Ermahgerd so good. I was there for a birthday dinner with a party of eight, and we ended up ordering a ton of different dumplings, pot stickers, apps, and entrees. Get the thousand year old egg: weird but addicting, and comes with chillies that give it an awesome kick. The dumplings were delicious, the pot stickers addictively so. The pork belly was also excellent, and not at all greasy. I also had a wonderfully balanced old fashioned. The décor is lovely as well, reminiscent of the 1940s. I do have a couple of quibbles, but not worthy of taking any stars away from the stellar food. The drinks were very pricey, with cocktails at $ 15 dollars; the food was more reasonably priced. Secondly, my entrée order was placed on the table for general consumption, and none of the wait staff had asked to whom it belonged(as they had done with the entrees of my dining companions). Nevertheless, the meal was filling but not heavy, and the food absolutely excellent.
Ian C.
Tu valoración: 5 Manhattan, NY
I need to preface this with the fact that I came here for a wedding. Which meant that I wasn’t ordering but also that I could sample a lot of food. This place is great, I really like the décor with nice little details everywhere. That coupled with the fact that the food was great made for a memorable experience. The things that stood out to me were things like the steamed fish, the pan fried soup dumplings, the vegetarian duck, and the fried lotus roots. These stood out but really everything on the menu was very tasty and pretty authentic. I think the coupling of ambiance and food makes this place stand out especially since you don’t want to hang out at many Chinese restaurants typically.
Anne Marke M.
Tu valoración: 4 Boston, MA
Literally a hidden gem. You would walk right by it and have no idea it existed, but once you open the doors you feel like you are in a traditional Chinese restaurant right out of Shanghai. Great ambiance and stunning bar setting. The apps are really delicious, my favorites are the pork buns, scallion pancakes and soup buns(soup dumplings). The main meals are delicious too, but I recommend getting a variety of apps, they are filling and yummy!
Brittney F.
Tu valoración: 4 Sparks, NV
I remember the days coming here with my friends for something quick. I had a blast in terms of just the social experience I had here! The atmosphere wasn’t too overwhelming as other Chinese food places in the area. My food experience here has mostly been with the dumping dim sum, along with the old style rice wrap in some kind of paper? But what matters most is the taste! Its absolutely delicious! I should probably start coming here more often again.
Nikki M.
Tu valoración: 5 West Village, Manhattan, NY
One of my favorite Chinese restaurants in the city. Yum! We can’t stop going! The soup dumplings are superb and a must order! The crystal shrimp dumpling is fresh and delish! Don’t miss the fried pork buns!!! The scallion pancakes are crisp and light. The chicken with scallions, beef with chillies and the shredded pork were all incredible. Run don’t walk!
Jory C.
Tu valoración: 5 Beverly, MA
Amazing dim sum soup dumplings. I will likely return to NYC simply for the aforementioned goodies. I also suggest drinking the lucky lychee cocktail. Go here.
Sonia N.
Tu valoración: 3 Manhattan, NY
Really nice décor, ambience and waitstaff. The food, however, was just meh. The eel appetizer was good, but a tad too sweet. My entrée was the pork belly and mustard greens and that was waaay too sweet. A pity about the food because I would’ve given this place 5 stars otherwise.
Sean C.
Tu valoración: 3 Brooklyn, NY
Interesting place. The food is more authentic than you would think based on the ambiance. They are quite overpriced, and I usually don’t like overpaying for authentic food. That said, the atmosphere is quite nice and the food is very flavorful. I’d recommend this place for a date, but it is a bit costly to go to with friends.
Lin N.
Tu valoración: 5 New York, NY
I can’t believe it took me 2 years to get here, but I only have myself to blame for not coming sooner. This is, in no way, your typical Chinese dining experience. From the get go, you are welcomed into a warm, well-appointed space tucked in the quiet Watts neighborhood. Think of an old Shanghai salon meeting an airy Tribeca living room. Just China Blue’s ambiance alone puts it in a different league from any other Chinese restaurant I’ve eaten at in NYC. Classy but not stuffy; authentic enough for dinner with Chinese parents, yet cool enough for a hip crowd at the bar. And onto the food… first up, super tasty soup dumplings, with the thin skin perfectly preserving a fully«souped”-up filling. That they have«kaofu» on the apps menu is a true throwback to Shanghai«jiachang cai»(translation homestyle food). The menu is curated with dishes you will not find on your usual takeout menu: Lion’s head meatballs, braised tofu with crab(a wintertime favorite), and fish cooked in its entirety(read: bone in!). It’s no wonder that half the restaurant was filled with Chinese patrons, among other in-the-knows who want the real Shanghai deal. Some other reviews have mentioned spotty service, but our dinner was well-paced and efficient. The only thing that would have upped the experience is comfier seating, particularly at the bar. A few lounge chairs or couches, perhaps in the side room, would it really hard for me to ever leave this place. And rest assured, I’ll be back soon. Probably with a petition for a new location on the UES…
Weili H.
