Ruby China Chinese Restaurant

OK, so the search for good Chinese food in New England took me to Ruby China. The trend of mediocre Chinese food continued unfortunately. I’d gone in with expectations of good food based on the ratings. Being a San Diego native, maybe my expectations are different
The Chicken Fried Rice was bland as was the Hot and Sour, and Egg Drop soups. Our 9 year old son liked the Chicken Lo Mein and Egg Rolls. My Orange Chicken, while labeled spicy, wasn’t, and it was just OK.
On a side note, the fortune cookie fortunes were a little strange. Our son got one that said «A tub and rub will change your day.» That sounds close to being illegal! Maybe they own a nearby spa…
…

Family owned business with delicious food! Highly recommend!

I needed to come back and update. When Ruby China first opened, I thought it was one of the better take out Chinese restaurants I’ve been to. But the last few times the quality has been well below average.
We gave them another shot last night and again were unimpressed. We just ordered a Pu Pu platter for two with an order of chicken lo mein. To our surprise we also received an order of pork fried rice which comes free with the platter. It did not enhance the experience.
The platter came with steak teriyaki, chicken wings, chicken fingers, fried shrimp, crab Rangoon, boneless spare ribs, and two egg rolls. Only the chicken fingers deserved any positive comment as they weren’t icy and meaty.
Steak teriki were small slivers of thin steak strips, looking more like jerky. The same can be said for the spareribs. The chicken wings were dry and not very meaty with an odd flavor. The fried shrimp was mainly fried batter. The crab Rangoon were overly sweet cream cheese with little if any crab. And the egg rolls were drab, mainly minced flavorless veggies. Very disappointing platter.
I hate over cooked pasta, and that is what we got with the lo mein. The noodles were so overcooked they were like mush. There was little chicken to be found except for one big piece of cartilage.
And that free order of pork fried rice was also flavorless rice with no bits of pork to be found. It was just rice, nothing more.
I should drop them down to one star based on last night. But maybe their lead cook was out, or just had a bad day. So I leave them with two stars, but will be hard pressed to return.

We are very fortunate to have such nice owners Ruby & Ping in Pelham. Their food is always our first choice. Definitely my favorite stop for Chinese!
We wish you continued success!

I was a little skeptical of dining at a Chinese food restaurant in a strip mall but I was pleasantly surprised with Ruby China Chinese. It was a good sign that there was a steady stream of locals coming in for takeout. We ordered the appetizer combo and coconut shrimp. In a word fantastic! Best crab Rangoon and the coconut shrimp sauce was amazing. Definitely worth a visit.

Excellent!
I grew up in San Francisco where the Chinese food is habitually fantastic. Since moving to NH I’ve been looking for a decent place and had just about given up hope on finding anything close to the quality I’m used to when I found Ruby China.
This place could easily hold it’s own in my old home town. :-)
The fried rice is not soaked in soy sauce, it is flavorful without being a salt lick of soy and msg. I got a beef and seafood entrée and they were well prepared, not soaked in batter and then deep friend to within and inch of it’s life… the flavors were wonderful, the portions generous, lots of veggies. Prices were reasonable… most entrees in the $ 9.75 range.
Ruby China is a win and is now my hands down new go-​to place for Chinese food… Yay!

I tried this restaurant and pretty much agree with Pete U’s review. I am extremely fussy and cleanliness is a big deal to me. I never bothered trying the other one in town just based on their exterior presentation… to me it doesn’t show much interest in winning over new customers and they cant be bothered putting money into the place.
I was pleasantly surprised with how clean Ruby China is and you can see right into the big open kitchen. I agree with other reviewers that service can be a little slow. I think the help their is very friendly especially compared to other chinese restaurants. The food is served hot, taste fresh, portions are good but is on the bland side. I usually travel outside of town when seeking chinese food but if that is not an option… I like this place, have been there a few times and will return!
Again, I am very fussy and think many will be pleasantly surprised!

