4. Restaurants

Yenching Restaurant

1326 Massachusetts Ave, Cambridge, MA, 02138
  • (617) 547-1130
  • Store is closed

Yenching Restaurant Menu

  • Appetizers
  • Cold Appetizers
  • Soup
  • Kung Pao Style
  • Yu Hsiang Style

Healthy Meal suggestions for Yenching Restaurant

  • Appetizers
  • Cold Appetizers
  • Soup
  • Kung Pao Style
  • Yu Hsiang Style

Sorry, We are updating this restaurant blood pressure menu details.

Sorry, We are updating this restaurant cholesterol menu details.

  • Snowdrops C.

    OK food, but the manager is rather obnoxious. He is occasionally rude or snarky to his clients, and lately he has been including tip on all bills, including groups of two (and a rather generous 20% tip at that!) When asked, he claims it is to help "European and Asian tourists." For years, Harvard Square has had few good alternatives to this place - but now I think I'll stick to the Chinese food truck on Oxford Street or the Kong...

    (2)

  • Huang Y.

    NEVER EVER come to this restaurant, unless if u want to be treated like a beggar. We asked for ice cube, the owner baldy guy sarcastically kept asking why do we need ice cube. We were asking for small empty bowl for sharing the soup from the waiter. Again, the baldy guy fiercely asked to the waiter, why do we need the bowl. Duhh, we're not gonna dig in from the whole pot. Do we need to be asked everything we ask for utensils? Don't open restaurant business then, just open a small kiosk selling bottle water, if u don't want to give service. Then we asked for the bill, the baldy guy gave the handwriting bill and asked us to pay with the total after he added the tip based on what he wanted us to tip him. When we tried to confirm with him, he yelled at us, just to pay the total amount that he wanted. Is this the way he treated the tourists all the time? BAD SERVICE & DEMAND CERTAIN TIP AMOUNT????? If u are from mainland China, don't bring your culture to AMERICA. If u want to make business in here, follow the culture in here by being polite. Don't think that u make business in front of Harvard University with most of tourists & students, u can deceive & treat all of them with this kind of attitude. If possible, i will give minus for the restaurant rating.

    (1)

  • Guannan Q.

    The food is quite ok. But the service is really terrible.. Worst one around Harvard square. Especially the waitress who also seems to be the manager. Today she rejected to give me a table, in an very impolite way, as if she was my boss. The reason she gave was that another person in my party was not present yet. She gave tables to the people behind me in the line instead, and 'ordered' me to wait. I was very hungry then, and was really pissed off. I felt like I was not the customer but her employee that she could command. And it is very sarcastic that this restaurant even dares automatically charge 20% gratitude...

    (1)

  • Xin Z.

    Food is okay. Really really bad service, bad attitude!! The owner is the worst! The worst ever seen...

    (1)

  • Katherine S.

    Appalled at the service I received. I clearly voiced my order of tempura and Kung pao tofu with brown rice. I informed the man at the front desk when my appetizer was absent when the others came--he asked, "Are you kidding?"; the appetizer--which was a salt mine--came with my entrée, which also came later than my friend's & family's; the brown rice didn't appear until I gently reminded my waitress; the waitress automatically tipped herself 20% when the check arrived, & since the original check was in Chinese we couldn't really cross-check the prices--and she didn't care that we were very disappointed. I'm one to roll with slight service punches, like food that falls below my expectations, but when a business pats itself on the back with an automatic tip while thinking it can brush off horrible service, it doesn't deserve to be encouraged with further patronizing.

    (1)

  • Siyang F.

    THE SERVICE IS HORRIBLE! I'm not trying to exaggerate anything. Here's the story. When my friend and I sat down and looked at the menu, we asked for recommendation on non-spicy seafood dishes. The waitress simply told us that every seafood dish is either sweet and sour or not sweet or sour, which is pretty much the same as saying nothing. And she got immediately impatient when she saw our hesitant reaction to her "exhaustive" recommendation. Then we asked the host for recommendation. He simply said: "NONE OF THEM IS GOOD." Well, here you see, my one star goes for his honesty. Later on we asked for the check, we found out that we got automatically charged for a tip of 18%. Please point out my ignorance, but I have never encountered such charging policy except at some clubs. But hey, we are not that drunk yet, so, if the restaurant wanted to auto-tip up to 18%, it might be reasonable for me to inquire for some kind of explanations. Seven dollar is by no means a small amount for tips, especially when service sucks to such an extent. However, when I asked the host about it, the host stared at me, as I am a kid suffering from dementia, saying: "18% tip for dinner, 18% tip for dinner" while nodding along. I was literally disgusted by his attitude so I said ok and shut up. My friend was paying for the dinner. Since she came from Spain, she was new to America's tipping stuff. She asked the host if she should give an additional tip. He said, with extremely sarcastic tone, "No no no, the tip is already included. DIDN'T YOUR TEACHER (me) TEACH YOU THAT?" She couldn't understand what he meant. What he meant was that my questioning on it was taken as knowing how to give legit tips. And if I know tips so well, then I am supposed to be a Professor of Tips and to teach my friend all the rules about leaving tips. But I forgot to teach my friend this during our dinner, instead we were too busy talking about other fun stuff. Oops my bad. As a result, due to my irresponsibility, my friend was provided with a complimentary service called "BEING PUBLICLY EMBARRASSED BY THE HOST OF YEN CHING". Then my friend gave him receipt. He said, "You forgot your signature! DIDN'T YOUR TEACHER TEACH YOU THAT? Huh! DIDN'T YOUR TEACHER TEACH YOU THAT? DIDN'T YOUR TEACHER TEACH YOU THAT? Huh! DIDN'T YOUR TEACHER TEACH YOU THAT?" He asked for about six times and it started to sound like a rap. Meanwhile my friend kept shaking her head, implying him to stop embarrassing both of us. BUT HE simply WON'T STOP. We got out of there as soon I was done with being interrogated for my poor teaching in tips. Good talk. For the sake of pride of being a Chinese and bad bad teacher of tips, I would never step into this restaurant again.

    (1)

  • Kirby L.

    the owner here is extremely rude. I walked in with four friends and politely asked what region his chef was from in order to figure out what style of Chinese food this place serves up. (I am Chinese by heritage) He replied flippantly that the chef is Chinese. Then when I asked the waitress he interrupts and says that the chef is "North American" and that I should just go home and eat my moms cooking or stop being so picky. Then he serves up more attitude by asking if I've been to Beijing and that people in Beijing are from everywhere. I replied I had been to Beijing and he says "So what you've been to Beijing? Is that where your Mom from?" Setting all this aside, I've eaten here before and the food tastes like shit. it's extremely greasy and over salted. Everything tastes like its been reheated and is soggy.

    (1)

  • Shanti S.

    Abosutly the worst experience for dine-in. And they force you to pay 18% tip for lunch but their service don't even worth for a penny!!!!! We were waiting for 50 mins for the first dish to come, and the whole meal took us 1.5 hour. Small portion and not tasty at all!!! DO NOT GO!!!

    (1)

  • Vivian W.

    they charge 20% service fee which is included in the final bill. since I received extremely rude service there, I told them I would only pay 15% because it's my right and that's what they deserve. Then the owner laughed at me. what kind of place is this? can anybody tell me? Also, the three of us had three backpacks so we wanted to sit at a table with four chairs. owner said no. when we asked why, he said because the table is reserved. Two minutes later, another group of three came in. owner asked how many and said sit wherever you like. So the three of them sat at the exact same table we asked for, no objections there! Why? who knows. maybe because we are not white americans. I should laugh at him instead, ha ha ha!

    (1)

  • Jess L.

    This is a great go-to restaurant in Harvard Square. It's pretty authentic, and -- even though it's weird to point out -- the waitresses who work here speak beautifully. It's as if they were actresses on the side and have learned to truly enunciate and appreciate Chinese. As for the ambiance, it's not really anything special. The lights are a little harsh, and there are minimal decorations. However, the menu is extensive, and the food is tasty. You will go home with leftovers no matter how hard you try.

    (4)

  • z k.

    Good quality food served fast and hot for a great price in the heart of Harvard Square. Yenching has been around for at least the 20 years that I have been coming here, and it's probably been around quite a lot longer. They serve Mandarin Chinese food that is well done, not greasy, and a notch above many other restaurants at this tier. The lunch specials average about $8.50 and come with a properly crispy spring roll (with real "duck sauce" hunks of pineapple in it), soup, plate of your choosing (20 or so dishes), rice, and jasmine tea. Everything arrives quickly and hot. The interior is clean and welcoming, and the staff are friendly and rapid. Simply put - an excellent dining choice in the heart of Harvard Square!

    (5)

  • Aanchal J.

    I walked past this place almost everyday, but had never thought of going inside. One day the restaurant we were planning to go to had a big wait time, and we decided to give Yenching a try. And we were not disappointed. The food was nice and fresh, the favors brilliant and authentic. The service could have been slightly better, but it was still good. Definitely going back :)

    (4)

  • Charles C.

    The worst service I have ever seen in Boston for years. Unless you are going to death without food, never come to this restaurant! Sincerely!

    (1)

  • Bhushan D.

    Very rude staff and very bad service. They served cold soup and took over 30 minutes to give hot sauce. servers were standing at corner eating instead of serving customers. They also dint bought entire order together. By the time last dish came first one was done eating. They added tips directly on check and when we refused to pay tips lady started fighting. I will not recommend anyone to this restaurant.

    (1)

  • Kristen S.

    Came here after we were disappointed by Bartleys being closed so we were not in the best of spirits. We were quickly seated- a very friendly woman was right on it with service. We had a large party and she was personable (and funny) with my children, who were very hungry. Food was an excellent deal and definitely worth the 8.50 linch special price. Beef dishes were very tender. Not chewy. I did not specifically request white meat with my chicken so I expected fatty chunks of thigh meat but it was excellent and tender as well. It was a bit salty-my only complaint. We all thought the food was very fresh. As we were leaving, our server was preparing wontons at a work table near by-so you know its house made and fresh! It was holiday time so school was not in session and we didn't have to wait. I can't imagine that's the situation when Harvard square is busy, but it's worth a try!

    (3)

  • Jane Z.

    Worst Chinese restaurant ever. Cheap ingredients. The daily soup looks very gross and is made with super old bamboo shoots. Only fat meat in mei gan cai pork belly.

    (1)

  • Esther C.

    Food: We entered excited and hungry, but we left the restaurant having only finished one of three dishes that we had ordered. The other two were completely inedible: one was way too salty and the other just tasted like something had gone bad. Service: I've never encountered such rude behavior in my life. It is not even about customer service; there was not an ounce of human decency in the way they treated us. They were incredibly curt and dismissive for no reason. It made me wonder if the pride of having a relatively successful restaurant had gotten to their heads. We were so disappointed and left in disbelief that the restaurant could continue to run this way. Note: This review was posted upon the persistent requests of my mother. Dictated by my Korean mom, translated and typed up by yours truly.

    (1)

  • Andrew L.

    My Chinese friends (from China) love to hate on this place since it's not "authentic," but between this and the Kong I'd choose this any day. I like the Yu Hsiang pork, and the fried rice. I don't find either to be particularly greasy/unhealthy feeling when compared to places in Chinatown. Really, probably one of the better values in Harvard Square for restaurants in general, and compares favorably to similar restaurants elsewhere in Boston.

    (4)

  • Gedi T.

    The food here is awesome. It is located very close to Harvard, a great place to eat for students.

    (4)

  • Poh Y.

    Food was okay, nothing fantastic. The man that met me at the door (i think he is the owner) was not very friendly. I was supposed to meet a friend for dinner but arrived slightly earlier. i asked for a table for two and he told me to take a sit at bench by the entrance (seats for those waiting for a take out). I asked again after 10 mins and he says that the entire party has to be here before we can be seated. That was fair. But others who came in without their party complete were seated before me. I would have walked out if not for it being a little late. And the waitress added on 18% service charge without even asking.

    (3)

  • david k.

    Worst Chinese restaurant EVER!! Right there next to Harvard University. Very disappointing. The owner has an attitude. The food was salty, all meats were overcooked. My wife took one bite and went out for a sandwich. For family of 4, 20% gratuity automatically added. When I said I will pay my own tip, the owner threw the receipt at me. He said next time go to McDonald's. I wish I had. Bad food, bad service and bad attitude. Crappy restaurant.

    (1)

  • Sasha H.

    I can't really explain why I don't like this place that much. The food quality, objectively speaking, is much better than the nearby Kong, but for some reason I can't bring myself to enjoy this restaurant. While the Kong is greasy and sort of off-putting in that sense, there is a time and place for greasy, artery clogging, guilty pleasures. The food here is all sort of bland tasting. I feel like they try to over season it with salt to make up for it, but generally when I'm here the food just tastes sort of plain and sometimes slightly charred. The best dish I've had here is a noodle bowl, which was actually not that bad, probably because it was soup based. However, I'd like to note that this place has an awesomely nice staff. The owner is always really cheerful and I've always had great waitresses.

    (3)

  • Nan W.

    Lousy service and the boss has a very bad attitude. Lucky that I don't have to go there ever again.

    (1)

  • M K.

    No star at all !!!! Should not be a restaurant. Worst chinese restaurant in my life. Food had weird smell and color and texture ! Dish was small like kid'meal, small bowl of rice has to be paid extra to get.

    (1)

  • Junjie L.

    Convenient location. Food was less than mediocre. Sometimes the boss didn't have a good attitude.

    (2)

  • Frederic M.

    It was a Chinese friend of mine who took me to this place for my first Yenching dinner. I trusted her with the ordering, which she did in Mandarin. I had no idea what kind of food to expect. I was pleasantly surprised. After the meal, I asked my friend to write down (in English, preferably) what she had ordered. I have been eating the same things ever since when visiting Yenching. It thus highly recommend the "Sai Woo Crispy Fish" and the "Mandarin Cabbage with mushrooms". Don't forget to order a bowl of white rice with that (at $1 a bowl). Overall, Yenching offers good food at a reasonable price. It is conveniently located in Harvard Square. And while I wouldn't go there every day, I must admit I have monthly "Sai Woo" cravings that guide me back to good old Yenching.

    (4)

  • Cecilia H.

    Please avoid this restaurant if possible. If yelp allowed I would give this restaurant 0 star. I ate here for lunch today. When I got my check for $29.91. They suggested I pay $35.31. I assumed that the $35.31 included 20% tips. Although the quality of the food was not that good I already decided to give them 20% tips. However when I got the actual check. On the check the pretip amount was already $35.31. The tip is supposedly customarily tendered not enforced. When I asked them to reissue the check with the right pretip amount, they began to yell dirty words at me and gave me several checks with different amounts to sign. I signed the $29.91 one leaving No Tip!! Still seriously doubt they might play trick by overcharging my credit card. I will keep an eye on it.

    (1)

  • Kelly R.

    I once would have given Yenching a solid 3, but now I say: people who don't like Yenching have never tried the house special fried rice or the Shanghai stir-fried rice cakes. The latter is to die for.

    (4)

  • Pam C.

    Yenching is awesome. Seriously the best. The family that run the restaurant is an adorable Asian couple - they remind me of my parents. When I get take out on a cold day they yell at me for biking in sandals, and chastise me when I don't speak Chinese to them. In terms of your two Chinese options in Harvard Square, Yenching is the older couple whose apartment is dark at midnight, and the Kong is the 20-something neighbor who's always puking in the hall at 3am. Yenching doesn't escape the overwhelming greasiness that tends to plague Chinese food, but the food definitely tastes pretty good. I love their beef chow fun (wide rice noodles) - the beef is pretty tender and the noodles aren't so excessively greasy that it's gross. The chow fun at the Kong tends to be thicker and clumped together - Yenching does it way better. It's slightly more expensive than the Kong, and doesn't stay open as late, but if given the choice I would definitely always pick Yenching. They have a pretty awesome lunch menu - you get a full serving of a dish quite a few different sides: crispy egg rolls, soup, and sometimes fried rice. Yenching is a popular place for Chinese New Years so it gets ridiculously hectic - I remember last Chinese New Years Eve, they ran out of food at 8pm-ish.

    (4)

  • Fan L.

    Still can't choose any Chinese restaurant, cause most time I expect more. Like, the Spice Wonton, Wonton itself was ``let's say "fine", but they use the sweet peanut butter as souse! For all the Chinese ppl's sake, plz do not use that anymore,PLEASE! Maybe just make it like Wonton Soup would be much better! Arrrr....I'd rather cook by myself~

    (2)

  • Lorraine W.

    Worst restaurant in my recent experience. Location is good, price is reasonable. However, service is really bad. I ordered spicy oil dumpling, but was served with some dumplings covered by pink color unknown sticky source. Apparently its mistake made by the kitchen. The waitress refused to change, not even bring any water for us to wash away the sticky source. In the end, despite rude service, they charged 25% service charge, directly in the bill. Really unhappy with the experience.

    (1)

  • Claire C.

    The custom service sucks!! SUCKS!! Food was okay but the waiter even counted tips in the final bill!! I wish I have never been there for lunch cause the custom service ruined my good mood with Chinese food. NEVER GO THERE. 如果yelp有零星我一定会选的，这是我到过的服务最差的餐厅。

    (1)

  • Eric C.

    On our last visit, we discovered that they serve Peking duck here. (Its needs to be booked atleast one day before) The duck was great and I liked it. Although its not as good as the ones served in Beijing (my home town) it is good enough.

    (5)

  • Lisa Y.

    The owner is snarky a lot of times and occasionally good. The predictor is how many people are eating in the restaurant. If he gets lots of business, like during weekends, he treats you like a shit and extremely arrogant. If there is not much business, he usually treats you well. I am not a big fan of his style.

    (2)

  • Catherine Jieying X.

    20ï¼… mandatory service fee for LUNCH!! They even charge for rice and tea per person which is abnormal for Chinese restaurants...taste is just so so...not worth the price at all.

    (1)

  • Zihan W.

    This place kinda sucks. The bowl was dirty when served and we had to change them. But the changed ones were not better. The food was not good either. Either too salty or the material used are not fresh. Each serve was not a full serve too. Environment was ok. And they charged a large tip without asking me.

    (1)

  • Jen Zhenzhen W.

    First time comers be aware! This place charges 18 percent mandatory service fee tho the service is terrible. Upon your arrival, they ask you if you want tea, but they don't tell you that the tea is 3.75 dollars. The handwritten bill is unrecognizable. The stir veggies is cold and it's like it's been there for hours. Rice is mixed with seemingly leftover rice. Chinese dishes not authentic.

    (1)

  • Chen H.

    I rarely comment on Yelp but I just have to say something here. This place probably has the worst services possible. When we got here with a reservation for 16 people, they only gave us a table for 10 people and asked the rest to just stand and wait until something comes up. Then I asked them whether the booklet on the table was the menu, and they said "what do you think it is?" I feel ashamed of them being Chinese and wish that people never come here again.

    (1)

  • Adam T.

    Get the lunch special Lots to choose from and enjoy Students can't go wrong

    (3)

  • Snorkeling W.

    a typical "wok N roll" Chinese restaurant, the food is OK, well, American Chinese food. We walked in around 5PM, Friday. Compare to the crowd outside, we are the only customer in the room. Food serviced quickly, for some dishes, it is kinda "too quick". Just BEWARE, they add about 20% TIP to the bill automatically and NO itemized receipt available.

    (3)

  • Yiqi J.

    I am Chinese. After visiting the newly opened Harvard museum, the 3 of us went to Yenching. It has been years since I have last been there. This restaurant is all about location, being right in the center of Harvard square, but SADLY it's the only thing it still exists. While clearly thriving on tourist money judging by the groups of uniformed people, the owner (or the guy in the front) carried on this air that he disdains tourists, especially mainland chinese i suspect. the lunch orders were standard american chinese lunch fare, with a touch of szhchuan and hunan flavor. Of the five dishes none really stood out, actually they all tasted and looked exactly the same, as if the same sauce were used on all. the waitress kept on spilling drinks on us, and had to come back to clean it. the owner were not all that pleased with her. He asked my friend a couple of time to move her chair around so that others can squeeze by. At the end of the meal, we couldn't wait to leave. The food was probably the worst i had in any Boston area Chinese establishments, albeit one as long standing as Yenching. The owner put a 18% tip on the lunch bill for the 3 of us. I am just appalled. It's not that I cannot calculate my own tip 15% for a bad service. He treats us like we don't know nothing, which I suspect is now customary attitude towards anyone that walks into his door looking like a first time visitor ready to be ripped off, or any Mainland Chinese. Shame on you, Yenching, for treating your own countrymen with distaste. You won't be getting any repeat business from me.

    (1)

  • Karen L.

    Terrible service. Waited very long time to order. The service is the worst ever. I would never visit this restaurant again.

    (1)

  • Chien-yu H.

    The service is very bad. I at least waited 20 minutes for ordering, not to mention having my iced water. Soy milk tasted like water. Not recommend.

    (1)

  • Kavya S.

    Honestly, the food is pretty good if you find the dishes that make you happy. I always order the Kung Pao Tofu and Kan Shua String Beans and split with a friend. The tofu texture is fantastic -- crispy on the outside and chewy on the inside. The string beans are fried to perfection and are perfectly seasoned with spice. The food is greasy, but it's similar to most Chinese restaurants. So why 3 stars then if the food is pretty good, you ask? The service is just so mediocre. They sometimes only take 1 credit card per table (other times take multiple...), take a long time to bring out food, and randomly charge 18% gratuity even if it is only two people dining. Everyone who works at the restaurant is nice, but it's just difficult to enjoy your meal and conversation when you are feeling frustrated about the service. TIP: Consider doing takeout if you are having a chinese food craving -- that way you can enjoy the food without the in-restaurant dining experience!

    (3)

  • Scott K.

    I had the lunch special. The chicken had a fishy after taste. The boneless ribs were good. I couldn't say the service was friendly. I won't becoming back.

    (2)

  • Mattias L.

    I got in late on a Sunday night after a long trip from NY. The man at the front was very welcoming. The meal costed $10.68, and he spared me the 68 cents. As I was waiting I received some water from the waitress without asking. Also, he gave me gratis soup since it was tardy. Just before I left, he said take the menu and next time we'll have the food prepared for you.

    (4)

  • Sorina P.

    Stopped here on a visit to Harvard thinking it would be a decent meal. I was wrong. First off, and in my opinion, the most important factor for any food establishment, is the quality and taste of the food. This place does not meet that criteria. Our Szechuan shrimp was sad looking. The shrimp appeared to be those small pre-frozen kinds, a size up from bay shrimp. The taste was nothing to rave of at all. The kung pao beef was smothered in this brown sauce that was overly salty. Bleah! The pork chop with noodle soup - soup was bland and pork chop was not meaty and looked like it was cooked much earlier in the day. The sauteed string beans were decent. We asked for tea, and we ended up being charged $6-7 for a pot of tea. My 9 yr. old was charged for tea too. I have a problem with this, because tea is usually complimentary at Chinese restaurants! The worst part of the experience, which was mentioned by another dissatisfied Yelper, is an 18% gratutiy was added to our bill. There was no sign or warning that this was their practice. Plus, we only had 2 adults and our 2 children in our party. Pretty standard. Our total bill for 3 very subpar dishes and the string beans came out to $63 and change. VERY DISAPPOINTING! NOT RECOMMENDED! Being across the street from Harvard may make the rent high, but conducting business in this manner can only steer customers away. I sincerely hope the owners will read these reviews and make a change for the better.

    (1)

  • Gong Z.

    The men at the front desk is rude. He shouted at as when we tried to have some free water when we are waiting for a table. The food is terrible and it's not fresh. When people next to us find a worm in the dish, the boss just said its protein and they should take it as a men. When we tried to tip less, we find that the 20% tip is already included in the bill. Not pleasant experience over all.

    (1)

  • A W.

    Many salt are added. The meat is not fresh. Waitress are rude and slow. Wait long time to get ice water, wait another long time to get first dish. The last dish came more than 5 minutes after we finished others. I requested for check and got it after more than 15 minutes. There were only four tables at that time. 18% tips will be added automatically no matter u have one or ten. Tips were calculated using the total of meals and tax.

    (1)

  • DJ H.

    We love Yenching !!! One of the best chinese restaurants in Boston / Cambridge area ! We went there at least once a week for a year now. Almost every dish we ordered is great ! I'm chinese and most of my chinese friends also love this place.

    (5)

  • Jiyea C.

    This is the first 1 star review I am ever writing. As a Californian, I don't expect good Asian food anywhere in Boston, especially in Harvard Square. But this place hit lower than my already very low expectations. The one positive thing I can say about this place is that I found it cleaner than the other Chinese restaurants I have been to. I think it is to appeal to the tourists who visit Harvard Square. They are also a little more English friendly. (Okay so I guess that was more than one positive thing.) It all starts going downhill from there. For one, the food took longer than usual to arrive, although the restaurant was half empty on a Thursday evening. It seemed like they were more focused on getting their take-out orders out, even though there were TIP-PAYING diners waiting to be served. Speaking of tip: it's included in the bill. You HAVE to tip whatever amount they put on the check. I think it was 18-20%. I believe this is customary for the restaurant regardless of party size (We were a party of 2). I would already have an issue about mandatory tip even if food/service were good, but in this case, it was NOT AT ALL! It took forever to get in our order, it took forever for our food to come out, and we asked for hot sauce 3 times and still never got it! Then when we made an issue of it when we got the bill (with the infuriating mandatory tip that we did not believe the restaurant staff deserved), they looked at us blankly i also noticed that they favor their regulars a LOT. When someone the staff knew came in to eat, he was greeted enthusiastically (while we were not given a greeting, nor even a word--just a gesture to an empty table), his order was taken immediately and his food arrived in a far more timely manner than ours, and before other parties in the restaurant, even though the others had put in their orders earlier than the "VIP" Not cool. another negative: dinner here can get expensive! The plates do not come with rice, so you have to order (and pay for it) separately per serving. Tea also comes at an additional price. We were not warned about this when they asked us if we wanted tea or rice. Will not return.

    (1)

  • Karen X.

    The quality of the food is pretty good and the waiters and owners are friendly, but the atmosphere is not great. Can get very crowded and noisy, so better for families.

    (3)

  • Alli M.

    STAFF: The staff that works here is super friendly, especially when you start to be regulars. They are always very attentive and have great timing on when you need your bill, etc. Take-out is super quick too. FOOD: The food is significantly better than Hong Kong down the road. It was our go-to Chinese food take-out place while we were in grad school. I'd recommend the egg rolls, beef and snow peas with black mushrooms and tea. The Kung Pao chicken and beef and broccoli are fairly good, a little bit bland if you are used to spice, but you can always add more spice with some chili-garlic sauce at home (for takeout). ATMOSPHERE: It is busy most of the time, the walls could use a good scrubbing and I'd wait to use the bathroom til you get home because it is TINY, but other than that, a good place to stop in to grab some food on the way home or to grab a bite to eat.

    (3)

  • Shengyi Y.

    Terrible!! They attempted to charge TIPS three times without telling me!!!! I am a student in Harvard University. I came here several times in the past. But I never checked the bill they gave me before paying by credit card! This time, my friend and her parents visited me and I brought them to Yenching. We ordered four courses: 2 vege and 2 meat. Total should not exceed 60 dollars. When paying the bill,credit card receipt said the total was 68 dollars. We asked for detail bill. The detail bill said the total should be 56! and they secretly charged 18% of tips on that which is 62 dollars ( the amount was written on the bill paper). In addition, they let us pay 68 dollars rather than 62 and telling us it was pre-tip amount!!!! They are trying to get 18% tip (without telling us) + 6 dollars ( nonsense charge) + another tip attempt on the credit card receipt in a meal that worth 56 dollars!!!!! This is a very dishonest restaurant. Not saying their food is bad, but what they did is terribly illegal! MAKE SURE YOU CHECK THE DETAIL BILL BEFORE PAYING IN THIS PLACE!!!!!!

    (1)

  • Santiago G.

    Yenching is a really great place to get good Chinese food near Harvard Square. You are seated very quickly and well attended to. Each time I have gone, my water has not gone empty and my food has arrived quickly. The decoration is nice and not too excessive. The service is very good, everyone is kind and attentive to your needs. The food tastes authentic and does not taste like "bad Chinese food" which I am sure we have all had at one point or another. The entree portions are well sized, well priced, and are served on separate plates, great for when you want to share with other people. When you are finished they can package your food so you can take it with you.

    (5)

  • Ari F.

    There are so many reviews here already, it seems superfluous to add another -- but I feel I have to, if only to balance out some of the postings I find overly critical. I've been going to Yenching off and on for both dinners and lunches, both eat-in and takeout, for over a decade now, and I've never had anything less than a perfectly good meal, with perfectly fine service. For the prices, and the location (almost the exact center of Harvard Square, one very short block from the main T exit at Out-of-Town News), the value is very-good to excellent -- especially the daily lunch specials (tho with the IMPORTANT CAVEAT that they have a MINIMUM CREDIT-CARD CHARGE of $10 -- which means those lunch specials, at $7.50-$8.50, usually work out to be cash-only, if you don't buy an add-on of some kind!). The one point on which I'd agree with some of the critiques is w/r/t the decor -- it's not the most romantic setting (way too bright, tables far too close), so for date-night, you might find better options.

    (4)

  • Gabi H.

    So the food is not bad here. It's really oily but has good flavor. But other than that, not impressed. The service was not good: waitress was snappy, inpatient, spilled water all over our table, kind of rude, and just overall superficially friendly. The ambience is not that great--which is bad if you're right in the middle of the square and can't spend a few bucks to spruce up the place.

    (2)

  • Alice X.

    Had the fried rice and tried some of my friends' flat noodles and chicken. Pretty good! The host and waitress were also very nice.

    (4)

  • Katie C.

