Chuan Lu Xiang Qing

Pretty good in general

My two favorite words together when it comes to food is «good» and «cheap». Chuan Lu Xian Qing, I’m told, is a truly authentic Szechuan restaurant, and fits the bill perfectly.
The restaurant is located in a small strip mall in Fremont near a busy area, close to the 92, and just off Fremont Blvd. Location wise, it’s pretty well set. But the strip mall has several restaurants, meaning competition is fierce and a restaurant around here must be good to be busy.
The restaurant is typical of cheap Chinese eateries, with low chairs and tables for an open feel, but you wouldn’t know how good this place is from the outside, because even though it has a «Grand Opening» sign still hanging, the entrance looks decades old in a decades old looking mall. What a gem though.
Since I went with a non food fanatic friend of mine, there wasn’t the usual craziness of ordering ridiculous amounts of food, but it was still a reasonable sampling.
Banbanji
— 3 stars
— This is a chicken based dish with lots of hot peppers. The chicken is sliver cut, as are the vegetables, making it fairly easy to eat. It is spicy, but not overly so. In fact, I’d guess that most people who can take a little spiciness would be able to enjoy it, and it is full flavored without being overbearing or too rich. Definitely would recommend ordering this again.
Pork with leek
— 3.5 stars
— This is very thinly sliced pork belly (basically bacon but a different cut, making it more oval and less an elongated strip) and leeks cut to the same size as the pork belly slices. What a find this one was. I’m glad we didn’t try to order on our own and left it to the waitress’ recommendation. The flavoring is mostly oil and salt.
House special fried noodles
— 2 stars
— This is pretty typical chow mein type fried noodles. Would I order this again? Maybe as a filler, but frankly, I’d try a fried rice instead next time. There was nothing wrong with it, but the shrimp and veggies didn’t taste particularly fresh nor did the noodles. Again, nothing wrong with it, but nothing noteworthy either. Plus this noodle dish is not traditional Szechuan food, so I’m probably going to go with the waitress’ recommendation for the carbs as well next time.
All in all, I enjoyed this restaurant and perhaps after trying a few more dishes, I may upgrade the rating. For now thought, this place rates, at the very least, an
A-​OK

Decent traditional northern Chinese food. My fav dishes are Grass Hat Pancake, Pan Fried Pork Cabbage Dumplings, & Szechuan Cold Noodle. Service is friendly and fast.

They’ve changed owners and the new owners suck. They even changed the style of chinese food they cook here.
So incredibly broken inside…
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Great, affordable Chinese food in Fremont!
Whatever the name of the restaurant is… as far as I’m concerned it’s called «Grand Opening» because everything else is in chinese… you can’t get better food for the price.
My bf and I have been here twice in two days. How can you go wrong with 3 entrees for 16.99 with leftovers for dinner as well?
Dry sauteed string beans are great. Still a bit of a crunch to them and just enough spice to go well with my rice. They add some radishes? (something crunchy) to it that adds some intrigue to it. I like it alot.
Walnut Prawns: If you can’t do walnut prawns, you probably can’t do much well in a restaurant as that’s my go to entrée whenever I try a place for the first time. They give ample shrimp with just enough sauce to not overpower your mouth with mayo. I wish they gave more walnuts, but we finish the dish each time. For the price, it’s really good.
I’m coming back everytime I have a hankering for good chinese.

They closed to clean the kitchen. Hmm…

If it weren’t for picking up one of their to-​go menus, I never would’ve remembered their name to review, though I’m sure I’m probably too American to be their true target market. But I ain’t scurr’d, I’ve been in 3 times and even had some brought to me by my cuz who had noted my recommendations. Unfortunately he brought over Mongolian Beef, General Tso’s Chicken and Fried Rice (poor guy, for being Filipino, he sure has gringo’s taste for ethnic food, but he means well).
Their menu is typically large, which basically states that amongst some good dishes there can be some misses. I’ve had my share of both here, but the good really outweighs the bad. They do good lamb here, (tried Lamb w/​Green Onion and Cumin Lamb). A little greasy, but the texture is velvety (I’ve got to learn how to do that!) and the flavors are rich and intense. The cumin version especially is assertive without being cloying and cumin opens up when toasted properly.
Seafood dishes are pretty good as well. Steamed Flounder is outstanding and perfectly executed with a light soy-​ginger-​scallion sauce. The meat peeled off the bones like custard, so f*&%n’ delicate (pardon my french). Salt and Pepper Prawns were ok, with a nice crisp, light batter and perfect saltiness. Heads intact is a plus.
Pork dishes are hit and miss, as some braised dishes seemed a bit soupy and lacked texture (Shan Dong Short Ribs and Short Ribs & String Beans in Claypot). Braised Pig’s feet were tender in a sweet sauce which made it even stickier (not good with paper napkins).
I’ll be back and maybe ask for some recommendations from the servers as «most» of the menu seems quite authentic regional Chinese. Some dishes are even Andrew Zimmern’s Bizarre food worthy like «Liver Strip Intestines $ 7.95» or «Pan Cake in Fish Head Dish $ 12.95». I’m pretty open but I sure hope the server doesn’t recommend those to me, no matter how much it reminds them of home.

