Jiangnan NJC — Restaurant in Jersey City

This is a szechuan restaurant so a lot of things are spicy! Casual environment. The chairs were not comfortable, they are hard metal slippery chairs. This place is popular as there really isn’t any other authentic place around like this. It took a half hour for our party of 4 to be seated on a Friday night around 7:30. They have a small waiting area in the front, you put your phone number down and they text and call you so you can leave and come back as well.

We ordered about 7 dishes to share between us 4, some were apps and some were big share plates. I really liked the cheese balls that looked like pumpkins. They were sweet, warm and gooey. The green beans are also delicious. Crunchy and not too spicy. The fried chicken and dough had spicy peppers piled high so I didn’t eat too much. I did like the texture of the chicken and the dough was an interesting thing to try. The blueberry fried chicken was addicting, tasted very unhealthy since deep fried and battered. The gooey sweet sauce was delicious and I liked the plum blueberries with it. The white rice on the side is a must, goes with all the dishes and the hot tea they serve is very good as well. We also ordered a tofu dish that was too spicy for me. The soup dumplings were excellent, the right amount of soup and the flavor was meaty and salty and delicious.

Next time I would come back and get one of the big fish dishes in the huge platter I saw people sharing. It looked really good.

I would come back! I left do full! And it didn’t...

I really, really want there to be a good chain Chinese restaurant that I like. I was hoping Jiangnan would fit the bill, but unfortunately it fell short. The food was pretty meh. I got the soup dumplings, the cumin lamb and the pork belly and long horn pepper. All three dishes underwhelmed. Soup dumplings are hard to make great, but the weird dipping sauce (no black vinegar) didn't help. The lamb and pork belly were hampered by the meat being shaved. It was like the meat in a Philly steak. It means the meat gets no char during cooking; it's practically steamed. I'm sure the restaurant does it because it cooks quickly, but the dishes both truly suffered. The pork with peppers was probably the worst rendition of that dish I've had at any restaurant. The cumin lamb was fun when it was served, but the flavor and texture just didn't match the spectacle of the simmering plate. The service also sucked. I was never checked up on a single time despite being the ONLY PATRON in the restaurant. Then toward the end of my meal they sat a coughing, sneezing man at the table right next to me. Oh and they charge you a dollar for white rice. WTF? I mean if it's about money then charge more than a dollar, otherwise just make white rice complimentary with stir fry dishes like every other restaurant. Unfortunately I think this restaurant fell short because it's a chain. For comparison, I wish this restaurant was more like DD Hibachi &...

We've eaten here a few times now over the past few months and each time we've gone, we've been really happy with the food. It's all been very flavorful. In general this is our new favorite Chinese restaurant in Jersey City. The only issues were gave are that some dishes are a bit overpriced, even if it's still prepared well and a few times we've gone they've forgotten a dish, but I think that might have to do with the language barrier since I don't speak Mandarin.

Dishes: Peking duck: This has always been done really well, but our only issue is we always run out of pancakes and they charge you for more. I wish they just gave you more pancakes with the meal the first time! The soups are all amazing. If you get the peking duck I highly recommend getting the duck soup. The broth odd the best part. Stir-fried string beans with minced meat: Still had a good crunch Stir-fried cabbage with pork belly: This vegetable dish was surprisingly flavorful with great char and a slight kick. Soup dumplings: Decent xiaolongbao, and probably the best you'll find in this area at least Salt and Pepper Shrimp: 4/5 dish, very good but not amazing Fried Rice: They have pretty bomb fried rice Fish: Our dish was cooked well, but I wouldn't recommend the garlic sauce. It was very bland. Next time I'll have to try a...