East Lake 東湖海鮮酒家

East Lake has been a long time staple for me in San Jose. Located on Quimby and White road, it’s a seafood Chinese restaurant located right between east side San Jose and Evergreen. I’ve been coming here since 2014. The lunch special is where I was first introduced to this place. Over the years it has evolved! From being a super small hole in a wall to becoming a bigger, celebratory restaurant. My favorite dish is the salt and pepper fish. Everything taste super good here tho! When I need a quick Chinese food fix, I can always count on East lake! We ordered: - wonton soup - walnut shrimp - fried whole fish - salt and pepper fish - chicken fried rice - house chow mein - Mongolian beef - warm sweet red bean soup They happily refill water when you eat inside. Love this place! See you again soon!

I was on the way to a different place and found dimsum! The rice rolls stood out the most and the onion pancake! Loved the shrimp and eggplant, tripe and the chicken feet!

Dim sum is flavorful. Service is super fast and attentive. Prices are good and dish sizes are generous.

Dim Sums are delicious. Other foods also are delicious. Prices are right on. Parking is good. Pretty roomy. Will come again. Linh’s highly recommended 👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻

Having grown up in California as a first generation Chinese American, I have a soft spot for Cantonese Chinese food and, specifically, dim sum. And this small-ish local Cantonese Chinese restaurant serves up the authentic-ish faire at a reasonable price. Their service is fine! Especially if you consider what used to pass as service at these kinds of restaurants. So go with the appropriate expectations, and you'll be fine. I suspect that if the restaurant were bigger and *looked* higher end, the food might seemingly taste better. But when I don't feel like the hassle of venturing out further to get my Chinese food fill, I bring the family here!

My go to place for Dim sum cart style! We went on a Sunday morning and there was no wait and we were seated right away. Once we were seated, we got offered plates the minute we sat down. It was amazing to be able to arrive at a restaurant and eat just as soon as you get seated! They have the usual har gow, chicken feet, shrimp dumplings, and more you’d usually get at a Dim sum restaurant. Needless to say it was all very tasty and warm and no flavors were lacking at all!

In this period of soaring prices, it's really worthwhile to stay here with cheap, full and delicious food. This is my first time here. Today is the national day of the United States. My family and my mother-in-law have dinner together. We are very satisfied and happy. I'll come back often

4/13/2022 at 7:00pm. Still excellent place for asian dishes. A little high price but worth the flavor. Salt and pepper spare ribs. BBQ fried rice

The food are delicious and they have good service. Winter melon soup is really good. Shrimps are crispy

Yum!! Hidden gems! They got some best sweet and sour pork! Must try! So crunchy! My Togo dinner~

secretly stashed

East Lake has been a long time staple for me in San Jose. Located on Quimby and White road, it’s a seafood Chinese restaurant located right between east side San Jose and Evergreen. I’ve been coming here since 2014. The lunch special is where I was first introduced to this place. Over the years it has evolved! From being a super small hole in a wall to becoming a bigger, celebratory restaurant. My favorite dish is the salt and pepper fish. Everything taste super good here tho! When I need a quick Chinese food fix, I can always count on East lake! We ordered: - wonton soup - walnut shrimp - fried whole fish - salt and pepper fish - chicken fried rice - house chow mein - Mongolian beef - warm sweet red bean soup They happily refill water when you eat inside. Love this place! See you again soon!

Obas Media (Ede O)

I was on the way to a different place and found dimsum! The rice rolls stood out the most and the onion pancake! Loved the shrimp and eggplant, tripe and the chicken feet!

Frank Chiu

Dim sum is flavorful. Service is super fast and attentive. Prices are good and dish sizes are generous.

