King Yen

I have been going to King Yen for over 20 years, it is always a wonderful experience and upon leaving I look forward to the next time I go there. Everyone who works there is just as nice as are the owners who provide a personal touch to every visit or when you see them in the Elmwood area. If you have not eaten here, you should and if you have you know exactly what I mean and I know you are like me and will return soon. Thanks to everyone at King Yen for all they do to make it a great experience.

Dinner there last night was tasty and fresh, with decent portions to share and have leftovers. It had been some time since I’d eaten there and I’m happy to be reminded that it’s so good.

An amazing hidden gem in the Elmwood District. We've always had good times here; they are remarkably consistent. The service is always friendly and inviting. The restaurant itself is clean, spacious, and comfortable. The potstickers are very good, while their lunch special is a quality bargain. I especially enjoy their hot and sour soup and Mongolian beef.

Best kept secret in East Bay outside Oakland Chinatown. Definitely my favorite Chinese food in Berkeley if not all Easy Bay. The staff are super attentive and fast. They were extremely accommodating and genuinely concerned for my son's peanut allergy instead of just waiving it off like so many places do. They also do tofu right - very tender and soft inside! Get here before 6 and you might be the only people in here, but it fills up fast after that.

Great food at this mid sized restaurant. I've never been disappointed with the food here and many people I know swear it is the best Chinese food in Berkeley. It's not super "authentic" per se but it is great for small or large groups if not a bit on a the pricey side. All in all would definitely come here again for lunch or a date.

Delicious food for dinner and lunch! Great for takeout and dining in. Sometimes a bit busy on the weekends, so good to get there early.

It's been years since I've been to King Yen, but they didn't disappoint then and they don't now. The best Chinese food (in my opinion other than Yang Chow). The food is always delicious and fresh and plentiful. This is a great place for groups or just a little outing with family or friends. The service is always good and they can handle a large group with ease. Must haves: potstickers, green beans, fried prawns, salt & pepper prawns, sweet & sour chicken (or anything on the menu) chow mein

First time for me but I’ll be back for sure!

High Quality Chinese Cuisine in Berkeley. I loved the cleanliness, ambience and food quality. Both the variety of fare and the taste was quite good. Prices are reasonable. I would go again for good Chinese Cuisine.

Wonderful food. Never greasy. Protein always good quality. Good sized portions. Great hot and sour soup.

The food was absolutely delicious. The broccoli beef was my fav. Huge portions, of a seven course meal. And everything I tasted was great. Highly recommend.

They were jammed as expected but did their usual fine job. Food was good, not a lengthy wait even though they warned us it might be slower than normal. Great neighborhood spot in the Elmwood district.

Absolute favorite Chinese food in Berkeley. My family has been coming to King Yen basically since I was born, and it's been consistently delicious all these years. Potstickers, sizzling rice soup, dry-cooked green beans, lemon chicken....so many home-run dishes, it's best to come with a crowd so you can share and try a bunch.

One of the best Chinese spots in the East Bay, imo. Food here is excellent for lunch and dinner. Huge portions. Mouth watering tasty…. And the service here is better than most places. Attentive and diligent. We love this spot for outdoor dining at lunchtime and indoor dining at dinner. Either way it’s excellent every time we decide to go here. Highly recommend and will definitely be back. Cheers

One of the best Chinese restaurants in the East Bay. This legendary restaurant in Elmwood serves delicious duck, pork, chicken, and vegetarian dishes. Large and reasonably priced dishes. Friendly and attentive staff. Indoor dining or take away.

Excellent food and service! Fried rice and wonton soup are a must! Fish dishes are superb! Everything is large portion so you will have a left over. Strongly Recommend!

I want to eat here every single day. The kung pao fish fillet is perfectly crispy and delicious. Likewise, the hunan beef was amazing.

We stopped in for appetizers and ended up enjoying multiple plates of food that were amazing. The server said that the food is not cooked until an order is received. So, it may take a few minutes longer to get the food, however, the flavors are worth it.

Best pot stickers in the neighborhood! I'd like to add that the green beans, eggplant and the tofu special are all stand out dishes. Generally, the quality is very very good, some of the best around. We love coming to King Yen, it's very underrated for how outstanding the food is!!!

