wonderful

I called this place twice to make reservations for our Chinese New Years dinner. This place was a recommendation from my Nieces hubby.
I called a week or two before & I get a recording about hours, location & reservations. They don’t take reservations unless it’s for large groups. I think it was over parties of 5+. The recording gives me the number of the manager to call for large party reservations. I call the number & another recording comes on & tells me to leave an email on their website.
REALLY??? All this to make reservations? Wasn’t worth it for me. If you have to make it this complicated to eat here — I’ll go somewhere else where people simply pick up the phone!

I usually visit during lunch hours. It’s great when they have their lunch specials, since a la carte is quite expensive. My favorite is their pork intestine dish with a side of rice. I also greatly enjoy their shredded pork with garlic sauce as well as their spicy fish filet. I usually aim for mild spicy as it gets quite spicy for me otherwise.
Parking is difficult during lunch hours. We usually end up parking in Safeway a couple blocks down. Don’t expect stellar service unless you are a regular.

My family and I are stuck near SFO due to the blizzard in MD and needed to find a place to eat. Searched Unilocal and found this gem near our hotel. We have had Chinese at the best restaurants in China Town in DC and this one was so much better. The ingredients are fresh and the service was over the top. I eat out a great deal due to business travel and really appreciate good service and know what that entails. The server was helpful in guiding us through the menu and coming by often to check on us without being too much — if you know what I mean.
I highly recommend this place and will go back the next time I am in town.

Their green onion pancake is a must order, accompanied with chopped meat source. I also like their 湖南小炒, which contains squid. Their Hunan chicken is also tender and good.

I’ve given this place three chances now and I’ve come to the conclusion that this is not the restaurant for me. Everything is just SOAKED in grease. And they probably cook the majority of their dishes within the same pots and pans because after a while, everything just tastes like the same grease.
I do like that the majority of their dishes are spicy, as I like my food hot. The staff has always been friendly too. But this cuisine is not my style. i usually leave feeling slightly sick or uncomfortable.

As a huge fan of Sichuan cuisine, I give wonderful my top vote! I’ve been here several times, and their food has been consistently delicious. Service here is awesome: everything comes out fairly quickly, and the waiters are very friendly. During peak hours, the restaurant can get packed and parking can definitely be a hassle to find. But once you’re at your table, all those troubles are long forgotten. :)
A quick rundown of some of the dishes I’ve tried:
Lamb with cilantro or Lamb with onions: Both dishes are good, but if you’re looking for more flavor, I suggest going with the first dish. The cilantro adds a strong, herb-​y kick that goes really well with the lamb.
Dan dan noodles: If you like that numbing sensation, you’ll love this — the sauce is extraordinarily spicy. I’m not sure if it was just that one time, but my entire tongue and mouth felt numb from eating these noodles. Even my boyfriend who loves spicy food seemed to have trouble.
Intestines: Not my personal favorite, but those who like intestines seemed to enjoy it! Maybe one day …
Dry sautéed string beans: Can’t go wrong with this one. Two thumbs up.
Hot boiled fish: Packed with so much flavor, this one is A MUST! It comes with a lot of fish and veggies — perfect for eating family-​style. Definitely one of my favorite dishes here.

-‘~* 1000^th review! *~’- (yay venturing into 4-​digits)
We stumbled upon this place as it seemed to be a recent addition to Millbrae. I don’t usually hang out near here but I’m really glad I decided to wait 15 mins for a table.
The food here is amazingly delicious.
Before we ordered, I spotted their house-​cured salted meat in the kitchen. Given the sad state of Chinese cured meat in this country (don’t get me start on that!!!), I was intrigued by that, and decided to order something with it.
We ordered the salted pork fried rice, spicy green beans (乾煸四季豆), and some special fried fish dish. Everything was delicious, and the spicy items really did have a nice kick. The spicy green beans were the highlight of the meal — they were done correctly (deep frying involved), had a nice crunch outside but soft inside. We even got someone who didn’t like green beans to eat them non-​stop! As for the salted pork, I got a taste of it and will definitely double down and order more of it next time.
The restaurant is a bit heavy on the grease in the air due to being a Chinese restaurant, but is cozy otherwise. There are some private booths in the back of the restaurant, making it a nice dining experience if you manage to get one of those. For the adventurous, they have quite a few harder-​to-​get items here, for example, frog and pork intestines.

