Three Ocean

ADHD: Cheap, for sure. But if you can afford closer to $ 30 vs. $ 20 per person, then just check out my Crustacean Celebration list for better choices nearby.
The Service: Attentive, professional, no qualms. Changed plates quite often. Wet napkins made available.

The Cost: Cheap. They have the special on Lobster at times. For Chinese New Years, though they had an 8 plate (family style) prefix that came with lobster and a lot of other typically ordered dishes, it came to $ 18/​person, which is a great deal. In general, 2 lobsters which is 2 – 2.5lbs comes to $ 18.50 currently on our bill. Hence, for pricing you get 4 points.
The Atmosphere: Here you get four points as it’s got that Chinatown-​esqueness. The bathrooms are generally clean. There are plenty of large tables in the front and back dining area. They are split apart from each other and that contains the noise levels. It’s one of the few «A» rated places; so safe for those less adventurous (a.k.a. people who haven’t built up their resistance to food poisoning.)
The Food: Made me wonder if an «A» rating is a good thing when it comes to Chinatown. Since I gave them a 4 for all else, it’s really the food that is disappointing. It’s not that it wasn’t edible; it was. If you don’t know how amazing these dishes can be, e.g. their full potential, then may be start with this place until you build up enough enzymes and anti-​bacteria in your stomach and intestines to handle the rest of Chinatown. If you already have that, let me tell you the ways in which this place disappoints.
1. The Shrimp with walnuts was solid ABC, which is what this dish is. The world has simply moved past that being enough. You got to really do something with this dish. Still, I give you 3 stars for this.
2. Snow pea pod leaves. WAY too much stem and the glossiness wasn’t quite there. It was dull. The flavor was okay… it wasn’t amazing. I ate it all, but that is more because I have very specific fiber intake goals. 1.5 stars
3. Lobster. Since I’m primarily lobster-​focused AND because your name references some sort of ability to do seafood well, this is a total pass. I have never — in all my lobster eating years — noticed that much oil at the bottom of the plate. That could be for two reasons.
a) No one else makes it with that much oil.
b) I’ve never been so bored by the taste that I noticed the oil.
Either way, it’s just no good. That was the blandest ginger scallion lobster I have ever had. That’s sad because the lobster itself wasn’t to blame. You didn’t skimp out on the size. That was just a failure on the recipe. Not enough salt? Not quite the right temperature to get the sauce to stick to the outside of the lobster? Not quite the right something in the mix of seasoning. I don’t know, but it’s no good. 1 star.
If it’s crowded in Chinatown; you can’t wait, and are new to this cuisine. Go right ahead. It’s edible and better than food outside of Chinatown (sans flushing and parts of NJ). Otherwise — as I started with — just check out my Crustaceans Celebration list.

Happy Chinese New Year! And what better way to celebrate than to venture down to Chinatown and get my grub on! And having been given the day off (Thanks Boss Lady!), it was an opportunity not to be missed.
So onto the Q Train and voila… Chinatown. As I arrived shortly after lunchtime, the festivities were on full force. Confetti lining the streets. Children popping little dynamites at my feet. Dragon dancers all over the place. And just by following the first set of Dragon dancers made me work up an appetite.
Onto lunch it is, and I remember coming to this place where I went last year with my parents during the holidays… and WHAT? No wait for a table? SCORE!
Now, it was only me, so I had to contain from ordering everything on the menu. One of my favorite delicacies is fried oysters, Chinese style, with an order of bok choy… both signifying prosperity for New Years.
I was in heaven. The oysters, fried golden and crispy and they were a burst of flavors in my mouth. And dip it in the sweet and sour sauce… WOW!
The bok choy, you ask? Yes, I almost forgot about them… NOT. Fresh. Stir fried perfectly, with chunchs of garlic. What a treat!
No better way to kick off the new year than with a filled tummy with delicious food.
Kung Hay Fat Choy, Everyone! Best of luck in the Year of the Dragon!

This is my new go to place for birthday’s, celebrations or just to have a good meal with friends. The portions were huge and the price was reasonable for the quality of food :)
15 of us came here for a birthday party and the bill was less than 20 bucks per person. We ordered Peking duck, Lobster, Crabs, Fish, Steak, Chicken and other yummy dishes.
I am addicted. Peking duckhouse is no longer getting my business :)
They also have a private back room that will fit up to 30 people.

