Saoman kínai konyha — Restaurant in Debreceni járás

I’ve visited this restaurant three times now, and while I genuinely like it, I think it’s time to share an honest but friendly review that might help them improve. The first time I came here (about four or five months ago), the restaurant was packed. It was really busy, and I could tell the staff were struggling to keep up — people with reservations arriving, walk-ins like us waiting, orders being taken, payments happening — all at once. Despite that, the hostess who seated us was such a sweet and friendly girl. Even though we didn’t have a reservation (our mistake), she did her best to accommodate us and spoke perfect English, which was a big plus for me. As someone who grew up in England and isn’t very confident in Hungarian anymore, it’s always a relief to find good English communication in Debrecen. That alone made the first experience really positive — it felt like a big step forward for the local dining scene. Now, the food itself has always been excellent — fresh, flavorful, and well-prepared. The restaurant’s interior is lovely too, and the location is great. My only recurring issue is the inconsistent service speed. The first time, I completely understood the delay because it was extremely busy. The second time, everything was perfect: quick service, great food, and a smooth experience overall. Unfortunately, my third visit (just yesterday) was disappointing. Even though it wasn’t that busy, things seemed a bit disorganized. The communication was harder this time, and I could see that the waitress was still running around doing everything — cleaning, taking orders, serving, and seating new guests — all on her own. That’s simply too much for one person, and it showed. Another small issue is consistency. For example, the cucumber salad tastes different every time — sometimes spicy, sometimes watery or bland — even though I never ask for changes. It makes me think the kitchen might be a bit overwhelmed too. I’m writing this not to criticize harshly, but because I really believe this restaurant has great potential. The food and atmosphere are both wonderful, but the service situation holds them back. With a bit more staff and better coordination, I think this could easily become one of the best places...

We ordered dumplings, hot green tea and the meals on the pictures.

The type of the tea leaves should not be served as they did (the tea set didn't match with it).

The dumpling's filling was OK taste wise (a bit blant, maybe missing some seasoning), but the texture wasn't crispy enough at all. They didn't serve it with vinegar, when we asked, the waiters kindly provided them. It seemed like the waiters have no clue about eating dumplings with vinegar.

The texture of the rice was not consistent, there was a chunk of overcooked/gluey rice which should not be served in a restaurant. The egg was a bit overcooked too but it is my subjective opinion, it can be served hard boiled. The noodles were OK, but Inhad the add chilli oil to make it really enjoyable, otherwise the taste was a bit bland.

The staff was a bit clueless sometimes, but they were kind, attentive and actually they saved the day.

Overall speaking it wasn't a disappointment though. I won't consider it as an authentic Chinese restaurant, but it is still the most authentic and best Chinese one in our lovely city of Debrecen. However, if I want to eat great Asian flavours in this city, I would definitely go for Korean, or visit Wasabi (which is far from being a top Sushi...

I went to Saoman kinai konyha based on Google reviews and proximity to the Mercure where I was staying. I’m glad I did, the staff was polite and the food was excellent! We had pork and rice dumplings for an appetizer. I ordered the duck ramen soup. My wife had the pork and rice. We both tried each other’s dishes and agreed that all the flavors were excellent. The only caveat is seating is limited to a bar that can seat four people and two tables with four chairs each. We got there at noon and found seating at the bar. So get there early or order to go which seemed to be the bulk of their orders while we were there. Highly...