They’ve earned an extra star. The food arrives quickly and they serve up authentic, homestyle Chinese cooking. It’s still the only place I’ve seen the corn cakes on the menu. The place is popular too, and most diners are Chinese. The portions are so generous and the price is very reasonable.
We received free soup and a complimentary dish of spicy pickled cabbage (really good — I might buy some as I think it is one of the cold dishes that they sell by the cash register). We ordered off of the 3 for $ 16.99 menu again and added on a few dishes.
* Chuan Lu corn cake with chicken & mushrooms: I really liked this (better than the version with yellow fish). It’s served fire pot style with those yummy dense corn cakes (like Chinese steamed buns only made with corn). In the center is a brothy, flavorful stew of chicken, mushrooms and silver noodles.
* Spicy fish filet: tender, mild pieces of boneless white fish filets submerged in a pool of chili oil, topped with Sichuan peppercorns, this dish is always oily but tasty
* Cumin lamb — tender stir fried strips of lamb with onions, oily but rich with spices
* Rainbow thread salad — served on a huge platter with lots of vegetables, like carrots, cucumbers, etc., tossed with thin sheets of mung bean noodles and a light sesame dressing — very nice, fresh, many contrasting textures
* Sesame bread — seemed very fresh, thick and pillowy soft, with green onions, yum

I had been looking for a good Szechuan restaurant since the one in the Union City Marina shopping center (whose English name I have already forgotten) closed until I stumbled across this place on Unilocal.I decided to give it a try, and was pleasantly surprised.
The portions are generous, and the 3 items for (I forget how much, but it was less than $ 19) part of the menu quite large. The food came out quickly, and they include a small appetizer dish of pickled vegetables and a bowl of soup large enough for everyone to have seconds.
On the down side, the menu does not seem that kid-​friendly, and the item suggested by the waitress as being good for kids was a horrible choice — it was a chicken dish with corn cakes. The chicken was hacked into bite-​sized pieces, so there were a lot of sharp bone fragments. The flavor was good, but it’s far too dangerous for small children to eat without a lot of supervision. No one at my table particularly liked the corn cakes either.
The Szechuan fish dish «with the name that deceptively translates into «water cooked fish»), while not quite up to the level of that Union City restaurant, was very good. When it first came, it looked like a bowl of red oil with lots of chili peppers in it, but under that eye-​watering surface, was a lot of tasty fish.
I might have given this place five stars, but the first time I went turned out to be one of the two really hot days we had last month, and they didn’t turn on the AC, so the overall experience was somewhat diminished.

This review is based on one visit ordering veggie dishes.
This place has a huge menu. Many choices if you eat meat, poultry and fish. There were several veggie choices but we my have selected the wrong ones. We ordered
Shan Dong Vegetables – hunks of tofu in a strange brown sauce with vermicelli noodles and mushrooms and not too many vegetables.
Not tasty, very different.
Dan Dan Noodles-​We thought it would be noodles served with a peanut sauce. Wrong… greasy noodles served in a red chile sauce
Veggie dumplings — filled with acidic, tasteless chard?
Onion pancake-​okay, nothing special.
Sesame bread – we were hoping for something spectacular (ie like the thick sesame bread they serve at Darda’s in Milpitas) but it was just okay
in comparison. Just a think layer of sesame seeds on top and the bread had no crunch just chewy.
But…the rest of the patrons there seemed to really be enjoying their food since they were chowing down on the meat, fish and etc dishes.
We wondered if we had just ordered the wrong veggie dishes?
The staff was very friendly and efficient despite the restaurant filling up.
There seemed to be a lot of regulars even though the place is new.
This restaurant is at the same location of the RIP Darda Fremont which closed some years ago and replaced by the predecessor of Chuan Lu.
So 2 stars for our food
4 stars for the service
and 5 stars for the food everyone else seemed to be enjoying

