Shanghai Place

Good food and very friendly owner. Inexpensive too. I known Helen for almost 15 yrs now.

We should have known better when the entire shop is completely empty during weekend dinner hours and the only person inside is a Honey Boo-​Boo lookin’ lady. I’m not a fan of negative Unilocal but I had to do 1 Star because this place has SO MANY 5 Stars and I can’t fathom the iron stomachs these people must have. Oh well… pump people with enough sodium and grease and I suppose they’ll eat anything after a while.
Unfortunately, I’m pretty sure «Pork» was the name of their dog before I ate it. If you bite into three different kinds of meat and they all taste the same but with different sauces, SPIT IT OUT. Some people may look forward to that «I hate myself» feeling after eating. Heck, who doesn’t love regret when it comes to food? *however!* No one should have to feel that WHILE eating…
Anyway, if you’ve ever discovered old, gray, stink-​meat from the back of your freezer and have eaten it without any negative impact, HIGHLY RECOMMEND.

To start out, their restrooms were terribly kept.
Both mine and my lunch partners food was very very bland.
I had to ask for hot sauce, also had to ask for chop sticks, the waiter commented on my empty water at one point and did not just bring me a water refill therefore I ended up having to ask for more. My lunch partner didn’t even eat all of his food due to the blandness, mind you we both ordered separate dishes, O, and our soup was way way way to thick.
Won’t come here again.

We are back for more cops food & lovely service. I usually get take out & it’s always great! They have magazines to read & plum wine! Or dine in my parents always like coming here so bring your parents! always happy with the food

I’ve eaten here once, the food was impressive and it taught me a lesson, never mess with the best or you’ll get moo goo on your chest.
I’m certain that this Chinese food was very nice, probably not good enough to be a vice, but they have a good staff and serve lots of rice, I’m positive that this is not Ill advise.
Wu Tang Chicken is the best.
That is all.

We have lived in Mission Viejo for 16 years and just found this place. We never knew about one of the cities best kept secrets. The food was great! It’s my new «go to» for Chinese food. Besides the great food, the price is right too.

Great service and delicious food at a great price. Always greetwdlike family the owner is always so kind and makes us feel like we are part of her family she is so sweet to my daughter :)

Probably the best Chinese food I’ve had ever. Lady is super nice and we received large portions for a very reasonable price.

I really was craving some yummy Chinese food and I remembered reading about this place, so decided to come and try it out. Oh my, did I make the right choice. The food is flavorful, well seasoned, and it comes out nice and fresh. I ENJOYED every moment of my culinary experience at this hole in the wall chinese restaurant. This is truly a gem!

I have been coming to this place since I was a little girl. It’s my favorite Chinese restaurant by far! This was my family’s weekly meeting spot when we all lived in the area. Love it!

We have been going to this place for twenty years or more. Our favorite is the feast for one. The flavors and combinations are just perfect. We spend special occasions here as well as just wanting good Chinese food. Helen and her team are the best. She has always been good to us. We’re like family. Authentic Chinese with a quiet atmosphere can always be found here. And ask about the fried chicken wings. Best in town.

I’ve been coming here for over 20 years! Helen the hostess is always so cheerful and nice! Wether I call an order in to go or come and sit down to eat a meal; Im always satisfied! The food is always delicious and hot!!! The prices are very reasonable also! I love the sweet and sour pork and any vegetable chicken dish. The cream wontons and egg soup are yummy too!
I recommend this place highly :)

I am a fried rice connoisseur and they have the best pork fried rice I have ever had! I go here once a month.

It’s late at night and I’m starving. Found this hidden gem close by and decided to check it out. My first impression of this restaurant was that it’s outdated. I sat down and they served some chips with this weird looking gelatin red sauce, I guess it was sweet and sour and surprisingly, it wasn’t that bad although it didn’t look very pleasing to the eye. I LOVVVEEE the service here, the owner I believe was Ann, she is so sweet! When I ordered some potstickers, I was also debating on some cream cheese wontons but I didn’t want to order two appetizers so she said it was on the house. Wow. Blown away by their nice gesture. I also ordered shrimp with lobster sauce, which I don’t recommend, however, I definitely recommend their green beans in garlic sauce and their amazing egg drop soup. For dessert, they served some yummy fried caramel apples, ahhh great way to end the night. I’ll even order that Togo just to snack on haha. Food isn’t crazy amazing like most places but the price is so reasonable (most dishes between $ 5-​$ 7) and service is the best that I’ll definitely be coming back!

I am Chinese so I know good Chinese food but unfortunately you won’t find it here at this restaurant.
You walk in the the waitresses barely spoke English and can’t hear you either. They seem like nice ladies but the communication was non-​existent. The people at the table next to us asked them how are you doing and they responded you want egg rolls? They did not understand English and yet they were the best part of the restaurant.
Because we were so hungry and it was late, we stayed to eat. We ordered egg rolls, chow mein, orange chicken, Buddhas feast and won ton soup thinking these would be safe dishes. It was so bad and worse than most fast food Chinese restaurants. I would not recommend this restaurant unless you are starving and are out of gas to drive to a real restaurant.

