Little Shanghai

Someone mentioned, buried in the many reviews, that «Jack and Sue» ran the place. I assume they were the couple I saw in the place from around 1982 onwards. I noded to them, but never knew their names.
I had just moved down to Santa Cruz from rainy Oregon. The place was a narrow, brick-​walled room behind Bookshop Santa Cruz.
I had just been exposed to Sichuan and Thai flavors from where I worked, over the hill in Silicon Valley, but liked this place a lot. One dish stood out in particular: Dan Dan Noodles. I would ladle in red chili oil (not the tomatoey sauce version, but the red oil version).
It seems to me I used to see some kids doing homework in the place… I surmise that these were their kids. Wonder what happened to them?
Over the years, I made my el cheapo version of this with Cup-​of-​Noodles, a couple of dollops of peanut butter, and some red chili oil (or at least some red pepper flakes if I don’t have the red chil oil on hand).
They moved after the quake and rebuilding, and I went to their new place about once monthly. I assume the couple I saw a lot was «Jack and Sue. They didn’t seem to feature Dan Dan Noodles, so I just usually got the steam table items.
I would not be surprised to learn that they are now fully-​retired, but if they are ever doing anything else in the restaurant biz, I’d be willing to give them a try.
(I currently like the Dan Dan Noodles at Charlie Hong Kong, on Soquel Avenue near the Rio Theater. But they are not as good as what I had at that narrow place with very tall ceilings behind the old Bookshop Santa Cruz!)
–Tim May, Corralitos, CA

The new replacement, mandarin gourmet has arrived. its food is fair but not human friendly in any way. no lunch buffet. not friendly nor ample staff. long wait. no substitutions. no you cant add vegetable to a meat noodle dish. no you dont get lunch soup with the chow mein. total bummer, i had enjoyed the awesome mom and pop shanghai for decades. these new folks dont get it at all, it could be in a mall anywhere but santa cruz.

I remember when Little Shanghai was located behind Bookshop Santa Cruz, the first place I tasted Jack’s own Dan-​Dan noodles and Sue’s pickled cabbage. I was hooked and even though I lived over the hill, I would drive here for this. Then the earthquake hit and Little Shanghai moved to pavilion tents where the Farmer’s Market is now. I still faithfully came over for a fix. When they moved to their current location I knew I could count on this local, family-​run place. No one made a Dan-​Dan noodle sauce like these guys and I will sorely miss it. I’ve tried to recreate it but can’t come close. Jack and Sue were a big part of the original Santa Cruz experience for me, good luck to them with their next adventure!

Okay so first of all this place it not authentic Chinese as claimed. I was born in China and trust me this isn’t real Chinese food, it’s very Americanized and greasy, most American Chinese food is very greasy cause most dishes are deep or shallow fried. Not sure what all the hype is about this place is, I guess it’s just a pretty good location.

The style of food here is definitely americanized, not to Panda Express levels, but to the levels you’d commonly find in Chinese restaurants located in non-​Asian areas. Americanized Chinese food isn’t really a problem though since it’s really just another style. The real issue here is that all of the food here is simply below average.
One dish in particular to avoid here is the beef noodle soup. This was the worst one I’ve ever ordered in my life. The broth was pretty much water.
Santa Cruz lacks good Chinese food, so if you’re experienced in Chinese cuisine unfortunately you aren’t going to find anything that satisfies you in this town. Still if you’re really desperate then this place or Yan Flower are really your only borderline acceptable options relative to Santa Cruz’s standards. If you’re willing for an Asian fusion menu instead of a strictly Chinese menu I would highly recommend Betty’s Noodle House.

Arguably the best chinese food I have had outside of China, really liked the lion head reminds me of those I had in Yangzhou which says something about the quality here.

A great santa cruz resturant that happens to serve chinese style food.
This is not a fancy place and the food is definitely the amercanized version of chinese cuisine. Having said that it’s fresh and well prepared. The pricing is very reasonable for what is served. An especially strong item is the appetizers, which are possibly the best in santa cruz.
The hours are a little wonky, closed for lunch on weekends and open only during main dinner and lunch hours.
The owners have been doing this a long time, and… well if you like this place it’s best if you go now.
Changes are coming. It’s possible that the restaurant has been sold. It’s still open for now, but a change of business has been registered with the courthouse. These changes can take a year or so to be approved/​completed in santa cruz so there’s still time to enjoy this place as it is, but soon enough there’ll be something different here.

No MSG! Vegan selections on the menu. Service was excellent. We had the hot and sour soup which was good. Moo shu shrimp and a tofu dish rounded off our dinner. No bathrooms, their designated bathroom is on the other side of the bldg or you can use the public restroom in the adjoining garage. A bit sketchy that one. Overall, a basic chinese resturant.

I’ve lived in Santa Cruz for a while and I didn’t think there were any great chinese places, but this place really surprised me! The gan pon chicken and the cream cheese won tons are incredible, and my wife really loves their won ton soup. Only drawback is that they have strange hours.

Best Chinese food that I have had in a long time. The lunch special is the perfect size and amount for a single person meal, and it’s a great deal!

