Chung Shin Yuan

I heard from family that they like the dim sum here. I brought a guest and my wife here.
We ordered the soybean milk, the fried dough, the glutinous rice wrap, the pekinese noodles and the fried scallion beef sandwich.
It wasn’t bad but not great either. It seems to lack enough seasoning.
I wouldn’t recommend waiting in line for this place. The food is ok at best.
If you want Taiwanese style dim sum/​brunch, I would suggest Shangri La in Belmont, it is better.

It’s been a decade since I’ve been back to this place for authentic Taiwanese breakfast. I still love dunking fried u-​toy in hot sweet soybean milk and eating preserved eggs over tofu with along with a plate of a toasted sesame seed sandwich with slices of braised meat. I also like anything with chives whether it’s in a pancake or dumplings. The xiao long bao doesn’t have much soup, so I’d go elsewhere fo it.
Service is fast. This place is usually packed unless you go early or late. Parking is available on the street.

Dim sum is great and filling. I went with my friends here and the portions were small so we ordered a variety of dishes. The beef soup is definitely worth the wait.

Taiwanese brunch review:
–Come around 11am if you don’t want to wait when the restaurant opens at 11:30am.
–order the donuts, turnip cakes, spareribs
–not many vegetarian options
–beef noodle soup is good! I’m aware it’s not a traditional Taiwanese brunch option
–service is slow and spotty (typical)
–they’ll give you crap if your entire party is not present upon seating

Why would one set the weekend alarm, drive to the suburbs, and stand in a long queue? If you are located in Boston, you may be preparing for Taiwanese dim sum and breakfast. I love their soy milk and turnip. The latter is always toasted to perfection.

This review is only for the weekend Taiwanese brunch that’s only available on Saturday and Sundays from 11:30am-2:30pm. While there are certainly some other options for Taiwanese brunch available (Taiwan Café in Chinatown and Shangri-​la in Belmont come to mind), this is hands down the best of the bunch.
The menu is plentiful, and almost everything that I’ve ordered has been authentic and tasty. My absolute favorites include the sweet soy bean milk, the pan fried white turnip cake, and the 油条 (chinese fried dough on the menu). Outside of Taiwan, the 油条 is hands down the best I’ve had — and that’s from having grown up in LA. The next tier of items (if you have more in your party and willing to share) include the very delicious spicy beef noodle soup, scallion pancake, shao-​bing with five spice beef sandwich, and the chinese style peking meat sauce noodle. If you’re really adventurous, try the fried chitlins. They’re fried with just the right amount of crisp and salted to perfection. Good appetizers to whet your appetite would include pork ear salad, seaweed salad, and the soy bean noodle salad. To finish off your meal, I highly recommend the tofu jello with light syrup. Just thinking about all the food makes me hungry…
Frankly, you can’t go wrong with almost anything on the menu. The items not listed are good, but probably not something I can eat in one sitting given all the other things that I want to have when I’m there. It’s really too bad it’s only open on the weekends!
Finally — note that if you want to eat here at 11:30am, you’ll have to arrive a bit earlier to wait in line. The first «round» of seats quickly fills up. That means that if you come at 11:30am, it’s likely that you’ll have to wait until 12:15pm or so to get seated.

You should only come here for Taiwanese brunch on Saturday and Sunday mornings. I’d give that 4 stars. 0 stars for dinner service on a random Tuesday evening where you’ll end up ordering generic fried rice and general gao’s chicken because there’s nothing else really all that worthwhile on the menu. Also, for some strange reason — you will be waiting an eternity for your food even though the whole restaurant only had patrons at two tables. Really bizarre.
I’d suggest these guys expand some of their Taiwanese offerings to not only be during Saturday and Sunday brunch (Ex: beef noodle soup, pork chop rice, etc.)

This review is specifically for the Sunday brunch service. My family of 6 came here around 12:30, and the place was so busy! We waited half an hour for a table. Good thing is once you sit down, food comes out relatively quickly.
We each ordered a round of sweet soy milk and fried dough 甜豆浆和油条, and it was AMAZING. I haven’t had such a great 豆浆 since going to China. The soy milk had the right level of sweetness and a perfect consistency and tasted even better when you dipped the fried dough into it.
Afterwards, we ordered a beef noodle soup, a dry noodle covered in sauce 炸酱面, and a number of dumpling options. The beef noodle soup was very tasty, noodles were chewy and stewed beef was super flavorful. It had a mild level of spiciness, so generally suitable for all tolerance levels. I wasn’t crazy about anything else that we ordered. It was good, but nothing remarkable.
The service here is not spectacular. It was a hot and humid summer day in Boston, and the air conditioning was not nearly strong enough. I probably sweated half the calories I ate, so maybe consider getting take-​out? Either way, I can always overlook poor service if the prices are low and food delivers, and this place definitely does.