Helen is amazing! My family has been going here for like 15 years. The food is amazing and portions are great for the price. Would 100% recommend the cream cheese wontons, lemon chicken, fried rice, egg drop soup and literally anything else on the menu. Great service and they always come by for refills. Can’t wait to eat here for another 15 years.

The mixed reviews for this restaurant surprise me; I think this is an above-​average family-​type Chinese restaurant, and thus the four stars.
My wife and I have been here a couple of times, and went for dinner last night. Perhaps Monday isn’t a big eat-​out day, but we were the only patrons during our stay. They did, however, get at least one take-​out phone order.
We each selected from their «Feast for One» page; I ordered cashew chicken; my wife selected a shrimp with vegetable dish.
We both enjoyed the generous portion of sweet-​and-​sour soup; it was thick, hearty, and tasty. Then came the traditional appetizer plate — egg roll, roil-​wrapped checken, and wonton. Not bad at all. And we kept munching on the large plate of fried noodles that had been initially brought out.
Both entrees were good-​sized. I realize I wasn’t ordering a spicy dish, but would have liked a little more «kick» to what was a quite-​tasty meal. Otherwise I had a fine dinner, with a glass of white zin to enjoy with it. And my wife scarfed down the shrimp dish without complaint.
Service was quite attentive; my water glass was refilled without asking.
We both walked out very happy with our evening meal.

Never disappointed in the service and food here. Loaded with flavor and light on the oil. Everyone knows owner Helen. So polite, genuine and always please to meet you. Always treats us to egg rolls and wontons. Honey shrimp with pecans out of this world. House specials all divine. Chop suey super healthy

Hubby and I have lived just moments away from Shanghai Place for going on over 15 years and it took a Unilocal search to find it!
Particulars: Open 7 days a week, normal type business hours (*reminder you are in MV and we roll up the carpet early). No msg is used and the food is standard Mandarin & Szechuan fare, with what you’d expect on the menu. We took our food to go, it was definitely still hot-​warmish by the time eating began.
Food: House Beef, Lemon Chicken, Beef Chow Mein, House Special Fried Rice and Pan Fried Dumplings were ordered and a free app of Egg Rolls were thrown in for free (a nice touch). Nothing was great and nothing was bad. The price, the size and the taste are all reasonable. I felt the quality of the House Beef was on the higher end, just a bit boring. My daughter was pleased with the Lemon Chicken, as it was breast, but the lemon flavor was on the light side. The Beef Chow Mein was bland, but I’ll give high props that this typical dish had a bit better quality beef in it, tender and not fatty. Hubby felt the House Sp Fried Rice was just fine, but lacking in some pow and the egg was overcooked. We all agreed that the Pan Fried Dumplings and Egg Rolls were just meh.
Extras & Tidbits: This is a restaurant and clearly you can dine-​in. Small, but clean. Located in a small strip mall at Los Alisos & Jeronimo. The woman who took my order was very, very nice. I felt very welcomed. All credit cards accepted.
Slightly Bizarre: Next day beef chow mein leftovers were better! It was like the flavor soaked in somehow magically.
You do get fortune cookies and don’t forget to add … Between The Sheets … at the end of reading your fortune!

After getting all caught up on Game of Thrones and eating a very unsatisfying lunch last Sunday, the better half decided to order some take out Chinese while I was walking Kaya around Spectrum. We have been living in Mission Viejo for over a dozen years, this place is right next to my dry cleaners and we had never tried it until this particular evening. I guess you could say this place was hiding in plain sight and practically right under our noses.
Rohlinism: It is truly a wonder how I found anything before the internet!
When my lovely wife called and informed me of the dinner plans, I told her to order me the House Special Fried Rice (
) or whatever was similar on the menu.
In addition to my House Special Fried Rice (that was the right name, funny how it almost never changes no matter where you order from), there was an order of House Special Beef, Lemon Chicken (
), Beef Chow Mein (
) and Chicken Pan Fried Dumplings (
). The owner had also thrown in a free order of Vegetarian Egg rolls … a very nice touch.
The food was still warm we the ladies arrived home and we started digging into our dinner and watching the latest episode of Game of Thrones.
I thought the House Special Fried Rice had a decent amount of meat in it, but the egg was almost entirely overcooked (How do you screw up something even Pick Up Stix gets right most of the time?). The flavor of the rice was decent and the portion was on the larger size. The Beef Chow Mein had a good quality of beef and the noodle were nicely cooked, but it was practically devoid of flavor. The Chicken Pan Fried Dumplings had a nice sear, but I couldn’t tell from the flavor if I was eating chicken or not (Bringing to mind the famous fortune «That wasn’t Chicken!»). The free Vegetarian Egg Rolls? Hey … they were free!
The House Special Beef again used a good quality of beef and finally something with a good flavor or any flavor at all. I was beginning to wonder if someone had slipped me some ruffies and taken my taste buds while I was out! The Lemon chicken was another good entrée. Whole Breast chicken, lightly battered with a good sauce with the right amount of citrus. The last standouts were the Hot Mustard and Sweet and Sour sauces. The Hot Mustard had a nice flavor and really brought the heat and the Sweet and Sour had a nice balance.
A little bit pricier than other fast food Chinese, but some of the dishes warranted the increased price. I was told the owner was very friendly and of course through in the free rolls. I wouldn’t be against a return visit, especially consider the close proximity to our house.