Linh Tran

Dim Sums are delicious. Other foods also are delicious. Prices are right on. Parking is good. Pretty roomy. Will come again. Linh’s highly recommended 👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻

Kien Lam

Having grown up in California as a first generation Chinese American, I have a soft spot for Cantonese Chinese food and, specifically, dim sum. And this small-ish local Cantonese Chinese restaurant serves up the authentic-ish faire at a reasonable price. Their service is fine! Especially if you consider what used to pass as service at these kinds of restaurants. So go with the appropriate expectations, and you'll be fine. I suspect that if the restaurant were bigger and *looked* higher end, the food might seemingly taste better. But when I don't feel like the hassle of venturing out further to get my Chinese food fill, I bring the family here!

kiss kiss

My go to place for Dim sum cart style! We went on a Sunday morning and there was no wait and we were seated right away. Once we were seated, we got offered plates the minute we sat down. It was amazing to be able to arrive at a restaurant and eat just as soon as you get seated! They have the usual har gow, chicken feet, shrimp dumplings, and more you’d usually get at a Dim sum restaurant. Needless to say it was all very tasty and warm and no flavors were lacking at all!

比艾

In this period of soaring prices, it's really worthwhile to stay here with cheap, full and delicious food. This is my first time here. Today is the national day of the United States. My family and my mother-in-law have dinner together. We are very satisfied and happy. I'll come back often

Vincent Tang

4/13/2022 at 7:00pm. Still excellent place for asian dishes. A little high price but worth the flavor. Salt and pepper spare ribs. BBQ fried rice

trang bui

The food are delicious and they have good service. Winter melon soup is really good. Shrimps are crispy

Lisa Lee

Yum!! Hidden gems! They got some best sweet and sour pork! Must try! So crunchy! My Togo dinner~

Food and service are both good. The Hot & Sour Soup is very spicy. Clams with Black Bean Sauce was a little disappointing, i.e. lukewarm and not as much flavor as I expected. Other than that, all was wonderful.

This restaurant has been there for along time. I want to say since 80s if not 90s. They must have done something right. They expanded and remodeled. The service is decent for a busy place. Food is consistently good. Notice prices are pricier... What is not in the bay areas? 1 lobster dish, 1 fried rice, 1 prawn dish, 1 claypot, 1 pea sprouts, 2 beers came in at shy of Franklin for 4 peeps on Thursday night. Perk is free almond tapioca sweet pudding.. Tasted good! Will return for Chinese food in the hood.

My neighborhood go to for a sit down dim sum experience. The workers come by with carts of different things and we tend to gravitate to our favorites. I'd list what they are, but if I'm being honest, I don't know the names of the dishes, just what they look like. They also kept our hot tea pot full. This place is a neighborhood institution. We'd go here when I was a kid for special occasions. It's still has that vibe. The restaurant usually gets packed on Sundays, especially after the neighboring church concludes mass, but the crowds stayed away this visit. Maybe the cloudy weather? The main knock on the place isn't even in their control. The plaza is old and the parking lot needs work. The facade would benefit from a facelift as well. They said the food is solid, and that's most important.

Unadulterated, Chinese food joint filled with delicious and fresh traditional dishes. The salt and pepper spareribs, beef chow fun with gravy, walnut shrimp were all hot and savory. Our 5 year old loved it. We will return.

The post dinner congee (red bean, taro, pumpkin) was excellent. Other dishes were okay. Vegetables were a little too saucy. If willing and to spend a little more, would suggest Mayflower.

Good food for reasonable price. Service was good with limited English. Nice, clean, bright environment.

Came here for dim sum and it was good. Would definitely return and try more of their dishes.

We went for an early dinner and they had remodeled since I had been. While the prices have gone up the quality of the food hasn’t declined. Still a great go to for cantonese food.

Recommend it. The price here is ok, and the service is good . And more importantly, the food takes good . I like the crab here .

I have been eating here for twenty years plus and have not been disappointed. They have the best chicken Chow Fun and salted squid among other dishes in the Bay Area as far as I'm concerned. I am pulling back one star because they are much too slow between bringing the food carts out during Dim Sum. Literally waiting at least 10-15 minutes between carts. We ordered some dishes during the time and they came out before the next carts did. Gotta like the owner... Very nice man and truly appreciates the customers.

