Jade Rabbit — Restaurant in Santa Monica

The unfortunate thing about knowing truly great Chinese food is that so many (most?) places don't live up to that standard. I really wanted to like Jade Rabbit since we live in the area, but we found it to be bland, generic, and corporate. It's a bit like decent quality mall food--not offensive and very safe.

It's also not a neighborhood feel like the Thai place a couple doors down is (and with the new ownership it's now a damn good Thai place!)... more of a Chipotle/corporate feel, which I get that some people like vibe-wise, just not us.

This is not great Chinese food if you know great Chinese food. But it's affordable and is fine for filling your gullet if you're hungry and want something that's a bit better than Panda Express. To us (my wife is Chinese, as are a lot of our friends), this definitely isn't the place to go for the good stuff, unfortunately. OK for the money I guess, just not a place we would...

The food quality at Jade Rabbit is solid, and the atmosphere creates a welcoming vibe for this new addition to LA's casual dining scene. However, I was disappointed by the portion sizes, which felt quite modest for the price point.

During my visit, I noticed the staff appeared to be managing portions very conservatively - even going so far as to remove some items after initially scooping them into the container. While I understand new restaurants need to manage costs, the portions felt underwhelming compared to similar Asian spots in the area that offer better value.

The food itself has potential, and the space is nicely designed. I'd be happy to return and potentially revise my rating if they can address the portion-to-price ratio. For a new business, finding that sweet spot between profitability and customer satisfaction is crucial.

Hoping to see some improvements as they settle into...

Great spot for a quick, delicious bite!

If you’ve had Chipotle, Cava, etc, it is the Chinese-American version of that but a bit more upscale.

Portions seem small, but the food is very filling. We had 1 bowl with brown rice, chow mein, chopped kale, mushroom & zucchini, with honey chicken and a second bowl with fried rice, chow mein, mushroom & zucchini, curry mashed potatoes, and honey chicken. We had a little leftover for both dishes. The kale and the mushroom/zucchini dishes were amazing. The chow mein was a little heavy on the sauce but otherwise pretty good. Mango dessert dish is skippable (didn’t hate it didn’t love it)

Service was fast, staff were nice, overall great experience. We will def be...