Mama Chow’s Kitchen

Hands down the best noodles in Portland! The lolli pop wings are amazing and the service is outstanding! These guys are the best!

Jeff Chow is a righteous dude serving some delicious Chinese inspired comfort food.
Noodles that are chewy crispy and a garlicky spicy broth with Bok Choy. hand formed dumplings and wontons that are on point and chicken wings that are some of the best crispy delights in town.
You can only go wrong if you don’t make it in time before the Asian express runs out of steam or #yummies for the day!
Jeff is not only a friend, but a great cook.
We look forward to seeing what other amazing dishes he will turn out given a little more space to stretch those culinary muscles.

I was in the mood for chinese, and found this food cart during my stay in Portland. Menu is very small (it is a food cart.), but thats not really an issue. They’re known for their lollipop wings and garlic noodles I believe, of which I had both for lunch.
Really enjoyed my meal. I wish there were more wings (it came with white rice), but I had the garlic noodles (I asked for spicy) to help fill me up. Everything was made fresh, and remained fresh even though it took me 15 minutes to get back to the office. Really enjoyed my experience here.

This is another food truck. Sadly I didn’t get to try their lollipop wings because it was sold out. But I did get to try the garlic noodles and it was so delicious. It has a slight crunch and crisp to it, while not being too heavy or salty. You can choose a level of spiciness too which gives it another extra kick. I got mild which was perfect enough for me.
I also got the Kula pork which you can get on top of the garlic noodles or jasmine rice. The pork is super tender and soft! Goes really well with the garlic noodles!
The owners here are SO kind. I came here back to back with my gf and they remembered us and sold out of the wings so they gave us their 1 last piece for free and the wonton for free as well! Also recommended is more places to eat and hit up!

I got their pork and shrimp dumplings and garlic noodles. So delicious!!! Garlic noodles are so well seasoned and the service is great. Definitely planning on coming back when I visit again!

Mama Chow’s reminded me of Chinese fast food (fried, strong flavors) with authentic ingredients like Bok Choy and a home cooked style. It’s definitely one of my favorite of the downtown food carts for taste, presentation, and friendliness.
Lollipop wings and garlic noodles are two big hits here, and the combo is a delicious but heavy meal. It was difficult for me to finish everything. Note: if you get the two together you get a different Asian vegetable, not Bok Choy. For both, I found the sauce to be a bit heavy and salty, the kind that leaves a taste in your mouth for awhile after. Luckily, in addition to hot sauce and garlic toppings, Mama Chows also offers jolly ranchers as a nice post-​meal treat.
Overall a pleasant experience but not a meal I’d repeat often due to the heaviness of the food and flavor.

Garlic noodles, so good. Just a bit of heat, bok choy had great chew and flavor. Really top
Notch.

No surprise based on the reviews, but this place is delicious. I love dumplings and will eat them at all opportunities — these chicken dumplings were really awesome. Thin skinned, steamed through and seared on the outside. A nice texture even when I got them back to the office. The chicken inside was tender and garlicky, some of the best I’ve had in Portland (most have too much cabbage and are too thick skinned).
I upgraded and got the dumplings over the garlic noodles. Very good call. The noodles had a great crust from the wok. The chili sauce on the side was a solid medium level, with a great smoky element from properly toasted chills. The onion relish on the side looked great, but I ate too fast to add it.

I had pork over spicy garlic noodles with Yi at Mama Chow’s kitchen during my road trip from Seattle back to San Francisco. It was amazing! The best garlic noodles I’ve ever had. The garlic and spicy source were combined perfectly, noodles were fresh. Before I left Portland, I wanted to order more garlic noodles but it was sold out. So I ordered chicken wings which were also very good, but spicy garlic noodles were the best. The owner was extremely nice and suggested some good restaurants to us in Portland and San Francisco. I have been dreaming about Mama Chow’s kitchen all the time in California! Next time I visit Portland, it is probably because of the spicy garlic noodles.
Hopefully someday Yi can make garlic noodle for me.:)

The garlic noodles are seriously like crack, so addicting and seriously so good. Now that I know I have a gluten intolerance and can’t have the garlic noodles it makes me so sad! They do have some GF options, but I hope one day they’ll have some GF garlic noodles too!

Got the wings over rice. Overall not too shabby. Wasn’t the greatest thing out there but it works. The wings had meat and the noodles had that chewiness I like. I wanted to love this place but nothing that special. Wouldn’t mind eating this stuff for lunch maybe every other week.

Yasssssss!!! Chicken wings over noodles, to die for!!! My tummy is so happy right now. I’ve been in Portland for almost a year now and I’ve been craving good Chinese food, this is it!!! Authentic! Their sauces are amazing as well!!!
Love it!!!

