Congee Village Reviews

My party and I chose Congee Village (Bowery location) because we had heard that it would accommodate our large group. That was correct, but several of us ordered beef dishes, and there was no difference in the taste between all of them. I was hoping for something more exciting and dynamic, but such was not the case. The service was somewhat rude and not at all timely. I would definitely NOT go back.

This in my view is a very authentic chinese restaurant and more so in respect of the menu, there were a lot of things on there that made my European palate cringe... however we played it safe and had a few staples and they were all delicious - the chinese tea was very refreshing, service was good and the chefs were friendly, the place is huge and packed most nights, I wish I had been a bit more adventerous.

Congee Village is an excellent Chinese restaurant with an extensive menu and a familiar family décor. Located near the edge of Manhattan's Chinatown and the Tenement Museum, it will remind you of traditional restaurants you may have visited with your family in years past. The menu runs into many pages and has nearly every type of Chinese dish you may have heard of, so there's plenty to pick from. I was here for lunch, and enjoyed both the corn & egg drop soup and then the sizzling chicken, peppers & onion main course. Both were tasty on a cold NYC weather day. Despite visiting close to a busy holiday; I found the service was prompt. Congee Village is a good place to visit if you are in the area and want some traditional Chinese food.

Today Jennifer and I had a late lunch at Congee Village recommended by an acquaintance. Hunan cuisine. A selection of dim sum - Small Juicy Buns, Steamed Shrimp Dumplings, Vegetarian Spring Rolls, Ribs with Rice Cakes needed more oomph in flavor. Even the hot chili oil was pale in taste. We both felt that it was a waste of money and will not be returning.

There are several Congee villages so check names carefully. On Allen St., on edge of Chinatown is the best. Try House special Crispy Chicken for roasted crispy skin, not deep fried! Service is quick. Lines can be very long during weekends. However you will be seated fairly and food comes put amazingly quickly so the wait disappears!

We had an excellent family lunch today. We have eaten here before, and we’ve always had excellent service and delicious food. In fact, we celebrated Thanksgiving for 12 people here two years ago. Today, the food was spectacular. The pan fried gyoza were so flavorful. The sesame chicken was perfect, lightly fried and so tender. They were the best I’ve ever had. The sweet and sour pork was the Platonic perfection of the dish. Not too sweet or syrupy, not too crunchy and the pork was tender and moist. I have never had better Chinese food in my life. And the menu has both traditional Chinese dishes and many Chinese American favorites.

Midnight in New York and I'm craving some Chinese food. I make my way to china town expecting to be spoilt for choice restaurant wise. However i do not take into account that it is a Sunday. All the restaurants we pass are closed or in the process of. My friend tells us of a place he guarantees will be open at this late hour, called Congee Village. We make our way back towards the Lower East Side, to find as promised the neon lights of Congee Village restaurant still glowing brightly. We get inside to find an interesting mix of traditional Chinese decoration and assorted neon decorations. we have the dim sum of small Juicy buns shanghai style and a main of sizzling short ribs and the house special fried rice. All were very sizeable and yet again I was unable to finish my meal, finishing only half of the rice portion. The short ribs were nicely marinaded and the dim sum was juicy as stated and so freshly made the fillings inside were piping hot. Looking at the menu they also served traditional Chinese specialities such as chicken feet, duck's blood and cold jelly fish to name a few, but I was not brave enough to test my palette that night. This is a good value restaurant and we noticed large groups of diners were also seated on larger tables situated across two floors of dining. If you're looking for good quality cheap food late at night then this is the place you should be coming to.

We made reservations for 18 people and was promptly seated on 2 tables upon arrival. Unfortunately at the last minute, a family of 5 could it join us but still we kept the 2 tables. No fuss. Service was prompt and good and the dishes we ordered was freshly made and served rather quickly. The house special fried chicken was very good. The black pepper short ribs were great too. We had a vegetable, a tofu dish, fried beef Hor fun noodles and the fried shrimp with salt and pepper. We also shared a couple of congees. We later added 2 bamboo rice - chicken and salted fish which was very fragrant. We ended with a pan fried sweet potato cake and warm red bean dessert soup, compliments of the chef. Overall, everyone was very satisfied with the meal. We will certainly recommend this to anyone looking for some good Chinese in the Chinatown area in NYC.

We were in search of Chinese good. The hotel recommended it and it was opposite the attraction we went to. The congee - chicken and mushroom - was the best. We had a mixed seafood dish and a noodle dish. Could have not done better. Dishes coming out for other customers looked equally appetizing.

A great breakfast, Lunch, and dinner menu. We were there for diner. An expensive but good listing of original Chinese dishes. Here you can find crab, goose, frog, jelly fish and many other expensive dishes. Sautéed pork stomach is 27.95 as an example. The lunch specials are under $10.00 and there are 56 choices.

We had a private function here during the night of Thanksgiving. With our private room in the lower level, we sat away from the noisy crowds. Once everyone arrived, the food that we preordered started coming out. The service was quick and polite. I liked the way they brought out clean plates for us as our plates quickly got greasy from the various dishes. My favorite item here was the boneless chicken paws as I had never seen it before.

A Chinese American friend and coworker suggested that we organize a staff dinner (14 persons) at Congee Village. She described it as having delicious, authentic Cantonese food and reasonable prices. The more I read about this place, the more intrigued I became…stories of the House Special Chicken, the snow pea leaves in garlic and sautéed scallops with black pepper called my immediate attention and made my mouth water just thinking about them. I was not disappointed. But, first things first: My wife and I arrived early, which gave us an opportunity try out the bar. The bar is almost an afterthought. There's no happy hour and therefore no one at the bar. We finally found a bar tender who made us lychee martinis. The pour was light and when my wife complained, the bar tender said he used top shelf vodka so we shouldn't complain that the glasses were half full!! We thought the excuse was so clever, we drank our so-so martinis in peace. Next time, we come, we'll stop at any of the nearby bars with Happy Hours and then move to the Village. For dinner we ordered the House Special Chicken and the snow pea leaves in garlic. We started with juicy dumplings and sautéed scallops with black pepper. The fish and rice dish was wonderful. Everything was delicious, served promptly and with such a large group, we had ample opportunity to sample all of the other offerings. Everyone loved the beef short ribs, the shrimp with a mayo white sauce and for those who like tofu, none were disappointed. There was a sausage and rice dish that was not as popular but everything else gets a rave review. All of this taught us a valuable lesson, we need to come back here often and with a group of six or so. The perfect size table to share the food, the fun and all the Village has to offer. There were heaping plates of complimentary fresh fruit for dessert and black tea was readily available throughout the meal. You can't beat this place for quality, price and downtown atmosphere. The service was fine for a big busy restaurant. And it's busy for a very good reason.

Beware it is crowded but the wait is worth it. The waiter was very nice and gave us great recommendations. We loved the Lamb Chops with Sauteed Onions he told us to order. Another one is a Chilled Dungeness Crab seasoned with Anise. We barely looked at the menu and took all his recommendations. His choices were excellent!

Nice quick Chinese food, love the food and the prices here, visited it twice on my trip to New York, will definitely visit again in future.

Congee Village, a large Cantonese restaurant on Allen and Delancey, has been a favorite in our mostly-Chinese family for years. It looks like a Chinese tropical paradise, lined in wood and bamboo plaiting. The bar, which we’ve never visited, even looks tiki-like. And it’s been well known in Chinese circles as serving the best roasted “Soy Sauce Chicken” in New York City. But not anymore. We ate there last night. The menu is still huge. They still have their great chicken dish (which is called “House Special Chicken”), but everything we tried has fallen off a few notches from its old glory. The chicken was still very good, better than most other restaurants can manage. But it was blander than before, not roasted to its usual perfection, and there was much less sauce, which means drier on the palate. Some of the cabbage and bean sprouts in other dishes were under-cooked and cold. Everything we ordered was still adequate, just no longer excellent. What really disappointed us was the service. Dismissive, almost rude. We weren’t made to feel welcome. It was Saturday night, yes, fairly busy. But they were more than adequately staffed, perhaps 12-15 in all. But most of them were standing around talking with each other. My wife’s broccoli dish was too spicy, and she had to ask three times and finally call the manager. They never corrected it, and she finally canceled her order. We loved eating here a decade ago, but for now, we won’t be going back.

My go-to Cantonese restaurant for occasions when I'm with a large party. Service and dining experience has always been consistent after many many years. No, they don't just serve congees, though always a crowd-pleaser. I actually find their Cantonese menu to be one of the most comprehensive in Chinatown: from house-made rotisseries, to specialty claypot rice, to fresh seafood. I highly recommend the house chicken with golden crispy skin, Chinese sausage and rice in bamboo, and house speical spare ribs.

I stop by this past Saturday and ordered 2 congees to go. My total is $12.96 and I gave the cashier $13.00. She said to wait for my order and did not say "thank you" (then again I did not expect that either, knowing the culture). I sat down in a chair across from her. After a couple of minutes I asked her: "the total is $12.96, correct?". She answered yes. I kept looking straight at her for a while and then she decided to change post with another lady. I guess I made her feel uneasy? She could have said she does not have the change? I do tip for take out when the service is good. It the principle!!!!!, and how dare she/they assume they can keep the small change?- and taking advantage of her own people - note I could have ordered in Chinese. One wonders if that's what they do when the change is small and they keep it. NEVER AGAIN! RUDE!!

