Hunan Chief

I don't know guys... I really like this place. Here is why. If you want a super expensive high end authentic chinese restaurant, you should go to SF or somewhere that is not here. If you want a wholesome place to have a meal with your family, this fits the bill perfectly. The food is good, though not great. But how many other places will you have the maitre d sit with you and your upset kids and encourage them to do their homework. They don't know me, I don't know them, but I can tell you, my sons got their homework done that day. I look at the total package, yes taste is one of them, and this place does not win awards, but then I don't think they are trying to. Oh did I mention that these guys deliver? And they are so super nice when they do! I am not sure but they may be Halal.

I recently visited with a friend who lives in the area. This is one of his go-to places. On a busy lunch hour, the place turned out great food at a brisk pace. Almost every table was occupied by Chinese families, a good sign for Chinese restaurants.

We found this on accident, and are so glad we did. The menu selection is very large, with a lot of different options. The food was amazing! They also serve beer and wine now, if you like that.

This place is beyond delicious! Everything from the honey walnut prawns, to the cucumber salad, to the pork fried rice, broccoli beef, and the sweet-and-sour pork is just absolutely amazing! Everything on there menu is delicious! There is only one thing they need an improvement on and that is the hot and sour soup, way too salty. Skip the hot and sour and you will be leaving with your hunger more than satisfied and a huge smile on your face! Dine in, pick up or delivery. This place is perfect for family gatherings, Fast service, friendly staff, it doesn't get any better than this! Please order from here and you will most certainly enjoyed it!

The menu has some of the most traditional Chinese food available and is prepared perfectly and delicious really is not a strong enough word to describe it. Also at our request the owner came out to our table and she helped us with our selections. The owner and her staff were incredible they made us feel like old friends that had stopped by.

They’re open again!!! We’ve waited for a month and now they are open again. The taste is just as good as before. 02/02/2025 Good food and generous volume. Most of the meat dishes are very tasty and will come back again. The two vegetarian dishes we ordered, salt and pepper tofu and green bean sprouts, are delicious too. I wish there are less oil in the veggies.

Post Covid-19 visit. Great serving portion! Flavor fresh and aromatic! Good for eating as a group! Can try more variety! We have a box of takeaway for lunch and dinner!

Authentic tasty Hunan cuisine. Large portions and fairly priced.

We love this place and often have lunch/dinner there. Somehow there was a damage at front entrance and not in business right now. Does anyone know what happen?

hsin-fei tu

They’re open again!!! We’ve waited for a month and now they are open again. The taste is just as good as before. 02/02/2025 Good food and generous volume. Most of the meat dishes are very tasty and will come back again. The two vegetarian dishes we ordered, salt and pepper tofu and green bean sprouts, are delicious too. I wish there are less oil in the veggies.

Albert Law

Post Covid-19 visit. Great serving portion! Flavor fresh and aromatic! Good for eating as a group! Can try more variety! We have a box of takeaway for lunch and dinner!

Chris Liang

Authentic tasty Hunan cuisine. Large portions and fairly priced.

tzong shaw

We love this place and often have lunch/dinner there. Somehow there was a damage at front entrance and not in business right now. Does anyone know what happen?

Good food, friendly service, and a comfortable atmosphere. I’ll definitely come back again.

Great variety selections of different types of food here. Heavy flavored authentic Chinese food! Some days our family could even eat lunch and dinner here on the same day just different (types) of dishes! Have to try it yourself to know how good it tastes. Atmosphere is 4 star only because sometimes it can get too busy during prime meal hours, and due to most food are cook to order and could take some time to be served.

Omg the best. My little ones love eating here as well. :) the inside of the restaurant is nice and very authentic overall. I go during lunch. I have had the beef broccoli, bbq pork frid rice, and chicken w/ mixed veg. All so good! Lunch spec comes with hot and sour soup. Love how it's an open kitchen. All affordable! Top notch!

My go to place for Chinese. My favorite is the hot and spicy chicken. The owner is really friendly and the staff are nice. Not too busy at lunch time on weekdays. Have not visited for dinner or on the weekends

Wonderful staff, very friendly. Food was amazing. All the dishes we got were so delicious. We got the lemon chicken, salt and pepper fish, mapo tofu and sizzling rice soup. Not a one complaint. Each dish was so flavorful. Go there!!!!

WOW! Hunan Chef restaurant is remarkable! I am writing to express my sincere appreciation for the wonderful experience I had at this restaurant recently. We were incredibly impressed by the delicious food and the exceptional cleanliness of the establishment. The customer service was very attentive, and I found the prices to be more than fair. The convenient location in the plaza across from Safeway and the ample parking are also great advantages. It's clear that the restaurant is operating at a very high standard, and it truly shows. YUM I highly recommend this restaurant 10+ stars!

