Bo Lings

Bo Lings. what happened to you?
I remember visiting back in the day, and thinking «Top notch!» — now I find myself extremely underwhelmed. Maybe I just ordered the wrong thing? Maybe it was just busy that night and my food wasn’t at the top of your list?
I ordered to-​go, some noodle dish, some dumplings, and soup. The soup was bland. pretty bland. The dumplings were chewy and oily and. sludgy. the sauce to dip them in, had spilled, no wait — MELTED and spilled all over every. single. thing. in my to-​go bag. Which is sad, it was ALL OVER the dumplings, and sadly, was a salty salty mess. So salty, it made the dumplings inedible.
The noodle dish was about the same. not as salty, thank goodness they survived the Dumpling Sauce Flood of 2016, but it was just oily, greasy, mushy mess. The veggies were mush, mush mush, the fish was chewy and tough, and the noodles were under cooked. So much disappointment.

Consider this an open letter to the owners of Bo Ling’s.
First, a little background. Our family has been eating at Bo Ling’s for over 20 years. I’d venture that we’ve eaten at Bo Ling’s restaurants a couple hundred times. We live out of the immediate Kansas City area but are in the city frequently. We’ve eaten at every location through the years except, for no particular reason, the Country Club Plaza location. We eat mostly at the Zona Rosa location, but I work south of KC during the week and will run up to the 135^th & Metcalf location about once or twice a month. So…
Dear Mr. & Mrs. Bo,
What’s going on? You used to be the go-​to choice for quality Chinese in KC. Lately you’ve devolved into a group of restaurants that offers no better than the scores of little strip mall Chinese dives we see all over town, where the buffets offer limp Crab Rangoon and sticky General’s Chicken, and most of the business is carry-​out. Is that really what Bo Ling’s aspires to be?
This past Tuesday I ate dinner at your 135^th & Metcalf location. I was in the restaurant between 6:30 and 7:30, what should be the prime dinner hour. A total of five tables, including mine, were occupied during that hour. Why is that? Metcalf and 135^th Street were filled with traffic as usual. That location sits at one of the busiest intersections in Overland Park, and it’s a bustling retail area. Where are Bo Ling’s diners? We haven’t waited for a table at any Bo Ling’s location in probably five years. Years ago we expected a 15 to 20 minute wait whenever, and wherever, we stepped into a Bo Ling’s.
It’s not the competition. It’s Bo Ling’s obvious neglect of its brand. Consistency of food and service is now inconsistent. You never know what you’re going to get, either on your plates or for a server. The other night I could’ve stood a fork up in my Pad Thai. I know it’s prepared with cornSTARCH, but c’mon. The dish had maybe five shrimp. I used to get at least double that number of large shrimp in the Pad Thai.
A couple months ago my wife was eating with a friend at Zona Rosa. The waiter served the soup before anyone brought silverware. There was no spoon with the soup. When she asked for a soup spoon, the waiter brought a large serving spoon. Yes, he really did. When my wife asked for a soup spoon she was told, «Those are the only spoons we have. Everybody keeps stealing the spoons.» Seriously? He was either too lazy to walk back into the kitchen and get the proper spoon, or he was making excuses for whomever was supposed to be washing silverware. Either reason is inexcusable.
I probably should have never walked through the door the other night. «Why?» you ask. The exterior of the restaurant is atrocious. Bare dirt has replaced any shrubs or flowers that ever grew in the beds. Splotches of chewing gum dot the sidewalk in front of the entrance, and the carpets in the foyer haven’t been vacuumed in a month. «Welcome to Bo Ling’s!»
We long for the old Bo Ling’s.
Sincerely,
Gordy

Sub par food, high prices, unenthusiastic staff. That’s all you need to know.
My wife and I went to Bo Lings and although only 4 other tables were taken, we had to wait quite a while to get seated (keep in mind we’re the only ones waiting for a table) because the hostess was nowhere to be found. I’m sure you don’t care too much about my experience with the staff, but Good News! the staff was nonexistent except for getting our drinks, having our order taken, and being given the food…
The food was overpriced, my wife received cold chicken for sweet and sour chicken, and it tasted ‘off’. My general tso’s chicken was OK, as in Hy-​Vee chicken OK, but with a steeper price tag.
So if you feel like overpaying for Chinese food that you can get anywhere else, consider Bo Lings.

Went to this restaurant for «Date Night» with my husband. The food was really good, the portions very generous. My only issue is, it’s pretty pricey therefore I wouldn’t come here with my 3 children as it would cost a fortune.

I have always wanted to eat here and finally did with my daughter. We shared a meal due to the prices and it only being lunch. We had an order of crab Rangoon as an appetizer. Our entrée was General Tsos. The food was amazing. Our bill came to over $ 25 for lunch though. We did bring leftovers home. Not sure I will venture back but the food for sure was great.

I have been going to this restaurant for years and tonight was my last night. We ordered the house special sizzling rice and asked for no scallops since my mother doesn’t like scallops. Instead, I asked, to add more chicken in place of the scallops. The meal came and only had a couple of pieces. I spoke to the waitress and than the manager and the response was I could pay $ 3 extra to get more chicken. I replied, «I had the scallops taken out and requested more chicken in lieu of the scallops.» The response fell on deaf ears. The manager didn’t care. This restaurant is very close to where I live and was always convenient. However, in the years I went I never felt welcome or that they wanted my business so after tonight I will not go back. Bo Ling’s on 135^th obviously don’t care about their frequent patrons.