Spent Christmas in NY 2013. After waiting almost an hour for a table, we were sat in the lower level. Tables are very close together. Waiter was super busy and the kitchen was out of several desired entries. We ordered a variety of dishes and shared them on the lazy susan that was conveniently located in the center of the table. Everything was delicious, poor waitstaff and crowded.

Really good food! Close to the hotel I was staying. Price was normal, big portions also. And the ambiance was cool, super chill in the inside.

I visited Congee Village for dinner with two friends and we all loved the food as well as the atmosphere and experience. I can't find a good Chinese restaurant in my area of New Jersey and it was great to be in NYC and eat authentic and truly excellent dishes. I thought the quality of the meats and vegetables was much better than what I've had in a long time at a Chinese restaurant. I also found Congee to have excitement in the air with the many rooms, the decorations, and the large groups of diners enjoying themselves. There's a huge wait staff and several hosts and they all work quickly and efficiently. I also thought that with all of the mixed drinks we consumed, the final bill was of very good value. Most important: each dish was as great as the next.

To be fair, the food was delicious. And the hostess was friendly - even offered to take a picture for me. The waiters, however, didn't look at us when they brought us things or when taking our order, never smiled, didn't fill water glasses til we asked, and spilled water without cleaning it up or apologizing.

My friends and I are transplants from all over the states. We all moved here to find and/or define ourselves. We met one another and through our journey became a family. And like most families we all have a place we always go to for celebrations. Birthdays, promotions, breakups, makeups, first time visitors, return visitors, Jewish Christmases, and inevitably goodbyes. We started with just four people and grew to 30 and as time went on we went back to four. Sometimes after a long difficult day at work I'd get a text from the bestie asking, "Congee village?" and instantly I smile. From massive feasts to just a simple bowl of pork congee shared with a single friend, this was our spot for 10 years. This was home. A few of our favorite dishes: Pork and Thousand year old egg congee Pan fried Bean curd Cucumber salad House chicken Walnut shrimp Peking pork chops sautéed pea shoots Minced pork and Chinese broccoli String beans

We were staying at a hotel in the area and they recommended the Congee Village. The atmosphere is okay, the staff friendliness is non existent but WOW the food is phenomenal. If you need more water, want rice with your meal, need soy sauce, etc. you will have to ask. There are lots of wait staff but they don't look in your direction and they don't offer anything. If one walks by ask them for what you need and they will bring it. It will not come with a smile however so don't expect one. That said I still give it an excellent rating as you go to a restaurant to eat and the food here is second to none. They have the bizarre dishes(Andrew Zimmerman came here during his first season)and they have the mainstream. We kept more to the mainstream side but they took the familiar, like spring rolls and hot and sour soup and made them exceptional. Our mains were amazing, I had a beef and noodle dish and my wife had a chicken dish on a sizzling plate and the quality and taste were top notch. Of course we didn't get our check till we asked for it :) but when we did it was under $35. Check it out, it's worth it.

Only go here if you want to eat congee, okay the name says it all but you also expect to eat other dishes while there and these were absolutely terrible. I can't think of a worse meal I have had, the food had no flavour at all. While I expect Chinese food in the US to already be made blander than normal I did not know it was possible to remove all flavour completely.

Although I wasn't crazy about trying the cold jellyfish I thought it was ok. Food was very good, great place for a group of people. I enjoyed the squid and shrimp dishes that were ordered by my native friend.

I went to the Congee Village Restaurant & Bar a couple of months ago but I've been so busy so I"m doing my review now. The Restaurant is locates at 110 Allen St New York, NY 10002. There are a couple of subway stops nearby if traveling by subway J, M, Z F trains near Delancey St or Essex ST are close by. Ok to begin with I just have to say that I love Chinese food. If you walk into a place full of Chinese people and if you are the one that stands out then you know you are getting authentic Chinese food! It' s a very nicely decorated restaurant located in China town. It's a big restaurant but as anything in NYC space is at a premium and every area is filled with patrons. We had to wait a little bit but we just sat at the Bar and had a couple of beers. I would suggest making a reservation if possible since this place is busy as can be. When we were seated we began to go through the menu which is quite big and has a huge variety. In addition, we were looking at tables around us to see what looked good. They really have a huge selection from seafood, pork, duck, chicken and vegetable plates that are common dishes you can find in any chinese restaurant. You can also get some plates that suprised me such as Cold Jelly fish, goose intestines, frog w ginger, and duck tongue to name a few. Since I'm not that experimental with my food I just stuck to my good old General Tso's which was good by the way. The cost per plate runs from about $8-$16. Since we were a group of 8 and hungry we just ordered about 10 different plates and sides so we could try out different items. We got soup as an appetizer and it was very good along with the Chinese tea which I am not a big fan of. When the food came it was quite a bit of food. Each portion was of a good size and the food was appealing visually and very delicious. We also got some dumplings which were steamed with pork in the center which were very tasty. I would have to say this was the best Chinese restaurant I have ever been to. To top it off when the bill came the cost was $89 for all the food we ordered. In New York City at a sit down restaurant to feed 8 people that is amazing! We were all surprised at the cost. So if you want some real Chinese food at a sit down restaurant with very reasonable prices go to Congee Village. Thier website is www.congeevillagerestaurants.com . Check out their menu before you go since they have a huge selection. Oh if you've never been to NYC and are in a large group you may want to take cash when going to restaurants. They don't like splitting the bill that much and it makes it easier just to have cash on hand and everybody chipping in or one person paying for everything and collecting the cash. I've learned as I go to NYC quite often. Alright guys enjoy. I might see you there as I will definitely be back.

Ordered a seafood chow mein. The noodles were not cooked and hard. The dish was bland. Probably the worst Chinese I have ever eaten.

We were wandering around the lower east side and stumbled into Congee Village at about 8:30 pm on a warm summer Sunday. We waited for about 30 minutes for a table of 4 but were rewarded with a fantastic Chinese dinner. It's cozy inside - tables are close and it's a bit loud. But we had a great time chatting with the group next to us (they had a Hong Kong native at their table who was ready to assist us with the enormous menu) and just taking it all in. Four adults ordered 3 entrees and two side dishes (Chinese Broccoli and Baby Bok Choy) and it was too much food for us. Since we'd had cocktails at the bar, we did not order drinks with dinner. Tab came to $60 before tip - great deal for the abundant and delicious food. Only negative I could find is that our waiter was not terribly attentive and generally seemed somewhat disinterested in us. You've been there. You wait just a bit too long for him/her to show up initially and he/she doesn't really offer eye contact. It was (or should have been) obvious we were tourists, but he took no interest in helping us navigate the menu (fortunately we had our adviser at the next table). We didn't really see our waiter again until it was time for the check, which we had to summon from him because he apparently didn't notice that our table had been cleared. Perhaps this is how it's done in authentic Cantonese restaurants! A small negative for an overall enjoyable NYC experience.

been here a few times for dine-in and take out. food was great but waiting for meal take forever compare to other chinese restaurants. would recommend to calling ahead of time for takeout cause you may be waiting close to half an hour just for one simple order.

Cheap yet well made and delecious chinese food. The Seafood Chow Mein was the best I have ever eaten. Go there, eat and leave super satisfied.

We ate with our family on a Monday night. The portion sizes were large. We ate some good Cantonese favourites which we enjoyed. Nothing flash - just good quality Cantonese food which we enjoyed!

If you want authentic, great tasting Chinese food at a reasonable price, Congee Village in Chinatown, New York City is the place to go. Here, you can bring your family and guests and enjoy their house chicken with soy sauce, the razor clams cooked with black bean sauce or their pan-fried flounder and can still afford to order their lychee drinks on the side. Their stone crabs are humongous, the hot and sour soup worth coming here for especially in cold, wintry days in New York. Plus, parking isn't so hard to find on the streets. It is so good that sometimes there can be long lines of people waiting. But i can assure you, it is so well worth the wait!

In a sentence, congee is a rice porridge served as a staple all over Asia. You can eat it plain, sweet, or filled with all kinds of meats and vegetables. Congee Village is also a staple, known among a lot of people as one of the go-to congee restaurants in NYC. It is actually on the fringe of Chinatown, right around the corner from the Lower East Side Tenement Museum. I had the duck, chicken, beef combo with vegetables and thought it was great. As other reviewers have mentioned, the menu has other food, but stick to the congee, as that is what the restaurant is known for!

I've passed by this restaurant for years and never thought of anything. Congee Village? I get good congee at Big Wong! Boy was I wrong. Their dishes are so much better than Big Wong. The owners changed hands and the food is not as great at Big Wong. If I want congee, I go to Congee village. There is no scrimping or cutting, just good congee. You taste so many flavors in their congee, it's not just boiled rice. We also had other dishes which are delicious. I had the garlic chicken, yum! It takes a while to make. The last time I went there about 4 tables ordered half and 1 table order the whole chicken. The prices are a bit more expensive than Chinatown food but it's worth it!

Haven't been to Congee Village in years, but no worries it hasn't changed either. We went at an inbetween hour, not lunch, but not dinner yet either. We were seated right away, but only got two menus for four people, had to ask for two more. You have to get a waiters attention to order, but once you order, look out, the food comes right behind, maybe 5 to 10 minutes at most. It is difficult to get anything without calling a waiter over, but they do respond when you ask for something. We didn't come for the service or ambience anyway. The food is delicious, and always served fresh. I wouldn't hesitate to come back.