Hunan Chef is one of our family's most favorite restaurants in the Bay Area. We have been going here for many years and it is always consistent - food and service is excellent. The restaurant has become part of our family traditions and celebrations. We feel like we are going to a relatives home for dinner and treated like family by the entire staff at Hunan Chef. The food is always SO delicious. Some favorite food items / dishes are the soy milk, green onion pancakes , Pickled Cabbage Sliced Pork Clay Pot Soup, Shredded pork w/ bean curd, Dried Cook String Bean (Ground Pork), Braised Beef Stew Clay Pot. We try to try something new each time and never disappointed. everything is cooked SO well, the Chefs at Hunan are highly skilled. Flavors are very consistent and well balanced - not too heavy or salted. We drive all the way from San Leandro to eat at Hunan Chef. It is destination worthy!

D Y

Good food, friendly service, and a comfortable atmosphere. I’ll definitely come back again.

Christina Osorio

WOW! Hunan Chef restaurant is remarkable! I am writing to express my sincere appreciation for the wonderful experience I had at this restaurant recently. We were incredibly impressed by the delicious food and the exceptional cleanliness of the establishment. The customer service was very attentive, and I found the prices to be more than fair. The convenient location in the plaza across from Safeway and the ample parking are also great advantages. It's clear that the restaurant is operating at a very high standard, and it truly shows. YUM I highly recommend this restaurant 10+ stars!

Quang Le

Hunan Chef is one of our family's most favorite restaurants in the Bay Area. We have been going here for many years and it is always consistent - food and service is excellent. The restaurant has become part of our family traditions and celebrations. We feel like we are going to a relatives home for dinner and treated like family by the entire staff at Hunan Chef. The food is always SO delicious. Some favorite food items / dishes are the soy milk, green onion pancakes , Pickled Cabbage Sliced Pork Clay Pot Soup, Shredded pork w/ bean curd, Dried Cook String Bean (Ground Pork), Braised Beef Stew Clay Pot. We try to try something new each time and never disappointed. everything is cooked SO well, the Chefs at Hunan are highly skilled. Flavors are very consistent and well balanced - not too heavy or salted. We drive all the way from San Leandro to eat at Hunan Chef. It is destination worthy!

Shabnam Sarup

My go to place for Chinese. My favorite is the hot and spicy chicken. The owner is really friendly and the staff are nice. Not too busy at lunch time on weekdays. Have not visited for dinner or on the weekends

Cassandra Garcia

Omg the best. My little ones love eating here as well. :) the inside of the restaurant is nice and very authentic overall. I go during lunch. I have had the beef broccoli, bbq pork frid rice, and chicken w/ mixed veg. All so good! Lunch spec comes with hot and sour soup. Love how it's an open kitchen. All affordable! Top notch!

Fred Hsu (AhFah)

Great variety selections of different types of food here. Heavy flavored authentic Chinese food! Some days our family could even eat lunch and dinner here on the same day just different (types) of dishes! Have to try it yourself to know how good it tastes. Atmosphere is 4 star only because sometimes it can get too busy during prime meal hours, and due to most food are cook to order and could take some time to be served.

Birdiemom Carol

Wonderful staff, very friendly. Food was amazing. All the dishes we got were so delicious. We got the lemon chicken, salt and pepper fish, mapo tofu and sizzling rice soup. Not a one complaint. Each dish was so flavorful. Go there!!!!

When I do get food here, I just do takeout. They have free delivery service, which is convenient. The restaurant looks nice inside and their website is well maintained. Overall, the food quality is a mix of authentic Chinese dishes as well as Americanized dishes. Customer service is just average.

I've eaten here twice. One time I dined in the restaurant and other time we ordered take out. Both times were pleasurable experiences. We ordered hot and sour soup, kung pao tofu, shrimp fried rice, and sweet and sour pork. My sons ate the shrimp fried rice and the sweet and sour pork. The shrimp were good sized and they really like the fried rice. They were split on the sweet and sour pork. One loved it and the other though it was too sweet. The hot and sour soup is a hearty soup. It was pretty middle of the road in terms of taste. It wasn't too hot and it wasn't too sour. I tend to prefer soups that are strong in both flavors, so I had to add some heat to mine. Once I got my soup to the level I wanted it, it was great. The kung pao tofu was good. It had a nice amount of tofu which was delicious and it had a variety of different vegetables. All four of us agreed that we should eat there more often. It's in such a convenient location and the food is good.

We've been ordering from Hunan Chef for years, usually delivery--pre-Covid-- or take-out because they're in our neighborhood and are always reliably good, fast and friendly. They offer some dishes either American or authentic Chinese style.

Consistently good food at a fair price. Ordered a lamb, pork, and a vegetable dish, with a house special soup. Portions were so large, The four of us had enough left over for 4 doggy bags.

They have big portions and making them perfect for gatherings with friends and family. If you like spicy food, you might like their cumin lamb, Hunan stir-fried pork.