Good stuff, clean open kitchen, i wish the fried rice was a bit more flavorful, but the quality of the meat and veg is high

Excellent Chinese food, finally!!!
Better than Li i Windham and others in Dracut. Very tender, high quality, flavorful.
They got it right…
Give time a try, you will not be dissapointed.

I called Ruby China at 4pm New Years Eve to place an order for pick up at 8pm (4 hour notice). I Arrived there at 7:45 and was told it would be ready «soon».
Well, after a brutal 90 minute wait, I finally got my order.
After the short trip home 1 mile away, everything was cold. The food had no real taste to it, my favorite crab rangoons were probably the worst I ever had and my white rice was missing.
I understand its one of the busiest days of they year, but they were not properly prepared for it and surely didn’t care what was happening with their customers. I will wait until this place goes under new management again and see if it improves.

After contacting our favorite Chinese restaurant and learning there was a three hour wait for New Year’s Eve, we turned to our trusty Unilocal app to see who was local, got 4 star reviews, and had less of a wait time. We called Ruby’s and were told we could pick up at 6:30 pm, an hour and a half after our order was placed. Score!
We decided to get there a few minutes early in case our food was done. (Who wants food that’s been sitting around?!) we needn’t have worried, we didn’t actually get our food until 7:40, after being told multiple times by the two overwhelmed teenaged girls at the front desk, «They’re getting ready to pack it up now» and «It’s almost finished».
While we were starting to get a little «hangry», we were able to chat with fellow people waiting for their food, and found comic relief in watching others losing their patience. While we fully understood their frustration, and felt badly, it helped pass the time.
A few things to note:
There were two very young (Maybe 5 & 9) girls «helping» take orders, greeting people, etc. From observation we learned they were the owner’s daughters. On several occasions it was clear that they had lost orders or taken some of them incorrectly.
We watched one order sit for over an hour before someone picked it up. In the meantime, we hoped it wasn’t ours that had somehow been overlooked.
During the hour and 20 minutes we waited, we watched a total of THREE orders go out! (2 of them knew the owner by name, so clearly got special treatment.) there were at least five walk-​ins and 15 patrons besides us waiting.
A friendly cook from the kitchen did smile and wave.
The fried wonton noodles for those waiting was a nice touch. Too bad I watched several people reach in with their (most likely) unsanitized hands to take some.
We finally got our food, paid the $ 44.87, went outside and checked to make sure it was correct (it was) and happily headed home.
Was it worth the wait? Clearly you know the answer by now given the one star.
The one star is not for bad service (even though it should be, but given it’s their busiest day of the year, I’ll cut them a little slack) but for the absolute most BLAND food — ever*. The fried rice may as well have been white rice. Absolutely flavorless. Not even the soy sauce registered. The only flavor in the scallion pancake was if you happened to get a scallion bit. I ordered sesame beef and it was crispy the way I like it, but the only thing I could taste was the distinct sesame seeds. My husband got chicken chow mein and ate three bites.
*There was one exception — the Peking ravioli. Best I’ve ever had. We made those our meal. Promote whoever made those to head chef!
Total waste of 45 bucks, and made us decide that next year we’ll start a new take out tradition that won’t involve mediocre (or worse!) Chinese food.
The only good thing? I won’t be tempted to blow my New Year’s healthy eating intentions on leftovers!

This is the newest Chinese restaurant in the pelham area. What was there before was not very good. My first impression upon tasting our food last night was that it was really fresh, very tasty, well done Chinese food. It’s a good value, very convenient, and quick. But like i said, the food was not sitting around, or pre-​cooked, the sauces were not thick and goopy like you can find sometimes. My chicken and broccoli had a lot of both chicken and broccoli, not just one or two sad looking wilted pieces of broccoli. Overall, i was happy with our meal!

Tried Ruby China for the first time last week. Called in the order and when I arrived I was told that they forgot to send my order to the kitchen… my food was not cooked yet. Since I was in no rush I decided to wait while they cooked it. It was worth the wait… the portions were sizeable and the taste was delicious. A number of restaurants have come and gone in this same spot but this is the best of the best. Small location with only about 6 tables… no delivery. Adding delivery might be a big money maker seeing that there are a few other Chinese food places in the surrounding towns that do deliver.