I’ve been a fan of this place for a while now… and like many others, have come to learn that if you can overlook the service here, the food is quite excellent. Both their dim sum and regular dinner menus are quite delicious. It’s also nice to have a Taiwanese option amongst the Cantonese-​rich eateries of Boston. I’m always a sucker for good Ma Po Tofu, and there’s is quite delectable.
I can say this — there was a time I’d have given them 5 stars, perhaps back around 2007. I do feel perhaps their quality slipped one notch over the years, which I’ve discussed with friends as perhaps «cutting corners» with rising costs of ingredients. Regardless of this, their food remains strong and worth a recommendation.

Had very low expectations. It looks like a hole in the wall, but it was surprisingly tasty and the traditional Chinese standards (mu shu, scallion pancakes, tofu with bean sauce) stood up. Great for takeout.

Traditional Chinese and Taiwanese breakfast! Worth to try different things each time!

It’s been awhile since I was so unsure of my final rating on a review. Honestly, my ranges were from 2 to 4, but settled on 3 due to lack of a similar option in the area (and for Taiwanese brunch on the weekends, very limited options in Boston) despite the many dishes that missed their mark, although they were close. Since their brunch offering is a bit like tapas with lots of variety of dishes to choose from, this review will be more like a list for ease:
The Pros:
–Taiwanese Brunch. Not many places offer this, and it’s very reminiscence of childhood memories in Taiwan!
–Soy bean milk is solid — not too sweet or creamy, a perfect balance!
–It’s packed. I know, weird pro point, but that just means it’s a solid place if you’re willing to wait as this restaurant is in a very secluded neighborhood.
–Pan fried dumplings were very delicious. Although I would have preferred thicker skin, but that’s my American side coming out.
The Cons:
–Limited seats. Brunch is of course their prime time, so consider coming right when they open or around 1−2pm when the first wave starts to die down.
–Tiny steamed dumplings didn’t do it — skin was dry, and the taste unfortunately bland. Plus, they didn’t have black vinegar to dip with — wtf!
–Spicy beef noodle soup was not spicy. One of the three items on there with a chili sign. so. I expected. you know, spicy. Well it wasn’t. Also, could have used some bok choy, it was a bit heavy with just noodles and beef (which were good at least).
The Compromise:
–Lack of Parking. Literally about 3 – 4 spots off-​street. On-​street is a bit of a stretch as this is more off a residential area, so you’ll be a bit confused finding street parking. But there’s actually ample space despite the restaurant being crowded — you just may need to walk a bit. Just don’t park at the adjacent McDonalds!
–Fried dough was HUGE and tasty — however, it was a bit too crispy (not enough dough, or they overfried it).
–Vermicelli with chitlins (pig’s intestines, it sounds gross but trust me, this is a delicious Taiwanese staple) was very delicious and hard to find so well prepared in Boston, but missing pickled veggies. How can you not add this, it’s a staple in itself. How. Howwww?
— Shao-​bing beef sandwich was solid, but dry. Could have used Hoisin sauce.
Maybe my standards are a bit higher since I eat some good ass authentic Taiwanese cuisine at home, and have scoured the streets of Taiwan nomming on street food in the past. However, many dishes fell short of my expectations despite presenting a solid dish. In any case, I do recommend trying the Vermicelli with chitlins. Seriously. Try it. If I had to name a dish that represents Taiwan, it would be that dish, so swallow any second thoughts and be adventurous!

This place has THE BEST TAIWANESE BREAKFAST (only available on the weekends). I knew this place was authentic when I walked in and heard people speak Mandarin! There was a 10 min wait when we got there around 2. I’ve heard that the line is always long so come early or come late — they close at 2:30.
The menu has so many items I wanted to try, but since I knew I couldn’t eat that much we settled for beef noodle soup, fried leek dumplings, soy milk, and the pork ribs. My favorite was definitely the fried leek dumplings! The beef noodle soup was also really good and not too spicy. I also saw people order large plates of pig ear and that looked so good! The food was delicious and the prices were reasonable. I can see why this place is a favorite!