Fine Sunday lunch. Great hot and sour soup followed by wonderful mu shiu pork, general's chicken and beef with green onion. Recommend the pot stickers. We will be back to try more dishes.

Decent quality food with some authentic selections as well. Clean facility and friendly staff. Had the salt and pepper fish, salt and pepper pork and singapore mei fun. Everything was fresh and well seasoned. Recommended.

Unusually authentic 👍🏻

Delicious Mongolian Beef. Seems to be very authentic as the place was packed at lunch, mostly Asian folks enjoying lots of everything.... Service was superb! Amy was very friendly, professional and timely. I'll be back when in Pleasanton.

We came here on Sunday for their weekend special dim sum menu. We ordered the sweet soybean milk, savory sweet rice roll, and pan fried nian gaw with preserved cabbage. All foods are good quality. Wait staff is friendly and service is fast. We plan on returning.

We sampled their crab cheese wontons, salty fish chicken fried rice, Mongolian beef, and hot and sour soup – all delicious. Amy, the owner and waitress, made the experience even better. We look forward to returning to try more dishes.

We came for dinner on a Saturday around 7PM and the restaurant was not busy. Shout-out to one of the male servers who wore a flower on his head, he was super nice to us and to many tables with little kids. Food deserves a solid 3.5 stars for taste and authenticity. I enjoyed the cumin lamb 孜然羊肉, the fish gluten 鱼面筋, preserved fish with 咸鱼鸡粒茄子煲(both under the chef specials). I didn't like the dry-fried green bean 干煸四季豆 as it tasted so Americanized (see pic) Portions are big, however, prices are on the high side as well (but normal for the Bay Area to be fair).

Went on a Friday for lunch. The place is not too crowded, ample parking spaces. They get hot tea to the table. Wait a for a couple of mins before serving the tea, giving the tea some flavor. Food is not as spicy as regular Hunan places. The service was quick and food was on time. The prices are reasonable too.

Flora Wong

We came here on Sunday for their weekend special dim sum menu. We ordered the sweet soybean milk, savory sweet rice roll, and pan fried nian gaw with preserved cabbage. All foods are good quality. Wait staff is friendly and service is fast. We plan on returning.

Rintu Mathew

We sampled their crab cheese wontons, salty fish chicken fried rice, Mongolian beef, and hot and sour soup – all delicious. Amy, the owner and waitress, made the experience even better. We look forward to returning to try more dishes.

Master Maggie Li

We came for dinner on a Saturday around 7PM and the restaurant was not busy. Shout-out to one of the male servers who wore a flower on his head, he was super nice to us and to many tables with little kids. Food deserves a solid 3.5 stars for taste and authenticity. I enjoyed the cumin lamb 孜然羊肉, the fish gluten 鱼面筋, preserved fish with 咸鱼鸡粒茄子煲(both under the chef specials). I didn't like the dry-fried green bean 干煸四季豆 as it tasted so Americanized (see pic) Portions are big, however, prices are on the high side as well (but normal for the Bay Area to be fair).

shreenath vijayan

Went on a Friday for lunch. The place is not too crowded, ample parking spaces. They get hot tea to the table. Wait a for a couple of mins before serving the tea, giving the tea some flavor. Food is not as spicy as regular Hunan places. The service was quick and food was on time. The prices are reasonable too.

Alvin Li

Unusually authentic 👍🏻

What a great find. We've been looking for a good Chinese place in the try valley. There were four of us for dinner. We all enjoyed our selections and the service was very attentive . I would definitely recommend this place

Extensive menu. Great service. Pretty good food. The fried rice was good, mixed vegetables were very good, tangerine chicken was okay. We had some sort of clay pot dish which most people liked. I think we had the hot & spicy chicken, which was good, but it would have been better without bones.

Gets very busy & can feel rushed.Best to go right when they open to fully enjoy your food & hot tea.Everything we've tried so far is YUMILICIOUS!!

Valli Horwitz

What a great find. We've been looking for a good Chinese place in the try valley. There were four of us for dinner. We all enjoyed our selections and the service was very attentive . I would definitely recommend this place

Scott Hereld

Delicious Mongolian Beef. Seems to be very authentic as the place was packed at lunch, mostly Asian folks enjoying lots of everything.... Service was superb! Amy was very friendly, professional and timely. I'll be back when in Pleasanton.