This place kind of tastes like Panda Express… it’s pretty good though and one of the best Chinese restaurants I have tried in Santa Cruz. The Sesame Chicken and Walnut Shrimp are so yum. The fortunes are really weird but it’s fun reading new ones that not every Chinese restaurant has.

Best chinese food in Santa Cruz in y opinion. This is my go to place for takeout and dine in if I’m feeling in the mood for Asian food. The ambiance isn’t the most amazing thing ever but the food and service makes up for it.
Must try: Dan Dan Noodles, Gang Pao Chicken, Red Ginger Salad

Although the place looked a bit plain we felt like Chinese food so we have it a try.
Ambiance — not much. Slightly sticky worn wood tables nothing really on the walls, filing cabinet in the corner, etc… It was pretty noisy.
The tea was good. Potstickers were deep fried (not steamed and then crispy on the bottom as they should be). Seemed like they were frozen as the edges were very white.
We ordered String Bean and Chicken, Kung Pao and House Chow Mein. The beans were very fresh and this was the one good dish. The chicken was tender and had a nice garlic sauce. The Kung Pao was over powered by bell peppers with a slightly brown sauce vs hot oil typical of Kung Pao. The chow mein which came out 15 min after our other dishes had undercooked ramen noodles and the dish did not have much flavor. The vegetables, pork and shrimp in it were good though.
Overall it was very disappointing.

Every Wed: Gan Sao Tempeh on lunch buffet. best #vegan Chinese in #santacruz. I that this restaurant is playing the band #Spoon as their dining room soundtrack

This is my go-​to Chinese food resteraunt in Santa Cruz! The service is always quick and the food is always delicious.
My fiancée is super allergic to seafood and they are always very careful about cross-​contamination here!
Things we have tried (which have all been amazing):
Hot and sour soup
Dan Dan Chicken Salad — DELISH
Mixed Fried Rice
String Bean Chicken
Mongolian Beef
and a few others which I can’t remember the names of at this point in time!
Everything that we have tried here has come out delicious, fresh, and quick!

This place was horrible and I definitely will not be coming here again. I ordered takeout here for the first time and I ordered the sweet/​sour tofu and the spicy dan dan noodles with chicken. Besides the food not being great, this place charges much more than their advertised price on their online menu.
My girlfriend went inside to pick up our takeout order that was supposed to be $ 17 ($ 18 with tax) but was charged $ 23.50. That was a 25% markup… On top of that the waitress who handed her the receipt to sign saw that my girlfriend did not tip after she signed it and then pointed at the tip line to make her tip. Extremely unprofessional, especially since they marked up the price. I’m assuming that this markup was for a precalculated tip (which doesn’t state anywhere on the site that they do that). Thus, this establishment is super shady. On top of that the cook made a «mistake» and apparently didn’t have the right sauce making us wait another 10 minutes when our order was supposed to be ready 20 minutes ago.
About the food…
The dan dan had the worst tasting chicken and did not taste fresh at all. I ended up not eating it and as for the sauce, it was just poured on top and not mixed at all with the food. There was barely any vegetables in the dish and it was pretty much all noodles.
The tofu dish was ok, but once again, just filled with tofu and scarcely with other vegetables.
Overall, I wouldn’t have written this review just based on the food, as this was my first time here. However, the 25% markup is extremely uncalled for and the demand to be tipped just left a huge distaste in my mouth.

The food here is mediocre but definitely the best Chinese food in Santa Cruz. The service is great and friendly, the price is reasonable, and the food is mostly excellent. I highly recommend the Gan Pon Chicken and wonton soup. Avoid the honey shrimp, the chow mein, and the fried calamari, as those three are extremely mediocre.

Out of desperation, I finally tried a Chinese restaurant in town.
I moved here from Greater LA two months ago, and I had lived in what is considered an Asian food mecca east of LA. As I didn’t want to drive to San Jose after work during rush hour, I decided to bite the bullet and try a local Chinese place.
I grew up on the best Cantonese style food, and this just doesn’t match up. I got the honey walnut shrimp and the chow fun noodles. Though the sweet mayo sauce was tasty, the shrimp needs more batter in order to get that yummy crunch I was used to. The chow fun for some reason has diced lettuce in it (not a standard ingredient in the more authentic places down south) and it wasn’t served in black bean sauce. Or really any sauce. It was the healthiest, though not tastiest, chow fun I’ve had.
What can I say? I like my Chinese food, spicier, crunchier, and oilier. Which won’t be found here.

I wish I would have read more reviews before we got to this place. Its set up like Panda Express, so you order your side and two entrees via cafeteria style. The food was blah, nothing special, no spices, etc. Definitely not worth it for the money or the opportunity to try something else out.

Super yum!
The beef stew noodles is awesome.
Really nice service, they were super crowded on a Friday night but still people stood in line and waited for their delicious foods. I enjoyed the noodles the best and also the steamed buns, especially the veggie one is outstanding!
I really would like to try more dishes but I was super stuffed so we’ll just have to go back another day!
Really good prices but it’s the food and friendly service that stood out for me!