I ordered the sweet and sour fried fish. It is really really good. the sauce is incredible and the staff is professional and friendly.

Delicious lunch and terrific service.

Noah Lowry

One of the best Chinese spots in the East Bay, imo. Food here is excellent for lunch and dinner. Huge portions. Mouth watering tasty…. And the service here is better than most places. Attentive and diligent. We love this spot for outdoor dining at lunchtime and indoor dining at dinner. Either way it’s excellent every time we decide to go here. Highly recommend and will definitely be back. Cheers

Beat A. Schwendimann

One of the best Chinese restaurants in the East Bay. This legendary restaurant in Elmwood serves delicious duck, pork, chicken, and vegetarian dishes. Large and reasonably priced dishes. Friendly and attentive staff. Indoor dining or take away.

Natenapa Serdynski

Excellent food and service! Fried rice and wonton soup are a must! Fish dishes are superb! Everything is large portion so you will have a left over. Strongly Recommend!

Cait Chizmar

I want to eat here every single day. The kung pao fish fillet is perfectly crispy and delicious. Likewise, the hunan beef was amazing.

Mike Fowler - eXp Realty

We stopped in for appetizers and ended up enjoying multiple plates of food that were amazing. The server said that the food is not cooked until an order is received. So, it may take a few minutes longer to get the food, however, the flavors are worth it.

Jennifer Michels

Best pot stickers in the neighborhood! I'd like to add that the green beans, eggplant and the tofu special are all stand out dishes. Generally, the quality is very very good, some of the best around. We love coming to King Yen, it's very underrated for how outstanding the food is!!!

Mohammad ElDaouk

I ordered the sweet and sour fried fish. It is really really good. the sauce is incredible and the staff is professional and friendly.

Bay Walker

Delicious lunch and terrific service.

This place will make you love vegetables you previously disliked. Their food is noticeably fresh and very tasty. Generous portions, very attentive and polite staff. We are devoted regulars.

Best Chinese restaurant in the Bay Area! High quality delicious food, big portions, and great service. We will be back!

Such friendly staff!!! Very energetic and great service! And another great Chinese family style restaurant to go to! :)

Best chow fun I've ever had! It was a HUGE plate of food, tins of leftovers. We will make this a regular outing for meals.

It's not cheap. But, if you want some staple dishes done right its up there with some of the best. Chow mein/fun, combo fried rice, pot stickers, broccoli chicken, wonton soup/hot and sour soup...these are the winners here. Friendly staff and a large dining room that creates a quiet atmosphere.

This place deserves its flowers! It’s a great local restaurant, and I feel like I’m eating homemade food in the best way possible. The potstickers were great, and the hot and sour soup stood out too. We’ll be back again and again! Could easily eat here weekly.

King Yen is our go-to place for decades of good Chinese food. While they do a strong take-out business, there's nothing like this food directly out of the wok. My personal favorite is their tea-smoked duck, served with feather light rolls. The pot-stickers are excellent. I've tried all their prawn dishes and all are good. The meat dishes are excellent and the noodles are great, the vegetables nicely seasoned and yummy--in short, reliable, and uniformly good. Service is pleasant and capable. The atmosphere is airy, quiet enough to enjoy your company. There's always food to take home (barring certain relatives as dining companions.) Take-out is equally reliable, and actually cooked there! A neighborhood treasure. The next generation is dining here as well.

I have been going to the place since I was a little kid and it was across the street. The entire time I have been eating here the food has been consistently excellent and can't really go wrong with what you choose. With the move across the street they gained an outdoor seating area, which is next to the sidewalk. Decent selection of beer and wine.

The Food: Fabulous. The best in Berkeley. The Service: Professional. Atmosphere: Nice. The lunch special is a tremendous value. Alternative: Becky’s, also on College, just south of Rockridge BART.

Maya Martín

Such friendly staff!!! Very energetic and great service! And another great Chinese family style restaurant to go to! :)

Bear September

This place will make you love vegetables you previously disliked. Their food is noticeably fresh and very tasty. Generous portions, very attentive and polite staff. We are devoted regulars.