Not far away from the border of Chinatown and almost at the end of the hip Lower east side area this Chinese/American restaurant is predictable but worth a visit. The ambience is the one you expect from such a restaurant in New York. Although quite spacious it's crowded, noisy and full of Chinese; this should be good hint. The menu is, as usual, overwhelming for the quantity of dishes although most of the dishes are similar to the one before in the list (at least for a non Chinese...Pardon me!) so you should first chose the area (noodles, soups etc etc) and then almost randomly make your choice (just to add some suspense!) you almost cannot tell the difference if you read it, imagine when it's in the dish! The dishes I had were tasty HUGE PORTIONS, be aware!! Soup came for two at least and the noodles were enough for three. I surrendered before eating it all and I am ashamed I didn't make it. As predictable as it should be waiters are not really the too friendly type, not many smiles but this has a good back of the medal while they don't come to you at least a couple of times while you are eating to check if everything is alright. I know this is company policy in all American restaurants but ,frankly speaking, it is not always a good thing, at lest this is my opinion. So come hungry, don't bring three credit cards, no need, max is less than 30 dollars tip included, make me proud and clean the dish!!

Congee Village is a good option for a family-style banquet, offering a wide range of dishes that match the flavors you’d expect from Chinatown classics, and in some cases, edge just a bit higher for some dishes and not so much for others. The menu has enough variety to satisfy everyone at the table while still feeling rooted in tradition. They’re known for their congee, so it was a must-order, and it absolutely lived up to the reputation. Rich, comforting, and deeply flavorful, it’s easily one of the best bowls of congee I’ve had. The space is clean and comfortable, and while the service was just okay, the food portions, value and the congee make up for it. If you’re craving classic Chinese comfort food with a standout congee program, Congee Village is worth the stop

This Cantonese restaurant on Allen St is always a mad scene of enormous Chinese families celebrating birthdays, graduations, life. The food is terrific: the garlic crispy chicken, salt pepper shrimp, spareribs with bitter melon, seafood, eggplant with tofu. Only the congee disappoints,ironically. There are several private rooms, I have had parties for 25 that were hugely successful. There is a full bar with delicious lichee martinis.

I stopped in for a mid-afternoon snack / early dinner, after a tour at the Tenement Museum. Because it was just a mid-day partial meal and I was on my own, I just had a bowl of congee (salt chicken), and didn't try any of the other tempting offerings on the menu. The congee was served hot and delicious. The service was bad (I had to wander around to get anyone to seat me, and never could manage to get a check so I left a sufficient amount on the table before leaving), but the food was good. Probably better for take out, or maybe at a busier time of day the service might have been better?

Had the pleasure of dinning in Congee, have to say it was really good. Everything was on point, and the waitress were nice enough to remind us to be careful with the hot plates. It is the best Chinese food restaurant in Chinatown.

Went for lunch. Sometimes a little hard to communicate if there are questions. Food was prepared perfectly. The flavors were great and the portions are large. They have an extensive menu. If you go for lunch ask to see the lunch special menu.

I like the place. Food taste good. It annouced in the radio - do not have to pay "tips". But when you are there no one tells you that, ending you pay higher price for the food and the trip also. The "tips" is included in the food price.

It seemed like a good idea to make a reservation for a birthday dinner since we were a party of 12. Except that the word "reservation" doesn't mean anything at Congee Village, since we were told at 8:30 p.m., the time of our reservation, that "there were two parties ahead of us." Hmph. We were finally seated a half hour later, two floors down, where an area of 6 large tables seating up to 12 each was staffed by two waiters. The food took forever to come and, when it did, it was okay but nothing special by New York standards, where you can find excellent inexpensive Chinese food at places like Nice Green Bo on Bayard Street. When the final two dishes (fish and noodles) hadn't arrived by 10:15 p.m., we called it quits and told them to cancel the order. Repeated requests to clear the table for cake went unheeded. And did we mention that after ordering white wine they were preparing to uncork a bottle of Cabernet Sauvignon?

The restaurant is located in a busy area close to the heart of Chinatown at 100 Allen Street. The NYC M-15 bus stop is nearby. There are only a few tables for a couple. Most tables are for a large group. The only positive thing about this restaurant is the 'Congee Soup with Meatball & Duck. There's a lunch special menu that we had to ask for it. The men's restroom was unpleasant. The service is sub-par - not alert. We were there about 2:30 p.m. - October 5, 2017.

Went there for dinner after a whole day of strolling the city and the area. We were told that there were only 4 groups ahead of us but we still ended up waiting for more than an hour. Being tired and hungry, we just waited to be called. They served the food very quick and too tasty for a very expensive restaurant. Serving is just okey. Place is a bit noisy. Seems like almost everyone there is using they their outside voices.

I saw the picture of their house special fried chicken and had to go try it on the same day. It was so good, juicy with crispy skin. It comes with soy sauce and fried garlic, which make it taste even better.

Food is always reliable if the service is a bit lacking. Great Choice of entrees and interesting vegetable dishes. You can make a whole meal out of a bowl of congee.

When you see a lot of Chinese people eating at a Chinese restaurant, it's an indication that the food is actually good. That's what happens at Congee Village. It's not a fancy place, but the place is huge. And the food is just awesome. Every time we go, we always end up ordering the same things because we crave them so badly, and those include the shrimp with walnut, the snow pea tips stir-fry, the house special crispy chicken, the fried calamari and the congee of course. They even have cocktails and they're in the $5 range.

We visited Congee Village on July 20, 2018. The restaurant was packed and people were waiting inside and outside to be seated. I am not very patient and wanted to leave, but my son said it would be worth the wait, and he was right! It actually took just 20 minutes to be seated. Once seated, our waiter quickly served hot tea and took our other drink orders. It took awhile to wade through all the choices on the menu, but we finally settled on: -roasted pigeon -seared steak with asparagus -Chicken lo mein -baked rice with chicken and mushrooms -porridge with chicken and mushroom -sautéed string beans -hot sake The seared steak was amazing; tender and cooked medium with a delicious brown sauce. We rated it the best dish! Baked rice with chicken and mushrooms came in second place: the dish is cooked inside a bamboo log, and the chicken was big strips of boneless breast meat and the mushrooms were large and tasty. The sauce on the rice was very flavorful. The porridge came in third place: it was just the right consistency and had nice chunks of chicken and mushrooms. The sautéed string beans were tasty and cooked to just enough. The garlic sauce was amazing. The lo mein was just ok; too many noodles and not enough chicken. Last but not least was the pigeon; it was over cooked and dry, but my son loved it anyway. The bizarre pigeon head sitting on the plate was a nasty little treat. This was one of the best Chinese meals we have had in a long time! Enjoy!

Huge menu with many options. Well-cooked food. Quick service. Big spaces with private rooms, which are amazingly beautiful. A hidden gem with great prices and amazing quality value. Big portions too. What more could you ask for?

This was my old go-to for college gatherings. Came back after 4–5 years and the taste is still spot on! Lively Chinatown vibe, great for groups (~$40pp). Crispy squab: crunchy skin, juicy meat Ginger scallion fish: fresh, perfectly cooked Garlic string beans: fragrant but a bit salty Pork liver & lean pork congee: rich and comforting Half garlic chicken: big portion, good texture Still my pick over newer Cantonese spots.

Tofu super vegetables super chicken super porridge super Te + Rice price 40$ wonderful:) this is a very nice aerea to go out too, with cool bars, bluestockings bookstore etc

Congee has a very large menu that includes pictures in case you are not sure what the food item is. The waiters are also very well acquainted with the foods and will help you select if you tell them the types of foods you like. The wait times for the food to come are usually short. This place can get crowded at prime dinner hours so be prepared for a potential wait. Very nice atmosphere as well. Excellent seafood and meat choices. Try the razor clams and scallion pancakes.

Don't expect great ambience or service (your waitperson may be cleaning vegetables at an adjacent table) but the food makes up for it. Great selections and good sized portions.

Place is small and not the cleanest but the best for whatever kind of tasty congee you like!

Congee Village, a place that my family has gone to for at least a decade, has pretty darn good food. Unfortunately, I am allergic to peanuts, and never get the congee, because there is a peanut flavored one. However, the rest of the food, while exotic, tastes good. My only complaints are of service speed and close-quarteredness. It is difficult to walk to the bathroom and back without elbowing numerous people or almost leveling at least one member of the wait staff. Besides that, though, I recommend this restaurant.

Usually the reviews at trip advisor are spot on... But this was one of the worst Chinese restaurant experiences I have ever had! We went in late in the evening and noticed many tourists eating there. We checked trip advisor and thought we were going to be in for a treat because of the mostly positve reviews But it was more like a MisTreat! Lots of servers and managers there but yet getting service was almost impossible. My friend and I ordered the special fried rice and also sweet and sour pork. The rice was cold and dried out when we finally got it. We wondered if maybe it was left overs from the other customers! The dishes had cracks and chips in them and the floor looked like it hadn't been mopped in a year! The quality of the food was really poor. The sweet and sour sauce was good but the pork Was all breading and no meat. My friend said it smelled like garbage in there and while I did notice a foul smell. I think it was more of a dirty grease smell. Needless to say we won't ever go back to congee village..we would have done better with a frozen dinner!

For many years, I will eat here from time to time but I think I will try to avoid this place from now on ! The service is becoming rediculously poor ! The waiter there serve with angry face and gets annoyed if u request for things ! I hope the management knows that we are spending money there and would not appreciate this kind of service !

the place is nice and most of the costumers are Chinese. there are lots of variety and the prices are fair. However the waiters are rude and you feel they ignore you. my friend have to ask for water each time and it seems it upset the waiter to refill the glass.

