New Mandarin Chinese Restaurant

Pretty surprised the reviews I’ve read only have a few stars !!
Location is super convenient (2 blocks from my job) and even when they’re busy, I get my food at a good time. My go-​to is the General Tso, which never disappoints. Nice and Crispy. I usually order mine with steamed rice and the hot and sour soup for $ 7. Although I do agree that staff could use a refresher course in customer service, my focus is stuffing my face :)

Food is worse than mall Chinese food and they charge for condiments. Wth!!!
When I asked for a manager they said that no one there was a manager or could help… And to call back later to speak with James. What kind of place has no manager to support their staff?
This place was highly recommended but for what??? Crappy food and a staff that care less??? I will be taking my money elsewhere.

I have ordered from here for a long time, and while the food is good (the lemon chicken and shrimp with snow peas are favorites) the customer service for phone orders is so-​so. I am a customer service worker myself, and so tonight’s experience really disappointed me. I was rushed through my order, and given a higher than normal total for my order of one lemon chicken and one shrimp with snow peas. When I called back to question my total, I was told that I ordered *two* lemon chickens & one shrimp with snow peas. I informed her that I ordered one, and she actually argued with me that no, I ordered two. I am the customer, and I think I know what I ordered. I finally told her «well, you heard wrong,» and since you already ran my card for the extra order of food, send it to me. I will eat it– it will not go to waste.
I was taught to take a bit more time with my customers, and review their orders with them to make sure I heard correctly, and am not charging them for things they did not order. And if I do make a mistake, I don’t argue about it.
I will probably order again, because the food is good, and cheap– but some review of customer service practices would not hurt.

Not impressive, yet not inedible. I don’t even know what to say. There wasn’t anything noteworthy about this experience. Décor is charming. Food arrived quickly… Honestly, I can’t think of anything else to say. I wasn’t blown away by my Sesame Chicken lunch special that came with soup, egg roll and rice. Rice was bland, egg drop soup was thick with corn starch, eggroll may be of the frozen variety, pieces of chicken were tiny but not hard… Not much to say really. The staff was very nice.

This is probably the worst Chinese I’ve ever had, and easily the worst meal I’ve had in Austin. After a few bites of the disgusting general tso (that meat was scary), I cut my losses — threw away my to-​go box and went somewhere else.

The food is really good. I had the hot and sour soup and lemon chicken. The service is alright. The place is nice and clean so don’t let the scary ceiling freak you out too much. Just don’t look at it. Ha. I didn’t see a single Chinese person the whole time which made me sad. I like my Chinese food to come from the Chinese and Mexican food to come from Mexicans etc. just my preference. :)

This place is really good, old-​school Chinese food. Friendly staff, huge portions, lots of protein, very affordable. Bonus points for creepy bathroom in a creepy hallway up a creepy staircase.

I have eaten here at least 15 – 20 times, at the restaurant as well as to-​go, and have never had anything less than a great meal. I LOVE this place. I’m half Chinese, grew up running around my Grandparents’ Chinese restaurant, and have eaten Chinese meals in China and Taiwan, so I’d like to think I have an educated opinion on the subject! Going to New Mandarin reminds me of sitting down to a meal at my Grandma’s house, something I haven’t been able to do often since I left my hometown. I’m so thankful for this place and the nostalgic memories it stirs up!
As a broke college student, I don’t go out to eat very often, but when I do, it’s usually at New Mandarin. It’s not one of the fancy-​pants, tourist-​centered Austin restaurants, but hey, that’s not what they’re trying to be. If you’re looking for a cozy, consistent, affordable, mom-​and-​pop place to eat amazing food, try New Mandarin! :)

Please understand that this review comes with a bit of nostalgia bias. My boyfriend and I used to always order New Mandarin take out when we attended UT and had many great memories of rainy days, movie nights and snuggles. With that gross romantic stuff out of the way, on our recent trip down to Austin, which was filled with rain and cold, we decided to get take-​out from an old favorite and they did not disappoint!
We always order the same thing: sesame chicken and szechuan shrimp. The sesame chicken here is the «Woohoo! As good as it gets!» and why this is a 5 star review. If you have not tried the sesame chicken here, run and go get it. I definitely would recommend take-​out or eating there because their delivery seems to always take an hour. When we lived close by in college it took an hour and this time when I called to ask about delivery, they also estimated an hour. However, this time we were staying much further north, so that was odd to me. But we were hungry so just decided to go pick it up ourselves.

My roommates and I ordered dinner from this establishment having obtained the menu when we moved into our apartment, and seeing the prices thought ehhh why not. The food post ordering took over an hour to arrive and when we called in an attempt to find the driver the woman on the other end of the phone was rude and dismissive of our questions. The food still somehow arrived warm and not bad until i got about halfway through my soup. Having always been a fan of egg drop soup thats precisely what i ordered, and enjoyed until midway through i look down into the take out container and find a LARGE GREEN GLOB of unidentifiable matter in my bowl! I was more than a tad disgusted and when we called to complain the woman HUNG UP ON US! I do not under any circumstances recommend this restaurant.

New Mandarin is always pretty alright! Cheap yummy Asian food and they have it out quick for you. Order take out all the time so never eaten in the restaurant but when I go pick-​up my food the staff is always friendly.