    While dinner's can be a bit on the pricier side, their lunch specials are a STEAL. The daily combination lunches are an especially good deal. For only $7, you get 3 separate dishes (that range from double fried pork to boneless ribs to sweet and sour fish), fried rice, soup and a spring roll. I always have enough leftovers to make a full dinner out of it. You can also order off the regular lunch menu if you're craving something in particular. I'd say the quality is up there as well, at least for this area. Sure, it's a bit greasy and over salted at times, but some dishes are actually better than what I've found in Chinatown (ex: their Beef Noodle Soup comes pretty close to what I eat at home). Although I've only done take out, the service has been exceptional every time. The hostesses and what I assume are managers/owners are incredibly friendly, especially if you happen to speak Chinese.

    (4)

  • Kimmy U.

    I guess in an area where there aren't many Chinese restaurants to go to, I'd come here if I was really craving it. They have a lot of choices on their menu, and it's about $8-10 per dish. The staff speaks Chinese, so you gotta think authentic right? It seemed like everyone around us was enjoying their food. A friend and I split the steamed pork dumplings, which were my favorite of our meal. They came out hot and fresh, and I even saw them making them at one of the tables on our way out. I love love homemade dumplings!! I ordered the seafood noodle soup. It came with bokchoy, scallops, mushroom, and shrimp. Kinda skimpy on the variety of seafood, but they did give a lot of large shrimps. It was a pretty big bowl, but I didn't end up with enough leftovers to take home. My friend ordered the mapo tofu, which she's ordered before, so I assumed she liked it. It came in a pretty big portion. Overall, this place is decent, but not my first choice when coming back to Cambridge

    (2)

  • J T.

    We returned, tired of burittos and other fast food fare, We found the onwer/manager, who had seemed only coarse and antagonistic before, to possess another side. To any and all who were put off by her seemingly harsh manners, I would suggest she can also be warmhearted and friendly with customers who have a sense of humor. As always, take opinions with a grain of salt, especially as they relate to judging others...

    (4)

  • Jennifer L.

    Will never come back here again. 18% gratuity is now slapped onto an average meal. When asked to clarify the bill, the man at the front was super rude and extremely condescending. This is a tourist trap. Don't waste your money.

    (1)

  • Wythe M.

    To be fair: The food was fine, nothing special--standard "cheap Chinese" fare at Harvard Square prices ($62 bill for three people splitting three entrees, two beers, one dessert). Definitely not fancy or worth seeking out. The service, however, is worth actively avoiding. Last night, it was so slow that we had to change plans multiple times. Friends visiting from out of town were frustrated. Maximum lame. Glacial progress, dishes appearing one by one. No sign of concern on the part of the staff. We waited almost an hour for what amounted to a plate of fried fish in hot sauce (which was, granted, edible, hence the second star). The Yenching people seemed nice enough. They should just consider a new line of work.

    (2)

  • Sarah G.

    Why has it taken me so long to eat here? I guess being right in prime time Harvard Square space I always assumed it couldn't be that good. But I was wrong. Shows that you really should never judge food by its location! First the service is here is just awesome. They give us pretty small water cups, and if you know my boyfriend Matt J. well he loves drinking water and drinks tons of it. So we thought oh man, these cups are so small we will never have water! BUT they are so on top of their game here our water glasses were always full! They definitely have a good system figured out. And the waiters were all so nice and funny and friendly too. Man, good job Yenching. They only have two types of beer--Coors and Tsing Tsao ha ha But whatever at least they have beer! And the food is the real reason you come here anyway. It is always family style so coming here just with two of you like we did probably wasn't the smartest move in the world, because we just found ourselves with food envy looking around at the tables next to us not being able to order 4-5 things total including these amazing looking green beans that literally everyone ordered except for us. Talk about not feeling like the cool kid. But our spicy tofu dish was delicious and we found ourselves almost scraping the last bit of sauce out of that bowl it was so good. And their pan fried special house noodles were also just so so tasty! I haven't found Chinese food I have really liked that much in Boston until now. So thanks, Yenching.

    (4)

  • Rani P.

    It's their fried rice.... it's literally rice fried in butter with egg. The rice is still white (which fried rice should be)- but it is just incredible. The chicken fried rice was also delicious and the portion was huge. I've never felt so strongly about rice... but can I help it? I'm half Asian.. As for the non-rice dishes, they are consistently satisfactory. I typically come here for lunch- and the staples keep everyone happy. The sweet and sour chicken looks a bit radioactive, but it really is delicious. I also love their chicken and broccoli because they use a white sauce instead of a brown one- so it is lighter and perfect for lunch. As for soup- now remember, I probably have had 500+ bowls of egg drop soup in my lifetime- is pretty good. They put the little pieces of tofu in the egg drop soup, which I like. My coworkers are fans of the wonton- and of course we all enjoy the complementary spring rolls that always come with our lunch. The service is friendly- and the large round tables allow me to make the trek to Harvard Sq with my office peeps to enjoy Chinese food on our lunch break. Also, can't forget the soft mints on your way out!

    (4)

  • May Y.

    When I lived in Hong Kong, I ate so much Shanghainese food that my friends joked that I should just marry a Shanghainese man. XD =.= Although I used to have dessert take-outs from Yenching as a student, I was never particularly impressed by it. Nonetheless, when I was back in Harvard Square to meet up with some friends, I am pleased with the vegetarian options there. Surprisingly, I had the most authentic Shanghainese dumplings and springrolls in the States there. Definitely coming back with friends next time! P.S. I wish Yenching put the dumplings in a traditional bamboo container to keep them warm. Food: 3 Decor: 3 Service: 4

    (4)

  • Judy L.

    Semi-decent Chinese food. This would probably get 1.5 stars from me if I were actually in California. But since I am in the freezing Cambridge where there are only two Chinese restaurants within walking distance, I won't be as picky. Noodle soups aren't bad. Seafood noodle soup was more Canto style, with the thin egg noodles. The beef noodle soup - I am not sure what style it was, but it was actually quite decent. The dan dan noodle was not like any other dan dan noodle I've had. First of all, the bowl itself was larger than the size of my face. It was entirely filled with noodles. Half of the bowl was drenched with creamy sesame sauce, and the other half with tza jian (with minced meat), and the hot sauce in the middle. It was HUGE. Not bad at all. I am not quite sure about MSG, but I always have a minor itchy feeling in my throat after I eat here or at Zoe's (the other Chinese restaurant within walking distance). Not quite sure what is causing it. I better not be allergic to Chinese food. That would be horrible news.

    (3)

  • Dan C.

    OFFENSIVE SERVICE, BORDERING ON THE ABSURD. Man, just picked up an order. Got it home: dumplings are missing. Other part packed so poorly that it leaked all over the bag--so the whole order exploded onto my kitchen floor. Called. Politely explain what happened to owner. He says I need to tell his wife (?) what happened--not because he couldn't handle it, but BECAUSE HE WANTED HIS WIFE TO HEAR FROM ME THAT SHE'D PACKED THE ORDER WRONG. (He keeps telling her but she never listens...) So she gets on the line. Insists that she gave me the dumplings and starts yelling. Gives the phone back to the guy. He asks if I told her about the packing...I explain, still politely, that this is his problem to handle. He still hasn't offered to remake the order. By now, I'm feeling less polite. I explain that I'm disputing the claim on my credit card. He seems only too happy to end the call--I guess one more pissed off customer is no big deal.

    (1)

  • Michelle R.

    Yesss I love Yenching. Food is consistently good although slightly americanized/oily. The staff are super friendly and always give us free soup/red bean soup for dessert. Service is very fast as well. Some of my favorite dishes that are on the more authentic side: Spicy fish (shui zhu yu) - go get this on weekends! Szechuan green beans Yuxiang fish- crispy and delicious Pipa tofu - deep-fried tofu that is crispy on the outside and soft on the inside Also, the lunch special is super cheap and filling.

    (5)

  • Ellen E.

    Completely rude male owner. Just as rude waitresses. They ignore guests even when you try to talk to them. Salt mine fried rice. Had to ask them to redo the dish. Will never go again, especially for the male owner's haughty and disgusting attitude.

    (1)

  • Skye G.

    Cold night, hot egg drop soup and really tasty pork pan fried dumplings hit the right spot dead on. The staff took our order and quick to serve.

    (5)

  • Robin Y.

    The fun part of this restaurant is if you have a group of Chinese friends around Harvard Square, you're almost certain to run into one of them. An Italian friend of mine once bumped into someone he met while studying abroad in Beijing six years ago. Being Chinese, I am certain that one day at Yen Ching I will discover my long lost twin. Food is okay with nothing too authentic for the American taste. Try the typical Chinese dishes like Kungpao Chicken, eggplant with fish sauce, pan-friend spring beans.

    (2)

  • Bin S.

    We ordered two dishes, which came fairly quickly. Turned out that the dishes weren't authentic Chinese food--the names were very misleading. People who don't expect anything authentic might enjoy the food. Also note that the tips were included in the bill. The waitress was very friendly, though.

    (2)

  • Leslie G.

    The lunch specials are a good deal, but the food is pretty greasy. I had the vegetable chow mein, and it was standard, nothing special. It would be nice if they had a vegetarian soup option, since soup comes with the lunch special.

    (3)

  • Manish J.

    We had a terrible experience at this place today. The food was bad and the service was nothing special. Then the bill came and things took a strange turn. The owner had padded the bill by 18%, without clearly indicating the reason on the handwritten bill. Once we learnt that he had added the service fee, we were quite surprised (especially since we were a group of 2). Upon asking him why it is mandatory, he immediately sounded irritated with us, and implied that he needed to do it because his place gets many foreigners and visitors who don't tip at all. We politely insisted that we would like the option of adding the tip that we think is appropriate, and after a little grumbling he obliged. Then, as we were walking out after giving a tip (which was less than 18%), we heard him talk to someone behind our back that we are foreigners who don't know the ways here. Not going back to this place again.

    (1)

  • Emily Z.

    The Yenching is near and dear to my heart. But it's probably really a 3 or 4, depending on what you're looking for. I love this place because it has solid Chinese food that will not suffocate you with oil, the staff is very friendly, and getting takeout is quick and painless. Living close by is a plus - I probably wouldn't trek very far to come here. They have all of your standard appetizers in addition to a wide variety of savory and spicy (and Americanized, if that's what you want) dishes. My favorite dishes to order are stir-fry fish and vegetables, scrambled eggs and tomato, spicy beef and peppers, stir-fry tofu and vegetables [Yelp won't let me post Chinese, so these English names are meant to be descriptive, not the actual dish names], among a few others. Yes, most of these are dishes that you really can just make at home yourself, but for me that is Yenching's appeal - nice homey Chinese cooking when it's difficult to access such things otherwise.

    (4)

  • Tinley M.

    This restaurant features bad service and tasteless, overpriced food. When I went in to order takeout, we were faced with an unhelpful and slightly rude woman who told us that we could not split the check unless we told her before she wrote it down. She told us this literally 30 seconds after she wrote down just two words on a piece of paper. This would not have been that big of a deal if the food had not been so utterly atrocious. We ordered steamed dumplings, which were mediocre at best, and beef lo mein which was very greasy and had little to no flavor. Opt for something else in Harvard Square.

    (1)

  • Sissi W.

    Service is good. Two people order one fried rice and two dishes. Can't finish them! So full! Delicious.

    (4)

  • Roger W.

    Food is average. Worst, most inattentive service I have gotten in a very long time. Waitress drop off water jug for us to refill our own water. Dishes are not served but rather dropped off. You will be better off and be less frustrated eating at Panda Express.

    (1)

  • Alex J.

    Disappointing. Got Hunan Crispy Chicken and Lo Mein. Was neither cheap, tasty, nor plentiful. Chicken was oddly greasy, and the Lo Mein was a strange mix of bland and garlicy.

    (2)

  • Paul M.

    Had the Kung Pao Tofu. Perhaps the worst Chinese food I've ever had. No flavor, just incredibly greasy fried tofu, celery, and bell pepper. It was labelled spicy, but unless you plan on eating the whole dried chilies which were mixed in, it has no spice to speak of. I don't know how they jammed so much oil into the tofu - it was just oozing oil.

    (1)

  • Joseph L.

    got their twice cooked pork, country scrambled eggs, glutinous rice cake (niangao), and shanghai bakchoy. all were stellar, and for a terrific price of under $14 a person including tip. their service may not be as freakishly fast as other chinese places, but they're not slow and they're definitely responsive. for a place so conveniently located at harvard square, i would expect them to abuse their geography and charge ridiculously., but they they don't. they definitely offer great value and food. if you are chinese and can tell apart local dialects, you may notice that the store manager knows more dialects than the average chinese should. gives the place bonus street cred. i would come here regularly if i lived in cambridge.

    (5)

  • Anya H.

    This is my family's favorite Chinese restaurant! Once I became a regular customer the owner and several wait staff remember me! I even got a free dessert on my birthday once. I love the fried rice, pan-fried noodles, and the watercress the best. The sesame chicken is also good. I suggest not coming here for the dumplings though.

    (4)

  • Istar N.

    This is my first Yelp review, and it's going to be a very, very negative one. I went there with my boyfriend, and we ordered tofu and steamed fish. On Saturday night, we were told they don't have fresh fish, and were offered fried fish instead. The tofu was fried also. There was no tofu in there. We cut each of the huge pieces of dough in half to see what's inside and found one or two tiniest tofu pieces I've seen in my life, and a lonely piece of mushroom. The rest is batter, batter, batter. An equivalent tofu dish at Shanghai gate was delicious; the Yenching one was outright disgusting. Fried fish was so-so, but we came there for a light meal, and got everything fried instead. The place is crowded, and the manager, while trying to be friendly, had to serve us because it was so full. We had receipts and credit cards passing between the waiters right over our heads. We conjectured that it was only full because of its location -- NOT because of its food. We went there before, and although our lunch was mediocre back then, we decided to give it a chance. Never again. Horrible, horrible experience.

    (1)

  • Molly L.

    I've been here once, and I won't be back. It wasn't terrible, but I have a theory that this place is only around to prey on tourists. The service is pretty bad--even in the context of it being a Chinese restaurant. I'm all for efficiency, but the waiters here didn't humor me with so much as a smile. I don't think they even made eye contact. The food was all right, but the portions were smaller than they should have been. The presentation was sloppy and careless. I doubt this review will put a dent in their popularity. Personally, I'd rather hop on the red line to go to Chinatown for some real Chinese food.

    (1)

  • Simon L.

    Business majors can learn a thing or two from this place. Bad food + okay price + great location= Homerun

    (1)

  • Sylvia D.

    It's w/e for the expensive price. 8.50 lunch combo, but the portion they give you is very small. Not really worth it... The food is decent.

    (3)

  • Danan R.

    This is where my parents go when they come up to visit and are too lazy to venture more than 2 blocks from their hotel. The food is decent and the owner is really nice and honest. He tells us which dishes are actually authentic, and hasn't led us wrong. This isn't Chinatown quality food, but the service is definitely better and the dining area much more comfortable. Plus, it's only 2 blocks from Burdicks! Our staples: marinated roast beef smoked fish shanghai lion's head meatballs bean curd roll casserole triple delight in nest kueming duck Yes, this is gluttonous for 3 people but it means that I can live on leftovers for a few days and not have to eat: a. food truck meals b. chicken teriyaki or c. subway. I would say that this is a more Taiwanese-style place with some mock-Shanghainese dishes. They also have shiao long bao but they aren't spectacular, and to be honest, I make better ones at home that are less greasy. Overall, this is probably the best Chinese restaurant in Harvard Sq. so if you're not venturing out of the vicinity and craving some Chinese food, head here.

    (4)

  • Mark O.

    Cheap Harvard Chinese.

    (4)

  • Ari P.

    This is probably the best Chinese food I've eaten in Massachusetts, and that's saying something. The meal was not without its hitches. The hot and sour soup had a muddled, watery flavor, and the vegetable tempura was pretty bland, as well as the chicken and broccoli. However, the Kung Pao Chicken, Yan Chow Rice, Yu Hsiang Chicken and the Moo Shi Pork especially were all up to snuff. The staff was a little brusque with our party, but they at least kept bringing pitchers of water and gave us our bill quickly.

    (4)

  • George G.

    My other favorite place to eat in the square. My only complaint is that it feels a little cramped.

    (4)

  • Douglas W.

    Long long ago, during my undergraduate days in the time of the Pharaohs, I frequented Yenching several times a week, for their dirt cheap lunch buffet. It wasn't spectacular, but it was ample, filling, consistent and tasty, and on the occasions I ordered from the a la carte menu I found their offerings thoroughly decent---again, not spectacular, but fresh and flavorful and excellent value for the money. A real asset to the local dining scene. What the Hell happened? I'm giving a star for service. It was fast and accurate,( aside from the fact that we asked for tea and never got it) and had just the right level of brusqueness for a Chinese place, but, Oh My God, you call that food? The hot and sour soup first course was just OK, but the portion has shrunk dramatically since days of yore. Also, the hot part of hot and sour? Not so much. You used to be able to season your food from bottles of hot sauce and vinegar on the table. Not any more. Kung Pao beef, despite the flowery description in the menu promising a rainbow of flavors from myriad seasonings, tasted of nothing but salt. The beef was grainy and tough with no perceptible beef flavor, the sauce was brown glue, and the whole sorry mess sat in a shocking puddle of oil. I requested it extra spicy, but there was no spice whatsoever, despite huge amounts of sichuan chilis, suggesting said chilis have been sitting around in an open container for longer than they should have been. The accompanying small bowl of rice was just a damp wodge of nothing much and arrived at the table one step away from cold and already forming a skin. Note to kitchen: Some do-ahead jobs are just going to piss people off. My companion's dish was simply bizarre. The 'rice cakes' were discs of rubber in an immense heap, interspersed with the odd clot of egg and something that might have been lettuce. It was impossible to make much headway with this unseasoned starchy mountain. We were not amused when the jolly fellow at the cash register told us what we SHOULD have ordered if we had any sense. Yenching, I'm sorry, I miss you, but I won't be back.

    (1)

  • Nicole C.

    do not go and try this restaurant. so so so so so bad. server is so rude, just give you drink and never come back to ask you for any need again. i came back again, still same server, still so rude, and the manager did not pay attention about that, the plate is dirty, i asked for new one, they gave me new one back after 20 minutes. FOOD THERE IS SO SALTY AND GREASY. DO NOT TRY. YOU WILL DISAPPOINTED.

    (1)

  • Cassy H.

    Again, I'd stay 3 stars for food and 4 for service. These people are just so nice and friendly. It's hard to say no and not come to this place. Anyway, I discovered today that their dumplings are actually good. We got the pork and vegetable dumplings, which were water boiled (just like how my mom does it). Solid dumpling filling goes perfectly with a dab of soy sauce.

    (4)

  • Lu C.

    Very chinese, very tasty. The food reminds me of my hometown! Really GOOD!!

    (5)

  • Melissa M.

    This is my go-to Chinese Restaurant. You want authenticity? Go here. You want really good duck sauce!? YES!!! GO HERE! The lady that is the hostess is always so pleasant to me. I have gone here 3 times in one week. The food is that good. Their luncheon specials are perfect and they will fill you up and not take a lot of weight out of the old wallet. I am partial to their broccoli with garlic sauce. It comes with white rice and the nice lady gives me a hearty serving of the sweet duck sauce. I also get two spring rolls instead of one and their soup. The nice lady gave me chopsticks the other day and I said, "I don't know how to use them." She smiled, and replied, "You'll have to practice!" Yenching is the highlight of my day!

    (5)

  • Alyca S.

    I used to come all the way from Roslindale to Harvard Square just for their (spicy) chicken fried rice. So now that I work in Harvard Square, I eat here at least once a week. Their prices are dirt cheap (for Harvard Sq) and the portion sizes are huge! Lunch time is crazy busy, especially on a cool/rainy day, but so worth it for their lunch specials. Their host/hostess are always super friendly so they make up for the busy (sometimes rude) waitress. I stick to my favorites: chicken fried rice, crab ragoon, scallion pancakes and orange chicken: all are great! The only reason I wouldn't give them 4 stars is because they need a proper drink menu.. At least some wine!

    (4)

  • Peter B.

    Awful. Horrendous. Worst decision I've made on a long time. Terribly inattentive, from the moment you walk in the door. I waited an hour and a half for some very basic food. The only thing the quick about is getting you the check, which is far to high for the mediocre quality of the food. Stay away! You'll regret it if you don't. I took the time to sign up for Yelp just to write this review. Admittedly I had plenty of time while I was waiting.

    (1)

  • Allen Y.

    I guess sometimes you need Chinese food, even if it's not really exquisite tasting. A lot of the stuff is okay but not quite on the mark. I had the shui3zhu3yu2 and it was not quite what I imagined. The stir fried beef rice noodles are not bad, and most of the stuff doesn't taste bad. All in all, I go here once in a while when I'm really craving Chinese food, but I'd generally choose a place like Mulan or somewhere in Chinatown if I have the time.

    (3)

  • Alicia S.

    Ehhhhhhhhhhh. That sums up my experience at Yenching. Meandering the Cambridge area last Saturday, a hankering for Asian food came over me. We found our way to Yenching only to be overwhelmed by the menu. Nothing sounded great in my opinion. We ordered soup, the House fried rice & Sesame chicken. Soon after our food came it became clear to us that ordering in Chinese would have opened up a whole host of options. All around us every table that ordered was being brought out delicious, authentic, and bountiful dishes that mocked our silly American selections. Note to self: need an insider to guide me through the menu next time. You'd think our waitress could have been a person to help us choose something good-but she was barely present, and each time she came back to ask if we were ready it was almost in a barking annoyed manner. No I'm not asking to be babied but clearly I had no idea what to order. Our fried rice wasn't very "fried"; just white rice with mix ins. The sesame chicken was ok: not the best. Just ok. The best part of our meal was the egg drop soup. Not sure if I'll be back.

    (3)

  • Jennifer L.

    On a recent business/pleasure trip into Cambridge, we wandered into Yenching for a quick bite to eat at lunch. Food was mediocre at best. Service was prompt, despite it being a busy lunch hour. I felt completely condescended to & insulted by who I'm guessing was the owner, who assisted our waitress. Don't tell me "You obviously don't know how to listen" when your description of the lunch special is vague & I ask you to further explain. ...Really?? Who does that. I ended up ordering the Vegetarian's Delight & found it bland. Nothing special. The spring rolls were delicious. I can't say I'll patronize Yenching again; there's plenty of other options in Harvard Square to choose from.

    (2)

  • Cy K.

    Came here with a friend from HK who really likes this place. I'd been put off by some of the bad reviews, but I really enjoyed my experience here. The food (we got chicken with water chestnuts and spicy beef) - was fairly authentic and healthy (no oil overload!). Only downside was the service ignored us after we ordered food (took about 15 minutes to get a drink). Overall, I'd definitely come back - this is a solid authentic Chinese restaurant in the heart of Harvard Sq!

    (4)

  • Kimberly H.

    I have visited Yenching a couple of times and have had consistently good service and food. I have been missing singapore noodles from my favorite Chinese Restaurant since moving to Boston, and Yenching's singapore rice sticks are a close second. They are curry rice noodles with veggies, shrimp, and pork. They are listed as spicy on the menu, but could definitely use more heat for my personal taste. The spring rolls are tasty as well and not too greasy. My only small complaint is that they sometimes forget your drink refills. But that is made up for with the ease and speed of ordering food to-go. Everything comes out hot and in large portions. Also, the owner is very friendly and he always asks you to keep your tip and give it to the girls next time you dine in.

    (4)

  • Justin G.

    Yenching is fantastic. The owner is super nice, the dishes are inexpensive with good-sized proportions and the service is efficient and friendly. Standout dishes: Green beans, kung pao chicken, and on Friday, Saturday and Sunday morning they have traditional chinese breakfasts with soymilk, congee and fried crullers. Yum!

    (5)

  • Josh R.

    I tried Yenching after reading a positive review of it. Been back a few times since, and have always had a good time. The place is great for small groups, and all the dishes I've had have been pretty decent. Portions are generous, and I enjoy the buzzing atmosphere that comes from people constantly coming in and out. It's A-OK.

    (3)

  • Michelle J.

    I've worked in the Harvard Square neighborhood for 3 awesome years and while there are plenty of places to eat Yenching is my favorite to go to for good Chinese. Their lunch specials are nice and served until 4pm. If you call ahead for takeout that saves you a bit of wait time. The manager is usually at the front greeting people and taking orders. He's really a nice guy who's always greeting everyone and really makes you feel welcomed. He also isn't above making small talk. The food and atmosphere here is great. I've been here with co-workers or for a quick bite and run back to the office. Sure things are a bit pricey but in Harvard Square what ISN'T. So it'll run you average what everything else in the area does. And if you are waiting for takeout, because the place does seem always busy sometimes someone will come out and give you tea while you wait. Now I know it's not much but when it's cold and raining a hot cup of tea while you wait does feel incredibly nice. Like with most chinese food places the portions are large and plenty. So they aren't skimping you on the food. My favorite dish to get is the singapore rice sticks. It comes chock full of shrimp, beef, pork and egg. Not skimpy at all on the meats either, unlike another place down the block who only puts 2 shrimp in their pad thai, (I'm talking about Hong Kong).

    (4)

  • Iannis R.

    "'Dear waiter, I'm sorry if you're in a hurry I'd like the beef soup, and some vegetable curry. Now this is important, though I'm good with treenuts I am also quite deathly allergic to peanuts.'' ''Yes.'' She replies tersely, and she walks right on by I put my life in her hands, I don't really know why. ''Are you sure this doesn't have peanuts in it?" "Yes, I'm sure." And I thought that would have been it. The soup came steaming and hot to my table I picked up my spoon, and as soon as was able Bit down on a freshly cooked deadly legume Later that night in the emergency room I vowed that should I ever crave some ginseng I sure wouldn't get it again from Yenching.

    (2)

  • Michael E.

    Decent Chinese-American food with a few authentic dishes hiding in the menu. What makes Yenching worth while is the mid-day buffet lunch- cheap and filling student food. I first walked in one day back in the mid-1980s. I was asked two questions: "You here for special?" was the first. I had no idea what that was, so I said sure. "You mind sharing table?" Not at all. I was seated at a large round table with a group of Chinese and American students and had a great time eating and chatting with my lunch partners.

    (3)

  • HB L.

    Drove my wife and kids to Cambridge for the Memorial Day weekend. My wife is not a big Chinese food fan, but we had the house fried rice and chicken wings (my favorites) and everyone loved them. My son said that they were the best wings he's ever had. My wife and daughter want the fried rice for dinner tonight, too. Service was quick and friendly.

    (4)

  • Philip H.

    Stay away from here. I decided to try this place out after having driven by hundreds of times over the past 12 years in Boston. I came alone and order the $6.95 lunch special. At 1:45 PM on Monday afternoon, almost every table was occupied, mostly Chinese with a few non- Chinese. The staff seem to be fluent in Mandarin and English. Figured it couldn't be bad. Everything that I was served was too salty and too oily. I don't want to waste time going into detail. You will be throwing your health and wealth down the tubes if you eat here.c

    (2)

  • Graceypoo M.

    Their Dan Dan Mien is pretty decent and the portion was huge! Wish I ordered steamed veggies (like bok choy) on the side because that dish is very heavy. The folks who work here are very efficient and are very nice. =8)

    (3)

  • Jenny L.

    PROS: Their lunch special is super cheap ($6.50 for an eggroll, bowl of soup, and an entree). Food is authentic if you order from the Chinese menu and is usually delivered very quickly. Best Chinese food in the square (granted the comparison is the Kong). Also, the owner is a very friendly Chinese fellow. CONS: Sometimes hard to get a waiter's attention and the restroom is kinda gross sometimes. Also, dinner is overpriced. Really? It's slightly larger than a lunch entree, but almost 1.5 or 2 times the price of lunch. Overall, come here for lunch! It's also super close to the T stop.

    (5)

  • Tushar S.

    'Twas the weekend that the Arctic winds from up north had decided to visit the American North-East. We're talking -25 degree F with windchill. I and my friends had just finished partying the night before for one's birthday and were hungry for brunch. We messed up with the address to the Thai place so we ended up here as it was unbearable to walk anymore in those atrociously cold winds. I was very skeptical that this place would be any good from the onset, as ethnic restaurants that are not expensive but yet occupy prime real-estate usually aren't. Tricks I learnt from Tyler Cowen. Anyway, so we order a bunch of things like fried rice, some beef stir fry, kung pao chicken and some crab rangoons and dumplings for appetizers The first thing I tasted was rancid vegetable oil soaking everything - drowning the crisp-less vegetables. The meat had its flavor completely drained out by overcooking in this nasty oil. The wontons (rangoons) similarly mostly tasted of the vegetable oil. The after-taste of every bite of my chicken/beef dishes was the unmistakable clinging of MSG. So I tried to stick to the fried rice instead which was not so bad. It was at least edible though any Chinese family could probably do make one better at home. I love ethnic food - especially Asian food (Chinese, Japanese, Vietnamese, Thai). But I would pay to avoid eating here. This is my first review on Yelp even though I've been a member for a couple years as I'm lazy. But I could NOT let these ridiculous positive reviews stay. Yes the staff is friendly. The main server was even funny and charming. But that is no substitute for edible food. The food here was absolutely atrocious. And this is why I had to get off my lazy rear-end and actually write a review. PLEASE PLEASE AVOID THIS PLACE. If I was a millionaire, I would buy out this premium real estate and sell it to McDonald's. I would rather eat at McDs than this place.

    (1)

  • James A.

    I love Chinese food. I really do. I've spent a lot of time in Asia and Oceania - and there are a lot of Chinese around that part of the world. Which means I got to indulge my love of Chinese food a lot. I had been to Yenching before and thought it was ok, but wasn't in a rush to go back. Tonight, I had a massive craving for Chinese, and this was the only reasonable option within walking distance. It's not good. It's really not. It's greasy, the dishes lack any delicacy, and the feeling afterwards of it all sinking to the pit of my stomach suggests that there may have been an aggressive use of MSG. The wait staff are friendly, and they're mainland Chinese. Unfortunately, there's a critical ingredient missing - a decent chef.