Janie Barman

Best chow fun I've ever had! It was a HUGE plate of food, tins of leftovers. We will make this a regular outing for meals.

Nick Az

It's not cheap. But, if you want some staple dishes done right its up there with some of the best. Chow mein/fun, combo fried rice, pot stickers, broccoli chicken, wonton soup/hot and sour soup...these are the winners here. Friendly staff and a large dining room that creates a quiet atmosphere.

Z

GOAT spot. Everyone loves king yen. Staff are lovely and the pan fried noodles are like when god gives you the key to heaven

Christine Chong

This place deserves its flowers! It’s a great local restaurant, and I feel like I’m eating homemade food in the best way possible. The potstickers were great, and the hot and sour soup stood out too. We’ll be back again and again! Could easily eat here weekly.

Jon Nelson

I have been going to the place since I was a little kid and it was across the street. The entire time I have been eating here the food has been consistently excellent and can't really go wrong with what you choose. With the move across the street they gained an outdoor seating area, which is next to the sidewalk. Decent selection of beer and wine.

Diane Baker

King Yen is our go-to place for decades of good Chinese food. While they do a strong take-out business, there's nothing like this food directly out of the wok. My personal favorite is their tea-smoked duck, served with feather light rolls. The pot-stickers are excellent. I've tried all their prawn dishes and all are good. The meat dishes are excellent and the noodles are great, the vegetables nicely seasoned and yummy--in short, reliable, and uniformly good. Service is pleasant and capable. The atmosphere is airy, quiet enough to enjoy your company. There's always food to take home (barring certain relatives as dining companions.) Take-out is equally reliable, and actually cooked there! A neighborhood treasure. The next generation is dining here as well.

Matthew Grimm

The Food: Fabulous. The best in Berkeley. The Service: Professional. Atmosphere: Nice. The lunch special is a tremendous value. Alternative: Becky’s, also on College, just south of Rockridge BART.

It's quite spacious. Food is good. Can provide vagan dishes using no soy sauce. Not so often found in Chinese restaurant with genuine Chinese cuisine.

This is our go-to Chinese restaurant in the East Bay. The food is good and the prices are appropriate for the portion and quality. I love the mushu and sweet and sour pork here. Initially we had some service issues in the past, but got past those and now as regulars we get excellent service. The workers know us well and treat us like regular customers (which we are). My son's friend once left a sweater in the restaurant (we didn't know) and they held on to it until we came back the next time to eat (might have been 3-4 weeks later). While there are other Chinese places we like in the East Bay, this is one of your favorites and one insisted upon by our son.

Went there for lunch. I had the Kung Pao chicken and my wife had beef and eggplant along with an order of fried dumplings. The food was good but we've had better. My wife really liked her dish but she thought mine was not that great. Personally I think zucchini is kinda weird in Kung Pao. I will say though that the service was outstanding. In and out of there very quickly if you want to. And the servers really take care of you.

Warm lighting, hot tea and very good food. If it was a little warmer in the restaurant I would have put 5 stars. The lunch service was great today, fast even when busy. Thanks

Must have changed ownership. Certainly changed the menu. I used to get seafood noodle soup, which was great. No longer on the menu. No noodle soup on the menu. I ordered wonton soup, and it was mediocre. Update, January 2019: They still have wonton noodle soup, but only on the lunch menu. And it's still excellent. So I have added a star to the rating.

Not great Chinese food, anyone who is saying “the best” hasn’t been to Great China or Shan Dong, or is getting very different food from me. This was the second time I’ve been here, the first time I went with an open mind and was underwhelmed and disappointed. Lacking flavor—if I got this same dish (Broccoli and Chicken) from either of the aforementioned restaurants I know it would tastier, and about the same price. For this price point it’s not worth it unless you are out of options. $42 for for a soup and a broccoli and and chicken (and rice) seems a bit steep.