Tu valoración: 5 New York, NY
This review came too late, I’ve been here 3 times and cannot wait to stop by again. They serve the most authentic and delicious Shanghai cuisine in NYC, my friend who is originally from Shanghai introduced me to China Blue for the first time a year ago, we were both stuffed with joy, the meal brought tears to her eyes because she said that«it tastes just like food at home». This is someone who has not gone home for years. From that day I was converted. China Blue is off the West Side Highway near the Hudson River in Tribecca, a very quiet area, it’s not the easiest to commute by train, but we drove so it was not a problem. The restaurant is a vintage, classic 1920 kind of China vibe, very spacious, details everywhere, the bar looks like it’s from the movies, the staff is polite, good looking, very well mannered. The menu is full of gems. I love the sugar glazed fried eel as appetizer, it’s sweet and chewy, crispy and soooo flavorful. It’s still on my Best of NYC Top 10 List after so long, and I constantly crave for it. They serve great soup dumplings with crab meat, sweet & sour fried fish filet, meat ball(what we call Lion Head), all kinds of specialty Shanghai dishes that you’ve never seen at Chinatown restaurants. Everything’s authentic, I’d say go with at least a party of 4 so you can taste more dishes from the menu, every plate was full of wonders. The menu is not the typical Chinese ones you find at local spots, where they pretty much just stir fry different meat with the same sauces. Every plate is uniquely made. I cannot rave enough about this place, I would give another 5 stars if I could, and I don’t do this with other places I’ve been to. All my friends that went because of my recommendation loved it. I am already considering what I will have next time I go. If Café China deserves One Michelin Star, China Blue should too.
Ivan M.
Tu valoración: 4 New York, NY
Authentic Chinese food is pretty hard to come by these days in NYC. China blue’s food blew me away! I should say that a lot of the dishes, even though they taste fantastic, like the 四喜烤麸 kaofu was great, but resembled a recipe/flavor from a neighboring province in China, not quite 100% thorough-breed Shanghai-nese flavors. The thousand year old egg 皮蛋 as well as the«three cup chicken» 三杯鸡 were delicious. I would recommend this place to westerners and Chinese alike. While the food came at a steady coordinated place, the service is pretty slow at China blue. They never changed our plates throughout the meal and you have to flag servers down several times before they can get over to you. I would have given this place 5 stars had the service been better. But then again, they are Chinese, so what do you expect. HIGHLYRECOMMENDED
Icy C.
Tu valoración: 4 Manhattan, NY
I like the atmosphere of this restaurant, not too crowd and decent. I think the cuisines are good. I’m not from Shanghai so I don’t know whether it is authentic. The portion of dishes are small, but it doesn’t bother us as we can try more dishes with different flavor.
Connie L.
Tu valoración: 4 New York, NY
Pretty good attempt at traditional Shanghainese cuisine with a trendy touch. Most dishes were quite good but I wouldn’t say it tasted as authentic as it could’ve been. Some dishes were just average(the soup dumplings, pork dumplings for example) so I think it’s a hit or miss situation. Portions are also pretty small, but they will fill you up fast. That said, I’m comfortable giving China Blue 4 stars because the service and ambiance is pretty decent. I just wish the food could’ve tasted a little more authentic — then it would be unbeatable!
Andrew B.
Tu valoración: 1 Brooklyn, NY
Vile, disgusting Chinese ‘food’. I got the Kung Pao Chicken off of Seamless. It came fast and hot and tasted like windex and chill peppers. Even the brown rice tasted funky. Right now my tongue is on fire but I didn’t taste any spice. I like spicy food and I eat it often — what the hell is going on here? The chunks of meat that I assume were chicken were minuscule and chewy. Unless you like the flavor of cleaning supplies in your lunch go anywhere else.
August L.
