A & J Restaurant

I've been going here since I was little, this restaurant holds a special place in my heart.The service is always great, the waitresses are super sweet towards my family and all chat with us! The food is always super nostalgic and delicious to me, the quality hasn't changed the same. I recommend the Szechuan Radish Noodle Soup, it's super salty and savory. Sometimes it's pretty busy, but you get sat down very quickly!

Love the handmade noodles in the spicy beef noodle soup. Thick, chewy, and super long. They absorb the flavor of the broth so much! The beef is super tender and soft.The scallion pancake was thin, crispy, and flakey.The place was poppin w/asians so you know it's authentic!

I've been to A & J many times the past two years, and I always left feeling both satisfied and dissatisfied. I've learned that I am not a fan of several items I've ordered--Spicy Beef Noodle Soup, Minced Pork on Rice, Scallion Pancake, and the Chinese Beef Wrap. These items lacked the flavor and texture that I normally expect to enjoy from ordering these common Taiwanese dishes. However, I am a huge fan of their Cucumber Salad in Hot Garlic Sauce! Dare I say, Din Tai Fung's cucumber salad doesn't come close to the one at A & J. I also recommend coming early for lunch and non-peak hours for dinner. The wait could be long, and the parking structure could get congested during peak hours.

Our favorites were the beef roll and scallion pancake! I was excited for the beef noodle soup but it didn't have much flavor or spice. I appreciated the menu having so many options and there being plenty of seating. Prices were decent for the portion sizes.

A&J is THE place to go to for comfort food!The spicy beef noodle soup is a classic that I order every time I come. The spicy wontons and pan fried dumplings are our favorite appetizers to order as well! If you don't eat spicy foods, the wonton noodle soup or rice dishes are great options. The service is fast and if there's a wait, it goes by quickly. The parking lot gets busy in the evenings/weekends but there's plenty of parking spots. A&J is definitely a spot to try if you're in OC!

A&J sells some nice Taiwanese dishes. Knowing that, I already have a must-try list! Spicy oil wonton, beef roll wraps, and spicy beef stew noodle (wide noodles).Too bad they didnt have the spicy oil wonton. No worries, I sub'd it with the spicy cucumber salad. Really good and got nice chunks of garlic.The beef roll wraps came in a bit flat. Both in flavor and wrap, unfortunately. The beef stew noodle was pretty traditional. I like my noodles wider and broth heartier. But it had the traditional beef stew taste.Overall, quite nice but falls very well within standard for me. Though this place is quite popular, always full.I would recommend it overall!

A&J Restaurant is a fantastic spot for Taiwanese comfort food, and their beef rolls and beef noodle soup are a must! The beef rolls are crispy and flaky on the outside, filled with tender beef and just the right amount of hoisin sauce for a perfect balance of flavors. The beef noodle soup has a rich, flavorful broth with tender chunks of beef and chewy, perfectly cooked noodles. The portions are generous, and the food consistently hits the mark.

My boyfriend and I were heading up to OC to have a small "staycation" to meet up with his brother and some of his friends as he hadn't seem them for a while. However, we weren't meeting them until later that weekend and decided to meet up with one of my San Diego friends who happened to be in OC visiting her cousin. We randomly found this restaurant and decided to check it out.It's located next to Sunmerry Bakery and Evergreen Health & Herbs in The Arbor Village Center on Jeffrey Rd in Irvine. There's a huge parking lot with ample parking but could be very difficult to find a stall on a weekend. It took us a while to find a stall, and it was at the end of the shopping plaza. When we arrived, there was a line of people waiting to be called in to be seated. We didn't realize this restaurant was that popular but seems like it really was in the area. It took us about 45 mins to an hour to get seated. Luckily, there were small stores around for us to kill time at which included the SHIBUYALA.My group and I decided to order appetizers to share around the table. We shared the Pan Fried Pork Dumplings and Sliced Beef Tripe w/ Hot Red Sauce. The beef tripe was soooo good. The flavor, MMM! Loved it! It was a cold dish that was very tender and the spiciness show in the dish. It did look kind of sus (peep at pic) when we got it, but looks are deceiving as I really liked it! Definitely a hit for me. The pork dumplings were also really good. They were very plump and full of protein. YUM, great start of our meal.I ordered their Beef and Tendon Noodle Soup. There was a lot of everything in this bowl and for the price, it was super worth it! The beef and tendon were very tender which I fully loved as it indicated that they've been cooking for a while. However, I wasn't very impressed by the broth as it lacked flavor, and the noodles were overcooked for me. My boyfriend and my friend both got the Wonton Noodle Soup. The wontons were really sad. Tiny little pieces with barely any protein in them. Boooo. The soup was also very unimpressive. Unfortunately, the main courses could not match the energy we had with the appetizers.Overall, not a bad restaurant to have Taiwanese styled foods. However, I did wish our noodle soups were better. I would definitely come back to try other foods, especially the spicy wontons everyone raves about to see if it lives up to its hype.

Fastest Ive EVER been served. I was blown away. Seated straightaway with 4 people! Delicious food, a teenie bit expensive but you get a fantastic meal. Loved my chicken, and you can add chili crisp/soy sauce provided at your table to your desired spice/salt level. Overall, great place!!

My friend recommended this place after playing pickleball at Irvine.A & J is a noodles place that we used to eat at Ranch 99 of Rowland Heights. Then it moves to Diamond Bar, and I am happy it's still around at Irvine. I tried the beef noodle soup (tendon) for me (delicious and tendons are tasty and not chewy. The thousand layer pancake is same - hand made with right thickness and taste, and the pig ears is season just right. Recommended for lunch or quick meal!