hor fun and Steamed red snapper turned out to be a disappointment. There is no wok qi in the beef hor fun dish. Steamed fish is not fresh and slightly fishy. Large oyster dish is good. We are given complimentary egg tarts that look sad and likely are left over from lunch time. Unfortunately I will not recommend this place for dinner. Is costs us almost $100 for just these 3 dishes.

Based on my many Dim Sum experience including Hong Kong, China and Vancouver Canada and some cities in US. Imperial Mandarin 's Dim sum was good with American Chinese standard but not all of them. Beef ball not recommended. Shrimp rice roll, Pork Siu Mai and Pork ribs are good there. Overall price are little much compare with the quality. Is good place for dim sum when you have no better choices.

Michiko Lindsey

The Imperial Duck I had was the best ever. My dining companion did not like his Szechuan Beef and did not eat it. White rice was good and included with entrée. Spring rolls and dumplings were OK. Hot tea in a pot was made with loose tea, not a tea bag. Service was attentive, if not particularly friendly. Typical Chinese service for the non-Chinese. Ambience was austere, almost cafeteria-like. Was not crowded on a Sunday night around 6 pm. Parking is difficult in the large parking lot for this business park with at least 5 Asian restaurants.

Trina Teo

Both beef hor fun and Steamed red snapper turned out to be a disappointment. There is no wok qi in the beef hor fun dish. Steamed fish is not fresh and slightly fishy. Large oyster dish is good. We are given complimentary egg tarts that look sad and likely are left over from lunch time. Unfortunately I will not recommend this place for dinner. Is costs us almost $100 for just these 3 dishes.

Wei U

Based on my many Dim Sum experience including Hong Kong, China and Vancouver Canada and some cities in US. Imperial Mandarin 's Dim sum was good with American Chinese standard but not all of them. Beef ball not recommended. Shrimp rice roll, Pork Siu Mai and Pork ribs are good there. Overall price are little much compare with the quality. Is good place for dim sum when you have no better choices.

Got ripped off. I ordered the "half size" Peking Duck (instead of the full duck) to go for dinner. Paid almost $22 for half size. I got home and saw, it was NOT half size! It was literally 7 tiny pieces of dark meat cut from thigh AND some pieces of skin, totaling the size of my hand! No white meat from the breast. No leg meat. Half means, you get the white meat + dark meat with or without bones. Called restaurant back and kitchen staff member tried to argue he gave me half size, but see my photo and video for yourself. Then compare my "Half size Peking Duck" with other google review photos- BIG DIFFERENCE! Were they thinking I wouldn't know any better because its carry out? If they only serve the thigh, then list the item as "Peking Duck Thigh". NOT HALF SIZE. This was total misled. A lie. The 1 star is for the nice lady who took the order. Be an honest establishment. You work hard to build your restaurant, but your customers also worked hard to earn their money to spend at your restaurant. Don't take people as fools. Be better.

Christine

Got ripped off. I ordered the "half size" Peking Duck (instead of the full duck) to go for dinner. Paid almost $22 for half size. I got home and saw, it was NOT half size! It was literally 7 tiny pieces of dark meat cut from thigh AND some pieces of skin, totaling the size of my hand! No white meat from the breast. No leg meat. Half means, you get the white meat + dark meat with or without bones. Called restaurant back and kitchen staff member tried to argue he gave me half size, but see my photo and video for yourself. Then compare my "Half size Peking Duck" with other google review photos- BIG DIFFERENCE! Were they thinking I wouldn't know any better because its carry out? If they only serve the thigh, then list the item as "Peking Duck Thigh". NOT HALF SIZE. This was total misled. A lie. The 1 star is for the nice lady who took the order. Be an honest establishment. You work hard to build your restaurant, but your customers also worked hard to earn their money to spend at your restaurant. Don't take people as fools. Be better.

Took a friend for his birthday and the meal was okay but toward the end a bunch of employees were smoking at the front door and all the smoke come inside and it was awful. The whole place stank and turned my stomach. I told the waitress and she ignored me. Just laughed and walked off. Will never go back

I ordered salt and pepper wings and it was not good at all. It had zero seasoning and a few slices of jalapeño that added no flavor. It had good crisp but due to no flavor I had a hard time eating this. I tasted more of the oil it was fried in then anything. I spent $17 and it was not worth it. It came with a very small fried rice that also wasn't that good.

Finally tried this restaurant after trying almost all the other restaurants in this strip mall. The restaurant claims its cuisine is from one of the southern Chinese provinces but after going in and talking to the employees they actually serve Cantonese style cuisine. Disappointing. We tried a few classic dim sum dishes mostly mid. A few other tofu dishes were 6.5/10, duck tasted like it had been sitting out for a while, not fresh and the skin was not crispy like how it's supposed to be. The interior feels very old and tired like the staff. This restaurant has been around for a few decades before better selections started to pop up around the Convoy area. It's clear that they could get away with their mid-quality Chinese food with a clientele that doesn't know better from 3+ decades ago. However it's a shame this restaurant didn't both to try to keep up with the times and it doesn't seem like they will either. There's much better restaurants in this strip mall so give this place a HARD PASS.

Julian Cabins

Took a friend for his birthday and the meal was okay but toward the end a bunch of employees were smoking at the front door and all the smoke come inside and it was awful. The whole place stank and turned my stomach. I told the waitress and she ignored me. Just laughed and walked off. Will never go back

Beatriz Pacheco

I ordered salt and pepper wings and it was not good at all. It had zero seasoning and a few slices of jalapeño that added no flavor. It had good crisp but due to no flavor I had a hard time eating this. I tasted more of the oil it was fried in then anything. I spent $17 and it was not worth it. It came with a very small fried rice that also wasn't that good.

J Z

Finally tried this restaurant after trying almost all the other restaurants in this strip mall. The restaurant claims its cuisine is from one of the southern Chinese provinces but after going in and talking to the employees they actually serve Cantonese style cuisine. Disappointing. We tried a few classic dim sum dishes mostly mid. A few other tofu dishes were 6.5/10, duck tasted like it had been sitting out for a while, not fresh and the skin was not crispy like how it's supposed to be. The interior feels very old and tired like the staff. This restaurant has been around for a few decades before better selections started to pop up around the Convoy area. It's clear that they could get away with their mid-quality Chinese food with a clientele that doesn't know better from 3+ decades ago. However it's a shame this restaurant didn't both to try to keep up with the times and it doesn't seem like they will either. There's much better restaurants in this strip mall so give this place a HARD PASS.