We were walking the streets an came accross a lot of people waiting in que to get into here Well let me tell you it's worth the short wait. The food was full of flavour and service was great Great value for money Try the steak with bitter melon Give the dumplings a miss

Where do I start! When you walk in you are made to wait and when they are ready for you, you’re asked to share a table with complete strangers. The waiting area stunk of fish and makes you want to throw up. When we finally got a table we sat down and everything then seemed like it was ok BUT weren’t we wrong the food came out ok and was not bad but not the best Chinese (especially for China Town!). At the end we didn’t even ask for the bill, it was literally thrown onto the table and we were then told to pay, whilst paying using card we were told to add a tip and said we would have a cash tip, when leaving a cash tip we left $10 and was then told that the tip was to small and we had to pay at least $16, we then told them that this was totally out of order and that tips should be discretionary but all he cared about was getting a large tip. All in all I would NOT recommend this restaurant AT ALL!

Before going to Congee Village Restaurant tonight, I read quite few reviews at two different websites. To summarize, most viewers gave great rating on food; they also stated that portion was big and the price was reasonable. The three kinds of complaints were waiting time, service and a few complained the food was bland. Here is what I think. If the waiting time is long, which means there is something in Congee Village worthy waiting for and patrons were either repeated customers or had the belief; otherwise who would spend time waiting? When we finished dinner tonight, there were still a lot of people waiting. If you feel the food is bland, which means you are yet to learn how to appreciate the Cantonese cuisine. French cuisine relies heavily on butter based sauce. Sauce plays a leading role and food plays a minor role. In some Italian dishes, both food and seasonings share the same power. In United States, most Chinese restaurants serve Sichuan (szechuan style) and Hunan cuisine, which are heavy on taste and have many spicy dishes. Authentic Cantonese cuisine emphasizes the original taste of food itself; no matter it is fish, meat or vegetable. The seasonings help to bring out the original flavor of food and never overpowered food; therefore, seasonings are light and play a minor role. This is the reason some non-Cantonese would feel the food tasted bland. It takes some practice to cultivate your Cantonese cuisine taste buds. Practice, practice and practice, and you will get to the Carnegie Hall of Cantonese cuisine. In authentic Cantonese cuisine, the cooking timing is also very critical and very difficult to master. I remember bringing a Caucasian friend Barbara to a fish-only dinner in Canton (Guangzhou) with a group of my Chinese friends. When the Chinese commented on which fish was two minutes over cooked or under cooked, Barbara could not tell the difference and did not understand why the Chinese were so picky. Tonight at Congee Village, four of us were very satisfied with what we ordered. Steam Scallop was exceptional. Its freshness indicated that the scallops were alive before the chef prepared the dish. The appearance and the size of the scallops indicated that they were carefully chosen and exceptional in quality. I later learned that this dish was not always available because quite often they could not find the high quality scallop to buy. The seasonings were in the precise amount so that we could get the full flavor of the original taste of the scallop. The scallops were steamed in the precise timing. When under cooked, the scallop would stick to the shell; when over cooked, the scallop would shrink in size and also loss its tenderness. This dish alone proved that the Chef in Congee Village was on the top of the game. I later learned that the chefs were from the very best five-star hotel in Guangzhou (Canton). The steam fish-slice with scallion was another difficult to cook dish and it was prepared to its perfection, so were the lobster fried sticky rice, bean curt and other dishes we ordered. The service was fine and I did not see any problem. Of course, one should not expect a five-star level service like the fancy expensive restaurant where the responsibilities were clearly defined among sommelier, captains, servers and bussers, or the waiter can explain to you in English the high points of each dish in a delicious way, or no matter how poor choice you have made, he would tell you, "excellent choice!" Red wine was not a part of regular Chinese eating, but they have a full bar serving all kind of drinks. We had red wine but they had only one type of wine glass. It was too small for you to stick your nose into the glass to pick up the wine aroma. It may not matter much since most Americans do not emphasize the smelling part of the wine appreciation. The dining area was pleasant, cozy, comfortable and relaxing. We had great time and enjoyed our meal and conversation. Four of us all agreed that this is the best Chinese restaurant in New York.

We love congee in Hong Kong, and so this name caught our attention immediately. We weren't disappointed! Service was typical of any Chinese restaurant, but the decor was slightly better, IMHO. But the food is what really got us: you must try the whole chicken, it may sound BIG, but not really, 4 adults can really take care of this whole chicken, and still have room for more. We didn't know this so we took only half a chicken. Oh well, we ordered 2 congees to share, then another fried tofu dish. Altogether, they balance our meal perfectly. Of all 4 dishes, I'd go back and have them again ;-)

Went there on a cold spring evening. Actually looking forward to have their famous fish congee. Perfect for cold weather nights. However we ordered more...sweet sour prok, their famous steak, and pork patty. All were insanely delicious!!

We ate a delicious eggplant dish and a tasty vegtsble porridge. The portions were large, the devour is beautiful and the service was good.

This was a great place, full of locals, it did not disapoint on choice, including boneless chicken feet ! (no thanks !). Great flavours also

Fun, authentic, but a little crazy. Karaoke in private room for 14? No problem.

One of the few restaurants in the Chinatown area that has remained consistent throughout. There is a huge variety on the menu. Congee Village is located on the outskirts of Chinatown and it is usually fairly easy to find parking nearby. We were there on a Saturday at 6:00, but the time we left at 8:00, the line was out the door.

Ok , I know its not traditional to go to Chinese restaurant on Christmas but for jewish family its exceptable, especially when we visit our daughter and she wont cook turkey! Place is packed! Wait is long ( busy busy every time but at holidays you can imagine) but you can sit at the bar and have drinks while you wait ! Delicious lychee martinies!! and cheap too! Just take my word for good food: coming from San Francisco' food porno industry and best restaurants in bay area! If you want food and atmosphere this is a good place to e a t with family, friends and coworkers, and service is not that bad at all! We didnt even wait long! And they speak English! Yammy, cheap, good ambiance , bar inside-what else do you want?

Its Shanghai style so there is little Cantonese or what most people are used to as Chinese food. Authentic and affordable, large and around the corner from the LES Tenement Museum. We had one of the Bamboo Baked Rice dishes that comes in a Bamboo log, very interesting. The service was a bit slow possibly b/c we were in a far corner. We wanted soup dumplings but they said later after ordering that there was no dim sum available. Did try sweet potato pancakes which were not good, definitely some frozen product they just took out of somewhere. Blech.

Such a good restaurant - such good food. Service is fast and uncomplicated. Quality of the food is very good and its delicious. Large portions and very fresh. Will be a regular call for me.

Great food, fun atmosphere - friends we have introduced it to - also loved it. Fun and evocative decor - feel really transported out of New York.

Waited almost an hour for our table even though we had a reservation and our full party arrived on time. The food was decent. What surprised me was the lack of attention by the staff to us from the hostess to the waiter. For example the waiter never came back to see if we wanted more Coca Cola (by the can) or more beers. Lack of sales by them and the whole time we could see our waiter chilling by the bar on the phone and laying around with the people stationed at the bar. Best part of the meal was actually the free watermelon slices they give you at the end of the meal. Go figure people.

Been there with friends, food was very good not too sweet nor salty. Watch for service, vous make sure you got you ordered. We asked for rice but never got it. Otherwise good restaurant, very noisy and friendly.

Even tho certain waitress/waiters does have an attitude problem, food was great! Chicken, rice, noodle etc most of the dishes are delicious!! The only downside is the bathroom !!

A great range of dishes and our order was delicious. We ate in once and enjoyed the experience, and ordered takeout twice. A very busy restaurant but we waited only a few minutes for seating. Service was prompt. Aground an enjoyable experience.

Fell into this place for lunch after exiting the NYC Tenement Museum, which is next store. We had few expectations, but once we entered and saw all the other diners appeared to be Asian we were psyched. We were not disappointed. The service was pleasant and efficient. All the dishes we ordered was excellent, fresh, plentiful and very inexpensive. Will return again. BTW we kept seeing serving items what looked like logs being brought to other tables. Then, the seafood and baked rice we ordered was served in one and we understood what they were.

good service, cheap pricees, food brought out quick, Food tasted fantastic but didnt seem to be any better than typical take out

I have been here before since it is near the Tenement Museum. The congee is decent, but the service has always been unpleasant. The last time we were here, there was a party of people with whom the waiters were laughing and joking, while they ignored us. We were actually walking up to waiters begging for our food. This time the restaurant was nearly empty and the waiters were very busy talking with each other. They brought the food out slowly and in no particular order. When my friend commented on this, they failed to bring my entrée (pan fried tofu and mixed vegetables). After more than 40 minutes and complaints to every waiter in sight and surly manager my food came. It was horrible. Peapods and carrots with badly cooked tofu in a salty brown goo. It was disgusting. Four hours later I still feel sick to my stomach. We complained to the front desk who rolled their eyes at us. The only comfort I feel is that I am never going to have to eat there again!

First night in NYC, we walked out to look for a Chinese restaurant and this place immediately looked like something special. In a small hall we were asked to wait about 20min. The atmosphere in the restaurant is like a large Chinese dining room. Small tables, small chairs, lot of locals eating with friends or family. Hot tea is brought immediately. The menu is very extensive and diverse. The food is brought on plates to be shared amongst the people at the table. The food really is outstanding. I highly recommend the sweet and sour pork. Service is OK. Just let the waitress know you like new tea or something else as she doesn't often come to the table to ask. And take this serious: tips are not appreciated.