If you like spicy Hunan dishes, this is a wonderful place to try. Even if you’re not a fan of spicy food, there are some tasty hand cut noodle and vegetarian dishes. Try their beef noodle soup over the Beijing zhajiang mian as well as the dry sauteed string beans. I’d give it 5 stars if I could handle the peppers =P
The service is fast and helpful in recommending dishes. The turnover is quick given how packed this place gets. Street parking is ample with a nearby public lot.

«Free iced water» for checking in. I kid you not Unilocalers. By far one of the lamest check in rewards I’ve seen in a long time, and I work as a Marketing Manager. That’s right up there with the lame «high five» with check in.
No, I don’t want to touch your hand or give you a high five restaurant owners who write that.
This place has long lines most of the time, and honestly, I really don’t know why. My friends say it’s because of their Mandarin cuisine.
Kind of average if you ask me. The beef noodle soup was just okay, but their small spicy beef condiment thing to add to your soup or rice to give it a kick was pretty good. You have to ask for it on the side.
But for an hour wait, I don’t think it’s worth it.

I’ve long heard of how great this place is, but was a little resistant to try due to the emphasis on spicy dishes. However, I did find they have a number of non-​spicy options and are able to tailor the level of spice on other dishes to your preference. What surprised me most about this place was how EVERY dish was high quality, well-​flavored, and delicious. Most eateries have some special featured dishes that are standouts, but also have their share of misses. Not so with this place — everything was consistently good!
Food:
— Hunan Iron Skillet w/​Tender Beef & Onions — Tender and flavorful beef! A good non-​spicy choice.
— Hunan Iron Griddle w/​Tender Beef — Despite the similar nomenclature, this was quite different from the above and marked as a spicy dish. We ordered it with a mild spice level and this gave it a kick without lighting our mouths on fire. Again, very tender and well-​marinated beef (different flavor from the above even without the spice).
— Chinese Pork Burger — Fantastic! Just make sure you get a complete bite of the «bun», meat, and greens — the fillings tend to fall out.
— Beef Noodle Soup w/​Hand Cut Noodles — Giant bowl of noodles with incredibly tender chunks of beef brisket.
— Green Onion Pancake — So fluffy and thick! I’m used to eating the thin 1-​layered versions of these so this was definitely a novel experience.
Service: friendly and attentive
Ambiance: a mix of modern and traditional. Very clean!
Overall: everything was «wonderful» and they are certainly deserving of their moniker — an easy 5 stars!

I liked it. The ambience is nice, seems upscale compared to most of the local Chinese spots — it looks that they actually tried to make it something nicer.
Our food was good. The green onion pancakes are different than most — they are fluffy and thick, with crusty fried exterior and soft glutinous interior. The multiple layers enhance the savory flavors. The pancakes is served with a spicy pork meat mixture containing ground pork, fermented black beans, jalapeños and garlic. Wow — delicious.
The Godfather’s noodles featured perfectly toothsome thin noodles served with a spicy pork sauce that seemed very similar to the spicy pork mixture that came with the green onion pancakes. That pork meat would taste good on pretty much anything!
We also tried the smoked pork (bacon!) with smoked tofu. Tasty but some of the pork belly skin was pretty chewy. Stir-​fried lamb with cilantro delivered a spicy kick and, cilantro-​lovers rejoice, has nice herbaceousness from a generous amount of cilantro.
Service was slow and a bit lackadaisical but overall this place is a winner.

We happened to be in Millbrae and found this place in Unilocal.We had a very good meal at Wonderful and I hope to go back again soon!
I ordered the Godfather hand pulled noodles and the fried pork intestines. Both were excellent, especially the intestines!
The godfather noodles were the same size as fettuccini, but were very soft, much softer than al dente. The noodles were topped with ground pork with black beans and a ton of chili and garlic. Very very tasty and spicy.
The pork intestines were crispy and very spicy. They were just incredible and were the best chitins I’ve ever had! They were very well cleaned and didn’t have any weird you-​know-​what flavor. However, they didn’t really trim the visceral fat, so they were essentially crispy pieces of fried pork fat with tons of chilies. Amazing!
The portions were very large so I got to have leftover noodles with intestines the next day. I have a big appetite so that’s really saying something that I managed to get 2 whole meals out of that.
Definitely looking forward to dining here again!

Was it «Wonderful»? Haha. It was pretty good. We got two dishes to share and we didn’t realize how spicy it was going to be. We got the Spicy Tofu Fish Fillet and the Godfather’s Noodles.
The Spicy Tofu Fish Fillet was good. The tofu was silky and the fish was pretty good. The sauce is spicy! Don’t underestimate the name of this dish. I would definitely get some rice or something to help soak up some of the spicy.
The Godfather’s Noodles was good as well. I really like the thick cut noodles. This one is really spicy as well. To be honest, my mouth was just burning from both dishes so as far as I tasted, it was pretty good. There is definitely no lack of spices and flavors.
Overall, it was a tad too spicy for me. No fault of theirs since the names of these dishes clearly states that it would be. I think the food is pretty good aside from that I couldn’t feel my tongue after.