    (2)

  • Madel S.

    My 4 yr old got food poisoning from here! Enough said!! (no no.. My fellow yelpers must know...) The staff was nice but service and food was awful. As a New Yorker, I think we can distinguish between good & bad Chinese food. And this place is bad!! Not only did they forget a few things but how can you serve dirty utensils?! So yes, I definitely won't be back if ever in harvard square again.

    (1)

  • Di Yin L.

    Most of the food is passable. The fried chicken wings are amazing. Better than any korean fried chicken. Worth it to get two orders of the fried chicken, no rice, plus a soup for a greasy yet satisfying meal.

    (3)

  • Elizabeth K.

    The dishes were dirty and there was a hunk of black plastic in my shredded pork. And the soup was bland. This place was gross.

    (1)

  • Dessa R.

    Hidden gem alert! Bling bling, folks. Really good fried rice here. I was a little startled when it was served to us practically white instead of brown, but the absence of generous soy sauce was actually quite nice, much lighter than a traditional fried rice. I didn't even know that non-greasy fried rice existed, but lo and behold. I shared an order of orange chicken with someone-- not only was it totally tasty, but it was just enough to fill both our bellies. We got seated with no wait on a Friday night, the waitress was nice, and the check was completely reasonable. Fo' staahs.

    (4)

  • Liz S.

    This place is terrible! Service, food, cleanliness...all terrible. The waitress took one drink order at a time, and then would walk away. We all had to re-order our drinks several times before we actually got anything. Only half of our party actually ended up with their drinks. Then she ended up bringing us the wrong food. They were rude and rushed every time we tried to stop someone. The place was filthy. We had to clean chunks of old food off our plates with our napkins, the glasses had gunk around the rims, and the bathroom was utterly scary. The food was awful. I could only choke down a few bites. No one in my party (of 10) seemed to enjoy their food. Gross!! Prices weren't terrible, but they surely weren't good. My plate of orange chicken and teeny bowl of rice was $10.50. Never, ever, ever going back.

    (1)

  • Jennifer A.

    Not a huge fan. The food wasn't very good, and it's hard to screw up chicken and broccoli. Although it's in a prime location, the place feels run-down and dirty. I'll go to Changsho for lunchtime Chinese instead in the future.

    (2)

  • Jenny S.

    We visited this restaurant 3 times out of out 4 days trip in boston. The food felt like from home, the workers there were super friendly. My friend loved their dried tofu. I thought the moo shi pork with pancake was delicious. They even gave us free soup and rice the day we were leaving. Nice service made the food taste even better:)

    (5)

  • Oliver D.

    Yen-Ching, still there and always will be. This old Chinese eatery has been around forever. Probably way before both my dad and uncle went to college in the area. Yen Ching is one of those places that is still sticking around and always will be. The first time I tried it was 6 years ago, when it was my first or second time visiting Harvard Square. I was with my dad wandering around the square and we needed something for dinner. We walked by Yen-Ching and thought it looked like a cool authentic Chinese restaurant. We liked it and have been going ever since. Then, my dad realized that it was the Chinese restaurant his Chinese-Brazilian roommate in college took him to for Hot and Sour Soup when suffering a severe cold. Throughout the years, as an enthusiastic Yen-Ching diner, the restaurant has had its ups and downs. The food is generally well-prepared. It is hot and comes out quickly. Just this year it has had too many off moments. The last few times I have been, the service sucked. Once, the food came out all out of order, the appetizers coming after the main courses. Then another time it was impossible to get the attention of a waitress to get you more to drink or the check and the food and herbal tea was not hot enough! That is as bad as it gets folks! My family knows the true definition of good and bad service, especially my dad who grew up in a family who was in the restaurant business! Still, even with its bad moments, I will remain as a fan. It is an authentic place that is great for university students and professors who are craving Chinese soul food. It is basically a university hang-out place, not a big family restaurant. It is cheap and you get huge platters of whatever you order. Not like most restaurants these days that charge a lot for a skimpy portion. You must try the fried pork peking ravioli, they rock! They are actually homemade and do not come from some big dumpling factory like the ones at most Chinese restaurants. Once I even saw the waitresses sitting at the table and making the dumplings. How often do you see that? The other food, is good, but went downhill last time. For example, this spicy pork and cabbage dish did not have as much flavor and was not hot. The white rice, did not even have flavor. Oh well. I am not giving up on this restaurant. I love the atmosphere. It is almost therapeutic having the quiet Chinese music in the background and hearing the conversations of crowds of diners. In other words, I love the energy. I have had too many good moments to mark it off my list. I even got a Yen-Ching t-shirt!!!!

    (4)

  • Meghan P.

    Back in my college days, I enjoyed (what I remember as) a couple good meals at Yenching Restaurant... On my recent adventures in Cambridge/Boston, we graced Yenching Restaurant with our presence the evening of the Harvard versus Yale (125th meeting!) football game. I pushed strongly for thai spice but with two peanut-allergy friends, we decided to skip the potentially-dangerous thai. We actually headed to Yenching after cocktails at the Hong Kong... we definitely should have simply headed downstairs and eaten at the Kong too! The hot and sour soup was alright but a bit lacking in the hot department. The orange chicken was bland, overly-chewy, and not even worth eating. I enjoyed a few pieces of broccoli that accompanied the chicken but skipped the chicken itself. The brown rice was the definitely highlight of the meal but it's hard to mess up brown rice, right? And our server was a fairly rude and there were no fortune cookies!!!

    (2)

  • Jamie B.

    This was my go-to for Chinese food back when I lived in Harvard Square (now that I've moved to Davis, I've shifted over to Qing Dao Garden as the place I tend to recommend). I've eaten in a couple of times, but primarily have gotten take-out. Let me just say that the owner is the nicest person I've ever met - when I would come in to pick up my take-out, he was always SO friendly, offering tea, and sincerely wishing everyone well. Honestly, that kind of place does make a difference, especially when so many other restaurants tend to pay far too little attention to customer service. Oh, and the garlic broccoli is de-li-cious. Truly became a staple in my diet for a while.

    (4)

  • Audrey K.

    As someone who only speaks Mandarin and not Canto, and coming from a predominantly Taiwanese neighborhood, going to a restaurant in Chinatown always feels more foreign than I'm used to for a Chinese restaurant... I came here on a total whim, lured by their $6.95 lunch special. SO MUCH FOOD, my leftovers are more than enough for tonight's dinner. Simple & authentic tasting, really satisfies my comfort cravings for Chinese. But what I really liked about this place was the service. Really prompt, food gets out of the kitchen fast, and your water glass is always full. They automatically spoke Chinese to me which might have been annoying if I didn't know it, but I admit I was feeling a little homesick & nostalgic, and this was just what I needed.

    (4)

  • Christine T.

    spicy shrimp fried rice... with carrots and peas? odd but tasty. will have to try some other stuff. nice looking lunch specials $8 they also have $7 lunch combo. dinner is like 8-15 and everything's family style, so large portions. To be continued...

    (3)

  • Quang H.

    Aight, here's the run down. So I ordered the kungpao beef at this place today. Never really ordered anything "Kungpao". I expected something worse but it wasn't bad at all. What I like this place is the service - again, I'm huge on service, and I certainly how they make the effort to ensure my food is good, and if I needed more rice. I go to a lot of Chinese places where they just serve you and don't come back to you until you need a check. Kudos to Yenching.

    (4)

  • Cameron A.

    By far the best Chinese food in Harvard Square. I am partial to the House Special Fried Rice served spicey as well as their Chow Foon. The staff is friendly and always teases me about being too skinny.

    (5)

  • Mo J.

    Best Chinese food in the square. Its kungpao chicken and kanshue string beans are so so good. Take-out and dining in are both great options. The service is great, and the owner is very friendly as well.

    (5)

  • Scott B.

    Poopoo platter is known as the "Hot Plate" at Yenching... JSYK. It consists of the following (all battered and deep fried) -broccoli flourettes -fresh green beens -triangles of onion -chicken fingers -crab rangoons -sausage wontons The lo mein noodles are known as "Fried Noodles" at Yenching. At least they claim it's the same... they aren't the same... they are actually linguine noodles drenched in soy sauce... delcious in my book, but certainly wouldn't fly with a lo mein conneiseur. The service, though, was absolutely excellent. Much, much better than most oriental restaurants I've patronized. Prices were good... dinner for two was $34... and I have left overs to last me for days... Not bad, Yenching... not bad.

    (3)

  • Jim S.

    Growing up in the South, I have found that there are extreme differences between chinese food there versus New England. You can order the exact same dish in each region and get a completely different experience. For example, lobster sauce in the North is a brown sauce with ground beef also added. In the South it is a lighter, white sauce with more veggies & no ground beef. Also, what is it with serving rolls with chinese food?!? But I digress. My point being that I have yet to find a chinese place that I love in the Boston area after almost 10 years of trying. Yenching comes close, though. Like the other reviews note, the staff are ridiculously friendly, bordering on being uncomfortably so. Don't get me wrong, I love good, friendly service, but when you literally end each sentence with "sir", it is almost condescending. The food is pretty good, but won't bowl you over. I am not gourmet when it comes to asian cuisine outside of sushi as I tend to stick to the americanized standards, but I enjoy it enough from here to make it my go-to when in the mood for chinese. At the very least, it is worlds better than Hong Kong, which is on the same block. A little more expensive that you would expect, but it is in the heart of Harvard Square, so it makes sense. Overall, not the best, but far from the worst!

    (3)

  • Jenny S.

    I cannot deny food is great here. However, the service is bad. They forgot our order, and made us wait for an hour without anything served. When we asked about it, they just simply said sorry without any sincerity. If I were the owner of the restaurant, I would have apologized for forgetting our order and maybe providing free desserts. In that case, we would have given tips at normal rate. They would have earned more. very unpleasant experience

    (3)

  • Eunice B.

    Service was 4 stars. The staff are super friendly, attentive and just lovely. Food unfortunately was 2 stars :( My main gripe is with battered fish!! We asked what the spicy fish special was - they advised a spicy fish soup. In my mind I have a vision of the soups we've eaten in Sichuan and other parts of China where they serve us a huge bowl and we fish the fish pieces out from a broth drowning in dried red chilli, sichuan peppers and lots of other spicy goodness. flickr.com/photos/ernest… After our Austin battered fish experience, I asked whether the fish was battered to which we thought they replied no. They also said the soup was ma-la (numbingly hot). So we ordered the special. But alas it arrived battered and light on the chilly. Yes, there were some fragrant chili spices but nothing verging on the level of spicyness we love. Long beans were OK but again not as spicy as we would like. Dumplings were the best dish of the night. Nice but not outstanding. Appreciate the fact they do have a vego option which a lot of places do not. So we will continue to search for decent spicy Chinese food in Boston. Any tips greatly appreciated :-)

    (2)

  • Nora Szu-Su L.

    One of the best Chinese restaurant I have had. The staff is very friendly. The food is so good. I will definitely go back when I visit Boston.

    (5)

  • Xin W.

    If Yenching does not have huiguo rou (double cooked pork), I would probably give it two stars. The manager is super nice, which is a plus, but the other dishes I tried were either mediocre or downright horrible. And there is absolutely nothing special about the lunch special. But, oh, huiguorou, how do I love you! When it is properlly done, it is my top guilty pleasure food!

    (4)

  • Chuck L.

    The food is ok. We were only two people and they included a 15% tip on the bill without informing us about it in any way (is this even legal?). I might not have noticed but luckily I had added the charges beforehand. When we complained they acknowledged it. Patrons beware!

    (1)

  • Laura G.

    What I remember most about my simple take out experience here was how friendly the owner was to everyone who came in (and they were very busy). He was friendly, chatty, helpful and suggestive. It was like you walked into your favorite Uncle's Chinese food restaurant and he personally took care of you. Call me a jaded Bostonian, but the customer service here totally surprised me. The hot Jasmine tea handed to us by the owner coupled with a sincere apology for the wait (20 minutes on a busy night is nothing to apologize for) is a perfect example of how this man obviously enjoys running a solid business, and it shows (and is appreciated). Popped my kung pao chicken cherry here (I know, I can't believe I've avoided it for so long for 26 years on earth) I figured since they had a whole section dedicated to Kung Pao it was a good place to give it a whirl. I'm not sure how it stacks up to other places, but I found this version to be generally pleasing, although lacking on the spice (despite 3 dangerous looking chilis laid on top). Speaking of spice, I ordered a "spicy" version of the chicken fried rice. Holy mother of pearl he wasn't fuggin kidding. I love spicy food and was surprised at how it made my mouth sweat. Overall the food was just what it needed to be and reheated great the next day. mission accomplished.

    (4)

  • Jason L.

    I have tried this restaurant several times. I always want to give her another chance but it is quite difficult. For instance, last time, I had a lunch comb for take out. I called them and placed the order. I was told to pick it up in 15 mins. While I was there to pick up my order 18 mins later, the owner told me that I did not call them to place order and let me wait there for a short time. After over 25 mins waiting, the simple lunch combo was finally ready for me. The whole process took me over 45 mins. I will not give any chance to this restaurant. BTW, food is far below average for Chinese restaurant anyway.

    (1)

  • Anna R.

    I have gotten takeout here on multiple occasions and have never been disappointed. The food is always really fresh and all of my Chinese friends love its authenticity. What puts Yenching above its competitors (coughcoughKong) is the amazing service. The owner, who is extremely polite, is always at the front and gives tea to people waiting for takeout.

    (4)

  • Bill M.

    For the longest time I only called this place "that chinese resturant" cause nowhere I could find the name of it. After a recent signage upgrade, there is a name for it. Normally I go in and get the hot platter, which is crab ragoon, and tempera chicken/shrimp/veggies with fried wontons. The tempera veggies there are magnificent. Normally when I talk about a place I never talk about the veggies. This is basically the only place I do such a thing. Sadly, the man courses that I've tried, have been lacking. I went there last night with 3 others. A friend of mine asked for something without scallions and onions, nad they told her it would just be meat and sauce, but if she ordered something else, they would have it without it. She agreed, and what did it have? Scallions and onions. My Hunan Beef was suppose to be spicy, it wasn't. Drinks are 1 dollar a glass... so go for the Appitizers.

    (3)

  • C Elizabeth S.

    I really like this place. Is it the best Chinese food I've ever had? Nah. Do I feel awkward drinking out of their undersized cups? Duh. However, their staff is friendly and I like the way they make their fried rice better than I do anywhere else I've found in Cambridge (actually has a taste and is the fried rice texture without being drowned in soy sauce). Also they give you a plate when you get takeout, which is nice, and the guy always reminds me that I don't need to tip for takeout, which is a nice contrast to the hipsters at Al's Harvard Square glaring at me for not feeling that swiping my card deserves a tip.

    (4)

  • Cindy C.

    Nice staff but food is below average. I wish there's more Chinese restaurants here in Cambridge :(

    (2)

  • Kelly C.

    YUM! Super tasty, fast and friendly. Highly recommend. Everything was great, so just go for it! It'll be delicious whatever you choose!

    (4)

  • Garrett B.

    I am very sad to say that Yenching has earned my first one star review on Yelp. I really could not have imagined a more terrible experience. My friends and I left in a daze...had ALL of THAT just happened?? Food: The Orange Chicken was god awful, the worst I have ever had. The meat was gray and chewy and the flavor was way off. My friends also tried and agreed. My friends all enjoyed their meals to an extent, but I don't think anything was stellar. Service: This is the strange part. The owner (I presume) took our orders. While trying to be funny, he offended most of the table by critiquing each order and completely disregarding the requests of two people. Two of my friends ordered and he responded by saying that they would not like it and that he was going to change their order to something that be more suitable for their palate. Never in my life have I experienced a waiter change a customer's order or treat paying customers in such a demeaning manner. We ordered dumplings for an appetizer, but they did not arrive until after the final entree was served. There was at least a fifteen, yes FIFTEEN, minute gap between the arrival of the first and last person's main meal. We had to ask for tea twice until it arrived. After the check came, we decided that we would not tip a full 15 or 20%. So horrified by the service (and I by my food), we decided that 10% was more than sufficient. An older woman came by our table to pick up the bill and actually counted the money at the table in front of us. She told us that we had to give a 15% tip. Because this was not on the bill or previously stated, we did not budge. When she left our table momentarily, we quickly grabbed our coats and rushed out the door leaving the tip which we decided was fair. This was certainly not one of my proudest moments, but it felt extremely justified. I do not understand how this restaurant is still afloat. It seemed busy and popular. Maybe we just had a terrible experience in what is usually a decent establishment, but none of us will be returning.

    (1)

  • Shana W.

    The one thing I have to start with is that the owner was so wonderful and accommodating. I made a reservation for 18 people on a Friday night and our tables were ready promptly at the time of our reservation. At the end of the meal he even treated us to friend bananas on the house. The service was exceptionally good, the food came out quickly and there was always someone around to refill water. The food was good, not amazing but definitely good enough to come back for.

    (4)

  • Kyle D.

    This is honestly the BEST chinese food i've ever had. It is not overly greasy, there are some very appealing dishes, and the staff is extremely friendly. Though the decor is dated, it fits well within the cliche of a clean, well kept chinese restaurant. I love coming here with friends, getting take out or stumbling in for a lunch special. Cheap and easy =Perfect! Go here.... you will not regret it what so ever. Pork fried rice A+ Steamed Dumplings A++++ Crab Rangoons A+ Try anything!

    (5)

  • Yvette G.

    Food was decent. Portions small for the price. Shocked that my General Tso did not come with white rice included. Who eats that without rice? Never been to a Chinese restaurant who didn't give rice with its entrees without charging extra. This was a deal breaker. Not going back.

    (1)

  • E T.

    Food is reasonably good & price is fair. Place is relatively clean & tidy. Service of wait staff is decent. However, owner is a bit odd since he would not answer our questions / talk to us in the dialect / language we spoke with him, even though we overheard him speaking those fluently with other customers / staff. He definitely seems nicer to non Asian customers. That alone cost Yenching one star.

    (3)

  • Vicki L.

    I've been coming here for years simply because it's the better (of 2) Chinese restaurants in the Square. The food is kind of hit-or-miss, depending on what you order, so I usually just get my favorites. The portions are very generous. They do have great service most of the time, except when they get super busy around lunch. Mr. Yenching is fantastic, can speak at least 3 languages fluently (I suspect maybe even more), and will always throw in free food when I order take-out. He also gave some friends a ride home once after closing up the restaurant. The proprietor really makes this place 4 stars instead of 3.

    (4)

  • Sheng N.

    This place is crowded only because it's one of the only Chinese restaurants in Harvard Square. The food is mediocre at best, and an insult to Chinese food at worst. From the other somewhat positive reviews, it appears that this restaurant's food may be a hit-and-miss with a rather high miss-rate. Nevertheless, go there if you are desperate for Chinese-like food. If not, do yourself a favor and take 66 to Allston or hop on to the T to Chinatown. Or just skip Chinese food this time.

    (1)

  • Elaine A.

    I've been coming here for years because they have the best dumplings. THE BEST DUMPLINGS! And they refill water glasses like nobody's business. Even my aquaholic sister never has an empty glass at this place. Every time I bring friends, they walk away full and impressed. The service is great. And they recently (finally!) re-painted the bathroom which before had obviously not been repainted for at least 30 years. I highly recommend this restaurant. Eat the dumplings!

    (5)

  • Andrew R.

    Came back for the $7.95 lunch special. Food was plentiful and good - especially the chicken in garlic sauce. (I was less of a fan of the hunan chicken.)

    (4)

  • Jen H.

    My ex-boyfriend was fluent in Chinese. He traveled to China on a regular basis, so needless to say I was going to trust his opinion on Chinese food... and he brought me to Yenching. It was really interesting to hear him speak to the staff in their native tongue, and I can't even say what we had, but it was all good. I found it interesting that rice is considered a "filler" in China... most people don't eat it that much (so says my ex). The staff was all super nice to us, everything came out very well, and it was a very pleasant dining experience. I wish there was a place like Yenching closer to my apartment!

    (4)

  • James L.

    very very very rude owner.

    (1)

  • Emmanuel S.

    Decent Chinese restaurant in Harvard Square. Nothing crazy, not exactly as it is in China, but fair.

    (3)

  • Toodles K.

    My favorite Mandarin Chinese food restaurant in Massachusetts. The service, both lunch and for dinner, cannot be beat. Always a seat even if it gets crowded. I am always seeing Asian people eating here and you KNOW that's a great sign. My favorite dish is the Kung Pow Chicken with Peanuts = the best I have ever had with a sauce that isn't too greasy and red chilies that you can avoid easily. I don't avoid them because they give the best kick! I brought my boss there for lunch today. She's a vegetarian. She ordered the luncheon special Vegetarian's Delight which is steamed vegetables (cabbage, baby corn, green peppers, broccoli) in a light garlic sauce. She liked it. She'd never been to Yenching before. I converted her!

    (5)

  • S W.

    Decent Chinese food. Very popular due to its location and medium price range. I had some good meals there (especially when i crave for Chinese food but don't want to go too far away) but also bad experience (let us wait for one hour before we got anything to eat as we are big group).

    (3)

  • Tamar A.

    My dad lived across the Yard from this place for a number of years, and lovingly dubbed it "The Greasy Spoon." Really delicious food, plenty of vegetarian options for my sweetly neurotic kosher stepmother, and an owner who must be addicted to Percocet for all the bending over backwards he does for his regulars. The wonton soup is a little lame, but of the main dishes, I've never been disappointed. So go, eat, enjoy. Tell the owner Bernie sent you. It'll be like shooing away an excitable puppy who is trying to pee on your leg.

    (4)

  • Jim C.

    Decent Chinese food in this unassuming restaurant right in the heart of Harvard Sq. Their menu has Americanized items as well as authentic sounding dishes. Kung pao chicken (3.75 stars) - was very good, but I've had much better here before. Needed a little more "pow" in flavor this time Sauteed string beans (3.75 stars) - decent but I've had much better in California chinese places Mango chicken (4 stars) - never thought I'd like fruit in my hot foods but this one surprisingly works with mango and pineapple and chicken in a baby fried bird's nest cup. Lo mein (3.5 stars) - I'm not a big lo mein fan but this was not bad. Potstickers (3 stars) - didn't wow nor disappoint. Outside was a bit cold. Service was quick and accomodating. There was a good number of Chinese people in here so that was a good sign. Bottom line: 3.5 stars. One of the better Chinese places in Harvard Sq and super conveniently located right near the main Harvard T stop.

    (3)

  • Juli W.

    One of my friends liked dining here, but I'm not a huge fan . The lunch boxes are reasonably priced, but the food is kind of bland. The waitstaff are pretty nice, but the manager/owner can be overly friendly (and not in a sincere way). Very convenient Harvard Square locale, but even that can't get me back in the door.

    (2)

  • Ellen C.

    I highly agree with Elaine A. about the water! They refill it constantly. As much as I hate to admit it, it's actually something that matters to me in choosing a restaurant. Otherwise, all of the dishes we had were tasty- the scallion pancakes actually tasted like scallions, and the eggplant dish we had was one of the best eggplant dishes I've had to date. Everything is a little bit greasy, so be prepared for that. The water helped with the grease, too.

    (4)

  • Sean M.

    I've had countless lunches here over the years and they were all very good. It had been a rather long span since I was in and I was pleased to see the menu is much more authentic. I was annoyed a bit by the wait staff, I actually had to convince the waitress that i knew what pork tripe was to get her to bring it. The dish was not spicy enough and I asked for chili sauce and the other waitress brought me soy sauce. I didn't make a scene I got what I wanted and I left a 20% tip. The restaurant patrons on this day were more than 50% Chinese, I saw a few dishes worth trying. Yeah they have that weak ass pasty white people Chinese food but fight for your right to eat authentic.

    (4)

  • Logan C.

    All of the food at Yenching is really solid. It's pretty standard Chinese, but you really can't go wrong. My staples are the pineapple chicken, curry chicken, sweet and sour chicken, kung pao chicken (I like chicken...), but really everythings good. I always get shrimp fried rice too, although their fried rice could be a bit better. My favorite part about the restaurant is that they are very quick about filling up my water cup. I know it sounds silly, but I drink a lot very quickly and it's really awesome to always have a full cup of water. Most people probably don't care I suppose. All of the workers are very nice as well. My only beef is that I think they don't give me all of my food in my doggy bag. I always have a BIG pile of fried rice left and they only give me a small box of it. I've never actually measured so I can't confirm this, and it's probably just my imagination.

    (4)

  • Kim L.

    I've walked by this restaurant numerous times wanting to try this place. We ordered the pork moo shi and beef lo mein. Food was greasy and the lo mein had only noodles. If you dug and dug, you may be able to find a total of 20 skinny strips of beef somewhere. It was disappointing.

    (2)

  • Shazza B.

    Peter, the manager, is one of the friendliest people you'll meet. He makes everyone feel at home in his restaurant. If you know what to order, the food is also quite good. Our favorites are the Yu Xiang Fish, the Mandarin Eggplant, the dumplings and the scallion pancake.

    (4)

  • Kat C.

    "No delivery, only pick-up!". THEN DON'T PUT THE PHRASE 'DELIVERY AVAILABLE' ON YOUR MENUS. The cold is turning me into a cantankerous beast, so I'm pretty pissed about being denied delivery two nights in a row. But despite my displeasure, I must admit the food here is decent. Obviously Americanized but done well. The service varies; the waitresses don't seem exactly ecstatic to be attending to you, but they execute the job and my water cup stayed nice and full all night. Worth eating at if you crave Chinese at Harvard, just don't plan for delivery.

    (4)

  • Bryan H.

    The owners take real pride in this restaurant. Great food at reasonable prices! A great eatery for Harvard students and faculty and ppl who work in the square.. Great food in a great location

    (5)

  • Susie C.

    Picking up the phone and dialing... "Hello. I'd like an order of Lotus chicken with broccoli and an order of chicken friend rice, please." Done. 15 minutes later I swing by and pick up my bag of GOLDEN CHINESE THUNDER. The same man has been working the front desk there for years, and he is always so smiley that it makes ME leave with a big smile on my face. I have yet to find a chicken fried rice that is more mouth watering than this. I regularly crave its generous chunks of chicken and scrambled egg, and love poking around in the box for more. This fried rice is white and fluffy, and isn't brown and drenched in oil like most other fried rices on the market. The food is LIGHT and delicious, yet packs the same gut-busting punch that a huge meal of Chinese food should. The veggies are colorful and crisp, and the dumplings make me want to dance (right now, even thinking about them, I want to dance). This food is better than anything I've tried in Chinatown. It is the only place in the area I will get Chinese take-out from.

    (5)

  • Matt B.

    Tried Yenching after craving some Chinese food. The restaurant seemed clean and the employees were friendly. We had the beef with broccoli. It was pretty basic, but still tasty and full of flavour. The veggie spring rolls and wonton soup that came with the meal (as a part of the lunch special) were again pretty simple but still good. Overall, a good little spot to fill a craving!

    (4)

  • Christine J.

    horrible service and ethics. i used to like their food but now service has gone to the gutters and they try to cheat money off their customers. pathetic joint. food is not as good either. the owner is always there, bald middle aged chinese guy, all pompous and full of himself, speaking in mandarin and cantonese in a loud voice to other servers - who keep changing prob bc of the bad ethics there. He's very obnoxious and pretend to give good customer service. which i was fooled by for a long time. the head waitress is from taiwan. she's pretty unhappy with her job you can clearly tell. not nice or wants to be there frankly. and it was at my last visit that i realized one tiny soup of egg drop soup is $3.95. $4 for a mini soup, are you kidding? i didn't order it. all entrees are 12 or more. even apps are upwards of 10. not the way a chinese restaurant should charge. just too much. esp with the quality stuff they present... or lack of. the price has gone up dramatically. they started charging for tea too, $1/head. LOL. are we in the black market yet? it's crappy tea too. just turn offs everywhere u look. lastly, their receipts are hand written with the worst hand writing, almost trying to trick you into not knowing what item is what and not know what you were charged. we were pretty sure we got charged $7

    (1)

  • Nitin B.

    Food was ok. one of the dish we ordered was 'General tso chicken'. we got some chicken and 32 pieces of full red chilies !! I wondered why they did that - we didnt ask for spicy !! on bringing it to lady's notice , she just laughed it off.

    (3)

  • Linling C.

    If I can rate zero, I would definitely rate that! Bad attitude, bad service, the food is so hot even hurt my tongue. I will never visit this restaurant again!!!!!!! They even rule us to pay 18% gratuity without any ask. When I had doubt, the manager blamed me that I didn't notice their tip rule in menu.

    (1)

  • Carrie L.

    I will give them 0star if I can! There's no service at all, the boss and the staff are quite rude except their greeting. But as soon as you sit down, you will definitely regret. The boss, order lady, all the staff were racism, very cold to Chinese looking people, while seemed obsequious to the western looking customers, especially the police, even they are Chinese too! What a pity! The food is all the same, you can't tell what you are eating, not Chinese nor Western. I think they don't care, cause there will always be new walking guests in the campus...

    (1)

  • Xiang Y.

    1 They automatically add 20% tips and their service is horrible. 2 The dishes were totally non authentic. 3 They have a confusing menu. 4 Never come to this place!

    (1)

  • Vicky S.

    Terrible services and food. Add 20% gratitude automatically to your bill without any direction. The boss and waitresses are the worst I've ever met in Chinese restaurants.

    (1)

  • Sandra M.

    Just came here for lunch today with 2 other friends. Service was quite mediocre which is fine. I can tolerate substandard service if the food can make up for it. The food was pretty good. But we then found an inch long piece of METAL WIRE in our Szechuan Shrimp!!! What's worse is, I called the host over to let him know. He took the metal from me, examined it in his hand, raised his eyebrows, and then walked away without saying a word. I thought he would return to apologize or at least explain what might have happened. But we did not see him the rest of the lunch. I'm glad we were able to find that piece of metal because it was definitely big enough to hurt your throat if swallowed. Not happy with how this was handled, not coming back.

