Tao’s Delicacies

We ordered a Whole duck did not come with wings or drumsticks! Dishes were very small, we went with a family of four but the dishes seem sized for a table of two. It is also very inconsistent, we found a metallic piece of a Brillo pad in the food. Staff was knowledgeable and friendly.

We came here for a wedding rehearsal dinner. Everything was served family style and it was very delicious. We had fried rice, chicken and basil, tomato and asparagus soup, beef and mushrooms, shrimp, and garlic green beans. The staff is extremely attentive and courteous. This would be a great place to have a party as there is a sectioned off room of the restaurant. Will definitely return here.

I have to say the staff here is really nice and helpful. However if you are planning to fall for take out do know that their online menu prices are not set. The bill came to me in Chinese which did not accurately describe what i ordered. Overall this is a nice restaurant for being in Long Island (dishes smell like soap, not that clean) but it’s the usual. However if you decide to get delivery from here DONT DO IT
I ordered at around 3pm which is between the usual lunch and delivery time. The order took two hours to come, had to call 3 times for them to say the same phrase as if it was an automated response «it’s coming in 15 minutes»
The delivery staff they chose was a different story
Upon arrival the delivery staff demanded tip and he added the tip to the bill which is of course illegal in the New York State. Tip that is mandatory should have been disclosed and should not result in the staff harassing you for a set amount of tip that he wants (I did the math, he asked for 22% of the bill as tip). Never had I ever encounter a delivery staff like this, Overall the food is good but the staff needs better training definitely not worth the trouble if you just got home tired from work, it’s basically asking to find a way to ruin your night if you decide to order take out from here. Travel there if you have to.

The lamb leg is delicious. The lamb legs are supplied limitedly so it’s better to call in advance to reserve for the lamb leg.
The service is indeed a little bit slow, and that’s the reason I don’t give five stars.

I’ve been waiting FOREVER to get my duck. The waitress has told us multiple times the duck is ready, but we have to wait another 10min to finally get it. Until then, we have waitted for 2 hours! But the service is nice though.

Very Terrible! The plate is very dirty. I used the paper to wipe it and it comes out like this. We booked the table in advance at 1 pm. But they did not have enough table so they put us in a storing room. The server is rude too. Wait so long to order. I won’t come here for meals any more. And not recommend to my friend.

Great REAL Chinese food restaurant if you want to experience authentic Chinese food. Roast Peking Duck, joucy and fatty, the only way to have it.

Unlike many of my friends they don’t like Tao, I have a passion into it cuz the owner of it is also from my hometown Beijing. What they serve different from other Chinese restaurant is Chinese Pancake or 煎饼, I mean, pure authentic 煎饼 of Beijing/​Tianjin flavor.
这家店提供煎饼果子真令人惊喜。不过虽然店主是北京人，但是这个煎饼确实天津风味。他用的是油条而不是北京用的薄脆，而且里面加了香肠。不过已经很难得了，$ 3.5一个，量很足，我一顿饭足够了。
Besides of Jianbing we also ordered the spicy pot, which was kinda plain.
The whole room is decorated in old Chinese wood style, with pictures of Beijing hanging on the walls. Love them and love Beijing.

Apparently these guys recently started a lunch box service similar to empire Szechuan that delivers to stony brook university. Price is $ 6. No tax no tip. Includes rice and a vegetable side dish.
I’m a fan but I think empire’s is better both in quality and quantity.

Very.unhappy.experience at TAO’s twice. The food is not delicious, even not good. The service is so bad. We were not served with water and we had to ask for it. There was only one old lady who can not even speak English. She just put all the dishes on the table without asking anything during whole dinner. We finished our dinner very quickly and the check came with 15% tips and what was fucking stupid was that the old lady said the 15% tip is mandatory. She even signed on my bill.
Is that hullarious? We definitely won’t go there anymore. So angry now. If it is possible I will give ZERO star on this review.

I was here yesterday and the atmosphere was pretty nice the restaraunt was full until near closing time… The food was great, but my friend asked for a fork and one of the waitresses laughed at her… not sure why, but other than that everything here is great.