Polished Setting, Uneven Fare King Yen enjoys an ideal location on College Avenue with a bright, well-kept dining room and attentive service. The space is clean, welcoming, and clearly well-managed. But while the atmosphere suggests elevated dining, the food rarely rises to the occasion. The Szechuan beef, though generously portioned and paired with a flavorful sauce, suffered from tough, low-quality meat—more leathery than tender. A prawn and vegetable stir-fry was better balanced and fresher, but still overpriced at $25. Service is generally efficient, though there’s a noticeable shift in tone during the final half-hour before closing, with staff clearly eager to wrap up—a gesture at odds with Bay Area norms. For diners seeking standout Chinese food in the area, Dumpling Express farther down College near Safeway and Philz is a stronger bet. Their handmade dumplings are excellent, the pricing is far more reasonable, and the surrounding options for drinks or coffee complete the experience. King Yen has its strengths, but food quality and pricing leave it trailing better neighborhood alternatives.

Barry Hashimoto

Polished Setting, Uneven Fare King Yen enjoys an ideal location on College Avenue with a bright, well-kept dining room and attentive service. The space is clean, welcoming, and clearly well-managed. But while the atmosphere suggests elevated dining, the food rarely rises to the occasion. The Szechuan beef, though generously portioned and paired with a flavorful sauce, suffered from tough, low-quality meat—more leathery than tender. A prawn and vegetable stir-fry was better balanced and fresher, but still overpriced at $25. Service is generally efficient, though there’s a noticeable shift in tone during the final half-hour before closing, with staff clearly eager to wrap up—a gesture at odds with Bay Area norms. For diners seeking standout Chinese food in the area, Dumpling Express farther down College near Safeway and Philz is a stronger bet. Their handmade dumplings are excellent, the pricing is far more reasonable, and the surrounding options for drinks or coffee complete the experience. King Yen has its strengths, but food quality and pricing leave it trailing better neighborhood alternatives.

We ordered takeout. It was truly terrible. It was expensive too, at about $20/dish for vegetarian items. That’d be fine if it weren’t inedible. It was in fact inedible. The mapo tofu was mixed vegetables and braised fried tofu in a brown soup with no spice. The vegetable fried rice and dry fried green beans were equally terrible—no char, no wok hay, no flavor whatsoever, just sort of steamed, bland, not even fried. It’s just not Chinese food, and it’s not edible. This might work in a suburb of Topeka or something, but this is Berkeley. As a diner, you can do so much better, and for less cost, too. You’d be better served at Panda Express to be honest. Maybe it was a day where no cooks came or for some other reason it was a truly off day, but there’s no way we’re going to try it again to find out.

Steven Stegman

We ordered takeout. It was truly terrible. It was expensive too, at about $20/dish for vegetarian items. That’d be fine if it weren’t inedible. It was in fact inedible. The mapo tofu was mixed vegetables and braised fried tofu in a brown soup with no spice. The vegetable fried rice and dry fried green beans were equally terrible—no char, no wok hay, no flavor whatsoever, just sort of steamed, bland, not even fried. It’s just not Chinese food, and it’s not edible. This might work in a suburb of Topeka or something, but this is Berkeley. As a diner, you can do so much better, and for less cost, too. You’d be better served at Panda Express to be honest. Maybe it was a day where no cooks came or for some other reason it was a truly off day, but there’s no way we’re going to try it again to find out.

Honestly the food was average and service lacked. Yes it was Christmas Eve and they were busy but our server forgot to gives us a dish. We waited and waited for it for like 20 minutes. The fried rice was too salty and the mushu vegetable smelled like pee. Totally gross. Not coming here again. 🙁

today oct22,2025…i ordered sweet and sour shrimp and rice …after arriving home to share with my family when we open the shrimp we discovered the shrimp was not fresh, most of the shrimp were burnt hard and appeared to be left over and tasteless i wanted to bring it back but the kids were already eating them … i am disappointed that you would allow this kind of food to go out of your kitchen, i will not order from you again …you got your $32.50 and i got poorly prepared food …shame on you!!!!

Donald Riggins

today oct22,2025…i ordered sweet and sour shrimp and rice …after arriving home to share with my family when we open the shrimp we discovered the shrimp was not fresh, most of the shrimp were burnt hard and appeared to be left over and tasteless i wanted to bring it back but the kids were already eating them … i am disappointed that you would allow this kind of food to go out of your kitchen, i will not order from you again …you got your $32.50 and i got poorly prepared food …shame on you!!!!