Jin’s Chow Mein

Drive an extra 20 miles (out of my way) to pick up from here for my family… they love it!
Kids favorites are chicken low mein and sweet and sour chicken.
Hubbys favorites are Kung Pao chicken (extra spicy) and chicken sub gum chow mein.
Everyone loves the fried rice and egg rolls.
Although they are NOT expensive (on the lower end actually) I spend about $ 70 per trip just so we have enough to last several meals.

My husband and I were so excited to try this place tonight. We have lived nearby for 7 years and it has great reviews, including a recommendation from my father-​in-​law. The only thing that had enough flavor was the chicken fried rice and that was pretty average. Both the sesame chicken and mongolian beef were pretty lack luster and there was also no cream cheese in the cream cheese puffs. The prices are great, but I can spend the same for better food by driving a couple extra miles. We may go back in a pinch, but it will not be our regular haunt. I really wanted to like this place.

At first it looked like just every other Chinese place. By far the best take out Chinese place for years, moved into the area over 9 years ago. It’s always had the same amazing flavor. Great prices for the portions. I love their chicken fried rice the most.

My new favorite Chinese take out in the area! Awesome food, large portions and great prices.

WOW!!! Jin’s is still the best. Delicious sub-​gum chow mein with cashews & tender white chicken. YUM!
I now live in Texas and drove past Jin’s by accident — I was just looking at the changing neighborhood. I never imagined that Jin’s would still be here in the Crystal Shopping Center. My dad discovered Jin’s waaaaaaaay back in 1958!!! How many places stay in business that long???
Well, it is EXACTLY the same as I remember as a 7 yr. It is «old-​school» Chinese take out. My dad loved the fried rice and eggs foo young. They taste even better than I remember. The portions are huge, the prices are low, the uality high.
Thank you Jin for making my day!!! …dave & family from austin, texas

What can I say? I love a good dive restaurant! Located in the Crystal Town Center, Jin’s is a take-​out Chow Mein restaurant that is a throwback to the old style Americanized Chow Mein palaces of the past. Do not expect anything special on décor but do enjoy their great service and the food. Also, it is very inexpensive and they always offer coupon specials.
The egg rolls are those that I remember from the first time I went to one of the old Chow Mein restaurants years ago. They were hot and of course just a little greasy from the oil but not dripping. Best of all, they had taste unlike others I have had that taste like paste. You could tell they had veggies and pork in the egg roll. I also asked for the hot mustard as I enjoy that on an egg roll but these really did not need anything else.
All of their sauces are the food service to go packs and not my favorite which is why I like to take this home and mix up my own hot mustard and use some good quality soy if I want to amp up the flavor.
The Chow Mein is their specialty and I love it. It all comes separated, rice in one box, Chow Mein in another and a package of crunchy noodles. Mix it all together and enjoy. You can giggle as you mix it as you may remember mixing the La Choy cans together in the past. This is much better and I love the taste of their food. Like I said, I just like a touch of a quality soy sauce to add.
I can’t wait to try a few of their other items but I must say I am sold on their Chow Mein at the prices they charge. About the price, bring cash as they do not accept credit or debit cards.

I wasnt really sure what to think about this place at first because I thought it was just like any other chinese take out but I fell in love! The food came out really quick and I asked them to make it extra spicy and they did.
I ordered the Pepper steak and Orange chicken and had them seperate the orange chicken sauce on the side so i can dip it rather than have it all mixed together and they did it for me without any trouble. The prices are very reasonable here and can literally feed a whole family of four for under like $ 15.
I will Definitely be coming back here again and will be recommending it to other people!

Jin’s is my absolute favorite Chinese takeout in the Twin Cities. The best chicken subgum chow mein I’ve ever had, amazing pork fried rice, and egg foo young to die for. A must try.

This is one of those old school Chinese/​Chow mein places that were around long before Minnesota had any other Asian food to choose from. In fact, I think it’s been there since 1958.
I didn’t go for the chow mein. My only experience with chow mein was in elementary school, so I don’t have fond memories of it. But maybe I should have tried theirs since that’s what they’re known for. I went with the chicken with broccoli. It was ok, nothing too exciting. I will say it was a huge portion for only $ 6!

At first I was a bit sketched out by this place.
Jin’s Chow Mein in the gross Crystal strip mall?
In a moment of desperation and not wanting to cook or travel to Minneapolis to get something decent to eat, I broke down and ventured in to see what this place is all about.
Oh my god, I am hooked. For under $ 5 you can get quality chow mein or chop suey that will be enough for lunch and dinner. They give you a good balance of meat and vegetables with sauces that are very flavorful and not so MSG laden.
The service is super fast and while you’re waiting, you can read their thank you letters from donating to the community from the 70s to today.
This is the ONLY thing I’ll miss about living in New Hope.

I always sent my bf there to get take out whenever i dont feel like cooking. My bf is very picky when it comes to Chinese food. We’ve tried China star just across the street, but he didnt like it, but he likes Jin’s. We really like their fried rice, mongolian beef, chow mien, sub gum, and some other stuff. Everything’s been good, and the portion is very generous. An order of fried rice and one other entrée could feed us for two whole meals.

I love Jin’s and having moved away from MN almost 8 years ago I crave it! I miss it that bad! In fact when I come home for a visit I eat here as often as I can! There is nothing like Jin’s chow mein and fried rice! I have always wanted to try other things, but I can not get chow mein the way it is prepared here where I live in the Southern U.S. My mom loves the egg foo young. I really don’t like egg foo young, but I actually will eat Jin’s and enjoy it!!! The pricing is affordable (very affordable), they have great lunch specials, friendly, and fast! Oh how I wish Jin’s was so much closer then 800+ miles away!

This spot came with such a great review from our pastor we found ourselves thinking about it weeks after we’d forgotten what it was called or where it was actually located.
As noted, I LOVE China Star which is about 1 block from our house… So, would we ever drive an extra 2 miles to order from this place again…? Answer: YES. We ordered the chicken Lo Mein on Pastor J’s recommendation and the Pork Foo Young on guidance of the woman walking out the door and the Garlic chicken on advice of the very nice woman taking our order. Everything was extremely tasty. The Garlic chicken was «am bound to crave it again and again’» INCREDIBLE. The prices are a little lower than China Star (good) but I would also argue the ingredient quality is a bit lower… so it’s a bit of a compromise. (Lo mein is ramen style instead of spaghetti noodle style — etc.) Our order above was $ 19. nice. Also, they don’t accept credit cards– only checks or cash so go prepared. We had to leave and find an ATM to seal the deal. We were told by the one woman that she loves the pork foo young and pork fried rice and mixes them together. For the white folks readin’ — «foo young = fried & egg-​ish» The folks in line in front of us love the sesame chicken and the sweet and sour chicken. Pastor J says to skip the Chow Mein here, too. Also, better with sweet chili sauce at home and… a Premium! Definitely going back again… and prob. again…