Leanh's Chinese Restaurant — Restaurant in South Daytona

Bring your appetite! My goodness! Leanh is THE best Asian restaurant I’ve ever been to outside of New York and California. What a place! Locals are loyal and regulars so don’t be shaken by how busy they are. We called ahead and were able to sit down within 5 minutes, but the host was forthcoming both on the phone and in person. It does not always work out that way at peak times. We were there at 6:30 pm on a Saturday and the place was very busy, so we felt very blessed to be seated so quickly and politely.

Upon entering Leanh’s, you are taken the aroma of freshly prepared food. You can tell right away that you’re in for something special. So often, Asian restaurants, and other small ethnic restaurants and markets in Florida are located in older strip malls with low rent and aging interiors. It’s not unusual to notice musty odors from old ventilation systems, carpet spills, fried foods, etc. Not at Leanh’s.

The place is modest and tastefully decorated and kept immaculately clean at all times. I’m not sure how bold the building is, but the air inside smells fresh. Furthermore, Leanh has a team of friendly, efficient bus boys ensuring that floors and tables are kept clean as well. They work at lighting speed and they don’t make noise or get in the way. They assist guests servers with pleasure. Servers and hosts are equally meticulous, friendly and efficient. Leanh is present in the dining room greeting guests and ensuring satisfaction. She couldn’t be more hospitable or friendly. Everything is done so professionally without being pretentious. It’s really remarkable.

The menu is extensive, and it includes American Asian standards for those who need to see familiar favorites, but adventurous eaters won’t be disappointed. A generous bowl of crispy fried noodles and HOMEMADE duck sauce is supplied quickly with beverages and you have to fight yourself to avoid accepting a refill when offered. You need the belly space for the goodness to come.

I found several unique menu items and tried one—AFTER devouring what I assure you are THE BEST chicken wings I have ever put in my mouth. Piping hot, crispy, juicy, and flavorful I assure you: You have never had Chinese style chicken wings this good. I was almost sorry I didn’t order more and skip the dinner menu. The portion of 8 wings arrives hot and fresh and without a drop of grease or fat. I’m not saying they’re calorie-free, but these aren’t the greasy wings most places serve. They’re spectacularly well done with a lovely soy ginger flavor lingering in the meat from the marinade.

I struggled to choose between Lemon Scallops, Walnut Shrimp, and a menu item I’d never seen or heard of before: Pei Pa Tofu. Servers seemed reluctant to believe my choice and skeptical about my liking it. I felt committed to trying something new and wasn’t disappointed, though I concede that it’s probably not for everyone. Shrimp, scallops, and silken tofu are blended smooth (no chunks) then lightly seasoned, battered, and fried. The result is a subtle, soft little pillow that gets surrounded by steamed broccoli and generously sauced. This sauce is very light ever so slightly thickened ginger infused puddle of subtlety and freshness. There’s nothing bold about this dish. It’s elegant and I’m told it’s common at weddings. I’m glad I tried it!

Meanwhile, my partner tried the Tom Kha soup with chicken. It’s made fresh to order and has a hint of star anise and less lime and or kaffir lime leaf powder than is common in recipes that may not necessarily be as authentic or fresh from scratch. It was very tasty.

I’m already planning deeper exploration through this menu on my next trip to Daytona. I need to try it all, which will mean MANY MORE visits, as the menu, which features Chinese, Vietnamese, Thai, and Korean choices. My daughter and her fiancé went right over with a friend after we called to share our excited review. They shared wings, which were hailed as “Outstanding!” She had Phō and the guys had orange chicken pronouncing it all excellent. My daughter had plenty of Phō leftover....

It's been over 10 years since I've been here. I have been dreaming of coming back since then. I do live further away 😭, which is why I haven't been back here in a long time. But, I finally made it back. As far as decor, it all looked the same from last time 🤔. The menu seemed a little different, but for the most part had a lot of the same stuff on it. Obviously prices changed. 😂 😔. Now we ordered Veggie Pad Thai, spicy fried rice, some other smaller rice noodle veggie dish and 2 orders of veg spring rolls. The spring rolls came out quickly and the waitress put them all on separate plates since there were 4 of us. I guess that's ok. 🧐. I loved the spring rolls so did my wife. Kids (5+7) didn't like it 🤢. 😂. We thought they would. It's ok, more for the adults. Next came the spicy fried rice. (Yes, spicy means 🥵) Never thought rice can be this spicy, but that's how we ordered it. (Side note: I wish there was a scale of how hot, is "hot" 🥵 at restaurants. Our Waitress during our conversation was like "hot medium or normal." I think they need to do a scale of 1-5 or 1-10 then we would have ordered about a 3 or a 6. Just sayin' 🤷) Then the pad Thai came. It was well over cooked, glazed with the sauce to dress up and veggies on top. It all looked great except the over cooked rice noodles. The other smaller rice noodles dish looked great, veggies were nice, but it was mainly for kids, but kids didn't enjoy it 😂. . They didn't find it "filling". (We boxed it up and brought home) Since they didn't enjoy it, we ordered Veg Lo Mein for them (their go-to) . It came out after some time, and the Lo Mein noodles were tough but edible. My son like it, but didn't eat much cuz at this point he had a long day. Not the restaurant's fault. We took the left overs home and plan on making it round #2 tonight. 🥊 🔔. Although I'm a little disappointed in some of the food options, I still like this place for what it can offer. I personally eat meat but my family doesn't so I decided to not eat any of that. We did order our dishes with egg on the side, since one of us doesnt eat eggs like that. They did come out with one bowl with 3 eggs scrambled in it. Even though it was simple scrambled eggs, kids didn't like it. And they love eggs! I ate it all as eggs leftovers are never good. Overall it was a OK trip, but I personally will be back, hopefully with meat eater friends next time. Let's just hope its a lot sooner than 10 years. 😂. I was so excited being back here that I forgot to take pictures 😭....

Been going here for years and I don't know what's happened unless Leanne is not running it like she used to or someone else is running it.

This is the third time our meals have been unacceptable. I didn't even bother to call this time. Went to get my orders. The girl hands it to me and said it's quite heavy. And I said, yes it is. And I said to myself could you not use two bags. I should have taken it all out and looked at it because that's what my gut told me. This is the third time my meals have been unacceptable and that's not being picky. They had shoved it in and caused it to break open the bottom box of Gen. Tso, causing it to leak, they did it in an effort not to have to use another bag.This is not acceptable, not with the money that we paid to eat there. This is very, very sad that they would continue to do this. Doesn't matter if you complain or not it doesn't change it just gets worse. To be honest with you, people are not going back. I've heard this several times due to the exact same reasons. I'm telling you so if you're getting takeout please check your order or you'll end up with the same thing I did for the third time and it's my last time.

I will not go back. We work hard for our money and we don't have it to waste because that was wasted food all over the bottom of the bag. I am not going to eat my food scraping it off the bottom of the bag. If you do complain they put you through the third degree and you have to offer to take pictures. They want you to come back with your food after you've got all the way home you don't feel like getting back in your car and going back that's for sure this is very sad because it used to be a great place, I don't feel that way anymore and a lot of people are starting to feel like that way. They aren't going back she's losing business quick. We paid $76 for our meal for two people it was not edible at all not after seeing the food all in the bottom of the bag. I wasn't scraping my food out of the bottom of the bag because they were too cheap to put it in two bags it was just shoved in.

I don't know how they got it all in there to start with we got the Seven Stars and the Moon and Gen. TSO, so just imagine all of that in one bag this is on takeout orders.I have never had an issue with eating in.

I can tell you if you're going to order take out, think twice and be sure to check your be sure to look at your order before you...