    (1)

  • Ben O.

    Summary: Highly recommended for substandard food with rude service as a bonus. We wanted to eat Chinese food and The 3 star average didn't discourage us and so we tried. The food is 2 stars - mediocre at best. Sizzling hot plate is not even hot and the waitress insisted it was hot when it was in the kitchen. Kitchen must be a mile away. Food is one dimensional salty. Attitude from owner was extremely poor when I mentioned about the food. I guess he only know how to response to positive comment - which I am sure comes from those who never had Chinese food. With this kind of quality and service, I wish this place luck. Such restaurant reinforced the rude attitude of some Chinese restaurants and serving sub par food to anyone who never had Chinese food. The "Fu lu shou" God of fortune figurines facing the front door can only help so much.

    (1)

  • Lexi Y.

    There is a fly in my rice, make me feel so sick, and they just changed another one, nothing else. The dishes taste not good, and the service either. I will never eat there again.

    (1)

  • Sun H.

    The food is so so. Service is bad. Waiters are incredibly rude. Won't come back again. Do not recommend you coming either.

    (1)

  • Maysan L.

    GO GET CHIPOTLE. It's too busy. Took almost an hour to have my takeout ready. And the host discriminates and gives priority to the most Asian looking tourists. Not even equal attention to Asian Americans. Let alone the other ethnicities who want to eat there. The food is meh portions are kinda small for the lunch special. They really need better service. The only reason they have business is from the tourists. .Definitely not happy with this place.

    (1)

  • Amaresh S.

    Meh. I was giving a presentation to recruit people for my company, and we ordered dinner from this place for everyone who was coming (about 30-40 people). Pros: They gave us a lot of food. Way more than was necessary for 30-40 people. We had a ton left over They lent us these large steel trays for us to carry the food over to the building, abt 10 minutes away. This for sure saved us many trips out there Cons: The food was pretty mediocre not too authentic chinese food No serving spoons or anything, so we had to serve w/ normal plastic spoons All in all, I think people are more interested about the quality of the food, hence my rating of this place.

    (3)

  • Lindsay W.

    DO NOT GO HERE! I could've give them zero star if that's an option. We went there and ordered four dishes and the service is SHIT. 1. The fried wonton is horrible, not authentic at all. (I am Chinese so I would know.) The other dishes are really oily and unhealthy. 2. The waitress ( the old lady who was claimed to be the manager) was rude to me because she spoke to me in Chinese directly without even asking me whether I can speak Chinese or not. Just because I look Chinese? That's racism and stereotype! What if I am Korean? What if I am American Asian who cannot speak Chinese? Also the language in Chinese was really rude. But they were polite to the other non-Chinese customers. 3. We are automatically charged 20% tip. I think the owners were picking on us because we were apparently teenagers. When we asked they did not explain to us about the price. Instead they insisted that we have to pay this amount and this is the set amount. After we questioned him and he refused to explain rudely, we paid and then on the receipt, it said pre-tip amount, which means we are asked tip again. This is ridiculous and illegal. Anyways this place is gross and horrible.

    (1)

  • Jerry L.

    Don't go!! This is a very low class Chinese food place, table are dirty and service are very very bad, it's so sad to see such a nice location with this type bad attitude . we end up leave there without eating.

    (1)

  • Landon C.

    I came here before Christmas with one of my friends for a late dinner. We showed up *before* 10pm. We were greeted by the staff at the front. Rather than saying "Welcome to our restaurant", we were plainly informed: "We do close at 11." My friend and I looked at our phones. They clearly were hoping that we would walk away, but it was 9:52pm. What?! Confused.... So anyways, we didn't really want to eat here if they didn't want to serve us, but we didn't feel like finding another place. The food was okay, nothing to write home about. However, we did notice that they started pushing people away soon after 10pm. Won't be coming back, but I'd like to stop in at 10:30pm some other time to see if I get turned away. Oh well, it just opens the door for some good Chinese competitors to enter the Boston marketplace.

    (2)

  • Di M.

    Worst Chinese restaurant I have ever been in Boston! We would like to try the Santouka Ramen at first, but the line was too long to wait. We just selected a random restaurant nearby. The environment is totally a mess. It felt like a restaurant opened 50 years ago without any renovations. What's worse, there was no service at all, but the tips was forced! Just go with any other restaurants nearby, and you will have a great day.

    (1)

  • Lauren D.

    I would give this establishment zero stars if I could. Waited a very long time to be greeted (5 to 10 minutes). Once we were , it took a long time to receive food and my boyfriend 's came 5 minutes before mine. Wasn't sure if it was coming at all as no one said anything. Once it did it was tasteless and cold and we never received the drinks we ordered. By the end we waited for our bill and the host demanded a tip at the counter? I left hungry and offended , not to mention ripped off! I am a server in a restaurant and this experience was unacceptable. I cannot recommend this place at all and we really did want to like it.

    (1)

  • Aaron S.

    DO NOT GO THERE Food was below average after 40 mins of wait on the seat. We had to remind the server 3 times (15 mins after the 2nd to the last dish was served) to get the last dish on the table. The owner was soooooo toxic and sarcastic when I ask why is there a 18% AUTO INCLUDED gratuity when we had to starve for 40 mins and anticipate the hell out of the last dish. DO NOT GO THIS PLACE. Completely ruined our trip to Boston. I would give a negative 5 stars if allowed.

    (1)

  • Joseph J.

    My first time with this Yenching restaurant, and it turned out to be awful. The owner of this restaurant asked us to wait for 10 mins even there is empty tables, the food is just general, nothing special, as a matter of fact, the food is below the general. The most important thing is, the server and the owner's attitude is really bad, they didn't bother to stop once during the entire dining. Never go to this one again.

    (1)

  • Sally N.

    Ordered the Hunan Crispy Shrimp and Lo Mein with chicken. Both were way too horribly salty and flavorful, it got difficult to eat after a while! The service was alright but they also included an overcharged tip in our bill total without asking, which we didn't even want to pay after our experience here. When we brought up the large amount of the included tip the owner was just rude and disrespectful, and made us stand by the counter forever until he was done chatting with everyone else. Pretty disappointing, probably should stick with Hong Kong down the street.

    (1)

  • Mark L.

    Very unpleasant experience, foods are all very salty, no services at all, avoid if you don't want your dinner ruined.

    (1)

  • Shirley W.

    DO NOT EAT HERE! Poor service, but automatically charged 30% gratitude. I wish I could give zero star!! My dish is less than $11 but they charged more than $15. Will NEVER EVER come back.

    (1)

  • Noele K.

    This place is run by a crook. My 16 year old daughter and a friend ate here for lunch today and had a terrible meal. When they got their check for $18 they included a $5 tip. The girls thought it was a suggestion so only left $20 since they barely ate the food, the quality was so poor. As they went to leave they were stopped at the door and were told they didn't pay the full amount. They were told that they needed to pay $23 the full amount which included the $5 tip. The girls paid and told me this story when they came home. I was shocked. I couldn't believe that someone would take advantage of two young girls like this and think it was okay. I called and asked to speak with the manager to make sure he knew this was happening. I couldn't believe it when he told me that they add the tip like this to every check, but it is just a suggestion. I told him they were stopped at the door and asked to pay the reaming portion of the tip. I asked and he confirmed he was there when this happened. I ask how he could feel okay taking advantage of teenagers this way and honestly he really wouldn't respond. He repeatedly denied this happens but seriously doubt the girls just made this up. There was never an apology or questions about how he could fix this, he simple didn't care. My next note is to the better business bureau.

    (1)

  • Ashley D.

    Beyond upset with this place, the waitstaff is sweet yet the man up front is rude to customers and staff. I came in Friday for a quick bite was seated right away and the waitstaff works together to make sure drinks are filled and orders are taken. I ordered two apps and an entree, the entree came out first while the other two apps came out 15 minutes and 30 minutes after the entree... The last app to come was the shrimp tempora which IS NOT shrimp tempora, instead has the thick pupu platter style batter. When speaking with the owner upfront he was rude saying timing in the kitchen doesn't matter and you shouldn't order more than one plate, if I was unhappy I shouldn't tip the waitstaff. That's a BIG NO NO! I believe in always tipping as I have waitressed for years... It isn't fair to the busy waitstaff that the kitchen staff can't get their act together its overall management and the kitchens problem and poor judgement. I won't be visiting again or recommending anyone due to management.

    (1)

  • YE W.

    Excerpt from Les Miserables' Master of the House lyrics aptly describes how Yenching is run: "Charge 'em for the lice, extra for the mice Two percent for looking in the mirror twice! Here a little slice, there a little cut Three percent for sleeping with the window shut When it comes to fixing prices, There are a lot of tricks I know" With average food quality, the owner and waitresses know many tricks to fixing prices. From high price ($$) on low quality tea that is customary served for free in Chinese restaurant, to expensive ($$) but overcooked and dry rice, and the infamous hidden 18% service charge ($$$) for LUNCH that was not stated clearly in the menu nor anywhere else. Isn't this ILLEGALLY? On top of the price trickery, the waitresses were extremely rude. They first shouted at other customers for questioning the bill, they harshly threw the menus in front of us right after the instance. I am a Chinese descendent and I consistently go to Chinese restaurants with different kinks all my life, but this one goes down to the most spectacularly worst experience. I really suspect that after 20 years at Harvard Square, the owner and the waitresses at Yenching has grown weary of the cheap locals and the clueless tourists coming to their restaurant. They all appeared to be irritated, annoyed, and ready to cash out on the remaining idiots, including myself, going there. They are willing to start a shouting match with customers to make sure they get their hidden 18% service charge. This place is only suitable for people who is curious of how bad restaurant service can be and be ready to get rip off to gain this experience. Otherwise, stay away.

    (1)

  • Tyler A.

    I love this place. I have always wanted to go here and then my girlfriend and I randomly walked in this past Friday night. We were both craving American Chinese food and this place hit the spot and then some. we got chicken fingers, beef and broccoli and the house fried rice. Service was fast and the food was hot and very tasty like REALLY tasty! Now I am a fan of authentic Chinese food too but I wanted American Chinese this time and it was some of the best beef and broccoli I have ever had. The waitress was good based on how many people she had to manage on a busy Friday night and the owner was a sweetheart. They did forget our won ton soup, but they were quick to apologize and strike it from the bill. now I know some people say they were overcharged, but I did the math in my head and my bill was accurate. The bill arrived in Chinese and was calculated with a calculator, it wasn't with a computer and itemized like most people are used to. Since most people probably can't do basic math in their head, let alone account for how much their meal actually costs by remembering the prices in the menu, well I assume that is why most people complained about the total cost of their bill. Overall I love this place and I can't wait to go back. I recommend giving it a chance yourself before you go by any of the negative yelp reviews. I find a lot of people have unrealistic expectations when it comes to the simple things in life like food.

    (5)

  • Olivia L.

    Very bad service! The waitress there had a really bad attitute and made us wait for a loooong time! As a Chinese I feel shame of the service there. Never! go! there! folks！

    (1)

  • Daniel L.

    Horrible service and they over charged us with tips (directly included in the bill instead of our discretion). Warning NEVER GO THERE

    (1)

  • Nini N.

    I've been going here for well over a decade. Every time I've come, the owner and staff have been incredibly friendly and helpful, even if they're in a busy period. (Be warned: this restaurant is pretty popular, so there are times when it's bustling and crowded.) It's not just because they've known me since I was a kid -- they always brighten the day of everyone who comes into the restaurant. The food is delicious, there's a huge number of choices and it's one of the best value places left in the Square that isn't a chain. (Even the appetizers are often big enough to serve as a full meal here -- the portions are pretty large.) Sadly, they no longer deliver. Menu standouts include the won ton soup, scallion pancakes, meat and veggie dumplings and beef chow fun.

    (5)

  • Eve S.

    The food was good-nothing spectacular. We were greeted very enthusiastically and warmly which was nice. The glass of water we had was a little suspect but it may just be my general paranoia.

    (3)

  • Allen Y.

    A great, convenient, and speedy place (if you can get a table) in the Square. Avoid the lunch specials and any dish that sounds Americanized; go for things like the sizzling beef dish, the szechuan green beans, or the szechuan fried rice. The food is great if you order more traditional dishes like these, and the pricing is reasonable for the square. The service is speedy, and the staff are super friendly.

    (4)

  • Rayman A.

    Best and most authentic Chinese food in town. The staff is always amazing and hospitable. My favorite restaurant in the square.

    (5)

  • Due H.

    Came here to eat once since it is the most centrally located chinese food place in harvard square. I didn't enjoy it. It seemed like they noticed I didn't like it too much so they gave me a free bowl of rice. Maybe because I was rushing to eat and leave? That was definitely nice of them. Anyhow, I think its just soso.

    (2)

  • A V.

    Mr Yenching knows what's up. He's always in fashion, and never full price!

    (5)

  • Niko X.

    I was walking across Harvard Yard on a brisk Saturday last week. The temperature was just above freezing, yet the air was full of wet heavy snowflakes. We'd been walking all morning, and our stomachs were empty. It's an odd feeling in weather like this. You feel hot enough to sweat from all the walking, yet chilled to the bone. Our cheeks were rose colored and with each breath thick clouds of steam formed in front of our eyes. Like a golden beacon, Yenching's sign attracted our respective gazes. We excitedly frolicked across the busy street; jaywalking in proper Bostonian fashion. We scurried through the doors and that indescribably good feeling that warm indoor air gives the soul as it fills frozen lungs, washed over us like a midsummer's Caribbean tide. We were immediately served piping hot, delicious Jasmine oolong tea. The requisite red leather bound Chinese menus were open, and our eyes were wide with anticipation. On this fine afternoon we dined on crispy fried won-ton, house pork lo mein, crisp aromatic Hunan Beef and a side of delicious white jasmine rice. This style Chinese food is the kind I grew up with. Upon moving to Los Angeles I quickly wrote if off as Americanized and uninteresting. But fuck does it taste good on a cold day when you're hungry! I think it's important to understand that the popular Chinese cuisine served in the Northeast is generally Hunan, Cantonese, and Sichuan, which are the cuisine styles of Southern and Central China. A final note; the atmosphere here is as peaceful as it gets. Despite the fact that the restaurant was half full, it was easy to hear the flute music playing at the lowest possible volume. It's the type of restaurant where people can't help but whisper to one another, and the outside world suddenly ceases to exist.

    (4)

  • S Z.

    The owner was very friendly, the staff was quick with our order, but the food was not very good. The fried rice was barely fried- pretty much just white rice with eggs and pork. The kung pow chicken was quite greasy. The beef and broccoli was good enough, but not enough to make up for the other two dishes. It was ok, if you really wanted chinese and didnt have another place to go. But as it was one of the more expensive chinese places I have gone to, for the price it just wasnt worth it.

    (2)

  • Ariel M.

    My absolute favorite Chinese restaurant! The food is great and is the most authentic I've had outside of Chinatown and Taiwan. The prices are very reasonable. And you can't beat the free cup of tea as you wait for your table or your take-out.

    (5)

  • Steven N.

    Food is okay. There aren't many Chinese food restaurants in Harvard Sq so it's tough to go somewhere else. The service is horrible. I called in an order for pick-up and waited in line for 45 minutes. People sat down and were getting their check before I got my food. The only reason I got my food was because I asked for my money back and that's when they rushed to get my order. Miraculously, it was prepared and waiting in the back. Go figure.

    (2)

  • Sohan P.

    This place hits the spot. I just got done enjoying some oh-so-delicious General Gau's chicken. I have tried just about every other chinese place in the area and this place strikes the perfect balance between price and quality.

    (4)

  • mike l.

    Had the #1 lunch special with hot and sour soup. Everything was good, if a little mild for my tastes, but nothing was exceptional. A good spot for a relatively quick lunch.

    (4)

  • Matt S.

    More authentic than I'd thought it would be. One of the few Chinese places in the Boston area (outside of Chinatown) I could stomach after actually returning from China. I order anything spicy from the menu. The manager is a bit over-the-top, but the food's (mainly) worth stomaching him. (My friend who used to go there twice a week said he's actually a cool guy once you finally get to know him--I'll take my friend's word for it.)

    (4)

  • Vik C.

    this place has good food - easily the best chinese restaurant around harvard square. i've mostly tried the staple chinese-american dishes... orange chicken, szechwan beef, hunan chicken (really good!), and yu shiang chicken. i love their dumplings... but i love all dumplings, so that's not saying much i guess. their portions are usually enough for two, though that's sorta typical chinese-american restaurants. they have great lunch specials, if you're looking for a deal. the best part, i'd say, is the service. you walk in, and the owner makes you feel like you go there every day. that, in my book, earns its fourth star.

    (4)

  • Winnie W.

    I walked into the restaurant and ordered a takeout last night. I was immediately greeted by the maitre d' and offered a seat and a cup of tea. The staffs were super friendly and the food (I ordered vegi & Singapore fried noodle) was great. The restaurant even included two free soups in my order. I would definitely return to the restaurant in the future!

    (5)

  • Thomas N.

    In terms of Chinese restaurants in Cambridge, MA, Yenching will be your best bet. They have a variety of dishes at reasonable prices & compared to Hong Kong (a few blocks down), there's no competition. To be honest, you'll be better off going into Boston Chinatown to get Chinese food but if you're stuck in Cambridge and have a craving, this is your best bet

    (4)

  • Chloe C.

    Best Chinese near Harvard campus. The service was really great. They were very fast for both take-out and a normal sit-down meal. They offered good advice on what to get, and even tried to teach my group some cantonese! The food itself was very good, although the portions were almost too big.

    (4)

  • Lex L.

    The the lunch specials are great, and the menu has a variety of food - everything from white-person-deep-fried sweet and sour pork to some real authentic Chinese stuff. Portions are hefty, and prices aren't bad, especially at lunch. The staff at this place really takes it from "good" to "great". After a few lunch visits, the owner(?) knew me well enough to ask about my shopping habits. He always goes the extra mile: a hot cup of tea while waiting for takeout, or a smile on a bad day.

    (5)

  • Haiyan H.

    This is our family's favorite Chinese restaurant at Harvard for 26 years. Food is more and more authentic. Now it is one of the four best chinese restaurants in Boston Areas including Chinatown. Our favorite dishes, Gonbao chicken, steamed fish, western green, Mapo doufu, scallion pan cakes with eggs

    (5)

  • David Y.

    There may not be a ton of Chinese in Harvard Square but that doesn't mean the ones there should get a pass. Yenching is a rundown, mom-and-pop type of place that you'd expect in a Chinatown. I went here for dinner and just expected more. The service was prompt but once I got my food, I didn't see anyone until they brought my check. Would've been nice to get my water refilled or asked if everything was ok. I got the Kung Pao beef for $10.50, which was just ok. I was pretty disappointed the dish only had beef, hot peppers and scallions. Perhaps its more authentic that way but when the menu describes the different peppers, I guess I thought they meant bell peppers and not black pepper and hot peppers. The dish was also very greasy. Which I guess is common for them but it still made my dish a little gross. And I was also honestly expecting more food. I was pretty hungry and got a dinner entree so when I finished the entire dish easily, I was surprised their portions weren't larger. Not that I was hungry afterwards, but I usually end up with a pretty large container for leftovers at any other Chinese joint. I guess I'll stay away from Chinese altogether in the square.

    (2)

  • Malika B.

    food was good. i went with a chinese person who spoke mandarin the entire time to the staff. food was good. large portions tasty. friendly staff. the only reason i did not give a better review is that when presented with a credit card the person at the front dest added their own 20 percent tip and the tip was based on the tax plus the price of the meal. i have never in my life experienced someone adding their own 20 percent tip, it is usually left as a section to write in your own tip.......nbot here....beware!!!!! we were pissed. it also tok a long time to be seated. there is only one waitress working the whole place.

    (3)

  • Christine F.

    So honestly, I've only had noodle dishes here - and they've all been completely tasty - but I really wanted to review this place because the customer service is so fantastic. I know I should try other places in the neighborhood, but the guy who answers the phone here is possibly the jolliest human on earth. He is a delight. I think that's enough said. Oh, and I'd recommend the shrimp lo mein, extra spicy.

    (4)

  • Lachinita X.

    I haven't had 99% of the menu, so I can't say how Yenching is overall. But I repeatedly go to Yenching for the rice noodle sticks (beef mai fun), and it reminds me of my mother's cooking, except greasier, in a good way! It's also like $8 or $9, and it has beef and shrimp. So good. I like the scallion pancakes with egg, because it's too time-consuming to make scallion pancakes on my own, and I don't want to always go to Chinatown. I can't say the scallion pancakes are always great or consistent - but it's good enough if I need a scallion pancake fix. It sometimes feels like they have different cooks making them. If you complain about the prices as being too expensive, they are. But then take the 25 minute ride to Chinatown, walk around another 10 minutes, and go to Taiwan Cafe. But if you're looking for decent Chinese food in Harvard Square, Yenching is your place.

    (4)

  • Mark T.

    the peking noodles in meat sauce for $5.95 or something is absolutely killer. They apologize if you're waiting for more than 15 seconds for seating at lunch, which you often don't.

    (5)

  • Amanda U.

    SO delicious (everything I've had, except the orange chicken... but i just really dislike orange chicken). the service is awesome- super sweet and nice, always refilling your cup with more tea (for $.25!) quick, delicious, reliable, consistent, well-priced. Anything and everything I could ask for in a chinese restaurant.

    (5)

  • Yinan Z.

    I am not normally a food reviewer, but felt compelled to review Yenching. As someone who frequents China and has a good idea of what good Chinese food like, I have to say that Yenching comes much closer than usual to hearty, (relatively) authentic Chinese food. A few dishes to note are the "mei cai kou rou", which is a slow-cooked pork belly, and the "si chuan hui guo rou", a spicy pork belly stir fry. It is a Chinese restaurant, so one would expect the pork to stand out. Vegetables are good too, in particular the "gan bian si ji dou". In addition to the food, the service is excellent, as is the attitude of the employees. Finally, being in the center of Harvard yard makes it really convenient for us students!

    (5)

  • Chinwe N.

    The best beef fried rice I have EVER had....hands down. I'll be sure to try the dumplings next time :-)

    (4)

  • Janice T.

    Ah, yes. The dumplings are indeed very good! Came here with three other people and a toddler on a Saturday evening and had to wait about 30 minutes for a table, which was fine because the food was delicious. They say that the kung pao chicken is spicy, but truly it's not very. Even so, it was quite tasty. Really, really liked the place. The man who seated us (the manager? owner?) was very friendly and so apologetic that we had to wait so long. I will definitely come back.

    (4)

  • Nicholas S.

    Yenching definitely has the best Chinese food in Harvard Square. Then again, it isn't hard to beat the Kong. Yenching has your usual Chinese American fare along with a variety of more authentic dishes. The tea smoked duck is great, but the menu's real star is the fried chicken with chili salt.

    (4)

  • crazyprak s.

    I have been going here for years. No doubt they have the best schezuan chicken. Service is friendly. I was little dissapointed with their delivery because the portioning was little small than what they serve in the restaurant and the quality of the food wasn't the same. Overall it's a great place o dine-in.

    (4)

  • Michael L.

    It's a pretty good Chinese place for Harvard Square. The lunch specials are a good deal. I'd go for the $7.25 entrees that come with rice, soup, and an egg roll. Mmmmmmm. . . I recommend the Yu-Hsaing (Garlic sauce) chicken. It's really good. Their hot & sour soup is pretty good, too.

    (4)

  • Gino T.

    This place is good. It's definitely a step up from your typical cheap Chinese take out. The host was very pleasant and I got a hot cup of tea immediately, and I was only there for a pick up. The food was good, but I've had better, it kind of reminded me of a neighborhood version of P.F. Changs. With the same prices. I thought I was going to get cheap greasy Chinese food, but was pleasantly surprised.

    (3)

  • Erik L.

    I've been to this place twice; the first time was about a year ago, and then yesterday again. Neither visit was very memorable. I'll probably go back in another year or so. I don't have any complaints about decor or wait staff - its all typical for what you'd expect at a Chinese restaurant. But the food just isn't good. Its not bad, but I miss the fresh flavor that you usually expect. Yesterday I had the crispy Hunan(?) chicken, which had an odd flavor. The chow yun fat (rice noodle) was decent enough. In short, there are many, many, better Chinese restaurants in the Boston area. Around Harvard Square there isn't much in terms of Chinese, so maybe, if you really want Chinese, you can go here. But I think Harvard Square has a lot more to offer, Asian and Western.

    (3)

  • Steven M.

    This place is probably the best Chinese food in Harvard Square, so I suppose it deserves some recognition. Notice, though, that it has only received two stars; that's because it's really not very good. It's still better than the unpalatable Hong Kong and New Asia though. For actually good Chinese food, go to Shangri-la on Belmont Street, near the Cambridge/Belmont/Watertown line. You can get there by bus, and I think it's even cheaper than Yenching for infinitely better food.

    (2)

  • Lena G.

    Great value, the beef with broccoli was very flavorful, and my friends enjoyed their dish which included noodles and cabbage - can't remember what it was called right now...

    (4)

  • Ronda W.

    Yenching has great service, especially considering it's in Harvard Square - very friendly staff. Their prices are reasonable, their food is good and their service is fast. Their shrimp fried rice is very good - not sure what they do differently, but it's not as heavy-feeling as other shrimp fried rice I've tried. Their lunch combos are also very good deals.

    (3)

  • shary m.

    The service here is spectacular. There is no place more inviting in Harvard Square, the owner always has a big smile and welcomes you in, jokes with you, and makes sure your keep coming back.. Embrace it, you will not be disappointed! They get an extra star for that. The food is all around, good standard chinese food. Nothing unexpected, but consistent. The peanut noodles, lomein, mooshi, the spicy stringbeans are all the very tasty.

    (4)

  • Asad H.

    Quite possibly some of the best Chinese food you can order in Cambridge. If you can get your food here, do so. Dumplings are fantastic and the rest of the food is delicious and reasonably priced. Foods generally ready within a few minutes and you get quite a bit for your money.

    (5)

  • Benjamin C.

    I've only been once, but the Lo Mein was definitely sub-par - and that tends to be my barometer.

    (2)

  • Ken M.

    um...today's experience was bad, but I've been before and it's okay. Fairly standard, nothing to write home about.

    (3)

  • Huan z.

    Food is delicious and decent but very pricey compare to other Chinese restaurant. It's understandable since the rent in Harvard square is more expensive. A small wonton soup with only 2 or 3 wonton cost $3.

    (3)

  • Shirley Y.

    my coworkers and i decided to come here to grab take out for lunch since it is chinese new year. we called the order ahead. when we walked in, we were greeted by the very friendly manager, who spoke cantonese to me. they had their round box of sweets out for the new year...which we kept picking at while we waited for our food. we waited, and waited, and waited... when the food came, we walked back to the office to eat. to our dismay, we discovered that we were short one entree. we felt bad for the poor guy, so we decided to pitch in and share some our food. there was plenty to go around, and the food was delicious for chinese take out. unfortunately, the restaurant will have to work on its operations, even though they were busy for lunch.

    (3)

  • Ed S.

    Certainly one of the best places in the square for an inexpensive lunch. The prices are great (about $8 for a lunch special that comes with soup and a spring roll) and the food is delicious. The waiters are extremely attentive and very nice. The atmosphere is lovely - they have done a wonderful job of making the most of their small storefront. When you're asked if you want steamed or fried rice, I'd recommend the fried. It's not actually drenched in oil as you might expect from American Chinese food, it just includes a few eggs and vegetables.

    (5)

  • Emily Z.

    Their fried rice is so good that getting it anywhere else is just disappointing now. The guy at the front desk is super-friendly and makes me feel welcome whenever I come in.

    (5)

  • Jeff R.

    I've had consistently good experiences at Yenching over the years in terms of food and service, and the atmosphere, while nothing to write home about, is good for what this place is: a low-key Chinese restaurant. The head waitress apparently has a good memory because she always remembers what I like to order: pineapple chicken (it may be bright pink, but it's sooo good!). This is a good place to check out if you're near Harvard, and it's definitely nicer than the Hong Kong restaurant ("the Kong") down the street.

    (4)

  • Anne K.

    While I am sure the food is great, we were not "allowed" to try anything on the menu. Whatever we tried to order the waitress told us that we wouldnt like it, and told us instead to stick to the kung pow chicken. it was SO FRUSTRATING and rude that we left. I couldn't believe it, i was in awe, everything we said we wanted this woman was like " no no, not that". who does that?!?????????

    (1)

  • Nancy W.

    Compared to the other Chinese restaurants in Cambridge, this one is probably the better choice. The food is mandarin cuisine, and not as greasy as Hong Kong but the prices are about the same (a bit overpriced for the type of dish). The noodles are good but can be sometimes a bit too salty. Their sweet and sour pork is decent and fried rice is ok (although sometimes, not always, the rice was probably cooked with too much water).

    (3)

  • Anonymous P.

    OK. Too greasy. Good lunch specials.

    (3)

  • Kiki B.

    okay, so maybe i had a bad experience, but it was really, really bad. the sweet and sour chicken tasted like banana - weird. the orange beef was marginally better, but this is not a great option at all.

    (2)

  • Scott K.

    I had the lunch special. The chicken had a fishy after taste. The boneless ribs were good. I couldn't say the service was friendly. I won't becoming back.

    (2)

  • Chen H.

    I rarely comment on Yelp but I just have to say something here. This place probably has the worst services possible. When we got here with a reservation for 16 people, they only gave us a table for 10 people and asked the rest to just stand and wait until something comes up. Then I asked them whether the booklet on the table was the menu, and they said "what do you think it is?" I feel ashamed of them being Chinese and wish that people never come here again.

    (1)

  • Adam T.

