I enjoyed the quality and freshness of the jah jan mien noodles and the pancake flour in the beef-wrapped pancakes. I would have liked more flavor and seasoning in the noodles but I can't complain too much.
Reviewed by:
Jessica W. on:
11/14/2012 4:38:00 PM
Came here only after Jazz Cat's wait was too long .. along with everything else in that plaza .. this place was pretty slow when we came and picked up a little when we left.food was just okayyyy .. don't get the green onion pancake .. that was not yummy .. no flavor .. the chive box was okayyy .. xiao long bao was pretty good .. beef roll was okayy .. this radish cake pancake was not bad (according to dad). overall .. nothing spectacular .. wouldn't return .. nothing really stood out.
Reviewed by:
Wendy L. on:
10/16/2012 10:36:00 AM
There was not a lot of choice in the menu, either the 'pancakes' which are really pan fried pies filled with meats and veggies. I ordered the Taiwanese Beef Noodle and my friend ordered the dumplings with shrimp, sea cucumber, and chives. We also ordered the pork and zucchini pan fried pies to share. The pies were good, a little juice enclosed, and the dumplings were okay. The beef noodle was unremarkable...to the point whee I dumped some garlic sauce, and a quarter bottle of white vinegar in it. Little flavor, definitely NOT authentic.The service was a little lacking, just a bit worse than the usual Chinese restaurant service, which wasn't all that nice to begin with. The servers looked like they would rather be elsewhere, and never brought us tea, we had to ask for it. It says no MSG on their wall, but I left super-thirsty, and I'm supersensitive to additives and MSG. (My father-in-law's cooking once left me up all night, downing two bottles of water.)I don't think I would return, not for the prices or the food.
Reviewed by:
Wendy W. on:
10/13/2012 10:53:00 PM
I come here with my parents and they have to order for me because I really don't know how to order. But everything that I eat there is SO good and their soup too. It tastes so fresh when you eat it because they make it right when you order it, and even if you take it home and eat it the next day it'll still taste good.
Reviewed by:
Katy C. on:
10/1/2012 6:22:00 AM
You can find very good and traditional Chinese food here. I don't know why some people give this place such a low rating, maybe they don't serve sweet and sour chicken here, but they definitely serve some yummy home-style Chinese dishes here. You gotta try the beef/green onion grilled buns (pancakes)... they are incredibility juicy and definitely a must try if you are in the neighborhood!
Reviewed by:
Edwin B. on:
10/1/2012 4:51:00 PM
THIS PLACE IS SO UNDER RATED!! Great grilled beef pancakes. .This is a must go for real Chinese .. This place aint no fortune cookie, neighborhood chinese combo #5, kinda dive... The food is fast, fresh, authentic, and hot.
Reviewed by:
Nicole L. on:
7/19/2012 2:13:00 AM
I have better noodles and buns else where....does not care about their food and their service sucks.
Reviewed by:
Luby H. on:
7/14/2012 4:24:00 PM
I didn't really fully understand the meaning of 2 1/2 stars until after I've dined at Michelle's Pancake House. The food was decent, but I felt like at each bite, I had a dilemma trying to decide whether if it was 2 or 3 stars and here's the reason.Each bite was delicious, but it felt as it something was missing. It was salty enough, and hot enough, but...just something (which I sat there for 40 minutes trying to figure out) was just missing...Seafood dumplings: This is probably better out of the two items, and that's quite ironic considering the fact that, it's a restaurant that's supposed to specialize in Chinese flat pancakes. The dumplings were pipping hot, and the meat filling was different since we ordered the seafood one instead of your regular pork or beef. It was salty and flavorful, but even with vinegar and soy sauce, it just seems as if it needs that something more to be complete.Beef pancakes: I normally would prefer these fried pancakes over regular dumplings, but in this case, it was sort of a disappointment. The pancakes looked golden brown and delicious, and it was yummy, but it needed something more to it also. The best part though, is that at each bite, soup flows out of the pancake, so be sure to eat these slowly with a spoon or you will burn yourself!The side dishes weren't all that impressive either....Honestly, I have never really wrote a review that looked so..befuddling, but for Michelle Pancakes, I did just that.
Reviewed by:
Timmy T. on:
5/17/2012 12:21:00 AM
Not great not terrible.The service left a lot to be desired and had to remind my waiter twice to get water brought to my table. The Beef Noodle Soup was honestly pretty good and the hand cut noodles were a big plus. The pancakes and such tastes pretty good at first..... until i got home and had this weird taste in my mouth. Overall to pricey for mediocre food, won't be back but was worth a one time try.