This is not am American Chinese takeout place so don’t be shocked if your General Tso Chicken doesn’t taste «authentic».
Anyway with that said, I came for the AYCE hotpot. It clearly states $ 18 on their website. But it’s $ 23. So go there while you still can before they change the price online. You can still augue about the false ad like I did.
Honestly, I was not impressed. This is not the way I’m used to hotpotting. They bring you random veggies and meat and they said whatever you can’t finish, just leave it there. So does that mean someone can eat my leftovers? Or even worse. I ate a stranger’s leftovers? Whatever they have is so limited. Besides an order of beef and lamb, they try to stuff you with cheap veggies. Not worth $ 18, let alone $ 23.
At least they have bubble tea right? Nope. WRONG. Apparently they don’t even make tapioca anymore and the price was like almost $ 4!
Well. At least they were nice. One of them a little too nice or by nice I meant weird. Still giving it a 2 stars because I have no doubt about regular menu.
Oh and student ID doesn’t give you a discount anymore.

Fast food this is NOT! For all those who expect the usual Chinese take out restaurant fare, GO ELSEWHERE! This is truly a 5 star gem not because it is ritzy, not because it is high end or pretentious… it gets its 5 stars because this is dinning the way you would eat at a friends home. Not pre-​fab. Not canned. Just wholesome and made to order.
I strongly recommend you order to taste. If you don’t like salty, let them know. If you like something in particular, ask. Don’t miss out on this gem!

Love! I went with my bf on 2 occasions. Both time we were greeted by the friendly waiter :) he immediately poured us tea (different teas each time) the cups were very interesting if you know how to read Chinese.
Food: spicy… OMG so spicy. My bf loves spicy food to a fault. But even though I’m not a fan of spicy food. It was absolutely AMAZING! On a side note, you can ask for things to be not spicy :) will try it next time :)
Service: much friendlier and better than Yao’s dinner. Loved the tea that waiter served. It was very fragrant and smooth.
Ambience: cute little place. We sat by the table next to the wall and it was decorated with dried flowers and photographs. Nice table for a date. Music was nice and romantic. Not too loud so I can hear my bf’s exclamation of love for the food. Lol

***Tao’s: The Little Brother of Yao’s***
Despite the title, I haven’t actually been to Yao’s, but I was with a couple friends who had and the comparisons between these two places were inevitable when we found Yao’s was temporarily closed and decided to come here for lunch.
The place is tiny but dare I say «cute»? Completely unassuming from its exterior bland Long Island stripmall façade, it’s filled with… well, certainly interesting decorations (think bookcases, lamps, artwork, curtains, etc) that aren’t typical in Chinese restaurants.
We split 3 dishes:
–Chongqing Spicy Chicken: The waitress gave us the option of getting the chicken boneless or in small chunks on the bone, and suggested going with the meat on the bone as she claimed that was more authentic. I’d never had this type of dish served that way but we went along with it. The spices and peppers gave the chicken a great taste. Portion was large but each chunk was small, and thus with the bone and cartilage there wasn’t much muscle/​edible meat left. Next time I come I’ll probably get this again but go with the boneless option.
–Spicy Beef Szechuan Style: This big pot of beef in spicy oil felt endless… if I came here again I would DEFINITELY get this, the meat was soft and accentuated with a great oily spice… not sure I could have stopped downing that oil over rice if I didn’t get full by the end.
–Sweet and Sour Fish: This was the weakest link out of the three. Despite it being called «fish,» I’m pretty sure the small chunks of fish were made from shrimp. Ultimately the sweetness of the sauce overwhelmed the fish. I would be happy with this dish I was getting more Americanized Chinese takeout at half the price, so ultimately it disappointed a little even though it wasn’t bad.
The waitress/​owner (?) was quick to refill our drinks/​rice bowls and was very kind and accommodating. Not going to comment in this regard on Yao’s since I haven’t been there yet but from what I’ve consistently heard, that really makes this place really shine in comparison. From my friends point of view, the food at Yao’s is a little bit better, but also considerably more expensive. They also have boba tea here (for 3 bucks), which is a rarity in the area.
Bottom line: Recommend this place if you’re looking for authentic Chinese fare in Suffolk County. Great service and cozy atmosphere. Based on limited experience, I’d stay away from fish and get meat/​poultry. Come hungry and share!