    Get the lunch special Lots to choose from and enjoy Students can't go wrong

    (3)

  • Snorkeling W.

    a typical "wok N roll" Chinese restaurant, the food is OK, well, American Chinese food. We walked in around 5PM, Friday. Compare to the crowd outside, we are the only customer in the room. Food serviced quickly, for some dishes, it is kinda "too quick". Just BEWARE, they add about 20% TIP to the bill automatically and NO itemized receipt available.

    (3)

  • Mattias L.

    I got in late on a Sunday night after a long trip from NY. The man at the front was very welcoming. The meal costed $10.68, and he spared me the 68 cents. As I was waiting I received some water from the waitress without asking. Also, he gave me gratis soup since it was tardy. Just before I left, he said take the menu and next time we'll have the food prepared for you.

    (4)

  • Sorina P.

    Stopped here on a visit to Harvard thinking it would be a decent meal. I was wrong. First off, and in my opinion, the most important factor for any food establishment, is the quality and taste of the food. This place does not meet that criteria. Our Szechuan shrimp was sad looking. The shrimp appeared to be those small pre-frozen kinds, a size up from bay shrimp. The taste was nothing to rave of at all. The kung pao beef was smothered in this brown sauce that was overly salty. Bleah! The pork chop with noodle soup - soup was bland and pork chop was not meaty and looked like it was cooked much earlier in the day. The sauteed string beans were decent. We asked for tea, and we ended up being charged $6-7 for a pot of tea. My 9 yr. old was charged for tea too. I have a problem with this, because tea is usually complimentary at Chinese restaurants! The worst part of the experience, which was mentioned by another dissatisfied Yelper, is an 18% gratutiy was added to our bill. There was no sign or warning that this was their practice. Plus, we only had 2 adults and our 2 children in our party. Pretty standard. Our total bill for 3 very subpar dishes and the string beans came out to $63 and change. VERY DISAPPOINTING! NOT RECOMMENDED! Being across the street from Harvard may make the rent high, but conducting business in this manner can only steer customers away. I sincerely hope the owners will read these reviews and make a change for the better.

    (1)

  • Gong Z.

    The men at the front desk is rude. He shouted at as when we tried to have some free water when we are waiting for a table. The food is terrible and it's not fresh. When people next to us find a worm in the dish, the boss just said its protein and they should take it as a men. When we tried to tip less, we find that the 20% tip is already included in the bill. Not pleasant experience over all.

    (1)

  • Jiyea C.

    This is the first 1 star review I am ever writing. As a Californian, I don't expect good Asian food anywhere in Boston, especially in Harvard Square. But this place hit lower than my already very low expectations. The one positive thing I can say about this place is that I found it cleaner than the other Chinese restaurants I have been to. I think it is to appeal to the tourists who visit Harvard Square. They are also a little more English friendly. (Okay so I guess that was more than one positive thing.) It all starts going downhill from there. For one, the food took longer than usual to arrive, although the restaurant was half empty on a Thursday evening. It seemed like they were more focused on getting their take-out orders out, even though there were TIP-PAYING diners waiting to be served. Speaking of tip: it's included in the bill. You HAVE to tip whatever amount they put on the check. I think it was 18-20%. I believe this is customary for the restaurant regardless of party size (We were a party of 2). I would already have an issue about mandatory tip even if food/service were good, but in this case, it was NOT AT ALL! It took forever to get in our order, it took forever for our food to come out, and we asked for hot sauce 3 times and still never got it! Then when we made an issue of it when we got the bill (with the infuriating mandatory tip that we did not believe the restaurant staff deserved), they looked at us blankly i also noticed that they favor their regulars a LOT. When someone the staff knew came in to eat, he was greeted enthusiastically (while we were not given a greeting, nor even a word--just a gesture to an empty table), his order was taken immediately and his food arrived in a far more timely manner than ours, and before other parties in the restaurant, even though the others had put in their orders earlier than the "VIP" Not cool. another negative: dinner here can get expensive! The plates do not come with rice, so you have to order (and pay for it) separately per serving. Tea also comes at an additional price. We were not warned about this when they asked us if we wanted tea or rice. Will not return.

    (1)

  • Karen X.

    The quality of the food is pretty good and the waiters and owners are friendly, but the atmosphere is not great. Can get very crowded and noisy, so better for families.

    (3)

  • Leslie G.

    The lunch specials are a good deal, but the food is pretty greasy. I had the vegetable chow mein, and it was standard, nothing special. It would be nice if they had a vegetarian soup option, since soup comes with the lunch special.

    (3)

  • Alli M.

    STAFF: The staff that works here is super friendly, especially when you start to be regulars. They are always very attentive and have great timing on when you need your bill, etc. Take-out is super quick too. FOOD: The food is significantly better than Hong Kong down the road. It was our go-to Chinese food take-out place while we were in grad school. I'd recommend the egg rolls, beef and snow peas with black mushrooms and tea. The Kung Pao chicken and beef and broccoli are fairly good, a little bit bland if you are used to spice, but you can always add more spice with some chili-garlic sauce at home (for takeout). ATMOSPHERE: It is busy most of the time, the walls could use a good scrubbing and I'd wait to use the bathroom til you get home because it is TINY, but other than that, a good place to stop in to grab some food on the way home or to grab a bite to eat.

    (3)

  • Shengyi Y.

    Terrible!! They attempted to charge TIPS three times without telling me!!!! I am a student in Harvard University. I came here several times in the past. But I never checked the bill they gave me before paying by credit card! This time, my friend and her parents visited me and I brought them to Yenching. We ordered four courses: 2 vege and 2 meat. Total should not exceed 60 dollars. When paying the bill,credit card receipt said the total was 68 dollars. We asked for detail bill. The detail bill said the total should be 56! and they secretly charged 18% of tips on that which is 62 dollars ( the amount was written on the bill paper). In addition, they let us pay 68 dollars rather than 62 and telling us it was pre-tip amount!!!! They are trying to get 18% tip (without telling us) + 6 dollars ( nonsense charge) + another tip attempt on the credit card receipt in a meal that worth 56 dollars!!!!! This is a very dishonest restaurant. Not saying their food is bad, but what they did is terribly illegal! MAKE SURE YOU CHECK THE DETAIL BILL BEFORE PAYING IN THIS PLACE!!!!!!

    (1)

  • Santiago G.

    Yenching is a really great place to get good Chinese food near Harvard Square. You are seated very quickly and well attended to. Each time I have gone, my water has not gone empty and my food has arrived quickly. The decoration is nice and not too excessive. The service is very good, everyone is kind and attentive to your needs. The food tastes authentic and does not taste like "bad Chinese food" which I am sure we have all had at one point or another. The entree portions are well sized, well priced, and are served on separate plates, great for when you want to share with other people. When you are finished they can package your food so you can take it with you.

    (5)

  • DJ H.

    We love Yenching !!! One of the best chinese restaurants in Boston / Cambridge area ! We went there at least once a week for a year now. Almost every dish we ordered is great ! I'm chinese and most of my chinese friends also love this place.

    (5)

  • Ari F.

    There are so many reviews here already, it seems superfluous to add another -- but I feel I have to, if only to balance out some of the postings I find overly critical. I've been going to Yenching off and on for both dinners and lunches, both eat-in and takeout, for over a decade now, and I've never had anything less than a perfectly good meal, with perfectly fine service. For the prices, and the location (almost the exact center of Harvard Square, one very short block from the main T exit at Out-of-Town News), the value is very-good to excellent -- especially the daily lunch specials (tho with the IMPORTANT CAVEAT that they have a MINIMUM CREDIT-CARD CHARGE of $10 -- which means those lunch specials, at $7.50-$8.50, usually work out to be cash-only, if you don't buy an add-on of some kind!). The one point on which I'd agree with some of the critiques is w/r/t the decor -- it's not the most romantic setting (way too bright, tables far too close), so for date-night, you might find better options.

    (4)

  • Gabi H.

    So the food is not bad here. It's really oily but has good flavor. But other than that, not impressed. The service was not good: waitress was snappy, inpatient, spilled water all over our table, kind of rude, and just overall superficially friendly. The ambience is not that great--which is bad if you're right in the middle of the square and can't spend a few bucks to spruce up the place.

    (2)

  • Alice X.

    Had the fried rice and tried some of my friends' flat noodles and chicken. Pretty good! The host and waitress were also very nice.

    (4)

  • A W.

    Many salt are added. The meat is not fresh. Waitress are rude and slow. Wait long time to get ice water, wait another long time to get first dish. The last dish came more than 5 minutes after we finished others. I requested for check and got it after more than 15 minutes. There were only four tables at that time. 18% tips will be added automatically no matter u have one or ten. Tips were calculated using the total of meals and tax.

    (1)

  • Katie C.

    While dinner's can be a bit on the pricier side, their lunch specials are a STEAL. The daily combination lunches are an especially good deal. For only $7, you get 3 separate dishes (that range from double fried pork to boneless ribs to sweet and sour fish), fried rice, soup and a spring roll. I always have enough leftovers to make a full dinner out of it. You can also order off the regular lunch menu if you're craving something in particular. I'd say the quality is up there as well, at least for this area. Sure, it's a bit greasy and over salted at times, but some dishes are actually better than what I've found in Chinatown (ex: their Beef Noodle Soup comes pretty close to what I eat at home). Although I've only done take out, the service has been exceptional every time. The hostesses and what I assume are managers/owners are incredibly friendly, especially if you happen to speak Chinese.

    (4)

  • Kimmy U.

    I guess in an area where there aren't many Chinese restaurants to go to, I'd come here if I was really craving it. They have a lot of choices on their menu, and it's about $8-10 per dish. The staff speaks Chinese, so you gotta think authentic right? It seemed like everyone around us was enjoying their food. A friend and I split the steamed pork dumplings, which were my favorite of our meal. They came out hot and fresh, and I even saw them making them at one of the tables on our way out. I love love homemade dumplings!! I ordered the seafood noodle soup. It came with bokchoy, scallops, mushroom, and shrimp. Kinda skimpy on the variety of seafood, but they did give a lot of large shrimps. It was a pretty big bowl, but I didn't end up with enough leftovers to take home. My friend ordered the mapo tofu, which she's ordered before, so I assumed she liked it. It came in a pretty big portion. Overall, this place is decent, but not my first choice when coming back to Cambridge

    (2)

  • J T.

    We returned, tired of burittos and other fast food fare, We found the onwer/manager, who had seemed only coarse and antagonistic before, to possess another side. To any and all who were put off by her seemingly harsh manners, I would suggest she can also be warmhearted and friendly with customers who have a sense of humor. As always, take opinions with a grain of salt, especially as they relate to judging others...

    (4)

  • Jennifer L.

    Will never come back here again. 18% gratuity is now slapped onto an average meal. When asked to clarify the bill, the man at the front was super rude and extremely condescending. This is a tourist trap. Don't waste your money.

    (1)

  • Wythe M.

    To be fair: The food was fine, nothing special--standard "cheap Chinese" fare at Harvard Square prices ($62 bill for three people splitting three entrees, two beers, one dessert). Definitely not fancy or worth seeking out. The service, however, is worth actively avoiding. Last night, it was so slow that we had to change plans multiple times. Friends visiting from out of town were frustrated. Maximum lame. Glacial progress, dishes appearing one by one. No sign of concern on the part of the staff. We waited almost an hour for what amounted to a plate of fried fish in hot sauce (which was, granted, edible, hence the second star). The Yenching people seemed nice enough. They should just consider a new line of work.

    (2)

  • Robin Y.

    The fun part of this restaurant is if you have a group of Chinese friends around Harvard Square, you're almost certain to run into one of them. An Italian friend of mine once bumped into someone he met while studying abroad in Beijing six years ago. Being Chinese, I am certain that one day at Yen Ching I will discover my long lost twin. Food is okay with nothing too authentic for the American taste. Try the typical Chinese dishes like Kungpao Chicken, eggplant with fish sauce, pan-friend spring beans.

    (2)

  • Bin S.

    We ordered two dishes, which came fairly quickly. Turned out that the dishes weren't authentic Chinese food--the names were very misleading. People who don't expect anything authentic might enjoy the food. Also note that the tips were included in the bill. The waitress was very friendly, though.

    (2)

  • Sarah G.

    Why has it taken me so long to eat here? I guess being right in prime time Harvard Square space I always assumed it couldn't be that good. But I was wrong. Shows that you really should never judge food by its location! First the service is here is just awesome. They give us pretty small water cups, and if you know my boyfriend Matt J. well he loves drinking water and drinks tons of it. So we thought oh man, these cups are so small we will never have water! BUT they are so on top of their game here our water glasses were always full! They definitely have a good system figured out. And the waiters were all so nice and funny and friendly too. Man, good job Yenching. They only have two types of beer--Coors and Tsing Tsao ha ha But whatever at least they have beer! And the food is the real reason you come here anyway. It is always family style so coming here just with two of you like we did probably wasn't the smartest move in the world, because we just found ourselves with food envy looking around at the tables next to us not being able to order 4-5 things total including these amazing looking green beans that literally everyone ordered except for us. Talk about not feeling like the cool kid. But our spicy tofu dish was delicious and we found ourselves almost scraping the last bit of sauce out of that bowl it was so good. And their pan fried special house noodles were also just so so tasty! I haven't found Chinese food I have really liked that much in Boston until now. So thanks, Yenching.

    (4)

  • Rani P.

    It's their fried rice.... it's literally rice fried in butter with egg. The rice is still white (which fried rice should be)- but it is just incredible. The chicken fried rice was also delicious and the portion was huge. I've never felt so strongly about rice... but can I help it? I'm half Asian.. As for the non-rice dishes, they are consistently satisfactory. I typically come here for lunch- and the staples keep everyone happy. The sweet and sour chicken looks a bit radioactive, but it really is delicious. I also love their chicken and broccoli because they use a white sauce instead of a brown one- so it is lighter and perfect for lunch. As for soup- now remember, I probably have had 500+ bowls of egg drop soup in my lifetime- is pretty good. They put the little pieces of tofu in the egg drop soup, which I like. My coworkers are fans of the wonton- and of course we all enjoy the complementary spring rolls that always come with our lunch. The service is friendly- and the large round tables allow me to make the trek to Harvard Sq with my office peeps to enjoy Chinese food on our lunch break. Also, can't forget the soft mints on your way out!

    (4)

  • May Y.

    When I lived in Hong Kong, I ate so much Shanghainese food that my friends joked that I should just marry a Shanghainese man. XD =.= Although I used to have dessert take-outs from Yenching as a student, I was never particularly impressed by it. Nonetheless, when I was back in Harvard Square to meet up with some friends, I am pleased with the vegetarian options there. Surprisingly, I had the most authentic Shanghainese dumplings and springrolls in the States there. Definitely coming back with friends next time! P.S. I wish Yenching put the dumplings in a traditional bamboo container to keep them warm. Food: 3 Decor: 3 Service: 4

    (4)

  • Judy L.

    Semi-decent Chinese food. This would probably get 1.5 stars from me if I were actually in California. But since I am in the freezing Cambridge where there are only two Chinese restaurants within walking distance, I won't be as picky. Noodle soups aren't bad. Seafood noodle soup was more Canto style, with the thin egg noodles. The beef noodle soup - I am not sure what style it was, but it was actually quite decent. The dan dan noodle was not like any other dan dan noodle I've had. First of all, the bowl itself was larger than the size of my face. It was entirely filled with noodles. Half of the bowl was drenched with creamy sesame sauce, and the other half with tza jian (with minced meat), and the hot sauce in the middle. It was HUGE. Not bad at all. I am not quite sure about MSG, but I always have a minor itchy feeling in my throat after I eat here or at Zoe's (the other Chinese restaurant within walking distance). Not quite sure what is causing it. I better not be allergic to Chinese food. That would be horrible news.

    (3)

  • Dan C.

    OFFENSIVE SERVICE, BORDERING ON THE ABSURD. Man, just picked up an order. Got it home: dumplings are missing. Other part packed so poorly that it leaked all over the bag--so the whole order exploded onto my kitchen floor. Called. Politely explain what happened to owner. He says I need to tell his wife (?) what happened--not because he couldn't handle it, but BECAUSE HE WANTED HIS WIFE TO HEAR FROM ME THAT SHE'D PACKED THE ORDER WRONG. (He keeps telling her but she never listens...) So she gets on the line. Insists that she gave me the dumplings and starts yelling. Gives the phone back to the guy. He asks if I told her about the packing...I explain, still politely, that this is his problem to handle. He still hasn't offered to remake the order. By now, I'm feeling less polite. I explain that I'm disputing the claim on my credit card. He seems only too happy to end the call--I guess one more pissed off customer is no big deal.

    (1)

  • Michelle R.

    Yesss I love Yenching. Food is consistently good although slightly americanized/oily. The staff are super friendly and always give us free soup/red bean soup for dessert. Service is very fast as well. Some of my favorite dishes that are on the more authentic side: Spicy fish (shui zhu yu) - go get this on weekends! Szechuan green beans Yuxiang fish- crispy and delicious Pipa tofu - deep-fried tofu that is crispy on the outside and soft on the inside Also, the lunch special is super cheap and filling.

    (5)

  • Ellen E.

    Completely rude male owner. Just as rude waitresses. They ignore guests even when you try to talk to them. Salt mine fried rice. Had to ask them to redo the dish. Will never go again, especially for the male owner's haughty and disgusting attitude.

    (1)

  • Skye G.

    Cold night, hot egg drop soup and really tasty pork pan fried dumplings hit the right spot dead on. The staff took our order and quick to serve.

    (5)

  • Manish J.

    We had a terrible experience at this place today. The food was bad and the service was nothing special. Then the bill came and things took a strange turn. The owner had padded the bill by 18%, without clearly indicating the reason on the handwritten bill. Once we learnt that he had added the service fee, we were quite surprised (especially since we were a group of 2). Upon asking him why it is mandatory, he immediately sounded irritated with us, and implied that he needed to do it because his place gets many foreigners and visitors who don't tip at all. We politely insisted that we would like the option of adding the tip that we think is appropriate, and after a little grumbling he obliged. Then, as we were walking out after giving a tip (which was less than 18%), we heard him talk to someone behind our back that we are foreigners who don't know the ways here. Not going back to this place again.

    (1)

  • Emily Z.

    The Yenching is near and dear to my heart. But it's probably really a 3 or 4, depending on what you're looking for. I love this place because it has solid Chinese food that will not suffocate you with oil, the staff is very friendly, and getting takeout is quick and painless. Living close by is a plus - I probably wouldn't trek very far to come here. They have all of your standard appetizers in addition to a wide variety of savory and spicy (and Americanized, if that's what you want) dishes. My favorite dishes to order are stir-fry fish and vegetables, scrambled eggs and tomato, spicy beef and peppers, stir-fry tofu and vegetables [Yelp won't let me post Chinese, so these English names are meant to be descriptive, not the actual dish names], among a few others. Yes, most of these are dishes that you really can just make at home yourself, but for me that is Yenching's appeal - nice homey Chinese cooking when it's difficult to access such things otherwise.

    (4)

  • Tinley M.

    This restaurant features bad service and tasteless, overpriced food. When I went in to order takeout, we were faced with an unhelpful and slightly rude woman who told us that we could not split the check unless we told her before she wrote it down. She told us this literally 30 seconds after she wrote down just two words on a piece of paper. This would not have been that big of a deal if the food had not been so utterly atrocious. We ordered steamed dumplings, which were mediocre at best, and beef lo mein which was very greasy and had little to no flavor. Opt for something else in Harvard Square.

    (1)

  • Sissi W.

    Service is good. Two people order one fried rice and two dishes. Can't finish them! So full! Delicious.

    (4)

  • Roger W.

    Food is average. Worst, most inattentive service I have gotten in a very long time. Waitress drop off water jug for us to refill our own water. Dishes are not served but rather dropped off. You will be better off and be less frustrated eating at Panda Express.

    (1)

  • Alex J.

    Disappointing. Got Hunan Crispy Chicken and Lo Mein. Was neither cheap, tasty, nor plentiful. Chicken was oddly greasy, and the Lo Mein was a strange mix of bland and garlicy.

    (2)

  • Paul M.

    Had the Kung Pao Tofu. Perhaps the worst Chinese food I've ever had. No flavor, just incredibly greasy fried tofu, celery, and bell pepper. It was labelled spicy, but unless you plan on eating the whole dried chilies which were mixed in, it has no spice to speak of. I don't know how they jammed so much oil into the tofu - it was just oozing oil.

    (1)

  • Joseph L.

    got their twice cooked pork, country scrambled eggs, glutinous rice cake (niangao), and shanghai bakchoy. all were stellar, and for a terrific price of under $14 a person including tip. their service may not be as freakishly fast as other chinese places, but they're not slow and they're definitely responsive. for a place so conveniently located at harvard square, i would expect them to abuse their geography and charge ridiculously., but they they don't. they definitely offer great value and food. if you are chinese and can tell apart local dialects, you may notice that the store manager knows more dialects than the average chinese should. gives the place bonus street cred. i would come here regularly if i lived in cambridge.

    (5)

  • Anya H.

    This is my family's favorite Chinese restaurant! Once I became a regular customer the owner and several wait staff remember me! I even got a free dessert on my birthday once. I love the fried rice, pan-fried noodles, and the watercress the best. The sesame chicken is also good. I suggest not coming here for the dumplings though.

    (4)

  • Istar N.

    This is my first Yelp review, and it's going to be a very, very negative one. I went there with my boyfriend, and we ordered tofu and steamed fish. On Saturday night, we were told they don't have fresh fish, and were offered fried fish instead. The tofu was fried also. There was no tofu in there. We cut each of the huge pieces of dough in half to see what's inside and found one or two tiniest tofu pieces I've seen in my life, and a lonely piece of mushroom. The rest is batter, batter, batter. An equivalent tofu dish at Shanghai gate was delicious; the Yenching one was outright disgusting. Fried fish was so-so, but we came there for a light meal, and got everything fried instead. The place is crowded, and the manager, while trying to be friendly, had to serve us because it was so full. We had receipts and credit cards passing between the waiters right over our heads. We conjectured that it was only full because of its location -- NOT because of its food. We went there before, and although our lunch was mediocre back then, we decided to give it a chance. Never again. Horrible, horrible experience.

    (1)

  • Molly L.

    I've been here once, and I won't be back. It wasn't terrible, but I have a theory that this place is only around to prey on tourists. The service is pretty bad--even in the context of it being a Chinese restaurant. I'm all for efficiency, but the waiters here didn't humor me with so much as a smile. I don't think they even made eye contact. The food was all right, but the portions were smaller than they should have been. The presentation was sloppy and careless. I doubt this review will put a dent in their popularity. Personally, I'd rather hop on the red line to go to Chinatown for some real Chinese food.

    (1)

  • Simon L.

    Business majors can learn a thing or two from this place. Bad food + okay price + great location= Homerun

    (1)

  • Sylvia D.

    It's w/e for the expensive price. 8.50 lunch combo, but the portion they give you is very small. Not really worth it... The food is decent.

    (3)

  • Danan R.

    This is where my parents go when they come up to visit and are too lazy to venture more than 2 blocks from their hotel. The food is decent and the owner is really nice and honest. He tells us which dishes are actually authentic, and hasn't led us wrong. This isn't Chinatown quality food, but the service is definitely better and the dining area much more comfortable. Plus, it's only 2 blocks from Burdicks! Our staples: marinated roast beef smoked fish shanghai lion's head meatballs bean curd roll casserole triple delight in nest kueming duck Yes, this is gluttonous for 3 people but it means that I can live on leftovers for a few days and not have to eat: a. food truck meals b. chicken teriyaki or c. subway. I would say that this is a more Taiwanese-style place with some mock-Shanghainese dishes. They also have shiao long bao but they aren't spectacular, and to be honest, I make better ones at home that are less greasy. Overall, this is probably the best Chinese restaurant in Harvard Sq. so if you're not venturing out of the vicinity and craving some Chinese food, head here.

    (4)

  • Mark O.

    Cheap Harvard Chinese.

    (4)

  • Ari P.

    This is probably the best Chinese food I've eaten in Massachusetts, and that's saying something. The meal was not without its hitches. The hot and sour soup had a muddled, watery flavor, and the vegetable tempura was pretty bland, as well as the chicken and broccoli. However, the Kung Pao Chicken, Yan Chow Rice, Yu Hsiang Chicken and the Moo Shi Pork especially were all up to snuff. The staff was a little brusque with our party, but they at least kept bringing pitchers of water and gave us our bill quickly.

    (4)

  • George G.

    My other favorite place to eat in the square. My only complaint is that it feels a little cramped.

    (4)

  • Philip H.

    Stay away from here. I decided to try this place out after having driven by hundreds of times over the past 12 years in Boston. I came alone and order the $6.95 lunch special. At 1:45 PM on Monday afternoon, almost every table was occupied, mostly Chinese with a few non- Chinese. The staff seem to be fluent in Mandarin and English. Figured it couldn't be bad. Everything that I was served was too salty and too oily. I don't want to waste time going into detail. You will be throwing your health and wealth down the tubes if you eat here.c

    (2)

  • Graceypoo M.

    Their Dan Dan Mien is pretty decent and the portion was huge! Wish I ordered steamed veggies (like bok choy) on the side because that dish is very heavy. The folks who work here are very efficient and are very nice. =8)

    (3)

  • Douglas W.

    Long long ago, during my undergraduate days in the time of the Pharaohs, I frequented Yenching several times a week, for their dirt cheap lunch buffet. It wasn't spectacular, but it was ample, filling, consistent and tasty, and on the occasions I ordered from the a la carte menu I found their offerings thoroughly decent---again, not spectacular, but fresh and flavorful and excellent value for the money. A real asset to the local dining scene. What the Hell happened? I'm giving a star for service. It was fast and accurate,( aside from the fact that we asked for tea and never got it) and had just the right level of brusqueness for a Chinese place, but, Oh My God, you call that food? The hot and sour soup first course was just OK, but the portion has shrunk dramatically since days of yore. Also, the hot part of hot and sour? Not so much. You used to be able to season your food from bottles of hot sauce and vinegar on the table. Not any more. Kung Pao beef, despite the flowery description in the menu promising a rainbow of flavors from myriad seasonings, tasted of nothing but salt. The beef was grainy and tough with no perceptible beef flavor, the sauce was brown glue, and the whole sorry mess sat in a shocking puddle of oil. I requested it extra spicy, but there was no spice whatsoever, despite huge amounts of sichuan chilis, suggesting said chilis have been sitting around in an open container for longer than they should have been. The accompanying small bowl of rice was just a damp wodge of nothing much and arrived at the table one step away from cold and already forming a skin. Note to kitchen: Some do-ahead jobs are just going to piss people off. My companion's dish was simply bizarre. The 'rice cakes' were discs of rubber in an immense heap, interspersed with the odd clot of egg and something that might have been lettuce. It was impossible to make much headway with this unseasoned starchy mountain. We were not amused when the jolly fellow at the cash register told us what we SHOULD have ordered if we had any sense. Yenching, I'm sorry, I miss you, but I won't be back.

    (1)

  • Nicole C.

    do not go and try this restaurant. so so so so so bad. server is so rude, just give you drink and never come back to ask you for any need again. i came back again, still same server, still so rude, and the manager did not pay attention about that, the plate is dirty, i asked for new one, they gave me new one back after 20 minutes. FOOD THERE IS SO SALTY AND GREASY. DO NOT TRY. YOU WILL DISAPPOINTED.

    (1)

  • Cassy H.

    Again, I'd stay 3 stars for food and 4 for service. These people are just so nice and friendly. It's hard to say no and not come to this place. Anyway, I discovered today that their dumplings are actually good. We got the pork and vegetable dumplings, which were water boiled (just like how my mom does it). Solid dumpling filling goes perfectly with a dab of soy sauce.

    (4)

  • Lu C.

    Very chinese, very tasty. The food reminds me of my hometown! Really GOOD!!

    (5)

  • Melissa M.

    This is my go-to Chinese Restaurant. You want authenticity? Go here. You want really good duck sauce!? YES!!! GO HERE! The lady that is the hostess is always so pleasant to me. I have gone here 3 times in one week. The food is that good. Their luncheon specials are perfect and they will fill you up and not take a lot of weight out of the old wallet. I am partial to their broccoli with garlic sauce. It comes with white rice and the nice lady gives me a hearty serving of the sweet duck sauce. I also get two spring rolls instead of one and their soup. The nice lady gave me chopsticks the other day and I said, "I don't know how to use them." She smiled, and replied, "You'll have to practice!" Yenching is the highlight of my day!

    (5)

  • Alyca S.

    I used to come all the way from Roslindale to Harvard Square just for their (spicy) chicken fried rice. So now that I work in Harvard Square, I eat here at least once a week. Their prices are dirt cheap (for Harvard Sq) and the portion sizes are huge! Lunch time is crazy busy, especially on a cool/rainy day, but so worth it for their lunch specials. Their host/hostess are always super friendly so they make up for the busy (sometimes rude) waitress. I stick to my favorites: chicken fried rice, crab ragoon, scallion pancakes and orange chicken: all are great! The only reason I wouldn't give them 4 stars is because they need a proper drink menu.. At least some wine!

    (4)

  • Peter B.

    Awful. Horrendous. Worst decision I've made on a long time. Terribly inattentive, from the moment you walk in the door. I waited an hour and a half for some very basic food. The only thing the quick about is getting you the check, which is far to high for the mediocre quality of the food. Stay away! You'll regret it if you don't. I took the time to sign up for Yelp just to write this review. Admittedly I had plenty of time while I was waiting.

    (1)

  • Allen Y.

    I guess sometimes you need Chinese food, even if it's not really exquisite tasting. A lot of the stuff is okay but not quite on the mark. I had the shui3zhu3yu2 and it was not quite what I imagined. The stir fried beef rice noodles are not bad, and most of the stuff doesn't taste bad. All in all, I go here once in a while when I'm really craving Chinese food, but I'd generally choose a place like Mulan or somewhere in Chinatown if I have the time.

    (3)

  • Josh R.