I have been here twice now with my in laws and I think their food has been progressively getting better. We ordered peking duck, jumbo shrimp with walnuts, crispy chicken, lobster, crispy noodle in seafood and sauteed pea leaves. They have a great deal for lobster if you order two or more dishes. I believe you get a pound of it for 10 bucks but the writing is in Chinese and I didn’t get around to asking about it. In any case, you get a tremendous bang for your buck here. I think for all that food among 6 people, we paid just over 20 bucks per person. At a seafood joint? That’s unreal. Don’t pinch me cos I don’t wanna wake up from this dream. It’s places like these that define china town for me.

Love this place. Try to eat here every time in NYC. The Fried rice with golden raisins and the chinese greens with garlic always make it in the table. If you order 3 dishes, you can get the lobster special for $ 9.

The food is excellent here. I’ve been here two times this past month with groups of at least 6 people. The abalone, fried rice, lobster with ginger and garlic, buddha’s delight, and shrimp with walnut dishes are mouth-​watering!
We brought wine from outside and they opened the bottle for us and even provided wine glasses for us. Great service!

I’m surprised for the bad reviews? This place changed owners 2 years ago and the food is good and the place is clean for a Chinatown restaurant. Salted fish in minced pork, salted egg pan friend with crabs, lobster chow mein, steamed whole fish all cooked very well… and authentic!
I’ve been here many times and requested the few tables in the back room,. perfect for gatherings with kids.
Enjoy!

My friend moved to Chinatown recommended to try Shanghai Kitchen but unfortunately it was closed. But I was happy to move on because after watching the show about two guys from sanitation visit restaurants in Chinatown. The show was to make you sick and definitely it did to me. Since, I tried to go to the restaurant only have a letter sticker «A», A rated restaurant. Shanghai Kitchen had nothing posted.
I walked around and spotted this place. Chinese lady came out from the restaurant said she had good lunch. I walked in not knowing what to expect. The restaurant wasn’t Sichuan but I opted for mapo tofu. it wasn’t authentic but had a good Cantonese comfort flavor that I enjoyed. A touch of heat coming form red pepper and julienned ginger worked well with fresh green peas. Soft tofu and smoky white rice complimented each other well.
Lunch ($ 5.50) doesn’t come with a soup choice but the portion was good enough to satisfy my stomach.

not a horrible place, but could use improvement. the wait staff was cordial enough and the food was ok. we had the garlic chicken, mayo shrimp, fish maw soup, some tofu casserole dish and pea shoots. actually, nothing to rave about but at least I wasn’t disgusted with the food which makes this place ok. actually, after rereading my review, this place really is meh. i probably would have been really upset if i had to pay for that meal.

Not bad, was here when there was a lobster special going on — $ 10 for 2 delicious clawed monsters for dinner. Ate with my parents and fiancé. Food was tasty Cantonese-​styled — well-​seasoned and subtle flavors. I wasn’t too happy about the nearly 1 hr wait for a table when we walked in, and didn’t appreciate all the people who had called ahead of time, but was a generally tasty meal.
Dishes are decently-​sized, unlike some of the restaurants that have leaned more towards smaller portions in recent years. I’m sure lunch here is much better, especially since it would be much cheaper for the work crowds!
I’d go back again for sure, if it wasn’t for the walk-​in dinner line.

Been here a few more times since my first review, and they are now starting to include SALES TAX in your bill. FRACK! However, their food portions are still VERY AMPLE and TASTY. I would still recommend this place for lunch. Been here for dinner once, hoping to see very reasonable prices, but the bll for 2 of us was in the $ 30 range. Though their food is VERY GOOD, I do not like spending THAT much for Chinese Dinner, so I would not recommend eating here for DINNER. Come here ONLY FOR LUNCH.

Came here on a Saturday in late August 2010 and things were going great. We were talking, laughing, sipping tea, munching on peanuts and salivating over the $ 10 lobster special while debating what else to order and then, BAM!, the kitchen gets shut down. On the way out, we caught a glance of the food inspector and he looked pretty pissed.
I googled for some kind of food safety report but still nothing to be found yet except for their violations from 2009. Dude, this all happened almost exactly a year to the date of their last visit. You’d think they’d wise up a little. Jeez. The peanuts were good though.

