Duk Kee Chinese Restaurant

Food has improved since being taken over by the Golden Eagle people.Service placing a phone order is kind of inconsiderate.Some portions are good, some are crazy small.

2024 updateDuk Kee came under new ownership during the first quarter of 2024. With new ownership came new cooks and the way dishes were prepared. Our initial purchases were disappointing, flavoring or lack thereof was a shock. We decided to wait and give them a chance to work it out. Many times because new cooks will approach things differently, old time customers from the previous regime expect the taste to be the same,, sometimes this is not the case. Does it mean it's bad? Not necessarily, it depends. Recently we had a chance to try their crispy gau gee with ss sauce on the side. This appetizer was prepared nicely and we enjoyed it. We will probably slowly poke around and try other dishes to see if our initial experiences have changed or probe to find dishes better suited for us. I will say they seem to still be doing a brisk business so their customers, and many must be regulars, must be enjoying the food. New customers? Longtime patrons? It depends...

Duk Kee in Kaimuki is one of my favorite places for Chinese food. While I have dined in here a few times, most of the time, I'll do takeout. The menu has so many options and so sometimes it's hard to decide what to order. My favorite dishes include the crispy gau gee (deep-fried wontons), cold ginger chicken, and honey walnut shrimp. The portions are generous, and the prices are reasonable so I'll often order extra to take for lunch!Parking can be a bit challenging and also be careful even if you're stopping in just to grab your takeout. I've seen someone ticketed when they were parked illegally just to run in for 2 minutes to grab their food!

I'm not sure what's wrong with this restaurant but the food is DISGUSTING!!!! Please don't come here and waste your money. We were looking for quick Chinese food and the chow mein had zero flavor and all of the veggies are old. My friend who isn't picky at all said this is the worst food she's ever had Also why does the orange chicken have jalapeños in it ???

We decided to give the set menu a try since I had a group of people for White Christmas.We had scallop soup, oyster sauce chicken with vegetables, Peking Duck very tasty and they gave us extra hoisin sauce,shrimp with vegetables,abalone with black mushrooms, steam fish with ginger and green onions, salt and pepper pork chops, emein noodles. Everyone enjoyed the dishes. The service was very pleasant. There were a lot of large parties. The one kind of thing I wish we could have different would be a round table. The rectangle table was roomier for my Aunty with the walker but lifting the dishes to pass them was kind awkward.Overall it was a very pleasant experience. We will be back

A fixture for Chinese food every New year. Jai,ginger chicken,noodles. Prices have gone up but what can you do. Quality of food still there. They also have family fixed menus at reasonable prices. Parking in back.

Oh Duck Kee. How I've ignored you for 25+ years. What was I thinking?? Well, it was the menu. It looked too Chop Suey'ish and basic. But there's a secret menu with a little bit more authentic dishes!When I read the news about the owners of Duck Kee retiring, and the new owners is from Golden Eagle, I was even less interested because I'm not a fan of their food. How did I end up at Duck Kee? I'm even a lesser fan of Happy Day!Duck Kee has been in Kaimuki--along 12th Avenue near Waialae Avenue for over 45 years! That's amazing! We need to keep these establishments. There's only metered parking and the municipal lot.The inside is spacious with a decent amount of tables. The metal chairs and booths with the red fabric padding instantly brings the vintage Chinese restaurant vibes.The menu is the usual American Chinese fare with your Orange Chicken, Crispy Gau Gee, and etc. Luckily I did stare at the menu for a long time as I wouldn't have received Duk Kee's special menu!We started with the Egg White and Dried Scallop Fried Rice. This was okay. It never felt like I was eating fried rice as the rice was still clumpy, bland, and bright white, and there was zero wok heat. The egg whites were also mostly clumped together. The green onions were scant. But at least the dried scallop was hydrated and not the deep fried, just sprinkled on top of the fried rice variety.Ong Choi with Preserved Bean Curd Sauce was decent. I needed more taste and flavor. The preserved bean curd taste did not come through, and the ong choi was on the "old" side.Lastly we ordered the House Special Ribs. My grandma wanted to sub the regular broccoli for Chinese broccoli, and to my surprise, they were able to do that! I didn't even see Chinese broccoli anywhere on the menu. Good to know! The pork ribs were super tender--literally fall off the bone. The meat was quite tasty and flavorful with a nice balance between savory and sweet. The Chinese broccoli was cooked very well too.Overall, the meal was all right. The ribs were excellent, and the prior dishes needed some work, but still decent. The service was excellent. Everyone was so friendly, polite, accommodating, patient, and courteous. I swear I've seen the staff at some other Chinese restaurant, but I just can't remember. I was glad to meet a server who was kept on and said she worked there for 25 years. The prices are on-par with other places, and their portions are quite generous. I'll say it's better than the place an avenue away, and I'll definitely come back to try more.

Excellent food and service!Duke Kee is located on 12th Avenue in Kaimuki, near Hale Vietnam. My dining partners thoroughly enjoyed the food! Judging from the full tables, so do many others. We ordered diced winter melon soup #3, kau yuk w/ taro #77, steamed fish w/ ginger onion #46, pan fried string bean w/ pork #84, pork w/ sweet sour cabbage #88.We are already planning our return visit lol!

Lunar New Year lunch here on 02/10/24. Our order: Kau yuk with taro, black bean beef chow fun, fish filets with sweet and sour sauce and sin choy, jai, Peking duck with bun, diced winter melon soup, rice, egg fu yong, and tea. There were seven of us. We wanted to try the new ownership of this restaurant. The place was very busy today. This is expected on the Chinese holiday. The tables appeared clean. Seating was tight. After we placed our order in, service of the dishes were quick. Water and tea refills were constant and removal of used dishes were quick. Service is 5 out of 5 here. The food was as follows: Jai- 4 out of 5. A bit on the sweet side. Oysters are a nice touch. Peking duck with buns-3 out of 5. Not your typical Peking duck. It was on the dry side. The buns were great 5 out of 5. Restaurant also provided us extra hoisin sauce (upon request) for the duck. Black bean beef with chow fun- 3 out of 5. Not much taste to this dish. Beef had an unusual texture. Pounded beef maybe?Winter melon soup-4.5 out of 5. This soup was just right in my humble opinion. The mix of ingredients were flavorful. I enjoyed this dish the most. Kau yuk with taro-4.5 out of 5. Very large serving size. Thick cuts of kau yuk (braised pork) and taro. My dad really enjoyed this dish. Fish filets with sweet and sour sauce and sin choy. 3.5 out of 5 stars. The fish was a bit on the chewy side. The sauce is tasty with the sin choy. Egg fu yong was nondescript. 2 out of 5. It was not fluffy but flat and closer to fried eggs texture. This was my least favorite dish. Rice was fresh and fluffy 5 out of 5. Tea was extremely bland and without taste. 1 out of 5. I'll stick with the water. I met the manager Gavin who thanked us for our patronage. He had a nice personality and he was multitasking ( phone orders, table orders, getting take out ready, and ringing up the charges!). There is one gender free bathroom. It could be cleaner. 3 out of 5. You'll need to go behind the cashier to reach the bathroom. Space here is very limited. Parking is street metered parking or paid parking lot for Happy Days and other restaurants.

The service was good. They were friendly and welcoming when you entered the restaurant. The food was very tasty.