    I tried Yenching after reading a positive review of it. Been back a few times since, and have always had a good time. The place is great for small groups, and all the dishes I've had have been pretty decent. Portions are generous, and I enjoy the buzzing atmosphere that comes from people constantly coming in and out. It's A-OK.

    (3)

  • Alicia S.

    Ehhhhhhhhhhh. That sums up my experience at Yenching. Meandering the Cambridge area last Saturday, a hankering for Asian food came over me. We found our way to Yenching only to be overwhelmed by the menu. Nothing sounded great in my opinion. We ordered soup, the House fried rice & Sesame chicken. Soon after our food came it became clear to us that ordering in Chinese would have opened up a whole host of options. All around us every table that ordered was being brought out delicious, authentic, and bountiful dishes that mocked our silly American selections. Note to self: need an insider to guide me through the menu next time. You'd think our waitress could have been a person to help us choose something good-but she was barely present, and each time she came back to ask if we were ready it was almost in a barking annoyed manner. No I'm not asking to be babied but clearly I had no idea what to order. Our fried rice wasn't very "fried"; just white rice with mix ins. The sesame chicken was ok: not the best. Just ok. The best part of our meal was the egg drop soup. Not sure if I'll be back.

    (3)

  • Jennifer L.

    On a recent business/pleasure trip into Cambridge, we wandered into Yenching for a quick bite to eat at lunch. Food was mediocre at best. Service was prompt, despite it being a busy lunch hour. I felt completely condescended to & insulted by who I'm guessing was the owner, who assisted our waitress. Don't tell me "You obviously don't know how to listen" when your description of the lunch special is vague & I ask you to further explain. ...Really?? Who does that. I ended up ordering the Vegetarian's Delight & found it bland. Nothing special. The spring rolls were delicious. I can't say I'll patronize Yenching again; there's plenty of other options in Harvard Square to choose from.

    (2)

  • Cy K.

    Came here with a friend from HK who really likes this place. I'd been put off by some of the bad reviews, but I really enjoyed my experience here. The food (we got chicken with water chestnuts and spicy beef) - was fairly authentic and healthy (no oil overload!). Only downside was the service ignored us after we ordered food (took about 15 minutes to get a drink). Overall, I'd definitely come back - this is a solid authentic Chinese restaurant in the heart of Harvard Sq!

    (4)

  • Kimberly H.

    I have visited Yenching a couple of times and have had consistently good service and food. I have been missing singapore noodles from my favorite Chinese Restaurant since moving to Boston, and Yenching's singapore rice sticks are a close second. They are curry rice noodles with veggies, shrimp, and pork. They are listed as spicy on the menu, but could definitely use more heat for my personal taste. The spring rolls are tasty as well and not too greasy. My only small complaint is that they sometimes forget your drink refills. But that is made up for with the ease and speed of ordering food to-go. Everything comes out hot and in large portions. Also, the owner is very friendly and he always asks you to keep your tip and give it to the girls next time you dine in.

    (4)

  • Justin G.

    Yenching is fantastic. The owner is super nice, the dishes are inexpensive with good-sized proportions and the service is efficient and friendly. Standout dishes: Green beans, kung pao chicken, and on Friday, Saturday and Sunday morning they have traditional chinese breakfasts with soymilk, congee and fried crullers. Yum!

    (5)

  • Michelle J.

    I've worked in the Harvard Square neighborhood for 3 awesome years and while there are plenty of places to eat Yenching is my favorite to go to for good Chinese. Their lunch specials are nice and served until 4pm. If you call ahead for takeout that saves you a bit of wait time. The manager is usually at the front greeting people and taking orders. He's really a nice guy who's always greeting everyone and really makes you feel welcomed. He also isn't above making small talk. The food and atmosphere here is great. I've been here with co-workers or for a quick bite and run back to the office. Sure things are a bit pricey but in Harvard Square what ISN'T. So it'll run you average what everything else in the area does. And if you are waiting for takeout, because the place does seem always busy sometimes someone will come out and give you tea while you wait. Now I know it's not much but when it's cold and raining a hot cup of tea while you wait does feel incredibly nice. Like with most chinese food places the portions are large and plenty. So they aren't skimping you on the food. My favorite dish to get is the singapore rice sticks. It comes chock full of shrimp, beef, pork and egg. Not skimpy at all on the meats either, unlike another place down the block who only puts 2 shrimp in their pad thai, (I'm talking about Hong Kong).

    (4)

  • Iannis R.

    "'Dear waiter, I'm sorry if you're in a hurry I'd like the beef soup, and some vegetable curry. Now this is important, though I'm good with treenuts I am also quite deathly allergic to peanuts.'' ''Yes.'' She replies tersely, and she walks right on by I put my life in her hands, I don't really know why. ''Are you sure this doesn't have peanuts in it?" "Yes, I'm sure." And I thought that would have been it. The soup came steaming and hot to my table I picked up my spoon, and as soon as was able Bit down on a freshly cooked deadly legume Later that night in the emergency room I vowed that should I ever crave some ginseng I sure wouldn't get it again from Yenching.

    (2)

  • Michael E.

    Decent Chinese-American food with a few authentic dishes hiding in the menu. What makes Yenching worth while is the mid-day buffet lunch- cheap and filling student food. I first walked in one day back in the mid-1980s. I was asked two questions: "You here for special?" was the first. I had no idea what that was, so I said sure. "You mind sharing table?" Not at all. I was seated at a large round table with a group of Chinese and American students and had a great time eating and chatting with my lunch partners.

    (3)

  • HB L.

    Drove my wife and kids to Cambridge for the Memorial Day weekend. My wife is not a big Chinese food fan, but we had the house fried rice and chicken wings (my favorites) and everyone loved them. My son said that they were the best wings he's ever had. My wife and daughter want the fried rice for dinner tonight, too. Service was quick and friendly.

    (4)

  • Jenny L.

    PROS: Their lunch special is super cheap ($6.50 for an eggroll, bowl of soup, and an entree). Food is authentic if you order from the Chinese menu and is usually delivered very quickly. Best Chinese food in the square (granted the comparison is the Kong). Also, the owner is a very friendly Chinese fellow. CONS: Sometimes hard to get a waiter's attention and the restroom is kinda gross sometimes. Also, dinner is overpriced. Really? It's slightly larger than a lunch entree, but almost 1.5 or 2 times the price of lunch. Overall, come here for lunch! It's also super close to the T stop.

    (5)

  • Tushar S.

    'Twas the weekend that the Arctic winds from up north had decided to visit the American North-East. We're talking -25 degree F with windchill. I and my friends had just finished partying the night before for one's birthday and were hungry for brunch. We messed up with the address to the Thai place so we ended up here as it was unbearable to walk anymore in those atrociously cold winds. I was very skeptical that this place would be any good from the onset, as ethnic restaurants that are not expensive but yet occupy prime real-estate usually aren't. Tricks I learnt from Tyler Cowen. Anyway, so we order a bunch of things like fried rice, some beef stir fry, kung pao chicken and some crab rangoons and dumplings for appetizers The first thing I tasted was rancid vegetable oil soaking everything - drowning the crisp-less vegetables. The meat had its flavor completely drained out by overcooking in this nasty oil. The wontons (rangoons) similarly mostly tasted of the vegetable oil. The after-taste of every bite of my chicken/beef dishes was the unmistakable clinging of MSG. So I tried to stick to the fried rice instead which was not so bad. It was at least edible though any Chinese family could probably do make one better at home. I love ethnic food - especially Asian food (Chinese, Japanese, Vietnamese, Thai). But I would pay to avoid eating here. This is my first review on Yelp even though I've been a member for a couple years as I'm lazy. But I could NOT let these ridiculous positive reviews stay. Yes the staff is friendly. The main server was even funny and charming. But that is no substitute for edible food. The food here was absolutely atrocious. And this is why I had to get off my lazy rear-end and actually write a review. PLEASE PLEASE AVOID THIS PLACE. If I was a millionaire, I would buy out this premium real estate and sell it to McDonald's. I would rather eat at McDs than this place.

    (1)

  • James A.

    I love Chinese food. I really do. I've spent a lot of time in Asia and Oceania - and there are a lot of Chinese around that part of the world. Which means I got to indulge my love of Chinese food a lot. I had been to Yenching before and thought it was ok, but wasn't in a rush to go back. Tonight, I had a massive craving for Chinese, and this was the only reasonable option within walking distance. It's not good. It's really not. It's greasy, the dishes lack any delicacy, and the feeling afterwards of it all sinking to the pit of my stomach suggests that there may have been an aggressive use of MSG. The wait staff are friendly, and they're mainland Chinese. Unfortunately, there's a critical ingredient missing - a decent chef.

    (2)

  • Madel S.

    My 4 yr old got food poisoning from here! Enough said!! (no no.. My fellow yelpers must know...) The staff was nice but service and food was awful. As a New Yorker, I think we can distinguish between good & bad Chinese food. And this place is bad!! Not only did they forget a few things but how can you serve dirty utensils?! So yes, I definitely won't be back if ever in harvard square again.

    (1)

  • Di Yin L.

    Most of the food is passable. The fried chicken wings are amazing. Better than any korean fried chicken. Worth it to get two orders of the fried chicken, no rice, plus a soup for a greasy yet satisfying meal.

    (3)

  • Elizabeth K.

    The dishes were dirty and there was a hunk of black plastic in my shredded pork. And the soup was bland. This place was gross.

    (1)

  • Dessa R.

    Hidden gem alert! Bling bling, folks. Really good fried rice here. I was a little startled when it was served to us practically white instead of brown, but the absence of generous soy sauce was actually quite nice, much lighter than a traditional fried rice. I didn't even know that non-greasy fried rice existed, but lo and behold. I shared an order of orange chicken with someone-- not only was it totally tasty, but it was just enough to fill both our bellies. We got seated with no wait on a Friday night, the waitress was nice, and the check was completely reasonable. Fo' staahs.

    (4)

  • Liz S.

    This place is terrible! Service, food, cleanliness...all terrible. The waitress took one drink order at a time, and then would walk away. We all had to re-order our drinks several times before we actually got anything. Only half of our party actually ended up with their drinks. Then she ended up bringing us the wrong food. They were rude and rushed every time we tried to stop someone. The place was filthy. We had to clean chunks of old food off our plates with our napkins, the glasses had gunk around the rims, and the bathroom was utterly scary. The food was awful. I could only choke down a few bites. No one in my party (of 10) seemed to enjoy their food. Gross!! Prices weren't terrible, but they surely weren't good. My plate of orange chicken and teeny bowl of rice was $10.50. Never, ever, ever going back.

    (1)

  • Jennifer A.

    Not a huge fan. The food wasn't very good, and it's hard to screw up chicken and broccoli. Although it's in a prime location, the place feels run-down and dirty. I'll go to Changsho for lunchtime Chinese instead in the future.

    (2)

  • Jenny S.

    We visited this restaurant 3 times out of out 4 days trip in boston. The food felt like from home, the workers there were super friendly. My friend loved their dried tofu. I thought the moo shi pork with pancake was delicious. They even gave us free soup and rice the day we were leaving. Nice service made the food taste even better:)

    (5)

  • Oliver D.

    Yen-Ching, still there and always will be. This old Chinese eatery has been around forever. Probably way before both my dad and uncle went to college in the area. Yen Ching is one of those places that is still sticking around and always will be. The first time I tried it was 6 years ago, when it was my first or second time visiting Harvard Square. I was with my dad wandering around the square and we needed something for dinner. We walked by Yen-Ching and thought it looked like a cool authentic Chinese restaurant. We liked it and have been going ever since. Then, my dad realized that it was the Chinese restaurant his Chinese-Brazilian roommate in college took him to for Hot and Sour Soup when suffering a severe cold. Throughout the years, as an enthusiastic Yen-Ching diner, the restaurant has had its ups and downs. The food is generally well-prepared. It is hot and comes out quickly. Just this year it has had too many off moments. The last few times I have been, the service sucked. Once, the food came out all out of order, the appetizers coming after the main courses. Then another time it was impossible to get the attention of a waitress to get you more to drink or the check and the food and herbal tea was not hot enough! That is as bad as it gets folks! My family knows the true definition of good and bad service, especially my dad who grew up in a family who was in the restaurant business! Still, even with its bad moments, I will remain as a fan. It is an authentic place that is great for university students and professors who are craving Chinese soul food. It is basically a university hang-out place, not a big family restaurant. It is cheap and you get huge platters of whatever you order. Not like most restaurants these days that charge a lot for a skimpy portion. You must try the fried pork peking ravioli, they rock! They are actually homemade and do not come from some big dumpling factory like the ones at most Chinese restaurants. Once I even saw the waitresses sitting at the table and making the dumplings. How often do you see that? The other food, is good, but went downhill last time. For example, this spicy pork and cabbage dish did not have as much flavor and was not hot. The white rice, did not even have flavor. Oh well. I am not giving up on this restaurant. I love the atmosphere. It is almost therapeutic having the quiet Chinese music in the background and hearing the conversations of crowds of diners. In other words, I love the energy. I have had too many good moments to mark it off my list. I even got a Yen-Ching t-shirt!!!!

    (4)

  • Meghan P.

    Back in my college days, I enjoyed (what I remember as) a couple good meals at Yenching Restaurant... On my recent adventures in Cambridge/Boston, we graced Yenching Restaurant with our presence the evening of the Harvard versus Yale (125th meeting!) football game. I pushed strongly for thai spice but with two peanut-allergy friends, we decided to skip the potentially-dangerous thai. We actually headed to Yenching after cocktails at the Hong Kong... we definitely should have simply headed downstairs and eaten at the Kong too! The hot and sour soup was alright but a bit lacking in the hot department. The orange chicken was bland, overly-chewy, and not even worth eating. I enjoyed a few pieces of broccoli that accompanied the chicken but skipped the chicken itself. The brown rice was the definitely highlight of the meal but it's hard to mess up brown rice, right? And our server was a fairly rude and there were no fortune cookies!!!

    (2)

  • Jamie B.

    This was my go-to for Chinese food back when I lived in Harvard Square (now that I've moved to Davis, I've shifted over to Qing Dao Garden as the place I tend to recommend). I've eaten in a couple of times, but primarily have gotten take-out. Let me just say that the owner is the nicest person I've ever met - when I would come in to pick up my take-out, he was always SO friendly, offering tea, and sincerely wishing everyone well. Honestly, that kind of place does make a difference, especially when so many other restaurants tend to pay far too little attention to customer service. Oh, and the garlic broccoli is de-li-cious. Truly became a staple in my diet for a while.

    (4)

  • Audrey K.

    As someone who only speaks Mandarin and not Canto, and coming from a predominantly Taiwanese neighborhood, going to a restaurant in Chinatown always feels more foreign than I'm used to for a Chinese restaurant... I came here on a total whim, lured by their $6.95 lunch special. SO MUCH FOOD, my leftovers are more than enough for tonight's dinner. Simple & authentic tasting, really satisfies my comfort cravings for Chinese. But what I really liked about this place was the service. Really prompt, food gets out of the kitchen fast, and your water glass is always full. They automatically spoke Chinese to me which might have been annoying if I didn't know it, but I admit I was feeling a little homesick & nostalgic, and this was just what I needed.

    (4)

  • Christine T.

    spicy shrimp fried rice... with carrots and peas? odd but tasty. will have to try some other stuff. nice looking lunch specials $8 they also have $7 lunch combo. dinner is like 8-15 and everything's family style, so large portions. To be continued...

    (3)

  • Quang H.

    Aight, here's the run down. So I ordered the kungpao beef at this place today. Never really ordered anything "Kungpao". I expected something worse but it wasn't bad at all. What I like this place is the service - again, I'm huge on service, and I certainly how they make the effort to ensure my food is good, and if I needed more rice. I go to a lot of Chinese places where they just serve you and don't come back to you until you need a check. Kudos to Yenching.

    (4)

  • Cameron A.

    By far the best Chinese food in Harvard Square. I am partial to the House Special Fried Rice served spicey as well as their Chow Foon. The staff is friendly and always teases me about being too skinny.

    (5)

  • Mo J.

    Best Chinese food in the square. Its kungpao chicken and kanshue string beans are so so good. Take-out and dining in are both great options. The service is great, and the owner is very friendly as well.

    (5)

  • Scott B.

    Poopoo platter is known as the "Hot Plate" at Yenching... JSYK. It consists of the following (all battered and deep fried) -broccoli flourettes -fresh green beens -triangles of onion -chicken fingers -crab rangoons -sausage wontons The lo mein noodles are known as "Fried Noodles" at Yenching. At least they claim it's the same... they aren't the same... they are actually linguine noodles drenched in soy sauce... delcious in my book, but certainly wouldn't fly with a lo mein conneiseur. The service, though, was absolutely excellent. Much, much better than most oriental restaurants I've patronized. Prices were good... dinner for two was $34... and I have left overs to last me for days... Not bad, Yenching... not bad.

    (3)

  • Jim S.

    Growing up in the South, I have found that there are extreme differences between chinese food there versus New England. You can order the exact same dish in each region and get a completely different experience. For example, lobster sauce in the North is a brown sauce with ground beef also added. In the South it is a lighter, white sauce with more veggies & no ground beef. Also, what is it with serving rolls with chinese food?!? But I digress. My point being that I have yet to find a chinese place that I love in the Boston area after almost 10 years of trying. Yenching comes close, though. Like the other reviews note, the staff are ridiculously friendly, bordering on being uncomfortably so. Don't get me wrong, I love good, friendly service, but when you literally end each sentence with "sir", it is almost condescending. The food is pretty good, but won't bowl you over. I am not gourmet when it comes to asian cuisine outside of sushi as I tend to stick to the americanized standards, but I enjoy it enough from here to make it my go-to when in the mood for chinese. At the very least, it is worlds better than Hong Kong, which is on the same block. A little more expensive that you would expect, but it is in the heart of Harvard Square, so it makes sense. Overall, not the best, but far from the worst!

    (3)

  • Jenny S.

    I cannot deny food is great here. However, the service is bad. They forgot our order, and made us wait for an hour without anything served. When we asked about it, they just simply said sorry without any sincerity. If I were the owner of the restaurant, I would have apologized for forgetting our order and maybe providing free desserts. In that case, we would have given tips at normal rate. They would have earned more. very unpleasant experience

    (3)

  • Jason L.

    I have tried this restaurant several times. I always want to give her another chance but it is quite difficult. For instance, last time, I had a lunch comb for take out. I called them and placed the order. I was told to pick it up in 15 mins. While I was there to pick up my order 18 mins later, the owner told me that I did not call them to place order and let me wait there for a short time. After over 25 mins waiting, the simple lunch combo was finally ready for me. The whole process took me over 45 mins. I will not give any chance to this restaurant. BTW, food is far below average for Chinese restaurant anyway.

    (1)

  • Eunice B.

    Service was 4 stars. The staff are super friendly, attentive and just lovely. Food unfortunately was 2 stars :( My main gripe is with battered fish!! We asked what the spicy fish special was - they advised a spicy fish soup. In my mind I have a vision of the soups we've eaten in Sichuan and other parts of China where they serve us a huge bowl and we fish the fish pieces out from a broth drowning in dried red chilli, sichuan peppers and lots of other spicy goodness. flickr.com/photos/ernest… After our Austin battered fish experience, I asked whether the fish was battered to which we thought they replied no. They also said the soup was ma-la (numbingly hot). So we ordered the special. But alas it arrived battered and light on the chilly. Yes, there were some fragrant chili spices but nothing verging on the level of spicyness we love. Long beans were OK but again not as spicy as we would like. Dumplings were the best dish of the night. Nice but not outstanding. Appreciate the fact they do have a vego option which a lot of places do not. So we will continue to search for decent spicy Chinese food in Boston. Any tips greatly appreciated :-)

    (2)

  • Nora Szu-Su L.

    One of the best Chinese restaurant I have had. The staff is very friendly. The food is so good. I will definitely go back when I visit Boston.

    (5)

  • Xin W.

    If Yenching does not have huiguo rou (double cooked pork), I would probably give it two stars. The manager is super nice, which is a plus, but the other dishes I tried were either mediocre or downright horrible. And there is absolutely nothing special about the lunch special. But, oh, huiguorou, how do I love you! When it is properlly done, it is my top guilty pleasure food!

    (4)

  • Chuck L.

    The food is ok. We were only two people and they included a 15% tip on the bill without informing us about it in any way (is this even legal?). I might not have noticed but luckily I had added the charges beforehand. When we complained they acknowledged it. Patrons beware!

    (1)

  • Laura G.

    What I remember most about my simple take out experience here was how friendly the owner was to everyone who came in (and they were very busy). He was friendly, chatty, helpful and suggestive. It was like you walked into your favorite Uncle's Chinese food restaurant and he personally took care of you. Call me a jaded Bostonian, but the customer service here totally surprised me. The hot Jasmine tea handed to us by the owner coupled with a sincere apology for the wait (20 minutes on a busy night is nothing to apologize for) is a perfect example of how this man obviously enjoys running a solid business, and it shows (and is appreciated). Popped my kung pao chicken cherry here (I know, I can't believe I've avoided it for so long for 26 years on earth) I figured since they had a whole section dedicated to Kung Pao it was a good place to give it a whirl. I'm not sure how it stacks up to other places, but I found this version to be generally pleasing, although lacking on the spice (despite 3 dangerous looking chilis laid on top). Speaking of spice, I ordered a "spicy" version of the chicken fried rice. Holy mother of pearl he wasn't fuggin kidding. I love spicy food and was surprised at how it made my mouth sweat. Overall the food was just what it needed to be and reheated great the next day. mission accomplished.

    (4)

  • Anna R.

    I have gotten takeout here on multiple occasions and have never been disappointed. The food is always really fresh and all of my Chinese friends love its authenticity. What puts Yenching above its competitors (coughcoughKong) is the amazing service. The owner, who is extremely polite, is always at the front and gives tea to people waiting for takeout.

    (4)

  • Bill M.

    For the longest time I only called this place "that chinese resturant" cause nowhere I could find the name of it. After a recent signage upgrade, there is a name for it. Normally I go in and get the hot platter, which is crab ragoon, and tempera chicken/shrimp/veggies with fried wontons. The tempera veggies there are magnificent. Normally when I talk about a place I never talk about the veggies. This is basically the only place I do such a thing. Sadly, the man courses that I've tried, have been lacking. I went there last night with 3 others. A friend of mine asked for something without scallions and onions, nad they told her it would just be meat and sauce, but if she ordered something else, they would have it without it. She agreed, and what did it have? Scallions and onions. My Hunan Beef was suppose to be spicy, it wasn't. Drinks are 1 dollar a glass... so go for the Appitizers.

    (3)

  • C Elizabeth S.

    I really like this place. Is it the best Chinese food I've ever had? Nah. Do I feel awkward drinking out of their undersized cups? Duh. However, their staff is friendly and I like the way they make their fried rice better than I do anywhere else I've found in Cambridge (actually has a taste and is the fried rice texture without being drowned in soy sauce). Also they give you a plate when you get takeout, which is nice, and the guy always reminds me that I don't need to tip for takeout, which is a nice contrast to the hipsters at Al's Harvard Square glaring at me for not feeling that swiping my card deserves a tip.

    (4)

  • Cindy C.

    Nice staff but food is below average. I wish there's more Chinese restaurants here in Cambridge :(

    (2)

  • Kelly C.

    YUM! Super tasty, fast and friendly. Highly recommend. Everything was great, so just go for it! It'll be delicious whatever you choose!

    (4)

  • E T.

    Food is reasonably good & price is fair. Place is relatively clean & tidy. Service of wait staff is decent. However, owner is a bit odd since he would not answer our questions / talk to us in the dialect / language we spoke with him, even though we overheard him speaking those fluently with other customers / staff. He definitely seems nicer to non Asian customers. That alone cost Yenching one star.

    (3)

  • Garrett B.

    I am very sad to say that Yenching has earned my first one star review on Yelp. I really could not have imagined a more terrible experience. My friends and I left in a daze...had ALL of THAT just happened?? Food: The Orange Chicken was god awful, the worst I have ever had. The meat was gray and chewy and the flavor was way off. My friends also tried and agreed. My friends all enjoyed their meals to an extent, but I don't think anything was stellar. Service: This is the strange part. The owner (I presume) took our orders. While trying to be funny, he offended most of the table by critiquing each order and completely disregarding the requests of two people. Two of my friends ordered and he responded by saying that they would not like it and that he was going to change their order to something that be more suitable for their palate. Never in my life have I experienced a waiter change a customer's order or treat paying customers in such a demeaning manner. We ordered dumplings for an appetizer, but they did not arrive until after the final entree was served. There was at least a fifteen, yes FIFTEEN, minute gap between the arrival of the first and last person's main meal. We had to ask for tea twice until it arrived. After the check came, we decided that we would not tip a full 15 or 20%. So horrified by the service (and I by my food), we decided that 10% was more than sufficient. An older woman came by our table to pick up the bill and actually counted the money at the table in front of us. She told us that we had to give a 15% tip. Because this was not on the bill or previously stated, we did not budge. When she left our table momentarily, we quickly grabbed our coats and rushed out the door leaving the tip which we decided was fair. This was certainly not one of my proudest moments, but it felt extremely justified. I do not understand how this restaurant is still afloat. It seemed busy and popular. Maybe we just had a terrible experience in what is usually a decent establishment, but none of us will be returning.

    (1)

  • Shana W.

    The one thing I have to start with is that the owner was so wonderful and accommodating. I made a reservation for 18 people on a Friday night and our tables were ready promptly at the time of our reservation. At the end of the meal he even treated us to friend bananas on the house. The service was exceptionally good, the food came out quickly and there was always someone around to refill water. The food was good, not amazing but definitely good enough to come back for.

    (4)

  • Kyle D.

    This is honestly the BEST chinese food i've ever had. It is not overly greasy, there are some very appealing dishes, and the staff is extremely friendly. Though the decor is dated, it fits well within the cliche of a clean, well kept chinese restaurant. I love coming here with friends, getting take out or stumbling in for a lunch special. Cheap and easy =Perfect! Go here.... you will not regret it what so ever. Pork fried rice A+ Steamed Dumplings A++++ Crab Rangoons A+ Try anything!

    (5)

  • Yvette G.

    Food was decent. Portions small for the price. Shocked that my General Tso did not come with white rice included. Who eats that without rice? Never been to a Chinese restaurant who didn't give rice with its entrees without charging extra. This was a deal breaker. Not going back.

    (1)

  • Vicki L.

    I've been coming here for years simply because it's the better (of 2) Chinese restaurants in the Square. The food is kind of hit-or-miss, depending on what you order, so I usually just get my favorites. The portions are very generous. They do have great service most of the time, except when they get super busy around lunch. Mr. Yenching is fantastic, can speak at least 3 languages fluently (I suspect maybe even more), and will always throw in free food when I order take-out. He also gave some friends a ride home once after closing up the restaurant. The proprietor really makes this place 4 stars instead of 3.

    (4)

  • Sheng N.

    This place is crowded only because it's one of the only Chinese restaurants in Harvard Square. The food is mediocre at best, and an insult to Chinese food at worst. From the other somewhat positive reviews, it appears that this restaurant's food may be a hit-and-miss with a rather high miss-rate. Nevertheless, go there if you are desperate for Chinese-like food. If not, do yourself a favor and take 66 to Allston or hop on to the T to Chinatown. Or just skip Chinese food this time.

    (1)

  • Elaine A.

    I've been coming here for years because they have the best dumplings. THE BEST DUMPLINGS! And they refill water glasses like nobody's business. Even my aquaholic sister never has an empty glass at this place. Every time I bring friends, they walk away full and impressed. The service is great. And they recently (finally!) re-painted the bathroom which before had obviously not been repainted for at least 30 years. I highly recommend this restaurant. Eat the dumplings!

    (5)

  • Andrew R.

    Came back for the $7.95 lunch special. Food was plentiful and good - especially the chicken in garlic sauce. (I was less of a fan of the hunan chicken.)

    (4)

  • Jen H.

    My ex-boyfriend was fluent in Chinese. He traveled to China on a regular basis, so needless to say I was going to trust his opinion on Chinese food... and he brought me to Yenching. It was really interesting to hear him speak to the staff in their native tongue, and I can't even say what we had, but it was all good. I found it interesting that rice is considered a "filler" in China... most people don't eat it that much (so says my ex). The staff was all super nice to us, everything came out very well, and it was a very pleasant dining experience. I wish there was a place like Yenching closer to my apartment!

    (4)

  • James L.

    very very very rude owner.

    (1)

  • Emmanuel S.

    Decent Chinese restaurant in Harvard Square. Nothing crazy, not exactly as it is in China, but fair.

    (3)

  • Toodles K.

    My favorite Mandarin Chinese food restaurant in Massachusetts. The service, both lunch and for dinner, cannot be beat. Always a seat even if it gets crowded. I am always seeing Asian people eating here and you KNOW that's a great sign. My favorite dish is the Kung Pow Chicken with Peanuts = the best I have ever had with a sauce that isn't too greasy and red chilies that you can avoid easily. I don't avoid them because they give the best kick! I brought my boss there for lunch today. She's a vegetarian. She ordered the luncheon special Vegetarian's Delight which is steamed vegetables (cabbage, baby corn, green peppers, broccoli) in a light garlic sauce. She liked it. She'd never been to Yenching before. I converted her!

    (5)

  • S W.

    Decent Chinese food. Very popular due to its location and medium price range. I had some good meals there (especially when i crave for Chinese food but don't want to go too far away) but also bad experience (let us wait for one hour before we got anything to eat as we are big group).

    (3)

  • Tamar A.

    My dad lived across the Yard from this place for a number of years, and lovingly dubbed it "The Greasy Spoon." Really delicious food, plenty of vegetarian options for my sweetly neurotic kosher stepmother, and an owner who must be addicted to Percocet for all the bending over backwards he does for his regulars. The wonton soup is a little lame, but of the main dishes, I've never been disappointed. So go, eat, enjoy. Tell the owner Bernie sent you. It'll be like shooing away an excitable puppy who is trying to pee on your leg.