Stopped in for a repeat of a meal I had at Bo Lings on the Plaza. really disappointed to discover that the «Winter Specials“are only offered at the Plaza location. Soooo instead of the Shrimp Wonton Noodle Bowl (AMAZING) I settled for sizzling rice soup (a perfectly acceptable alternative but not quite what I was craving). Also had a special request — baby bok choy add chicken. At first they argued with me that they could not make this (I’ve always order this at Bo Lings) and finally the lady decided that for $ 3.00 more she could make it happen. The food was pretty good — not as amazing as some of the other locations but perfectly acceptable. They did not give any silverware in my togo order which was a bummer. All in all I will return to this location but not my first choice.

Very inconsistent quality here. We have dined in and ordered carry out. Even though the server reviewed what we ordered for carry out, it was not what we ordered. We kept trying to like it but last Sunday was the final straw — shrimp with lobster sauce came as egg drop soup with shrimp. We won’t be back.

Service: 3.5÷5 nice server, but she kept moving everything on the table. We moved drinks and plates where they were comfortable, she moved them back where she originally placed them, we moved them again, she moved them all again when she came with the food. It was entertaining.
Food: 3.5÷5 Generic Asian fusion very well executed. This is billed as Chinese but they have Vietnamese, Korean and Thai dishes mixed in as well. My parents really enjoyed everything they ate, so it makes sense that the restaurant has adapted to the pallets of their audience — smart business move. I found everything a bit more sweet and bit more Americanized than I am used to.
Drinks: 3.5÷5 They offer beer, wine, cocktails. We had wine and beer at the table, but didn’t try any mixed drinks — they offer a full range that looks interesting including multiple mule options.

I wish the waitress were a little nicer but the food was fabulous. I personally love the Kung poa chicken!

I notice that other reviews rate this restaurant as excellent. The food was good, but I just can’t say I think it was excellent. We ordered the pan fried dumplings (potstickers) which had a nice flavor. I ordered Pad Thai noodles with chicken. Nice flavors and good size portion with large slices of white breast chicken and small cubes of deep fried tofu. The person I was with ordered General Tso’s Chicken. This was served with white rice and steamed broccoli. Crispy deep fried chicken and a rich, spicy sauce.

Fried rice is fresh. My 18 month old daughter hates egg. But she loved the egg in their fried rice!

Service is always friendly. Quality of the food is great. Have enjoyed everything I have ordered. Food is always hot and portions large enough to share. The egg rolls are huge and tasty. A favorite of our family.

Now I know why the carry out is so busy… the food is great but the dinning service is sooooooo slowwwww.

The finer side of good quality Chinese food. Not another stupid buffet. Healthy steamed vegetables, fantastic duck anything, orange sauce on anything, lettuce wraps and no MSG. Also great hot tea, including organic jasmine. what else could you need!

They always have good general tso’s here, and will make dishes without msg if you ask. I like the crispy wontons they give you as an appetizer. Ive never had a bad meal here and would definitely recommend it to friends.

Service was excellent. Egg Drop soup was ok not as good as other Chinese restaurant along 135^th St really disappointed in it. Had steamed shrimp and veggies, Large shrimp and crisp fresh vegetables excellent.. Pot of jasmine tea was very good. Prices for entrees and soup on the pricey side. Very clean and pleasant atmosphere.

The duck I ordered not good. Not seasoned, it was dry. I just didn’t understand it I guess?
Everything else everyone ordered in my group was OK.
The portions are meant for a small family. But the ambiance is fantastic.

I chose this place because they advertise to be gluten free. I did my research of their menu and selected what I wanted to eat from their gluten free selections. When I sat at the table and ordered my food, the lady corrected me and said that the vegetable fried rice was not gluten free (even though it had said so on their website). I said ok, being gluten free was very important for my dish so I ordered plain white rice. When she brought out my soup, she also brought out crunchy fried noodle things. I knew better than to eat them. With my meal, she brought me a Crab Rangoon. When I asked if I could eat all these things, she said «well, I guess those aren’t gluten free.» I made it very clear and was very disappointed in their gluten awareness when that is part of their advertising.
The food I ordered was a my table within 3 minutes. I found this very helpful as I went during the lunch rush. Food itself was good as well.

I’ve eaten at Bo Ling’s for most of my adult life. All their stores are the same standard of good food. We stopped in here on our date night with a taste for some classics. I had the General’s Chicken.
This dish has not changed since I first had it more than 20 years ago. The all breast cuts of chicken are juicy. The breading is not soggy and has a great texture. The sauce is tasty (it’s not spicy to me, so I kick it up with some hot sauce). The mix of broccoli and carrots rounds out the dish. Just excellent. Consistent. Perfect taste with memories of many past visits.
The marks off come from a sticky table indicative of years of wear. Also, the seat I was on was cracked with those sharp edges of vinyl poking me in the leg. I guess that’s really the only thing I can think of that might be a complaint. It was once a fancy place to eat for a date, and I think it still can be, if they update the tables and chairs. :-)
I highly recommend Bo Ling’s either way. The food and service is so good, the seating doesn’t really matter.