Welcome to City-Data.com Forum!
U.S. CitiesCity-Data Forum Index
Go Back   City-Data Forum > U.S. Forums > Maine > Portland area
 [Register]
Portland area Portland, ME metro area
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
View detailed profile (Advanced) or search
site with Google Custom Search

Search Forums  (Advanced)
 
Old 06-16-2013, 08:12 PM
 
Location: Maine
2,272 posts, read 6,672,397 times
Reputation: 2563

Advertisements

Sine I have moved back to the Portland area (after many years away), I have been searching for the best Chinese food. For an area with some of the best restaurants in the country, the pickings for Chinese seem pretty slim.

Now, I am not a "foodie", and when I say a Chinese restaurant, I mean an good ol' Americanized Chinese restaurant. But with fresh ingredients. Nice crispy fried dumplings, kung po that actually has some kick to it, etc.

I was getting some food from Lotus here in Falmouth, and it was ok (not great but better than some), but it just closed.

I have tried Oriental Table in the Old Port twice and was unimpressed. Same with Valley on Forrest Ave, Jan Mee, and Panda Garden.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message

 
Old 06-17-2013, 11:21 AM
 
54 posts, read 85,137 times
Reputation: 107
I tried about every Chinese resturant in Portland and I prefer Valley Chinese though there isnt really any great chinese resturants in the town. Most of them are ok and the only one that made me want to throw up was the Wok In. Fortune Garden has some pretty good fried dumplings. Imperial Chinese near the Maine Mall had pretty good general tso's chicken.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 06-18-2013, 06:25 AM
 
506 posts, read 684,508 times
Reputation: 704
If you are ever in Central Maine, Waterville has always been a good place to find some decent Chinese food. I always go to Ming Lee, but there are a few others as well. Ming has good/consistent food, quick service and is affordable. The dining room/atmosphere is OK.......beware, it is almost ALWAYS busy!

* Take Out - Waterville, ME - Ming Lee Chinese Restaurant
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 06-18-2013, 07:27 AM
 
Location: Maine
1,151 posts, read 2,038,956 times
Reputation: 1848
Quote:
Originally Posted by IHeartMaine View Post
If you are ever in Central Maine, Waterville has always been a good place to find some decent Chinese food. I always go to Ming Lee, but there are a few others as well. Ming has good/consistent food, quick service and is affordable. The dining room/atmosphere is OK.......beware, it is almost ALWAYS busy!

* Take Out - Waterville, ME - Ming Lee Chinese Restaurant
I'll second Ming Lee. It is the best Chinese food I've had anywhere I've been.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 06-24-2013, 01:41 PM
 
177 posts, read 408,399 times
Reputation: 339
Chia Sen over by Marden's in South Portland/Scarborough. Also, Happy Garden - they deliver.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 06-25-2013, 11:10 PM
 
Location: on a dirt road in Waitsfield,Vermont
2,186 posts, read 6,828,966 times
Reputation: 1148
I too don't remember any great chinese restaurants in the Portland area but there is a great place for Thai take-out. Veintiane Thai Market just off Brighton Ave maybe a couple of miles east of Lowes. Low prices great food. There are a couple of tables but it's mostly for take-out. We would get some take-out then go over to the Eastern Promonade and eat at one of the picnic tables by the bay.
Vientiane Market - Portland, ME
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 07-22-2013, 01:32 PM
 
Location: Scarborough, ME
177 posts, read 410,652 times
Reputation: 186
Okay, this topic is near and dear to me, because I grew up in Seattle where there are tons of great Chinese restaurants, and I love good Chinese food. Love it. I moved to Portland 5 years ago and have been on a mission to find a good place ever since. I've tried all of the restaurants mentioned so far, except for the one in Watertown, and they were all disappointing. Low quality, tasteless, bad. HOWEVER, last month I tried Koi in Biddeford on the recommendation of a neighbor and had a really great dinner. I tried everyone's meal that I was with and they were all very good, so it's not just a case of me getting the one good menu item. The place is clean, servers friendly, and prices reasonable.

Try it out - I think it's worth the drive.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 08-30-2013, 04:41 PM
 
26 posts, read 59,396 times
Reputation: 25
Chia Sia near Mardens is okay. It's not consistent. We've had good meals and lousy ones!

If you are ever in the Farmington area, definitely make a stop at Jade Palace. We lived in the Boston area many years. The Chinese food is authentic and delicious. So, you can imagine my disappointment when we moved to the Portland area. A couple of years ago, we visited some friends who teach at the University of Farmington. They took us to their favorite restaurant, Jade Palace. Let me just say, it reminded me of some restaurants in Boston. Amazing! We learned from our friends that current and former employees, and suppliers are loyal customers. We even witnessed with our own eyes the owners and their family eating what they serve. That says something! Each time we visit Farmington or head up to Sugar Loaf, Jade Palace is one stop we always make.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.

Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.


Reply
Please update this thread with any new information or opinions. This open thread is still read by thousands of people, so we encourage all additional points of view.

Quick Reply
Message:


Settings
X
Data:
Loading data...
Based on 2000-2022 data
Loading data...

123
Hide US histogram


Over $104,000 in prizes was already given out to active posters on our forum and additional giveaways are planned!

Go Back   City-Data Forum > U.S. Forums > Maine > Portland area
Similar Threads

All times are GMT -6. The time now is 07:37 AM.

© 2005-2024, Advameg, Inc. · Please obey Forum Rules · Terms of Use and Privacy Policy · Bug Bounty

City-Data.com - Contact Us - Archive 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37 - Top