My family and I went to lunch at congee village . It is a very authentic Chinese restaurant . We were the only Americans eating there . It didn’t bother us but it seemed to bother them . We were barely acknowledged . We have never felt so uncomfortable and unwelcome in a restaurant before . We travel extensively and never experienced anything like this before . I mean the waiter when he finally arrived at our table threw the menus never gave us eye contact . Honestly if the food didn’t arrive so quickly we would have left . He never came over to see if we needed anything or to ask how we liked our food . He never refilled water glasses . The other Asians customers did receive all those services. The food was ok nothing great . The service we received really turned us off and again the food wasn’t that great . We will not return to congee village again .

We've lived in the area for a long time but never got to Congee Village. It's usually "family style"...big tables that you might share with other people. We went for lunch and they were able to adjust the table for two. Everything was good. We had the chicken/mushroom congee, baby bok choy and the dish with the Chinese sausage (a first for me). Prices reasonable. Beware...portions are enormous! Take some back to your hotel with you.

Chinese restaurant full of chinese. And this is a sign. Try the crab, amazing! Really a great place!

Congee village on Allen Street doesn't have too many non-Asian customers. This is always a good sign as far as I am concerned.The specialty is congee, a type of porridge garnished with a variety of different topping from which you can choose. I can assure you it is delicious. They also have dim sum (cooked to order , not from carts) and if asked at the door if they serve dim sum they will probably say no but persist because their's is top notch.Wehad Shanghi style juicy buns, pan fried dumplings, and a few other goodies along with a plate of Singapore style noodles , all of which were scrumptious. I highly recommend this place. Another tip, across the street is the former Fried Dumpling ( used to get five for a $1-it now has a new name and is a bit more upscale but still sells its yummy dumplings frozen to go at a bargain price. The address is 100 Allen Street for Congee Village and 99 Allen for the dumpling house.

This restaurant was recommended to us by the hotel receptionist (in an hotel based in Chinatown, NY). I asked him for authentic Chinese cuisine based locally, at reasonable cost. Less than 1/2 mile away was the Congee Village. Loved the fact that a pot of green tea is delivered to the table immediately you are seated. Personally, I prefer to drink tea rather than alcohol with Chinese food; it seems a better palate cleanser to me. We ordered Hot and Sour soup for two, followed by Sweet & Sour Pork for my wife; Sizzling Beef in Black Bean sauce for me, along with a vegetable fried rice and a Han Moon Mei Fun (noodles with meat/fish and veg). The food itself was fantastic. The flavours and quantity were excellent. However, whilst it may not be authentic Chinese in the way we ate, I was somewhat disconcerted to have my main course delivered to the table whilst we were only 2/3 of our way through the soup. Not sizzling either. That said, I did observe that ALL sizzling dishes were allowed to "calm down" before being delivered to the table - NY Health & Safety at work I asked myself? So, after we finished our soup, we waited a few minutes more before the pork arrived, then more yet (over 10), before the rice arrived and, finally, some 10 more until the noodles arrived. As I said, fantastic, tasty food, but disappointed by the sequencing. One more thing - I have always thought the guide to ANY restaurant serving food not of your own ethnicity, e.g. Chinese, Italian, French, Indian etc. (I'm a Brit) is to look at how many of that ethnicity ARE eating there. If the Chinese know their own cuisine well, then this surely is a place to eat in New York.

The menu was extensive, the food delicious, no more expensive than others but better food and atmosphere.

First and foremost , be informed that this restaurant is now relocated to Flushing , New York. If anyone is looking for a good Chinese meal and haven't got a clue , check out Canton Village in Flushing. We ordered the Steamed Live Fish and it never fails to deliver with the same consistency . You have a selection of both fresh water and deep sea fishes , I would recommend from the deep sea . Other dishes such as seafood noodles , crabs and meat were just as excellent . The place was busy and yet still get good attentive and suggestive services. Happy Diner ! G. David

Been wanting to try this place for a while. I finally went and was in for a surprise. Go with someone who knows Chinese cuisine. I've eaten many exotic foods, but this place is tops in NYC for me. The cocktails are less impressive than the dishes offered. We settled for a typical and easy selection of chicken a few different ways. With a few starters. Prices are very reasonable. Service is hurried and caters to the knowledgeable clientele.

On a weekend, one must definitely reserve, as this popular place is packed, with quite a waiting line! And having had a lovely meal there, I understand why! Being a vegetarian, we always go for greens. The Chinese Brocolli was divine! It was not like traditional brocolli. And I must say, it was cooked with perfection...the most tender greens, I can remember. Just delicious.

This is a must visit if in NYC. The Congee was delicious and perfect. The other dishes were great. It was one of the best meals I had while in the city. We had to wait awhile. This is a popular place and you may have to wait awhile on a Fri or Sat night (or any night). There's a bar in the waiting area with Chinese and American beer. Feel free to drink while you wait. I'll definitely be back.

Went to Katz today with family to try the pastrami, but saw a big tour bus parked outside and knew there would be a line. Sure enough, the line was 40+ people deep. We walked back to the car deflated and noticed Congee Village. I love congee, so, it was not a difficult decision to try this place. We were starved and ordered away unaware of the generous portions. For the four of us (adults), we ordered (please don't judge us for pigging out): chicken and abalone congee, XO rice noodles, Singapore noodles, seafood chow fun, soy sauce noodles, soup buns, dumplings and garlic baby bok choy. The waiter was a little surprised by the amount of food we ordered, but I reassured him that we will be fine. The soup buns and dumpling skin were thicker than we liked. We will not order again. Everything else was delicious!!! Go there the next time you are in town. The great food at this place definitely made up for not being able to eat at Katz. Oh, on case you are wondering, we had lots if leftovers. All this food cost is $68 with tax and tips!!!

Outstanding local Chinese place. The food is great. My seafood combination was ridiculously cheap at $12 and was piled higher with well cooked quality seafood than I've seen at any other restaurant for the price. It was delicious. Outstanding. I was also very taken with the steamed pork buns. The staff are efficient and offhand in the way of all good Chinese restaurants. No wonder there were lots of Chinese people eating here. My companion and I really liked it this place and we recommend it.

Try mixing dishes with congee--many varieties and combination. Congee is healthy and delicious with the authentic cooking. Great for sub zero winter nights!

The first sign that this is a good place to eat is that more than 95% of the customers were Chinese. I enjoyed the wide variety of congees there very much... We, eight friends, ordered eight bowls of different congees for each of us but ended up sharing everything. I recommended 401, 402, 413 and 420. Peking duck was very yummy with a thick rice bun and other good stuffs. The price was right too...

Ok I'm nyc local and this is my go to place for Chinese food and late night eats . Fresh and delicious foods. Prices are fair. Service is well.. it's Chinese what do you expect lol The decor is also very nice and bamboo style . Overall , If a local likes a place like this that means it's good!

8 out of 10 times visiting NYC, we ended up having either lunch or dinner here. Despite of the typical welcome of any busy Chinese restaurants, the waitresses are normally better than average and must be commended for their attentiveness. The food is great. We love fish Congee, garlic fried chicken, fried tofu with soyce sauce, among some more exotic dishes. The price is great too. Strongly recommend.

If you are heading to the Tenement Museum for one of their interesting tours, consider eating at Congee Village which is located on Allen Street just next door to their tenement building. You won't be disappointed with the quality, quantity or price of your meal. The majority of the people dining there were Asian so that is always a good sign. The food was plentiful and the service was prompt. We thoroughly enjoyed our dinner of Peking pork chops and the house special chicken. The place is not fancy and is very busy and family friendly.

I'm a New York tour guide always on the lookout for a new place to dine. Congee Village on the east side of Allen St between Broome St and Delancey St is simply the best Chinese meal in lower Manhattan. I stopped by with a friend. The sliced beef chow fun was delicious. The short ribs were tasty. The garlic bok choy was a sublime singular experience to die for. The restaurant is cavernous. It's big enough to handle a couple hundred diners at once easily. There is a bar and private party rooms. I highly recommend Congee Village Restaurant. You cannot go wrong.

We came here for a birthday party with a group of 20. We were seated in a private room downstairs and have a selection of just about everything on the menu. I tried things that I never would have ordered on my own, and every one of them were delicious. It was a wonderful experience, and I feel like I made a short trip to China. I would recommend this restaurant both for the food and for the experience.

I have eaten here quite a few times and have never been disappointed. The service is fine, but the food is special. You will see mostly Chinese folk eating here.

We had congee with shrimp and winter spinach: I have been thinking about both for over a month since eating them. I imagine the other items on the menu are good, but go there for the congee. If you have never had it: go there. If you already love congee: go there.

Amazing menu. Very busy and popular but not to my taste. I felt a little unwelcome, and did not enjoy the transactional feel to the service. Not my cup of tea but may be yours

What a magnificent restaurant! We were walking around Chinatown looking for a good Chinese restaurant and got this recommendation from a mostly American restaurant's Maitre d'. It has a HUGE menu with lots of pictures for the unfamiliar. Large parties sit at Chinese-like round tables with a big Lazy Susan in the middle to move the dishes around. We had had lots of great food on a China trip and this place out did them, really. The "congee" (rice porridge) was outstanding and very large. We had house specialties that delighted us. We were amazed at how low the prices were! I would bring business guests here were I a New Yorker. The service was fast, attentive, and courteous. Definitely a "must eat at" restaurant!