Finally! A Taiwanese place I would recommend amd come back to! :) boy was I excited when I saw pictures of this place on Unilocal.I arrived for weekend «dimsum» (not your Hong Kong type with carts, here you order ala carte and can choose from am array of Taiwanese eats) at 2:20pm. They close for lunch at 2:30, but the place was still bustlin! And it was mostly Asians which I consider a good sign of good authentic food. I really wanted some pan fried buns but they were out, so got the scallion pancake, Taiwanese lao mian, the chitlins noodle soup, fried white turnip cake, and soy bean milk with youtiao. The youtiao and scallion pancake were a bit oily but still good. I have to admit I didn’t try the chitlins noodle soup cause I don’t like intestines, but from what I hear it was good. The lao mian was my fave though, nice flavor throughout, nice texture to the noodles, and nice fried onion crunch going on. The soy bean milk came out piping hot which I appreciate and tasted nutritious and freshly made. The turnip cake was different than ones I’ve had, cause there was no dried shrimps mixed in, and I actually prefer it without cause you can taste the subtle flavor of the turnip. Def enjoyed the food here and it was totally worth the drive out. Will be back!

Great lunch place, specially weekends.
Space is tight so I like to come here before 1130 to wait in line. Otherwise the wait is long.

Solid Taiwanese food in the Boston area. I’d come for either (Taiwan style) dim sum on the weekends, or for dinner during the weekdays. Depending on the timing crowds can range from empty to incredibly packed, line out the door. And for good reason: the food is just great. Skip the Americanized dishes. Come here if you’re ready to order the real thing.
I see some reviewers complain of poor service. What do these people expect? If you’re looking for Ritz Carlton, then by all means hop in your limo and head down to the Ritz Carlton. This is a casual neighborhood restaurant, so temper your expectations for service accordingly.
I would absolutely come back, as I have many times. Bring cash just in case you don’t break the credit card minimum charge limit.

customer since childhood, always get the beef noodle soup, chitlins, fried dough, quality sometimes inconsistent depending when you go there
also only do take out now since so many people come for weekend dim sum and wait sometimes unbearable
but close by, good chinese food, service is typical chinese, min on credit card
weekday menu entirely different, very westernized, but several good choices such as spicy cod, twice cooked beef; lunch special good too like delights of 3
but weekend brunch is only real reason to come

I feel like this place has slightly decreased in quality over the years but I still enjoy it enough that I want to come back everytime I am in town for some of my favorite items. I come for their weekend dim sum. When you first take a glance at their menu the prices may seem high. But the portions for the dim sum here are a lot bigger. We got 6 dishes and that was enough for our party of 4. Whereas at most other places you would need maybe 10 small plates to satisfy everyone’s appetites.
Make sure to get the Shao-​Big with Five Spice Beef Sandwich. Spicy Stewed Beef Noodle Soup is always tasty. The chive pie is sort of like a scallion pancake but more in a massive dumpling form.
I also like the pan fried white turnip cake. Steamed spiced spareibs, these come with chunks of sweet potato. So the contrast in flavor is nice.
The steamed glutinous rice is wrapped in bamboo leaves and has peanuts and pieces of pork in it which isn’t mentioned on the menu.
For dessert can’t go wrong with tofu jello in light syrup. Or I also like to get the shao-​bing and dunk it in the sweet soy milk. Some people eat the bread as is. that’s lame! Dunking it is way more fun. Kinda like China’s version of tea and crumpets I guess.

The soy bean milk and Chinese fried dough are my favorite. Pan fried white turnip cake surprised me with excellent taste and sauce.

I love trying different cuisines and experiencing different flavor profiles, so I was really excited when my sister told me we were coming here for saturday brunch. This was my first time trying Taiwanese food and I’ve got to say — not bad!
My sister claimed that this place fills up really fast so we got there at 11:15AM (the place opens @ 11:30AM) and waited in line with about 10 – 15 other people before the place even opened up. The interior is pretty small, but the food comes out extremely fast so we were in and out of there in like an hour — 1.5 hrs. It fills up fast so make sure you come a bit early or expect a wait time!
We ordered the following:
1. Soy bean milk (sweet) with fried dough — extremely delicious. the dough comes out piping hot and the soy bean milk is not too sweet. the bowl is really big — you can share it between 2 – 3 people (we didn’t know the bowls were so big and ended up ordering one bowl/person…none of us could finish it. I think we had 2 bowls left untouched so we packed it, of course :))
2. Pan fried buns — I loved this especially with the hot sauce (you need to ask for this). Nothing more to say, just an amazing pork bun.
3. Steamed Glutinous Rice — It’s steamed in a bamboo leaf and there are HUGE pieces of meat and beans in it. My parents didn’t like it so much. We could have done without since we ordered so much, but I still enjoyed it.
4. Pan Fried White Turnip Cake — An interesting way to serve turnip! Delicious
5. Taiwan Style Calamari Soup — the BEST PART! I loved this soup. It wasn’t too salty and it hit the spot on a cold, autumn day. We had to order 2 bowls to feed 8 people (just a reference to show you how big it is)
Overall, very good dining experience! I can’t attest to the «authenticity» of the food since it was my first time trying Taiwanese food, but everything that we ordered was delicious and I wouldn’t mind waiting in line to come here again!