This place is simply Wonderful!
I was really impressed with pretty much everything.
Everyone is super friendly.
The food is delish
Lots of big portions
Love the open kitchen (something you don’t see very often)
The savory pancakes are a must, and so is the hunan chicken.
A little bit more on the pricey side for the area, but I’m willing to pay if its this good with awesome customer service!

So many choices!!! Stomach not big enough to try everything, lemme just mark the few I was able to sample from there menu.
Lamb cilantro — looks like beef and cilantro, but it is definitely lamb, no gamey taste, spicy, tender, hella sauce
Beef tripe with bamboo chutes — chewy, slim cut, more chutes then tripe, still tasty
hunan chicken — their version did not taste fried, allot of sauce diced peppers, red chilli peppers, portioned half chicken, super spicy plate I like it!!!
Bok choy with mushroom — sauteed mushrooms with bok choy in a steamed type sauce light and delicious even just for just veggies
Braised pork belly — mixed and flavored with a soy sauce, tender chunks of pork belly with red bell peppers, green bell peppers, thick layer of skin and fat if you know what lechon and love lechon this is similar, not crunchy but definitely worth a try
I would order the chicken again, the bok choy with mushrooms, lamb & cilantro and braised pork belly.
Food **** 4 dishes of the 6 ordered I would order again
Price $$ oh my
Service ***** very helpful staff
Ambiance **** large venue, very tight seating

I don’t typically write bad reviews for places I have not tried, but this is a special one.
Called at 5:20pm on a Sunday:
Me: Can I order take out?
W: No we are busy
Me: um… are you busy like maybe I should try later or just too busy period?
W: Yeah ok you can try back
Me: Like maybe 20 minutes?
W: No
Me: ummmmmmmmmm ok bye
What are you busy with at 5:20pm? No one eats dinner then. If you don’t do take out you should say so. if you have a private event that you need to prepare for, also say no. If the restaurant is bought out, again, say so. A «I’m busy» is not justification on why we are being denied food.

Let me preface this by saying that my friends RAVE about this place nonstop. They say it’s the best Chinese restaurant they’ve ever eaten at, in the entire US. And they are well-​travelled Chinese folks with sophisticated taste buds.
So my expectations were very high.
We drove down from the city and had a very short wait for Sunday dinner. Already a pleasant surprise. The menu had everything a real Chinese person could ever want from a Hunan restaurant. We hit up the thick scallion pancake, some cilantro lamb, some eggplant, noodles, a chinese pork «burger»… and an order of fried intestines for my Iowan n00b friend to try out. We had a veritable feast. The thick pancake, which I’m not usually a fan of, was AMAZING. It wasn’t too doughy, but was very toasty on the outside. Went great with the egregious amount of chili sauce on everything. Same with the burger. Classic gamey Chinese lamb (can anyone tell me why Chinese lamb is so gamey? Is it because we are willing to eat it, or do we choose the gamey cuts/​breeds?) and everything else. It was just really well done, all of it.
I’ve already told my family and friends that I’m gonna have to take them here. Next time, we’re getting fish. It’s just quite a commitment.
After splitting the bill, I actually remarked that it was such a cheap meal, considering how delicious and filling it was (and the leftovers I got to eat for the most amazing lunch the next day). But I am also used to SF restaurant prices at «New American eateries.»

It’s VERY hard to find good Northern Chinese restaurants in the Bay Area so this place is a real gem. We live in SF and typically would go to Dong Bei Mama in the Richmond but decided to give this place a shot. First of all, let me say that this place is VERY CLEAN which is a rarity among Chinese restaurants. This place actually looks like it could be in China. My boyfriend was born in Beijing so if he says it’s authentic I trust his opinion.
Dishes that we get frequently are the cauliflower (substitute tofu for pork since I’m vegan), garlic green beans, spicy shredded potato, Hunan braised pork, and the green onion pancake. My advice is to skip the rice and go for the pancake as your carbs… it’s massive, perfectly fluffy, and just overall has a great flavor. All the dishes here are pretty consistent… very strong flavors but not overly oily as too many Chinese restaurants are.
The only downside here is that the food is pretty expensive. Entrees are in the $ 10-​$ 15 range even for vegetables which I consider expensive for Chinese food. Given the authenticity I would say most dishes are worth it. Service is great here — expect to hear mostly Mandarin but all the staff speak good English as well.