Good Northern Chinese restaurant in North Fremont. This is next to the Optometry place, to the Left of 99 Ranch. It’s Mandarin & Szechuan cuisines per take-​out menu.
Lunch Special M-​F 11−3pm. Vegetable $ 4.95; Meat $ 5.25; Seafood $ 5.75
We were the only table eating at 5:30pm on Wed 4÷29÷09 which was fine. They have lots of tables for 4 and some round tables. Menu in English & Chinese.
We got 6 dishes for 2 people. It was a GREAT tasting menu with LOTS of Leftovers. We ordered so many dishes that we needed 2 tables — that was So Funny!
FREE cup of pickled cabbage — nice & FREE soup given — Huge, enough for 4 – 5 people. Tofu, short ribs, cilantro, vermicelli noodle sour soup. Really good.
3 dishes for $ 16.99! You can’t beat those prices (#1−72)
#2 –Shredded potato w/​green pepper $ 5.5 — lots of shredded potatoes w/​some sliced green peppers. Not spicy, nice to eat.
#6 — Dry sauteed string beans $ 5.50 — fine, I love veggies.
#53 — Cumin lamb $ 7.50 — lots of small chunks of cumin lamb & lots of onions. Pretty good.
Short rib string bean w/​corn cake in iron pan $ 7.95– the waiter told us to take out the corn cakes & place them on a separate plate. That was fine. Lots of small tender short ribs w/​glass noodles & string beans, nice sauce. Corn cakes (8 pcs) were small and bready — not much taste to them. All in a huge wok. Shandong specialty.
Sesame bread $ 5.95 (8 slices) — waiter said it’s very popular. It’s very attractive and I liked my one slice. It’s a huge round thick bread w/​sesame on top — pan-​fried, and some green onions inside. Nice.
Lamb steamed dumplings (8) $ 5.50 — Very tender lamb inside the handmade steamed dumplings. Side of garlic/​soy sauce given. Very tasty and juicy.
Our total: $ 16.99 +7.95 + 5.95+5.50 = $ 36.39 + 9.75% East Bay Penalty = $ 39.94 Before Tip! So Cheap! Credit cards ok w/​minimum $ 20!
Separate bathrooms in the back.
Recommended! Please support them! Good for take-​out too.
Open Daily:
M-​Th 11 – 9:30p
F 11−10p
Sat 10−10p
Sun 10 – 9:30p

the actual name of this restaurant is chuan xu xiang qing not chuang… they claim expertise in mandarin, szechwan styles and shandong dim sum & noodles.
tried the 3 selections for 16.99 (#1−72)which came with a comped house soup.
-(53)cumin lamb (7.50)breaded lamb which was deep fried and sautted with a lot of onions. the breading hid the lamb flavor.
-(70)bitter melons w/​prawns: undercooked bitter melon slices with prawns cooked just right. a little more heat and spice would make this dish a winner.
-(63)fish w/​ith hot bean sauce: same kind of sauce used in ma po tofu. fried breaded fish was ok, not spectacular. fish intself wasn’t tasty.
–comped soup (porkbones broth w/​bean vermicelli & sour mustard green. or sauerkraut — tasty tart soup which tasted like saurerkraut was used.. it could have been sour mustard grreens.
–seafood dumpling (12/5.95)-large bland dumplings with chives that may have been undercooked. flavoring comes from soy based dipping cauce provided.
–spicy wonton (12/4.95): bland wontons in a splash of chile soy sauce
the staff is mandarin speaking and offered friendly. service. unfortunately, chuan lu was nearly empty when we dined. did not test their english skills. some dishes were undercooked. patient diners will find the gems in the menu. i haven’t yet. i may return.
btw, food came out very fast. cooking the food adequately would have make the meal more enjoyable.

What’s with the average reviews!!!
Yes, this place is brand new and has replaced WM Café. Man I miss their roast duck.
By far this joint has the BEST Chinese food in town. I would describe it as home-​style Mandarin and Szechuan cuisine that’s not Americanized Chinese cuisine.
Me and my dad had this 3 item cold appetizer selection that you get at the front of the counter, which consists of seaweed, beef tendon, and some other spicy marinade for a whopping $ 5.95.
We also ordered the 3 selection special for $ 16.99 and the portions are huge!
–Shangdong style Mu Shu Pork. Doesn’t have pancakes served but it’s the best Mu Shu I have ever tasted.
–Crispy Fried Pork w/​Shangdong Sauce. Sauce is sweet and sour, but has more of a complex flavor than it’s Americanized counterpart but much better.
–Mongolian beef. Excellent as always.
This special comes with soup. That night, the soup had noodles, sauerkraut, and short ribs and the soup was out of this world! The soup can easily feed 4 – 6 people. Unfortunately, rice doesn’t come with it. You have to pay extra for it.
My dad wanted to try the Rainbow Bean Sheet that’s under the Chuan Lu Special dish and it deserved to be such a classification. It has sauce below a bed of Julian sliced veggies with the opaque looking noodles and the server puts the hot meat filling on top of it. Then you mix the dish. Boy my dad fell in love with that dish and so do I. That dish alone can easily feed 4 – 6 people.
The service is excellent. Our server really helped us picking the items and described them in a simple manner. The minimum credit card charge is $ 20. I would definitely come back here for my Chinese cuisine fix. I would like to try their other items on the menu.

So this place replaced WM Restaurant, which was Cantonese/​Hong Kong food. Chuangluxiangqing (crazy name huh? The sign just says «Chinese Food» and lists the long name in Chinese only) serves Mandarin and Szechuan.
We order the spicy wontons, tomato/​beef on panfried noodles, dan dan noodle (dry northern style noodle with minced meat and hot sesame oil) and the preserved veggie and beef soup noodle.
My husband LOVED the tomato/​beef noodle. The dan dan was a little dry though and the spicy wonton wasn’t as good as my hometown favorite in Massachusetts. It was plain wontons on top of spicy sesame oil.
Bro’s not hear yet to give his expert opinion on preserved veggie/​beef noodle soup, but I’ll update once I hear from him.
We will go again for the tomato/​beef and maybe ask them what their best dishes are.