    (4)

  • Jim C.

    Decent Chinese food in this unassuming restaurant right in the heart of Harvard Sq. Their menu has Americanized items as well as authentic sounding dishes. Kung pao chicken (3.75 stars) - was very good, but I've had much better here before. Needed a little more "pow" in flavor this time Sauteed string beans (3.75 stars) - decent but I've had much better in California chinese places Mango chicken (4 stars) - never thought I'd like fruit in my hot foods but this one surprisingly works with mango and pineapple and chicken in a baby fried bird's nest cup. Lo mein (3.5 stars) - I'm not a big lo mein fan but this was not bad. Potstickers (3 stars) - didn't wow nor disappoint. Outside was a bit cold. Service was quick and accomodating. There was a good number of Chinese people in here so that was a good sign. Bottom line: 3.5 stars. One of the better Chinese places in Harvard Sq and super conveniently located right near the main Harvard T stop.

    (3)

  • Juli W.

    One of my friends liked dining here, but I'm not a huge fan . The lunch boxes are reasonably priced, but the food is kind of bland. The waitstaff are pretty nice, but the manager/owner can be overly friendly (and not in a sincere way). Very convenient Harvard Square locale, but even that can't get me back in the door.

    (2)

  • Ellen C.

    I highly agree with Elaine A. about the water! They refill it constantly. As much as I hate to admit it, it's actually something that matters to me in choosing a restaurant. Otherwise, all of the dishes we had were tasty- the scallion pancakes actually tasted like scallions, and the eggplant dish we had was one of the best eggplant dishes I've had to date. Everything is a little bit greasy, so be prepared for that. The water helped with the grease, too.

    (4)

  • Sean M.

    I've had countless lunches here over the years and they were all very good. It had been a rather long span since I was in and I was pleased to see the menu is much more authentic. I was annoyed a bit by the wait staff, I actually had to convince the waitress that i knew what pork tripe was to get her to bring it. The dish was not spicy enough and I asked for chili sauce and the other waitress brought me soy sauce. I didn't make a scene I got what I wanted and I left a 20% tip. The restaurant patrons on this day were more than 50% Chinese, I saw a few dishes worth trying. Yeah they have that weak ass pasty white people Chinese food but fight for your right to eat authentic.

    (4)

  • Logan C.

    All of the food at Yenching is really solid. It's pretty standard Chinese, but you really can't go wrong. My staples are the pineapple chicken, curry chicken, sweet and sour chicken, kung pao chicken (I like chicken...), but really everythings good. I always get shrimp fried rice too, although their fried rice could be a bit better. My favorite part about the restaurant is that they are very quick about filling up my water cup. I know it sounds silly, but I drink a lot very quickly and it's really awesome to always have a full cup of water. Most people probably don't care I suppose. All of the workers are very nice as well. My only beef is that I think they don't give me all of my food in my doggy bag. I always have a BIG pile of fried rice left and they only give me a small box of it. I've never actually measured so I can't confirm this, and it's probably just my imagination.

    (4)

  • Kim L.

    I've walked by this restaurant numerous times wanting to try this place. We ordered the pork moo shi and beef lo mein. Food was greasy and the lo mein had only noodles. If you dug and dug, you may be able to find a total of 20 skinny strips of beef somewhere. It was disappointing.

    (2)

  • Shazza B.

    Peter, the manager, is one of the friendliest people you'll meet. He makes everyone feel at home in his restaurant. If you know what to order, the food is also quite good. Our favorites are the Yu Xiang Fish, the Mandarin Eggplant, the dumplings and the scallion pancake.

    (4)

  • Kat C.

    "No delivery, only pick-up!". THEN DON'T PUT THE PHRASE 'DELIVERY AVAILABLE' ON YOUR MENUS. The cold is turning me into a cantankerous beast, so I'm pretty pissed about being denied delivery two nights in a row. But despite my displeasure, I must admit the food here is decent. Obviously Americanized but done well. The service varies; the waitresses don't seem exactly ecstatic to be attending to you, but they execute the job and my water cup stayed nice and full all night. Worth eating at if you crave Chinese at Harvard, just don't plan for delivery.

    (4)

  • Bryan H.

    The owners take real pride in this restaurant. Great food at reasonable prices! A great eatery for Harvard students and faculty and ppl who work in the square.. Great food in a great location

    (5)

  • Susie C.

    Picking up the phone and dialing... "Hello. I'd like an order of Lotus chicken with broccoli and an order of chicken friend rice, please." Done. 15 minutes later I swing by and pick up my bag of GOLDEN CHINESE THUNDER. The same man has been working the front desk there for years, and he is always so smiley that it makes ME leave with a big smile on my face. I have yet to find a chicken fried rice that is more mouth watering than this. I regularly crave its generous chunks of chicken and scrambled egg, and love poking around in the box for more. This fried rice is white and fluffy, and isn't brown and drenched in oil like most other fried rices on the market. The food is LIGHT and delicious, yet packs the same gut-busting punch that a huge meal of Chinese food should. The veggies are colorful and crisp, and the dumplings make me want to dance (right now, even thinking about them, I want to dance). This food is better than anything I've tried in Chinatown. It is the only place in the area I will get Chinese take-out from.

    (5)

  • Nini N.

    I've been going here for well over a decade. Every time I've come, the owner and staff have been incredibly friendly and helpful, even if they're in a busy period. (Be warned: this restaurant is pretty popular, so there are times when it's bustling and crowded.) It's not just because they've known me since I was a kid -- they always brighten the day of everyone who comes into the restaurant. The food is delicious, there's a huge number of choices and it's one of the best value places left in the Square that isn't a chain. (Even the appetizers are often big enough to serve as a full meal here -- the portions are pretty large.) Sadly, they no longer deliver. Menu standouts include the won ton soup, scallion pancakes, meat and veggie dumplings and beef chow fun.

    (5)

  • Eve S.

    The food was good-nothing spectacular. We were greeted very enthusiastically and warmly which was nice. The glass of water we had was a little suspect but it may just be my general paranoia.

    (3)

  • Allen Y.

    A great, convenient, and speedy place (if you can get a table) in the Square. Avoid the lunch specials and any dish that sounds Americanized; go for things like the sizzling beef dish, the szechuan green beans, or the szechuan fried rice. The food is great if you order more traditional dishes like these, and the pricing is reasonable for the square. The service is speedy, and the staff are super friendly.

    (4)

  • Rayman A.

    Best and most authentic Chinese food in town. The staff is always amazing and hospitable. My favorite restaurant in the square.

    (5)

  • Due H.

    Came here to eat once since it is the most centrally located chinese food place in harvard square. I didn't enjoy it. It seemed like they noticed I didn't like it too much so they gave me a free bowl of rice. Maybe because I was rushing to eat and leave? That was definitely nice of them. Anyhow, I think its just soso.

    (2)

  • A V.

    Mr Yenching knows what's up. He's always in fashion, and never full price!

    (5)

  • Niko X.

    I was walking across Harvard Yard on a brisk Saturday last week. The temperature was just above freezing, yet the air was full of wet heavy snowflakes. We'd been walking all morning, and our stomachs were empty. It's an odd feeling in weather like this. You feel hot enough to sweat from all the walking, yet chilled to the bone. Our cheeks were rose colored and with each breath thick clouds of steam formed in front of our eyes. Like a golden beacon, Yenching's sign attracted our respective gazes. We excitedly frolicked across the busy street; jaywalking in proper Bostonian fashion. We scurried through the doors and that indescribably good feeling that warm indoor air gives the soul as it fills frozen lungs, washed over us like a midsummer's Caribbean tide. We were immediately served piping hot, delicious Jasmine oolong tea. The requisite red leather bound Chinese menus were open, and our eyes were wide with anticipation. On this fine afternoon we dined on crispy fried won-ton, house pork lo mein, crisp aromatic Hunan Beef and a side of delicious white jasmine rice. This style Chinese food is the kind I grew up with. Upon moving to Los Angeles I quickly wrote if off as Americanized and uninteresting. But fuck does it taste good on a cold day when you're hungry! I think it's important to understand that the popular Chinese cuisine served in the Northeast is generally Hunan, Cantonese, and Sichuan, which are the cuisine styles of Southern and Central China. A final note; the atmosphere here is as peaceful as it gets. Despite the fact that the restaurant was half full, it was easy to hear the flute music playing at the lowest possible volume. It's the type of restaurant where people can't help but whisper to one another, and the outside world suddenly ceases to exist.

    (4)

  • S Z.

    The owner was very friendly, the staff was quick with our order, but the food was not very good. The fried rice was barely fried- pretty much just white rice with eggs and pork. The kung pow chicken was quite greasy. The beef and broccoli was good enough, but not enough to make up for the other two dishes. It was ok, if you really wanted chinese and didnt have another place to go. But as it was one of the more expensive chinese places I have gone to, for the price it just wasnt worth it.

    (2)

  • Ariel M.

    My absolute favorite Chinese restaurant! The food is great and is the most authentic I've had outside of Chinatown and Taiwan. The prices are very reasonable. And you can't beat the free cup of tea as you wait for your table or your take-out.

    (5)

  • Steven N.

    Food is okay. There aren't many Chinese food restaurants in Harvard Sq so it's tough to go somewhere else. The service is horrible. I called in an order for pick-up and waited in line for 45 minutes. People sat down and were getting their check before I got my food. The only reason I got my food was because I asked for my money back and that's when they rushed to get my order. Miraculously, it was prepared and waiting in the back. Go figure.

    (2)

  • Sohan P.

    This place hits the spot. I just got done enjoying some oh-so-delicious General Gau's chicken. I have tried just about every other chinese place in the area and this place strikes the perfect balance between price and quality.

    (4)

  • mike l.

    Had the #1 lunch special with hot and sour soup. Everything was good, if a little mild for my tastes, but nothing was exceptional. A good spot for a relatively quick lunch.

    (4)

  • Matt S.

    More authentic than I'd thought it would be. One of the few Chinese places in the Boston area (outside of Chinatown) I could stomach after actually returning from China. I order anything spicy from the menu. The manager is a bit over-the-top, but the food's (mainly) worth stomaching him. (My friend who used to go there twice a week said he's actually a cool guy once you finally get to know him--I'll take my friend's word for it.)

    (4)

  • Vik C.

    this place has good food - easily the best chinese restaurant around harvard square. i've mostly tried the staple chinese-american dishes... orange chicken, szechwan beef, hunan chicken (really good!), and yu shiang chicken. i love their dumplings... but i love all dumplings, so that's not saying much i guess. their portions are usually enough for two, though that's sorta typical chinese-american restaurants. they have great lunch specials, if you're looking for a deal. the best part, i'd say, is the service. you walk in, and the owner makes you feel like you go there every day. that, in my book, earns its fourth star.

    (4)

  • Winnie W.

    I walked into the restaurant and ordered a takeout last night. I was immediately greeted by the maitre d' and offered a seat and a cup of tea. The staffs were super friendly and the food (I ordered vegi & Singapore fried noodle) was great. The restaurant even included two free soups in my order. I would definitely return to the restaurant in the future!

    (5)

  • Thomas N.

    In terms of Chinese restaurants in Cambridge, MA, Yenching will be your best bet. They have a variety of dishes at reasonable prices & compared to Hong Kong (a few blocks down), there's no competition. To be honest, you'll be better off going into Boston Chinatown to get Chinese food but if you're stuck in Cambridge and have a craving, this is your best bet

    (4)

  • Chloe C.

    Best Chinese near Harvard campus. The service was really great. They were very fast for both take-out and a normal sit-down meal. They offered good advice on what to get, and even tried to teach my group some cantonese! The food itself was very good, although the portions were almost too big.

    (4)

  • Lex L.

    The the lunch specials are great, and the menu has a variety of food - everything from white-person-deep-fried sweet and sour pork to some real authentic Chinese stuff. Portions are hefty, and prices aren't bad, especially at lunch. The staff at this place really takes it from "good" to "great". After a few lunch visits, the owner(?) knew me well enough to ask about my shopping habits. He always goes the extra mile: a hot cup of tea while waiting for takeout, or a smile on a bad day.

    (5)

  • Haiyan H.

    This is our family's favorite Chinese restaurant at Harvard for 26 years. Food is more and more authentic. Now it is one of the four best chinese restaurants in Boston Areas including Chinatown. Our favorite dishes, Gonbao chicken, steamed fish, western green, Mapo doufu, scallion pan cakes with eggs

    (5)

  • David Y.

    There may not be a ton of Chinese in Harvard Square but that doesn't mean the ones there should get a pass. Yenching is a rundown, mom-and-pop type of place that you'd expect in a Chinatown. I went here for dinner and just expected more. The service was prompt but once I got my food, I didn't see anyone until they brought my check. Would've been nice to get my water refilled or asked if everything was ok. I got the Kung Pao beef for $10.50, which was just ok. I was pretty disappointed the dish only had beef, hot peppers and scallions. Perhaps its more authentic that way but when the menu describes the different peppers, I guess I thought they meant bell peppers and not black pepper and hot peppers. The dish was also very greasy. Which I guess is common for them but it still made my dish a little gross. And I was also honestly expecting more food. I was pretty hungry and got a dinner entree so when I finished the entire dish easily, I was surprised their portions weren't larger. Not that I was hungry afterwards, but I usually end up with a pretty large container for leftovers at any other Chinese joint. I guess I'll stay away from Chinese altogether in the square.

    (2)

  • Malika B.

    food was good. i went with a chinese person who spoke mandarin the entire time to the staff. food was good. large portions tasty. friendly staff. the only reason i did not give a better review is that when presented with a credit card the person at the front dest added their own 20 percent tip and the tip was based on the tax plus the price of the meal. i have never in my life experienced someone adding their own 20 percent tip, it is usually left as a section to write in your own tip.......nbot here....beware!!!!! we were pissed. it also tok a long time to be seated. there is only one waitress working the whole place.

    (3)

  • Christine F.

    So honestly, I've only had noodle dishes here - and they've all been completely tasty - but I really wanted to review this place because the customer service is so fantastic. I know I should try other places in the neighborhood, but the guy who answers the phone here is possibly the jolliest human on earth. He is a delight. I think that's enough said. Oh, and I'd recommend the shrimp lo mein, extra spicy.

    (4)

  • Lachinita X.

    I haven't had 99% of the menu, so I can't say how Yenching is overall. But I repeatedly go to Yenching for the rice noodle sticks (beef mai fun), and it reminds me of my mother's cooking, except greasier, in a good way! It's also like $8 or $9, and it has beef and shrimp. So good. I like the scallion pancakes with egg, because it's too time-consuming to make scallion pancakes on my own, and I don't want to always go to Chinatown. I can't say the scallion pancakes are always great or consistent - but it's good enough if I need a scallion pancake fix. It sometimes feels like they have different cooks making them. If you complain about the prices as being too expensive, they are. But then take the 25 minute ride to Chinatown, walk around another 10 minutes, and go to Taiwan Cafe. But if you're looking for decent Chinese food in Harvard Square, Yenching is your place.

    (4)

  • Mark T.

    the peking noodles in meat sauce for $5.95 or something is absolutely killer. They apologize if you're waiting for more than 15 seconds for seating at lunch, which you often don't.

    (5)

  • Amanda U.

    SO delicious (everything I've had, except the orange chicken... but i just really dislike orange chicken). the service is awesome- super sweet and nice, always refilling your cup with more tea (for $.25!) quick, delicious, reliable, consistent, well-priced. Anything and everything I could ask for in a chinese restaurant.

    (5)

  • Yinan Z.

    I am not normally a food reviewer, but felt compelled to review Yenching. As someone who frequents China and has a good idea of what good Chinese food like, I have to say that Yenching comes much closer than usual to hearty, (relatively) authentic Chinese food. A few dishes to note are the "mei cai kou rou", which is a slow-cooked pork belly, and the "si chuan hui guo rou", a spicy pork belly stir fry. It is a Chinese restaurant, so one would expect the pork to stand out. Vegetables are good too, in particular the "gan bian si ji dou". In addition to the food, the service is excellent, as is the attitude of the employees. Finally, being in the center of Harvard yard makes it really convenient for us students!

    (5)

  • Chinwe N.

    The best beef fried rice I have EVER had....hands down. I'll be sure to try the dumplings next time :-)

    (4)

  • Janice T.

    Ah, yes. The dumplings are indeed very good! Came here with three other people and a toddler on a Saturday evening and had to wait about 30 minutes for a table, which was fine because the food was delicious. They say that the kung pao chicken is spicy, but truly it's not very. Even so, it was quite tasty. Really, really liked the place. The man who seated us (the manager? owner?) was very friendly and so apologetic that we had to wait so long. I will definitely come back.

    (4)

  • Nicholas S.

    Yenching definitely has the best Chinese food in Harvard Square. Then again, it isn't hard to beat the Kong. Yenching has your usual Chinese American fare along with a variety of more authentic dishes. The tea smoked duck is great, but the menu's real star is the fried chicken with chili salt.

    (4)

  • crazyprak s.

    I have been going here for years. No doubt they have the best schezuan chicken. Service is friendly. I was little dissapointed with their delivery because the portioning was little small than what they serve in the restaurant and the quality of the food wasn't the same. Overall it's a great place o dine-in.

    (4)

  • Michael L.

    It's a pretty good Chinese place for Harvard Square. The lunch specials are a good deal. I'd go for the $7.25 entrees that come with rice, soup, and an egg roll. Mmmmmmm. . . I recommend the Yu-Hsaing (Garlic sauce) chicken. It's really good. Their hot & sour soup is pretty good, too.

    (4)

  • Gino T.

    This place is good. It's definitely a step up from your typical cheap Chinese take out. The host was very pleasant and I got a hot cup of tea immediately, and I was only there for a pick up. The food was good, but I've had better, it kind of reminded me of a neighborhood version of P.F. Changs. With the same prices. I thought I was going to get cheap greasy Chinese food, but was pleasantly surprised.

    (3)

  • Erik L.

    I've been to this place twice; the first time was about a year ago, and then yesterday again. Neither visit was very memorable. I'll probably go back in another year or so. I don't have any complaints about decor or wait staff - its all typical for what you'd expect at a Chinese restaurant. But the food just isn't good. Its not bad, but I miss the fresh flavor that you usually expect. Yesterday I had the crispy Hunan(?) chicken, which had an odd flavor. The chow yun fat (rice noodle) was decent enough. In short, there are many, many, better Chinese restaurants in the Boston area. Around Harvard Square there isn't much in terms of Chinese, so maybe, if you really want Chinese, you can go here. But I think Harvard Square has a lot more to offer, Asian and Western.

    (3)

  • Steven M.

    This place is probably the best Chinese food in Harvard Square, so I suppose it deserves some recognition. Notice, though, that it has only received two stars; that's because it's really not very good. It's still better than the unpalatable Hong Kong and New Asia though. For actually good Chinese food, go to Shangri-la on Belmont Street, near the Cambridge/Belmont/Watertown line. You can get there by bus, and I think it's even cheaper than Yenching for infinitely better food.

    (2)

  • Lena G.

    Great value, the beef with broccoli was very flavorful, and my friends enjoyed their dish which included noodles and cabbage - can't remember what it was called right now...

    (4)

  • Ronda W.

    Yenching has great service, especially considering it's in Harvard Square - very friendly staff. Their prices are reasonable, their food is good and their service is fast. Their shrimp fried rice is very good - not sure what they do differently, but it's not as heavy-feeling as other shrimp fried rice I've tried. Their lunch combos are also very good deals.

    (3)

  • shary m.

    The service here is spectacular. There is no place more inviting in Harvard Square, the owner always has a big smile and welcomes you in, jokes with you, and makes sure your keep coming back.. Embrace it, you will not be disappointed! They get an extra star for that. The food is all around, good standard chinese food. Nothing unexpected, but consistent. The peanut noodles, lomein, mooshi, the spicy stringbeans are all the very tasty.

    (4)

  • Asad H.

    Quite possibly some of the best Chinese food you can order in Cambridge. If you can get your food here, do so. Dumplings are fantastic and the rest of the food is delicious and reasonably priced. Foods generally ready within a few minutes and you get quite a bit for your money.

    (5)

  • Benjamin C.

    I've only been once, but the Lo Mein was definitely sub-par - and that tends to be my barometer.

    (2)

  • Ken M.

    um...today's experience was bad, but I've been before and it's okay. Fairly standard, nothing to write home about.

    (3)

  • Huan z.

    Food is delicious and decent but very pricey compare to other Chinese restaurant. It's understandable since the rent in Harvard square is more expensive. A small wonton soup with only 2 or 3 wonton cost $3.

    (3)

  • Shirley Y.

    my coworkers and i decided to come here to grab take out for lunch since it is chinese new year. we called the order ahead. when we walked in, we were greeted by the very friendly manager, who spoke cantonese to me. they had their round box of sweets out for the new year...which we kept picking at while we waited for our food. we waited, and waited, and waited... when the food came, we walked back to the office to eat. to our dismay, we discovered that we were short one entree. we felt bad for the poor guy, so we decided to pitch in and share some our food. there was plenty to go around, and the food was delicious for chinese take out. unfortunately, the restaurant will have to work on its operations, even though they were busy for lunch.

    (3)

  • Ed S.

    Certainly one of the best places in the square for an inexpensive lunch. The prices are great (about $8 for a lunch special that comes with soup and a spring roll) and the food is delicious. The waiters are extremely attentive and very nice. The atmosphere is lovely - they have done a wonderful job of making the most of their small storefront. When you're asked if you want steamed or fried rice, I'd recommend the fried. It's not actually drenched in oil as you might expect from American Chinese food, it just includes a few eggs and vegetables.

    (5)

  • Emily Z.

    Their fried rice is so good that getting it anywhere else is just disappointing now. The guy at the front desk is super-friendly and makes me feel welcome whenever I come in.

    (5)

  • Jeff R.

    I've had consistently good experiences at Yenching over the years in terms of food and service, and the atmosphere, while nothing to write home about, is good for what this place is: a low-key Chinese restaurant. The head waitress apparently has a good memory because she always remembers what I like to order: pineapple chicken (it may be bright pink, but it's sooo good!). This is a good place to check out if you're near Harvard, and it's definitely nicer than the Hong Kong restaurant ("the Kong") down the street.

    (4)

  • Anne K.

    While I am sure the food is great, we were not "allowed" to try anything on the menu. Whatever we tried to order the waitress told us that we wouldnt like it, and told us instead to stick to the kung pow chicken. it was SO FRUSTRATING and rude that we left. I couldn't believe it, i was in awe, everything we said we wanted this woman was like " no no, not that". who does that?!?????????

    (1)

  • Nancy W.

    Compared to the other Chinese restaurants in Cambridge, this one is probably the better choice. The food is mandarin cuisine, and not as greasy as Hong Kong but the prices are about the same (a bit overpriced for the type of dish). The noodles are good but can be sometimes a bit too salty. Their sweet and sour pork is decent and fried rice is ok (although sometimes, not always, the rice was probably cooked with too much water).

    (3)

  • Anonymous P.

    OK. Too greasy. Good lunch specials.

    (3)

  • Kiki B.

    okay, so maybe i had a bad experience, but it was really, really bad. the sweet and sour chicken tasted like banana - weird. the orange beef was marginally better, but this is not a great option at all.

    (2)

  • Matt B.

    Tried Yenching after craving some Chinese food. The restaurant seemed clean and the employees were friendly. We had the beef with broccoli. It was pretty basic, but still tasty and full of flavour. The veggie spring rolls and wonton soup that came with the meal (as a part of the lunch special) were again pretty simple but still good. Overall, a good little spot to fill a craving!

    (4)

  • Christine J.

    horrible service and ethics. i used to like their food but now service has gone to the gutters and they try to cheat money off their customers. pathetic joint. food is not as good either. the owner is always there, bald middle aged chinese guy, all pompous and full of himself, speaking in mandarin and cantonese in a loud voice to other servers - who keep changing prob bc of the bad ethics there. He's very obnoxious and pretend to give good customer service. which i was fooled by for a long time. the head waitress is from taiwan. she's pretty unhappy with her job you can clearly tell. not nice or wants to be there frankly. and it was at my last visit that i realized one tiny soup of egg drop soup is $3.95. $4 for a mini soup, are you kidding? i didn't order it. all entrees are 12 or more. even apps are upwards of 10. not the way a chinese restaurant should charge. just too much. esp with the quality stuff they present... or lack of. the price has gone up dramatically. they started charging for tea too, $1/head. LOL. are we in the black market yet? it's crappy tea too. just turn offs everywhere u look. lastly, their receipts are hand written with the worst hand writing, almost trying to trick you into not knowing what item is what and not know what you were charged. we were pretty sure we got charged $7

    (1)

  • Nitin B.

    Food was ok. one of the dish we ordered was 'General tso chicken'. we got some chicken and 32 pieces of full red chilies !! I wondered why they did that - we didnt ask for spicy !! on bringing it to lady's notice , she just laughed it off.

    (3)

  • Linling C.

    If I can rate zero, I would definitely rate that! Bad attitude, bad service, the food is so hot even hurt my tongue. I will never visit this restaurant again!!!!!!! They even rule us to pay 18% gratuity without any ask. When I had doubt, the manager blamed me that I didn't notice their tip rule in menu.

    (1)

  • Carrie L.

    I will give them 0star if I can! There's no service at all, the boss and the staff are quite rude except their greeting. But as soon as you sit down, you will definitely regret. The boss, order lady, all the staff were racism, very cold to Chinese looking people, while seemed obsequious to the western looking customers, especially the police, even they are Chinese too! What a pity! The food is all the same, you can't tell what you are eating, not Chinese nor Western. I think they don't care, cause there will always be new walking guests in the campus...

    (1)

  • Xiang Y.

    1 They automatically add 20% tips and their service is horrible. 2 The dishes were totally non authentic. 3 They have a confusing menu. 4 Never come to this place!

    (1)

  • Vicky S.

    Terrible services and food. Add 20% gratitude automatically to your bill without any direction. The boss and waitresses are the worst I've ever met in Chinese restaurants.

    (1)

  • Sandra M.

    Just came here for lunch today with 2 other friends. Service was quite mediocre which is fine. I can tolerate substandard service if the food can make up for it. The food was pretty good. But we then found an inch long piece of METAL WIRE in our Szechuan Shrimp!!! What's worse is, I called the host over to let him know. He took the metal from me, examined it in his hand, raised his eyebrows, and then walked away without saying a word. I thought he would return to apologize or at least explain what might have happened. But we did not see him the rest of the lunch. I'm glad we were able to find that piece of metal because it was definitely big enough to hurt your throat if swallowed. Not happy with how this was handled, not coming back.

    (1)

  • Ben O.

    Summary: Highly recommended for substandard food with rude service as a bonus. We wanted to eat Chinese food and The 3 star average didn't discourage us and so we tried. The food is 2 stars - mediocre at best. Sizzling hot plate is not even hot and the waitress insisted it was hot when it was in the kitchen. Kitchen must be a mile away. Food is one dimensional salty. Attitude from owner was extremely poor when I mentioned about the food. I guess he only know how to response to positive comment - which I am sure comes from those who never had Chinese food. With this kind of quality and service, I wish this place luck. Such restaurant reinforced the rude attitude of some Chinese restaurants and serving sub par food to anyone who never had Chinese food. The "Fu lu shou" God of fortune figurines facing the front door can only help so much.

    (1)

  • Lexi Y.

    There is a fly in my rice, make me feel so sick, and they just changed another one, nothing else. The dishes taste not good, and the service either. I will never eat there again.

    (1)

  • Sun H.

    The food is so so. Service is bad. Waiters are incredibly rude. Won't come back again. Do not recommend you coming either.

    (1)

  • Maysan L.

    GO GET CHIPOTLE. It's too busy. Took almost an hour to have my takeout ready. And the host discriminates and gives priority to the most Asian looking tourists. Not even equal attention to Asian Americans. Let alone the other ethnicities who want to eat there. The food is meh portions are kinda small for the lunch special. They really need better service. The only reason they have business is from the tourists. .Definitely not happy with this place.

    (1)

  • Amaresh S.

    Meh. I was giving a presentation to recruit people for my company, and we ordered dinner from this place for everyone who was coming (about 30-40 people). Pros: They gave us a lot of food. Way more than was necessary for 30-40 people. We had a ton left over They lent us these large steel trays for us to carry the food over to the building, abt 10 minutes away. This for sure saved us many trips out there Cons: The food was pretty mediocre not too authentic chinese food No serving spoons or anything, so we had to serve w/ normal plastic spoons All in all, I think people are more interested about the quality of the food, hence my rating of this place.

    (3)

  • Lindsay W.

    DO NOT GO HERE! I could've give them zero star if that's an option. We went there and ordered four dishes and the service is SHIT. 1. The fried wonton is horrible, not authentic at all. (I am Chinese so I would know.) The other dishes are really oily and unhealthy. 2. The waitress ( the old lady who was claimed to be the manager) was rude to me because she spoke to me in Chinese directly without even asking me whether I can speak Chinese or not. Just because I look Chinese? That's racism and stereotype! What if I am Korean? What if I am American Asian who cannot speak Chinese? Also the language in Chinese was really rude. But they were polite to the other non-Chinese customers. 3. We are automatically charged 20% tip. I think the owners were picking on us because we were apparently teenagers. When we asked they did not explain to us about the price. Instead they insisted that we have to pay this amount and this is the set amount. After we questioned him and he refused to explain rudely, we paid and then on the receipt, it said pre-tip amount, which means we are asked tip again. This is ridiculous and illegal. Anyways this place is gross and horrible.

    (1)

  • Jerry L.

    Don't go!! This is a very low class Chinese food place, table are dirty and service are very very bad, it's so sad to see such a nice location with this type bad attitude . we end up leave there without eating.

    (1)

  • Landon C.

