Guangdong Barbecue Tea House

We got a tea smoked chicken in lieu of turkey for Thanksgiving and it was really tasty. The meat was silky, tasty and flavorful. And it came with a sweet soy sauce.

It's not often that I write one star reviews, so I don't do this recklessly or with any sense of joy. I also don't do it without reason and, despite how my experiences with Guangdong were nowhere near the worst I've had, this still feels rather appropriate. Which is a real shame, as some of my relatives used to like this place when they first opened!Taking over the spot that Toon Kee (and their budget friendly prices) used to call home, Guangdong has a cleaner, more modern look and a larger, more varied menu than their predecessor. However, in the years since COVID, things have changed, as they became more of a to-go only deli for a long while and only recently added back limited indoor dining (they still have their deli lunch combo offerings, a la Panda Express). Sadly, the area that seems to have changed the most has been the quality of their food, which has apparently dropped off dramatically over the years.The first time I came here, it was right before COVID lockdowns hit SF to grab dinner with one of my friends who used to frequent this place regularly. I had wanted to get their roast pork and roast duck rice plate, but was told that they didn't have any more of either despite seeing a duck still hanging by the window (my assumption is that they didn't want to cut open a new one at that time of night). The worker aggressively tried to get me to order their soy sauce chicken instead (even going so far as to write it down as my order), but I opted instead to get their WONTON NOODLE SOUP, which was more decent than amazing. While the wontons were pretty good, the noodles were a bit overcooked and mushy. In short, "meh" tasting food, off-putting service.In the years since, I had planned on trying again once Guangdong resumed indoor dining, but ended up coming back recently to pick up some food to-go (with the same friend, oddly enough). Before I even walked in, I already knew what I was going to get - a ROAST DUCK & ROAST PORK RICE PLATE. At a glance, it looked good as the worker was boxing it up, but that very much wasn't the case once I dove in. While the pieces of pork were decently meaty, the skin lacked that distinct "crunch" and was actually tough to bite through (almost like rubber). That said, it was still better than the duck, which was pale in color, light on flavor, and scant on meat (the pieces weren't prime and the bird was on the scrawny side). If that wasn't bad enough, the mixed vegetables that came with this had a weird, almost sour taste to them, too.Between my order and what my friend had (which he didn't enjoy at all), I can't say either of us had anything all that appetizing (he's even sworn off this place). What's more, my relatives that used to come here stopped after noticing that the food had fallen off sharply since those early days. Not that I blame them - with so many alternatives around on Irving (and across the Sunset, for that matter), there's not much of a reason to come back when there are better alternatives so readily available.

Great good. The BBQ is very tasty. I also enjoyed the platter where I got marinated fish and pork feet. Pretty cheap place.

Went for takeout. Their ready to eat marinated tofu 3 bricks for $4 something is great. Makes a nice simple side dish. Then on a whim I ordered their $9.50 2 items from the steam table. Chose Chinese beef brisket and ginger chicken. What a disappointment! The beef brisket part is 50% taro and the beef is tough and chewy. And the chicken is mushy mushy mushy. Probably been cooked to death. I'm not one who waste food but after a few bites, I cannot tolerate such horrible food. In the garbage - so sorry to waste .

I usually wait for my mom to buy the prepared food here. We usually get the pig intestines, which is sold by the pound. The intestines itself don't weigh a lot, but today the worker decided to weigh the soup liquid with the intestines which made the weight heavier. It usually cost us about $14 for the intestines, but today it came out to be $26. Obviously, this was a little shocking, so my mom asked why it cost so much today since we usually frequent this place buying the same things and know the average price.The worker rudely and abruptly responded "don't buy it if you don't have money". (In Chinese) So we ended up not buying it, and will not return.

The service and attitude is typical rude inexperienced chinese. So far I have not had a pleasant experience. They try but cannot get themselves out of the grave. Been here 3 times only because the jook is good.Jook is smooth and silky...not lumpy or bland. I wpuld rate it to how HK makes it.

Went in near closing to get a roast duck over rice. They had two whole hanging ducks in the window but refused to cut them open for my order. Guess they were saving them to resell the next day.

This is my neighborhood go to for convenient chinese take out, especially chinese porridge. My family used to occasionally dine in before the pandemic but I think it is only take out for now. It's a great spot to pick up any chinese deli item like duck or char siu.

Such a great and affordable place to grab a bite to eat!!! Here's the dishes I tried and my thoughts on each one: *1 Pound of BBQ Pork (Char Siu) - This was my favorite dish! The meat is well-seasoned and marinated with a savory sauce! *1 Pound of Braised Egg and Tofu - This dish was also a highlight! The egg and tofu is drenched in a delicious soy sauce, and tasted fresh + not too salty. *1 Pound of Roast Pork - The pork was unfortunately a bit disappointing since the meat was quite lean. But I decided to make some fried rice and soup using the leftovers, which turned out delicious!

Barbecue may be okay, I didn't try it. Prepared food from steam table is awful: tepid, bland, seasoning absent, everything tastes unpleasantly like fish.