Great China - Berkeley

Berkeley lacks authentic Chinese food, and the few restaurants that surround Campus Target College students on a tight budget. In addition, most of these restaurants are missing in authentic dishes. Great China offers Chinese foods found in better Chinese restaurants where you actually sit and order food. The only complaint I have is service and size. The place is packed at weekends and waiting can be enormously long. Service lacks quality, as it seems, they try to push you during business hours. However, most of my food experiences deal with To-Go food, so the service is not too much for me. The kitchen can sometimes be slow. Overall, it is great food, and even better if you can show up in a less crowded time.

Best Chinese food I ever had. You never do something super-fat/Greasy or heavy-feeling. Everything tastes great and proportions are great!

Best in Berkeley. You have to know what to order though.

I don’t give out 5 stars easily but Great China was a revelation. Didn’t expect much last nite when I went here for a little meeting with someone. Looked pretty nondescript on outside but turned out to be the best Chinese restaurant I’ve been to in years. Reminded of the old days at Chow Tan in Berkeley or any number of others, when they gave good portions with quality ingredients at very reasonable prices. And, we’re talking basic Cantonese Chinese food here. From the moment we were directed to the – yes, waiting room! – where we were given free and large portions of fabulous General’s Chicken, I knew I was going to like. er, love this place… Yes, there was a wait, but who cares when they give you free food and are as friendly as can be. No wonder this place is packed. We were escorted into an old-fashioned deco-like, split-level room withmostly Chinese students a good sign). The smell alone was outstanding… not the smelll of old grease but flavors of whatever magic ingredients they use, all seemingly fresh. The food? Well, we had to have more of the General’s chicken… what can i say about these sauteed, orange-colored nuggets of goodness. the other dish was green beans with shrimp. Well , they forgot the shrimp, but frankly I think it tasted better without the shirmp, which they added in later… Green beans never tasted so good… And the chinese family who ran the place couldn’t have been nicer. Don’t know how long they’ve owned it – the restaurant has heen around a long time… And the price, including drinks was around $301 Can’t beat it. Can’t wait to go back and try the other dishes. A RARE find… which is surprising that I’d never heard of this place. You can have your frendy restaurants. I’ll take Great China any day!

I used to frequent this restaurant when I lived just two blocks away, and I really enjoyed it. However, I've noticed that the service can be slow and sometimes unfriendly, and cleanliness is often a concern at Chinese restaurants in general. It's a popular spot, so be prepared for a wait. Unfortunately, I haven't returned since I experienced a couple of upsetting incidents: I saw other customers being allowed to cut in line, and my friend, who also loved the place, witnessed one of the waiters spitting in a bowl and then putting it back.