This is my favorite Chinese restaurant in NYC by far. Service is a bit rush but the food is very good. I went here several times and will continue to do so for the good food.

This was some of the best chinese food we have ever had. Had sweet/sour pork, sesame seed chicken some vegetable dish i cant remember the name if and spring rolls. All dishes were large servings and so tasty. Definitely try this place

Food was very good. Dumplings were great. The buns (called manapua in hawaii) were the best I've ever eaten. Hot & Sour Soup was excellent and the Congee was very good.

I took my family to this restaurant on a Saturday, just after the lunch crowd has quieted down. The restaurant was deceptively larger than it looks from the outside. There are two seating areas (ground level and upstairs). The upstairs tables were spaced decently apart, unlike the main part of Chinatown where you are packed in. Decor at this location was much better than a typical Chinatown restaurant. There was surprisingly AMPLE parking outside on the NY Pay meter system. But watch the signage -- the max time limit varies by block -- you want to take the 2 hour limit parking if you can find it because you will NOT be out of this restaurant in an hour. There are pay lots somewhat nearby, but I can't imagine why you would want to put your car in a lot. NY Metered street parking is $3.50 per hour (as of Dec 2014, coins/credit card OK). The menu is quite large and is shown in English and Chinese, with numbers immediately next to each item to ease ordering. We ordered a few appetizers, like dumplings, but jumped right into main courses, noodle dishes and of course, congee (a soupy rich mixture if you haven't had before). The soup dumplings and fried dumplings were OK. But these didn't come out until after the main courses/noodles arrived at the table. For the main courses, we ordered minced pork with salty fish and vegetable dishes that were really quite good. We also ordered beef Chow fun and Ha Moon Chow Mei Fun (basically thin rice noodles with a lot of ingredients tossed in) and they were good also with reasonable portions/prices. Lastly, we ordered a bunch of different Congee dishes. They serve this here differently, in heated little crock pots to keep the Congee piping hot. The crock pots make it seem like you are getting a decent portion, but they have such thick walls, the amount of Congee you get is not that much. Usually in Chinatown (not far away), Congee is served in regular bowls. The Congee here was good, but nothing exceptional (hard to top the volume and quality served in the main part of Chinatown). For the price per dish, it's worth a try, but I wouldn't make it the central part of the meal.. you won't be satisfied/full. My recommendation is to order more main courses and noodle dishes for value. Given the time of day, we were surprised how service still wasn't that good. It wasn't like the restaurant was jammed packed. It took a lot of hand-waving and flagging down of waiters to get attention. So I would give a very good mark for food/prices, but take one away for service. I would give this 3.5 stars if possible. Just because street parking available is a plus versus the main part of Chinatown.

We recently ate at Congee Village for the second time. The first time the food was excellent and the service good. This time the service was terrible, brusque and unfriendly and the food wasn't good either. I wouldn't go back. There are too many other Chinese restaurants in NYC to go back to want that's not consistent in food or service.

This place is overated, overpriced and poor excuse for chinese food. The stench when you enter this place just hits your nose... smells like sweat socks... The decor is tacky with fake leaves of folliage that have not been cleaned in years. I could see the layer of dust. The tables were dirty and they had us share a table with another group. I came here under recommendation of an acquaintance but unfortunately I was severely disappointed. I was hoping that the food would be okay. The bathrooms were cramped with only two smalls stalls and dirty looking like it has not been cleaned in a while. It seemed like a health code violation waiting to happen. The food was nothing to write home about. The crab was seasoned but they could not find a small fork nor a tool to open the crab so that we could eat it properly. The rest of our food got cold while we were struggling with the crab. The chicken was overcooked and not well seasoned- too salty. The fish dish was not well cooked. The service was lacking. They did not bother refilling drinks until we requested it twice! 3 people= $70 for poorly cooked chinese food Avoid this place. There are tastier, cleaner places in chinatown that is more affordable. What a horrible experience for me. Save your self a bellyache!

Ate lunch here after a visit to the Tenement Museum. Fast efficient service really hot sizzling chicken with black bean sauce. The sizzling seafood was also tasty.

my favorite spot for chinese/taiwanese. the railroad pork, dumplings, & veggie dishes [tofu this time] are always a solid pick. i love it here & its very affordable… especially considering korean food is never cheap in nyc or in the east, but chinese food can be cheap and delicious! yum.

We visited Congee Village with our 2 young sons, including one who is generally picky. The menu was broad and we were able to select several items we thought would serve. Everything we ordered was delicious! The pork fried rice was the most flavorful we have had in a long time. Our boys ate all the dishes with gusto, and we enjoyed it equally as much. This is not standard American style Chinese takeout. It is more authentic, and of much higher quality than we have had before. That said, the meal was a bargain. Easily the least expensive meal we had in New York City. While you are there, visit the Lower East Side Tenement Museum around the corner. Another fabulous place!

Made the mistake of going there on a Friday night with a SE Asian friend who needed soupy rice. My 1st time her 4th or so. Rudest, most unresponsive waiters I've ever had in New York . We ordered 5-6 dishes and when I sent the hot & sour soup when it was delivered as a last (30 minutes later...all quick foods ordered on our part) he told me thats how it works in a Chinese restaurant! I told him I've lived in NY 30 years, eaten in 300 Chinese restaurants and it never works that way and that was the last I saw of him. As bad--family tables of 8-10 surrounded us and we were 'abutted' by a table of loud guys who were swearing and probably drunk. So bad, the Indonesian visiting family of 10+ (my friend spoke to them in their native language) had to shout at the offending table. Won't ever go back. Food may be special/its expensive--6 USD Chinese beer! /and I don't pay to be abused (Friday night 9 pm).

This is not your average Chinese restaurant. They specialize in a wide range of seafood and congee, and the food was remarkably good. Standbys like beef chow foon were lighter and fresher (with added bean sprouts) than what you'd get elsewhere, and the congee was excellent. We ordered Dungeness crab, and it was well done and tasty. What's not to like? The service was indifferent, at best, even though the place was basically empty when we ate. Some of the servers seemed to care, the one we had couldn't be bothered, at all. I ended up just walking to the server stand to get what I needed, and we had to ask for the crab crackers. .

There is such a striking familiarity with the tastes of the foods offered by this restaurant. Although we got things as take outs, they are as memorable. They simply invoke my vivid childhood memories of the "family friend" owned-Chinese restaurants from where I grew up, whose kitchens I were able to explore. The ambiance, the taste, everything is there....

HORRIBLE HORRIBLE management. We had a group of 14, and made reservations at 8 PM. We showed up promptly, but were told that the table was unavailable at the moment, and we would have to wait 40 minutes. There were lots of people waiting in large group inside and outside the restaurant, so we agreed. 40 minutes passed by. 1 hour passed by, 1.5 hours passed by. We were reasonable and polite, asking when our table would be ready. 2 hours passed by. The gloves came off. Really? Asking a group of 14 people to wait 2 HOURS to be seated for dinner at 10 PM. Absolutely ridiculous. Our group ended up spending well over 50+ at the bar. We tried to talk to the manager. This sad, depressed man who would not look us in the eye and walked away every time we tried to talk to him. We were finally seated in a TINY table fit for 8 people. They squeezed 14 of us into the table. We didn't even have room to eat. Every time I picked up my chopsticks, I poked my friend next to me. We tried to talk to the manager again. Tried to ask them to comp us our drinks at least. NOTHING. our waiter wouldn't even GET the manager to come talk to us. At the END of the meal, our waiter said, we would give you 6 cans of Tsing Toa beer. we have 14 people...really...6 cans? WORST EXPERIENCE. They do NOT honor reservations. come early, avoid the useless manager

We were a group of eight and dinner cost us less than $90. Since we are chinese, we know what chinese food should taste like and what to order. The problem is that they mixed up our orders and we did not get what we orders. Got frog, instead of chow fun.

The food is quite good. Large and diverse menu. Good location, a couple of blocks from the Lower East Side which is a nice walking place. Really enjoyed Sunday brunch there.

This restaurant was recommended by our tour guide. When we got off the bus in Chinatown he practically insisted that we go there. And we are glad we did. The restaurant is known for congee, which we did not have, but we can highly recommend the hot and sour soup, beef with Chinese Broccoli and Chicken with Cashews.

Despite the name, there is much more than just congee available, including more "adventurous" items like bird's nest, shark fin, frog, etc. The menu is pretty large w/ good variety. I didn't enjoy the food [had chicken soup (OK, but weird taste & dry chicken) & sweet potato pancakes (greasy yet very bland & bad texture. Imagine more like orange sponge than a sweet potato latke/hash brown or true flapjack). Tried friends' porridge (I dislike congee, but was a bit better tasting) & snails (I dislike black bean sauce & snails were very inconvenient to eat, but tasted fine w/o the sauce)], but if you like Chinese food a lot, you could probably find some good stuff. Service isn't great or attentive, but not unusual for a busy Chinese restaurant. Price seemed a bit high for Chinese food for certain items, but not unusually expensive for Manhattan. At least I got to hang out w/ friends that had lunch w/ me.

Great place for lunch after a tour at the Tenement Museum, At the back of the Tenement House. Wonderful traditional Chinese dishes.

This was a very attractive Flushing, Chinatown restaurant with excellent and interesting food choices.