I like garlic. I often ask for extra at Thai places, which completely baffles them.
Mama Chow’s gets it. I don’t even have to ask, they just are perfect. Enough. Each bowl is a dreamy combo of chewy noodles, tender meat or dumplings or chicken, a bit of crispy bok choy, spice and an oily sauce-​I have no idea whats in it, but I wouldn’t go without it.
The Kalua pork is the best I’ve had, while most go for sweet, theirs is smokey and divine, the lollipop chicken are on the small side, but you get a good amount and they are spiced well. Excellent dumplings.
Always friendly and apologetic for the wait. Go in assuming there will be a wait, totally worth it. Plus, Second Avenue Records is right across the street!

Must try food truck!!!
Driving downtown Portland there’s a lot of food trucks! However, I noticed at the glance of my eye a food truck that has light blue colors and wooden walls for their food truck! It reminded me of a childhood feeling
My girlfriend and I decided to stop there to try the food!
The owner was great and he created this family welcome feeling.
Please please get the chicken lollipops and their garlic noodles!
Taste is amazing and rich! You can’t get that Chinese comfort food!

After reading so many rave reviews about this place I thought I’d stop here to grab lunch. The dumplings were sold out by the time we got there around 2pm, but everything else was available for order.
I got the lollipop wings and garlic noodles which came in a very generous portion. It was good, but sadly didn’t live up to my high expectations. Still, it was s quick, tasty meal that I thought was worth the $ 11 I spent.

I was MIND BLOWN my Mama Chow’s Kitchen and I spent the latter half of our Portland trip looking for this cart because it only opened for such little time. It’s away from downtown where the rest of the carts were, which is perfect for me because that should mean shorter lines.
We get there when it opens, lines about 8 people long all waiting to order. That’s how you know this place is murdering their business and their quality and customer service is TOP NOTCH. I mean best worst kept secret because it’s so amazing in all the ways imaginable.
They call their chicken wings, LOLLIPOP WINGS how adorable is that? And it’s coming from me– a person not into mushy and cutesy things like that. They were so crispy on the outside with a sweet glaze and juicy AF on the inside that burns the tongue to the bite. I love how they expose and break the wing apart so you can use the bone almost like a stick to hold onto the wings without getting your hands too messy.
We’ve been eating all morning so we decided to share an entrée. We got the Lollipop wings with the garlic noodles instead of the rice for an extra +1 and it was bomb. The garlic noodles were spicier than I had expected, but it exploded with flavors that my mouth couldn’t resist. It’s topped with generous amounts of lollipop wings and a some nicely steamed veggies and green onions. It comes on the side with this amazing dipping sauce and you need to try it.
I wished I could of had everything on their menu since it sounded so amazing, so it’s all the reason to come back. Plus the cart itself has some seating on the side for you to enjoy. Their logo is the CUTEST thing ever and I mean presentation in their food and their cart is beyond what you’d except from a food cart. But that’s why their business thrives because they know exactly what they’re doing.
Thanks Portland from Winnie’s taste buds (and wallet).

Came here for lunch today. Tried the wings. Very juicy inside and the sauce was very tasty. I usually like them crispy, so maybe will order them that way. It took a bit to get order, but they were clearly cooked fresh which I will always wait for. Baby boy choi was pleasant and rice was fluffy.
I hoped for 1 more wing for the $, but not complaining too much.
Nice service and was popular spot off 2^nd
I will come back for the noodles and Khalua pig…

Amazing fried lollipop chicken with garlic noodles I had for my lunch. It was super hot today well into the mid 90’s and I was in two minds whether I should have a fried and spicy lunch, but going by the stellar reviews I went for it. Wasn’t disappointed either. the chicken was flavorful and crispy goodness, the star of the show was the spicy garlic noodles it came with. not the most healthiest meal but hey, its well worth it to eat some fried goodness from time to time.

We arrived to Mama Chow’s for a late lunch, and unfortunately Jeff was basically sold out, but luckily for us, he had just enough chicken wings for two orders which he expertly prepared. The combination of soy and garlic with a hint of sweetness really balanced the flavors and the crispiness of the wings added a nice textures. The wings came with a side of Chinese vegetables (choy sum was the fresh pick of the day) over a bed of Jasmine rice. $ 8 for the bowl which is a little pricey for a food truck, but the value is there with the amount of food that you get.
Like many other reviewers noted, Jeff’s hospitality and friendliness really put eating at his truck a true dining experience. Jeff offered us fresh chilled lychee while we waited, and he even gave us a side of Kalua pork because he felt bad that he had run out of food… seriously?! What an amazing gesture!
Monday-​Friday, lunch only. Enjoy!

It was honestly the cute little design of the cart that first attracted me to this place. It’s a bit isolated from the block of carts and stands just around the corner and can sometimes be overlooked with a full lots of cars surrounding it… I’m certainly glad I discovered this place cause it’s become one of my favorite lunch spots downtown!
I love the compact menu, you get simplicity but such quality and fulfillment. My go-​to dish is the Spicy Garlic Noodles w/​Lollipop Chicken! It comes with a plentiful portion of so much flavor and deliciousness. I could say the same for all of his menu items, dumplings are mouthwatering, and he even does the kalua pork justtttt right too ;).
The owner is the friendliest, well deserving of a 5 star review!