Most dim sum is above average. Staff is good and so is service

First of all I have to say their service is the best. The first 5 mins we couldn’t process what to order. The people here are so nice, they had fresh and piping hot dim sum on a tray and we got to choose what we like. The lady also patiently explained what is what and we also got hot green tea as complementary. We at different types of dumplings both shrimp and pork. It was amazing and moorish. The dumpling was soft and the meat was fresh. Additionally we got house special mixed fried rice and house special mixed thin noodle chow mein. Both the dishes were flavorful and yummy. The portion size was also good for two people. Overall I had an amazing experience and I look forward to coming back soon.

There aren't that many Cantonese cuisine restaurants in this part of the Bay Area, and this is one that we come to from time to time. The food is usually pretty okay, and the price is fairly reasonable. And you would get complimentary dessert too.

Jagadeesh Rahul

First of all I have to say their service is the best. The first 5 mins we couldn’t process what to order. The people here are so nice, they had fresh and piping hot dim sum on a tray and we got to choose what we like. The lady also patiently explained what is what and we also got hot green tea as complementary. We at different types of dumplings both shrimp and pork. It was amazing and moorish. The dumpling was soft and the meat was fresh. Additionally we got house special mixed fried rice and house special mixed thin noodle chow mein. Both the dishes were flavorful and yummy. The portion size was also good for two people. Overall I had an amazing experience and I look forward to coming back soon.

G Lee

One of the best Chinese restaurants in this area of San Jose. On the pricey side for Chinese food though, which as you know is generally cheap. We went on a week day so they didn’t have the lunch dim sum carts rolling. I think they do on weekends. But you can order dim sum through the waiter. The wet chow fun is yummy. Soft noodles, a decent amount of beef, and tasty gravy. Jin mein is crispy chow mein, and if you’ve never had it, I recommend to try of you like texture in your food. I mentioned dim sum so at least try the ha how (shrimp dumpling) and shu mai (pork dumpling). They’re big and plump. Jook (aka congee) is very good and you MUST get the Chinese donut (aka fried bread) to pair with it! I do NOT recommend the soup dumplings (aka XLB). They are terrible.

Vincent L

There aren't that many Cantonese cuisine restaurants in this part of the Bay Area, and this is one that we come to from time to time. The food is usually pretty okay, and the price is fairly reasonable. And you would get complimentary dessert too.

Rare dim sum restaurant in the neighborhood. It serves some good dim sum like the chicken feet, the rice noodle with bitter melon and shredded chicken and some fried dim sum is crispy. It is just a bit salty. Unassuming surrounding, hardly see the inside from the outside. You may be intimidated. Worth a visit if you are in the neighborhood and crave dim sum.

Very busy venue any day of the week. Get there before 11:30 AM. Good taste on most dimsum. Custard and har gow yummy. Soy sauce on rice rolls did not have much flavor and the bbq pork buns were too sweet(meat).

Came out here to celebrate the going away of my boss. This was one of his favorite places that he used to go to with some of his colleagues from our company. So it was fitting that he sort of ended his career at our company by inviting colleagues old and new to come have a meal here. This restaurant is located in a sort of a shopping center. It is a classic Chinese restaurant where you can find the usual fare. Most of the tables are the round kind with the lazy Susan in the middle so that you can have a family style meal by ordering a la cart dishes and rotating it around so that everybody can get access to it. This restaurant appears to be more of a family style environment. The waiters and servers are not dressed up in any kind of uniform and where T-shirts and are friendly. The food is good but not necessarily eye opening. This is neither good nor bad. I believe you would be satisfied with the dishes that they serve. Typically when I eat at a restaurant of a type that I frequent, I look for something that would catch my eye to make it stand out from the crowd. For this particular restaurant, I really liked their hot and sour soup. The flavor was quite good and most noticeably it was spicy. Spicier than the average person would probably like, but it was fantastic for me. None of the other dishes were bad in any way nor particularly outstanding, but all were satisfying. If you were looking for a classic Chinese food experience and don't need any of the fanciness, this place will do you well.

