Chinatown Cafe

Chinatown Cafe is a hole in the wall restaurant that has DELICIOUS Chinese BBQ meats! It is located in Boston's Chinatown, away from the more congested area of Chinatown... parking is slightly better & easier to find here. I used to come here as a kid, after my weekend Chinese school class & would always get the chicken wings, wonton noodle soup, or a rice plate. They've got great BBQ meats, my favorites being their chashu, BBQ pork, & duck. Last time I came here, I believe they were still cash only... very traditional. I doubt much has changed in regard to their cash only, so I would suggest carrying some cash if you decide to come & visit!I would say Chinatown Cafe is reasonably priced, fair prices for what you get!

One of the best places to get crispy pork in Chinatown . Currently around $18 for a pound.

Chinatown Cafe has a large menu with a really good price. All of its item is pretty good and it's hard to beat its price. I come here quite a bit to order something to bring home. The ambiance makes it feel like a hole in the wall because the restaurant lost a lot of the seatings. That makes me order things to go most of the time. It's also cash only. Here is my thoughts on what to order:Rice plate if you are ordering for yourself.For a family: Order a protein such as chicken, duck, or pork. Vegetables are a good add on and lastly, a side of your favorite carbs.

This is THE place for Chinese BBQ in Boston.I used to go here when I was a kid with my parents and get pan fried noodles every time, but I never truly started to appreciate Chinatown Cafe until I started going here on my own and ordering their Chinese BBQ. Their Roast Duck, Char Siu, and Crispy Pork Belly are absolutely amazing, and they always give a huge portion for the amount of money you pay.HOWEVER, you never want to order a rice plate with more than 1 meat. We've noticed that if you order something like rice with roast duck and crispy pork belly (2 meats or more), you may get some off-cuts of the meat with a lot of bones in the duck or the ends of the pork belly.If you want to get a reliably consistent good quality cut, it's best to order just a 1-meat rice plate (or multiple, but always stick to 1 meat per dish).The most recent time I was here, I ordered the crispy pork belly on rice and (see picture) it came loaded with meat. I've been to other places around Boston that charge upwards of $15 and only give you 8-10 pieces, but there were 15 or so chunks of juicy, fatty, and crispy pork belly in this order.While we didn't eat in the restaurant because it was so crowded, there is a park right next door where we sat down on benches and were able to have a nice lunch. There was also enough rice and meat that we had a second helping for dinner!All in all, I will ALWAYS come back to Chinatown Cafe for Chinese BBQ. There really is no better place in Boston in my opinion, and the value is unbeatable.

This place is where you go if you want large portions at a very reasonable price. We ordered a combo meal, and it literally was packed to the top, and they needed a rubber band to keep the lid shut. The container had to be at least 5 lbs of food. They do only take cash, so be prepared. Our combo dish included bbq pork, roast duck, and soy sauce chicken that came with some steamed veggies and rice. This one dish was enough to feed at least 2 people.

The food is definitely good but service is BAD! The place is cluttered. And if you're not careful when you order they will mis-charge you. I order one pound of roast pork, one pound of beef tripe, and a lunch special ($14.25). They charged me $41.xx. When I got my food they handed me the first 2 items. When I told them that they were missing my lunch special and they said "No. that's all you ordered" so you're telling me that it's $20/lb for roast pork and $20/lb for beef tripe?! That's ridiculous. She brushed me off because there was a line. And they don't give you any receipts either because they only accept CASH. So yup, no proof either. Never in my life I felt so robbed.

What can I say, this one was one of my favorite meals when I when to visit Boston for the first time. I was really excited to see how the other Asians live in the east coast and this place did not disappoint. We ordered the roasted duck and soy sauce chicken plate over white rice and my husband got the vegetable fried rice with crispy pork. And honestly we should have just gotten 1 to share because the portions were massive. But even if the portion size wasn't so large, the FLAVOR of the food was really good. Roasted duck is my absolute fav thing to eat and this place didn't disappoint. But honestly I was delightfully surprised that the soy sauce chicken was amazing as well! It was so flavorful and had so much meat! I think I had a whole chicken thigh in there. My husbands crispy pork was flavorful and of course crispy! Love. Then the fried rice I was not expecting much from but was actually delicious. flavor, portion size, price = ELITEI really wanted to eat a Chinese meal in Chinatown and support small businesses while showing support for the Asian community and had absolutely no regrets! Also, this was the cleanest Chinatown I've been to like WOW.Also, I'm from the SF Bay Area and some of the aunties working in Chinatown SF can be a little mean, so I was really anxious about ordering here but these Aunties here in Boston Chinatown was honestly the nicest ones I've ever met. Great customer service and spoke great English too! And I've been to a lot of chinatowns across the US!Things to keep in mind:1) cash only2) take out only! - but there's a beautiful park right by the the Chinatown Gate. It has shade, seating, and a mini bamboo forest that you can eat by and join in with the locals there.

I've had much better but pricing is pretty good. The star of the items I got was the BBQ pork. The roast Duck was good and was very very meaty but it didn't quite have that skin that is unique and amazing to other Chinese places k been to. There are a couple of tables inside to sit and eat if you'd like but I think it's more of a takeout restaurant. The cashier is nice enough and they cut the meats in front of you.

Amazing Flavor. huge portions. Unbelievable value!!! The staff is also pretty friendly, comparing to other older Chinese restaurants. Can't really go wrong with this

Decent Chinese food specialized for take outs. Good value for your money. Very busy and call ahead is recommended.