I heard about Wonderful after their video footage of a Unilocaler with the false review made headlines. The owner’s kind offer to welcome the reviewer back with a meal and handshake caught my attention.
I stopped by on a weeknight, and the wait wasn’t bad — around 15 minutes for a table of 2. The service is noticeably better than your average Chinese restaurant. Glasses were kept full, napkins refreshed without asking, and multiple servers checked-​in throughout.
The menu is daunting for someone not familiar with Hunan food, but our server was good about answering our questions and gave us good suggestions.
We started with the Sautéed Loofah… which I totally thought was another vegetable dish until it came out. Clearly I need to brush up on my Chinese knowledge! But after I took a bite, I recognized the flavor and texture from the depths of my murky childhood food memories. The dish had a traditionally mild preparation, which provided a welcome contrast with the mostly spicy menu.
We got three entrees to share and they were similarly seasoned with chili peppers, green bell peppers, garlic, and ginger. Definitely needed lots of water with this meal.
The Pork Spare Ribs Dry Iron Pot came with a live flame which smelled funny so we asked the waiter to put it out. He put it out with a notepad — amusing and a little scary to watch!
The Hunan Chicken tasted almost the same as the pork dish. The chicken contained a good amount of bones, so be prepared if you aren’t familiar this preparation. Memories of my dad poking fun at my younger self struggling with bone-​in dishes popped up mid-​bite.
The last dish I tried was Godfather’s Hand Cut Noodle with Chili & Pork. This was recommended by our waiter as her favorite noodle dish. I liked the mouthfeel and thickness of the hand cut noodles. The ground pork black bean topping was really good as well.
Next time, I would try the Green Onion Pancake that I saw at other tables. It looked like multiple layers of pancakes stacked, rather than the flat pancake I’m used to. Looked intriguing but too heavy for what we were feeling that night.

I have been hearing about this place a lot from friends and with the super high Unilocal rating, I was very looking forward to try Wonderful some day.
Wonderful is located in the busy Millbrae little Chinese-​eatery street area. It is just two doors down from Sweet Indulgence — good dinner + dessert combination time!
Went with two friends and were seated in the very end of the restaurant, right next to the kitchen. We could have literally seen the food preparation from our seats, but the restaurant is very thoughtful that they added a bamboo screen to block our view from the kitchen. This way it will not affect our mood during the meal. Nice.
One little thing to complain here is that we were given all the utensils but were not provided tea for like 5 minutes until we asked. Probably it’s because we were at the very end but still.
#Complimentary appetizers (ground pork?): A-​.
Very tasty, could have been better if rice were served at the same time since it was kind of salty.
#Beef Tendons and Tripe 夫妻肺片: B+.
Not bad. Qty was a lot. Everything was very thinly sliced. I like the fact that it was not too oily — sometimes this dish can be so oily that once I put in my mouth I would feel disgusted about it. One thing I would like to see is the increase in spiciness.
#Beer Sauteed Duck 湘味啤酒鴨: B.
It was the first time I saw such a dish combination and I had high expectation for it. But ended up I could not taste any beer taste. Definitely I am no where close to an expert in Hunan cuisine but by its Chinese dish name I would have expected some beer taste. Otherwise it was just a very ordinary stir-​fry duck dish.
#Sauteed Loofah 清炒絲瓜: A-​.
Haven’t eaten loofah for a long time. Pretty nice, I could still feel the original loofah taste and again it wasn’t too oily.
#Mao’s Braised Pork 毛式紅燒肉: B.
It’s not bad. It’s a very ordinary braised pork dish and it is not special at all. I thought the «Mao’s style» would make it standout among other competitors but to me it was completely the same as other restaurants’.
#Winter Melon and Ribs Soup 冬瓜排骨湯: B++.
The soup tasted pretty nice. It was a little bit oily but I guess it’s because of the ribs. Probably MSG was used but it’s okay I had at least like 5 small bowls of that.
#Green Onion Pancake 蔥油大餅: B+.
We must have missed the word «Big» in the Chinese name — these are no ordinary pancakes but more like 10 of them stacked together to become 1 big chunk. Super starchy and it came as the last dish of the night — we were pretty much full and obviously couldn’t finish it. The taste of onion and garlic was not enough though. Probably it’s too thick and it’s difficult to distribute those ingredients evenly.
I would give this place a 3.5-star overall. I couldn’t find one thing that was exceptional about this place but overall it’s a very nice addition to the Millbrae area.