1st time the abalone sea cucumber $68 was good, but too expensive. The eggplant soft tofu and seafood udon were good too. 2nd time, eggplant solf tofu lost the sichuan pepper flavor and seafood udon lacked scallop and sha cha sauce.

An okay place for American infused Chinese food. The waiter and waitress are very helpful and friendly. But I don't like the food so much.

Lucy Lam

1st time the abalone sea cucumber $68 was good, but too expensive. The eggplant soft tofu and seafood udon were good too. 2nd time, eggplant solf tofu lost the sichuan pepper flavor and seafood udon lacked scallop and sha cha sauce.

Junhua Chen

An okay place for American infused Chinese food. The waiter and waitress are very helpful and friendly. But I don't like the food so much.

This used to be the go to spot for us but it has seen better days. My family has been eating in and getting takeout for as long as I can remember. Eastlake has been a neighborhood staple for a long time now and while the quality has taken a dip, the value hasn’t, still coming in at a reasonable price. We ordered takeout and that process has always been smooth. From ordering to arriving and picking up we had zero issues at all. Once we were back and had a chance to chow down, we remembered why things have changed. The chow fun we had was a bit oily, the bbq spare ribs a little tough, and the beef and broccoli was just ehh. The food is by no means bad, it really isn’t, but we wouldn’t say it’s up to par with more solid restaurants, especially in a Chinese food heavy city. For the price though, it’s very reasonable as an average run of the mill takeout option. This will definitely stay in our quick and cheap Chinese food playbook, but wouldn’t be a go when looking for a more premium place.

I've been to many different Chinese restaurants that leaned more towards authenticity, restaurants that catered more towards the American taste buds, restaurants that leaned towards fast food industry, and I've tried restaurants that were mediocre. East Lake was mediocre. Firstly, the food did not taste fresh. The seafood in their soups or their fried tofu, I can taste it's bought frozen, not from a fresh seafood market. It's very dissapoiting. As an Asian customer, we love seafood and we know what is fresh or not. I like some of the Chinese restaurants mentioning the catch of the day and East Lake is not one of those. Might as well eat at Panda Express or PF Cheng.

Amber Lee

This used to be the go to spot for us but it has seen better days. My family has been eating in and getting takeout for as long as I can remember. Eastlake has been a neighborhood staple for a long time now and while the quality has taken a dip, the value hasn’t, still coming in at a reasonable price. We ordered takeout and that process has always been smooth. From ordering to arriving and picking up we had zero issues at all. Once we were back and had a chance to chow down, we remembered why things have changed. The chow fun we had was a bit oily, the bbq spare ribs a little tough, and the beef and broccoli was just ehh. The food is by no means bad, it really isn’t, but we wouldn’t say it’s up to par with more solid restaurants, especially in a Chinese food heavy city. For the price though, it’s very reasonable as an average run of the mill takeout option. This will definitely stay in our quick and cheap Chinese food playbook, but wouldn’t be a go when looking for a more premium place.

Eric Bat

I've been to many different Chinese restaurants that leaned more towards authenticity, restaurants that catered more towards the American taste buds, restaurants that leaned towards fast food industry, and I've tried restaurants that were mediocre. East Lake was mediocre. Firstly, the food did not taste fresh. The seafood in their soups or their fried tofu, I can taste it's bought frozen, not from a fresh seafood market. It's very dissapoiting. As an Asian customer, we love seafood and we know what is fresh or not. I like some of the Chinese restaurants mentioning the catch of the day and East Lake is not one of those. Might as well eat at Panda Express or PF Cheng.

Olivia Tam

Rare dim sum restaurant in the neighborhood. It serves some good dim sum like the chicken feet, the rice noodle with bitter melon and shredded chicken and some fried dim sum is crispy. It is just a bit salty. Unassuming surrounding, hardly see the inside from the outside. You may be intimidated. Worth a visit if you are in the neighborhood and crave dim sum.