Tu valoración: 5 Manhattan, NY
Authentic Chinese food in a great-looking, spacious restaurant! I’m happy that a place like this exists in Manhattan because Chinese food in New York is never presented the way it deserves to be, which is ultimately caused by misguided preconceptions of Chinese food. This place does this wonderful cuisine(Shanghainese) justice. You know you’re onto something when the majority of patrons at other tables are speaking Chinese too. Service is decent and prices are reasonable, but the 1920s Shanghai décor and lofty proportions really make this place worthwhile. It’s also great for big groups and they take reservations.(I suspect walk-ins to be more difficult.) «Lion’s Head», Yan Du Xian soup, and Wuxi spare ribs were the highlights of our meal.
Yang D.
Tu valoración: 5 London, United Kingdom
Wonderful Shanghai food, very impressed. I ordered too much and simply just want to have all front the menu. Some were very local Shanghai food, which is definitely worth to try. Ah, home sickness now.
Will S.
Tu valoración: 5 New York, NY
This is a truly undiscovered gem in TriBeCa, and a part of me wishes that it would gain a lot more recognition and foot traffic while another hopes it stays the way it is — quiet, hidden, and great for conversations over great food. We tried this place after learning it was started by the management of Café China, which we really enjoy. The food here is Shanghainese and I would call it a slightly contemporary/elevated take on the traditional flavors. Their appetizers are great, homemade food such as soup dumplings, garlic and vinegar cucumbers, and vegetarian duck — they were all done very nicely and with a lot of care and precision, and the taste is impeccable. For the main entrees some of our favorites were sliced fish in wine vinegar(Shanghainese favorite), Three Cups Chicken(chicken with basil cooked in a clay pot, which is Taiwanese but they do a splendid job here), and the shredded pork which is served with a wrap and scallions/cucumber slices. The flavors are authentic and in my view much better than most of the offerings you can find in Chinatown. The décor here is truly something special, it’s as if you are transported back to Shanghai in the 1920’s — very retro chic, very tastefully done in a loft-like setting, with little decorative touches like paper lamps and bookcases adorning each corner of the restaurant. Really recommend this place for catching up with friends over some good Chinese food — prices a bit higher than most other Chinese restaurants but definitely worth it!
Shushu C.
Tu valoración: 3 New York, NY
I have been to this restaurant a couple of times. I think the food is decent here. I got the beef noodle soup and the shanghai soupy rice. As a Chinese person, authenticity wise I feel this restaurant is ok… but personally I did not like the noodles in the beef noodle soup and thought the soupy rice was way too salty. I also tried the beijing sliced pork and the roasted pork w/taro. A lot of the dishes here are way too salty… which means not good use of spices in the right way. I was surprised they sell«soupy rice» as really in China this is not a dish, but what we eat as leftovers mixed together as a stew. I think they could’ve added some white pepper to this dish and spiced things up a bit. but all in all it was ok. Corn chicken and hot and sour soup both were just ok as well. I wouldn’t come back here fi there was a better option around, but sadly there isn’t here… the service is super slow/they are understaffed and they also added a tip once without giving us the itemized receipt.(20% for lunch automatic tip is unacceptable… we were also only a party of 4). I am really surprised at the number of raving reviews… havent been here for dinner so can’t comment on the other dishes that are not served for lunch… but from my experience so far this place only deserves 3 stars at best.
Andrew S.
Tu valoración: 4 Manhattan, NY
I love China Blue. Chinese restaurants in New York City vary widely in terms of ambiance, food quality, service… and for every restaurant I go into, I often wonder what the owners are really going for with the customer experience. Nearly ALL of the time, I find Chinese Restaurants in city care MUCH less for authenticity than they do price and taking advantage of the naïve American palate for Chinese food. China Blue gets what it’s going for just right. I guess what I found the most intriguing was that I felt like I was in a restaurant that was really going for something special and unique — an old Bund Shanghai vibe that is very rare to find. It basically nails it on the head. Each dish served, each lantern and poster, each rafter is all part of the old Shanghai story and experience. What this place does real well: — Their ambiance is absolutely spot on. You can absolutely feel the Shanghai glamour just exuding from the walls. I know the previous lessors, Capsouto Freres, and what China Blue has done is subtle but works very well. — The quality of their food is EXCELLENT. It is pricier than other Chinese restaurants, but what you get for the price is better quality. Really hits it on the head. — They’r siu mai is very well done(dumplings/dim sum). Very tasty — Their 小笼包 xiaolongbao soup dumplings are excellent, very well textured, piping hot. — Their chinese sausage fried rice is perfectly cooked. But smaller portion, good for one or two people in my opinion… need to order multiple. — Shanghai pan fried bun is excellent… — Their presentation of each dish is very refined. What it needs to work on: — I am not going to lie, their service was AWFUL when I went there… they were all very nice, but very, VERY slow. It was a weekend for lunch/brunch around 2pm. I recommend this place to anyone that aims for authenticity and wants a unique ambiance in their dining experience!