Ruby China (formerly Z&C Hibachi & Chinese) opened recently in the Hannaford Plaza next door to Suppa’s Pizza & Subs. Like its predecessor, the place is a typical takeout restaurant which is order at the counter (no open kitchen) with self serve tables for eating in.
They serve up a standard Chinese menu (most items under $ 10) plus Chef Specials ($ 9.75-$ 15.95). 27 Combination Platters served with choice of rice and choice of appetizer for lunch ($ 6.15-$ 6.50) and dinner ($ 8.25).
I stopped in here for lunch takeout. I ordered the Lunch Combo 11 Shrimp Lo Mein ($ 6.15 plus tax) with Pork Fried Rice and 2 Chicken Teriyakis. The food was ready to go in about 15 minutes, slightly longer than expected. There was also a large group having lunch in the dining area.
As for the food, the portion was good size. The chicken teriyaki sticks were tender cooked just right, but with salty flavors, not much sweet flavors. The lo mein had an oily texture and salty taste with thick soft noodles, carrots, celery, scallions and soft tender shrimp (cleaned), The golden fried rice was quite good and tasty, which had a firm texture with small roast pork cubes, onions, and fluffy egg. The food overall on this visit was decent and filling.

I certainly don’t believe that a restaurant needs to be gourmet or serve $ 50 steaks to be eligible for a five-​star rating. It simply needs to have:
1. Friendly service
2. A clean space
3. Great food
4. Prices that match what you’re getting
What can I say? I’m easy to please.
While shopping at Hannaford in Pelham about a week ago, a man gave me a menu and said their Chinese restaurant had just opened right next to the Pinball Wizard Arcade, and would I like to give them a try? As we’ve recently relocated from SoCal and monthly trips to Monterey Park, I’m always game for finding a great Chinese food place.
Flash forward to take-​out night for the family. We ordered the Pu Pu Platter for two, an order of wonton soup, house special chow fun (those deliciously greasy fat noodles filled with pork and shrimp), and the chef’s special coconut shrimp. I know — I’m Asian, I don’t know how to order small, okay?! Don’t judge! Called in the order, and was told it would be ready in about 15 minutes. Speedy! Walked in to pick up my order, and saw that they were still finishing up with the cooking. So I knew the food would be fresh. Even better!
I was greeted by the woman who took my phone order with a smile, a wave, and a «Hello! How are you?» It was as if I had been there many times before and was an old friend, except it was my first time in the door. Score one for hospitality. Looking around, I noticed a few tables… not too many, but the place was clean and there appeared to be snacks and tea on the counter. Score two for the space!
Once I got home I unpacked the bag and SWEET JESUS WHERE DID ALL THIS FOOD COME FROM?! I know I ordered a ton, but the portions are really exceptional for the price. $ 16.75 may seem high for a Pu Pu Platter, but it came with egg rolls, beef skewers, chicken wings, chicken fingers, crab rangoon, a big pile of boneless spareribs, fried shrimp, and an order of pork fried rice. It could have easily fed our family of three with probably some leftovers. Didn’t taste the soup, but Sick Husband said it rivaled my own, and the chow fun was sufficiently greasy (like they should be… will be great with some jook tomorrow) and flavorful. The star of the meal though, was the coconut shrimp. Two of my all-​time favorite dishes are honey walnut shrimp and coconut shrimp, and this was obviously their love child. Crunchy shrimp in a sweet mayo sauce and then covered in actual flaked coconut — perfect combo. I did drain off some of the sauce before refrigerating the leftovers, but no biggie.
$ 10.95 for the shrimp and $ 8.95 for the noodles, with enough leftovers to last into tomorrow’s lunch and probably dinner also. Grand total of my bill: $ 41.00. I would say score three and four for tasty cuisine at a comparable price. And that’s par for the course.
I almost wanted to take off a star because they didn’t offer delivery, and the limited inside seating makes it more of a take-​out/​delivery place than a sit-​down restaurant, but that’s just me being lazy. Nice job, Ruby China. I will definitely be seeing you again soon!