We stopped in for a late lunch in between tours at the Tenement Museum (which was EXCELLENT). Food was really tasty -- we had sesame chicken and house special fried rice. Clearly each portion was individually made. Service was a little strange, as we finished our sesame chicken before the fried rice arrived, but was all delicious and we were in and out in 50 minutes without feeling rushed. Decor is cool. Overall good experience -- I will return!

Cute atmosphere as the place is decorated like a fishing house in the section we were seated. Food was good. But all was ruined by the wait help. They told our host ( in chinese) to hurry up and order, and they proceeded to argue with him when we replyed we were not ready. The wait help also with held our free dessert, I am sure because they thought we had never come to restaurant before and would not realize what was done. But we did know and then the dessert appeared.

We come here every time when we are in the city. It's just great environment and food. Highly recommended.

We were trying to find a good chinese restaurant to have dinner in the LES area and we found the perfect place. A great variety of choice in the menu, large portions, very fast service. A lot of the dishes never tried before, and i eat chinese very often.The place itself is quite big, but they have a lot of people serving you. Paid for two people 40$. Its worth a try!!!

We asked for a Chinese restaurant at our hotel, and we got one! They speak Chinese, Chinese, and then some English, and it was great! We ended up dining twice there, and I ate the Sliced Beef Chow Fun Noodles both times, so good it was. We were one of the few "gaijins" there, and for me it showed we were in the right place. Not fancy, service kind of slow, some of the waiters seem to speak only Chinese, but the drink, the Chinese beer, and the food was excellent!

The fish in any style or form is outstanding. The one item that stood out was the steamed bun...not since a London restaurant have I eaten a pork bun so delicious from inside out.

Love the chicken mushroom rice in a bamboo pot, very tasty, the variety congee are yummy too! The appetizer: Spring rolls, scallions pan cake Hongkong style, dried shrimps rice noodles are comfort food for us

We were at Congee Village for Chinese New Years 2014. We absolutely understand that this is a huge holiday and it's going to be crowed with some wait times. That is expected, what is not expected is to be packed onto a table that is crammed into other tables where you can not sit without hitting other customers. Literally shoved into adjacent people. Then we were rushed to order, food came out and we were rushed to eat. They were shouting at us. Some orders came out wrong and the guy could care less. Lastly my 83 year old mother was bumped into while going down the stairs by rude service staff that told her to hurry up! Now I get this is a big day for you, but it felt like a money grab, how many customers can we push through and make extra cash. Well you lost quite a few regulars that day so I hope you made enough so cover all the times we skipped you since. Trust me folks don't go to this place, don't patronize this rude establishment.

The congee was authentiv cantonese congee. Price was reasonable. Service was reasonably friendly. Not too hard to find meter parking in the neighbour.

The service at Congee Village is fast and efficient. The waiters know their job well. The food is just OK - not great. The restaurant is large and crowded. Expect an long wait for a table on weekend nights.

We waited about 10 minutes with a group of about 11 people, which is actually pretty short on a friday night in a well known resturant. The waiters were very nice and the cooking there is amazing. But watch out, if you get too many dishes, the bill can be pretty high. But, the prices are pretty reasonable, and if you go there once, you'll want to go again.

This was some of the best Chinese food that I have ever had. It was fresh, full of flavor, and just plain delicious. Typical service but quick, efficient, and paced nicely. Don't miss this place!

April 2018 marks my first visit ever to New York City. New York City is loadedwith so many choices for food. During one of our many nights in this amazing city, we discovered this restaurant. We had stepped off the Subway, and were simply wandering about the streets of the Lower East Side. I noticed this restaurant, and decided to poke my head in. In an instant I felt we had found one of the jewels of NYC. The place was totally packed! In the entry area there was a hostess stand. There were several small groups seated in this area awaiting tables. There is a small full service bar, but it was not busy. As I scanned the patrons in the seated dining areas, I knew we were in the right spot for the evening. I saw every single table packed with families and friends! My intuition told me this restaurant must be doing something right. I saw all locals...and no tourists...except our group of 4. After a 20 minute wait we were seated. We chose to share a table for faster service. Each of us ordered a different Congee. We also shared an order of Bom Choy with Oyster Sauce. Everything was SO GOOD! The experience was so good that during our 7 day visit to NYC, we returned for second round of this restaurant. While we only chose the Congee, I did notice that the restaurant was churning out all sorts of family style specialties. in short, if you have a craving for some great Chinese Food, check out Congee Villiage. I am from the West Coast, and I frequently dine in San Francisco. This restaurant made me feel like I was at home!

This was our all time favorite Chinese food meal that we have ever had, outside of China! We didnt really know for sure what we were ordering but it was all amazing.

I had been there for three times, if u like Chinese food, I should go there.However, it is $$ for the food, and you might need to wait for the set for at least half a hour in busy time.

Congee Village's best attraction is likely its large spacious venue. If you want to have a group gathering, look no further. The food and service, however, are average and nothing out of the ordinary.

We were a group of 6 people and were told it would be a 20 minute wait. It was more like one hour and 20 minutes. Our friends said this was par for the course at this restaurant, but in the end the food was very good and very reasonably priced. The service wasn't the best (had to flag down a waiter several times for water, etc.) Would definitely return.

First of all, this place is beautiful. Second, it's well run and the food is delicious and reasonable. I have been going here since it's creation. Take your family, take your date: you will impress. Enjoy!

I was advised to visit this restaurant, it turned out to be one of the finest chinese meals my wife and I have had. The atmosphere was buzzing the place was full and most of the clientele were chinese. The food was superb but I made a mistake by ordering to much soup, which could not be finished, and some advice from the waiter should have been sought. Value for money could not be beaten, and I would put this restaurant has a must visit in New York. I may visit NY again in the future and this place will be part of my intenary.

We got Congee Village recommended by our Chinese host in NYC... and he was right, for sure a very good choice for Chinese dinner :) You have to queue for a while (which is common). About 90% Chinese guests which is a good sign. Food was delicious, eg shrimps in garlic ... yummie. You may go there a bit later, around 8pm was quite some rushhour...

The servers here were below-par. They were unhappy, not warm whatsoever, and did not go out of their way to ensure we had a pleasant experience. The food was great and the portions large, with reasonably priced menu items, but the waiting staff let down the establishment, unfortunately. Avoid.

We were not that impressed. The beef with satay was fine, but the chicken with cashews was bland. The rice were cold. The service was not very attentive. A kid with a loud video on a tablet was really annoying!

Great for group of 16 - we used 2 tables. Fast service. Recommend the scallion pancakes, fried crullers, walnut shrimp, clams with black bean sauce, e-fu noodles, and congee of course. Huge Cantonese menu. Decor is a mix of south China and polynesia. Noticed there were private rooms downstairs.

Various food , fortunately really fresh and good. That's it!! the server was as bad as he was old. What's wrong with that guy ?? We almost had a fight over a bowl of rice ordered but not served at the same time as the other dishes. No Fork, no knife, We ask for it to a second server, cause the first old one told me : You don't get to be so excited ! I hope for the rest of the staff that this " gentleman" is not the boss, 'cause they must spend bad times in his company! I will never set foot in this restaurant again! no tips for this dishonest man. Bye !

Yes the service was... unhurried, but the food was overall quite good and reasonably priced. Excellent hot and sour soup (yes its possible to mess this up... they didn't).

Recent reviews praise the food but not the service, so I was pleasantly surprised. Restaurant management must have gotten the message. Our meals last night were superb and the service was really good.

Try the sizzling plates and the congee. Some strange dishes which I pass on. Maybe one day I will get the courage. 90% of the clientele is Asian which says a lot about the place.

I give the food 4 stars, service two stars. This is a very busy, popular restaurant that doesn't take reservations. I've come here multiple times in the past. Service has always been iffy at best. We usually try to come early for lunch or dinner to avoid the crowds. This latest time, we made the mistake of coming here to celebrate father's day. At 5:30pm, we were able to get a table for 7. However, the moment we sat down, we were pressured to place our orders immediately. There was no time to peruse the menus. Depending on what you order, the dishes can be a bit pricey. We ordered lobsters, conch, scallops, two kinds of fish, steak, chicken and veggie dishes. The stir fried twin lobsters were $50, the conch dish was $40. All the dishes were pretty well made. I just wished I could have enjoyed my food more. The whole experience was noisy and rushed. It was so noisy that you can't really have a conversation with anyone other than the person sitting next to you. Also, the waiters were constantly hovering trying to rush us with our meal. By the time we left, there was a very long line waiting outside.

We've been to Congee Village for both takeout and eat-in on several occasions. We still have family local to here and it's a convenient location for us. The food is consistently good. There are certainly lesser known places in China Town with better food, but this place holds its own. It's a good place if you don't know any locals and don't want to be too adventurous.

This is a restaurant that can really deceive people by the large portions of each dish. Two sundays ago I took my family and friends there for lunch. The service was very poor but that may be expected from a Chinese restaurant In Chinatown New York. But what is not acceptable is that my guests all have a bad case of food poisoning. Particularly from the beef dish that looked really bad in the first place. I do not live in nyc or I would sue them. My guests and I will never step into that restaurant away.

We were lucky to eat here with friends who spoke Cantonese. Those friends ordered for the table, and probably only used the menu as a guide. They later told me that real chinese restaurants are loud, and this place was no exception. Every plate, and there were man, was unique and tasty, and I was surprised with the quality of the Chinese Beer they offered. A very memorable meal.

