Ma's House

Food is great, and it's halal.... love this place!!!I eat here with my family many times. Great place to celebrate special occasions like birthdays, graduations, Eid, etc..Halal Chinese food in San Diego!!!

I ate at Ma's House for the first time last weekend. The food was ok. The sizzling pepper beef, three flavor kung pao and the sauteed pea pod leaves were all decent, though somewhat bland. The kung pao had LOTS of red chili peppers in the dish but strangely, almost no heat. It's as if the peppers were added into the dish after cooking. The pea pod leaves were sauteed with fresh garlic but had very little garlic flavor.The sizzling rice soup was a complete failure. This dish is intended to contain crispy fried rice that remain crunchy in the soup. The fried rice did not sizzle at all when dumped into the soup, and the rice was not crunchy but instead chewy and gummy. We sent the soup back, agreed to accept a won ton soup, and when that had not arrived by the time we'd eaten everything else, told them to forget it. The egg rolls were crunchy outside, and a uniform "mush" on the inside. Overall, I would give the food three stars.Service, however, was pretty awful. First, there was a cart with dirty dishes parked right next to our table. The server came and cleaned off other diners' plates into the plastic slop trough literally steps from where we were dining. The slop cart with the scrapings and dirty dishes remained right next to us well into our meal until I asked whether it would be possible to move it. It was then moved about 5 feet away, next to a table at which were seated another group of diners! This fact alone is enough to convince me not to return to Ma's House. When the slop cart was parked next to us, smells of the discarded food mingled with our (presumably) fresh food. Additionally, service was slow, even though the restaurant was only about 1/5 full. We had to ask multiple times for things and dishes were kind of just dropped onto the table. Although our group won't return, Ma's House really needs to understand that it's a real turnoff to have others' trash and half-eaten food scraped off plates just steps from where you are trying to eat your own order. Leaving it parked in the dining room just gives the impression that the owners/management don't care about cleanliness or sanitation, and gives rise to all sorts of negative speculation about the state of the kitchen.

one of the best comforting chinese food spots in san diego. the hand cut chow mein is amazing, it's my favorite dish! the egg flower soup, walnut shrimp, and beef and broccoli are also my go-tos here. service is always pretty quick and responsive. the restaurant has never been packed when i've been, so it can be a bit quiet inside. parking is also ample.i absolutely love coming here and highly recommend if you're craving some delicious traditional chinese food!

Got tofu and fried rice. Nothing stuck out. It's fine. There's a lot of other places to get chinese though.

I was curious to try Ma's House after driving past it a few times as soon as I stepped it I got a funky scent and was tempted to leave but decided to stay and I was the only other table there (total of 2 parties) also alarming... I ordered the lunch special and some cream cheese wontons. As soon as I got my cream cheese wontons I realized they had been burnt and after I took a bite I noticed they were cold on the inside (they probably put the oil really hot to make them quick and compromised the taste) I then wanted to try the soup but got disgusted trying to pick some up with the spoon cause it had a mucus-like texture... not sure if this is how it's normally served but I didn't even dare to try it. I got the orange beef which had no flavor. Anyway now I know why it was empty - poor ambiance (no music and bad smells of dirty mop), and bad food.

Ma's House, this location used to be a solid 4.5 stars pre Covid.However, our recent visit led us to recognize that food quality and flavor have unfortunately gone way down. What was once our favorite dishes like the sliced jalapeño chicken or Mongolian beef, are not the same. The chicken chowmein is now sticky noodles with mushed chicken pieces and an incredibly large amount of bean sprouts. For the price during lunch you really can't beat it. However, the egg roll is now tasteless, the egg flower soup is grainy and again, bland, and the entree portions are substantially smaller. Because I have such a dear spot for Halal Chinese in my heart, we may be back in the near future, but I truly hope they pick up for what they've lost, and that's truly the lack of flavor that once existed and drew us to them weekly. Service was great, and the ambiance is clean. They've stayed on top of this. Cheers to future visits Yelpers and hopefully a palatable reboot xx

Mixed Experience at Ma's HouseI recently dined at Ma's House and had a diverse selection of dishes. The orange chicken, salt and pepper sizzling beef, coconut walnut shrimp, and eggplant with a side of rice were all exceptionally delicious. The flavors were rich and satisfying, earning a solid 4.5-star rating for the food alone.However, my dining experience was somewhat marred by the service. The ambiance was surprisingly quiet, lacking any background music. The staff appeared overwhelmed and unresponsive. Despite multiple attempts to express my gratitude and bid farewell, there seemed to be a communication barrier, leaving me uncertain about the cause. While acknowledging the potential language barrier, a simple "thank you" is usually universal.In summary, Ma's House offers delectable dishes, deserving of high praise. Yet, the lackluster service and subdued atmosphere led me to rate the overall experience at 3 stars. With some improvements in customer engagement and ambiance, this place has the potential to be a true gem.

Family style dining for large groups of people or individuals with hefty appetites. The proportions are HUGE. Each dish serves at least 3 people. My favorite dishes were the 3 Flavor Fried Rice w/ beef, chicken and shrimp and the sesame breads from the dim sum menu (which serves about 5-7). People who don't eat pork will appreciate Ma's House, as everything is halal. I get tired of asking if there's pork or lard in the foods I order at other Asian restaurants that tend to use a lot of pork products. Modern decor with soothing neutral colors. Super clean. Very reasonably priced for the generous amount of food served. Excellent for large families and groups. Tons of parking.

This is a super late review since I visited back in September last year. I've been to Ma's in Fullerton so I was excited there was a location here in San Diego also. It was super quiet the night I came and was pretty empty for a Friday evening. The waitress was nice but short, not frou frou or super friendly but she meant business. I ordered the scallion pancake, which was thin and savory, perfect for sauces. I also ordered the orange chicken because it's a staple and I was so excited to try it halal. It was delicious and cripsy with a good amount of sauce without being overly saucy. The tofu with vegetables was good and the vegetables were still a bit crunchy and not soggy. The star was the chili sauce which the waitress advised me was made in-house. She graciously packed plenty for me as I needed to take a lot of this home as these are definitely family-style servings. I need to go back soon to try more of their dishes and also hope to support their business here.There was plenty of parking outside and inside is modern, spacious, well-lit, and very clean.

We remembered this place from a visit to SD 3 years ago and had to return once back in the area! The food is absolutely delicious, and everything we tried was done well. The staff are so speedy and courteous. Plenty of room for families with kids. Highly recommend.