Rice House Chinese Teriyaki — Restaurant in Cedar Falls

Food, staff and building were all mediocre to sub-par. The food however was rancid. And it's not like I picked something so far off the menu it was bound to be bad. I'm saying I kept my order very simple. General tso's chicken with fried rice and pork lo mein. The general was odd, definitely not you average chicken if you know what I mean, it was also tough to eat with a lot of chewing. Fried rice, plain but tasted old like spoiled old and then the lo mein. I kept eating it and trying to figure out what was making it taste so bad. It was a mixture of rotten meat with old vegetables which after a while I realized exactly that. The noodles by themselves were fine but mix them with the meat and veggies and you suddenly wanted to die a little. The staff seemed like they were trying to get out of making my order for some reason, like they didn't want to cook it. They kept trying to get me to turn my order into a combo plate so I didn't order so much which after a minute thoroughly offended me beyond belief and the building was still in the post COVID disarray. That the restaurant definitely didn't look like it ever...

I used to be a regular at this place and came here once or twice a week. I often order their Chicken Broccoli. Some of the staff know me by name and always ask if I want "the usual." Sometimes I get the almond chicken or anything with shrimp. The food is always, and I do mean always, served quickly. No matter how busy they are. The owner is very friendly and there's a southern lady that everyone loves to talk with because she's so friendly too.

It might not be obvious if you're supposed to seat yourself when you walk in, or if you order and then seat. I'm a regular and I haven't figured out if they want me to pay when I'm done eating or when I order. They've never expressed a preference--just that I pay. :)

I believe there may be some cultural differences that can cause people to misinterpret some of the staff as rude. I really don't think they are. These people are very kind people and they serve...

Newly opened and I'm excited. Staff was super friendly. They converted an old great clips into a takeout place with some seating, and it looks really nice and modern. There's probably room for about 20 people if it was packed. Food is classic Chinese takeout. No better or worse than most places. Fried rice didn't have much flavor, but some chili oil took care of that. Lunch portion was decent, it's enough for a big appetite. Cost was just a little higher than I would like (lunch menu is $7.15 right now) but I also long for the 5 buck combo of my college days. Haven't tried the teriyaki yet. While many Chinese places branch out into other east Asian cuisines, I find it odd that they have teriyaki called out specifically in their name. Maybe on the next trip. I'm just glad that there's a decent, reasonably priced Chinese option in SW Cedar Falls.

TL/DR: The place is good, not perfect, and I'll be...