Oh another good eats place in Chinatown and open on the 4^th of July for dinner The lobster tasted pretty yummy and it was cheap, We also got korean style short ribs and a mongolian pork dish as well we got some greens and another dish or two. All tasty in my book. The service was good and so was the décor. I opted for togo chopsticks again only because I have what is that called. Anyways this place was good.

Every year some former co-​workers of mine through a Chinese New Year Party at a Restaurant in China Town. It is always a fun night. The organizer does all the ordering and the general tone is «do not ask what it is but just eat it». This year the party was at Three Ocean.
Three Ocean is probably not a restaurant that I would pick out on my own but I do enjoy finding new places. I was definitely not disappointed. While there were some food that I did pass on I have to say that everything I did eat was very good. The service was excellent and it was a great night catching up with old friends.

Unfortunately, I am writing my first 2-​star review and it’s for Three Oceans.
We went to Chinatown on a sunny spring Sunday looking for something different. We didn’t want to do the usual grand dim sum bazaars like Golden Bridge or Jing Fong and wanted to explore somewhere new.
Three Oceans looked great from the outside. It was small place and looked clean (which is important). Wasn’t sure which 3 oceans are inferred or whether this place was related to the Three Oceans Restaurant in London but we ventured in nonetheless.
The restaurant was hot… hot — not as awesome or spicy-​wise but temperature-​wise. They needed to crack the door or crank up the AC to make it a bit more comfortable for their customers.
We ordered a couple dishes and it was mediocre. We’ve had better Chinese food in many other places. This restaurant positions itself as higher-​end so the prices were higher.
For what it is, Three Oceans should be skipped, if possible. There’s sure to be better food at better values in every direction possible from this place.

it’s always good to know what to order off the menu and it helps when i go eat there with my uncle who used to be a chef in chinatown and still knows what and what not to order
i’ll definitely go back again without my uncle and see if it’s because of him that they put extra effort making the dish
for your reference, here’s what we had:
stir fried lobsters with minced beef and salted eggs
fish and veggie soup (forgot what fish it was but i’d taste the sweetness and freshness of the fish in the soup)
stir fried goose intestine
squid with veggies

Three Ocean’s 2 lobster for $ 10 special is amazing. Limited to 1 order per table. You can choose from several styles. There’s the steamed with garlic sauce (good for the elderly who are more health concious), the salt and peppered lobster (the batter tastes great), and the traditional cantonese style lobster.
The seabass is AMAZING, have it customized with black bean sauce. Comes out tender, buttery, and melts in your mouth.
Their SzeChuan style tofu with ground beef dish is pretty amazing too. Didn’t have as much meat as I had expected, judging from what was shown on the menu, but the silky tofu more than made up for that.
Family style dishes are priced reasonably $ 10-​$ 15, and from the 3 times I’ve eatten there, total bill comes out to be no more than $ 20/​person.
Great for group gatherings with family or friends (4−10ppl) who likes to try a little of everything.

So Three Ocean replaced East Ocean Restaurant and recently had its Grand Opening 2 weeks ago. I believe restaurants in Chinatown change names/​owners/​awnings frequently due to some kind of loophole in tax law.
Anyway, they had some crazy lobster specials and considering it was my parents’ 30 yr anniversary, they wanted some lobster so we ate here. 2 small lobsters Canto style=$ 10. Awesome deal and it was the best dish of the night. Sadly, nothing else was very good.
We ordered the special house soup which was tasty. It had some special herbs which my dad swears was from Tibet. We ordered half Canto style crispy chicken. It came with a ginger scallion sauce and it was different from the ginger scallion sauce you get with white cut chicken. Anyway, this sauce was weird for the crispy chicken. The crispy chicken was disappointing. It was a bit too bloody and the skin was soggy. Oh and the rice? It was kind of dry. Yuck.
Moving on, we ordered bitter melon with spare ribs in black bean sauce which was ok. Bitter melon is exactly what it sounds like, melon that is bitter and I only suggest ordering this if you have tried it before. Lastly, we ordered steamed fish which was tough and the sauce was not flavorful.
Compared to other ctown restaurants, the space is very limited and the kitchen is upstairs and the food comes down from 2 food elevators. As for the food, it is way below average. Three OCean, please change your name to One Ocean.