Reviewed by:
Frank S. on:
3/14/2012 4:42:00 AM
My friend once took me to Michelle's in San Gabriel and I was expecting some flat pancake like the scallion pancakes they have at some places. When some round fried dumplings came out instead, we were wondering if they messed up our order. Then we found out that they call these pancakes for some odd reason...So when I came to this location, I knew not to expect some flattened pancake. We asked them what's their best stuff and they recommended #1, the leek, shrimp, egg, thin bean pancake. I had just eaten and wasn't hungry so that's all I had. It wasn't too bad. My friend had some mushroom bok choy noodle soup she said was okay.The outdoor seating area was nice. Nobody was out there and the service was still decent. There was a $20 minimum for credit card but I talked him out of it because we were too full to eat $20 worth of food. That was nice.
Reviewed by:
Jon-Michael G. on:
3/2/2012 10:27:00 AM
Good food but greasy a little blandThe Taiwanese "pancakes" are good I suggest you try everything to your liking.+The Good+Flavorful+Juicy+Out Door seating+Nice Location-The bad-Service-Greasy-CommunicationOverall this place is alright Id come back here once in a while.
Reviewed by:
Nancy T. on:
2/23/2012 5:27:00 PM
Ugh, are you serious?! I really think they tried too hard to branch out of your typical Chinese dishes by adding crazy spins to them, but in the process...they literally ruined them! The dumplings were weird, bland, and had a really mushy, overly-doughy texture. Their "pancakes" are definitely unusual - they are actually stuffed pockets, similar to bao zhi's (stuffed buns). These were probably the best things we ordered, but they still tasted weird and were filled with WAY too much juice. It was to the point where it was just messy!Their beef noodle soup is probably their best item, but it definitely lacks flavor, although it seems kinda healthy. My bf and I absolutely LOVE Chinese food, but we were SO disappointed with this place! It's a bit pricey and their menu items don't seem to match up with what they give you. For instance, if you're expecting green onion pancakes...don't even bother going here! In the end, why go here when there are SO many better places in the neighborhood?!?!! I think I'll stick to my tried and trued favorite spots, thankyouverymuch.
Reviewed by:
kevin b. on:
2/23/2012 10:24:00 PM
Beef Noodle Soup - Really salty but decently flavored broth. The actual beef in the soup is rather disgusting chewy and bland. I like their noodles, knife cut, thick and chewy. 2/5Leek Box - Terrible!! The filling was still cold on the inside. Obviously these pancakes can't be freshly made but at least have the decency to fry them slowly and warm up the middle!! sheesh!! is that too much to ask china man chef? 1/5Beef, Onion Pancake - I actually really love eating fried pancakes rolled up with beef and scallions. Michelle's version is an average 3/5. There are so many better options out there in hole in the wall joints and even regular Chinese food courts. You'll be paying a premium to dine here because Michelle advertises "low oil, less salt and more juiciness." Go elsewhere for cheaper and better fooding.
Reviewed by:
Albert L. on:
1/4/2012 4:19:00 PM
To anyone not familiar with Chinese food, don't be fooled - IHOP pancakes these are not.What Michelle's Pancake really provides is a simple (and thankfully limited) menu of what they do best - their signature items of scallion pancakes, beef rolls, noodles, dumplings, and signature "filled" pancakes.I really loved the Beef & Spinach Noodle Soup - to be honest, I think this was one of the best beef noodle soups I have ever had. The broth was savory in the sense that it didn't need any mild spiciness (or too much salt) to taste just right. The overall portion of the noodle soup is huge (for a little over 5 bucks, I think this is awesome) and they didn't skimp out on the thick and flat hand made noodles and tender beef bits.We also had the carrot & onion & beef pancakes and chicken dumplings. The chicken dumplings were good - not the best I've had, but tightly wrapped and not too juicy or small either. The carrot & onion & beef pancakes were pretty good too - one or two of these suckers can already make up half your lunch. You gotta be careful with those though because the hot juices inside can come out unexpectedly once you bite into them.Service wasn't bad and the prices were very reasonable ($5-7 per plate) but I have to say that Michelle's Pancakes isn't the most obvious place to get to - it's on the second floor of a Asian plaza bordering the 60, and it's definitely not located near an elevator but rather a flight of stairs. There should be plenty of parking unless it's a Friday or Saturday night. I definitely look forward to coming back!
AVG:(NaN)
