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Braised walleye in a rich red sauce on a white plate.
Schezchuan-style walleye from Tea House.
Tea House Chinese Restaurant

10 Standout Chinese Restaurants in the Twin Cities

Hand-pulled dan dan noodles, dim sum, and everything in between

by Eater Staff Updated
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Schezchuan-style walleye from Tea House.
| Tea House Chinese Restaurant
by Eater Staff Updated

In 2022, the Twin Cities bid farewell to some cornerstone Chinese restaurants: David Fong’s closed in August after 64 years in Bloomington, Asia Chow Mein announced the end of a 50-year era on Central Avenue, and Keefer Court, a Minneapolis icon of handmade mooncakes and Hong Kong-style egg tarts, decided to take a bow. (Keefer Court is open through December 31, so go grab a final sesame ball if you can.) But there are still plenty of excellent Chinese restaurants around the Twin Cities, from dim sum institutions like Mandarin Kitchen to beloved Cantonese staples like Shuang Cheng. If you’re on the hunt for hand-pulled noodles or Anhui-style braised whole walleye, look no further than these Chinese restaurants around Minneapolis and St. Paul.

Note that these restaurants are listed geographically.

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Mandarin Kitchen

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Find some of the Cities’ best dim sum at Mandarin Kitchen. On weekends, this spot is packed with families, and the line often wraps out the door. Build your brunch off the voluminous menu: Start with small dishes like pan-fried turnip cakes, and add pillowy steamed chicken buns, crispy egg custards, and steamed pork dumplings. At peak meal times, small parties of diners can expect to share tables — an arrangement that only adds to Mandarin Kitchen’s bustling, convivial atmosphere.

8766 Lyndale Ave S, Bloomington, MN 55420
(952) 884-5356
(952) 884-5356

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Cheng’s Garden

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Tucked away off Lake Street and Nicollet in south Minneapolis, Cheng’s has a variety of Szechuan and Hunan specials, from double-sauteed pork to hot and spicy shrimp. Try the mai fun — a pan-fried thin noodle dish that’s especially popular in southern China — or the classic fried rice. Cheng’s has been a local favorite for years.

3023 Nicollet Ave, Minneapolis, MN 55408
(612) 821-1111
(612) 821-1111

Rainbow Chinese Restaurant and Bar

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Situated on Eat Street’s main drag, Rainbow Chinese has been churning out excellent Chinese-American fare since the late 1980s. (In fact, as Bring Me The News reports, it received a “historic small restaurants” grant this year.) At the moment, it’s operating as takeout only, but it’s offering dine-in service on Christmas Eve — it’s an ideal spot for a cozy, snowy evening with plates full of sauteed green beans and ma po tofu, simmered with Szechuan peppercorn.

2739 Nicollet Ave, Minneapolis, MN 55408
(612) 870-7084
(612) 870-7084

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Shuang Cheng

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This 31-year Dinkytown staple is known for its top-notch Cantonese menu. It specializes in seafood dishes, like crab with ginger and scallions and baked lobster in a five-spice salt. (For the holidays, you can’t go wrong with the Peking-style roast duck, either.) Shuang Cheng has great hot pot, too.

1320 4th St SE, Minneapolis, MN 55414
(612) 378-0208
(612) 378-0208

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Lao Sze Chuan

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Also near the University of Minnesota campus, Lao Sze Chuan is a great place to share food: A plate of chilled, tangy Szechuan noodles, tea-smoked duck, and steaming beef soup, infused with rich, spicy chili oil. Lao Sze Chuan’s appetizer list is notable, too — order some green bean jelly and spicy and sour squid for the table.

304 SE Oak St, Minneapolis, MN 55414
(612) 886-3906
(612) 886-3906

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Kowloon Restaurant

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Kowloon’s Chinese American dishes are reliably great hits — but don’t overlook the specials, which include vermicelli pork hot pot, salt-baked squid, and shrimp balls with tofu. Be prepared for prodigious levels of spice.

935 Washington Ave SE, Minneapolis, MN 55414
(612) 623-3888
(612) 623-3888

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Tea House Chinese Restaurant

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After more than a decade on University Avenue, Tea House remains a staple for excellent Chinese fare — Szechuan in particular. It’s a great place to dine family-style: Pair a steaming bowl of thick, supple kudai lamb noodles with the whole braised walleye or the classic kung pao chicken, peppered with crispy peanuts. On the weekend, come for a dim sum brunch.

2425 University Ave SE, Minneapolis, MN 55414
(612) 331-8866
(612) 331-8866
A walleye in a red sauce in a white dish.
Szechuan-style walleye at Tea House.
Tea House Chinese Restaurant

Also featured in:

Master Noodle (Saint Paul)

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Master Noodle (formerly Magic Noodle) makes fresh, hand-pulled noodle dishes daily in St. Paul’s Midway neighborhood. There are few better places for tender, springy dan dan noodles, hot sour noodle soup, and Mongolian beef fried noodles. Master Noodle also serves an excellent Taiwanese tomato beef brisket soup.

1337 University Ave W, St Paul, MN 55104
(651) 369-6688
(651) 369-6688

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Peking Garden

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Peking Garden is a casual, family-oriented spot on St. Paul’s University Avenue, where it’s been serving Cantonese fare since 1991. Come for the excellent hospitality, the Dungeness crab in black bean sauce, and the sizzling beef brisket hot pot.