Laura A.
Tu valoración: 5 Brooklyn, NY
An speakeasy on a restaurant format* It is my impression that China blue’s put themselves in a tough spot. After all, Chinese cuisine, Shanghainese to be precise, is their specialty. A cuisine with unlimited offer everywhere in Manhattan, NYC.(the planet?) and infinitely associated with rather casual ambiance and cheap eats. However, when facing dining at China Blue I don’t think about a «Chinese restaurant» but rather a destination. And regardless of the cuisine served, the experience is unique among all kind that I have visit in NYC. China Blue’s owners are well known in NYC’s dining scene. Holders of a Michelin star in their sister restauran Café China, it is well known how exquisite is the décor choices to recreate the style inspired by Shanghai on the 30’s. At first glance I was astonished to find such a big space, once again decorated so beautifully that I forgot about anything else for a moment. I had some trouble pairing the concept of intimacy and sensuality that China Blue evoke together with an spacious restaurant burning on life. However, you spent a little while inside and the trouble vanishes to find that the first, are prevalent over the former. Can you get carried over by the beautiful décor, the elegance and attentive service? Perhaps. But it happens that food stands out by itself. I can’t really judge it’s authenticity but then I wonder how relevant that is actually. Everything I have try is exquisite, delicate and brings unexpected flavor profiles particularly for those dishes that you can order somewhere else. For instance. Drunken Chicken, in-bone free range chicken cooked on rice wine is one of my all time favorite dishes and the best version I ever have. The difference? Flavor. Similarly, Xiao Long Bao or soup dumplings stands out for their delicate dumpling dough along with flavorful and distinctive meat and soup flavor. Another best version I ever have. One of my other favorite dishes that I haven’t easily find somewhere else is their Crispy Eel Wuxi style. Nutty, a bit on the sweet side but at the same time capable to create addiction. A must order. Other recommendations are Crab flavored«lion’s head» meatball, full of flavor, among their most savory dishes with delicate texture. Asian Peppers a dish for the most adventurous, seasonal not always on the menu. It challenge even the most tolerant spicy eaters. Rice Cakes with Mustard Greens, Eggplant with Garlic Sauce, Three Cup Chicken and Eight Delicacies in Spicy Sauce are most common dishes but particularly delicate and tasteful. I also recommended Dongpo Pork, poached pork belly with steamed buns, and their Fragrant Fish Fillets with Mushrooms. Both excellent. And a secret. Ask for a little chili oil sauce on a side to spice up the dishes that you desire. My least favorite was perhaps one of the chef specials served during the summer: Pecking Duck served on bruschetta-like bites with a pineapple alioli. I found the sweetness of the alioli to overwhelm everything else. However, the accompanied side of deep-fried cuts of duck was excellent. For dessert, I found their Green Pea and Red Bean Cakes to exhibit an incredible texture, but rather too sweet for my liking. However, even when it also falls on the sweet side, I found their Rice Wine Soup with Black Sesame Dumplings a life-time favorite. It is served hot and it can’t get more comforting on the winter. The texture of the rice ball and the explosion of flavor given by the black sesame paste is difficult to overlook. And just for the record and on a personal note, China Blue worries about some special eats and so you can find vegetarian, gluten-free and dishes adapted to food allergies under request, like unfortunately I myself suffer. Also some menu items changes on a seasonal basis and when most stand permanently, owner and chef are continuously innovating and serving new offerings. * China Blue brings to the scene a rather unique concept that overpass the fact it is focused on Shanghainese cuisine. It is exactly what speakeasies recreates on the drinking scenario, but personalized on a restaurant. I am talking about traveling in space and time without actually leaving NY. A feeling evoked once you step in and confirmed by owner Yiming Wang as that being her intention. Her heart is surely invested at both of her restaurants. How much that matters for each person it is certainly different, but at the end of the day it doesn’t really matter. Like the best speakeasies in town for drinks, China blue does so with their cuisine. Among the best food you can ever taste.