I ordered the Peking spareribs takeaway this afternoon. The taste is good but portion is reduced significantly…. I pointed it out when I picked up the food and was told it is normal; long story short; went home - weigh it (1.2 lb), plated it (3/4 of a plate, 25% less than eating there), called the owner and was told it is what it is. Understanding the struggle with Inflation; this is still not acceptable to us (price increase is fine to us since it is transparent to all customers)

One of the best Chinese restaurants in this area of San Jose. On the pricey side for Chinese food though, which as you know is generally cheap. We went on a week day so they didn’t have the lunch dim sum carts rolling. I think they do on weekends. But you can order dim sum through the waiter. The wet chow fun is yummy. Soft noodles, a decent amount of beef, and tasty gravy. Jin mein is crispy chow mein, and if you’ve never had it, I recommend to try of you like texture in your food. I mentioned dim sum so at least try the ha how (shrimp dumpling) and shu mai (pork dumpling). They’re big and plump. Jook (aka congee) is very good and you MUST get the Chinese donut (aka fried bread) to pair with it! I do NOT recommend the soup dumplings (aka XLB). They are terrible. November 2025 update: Oh East Lake, why have you forsaken me?? Suddenly your food has gone downhill. Changed hands? Off day? Whichever the reason, unfortunately I must take two stars away.

Came for some authentic Chinese food and ended up with just the usual American-fare. And honestly then, the food didn't even meet those standards. For sure one of the bottom 5 tasting dishes I've ever purchased from a Chinese fast food restaurant. Extremely disappointing, especially for the price you pay.

Ran Cheng

Came for some authentic Chinese food and ended up with just the usual American-fare. And honestly then, the food didn't even meet those standards. For sure one of the bottom 5 tasting dishes I've ever purchased from a Chinese fast food restaurant. Extremely disappointing, especially for the price you pay.

Food quality went down and price went up 🙄

This place used to have decent Chinese food. Food was absolutely terrible! Shrimp tasted old and frozen. Salt and pepper spare ribs were hard and bland. Fried rice was bland. Utensils were filthy. Worst $50 I ever spent. Will not come back.

Very salty,very little meat served I could not find meat in the sweet and sour pork. Mongolian beef was served with the biggest pile of onions with the littlest meat. The tea tasted like hot dirty tap water. Every thing we ordered was made very cheaply. Very disappointed.

We ordered food to go for supper, Beef with tofu & Hot & Sour soup on 4/6. We were disappointed! The Beef with tofu was frustrating! The sauce was watery, & tasteless, the dish had 70% fried tofu & 30 beef! The Hot & Sour Soup was neither hot nor sour! But we used to enjoy the food here before. Seems like they have changed cooks lately. We want to support local restaurants, but we also want to enjoy good cooking. Very frustrating!

We ordered 4 person meal. Food was good but not great. The last dish was chicken and we were so full we didn't touch it. They bagged it up for us and then told us we were accidentally given a whole chicken instead of a half chicken and took back half the chicken. Not sure what they were going to do with the other half, hopefully, not give it to another table. Unsanitary, strange customer service, will not be coming back.

East Lake has gone way way down hill. This use to be THE place for great Chinese food and family dinners but after two change of owners the food is not the same in a terrible way. The food is not fresh and doesn’t taste good anymore. This is why you no longer see long lines of people waiting to get seating on the weekends. So sad that this place can no longer obscure wonderful cooks to help maintain the name through the change in ownership. New owners can maintain the same hostess but can’t the same chefs and can’t hide the fact that the food is not good (results in food that are not fresh) and continues to loose customers.

Over price food for the quality. Waitresses added a 30% tip to my bill without asking me, and she didn’t check on us once about if we needed anything. I had to go back to correct my bill. Will not recommend. So many other good places in San Jose.

Maria Figueroa

Over price food for the quality. Waitresses added a 30% tip to my bill without asking me, and she didn’t check on us once about if we needed anything. I had to go back to correct my bill. Will not recommend. So many other good places in San Jose.