Chef Yan

New restaurant replacing China Star - similar concept but loads better. Small modern space, tho there is a bigger table in back for a larger group.Short "American" menu with typically dishes like General Tao, low mien, etc.The larger menu has the house Sichuan specialties. Prices are on par with more gourmet-ish Chinese but portions are generous, esp the duck - so so flavorful and crispy. Garlic eggplant was tender but not mushy, sauce drinkable.Really enjoyed our meal, late 2pm lunch but place was still busy - a testament to good eats.

China Star is now Chef Yan, and has really stepped up its game and modernized the decor. (Notably, on a Saturday night, we were the only non-Chinese eating there.) The crabmeat and pork soup dumplings were delicious; they are made from scratch, so they take a while to make. The dried fried green beans were lovely, flavorful, and not greasy. The sweet and sour baby ribs were a bit too sweet for my wife's taste, but I dig them. And finally, we felt that the spicy chicken dry sizzling hot pot was significantly spicy, but had some good flavor.We look forward to our next visit.

My family used to go to China Star regularly. When Chef Yan took its place, we were a bit worried; however, it hasn't skipped a beat. Chef Yan is easily the best Szechuan-style Chinese restaurant in the DMV (Mama Chang's doesn't hold a candle to Chef Yan). Pretty much everything we order is fantastic and the sheer number of menu items makes it that much more impressive. There are easily 20-30 amazing dishes on this menu. During our most recent visit, we stuck to the seafood, ordering the Chongqing fish and the fish and tofu in chili oil. Both were excellent -- very spicy -- and right up there with the dishes we normally order here. Anyone giving Chef Yan less than 4 stars doesn't have a clue!

It's pretty quiet in here on the weekdays. But it's great place to have family dinners or lunch. It was quick service. The staff mostly keep to themselves, so put your hand up if you need them.The soup dumpling was juicy with the soup. The eggplant was really saucy. Spicy Frog in Sizzling Pot was my 1st time having it and I didn't realize it had a lot of bones (not so pretty as a 1st date). I wish they put that as a warning. It was spicy. Not sure if I would get again for how expensive it is.

This place is authentic and upscale to Szechuan cuisine. You know it's the real deal when they gave us warm water when we sat down, instead of iced. (They also have iced water if you ask)This was my second time here and it doesn't disappoint! My parents love it. If I were to rank the dishes we got from best to worst:- Spicy and sour fish fillet: this is one of the milder spices, it comes with glass noodles, and the soup is delicious.- Beef dry pot: it comes out sizzling and I really loved how the meat is cooked. The beef is first fried in oil and then stir fried. This is delicious, there's onions and green/red peppers.- Double cooked pork: This is one of szechuan's most popular traditional dishes. It's pretty good.- Crab and pork soup dumplings: I enjoyed the soup dumplings with the crab, but there was not as much soup in the dumplings. - Beef and beef tripe appetizer: Pretty standard if you have had fu qi fei pian 夫妻肺片, it's a cold appetizer that is popular in China.Every single dish hit. There was not a single thing we ordered that's been disappointing here. Not to mention, the service is extremely fast. The dishes came out within 10 minutes of ordering. The soup dumplings took longer (15-20) which they warned us about because they make it fresh.Everyone is exceptionally friendly here with fast service, and the ambience of the place is great. Peaceful music, clean bathroom, nice interior.

Chef Yan's offers some of the best Chinese food in Fairfax The flavors are bold and fresh, and the portions are generous. The service is friendly and attentive, making for a warm and welcoming atmosphere. Highly recommend it to anyone craving delicious Chinese cuisine

Had a great authentic meal here! Food arrived quickly and service was friendly. Favorite dishes: Mashed pepper, preserved egg, and eggplant app was unique and refreshing. Stir fried beef (chef special) was cooked perfectly. Very tender beef Reservations: you might need a reservation if you go around 7pm. We went on a Sunday at 6pm, and were seated immediately. After 6:30 all the tables were filled. Fyi, your clothes will probably smell strongly of Sichuan peppercorns when you leave. So just beware.

Formerly China Star.Great food, nice and quick service, new and revamped dining area. I decided to go here for lunch and took advantage of the lunch special that ends at 3pm. I'll be back.

Chef Yan is formerly China Star in the picket shopping center. The inside is pretty nice and in early January was fairly busy. There is at least one bigger table in the back.We'll see long term, but so far so good. Got chow fun which was solid. A newer dish for us a fried spare ribs - it was not what we expected, huge dish which justified its price and not bad. The fried eggplant was great as usual. I was hoping they would have a deep fried/crispy tofu which wasn't spicy but they didn'tPreviously one of our favorites was a spicy Szechuan crispy chicken we'll see if they have it and it's the same.It was our go to Chinese take out and we may actually eat in here some time too.

We LOVE Chef Yan's Chinese food. By far our favorite Chinese since China Star closed several years ago. This is always a 5-Star rating from us but tonight it was 4-Stars.The flavors are all varied, which is great. But when you order Soup Dumplings you expect the to be filled with this Chefs wonderful broth. Someone isn't checking quality in the kitchen as 3 of our 5 dumplings were punctured with no broth, so they were pork dumplings not SOUP dumplings.Overall the food is fabulous so we will continue to come back. Overall, great job Chef!Chi Chi