    I came here before Christmas with one of my friends for a late dinner. We showed up *before* 10pm. We were greeted by the staff at the front. Rather than saying "Welcome to our restaurant", we were plainly informed: "We do close at 11." My friend and I looked at our phones. They clearly were hoping that we would walk away, but it was 9:52pm. What?! Confused.... So anyways, we didn't really want to eat here if they didn't want to serve us, but we didn't feel like finding another place. The food was okay, nothing to write home about. However, we did notice that they started pushing people away soon after 10pm. Won't be coming back, but I'd like to stop in at 10:30pm some other time to see if I get turned away. Oh well, it just opens the door for some good Chinese competitors to enter the Boston marketplace.

    (2)

  • Di M.

    Worst Chinese restaurant I have ever been in Boston! We would like to try the Santouka Ramen at first, but the line was too long to wait. We just selected a random restaurant nearby. The environment is totally a mess. It felt like a restaurant opened 50 years ago without any renovations. What's worse, there was no service at all, but the tips was forced! Just go with any other restaurants nearby, and you will have a great day.

    (1)

  • Lauren D.

    I would give this establishment zero stars if I could. Waited a very long time to be greeted (5 to 10 minutes). Once we were , it took a long time to receive food and my boyfriend 's came 5 minutes before mine. Wasn't sure if it was coming at all as no one said anything. Once it did it was tasteless and cold and we never received the drinks we ordered. By the end we waited for our bill and the host demanded a tip at the counter? I left hungry and offended , not to mention ripped off! I am a server in a restaurant and this experience was unacceptable. I cannot recommend this place at all and we really did want to like it.

    (1)

  • Aaron S.

    DO NOT GO THERE Food was below average after 40 mins of wait on the seat. We had to remind the server 3 times (15 mins after the 2nd to the last dish was served) to get the last dish on the table. The owner was soooooo toxic and sarcastic when I ask why is there a 18% AUTO INCLUDED gratuity when we had to starve for 40 mins and anticipate the hell out of the last dish. DO NOT GO THIS PLACE. Completely ruined our trip to Boston. I would give a negative 5 stars if allowed.

    (1)

  • Joseph J.

    My first time with this Yenching restaurant, and it turned out to be awful. The owner of this restaurant asked us to wait for 10 mins even there is empty tables, the food is just general, nothing special, as a matter of fact, the food is below the general. The most important thing is, the server and the owner's attitude is really bad, they didn't bother to stop once during the entire dining. Never go to this one again.

    (1)

  • Sally N.

    Ordered the Hunan Crispy Shrimp and Lo Mein with chicken. Both were way too horribly salty and flavorful, it got difficult to eat after a while! The service was alright but they also included an overcharged tip in our bill total without asking, which we didn't even want to pay after our experience here. When we brought up the large amount of the included tip the owner was just rude and disrespectful, and made us stand by the counter forever until he was done chatting with everyone else. Pretty disappointing, probably should stick with Hong Kong down the street.

    (1)

  • Mark L.

    Very unpleasant experience, foods are all very salty, no services at all, avoid if you don't want your dinner ruined.

    (1)

  • Shirley W.

    DO NOT EAT HERE! Poor service, but automatically charged 30% gratitude. I wish I could give zero star!! My dish is less than $11 but they charged more than $15. Will NEVER EVER come back.

    (1)

  • Noele K.

    This place is run by a crook. My 16 year old daughter and a friend ate here for lunch today and had a terrible meal. When they got their check for $18 they included a $5 tip. The girls thought it was a suggestion so only left $20 since they barely ate the food, the quality was so poor. As they went to leave they were stopped at the door and were told they didn't pay the full amount. They were told that they needed to pay $23 the full amount which included the $5 tip. The girls paid and told me this story when they came home. I was shocked. I couldn't believe that someone would take advantage of two young girls like this and think it was okay. I called and asked to speak with the manager to make sure he knew this was happening. I couldn't believe it when he told me that they add the tip like this to every check, but it is just a suggestion. I told him they were stopped at the door and asked to pay the reaming portion of the tip. I asked and he confirmed he was there when this happened. I ask how he could feel okay taking advantage of teenagers this way and honestly he really wouldn't respond. He repeatedly denied this happens but seriously doubt the girls just made this up. There was never an apology or questions about how he could fix this, he simple didn't care. My next note is to the better business bureau.

    (1)

  • Ashley D.

    Beyond upset with this place, the waitstaff is sweet yet the man up front is rude to customers and staff. I came in Friday for a quick bite was seated right away and the waitstaff works together to make sure drinks are filled and orders are taken. I ordered two apps and an entree, the entree came out first while the other two apps came out 15 minutes and 30 minutes after the entree... The last app to come was the shrimp tempora which IS NOT shrimp tempora, instead has the thick pupu platter style batter. When speaking with the owner upfront he was rude saying timing in the kitchen doesn't matter and you shouldn't order more than one plate, if I was unhappy I shouldn't tip the waitstaff. That's a BIG NO NO! I believe in always tipping as I have waitressed for years... It isn't fair to the busy waitstaff that the kitchen staff can't get their act together its overall management and the kitchens problem and poor judgement. I won't be visiting again or recommending anyone due to management.

    (1)

  • YE W.

    Excerpt from Les Miserables' Master of the House lyrics aptly describes how Yenching is run: "Charge 'em for the lice, extra for the mice Two percent for looking in the mirror twice! Here a little slice, there a little cut Three percent for sleeping with the window shut When it comes to fixing prices, There are a lot of tricks I know" With average food quality, the owner and waitresses know many tricks to fixing prices. From high price ($$) on low quality tea that is customary served for free in Chinese restaurant, to expensive ($$) but overcooked and dry rice, and the infamous hidden 18% service charge ($$$) for LUNCH that was not stated clearly in the menu nor anywhere else. Isn't this ILLEGALLY? On top of the price trickery, the waitresses were extremely rude. They first shouted at other customers for questioning the bill, they harshly threw the menus in front of us right after the instance. I am a Chinese descendent and I consistently go to Chinese restaurants with different kinks all my life, but this one goes down to the most spectacularly worst experience. I really suspect that after 20 years at Harvard Square, the owner and the waitresses at Yenching has grown weary of the cheap locals and the clueless tourists coming to their restaurant. They all appeared to be irritated, annoyed, and ready to cash out on the remaining idiots, including myself, going there. They are willing to start a shouting match with customers to make sure they get their hidden 18% service charge. This place is only suitable for people who is curious of how bad restaurant service can be and be ready to get rip off to gain this experience. Otherwise, stay away.

    (1)

  • Jess L.

    This is a great go-to restaurant in Harvard Square. It's pretty authentic, and -- even though it's weird to point out -- the waitresses who work here speak beautifully. It's as if they were actresses on the side and have learned to truly enunciate and appreciate Chinese. As for the ambiance, it's not really anything special. The lights are a little harsh, and there are minimal decorations. However, the menu is extensive, and the food is tasty. You will go home with leftovers no matter how hard you try.

    (4)

  • Tyler A.

    I love this place. I have always wanted to go here and then my girlfriend and I randomly walked in this past Friday night. We were both craving American Chinese food and this place hit the spot and then some. we got chicken fingers, beef and broccoli and the house fried rice. Service was fast and the food was hot and very tasty like REALLY tasty! Now I am a fan of authentic Chinese food too but I wanted American Chinese this time and it was some of the best beef and broccoli I have ever had. The waitress was good based on how many people she had to manage on a busy Friday night and the owner was a sweetheart. They did forget our won ton soup, but they were quick to apologize and strike it from the bill. now I know some people say they were overcharged, but I did the math in my head and my bill was accurate. The bill arrived in Chinese and was calculated with a calculator, it wasn't with a computer and itemized like most people are used to. Since most people probably can't do basic math in their head, let alone account for how much their meal actually costs by remembering the prices in the menu, well I assume that is why most people complained about the total cost of their bill. Overall I love this place and I can't wait to go back. I recommend giving it a chance yourself before you go by any of the negative yelp reviews. I find a lot of people have unrealistic expectations when it comes to the simple things in life like food.

    (5)

  • Olivia L.

    Very bad service! The waitress there had a really bad attitute and made us wait for a loooong time! As a Chinese I feel shame of the service there. Never! go! there! folks！

    (1)

  • Daniel L.

    Horrible service and they over charged us with tips (directly included in the bill instead of our discretion). Warning NEVER GO THERE

    (1)

  • Snowdrops C.

    OK food, but the manager is rather obnoxious. He is occasionally rude or snarky to his clients, and lately he has been including tip on all bills, including groups of two (and a rather generous 20% tip at that!) When asked, he claims it is to help "European and Asian tourists." For years, Harvard Square has had few good alternatives to this place - but now I think I'll stick to the Chinese food truck on Oxford Street or the Kong...

    (2)

  • Guannan Q.

    The food is quite ok. But the service is really terrible.. Worst one around Harvard square. Especially the waitress who also seems to be the manager. Today she rejected to give me a table, in an very impolite way, as if she was my boss. The reason she gave was that another person in my party was not present yet. She gave tables to the people behind me in the line instead, and 'ordered' me to wait. I was very hungry then, and was really pissed off. I felt like I was not the customer but her employee that she could command. And it is very sarcastic that this restaurant even dares automatically charge 20% gratitude...

    (1)

  • Xin Z.

    Food is okay. Really really bad service, bad attitude!! The owner is the worst! The worst ever seen...

    (1)

  • Huang Y.

    NEVER EVER come to this restaurant, unless if u want to be treated like a beggar. We asked for ice cube, the owner baldy guy sarcastically kept asking why do we need ice cube. We were asking for small empty bowl for sharing the soup from the waiter. Again, the baldy guy fiercely asked to the waiter, why do we need the bowl. Duhh, we're not gonna dig in from the whole pot. Do we need to be asked everything we ask for utensils? Don't open restaurant business then, just open a small kiosk selling bottle water, if u don't want to give service. Then we asked for the bill, the baldy guy gave the handwriting bill and asked us to pay with the total after he added the tip based on what he wanted us to tip him. When we tried to confirm with him, he yelled at us, just to pay the total amount that he wanted. Is this the way he treated the tourists all the time? BAD SERVICE & DEMAND CERTAIN TIP AMOUNT????? If u are from mainland China, don't bring your culture to AMERICA. If u want to make business in here, follow the culture in here by being polite. Don't think that u make business in front of Harvard University with most of tourists & students, u can deceive & treat all of them with this kind of attitude. If possible, i will give minus for the restaurant rating.

    (1)

  • Katherine S.

    Appalled at the service I received. I clearly voiced my order of tempura and Kung pao tofu with brown rice. I informed the man at the front desk when my appetizer was absent when the others came--he asked, "Are you kidding?"; the appetizer--which was a salt mine--came with my entrée, which also came later than my friend's & family's; the brown rice didn't appear until I gently reminded my waitress; the waitress automatically tipped herself 20% when the check arrived, & since the original check was in Chinese we couldn't really cross-check the prices--and she didn't care that we were very disappointed. I'm one to roll with slight service punches, like food that falls below my expectations, but when a business pats itself on the back with an automatic tip while thinking it can brush off horrible service, it doesn't deserve to be encouraged with further patronizing.

    (1)

  • Shanti S.

    Abosutly the worst experience for dine-in. And they force you to pay 18% tip for lunch but their service don't even worth for a penny!!!!! We were waiting for 50 mins for the first dish to come, and the whole meal took us 1.5 hour. Small portion and not tasty at all!!! DO NOT GO!!!

    (1)

  • Vivian W.

    they charge 20% service fee which is included in the final bill. since I received extremely rude service there, I told them I would only pay 15% because it's my right and that's what they deserve. Then the owner laughed at me. what kind of place is this? can anybody tell me? Also, the three of us had three backpacks so we wanted to sit at a table with four chairs. owner said no. when we asked why, he said because the table is reserved. Two minutes later, another group of three came in. owner asked how many and said sit wherever you like. So the three of them sat at the exact same table we asked for, no objections there! Why? who knows. maybe because we are not white americans. I should laugh at him instead, ha ha ha!

    (1)

  • Siyang F.

    THE SERVICE IS HORRIBLE! I'm not trying to exaggerate anything. Here's the story. When my friend and I sat down and looked at the menu, we asked for recommendation on non-spicy seafood dishes. The waitress simply told us that every seafood dish is either sweet and sour or not sweet or sour, which is pretty much the same as saying nothing. And she got immediately impatient when she saw our hesitant reaction to her "exhaustive" recommendation. Then we asked the host for recommendation. He simply said: "NONE OF THEM IS GOOD." Well, here you see, my one star goes for his honesty. Later on we asked for the check, we found out that we got automatically charged for a tip of 18%. Please point out my ignorance, but I have never encountered such charging policy except at some clubs. But hey, we are not that drunk yet, so, if the restaurant wanted to auto-tip up to 18%, it might be reasonable for me to inquire for some kind of explanations. Seven dollar is by no means a small amount for tips, especially when service sucks to such an extent. However, when I asked the host about it, the host stared at me, as I am a kid suffering from dementia, saying: "18% tip for dinner, 18% tip for dinner" while nodding along. I was literally disgusted by his attitude so I said ok and shut up. My friend was paying for the dinner. Since she came from Spain, she was new to America's tipping stuff. She asked the host if she should give an additional tip. He said, with extremely sarcastic tone, "No no no, the tip is already included. DIDN'T YOUR TEACHER (me) TEACH YOU THAT?" She couldn't understand what he meant. What he meant was that my questioning on it was taken as knowing how to give legit tips. And if I know tips so well, then I am supposed to be a Professor of Tips and to teach my friend all the rules about leaving tips. But I forgot to teach my friend this during our dinner, instead we were too busy talking about other fun stuff. Oops my bad. As a result, due to my irresponsibility, my friend was provided with a complimentary service called "BEING PUBLICLY EMBARRASSED BY THE HOST OF YEN CHING". Then my friend gave him receipt. He said, "You forgot your signature! DIDN'T YOUR TEACHER TEACH YOU THAT? Huh! DIDN'T YOUR TEACHER TEACH YOU THAT? DIDN'T YOUR TEACHER TEACH YOU THAT? Huh! DIDN'T YOUR TEACHER TEACH YOU THAT?" He asked for about six times and it started to sound like a rap. Meanwhile my friend kept shaking her head, implying him to stop embarrassing both of us. BUT HE simply WON'T STOP. We got out of there as soon I was done with being interrogated for my poor teaching in tips. Good talk. For the sake of pride of being a Chinese and bad bad teacher of tips, I would never step into this restaurant again.

    (1)

  • Kirby L.

    the owner here is extremely rude. I walked in with four friends and politely asked what region his chef was from in order to figure out what style of Chinese food this place serves up. (I am Chinese by heritage) He replied flippantly that the chef is Chinese. Then when I asked the waitress he interrupts and says that the chef is "North American" and that I should just go home and eat my moms cooking or stop being so picky. Then he serves up more attitude by asking if I've been to Beijing and that people in Beijing are from everywhere. I replied I had been to Beijing and he says "So what you've been to Beijing? Is that where your Mom from?" Setting all this aside, I've eaten here before and the food tastes like shit. it's extremely greasy and over salted. Everything tastes like its been reheated and is soggy.

    (1)

  • z k.

    Good quality food served fast and hot for a great price in the heart of Harvard Square. Yenching has been around for at least the 20 years that I have been coming here, and it's probably been around quite a lot longer. They serve Mandarin Chinese food that is well done, not greasy, and a notch above many other restaurants at this tier. The lunch specials average about $8.50 and come with a properly crispy spring roll (with real "duck sauce" hunks of pineapple in it), soup, plate of your choosing (20 or so dishes), rice, and jasmine tea. Everything arrives quickly and hot. The interior is clean and welcoming, and the staff are friendly and rapid. Simply put - an excellent dining choice in the heart of Harvard Square!

    (5)

  • Aanchal J.

    I walked past this place almost everyday, but had never thought of going inside. One day the restaurant we were planning to go to had a big wait time, and we decided to give Yenching a try. And we were not disappointed. The food was nice and fresh, the favors brilliant and authentic. The service could have been slightly better, but it was still good. Definitely going back :)

    (4)

  • Charles C.

    The worst service I have ever seen in Boston for years. Unless you are going to death without food, never come to this restaurant! Sincerely!

    (1)

  • Bhushan D.

    Very rude staff and very bad service. They served cold soup and took over 30 minutes to give hot sauce. servers were standing at corner eating instead of serving customers. They also dint bought entire order together. By the time last dish came first one was done eating. They added tips directly on check and when we refused to pay tips lady started fighting. I will not recommend anyone to this restaurant.

    (1)

  • Kristen S.

    Came here after we were disappointed by Bartleys being closed so we were not in the best of spirits. We were quickly seated- a very friendly woman was right on it with service. We had a large party and she was personable (and funny) with my children, who were very hungry. Food was an excellent deal and definitely worth the 8.50 linch special price. Beef dishes were very tender. Not chewy. I did not specifically request white meat with my chicken so I expected fatty chunks of thigh meat but it was excellent and tender as well. It was a bit salty-my only complaint. We all thought the food was very fresh. As we were leaving, our server was preparing wontons at a work table near by-so you know its house made and fresh! It was holiday time so school was not in session and we didn't have to wait. I can't imagine that's the situation when Harvard square is busy, but it's worth a try!

    (3)

  • Jane Z.

    Worst Chinese restaurant ever. Cheap ingredients. The daily soup looks very gross and is made with super old bamboo shoots. Only fat meat in mei gan cai pork belly.

    (1)

  • Esther C.

    Food: We entered excited and hungry, but we left the restaurant having only finished one of three dishes that we had ordered. The other two were completely inedible: one was way too salty and the other just tasted like something had gone bad. Service: I've never encountered such rude behavior in my life. It is not even about customer service; there was not an ounce of human decency in the way they treated us. They were incredibly curt and dismissive for no reason. It made me wonder if the pride of having a relatively successful restaurant had gotten to their heads. We were so disappointed and left in disbelief that the restaurant could continue to run this way. Note: This review was posted upon the persistent requests of my mother. Dictated by my Korean mom, translated and typed up by yours truly.

    (1)

  • Andrew L.

    My Chinese friends (from China) love to hate on this place since it's not "authentic," but between this and the Kong I'd choose this any day. I like the Yu Hsiang pork, and the fried rice. I don't find either to be particularly greasy/unhealthy feeling when compared to places in Chinatown. Really, probably one of the better values in Harvard Square for restaurants in general, and compares favorably to similar restaurants elsewhere in Boston.

    (4)

  • Gedi T.

    The food here is awesome. It is located very close to Harvard, a great place to eat for students.

    (4)

  • Poh Y.

    Food was okay, nothing fantastic. The man that met me at the door (i think he is the owner) was not very friendly. I was supposed to meet a friend for dinner but arrived slightly earlier. i asked for a table for two and he told me to take a sit at bench by the entrance (seats for those waiting for a take out). I asked again after 10 mins and he says that the entire party has to be here before we can be seated. That was fair. But others who came in without their party complete were seated before me. I would have walked out if not for it being a little late. And the waitress added on 18% service charge without even asking.

    (3)

  • david k.

    Worst Chinese restaurant EVER!! Right there next to Harvard University. Very disappointing. The owner has an attitude. The food was salty, all meats were overcooked. My wife took one bite and went out for a sandwich. For family of 4, 20% gratuity automatically added. When I said I will pay my own tip, the owner threw the receipt at me. He said next time go to McDonald's. I wish I had. Bad food, bad service and bad attitude. Crappy restaurant.

    (1)

  • Catherine Jieying X.

    20ï¼… mandatory service fee for LUNCH!! They even charge for rice and tea per person which is abnormal for Chinese restaurants...taste is just so so...not worth the price at all.

    (1)

  • Zihan W.

    This place kinda sucks. The bowl was dirty when served and we had to change them. But the changed ones were not better. The food was not good either. Either too salty or the material used are not fresh. Each serve was not a full serve too. Environment was ok. And they charged a large tip without asking me.

    (1)

  • Sasha H.

    I can't really explain why I don't like this place that much. The food quality, objectively speaking, is much better than the nearby Kong, but for some reason I can't bring myself to enjoy this restaurant. While the Kong is greasy and sort of off-putting in that sense, there is a time and place for greasy, artery clogging, guilty pleasures. The food here is all sort of bland tasting. I feel like they try to over season it with salt to make up for it, but generally when I'm here the food just tastes sort of plain and sometimes slightly charred. The best dish I've had here is a noodle bowl, which was actually not that bad, probably because it was soup based. However, I'd like to note that this place has an awesomely nice staff. The owner is always really cheerful and I've always had great waitresses.

    (3)

  • Nan W.

    Lousy service and the boss has a very bad attitude. Lucky that I don't have to go there ever again.

    (1)

  • M K.

    No star at all !!!! Should not be a restaurant. Worst chinese restaurant in my life. Food had weird smell and color and texture ! Dish was small like kid'meal, small bowl of rice has to be paid extra to get.

    (1)

  • Junjie L.

    Convenient location. Food was less than mediocre. Sometimes the boss didn't have a good attitude.

    (2)

  • Frederic M.

    It was a Chinese friend of mine who took me to this place for my first Yenching dinner. I trusted her with the ordering, which she did in Mandarin. I had no idea what kind of food to expect. I was pleasantly surprised. After the meal, I asked my friend to write down (in English, preferably) what she had ordered. I have been eating the same things ever since when visiting Yenching. It thus highly recommend the "Sai Woo Crispy Fish" and the "Mandarin Cabbage with mushrooms". Don't forget to order a bowl of white rice with that (at $1 a bowl). Overall, Yenching offers good food at a reasonable price. It is conveniently located in Harvard Square. And while I wouldn't go there every day, I must admit I have monthly "Sai Woo" cravings that guide me back to good old Yenching.

    (4)

  • Cecilia H.

    Please avoid this restaurant if possible. If yelp allowed I would give this restaurant 0 star. I ate here for lunch today. When I got my check for $29.91. They suggested I pay $35.31. I assumed that the $35.31 included 20% tips. Although the quality of the food was not that good I already decided to give them 20% tips. However when I got the actual check. On the check the pretip amount was already $35.31. The tip is supposedly customarily tendered not enforced. When I asked them to reissue the check with the right pretip amount, they began to yell dirty words at me and gave me several checks with different amounts to sign. I signed the $29.91 one leaving No Tip!! Still seriously doubt they might play trick by overcharging my credit card. I will keep an eye on it.

    (1)

  • Kelly R.

    I once would have given Yenching a solid 3, but now I say: people who don't like Yenching have never tried the house special fried rice or the Shanghai stir-fried rice cakes. The latter is to die for.

    (4)

  • Pam C.

    Yenching is awesome. Seriously the best. The family that run the restaurant is an adorable Asian couple - they remind me of my parents. When I get take out on a cold day they yell at me for biking in sandals, and chastise me when I don't speak Chinese to them. In terms of your two Chinese options in Harvard Square, Yenching is the older couple whose apartment is dark at midnight, and the Kong is the 20-something neighbor who's always puking in the hall at 3am. Yenching doesn't escape the overwhelming greasiness that tends to plague Chinese food, but the food definitely tastes pretty good. I love their beef chow fun (wide rice noodles) - the beef is pretty tender and the noodles aren't so excessively greasy that it's gross. The chow fun at the Kong tends to be thicker and clumped together - Yenching does it way better. It's slightly more expensive than the Kong, and doesn't stay open as late, but if given the choice I would definitely always pick Yenching. They have a pretty awesome lunch menu - you get a full serving of a dish quite a few different sides: crispy egg rolls, soup, and sometimes fried rice. Yenching is a popular place for Chinese New Years so it gets ridiculously hectic - I remember last Chinese New Years Eve, they ran out of food at 8pm-ish.

    (4)

  • Fan L.

    Still can't choose any Chinese restaurant, cause most time I expect more. Like, the Spice Wonton, Wonton itself was ``let's say "fine", but they use the sweet peanut butter as souse! For all the Chinese ppl's sake, plz do not use that anymore,PLEASE! Maybe just make it like Wonton Soup would be much better! Arrrr....I'd rather cook by myself~

    (2)

  • Lorraine W.

    Worst restaurant in my recent experience. Location is good, price is reasonable. However, service is really bad. I ordered spicy oil dumpling, but was served with some dumplings covered by pink color unknown sticky source. Apparently its mistake made by the kitchen. The waitress refused to change, not even bring any water for us to wash away the sticky source. In the end, despite rude service, they charged 25% service charge, directly in the bill. Really unhappy with the experience.

    (1)

  • Claire C.

    The custom service sucks!! SUCKS!! Food was okay but the waiter even counted tips in the final bill!! I wish I have never been there for lunch cause the custom service ruined my good mood with Chinese food. NEVER GO THERE. 如果yelp有零星我一定会选的，这是我到过的服务最差的餐厅。

    (1)

  • Eric C.

    On our last visit, we discovered that they serve Peking duck here. (Its needs to be booked atleast one day before) The duck was great and I liked it. Although its not as good as the ones served in Beijing (my home town) it is good enough.

    (5)

  • Lisa Y.

    The owner is snarky a lot of times and occasionally good. The predictor is how many people are eating in the restaurant. If he gets lots of business, like during weekends, he treats you like a shit and extremely arrogant. If there is not much business, he usually treats you well. I am not a big fan of his style.

    (2)

  • Jen Zhenzhen W.

    First time comers be aware! This place charges 18 percent mandatory service fee tho the service is terrible. Upon your arrival, they ask you if you want tea, but they don't tell you that the tea is 3.75 dollars. The handwritten bill is unrecognizable. The stir veggies is cold and it's like it's been there for hours. Rice is mixed with seemingly leftover rice. Chinese dishes not authentic.

    (1)

  • Yiqi J.

    I am Chinese. After visiting the newly opened Harvard museum, the 3 of us went to Yenching. It has been years since I have last been there. This restaurant is all about location, being right in the center of Harvard square, but SADLY it's the only thing it still exists. While clearly thriving on tourist money judging by the groups of uniformed people, the owner (or the guy in the front) carried on this air that he disdains tourists, especially mainland chinese i suspect. the lunch orders were standard american chinese lunch fare, with a touch of szhchuan and hunan flavor. Of the five dishes none really stood out, actually they all tasted and looked exactly the same, as if the same sauce were used on all. the waitress kept on spilling drinks on us, and had to come back to clean it. the owner were not all that pleased with her. He asked my friend a couple of time to move her chair around so that others can squeeze by. At the end of the meal, we couldn't wait to leave. The food was probably the worst i had in any Boston area Chinese establishments, albeit one as long standing as Yenching. The owner put a 18% tip on the lunch bill for the 3 of us. I am just appalled. It's not that I cannot calculate my own tip 15% for a bad service. He treats us like we don't know nothing, which I suspect is now customary attitude towards anyone that walks into his door looking like a first time visitor ready to be ripped off, or any Mainland Chinese. Shame on you, Yenching, for treating your own countrymen with distaste. You won't be getting any repeat business from me.

    (1)

  • Karen L.

    Terrible service. Waited very long time to order. The service is the worst ever. I would never visit this restaurant again.

    (1)

  • Chien-yu H.

    The service is very bad. I at least waited 20 minutes for ordering, not to mention having my iced water. Soy milk tasted like water. Not recommend.

    (1)

  • Kavya S.

    Honestly, the food is pretty good if you find the dishes that make you happy. I always order the Kung Pao Tofu and Kan Shua String Beans and split with a friend. The tofu texture is fantastic -- crispy on the outside and chewy on the inside. The string beans are fried to perfection and are perfectly seasoned with spice. The food is greasy, but it's similar to most Chinese restaurants. So why 3 stars then if the food is pretty good, you ask? The service is just so mediocre. They sometimes only take 1 credit card per table (other times take multiple...), take a long time to bring out food, and randomly charge 18% gratuity even if it is only two people dining. Everyone who works at the restaurant is nice, but it's just difficult to enjoy your meal and conversation when you are feeling frustrated about the service. TIP: Consider doing takeout if you are having a chinese food craving -- that way you can enjoy the food without the in-restaurant dining experience!

    (3)

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Map

Opening Hours

  • Mon :11:30 am - 11

Specialities

  • Takes Reservations : Yes
    Delivery : Yes
    Take-out : Yes
    Accepts Credit Cards : Yes
    Good For : Lunch
    Parking : Street
    Bike Parking : Yes
    Wheelchair Accessible : Yes
    Good for Kids : Yes
    Good for Groups : Yes
    Attire : Casual
    Ambience : Casual
    Noise Level : Average
    Alcohol : Beer & Wine Only
    Outdoor Seating : No
    Wi-Fi : No
    Has TV : No
    Waiter Service : Yes
    Caters : No

Categories

Chinese Cuisine

The popularity of Chinese food in America can be adjudicated by the appearance of China Town in many major cities in the United State of America. The popular trend of ordering or opting for Chinese take away food isn't unknown in America. Chinese take away food comes to rescue when you're too tired from work or too exhausted to cook. No one can resist the temptation of eating spicy noodles, shrimp, chicken, beef or pork cooked in the sweet and spicy sauce. The cooking method of authentic Chinese food is a lot different compared to what is served in America.

Generally, Chinese use dark meat small bones and organs to cook dishes but this changes when you are eating American-Chinese fusion food prepared using white boneless meat cooked with broccoli, carrots and onions. Back in China, the food is less spicy and oily as they favor steaming and braising method for cooking the most popular dishes. So, if you have a taste for authentic Chinese food, then try finding a real Chinese restaurant in the city. You can also try the most popular fusion Chinese food like Pecking Duck, Chicken Feet, Hot Pot, Shrimp Dumpling Soup, Mapo Tofu, Wontons, Chop Suey, Egg Rolls and not to forget Fortune Cookies.

There are not many restaurants in America serving authentic Chinese food. A little research on Restaurant Listings directory can help you locate the best Chinese restaurants in the city. Chinese cuisine is continuously evolving, and you can find a variety of dishes categorized as the food for lactose intolerant, gluten intolerant, vegan, vegetarian, and diabetic friendly. So, if you have a group of friends with different taste patterns, save the hassle and visit the nearest Chinese restaurant in your city.

Yenching Restaurant

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