Another interesting Chinese dining experience in the Seldon area. This place is worth checking out. Its probably one of the only chinese Halal restaurants Ive ever taken out from.
So far Ive only tried their General Tso’s and chicken fried rice. Its different then most places. Everything from the batter/​fry to the sauce. Nice and spicey just how I like, which most chinese restaurants tend to overlook even for items listed as spicey. I will be going back soon to try some more of the menu.
3.5 stars for the fried rice
4 for the General

Walking into this place, this wasn’t your normal Chinese restaurant, the décor was really unique and hipster like. Their was a kid behind the counter that gave me the take out menu which was real small to read. Unlike the small fast food Chinese restaurant’s most of us in NY are used to, this place has a limited menu, their is no small, medium, or large size but just one, plus the prices are about $ 3-​$ 5 higher than most places.
I ordered Sesame Chicken, Beef Pepper, Beef with Broccoli, and Veg Lo Mein to go. I waited about 25 mins and when I got into my car the kid came running out and said I took the wrong order (fed up at this point). The food smelled great but it tasted even better. The dishes were phenomenal, for the extra few dollars they charge you end up paying for quality. The beef in both dishes were ahhhmazing, the Sesame Chicken was good, the Lo Mein was similar yet different from other places.
I look forward to ordering from here again and hopefully I’ll dine in next time. The bathroom is clean and is nicely decorated as well.

It feels like a nice, modest Chinese family has invited you into their home for hotpot. There are travel books on a shelf above a small desk in one corner and a set of living room chairs in another. They gave us a portable gas burner for our unlimited hotpot. The sauces were at a small table by the entrance in covered ceramic bowls. That was kind of strange but I can’t pinpoint why. The free sodas are in a clear fridge that you can help yourself to. That was also kind of un-​pinpointably strange.
There was as much beef, pork, shrimp, tripe, squid, green vegetables, enokitake, and winter melon as you could shamelessly ask for. You do have to keep asking though, cuz sometimes they’re too busy to remember what you wanted. But it’s all good again when they finally bring it out.
I already miss it.

$ 23 for all-​you-​can-​eat hotpot. Hotpot on Long Island? Yesss. Actual, legitimate, authentic ingredients? Yesss. Stamp of approval from someone who grew up in Hong Kong? Yesss. Hole in the wall that no one else knows about? Yesss. Part of me wants everyone to know that there is authentic hotpot out here in the middle-​of-​nowhere-​Long-​Island, but I also want to be selfish and keep it a hidden treasure so I’m always guaranteed a seat if I go.
I should have used my student ID last night (thanks reviewer below)… but since I will be going back… I will be able to use my discount!
If you pay cash only, you don’t need to pay tax. I did say hole in the wall. :)

Tao’s Delicacies is tucked in the shopping area between the Selden Mosque and the Taco Bell (same center as Liberty Travel and Choopan Grill). It is a «Halal Chinese food» establishment, meaning no pork is prepared/​served (but whatever, if I want good pork belly, I’ll hike it out to Momofuku). It’s definitely as «authentic» Chinese as you can get in the Selden area — and to prove it, their bulletin board in the enterance is plastered with Chinese-​language ads (?) and the walls are decorated with actual photographs of some place (s) in China.
The GOOD: my General Tso’s chicken was one of the better ones I’ve had in a take-​out setting. The chicken was never frozen, which made it 100% different from their competitors. Maybe that’s part of Halal standards? I don’t know.
They have BUBBLE TEA, in a variety of flavors (the usual Taro (good!), coconut, vanilla, red bean, black tea, etc) as well as Green Apple and chocolate flavor too.
Keeping with the Halal-​availability, Tao’s offers lamb as well. The «Amazing Spicy Pot» is something I’d like to try sometime but I think that would be more of a group experience.
The MEH: The cook and counterman were pretty busy when I stopped in @ 3:10 asking for the lunch special — sadly, it ended at 3:00 (the menu does not indicate a timeframe) and in keeping with the «authentic Chinese attitude», they weren’t willing to budge to accommodate a new customer. They weren’t rude or anything, I think it’s purely a cultural difference.
The interior is also pretty lackluster, and pretty «home made» (very unlike the cookie-​cutter deco at EVERY other LI Chinese food takeout) which I personally find charming (personal photos, books) but if you were taking somebody on a first date, this may not impress them.
My quest for good seitan continues…