The Kung Pao Chicken was not Kung Pao Chicken at all. It Didn’t taste like Chicken and it had bright Red sauce?
Also No. Napkins No. Fortune cookie?
Soup was good…

Chicagoan here. Sometimes I have a craving for dark brown fried rice full of scrambled egg, bean sprouts, and scallion with a little carrot and pea mixed in. Super standard. But hard to find here! The fried rice in Austin I’ve found is really lightly seasoned– sometimes it’s even yellow, not brown!
Recently stopped eating meat so fried rice here is even less compelling. But I thought I’d gamble on this place that has 2.5 stars. How underrated! This is the closest thing to what I love from home here in Austin, AND, the veggie version is actually chock full of tons of big size veggies. Can’t stop returning to it and it inspired me to write this review.

I am always super hesitant when trying new hole in the wall Chinese places because so many are awful — this place was not. The food was not bad. Sesame chicken is my signature dish and theirs was crispy and well flavored. Their fried rice were good too. Not a huge fan of their hot and sour soup — felt a bit watered down. The Lo Mein could have used a bit more but when doctored up with soy sauce and chili in oil this too was good. The appearance both inside and out could definitely use some up keep and the hostess and waitstaff could be nicer. The location is definitely sketchy — and the restaurant doesn’t look very clean. It’s grimy. But the whole hole in the wall Chinese experience was about right, with surprisingly decent food.

This is a hole-​in-​wall mom n’ pop place, don’t go expecting P. F. Chang’s.
I used to eat in frequently as they had ice cold Tsingtaos in frosted mugs and friend wonton. They stopped giving you friend wonton and I kind of just stopped eating in as I went with home delivery. I’ve been eating there for years and will continue to do so, hipster negative reviews notwithstanding.
I usually get the combo fried rice, egg drop soup, egg rolls and friend dumplings. Is it the best I’ve ever had? No. Is it decent and in the neighborhood? Yes, enough said.

This is a good little hole in the wall for Hot and Sour soup and General Tso’s Chicken. I can’t vouch for much more than this, as this is the ONLY thing I’ve ordered at this restaurant since about 1994. But I can’t get away from it. It’s amazing! It’s consistent! I swear the General Tso’s I ordered today is exactly like the first time I ordered it 20 years ago. You don’t see this in many restaurants any more. You don’t see many restaurants last this long either. They must be doing something right.
I wish their fried rice was a little more exciting. But other than that this place is great! If you love General Tso’s Chicken. Please go try theirs. It’s wonderful! And so is their Hot and Sour soup!!!

I’m a New Yorker who is very relieved to have found some reliable, delicious Chinese food… that DELIVERS TO ME! I have dined in and taken out as well, and I am a fan. The portions are big, prices reasonable, and it’s just tasty. Service is quick and accurate — that’s clearly their focus; it’s not warm and fuzzy. I’m gonna order some delivery right now. :)

This place actually makes you feel like you’re in a Chinese restaurant. Food is decent enough and they’re quick. Lots of parking too. Austin doesn’t really have the best Chinese food, so I’d say more about this place than the others. Still short of amazing though.

The sesame chicken is delicious! My husband actually proposed over their sesame chicken during a lunch break, so maybe I’m partial but it was a favorite before.
Anyway I’d recommend getting pickup or delivery and avoiding the dine in as it smells a bit. I’d say pass on the soups, but the other apps are quite good. We love the cheese wontons although they always give too much red sauce with takeaway.
Overall wonderful Chinese priced really well for portion sizing. Try the sesame chicken, it’s one of the best I’ve ever had.

I have been ordering from this place for years. I also eat at their location often, but the majority of their business is clearly take-​out/​delivery. If I eat there, it’s always solo, so I have plenty of time to watch the other patrons pick up their to-​go food or have it sent out for delivery.
The food is Americanized Chinese, but in the greatest comfort food way. The chicken tends to be dark meat, some of the sauces have too much sugar for me, there could be more chilies in items that are supposed to be spicy, and they can be a little skimpy on the seafood. On the other hand, their soups are great/​consistent and I have gone there multiple times just for the Hot & Sour soup. You can get a large bowl for pretty cheap and add a scoop of fried rice and you have a whole meal. I always get the steamed dumplings with the soup because the dipping sauce is so great and it has lots of yummy chopped garlic. I love this food for it’s overall genuine mediocrity.
They serve various textures of tofu depending on the dish (I eat a lot of tofu so this matters to me), the prices are reasonable (cheap) and the Lunch specials are very decently priced. I get the Szechwan Style Tofu with Sliced Pork, which is essentially Ma Po Tofu, most of the time, but the Pork in Garlic Sauce is a close second — both are around $ 7 – 8 bucks including rice. The Sesame Chicken and the General Tso’s are fairly generic, but decently tasty if that’s what you are looking for. I can eat for a few days off of each order so it is totally cost effective.
You should give this place a try if you have never been, but don’t expect too much. I will continue to go here all the time, but if you want to stay away because they are not a high end joint, please let me and my friends have our local haunt in peace. Next time I go I hope to take many photos, but please tace a chance and order food from this business!