I went in with high expectations, looking for a delicious ethnic dish and wow, it was bland. I went with a group of people, so I got to try deep friend chicken (their best dish), boiled fish, steamed veggies, boiled onions, shrimp, lobster and more. Everything was just steamed and boiled with very little taste. Quite a disappointment.

At first, I was pretty concerned when a family member suggested a gathering at Congee Village. Yes, I'm a carnivore like many other people, but I thought we would bail out when my wife and I saw the online menu that features things such as "duck's blood," "cold jelly fish," "boneless chicken feet," "boiled live shrimp," "fish head soup," "pig's blood porridge" and "goose intestine." Really? We have geese all around our neighborhood and we know that they're very experienced at using their intestines. Not a pretty picture at first. If this isn't out of an Indiana Jones film, it might also seem like a menu for the Klingon home world. But… okay, back to the review. I guess when it comes to Chinese food we have somewhat mainstream American taste, but there are plenty of more common favorites on the menu. The menu provided in the restaurant is not quite as daunting as the massive online list. The dining experience was excellent. Congee Village has a very nice decor that looks very clean and is spread out over a few floors. They have attractive dining areas set up throughout the building and the people were really nice. We tried the beef with broccoli, shrimp with candied walnuts, sesame beef, seafood chow fun, sweet potato pancakes and some vegetable dishes. Everything came out hot, fast and full of flavor. It was all very fresh and there wasn't even a trace of that greasy or burnt-oil taste that you may encounter in some restaurants. This was really good. We had a party of eleven and they set us up in a big, comfortable space with a lazy Susan in the middle of the table so everybody could keep the various dishes in orbit when people wanted to serve themselves. We look forward to going back. Even though we didn't have drinks, it looks like the bar cranks out some fun and colorful beverages. We had a 6PM reservation on a Saturday and after we came out, there were a lot of people lined up to come in. Now I understand why. Congee Village is worth the trip.

My husband and I were trying to decide between take out chinese delivered to the hotel and this restaurant that the concierge reccomended. We were sorry that we did not order delivery. The waiter was rude and very unhelpful. We were really looking forward to good Chinese food because our part of the country is lacking in Chinese. We asked for help so that we did not order the wrong thing just because we recognized something on the menu but he was not interested in directing us to the best things on the menu. What we did order should have been good, as they were Chinese food basics but it was bland and not appetizing. The restaurant was clean and nice looking on the inside.

Stopped in for a quick snack after a visit to the Tenement Museum. Saw many locales speaking Chinese, always a good sign, and a menu with many authentic dishes. We didn't sample a lot: the hot and sour soup was excellent, as were the shanghai buns and dried shrimp rice noodle rolls. The vegetable dumplings were excellent but the serving size of 3 small dumplings is not a good value. Despite our being warmly welcomed, our waiter's disdain for us was palpable. When we asked for a soup spoon, he brought us a plastic spoon. This was correctly by another waiter. When we asked for water, we had to ask three times. His English was bad but it was nothing compared to his attitude. We ate, we ran. It is average because of the service; I expect the food might be quite good. And I imagine another waiter would change the overall experience.

We have been here several times in the past. This visit was different than the rest. Service was poor at best. We were seated quickly but that was all. Food came out a little at a time, with no order. Sesame chicken was tasteless.

We've been eating here for many years. Unlike, apparently, abitoheaven I have spent much time in China and my wife lived there for 12 years. So yes, with some authority, I can say that this is probably the best Cantonese place in Manhattan Chinatown (Flushing, Queens and Brooklyn also have great places). And they have some quite original dishes that you will not find elsewhere. Try the Pan Fried Bean Curd with Soy Sauce (not what it sounds like) or the Steamed Minced Pork with Salted Fish. Don’t try obviously Sichuan or Hunan dishes. These guys are from Hong Kong (or maybe Guangdong Province). They can’t find Sichuan on a map. (Although one non-Cantonese dish they do well is the Small Juicy Bun in Shanghai Style.”) And the Peking Pork Chop (actually a Cantonese dish) is superb. The congees are divine. And try the “Rice in Bamboos Pot” dishes and the casseroles. And don’t pay attention to the aesthetics. Most people know that the best Chinese food is not found in quite, beautiful ambiances.

We arrived for a late lunch around 3:30 the week between Christmas and New Years after visiting the Tenement Museum. We were taken upstairs to a table and given menus and a pot of tea. The menu was fairly priced with a great variety of options from congee to buns. Very traditional Chinese offerings were on the menu. Since we just needed a small lunch we ordered one entrée and four different dim sums for the three of us. Our General Tao's chicken arrived after a little while, alone on a plate without the accompaniment of rice or anything else. Since we were we had told our waiter that we were sharing everything, I figured that they would just be bringing the dim sum up with it. Several minutes after we had finished the entrée, two of the dim sum items we ordered arrived. After we finished those and sat there expectantly and no more dim sum materialized we called the waiter over and asked when the other items we had ordered would be coming. We were then told that our other dim sum had been canc led by the kitchen. I asked about the fourth dim sum ordered and he didn't seem to understand. If figured that there was a misunderstanding and that had been canceled by the kitchen too. He brought over the check and we had been charged for three dim sum items. When I pointed the mistake out to the waiter he took the check and corrected it. The food was very good, but we noticed that there seemed to be 10 or so cooks sitting in the very back of the dining room enjoying a meal themselves while we were there. I guess that might be why two of our items were never received (the cooks were busy eating themselves and didn't feel like cooking more small items). There were quite a few other patrons in the restaurant while we were there, so someone must have still been in the kitchen. We noticed that we were the only non-Asian guests there. I'd go back again, for the food was authentic Chinese, and I'd definitely try the congee next time too. We passed other tables with congee on them and I was sorry we hadn't ordered a that instead of some of the dim sum. Next time!

Recommended in Time Out, Congee Village is about 10 mins walk the main Chinatown, other side of The Bowery, pretty easy to find, only expected congee and sides, but major wrong, they have an expansive menu, rice, noddles, dim sum, pudding, cocktails and more. Had to try out the congee for lunch, congee can be pretty bland, flavourless and runny, plummed for congee with roast duck and meatballs, sides of fried sweet potato cakes, xiao lung bao and deep fried dough sticks. Only disappointment was the dough sticks were cold and rock hard, had to dip them in the congee, usually they should be fried to order and come out piping hot. Otherwise the rest was yummy, the congee was in a piping hot ceramic pot, it was thick with lots of flavour, the xiao lung bao didn't have enough soup in them, the sweet potato cakes were delicious. Trade was steady, so good atmosphere, all Chinese folk eating there, plenty coming for take outs. Would definitely visit again to try out rice, noddles and desserts.

We frequent this restaurant often and have done so for many years. The food is fresh, delicious and authentic. I'm a bit perplexed by other reviews stating that the service is slow. It has been my experience that if anything, the service is a bit rushed, i.e., it is not unusual that your entree arrives contemporaneously with your soup. In that, at best, the waitstaff speaks just a smattering of English, I would suggest that you hold off on putting in your entire order if you intend on having appetizers, or you are likely to receive everything at once. For those of you who are adventurous, I would recommend that you look around at the largely Chinese clientele for food selection. In that the menu takes some navigating and there are many unfamiliar items on it, we often glance around at other tables and order what looks appealing to us. Utilizing this method, we have yet to be disappointed.

I had visited the Tenement Museum (excellent BTW) and since I was in Chinatown I went to this place next door. The interior is great. The menu was very interesting with a lot of choices I'd never seen before. Regardless I decided to have the "House Special Chicken" assuming it would be something they are proud of. Plus the picture showed in with vegetables. Well all I got was a plate of barely warm chicken with some sweet syrupy yucky sauce and no rice or vegetables. Not good! I asked for rice and asked about the vegetables. They brought me rice and a plate of plain bland boiled Chinese broccoli. I was hungry but I did not finish this mess. I got the bill and saw they charged me $12 for the broccoli! I could not wait to get out there so I just paid it. The whole experience was weird and bad.

I don't think I have ever felt less welcome anywhere in New York - or any Chinese Restaurant anywhere in the world for that matter! I was left standing at an unattended reception - and eventually shown where to order which was a counter obscured by a group of what I assume to be staff - all nattering away and ignoring me. When I eventually made my order, the lady behind the counter was abrupt. The order was 'Special' - but in reality it was not. Very plain an tasteless. I had to add salt - never had to do that with Chinese food before, ever in my life! Overall - a poor experience and very average food. I wont return.

this place is always crowded, mostly by asian-americans, which is always a good sign in an Asian restaurant. The decor is a little kitschy, but attractive -- and it is broken up into several smaller rooms so it always seems cozy. The menu is huge and concentrates on Cantonese specialties. One of my favorites is the Pork & Shrimp Winter Melon soup -- which is warming and delicious. Among the appetizers, the Shanghai style soup dumplings are also excellent. The Lobster with scallions and ginger is one of my favorites -- always fresh and perfectly cooked. Also, the House Special Chicken and the 5-spice Duck are both tender and delicious poultry entrees. The sizzling hot pots -- particularly the one with short ribs -- is another crowd pleaser as is the Baby Bok Choy. It is best to go to this place with a group of 4 or 6 or 8, and order multiple dishes so that everybody can get a taste of multiple dishes. The cocktails here are also excellent and reasonably priced. The food is definitely much better -- and the experience more enjoyable -- than some of the more touristy Chinatown restaurants a few blocks away on Mott St. and Elizabeth St. My only disappointment is that they don't have a larger selection