394 University Ave W, St Paul, MN 55103
(651) 644-0888
(651) 644-0888

D. Fong's Chinese Cuisine David Fong's Savage

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Part of the storied David Fong’s legacy, D. Fong’s Chinese Cuisine is well worth the drive south to Savage. The entire Chinese American menu is reliably great, from the hot and sour soup to the hearty pork egg foo young.

4321 Egan Dr, Savage, MN 55378
(952) 894-0800
(952) 894-0800

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Mandarin Kitchen

8766 Lyndale Ave S, Bloomington, MN 55420

Find some of the Cities’ best dim sum at Mandarin Kitchen. On weekends, this spot is packed with families, and the line often wraps out the door. Build your brunch off the voluminous menu: Start with small dishes like pan-fried turnip cakes, and add pillowy steamed chicken buns, crispy egg custards, and steamed pork dumplings. At peak meal times, small parties of diners can expect to share tables — an arrangement that only adds to Mandarin Kitchen’s bustling, convivial atmosphere.

8766 Lyndale Ave S, Bloomington, MN 55420
(952) 884-5356
(952) 884-5356

Cheng’s Garden

3023 Nicollet Ave, Minneapolis, MN 55408

Tucked away off Lake Street and Nicollet in south Minneapolis, Cheng’s has a variety of Szechuan and Hunan specials, from double-sauteed pork to hot and spicy shrimp. Try the mai fun — a pan-fried thin noodle dish that’s especially popular in southern China — or the classic fried rice. Cheng’s has been a local favorite for years.

3023 Nicollet Ave, Minneapolis, MN 55408
(612) 821-1111
(612) 821-1111

Rainbow Chinese Restaurant and Bar

2739 Nicollet Ave, Minneapolis, MN 55408

Situated on Eat Street’s main drag, Rainbow Chinese has been churning out excellent Chinese-American fare since the late 1980s. (In fact, as Bring Me The News reports, it received a “historic small restaurants” grant this year.) At the moment, it’s operating as takeout only, but it’s offering dine-in service on Christmas Eve — it’s an ideal spot for a cozy, snowy evening with plates full of sauteed green beans and ma po tofu, simmered with Szechuan peppercorn.

2739 Nicollet Ave, Minneapolis, MN 55408
(612) 870-7084
(612) 870-7084

Shuang Cheng

1320 4th St SE, Minneapolis, MN 55414

This 31-year Dinkytown staple is known for its top-notch Cantonese menu. It specializes in seafood dishes, like crab with ginger and scallions and baked lobster in a five-spice salt. (For the holidays, you can’t go wrong with the Peking-style roast duck, either.) Shuang Cheng has great hot pot, too.

1320 4th St SE, Minneapolis, MN 55414
(612) 378-0208
(612) 378-0208

Lao Sze Chuan

304 SE Oak St, Minneapolis, MN 55414

Also near the University of Minnesota campus, Lao Sze Chuan is a great place to share food: A plate of chilled, tangy Szechuan noodles, tea-smoked duck, and steaming beef soup, infused with rich, spicy chili oil. Lao Sze Chuan’s appetizer list is notable, too — order some green bean jelly and spicy and sour squid for the table.

304 SE Oak St, Minneapolis, MN 55414
(612) 886-3906
(612) 886-3906

Kowloon Restaurant

935 Washington Ave SE, Minneapolis, MN 55414

Kowloon’s Chinese American dishes are reliably great hits — but don’t overlook the specials, which include vermicelli pork hot pot, salt-baked squid, and shrimp balls with tofu. Be prepared for prodigious levels of spice.

935 Washington Ave SE, Minneapolis, MN 55414
(612) 623-3888
(612) 623-3888

Tea House Chinese Restaurant

2425 University Ave SE, Minneapolis, MN 55414

After more than a decade on University Avenue, Tea House remains a staple for excellent Chinese fare — Szechuan in particular. It’s a great place to dine family-style: Pair a steaming bowl of thick, supple kudai lamb noodles with the whole braised walleye or the classic kung pao chicken, peppered with crispy peanuts. On the weekend, come for a dim sum brunch.

2425 University Ave SE, Minneapolis, MN 55414
(612) 331-8866
(612) 331-8866
A walleye in a red sauce in a white dish.
Szechuan-style walleye at Tea House.
Tea House Chinese Restaurant

Master Noodle (Saint Paul)

1337 University Ave W, St Paul, MN 55104

Master Noodle (formerly Magic Noodle) makes fresh, hand-pulled noodle dishes daily in St. Paul’s Midway neighborhood. There are few better places for tender, springy dan dan noodles, hot sour noodle soup, and Mongolian beef fried noodles. Master Noodle also serves an excellent Taiwanese tomato beef brisket soup.

1337 University Ave W, St Paul, MN 55104
(651) 369-6688
(651) 369-6688

Peking Garden

394 University Ave W, St Paul, MN 55103

Peking Garden is a casual, family-oriented spot on St. Paul’s University Avenue, where it’s been serving Cantonese fare since 1991. Come for the excellent hospitality, the Dungeness crab in black bean sauce, and the sizzling beef brisket hot pot.

394 University Ave W, St Paul, MN 55103
(651) 644-0888
(651) 644-0888

D. Fong's Chinese Cuisine David Fong's Savage

4321 Egan Dr, Savage, MN 55378

Part of the storied David Fong’s legacy, D. Fong’s Chinese Cuisine is well worth the drive south to Savage. The entire Chinese American menu is reliably great, from the hot and sour soup to the hearty pork egg foo young.

4321 Egan Dr, Savage, MN 55378
(952) 894-0800
(952) 894-0800

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