Ate here for lunch. Ordered the lunch special mongolian chicken and fried rice. Started with hot & sour soup. Which tasted "watery" instead of viscous and thick. I thought it was "watered down"? Both the serving of chicken and rice wasn't close to the total size of the plate they served it on. They should use either smaller plates or up the size of their servings? The lunch special was $12.30 (including tax). About average, during this time of post-Covid. Service was just OK. I asked for my bill and the waitress took several incoming customers (one from a phone order and one at the ordering counter), prior to me getting my bill. Not a big thing but I did think it was a bit rude, taking care of folks who came/phoned in, after I asked for my bill. I took off a star for that and a star off for the smaller portions. Overall, decent enough food but my fried rice was a bit cool, not hot (or even warm) and I had no more than 4-5 small pieces of chicken in my dish. There are so many other Chinese food places in the Pleasanton/Dublin area that are so much better than this.

Had the orange chicken takeout. The included hot and sour soup was excellent. The orange chicken less so. Price was just under ten dollars after tax, and the portion was large, but Panda Express' orange chicken just tastes better. Maybe I'll try some other items on the menu sometime later and update the report.

kfmfe04

Had the orange chicken takeout. The included hot and sour soup was excellent. The orange chicken less so. Price was just under ten dollars after tax, and the portion was large, but Panda Express' orange chicken just tastes better. Maybe I'll try some other items on the menu sometime later and update the report.

I was excited to have some Chinese food from this place. The other reviews looked promising and I had been craving Chinese food. I ordered for delivery and they told me it would take 30-45 minutes. No big deal - I expected it would take a bit. I asked for a spicy salsa/sauce on the side (which they have) and soy sauce with the delivery. They seemed really pleasant over the phone. They arrived on time and I set the food down, signed my receipt and they left. What I found was a huge portion of rice and the Kung Pao chicken I had ordered. It looked good! Then the first issue arose: no utinsels. Okay, they forgot - no big deal, but frustrating. I was staying at a hotel and did not have any silverware readily available. If I was I home, I wouldn't have cared, but they knew they were delivering to a hotel. Luckily the bar downstairs let me use their silverware. Then I go to eat and realize they didn't include the salsa I requested. So I shrug it off slightly disappointed and begin to eat anyway. This is where the serious problems start to occur. The chicken had a really weird texture. It was soft, chewy, almost mushy, almost jelly-like. I'm not sure how it is prepared, but it reminded me of the fatty pieces on meat that I normally cut off. Except ALL of the chicken pieces were this consistency. I have never had chicken like this. Next issue, the oil. OH THE OIL!!! I have never seen so much oil in my life. The to-go container had HALF AN INCH of oil. Gross! Now comes the pork fried rice. The pork bits were extremely soft and jelly-like. Again, this consistency/texture really made me lose my appetite. But it was all a HUGE serving. I truly felt bad for having just started and already not anticipating being able to eat it. So I ate as much as I could until I could no longer look past the chicken, the oil and the flavor, which was slightly bland. Maybe the oil deluted the flavors? As for the rice, I could only eat a few bites before I had to eat around the pork bits and eventually pick them out. With 90% of the rice left over an about 3/4 of the main meal eaten, I had to stop and could not even force myself to eat more. All in all, this was not a good experience. This is the first poor review I have ever written of any restaurant. I really, really wanted to like it, but in the end it was next to impossible to eat. I say always give a place a chance even if the reviews reflect otherwise because some people just have too high expectations, but I would not be able to recommend this.

Food was all right. Service was bad and rushed. Hot and sour soup had too much pepper, not enough sourness. Beef clay pot had too many tendons. They also boxed up the stew leftovers in a paper takeout box instead of a plastic container causing the contents to fall out onto the floor when I got home.

They secretly charge you more than the menu prices all the time, so make sure you check the receipt carefully. They also don’t provide an itemized receipt when you get take-out, and if you don’t calculate the prices they will charge you more than you owe. The food itself is good.

We asked for something else and were served something completely different. I clearly showed them a picture and asked for the exact same dish. Once the food arrived they just threw on the table. We realized it was completely different and then we were told the reference picture is a pork dish but what I ordered was chicken 🤷‍♀️ When I requested them to change they completely disregarded. Pathetic service!!! Very sad experience

We ordered take out. The Mongolian beef was not fully cooked. We found a long human hair inside the dish. we had to repurchase dinner from another real Chinese food restaurant-- China Lounge (also in Pleasanton). Hunan Chef's food is not comparable to the China Lounge's . China Lounge is the best Chinese restaurant. Hope Hunan Chef can improve their food quality and pay attention on food safety issues. Cookers and Waitress need wear masks.

Their food is pretty salty, so if you're watching your blood pressure, you might want to skip this place. If you're getting takeout, make sure to double check the price before you pay. Check that it matches the menu & watch the tax rate too. The final total is handwritten, not from a system like most places, so they can kind of make up the price. I’d give no stars if that were an option.

Henry Chang

Their food is pretty salty, so if you're watching your blood pressure, you might want to skip this place. If you're getting takeout, make sure to double check the price before you pay. Check that it matches the menu & watch the tax rate too. The final total is handwritten, not from a system like most places, so they can kind of make up the price. I’d give no stars if that were an option.