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Shun Lee Palace, New York, NY

Shun Lee Palace

3.5
3.5
1707 Reviews
$31 to $50
Chinese

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2 people
22:00
Booked 8 times today
  • Good for business meals
  • Charming
  • Good for groups
May 1, 1995 The New York Times , "The Joys and Tribulations of Upscale Chinese, Two Stars
June 17, 1998 The New York Times "The Vanishing Haut Cusine by Ruth Reichl, Two Stars
Jan 26, 2011 The New York Times "Is Recreated Dinner" Nixon to China by Florence Fabricant
June 13 2001 New York Post "Meanwhile, back at the Palace" by Steve Cuozzo, Two Stars
2013 Forbes Magazine's Restaurant Guide. The Excellence of Shun Lee Palace. Three Stars
2007 AOL. "New York City Best Chinese Restaurant"
2012 LocalEasts. "New York City Best Chinese Restaurant"
silky service" and "absolutely the best above Canal Street" decorated by Adam Tihany.

Additional information

  • Phone number
  • Price
    $31 to $50
  • Cuisines
    Chinese
  • Hours of Operation
    Lunch Daily 12:00–15:00 Dinner Mon–Fri 15:00–23:00 Sun 15:00–22:00
  • Dress code
    Business Casual
  • Parking details
    Discount parking available after 6:00pm in garage next door.
  • Payment Options
    AMEX, Discover, Mastercard, Visa
  • Executive Chef
    Ling Shing Ping

What 1,707 people are saying

Overall ratings and reviews

Reviews can only be made by diners who have eaten at this restaurant

3.5
3.5 based on recent ratings
  • 3.4Food
  • 3.9Service
  • 3.3Ambience
  • 2.9Value

NoiseModerate

Review summary

AI-generated from verified diner reviews
Shun Lee Palace offers a charming "old school ambiance" and "impeccable service" with a reputation for "amazing Peking Duck." While some reviews note a decline in quality post-pandemic, loyal patrons continue to appreciate its classic "Chinese-American cuisine" and "attentive staff." A "favorite for family celebrations" in NYC.

1,707 Reviews
  1. Bradley VIP

    New York City2 reviews

    1.0

    Dined 2 days ago

    1. Overall 1
    2. Food 1
    3. Service 2
    4. Ambience 1
    We had a taste for Peking duck that had followed us around for days. We should have turned around when we saw the state of the awning and the entry to Shun Lee "Palace". Upon arrival there was no one. We waited a few minutes and no one came. The phone rang and no one came. What used to be a bar and front seating area has been turned into storage, presumably for a delivery business since the place was not busy. We proceeded down what used to be a nice corridor of three lovely banquettes designed for dramatic effect but which were now permanently it seems used for their accounting function as they were strewn with receipts. Eventually someone spoke to us and showed us to a table. It was as requested a round table in the corner. The lead waiter was friendly and efficient. We knew what we wanted because we had previewed the menu online. Egg drop soup, soup dumplings, Peking duck, and bok choy. The soup was fine but nothing special ($12 per person). The dumpling wrappers were thick and glutenous, the contents tasteless. The bok choy was also just fine. The real travesty was the Peking duck ($128). The wrappers they used were essentially tortillas. The 8 rolls were the size of burritos. With almost no cucumber (apparently they were running low). The sauce was thick like jam. Peking duck is supposed to be a delicacy. First skin alone. Then meat with skin. The rolls should be the size of small spring rolls. Easy to handle and requiring just a few bites each. The sauce should be much lighter. Then there should be a second course with finely chopped duck in lettuce cups. If there is still more the remainder should be used for fried rice. This was truly terrible and the bill was $350 for 3 people. Understandable if the restaurant was beautiful and the food exquisite. Neither was the case at Shun Lee. This may once have been a good restaurant—no longer.

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  2. Nicola

    New York City1 review

    1.0

    Dined on 25 February 2025

    1. Overall 1
    2. Food 1
    3. Service 3
    4. Ambience 2
    it was not good- the food was oily and the oil was rancid

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  3. Patrice

    Tampa46 reviews

    2.0

    Dined on 4 February 2025

    1. Overall 2
    2. Food 2
    3. Service 2
    4. Ambience 3
    For decades this was a favorite and our first stop when returning to NYC. Our experience this week was so very disappointing. Our dumplings were somehow burnt on the outside but cold on inside. My Moo Shu Pork wasn’t hot and it had no taste. Hubby’s chicken was tough to eat. The soup was the ONLY thing that was good. Egg Drop and Wonton were both as we remembered. Next time we’ll try Shun Lee West on W 65th

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  4. Carl

    New York City10 reviews

    2.0

    Dined on 2 February 2025

    1. Overall 2
    2. Food 1
    3. Service 2
    4. Ambience 2
    awful food drenched in chef version of molasses; sesame steak tasted like goo chicken and broccoli tasted like the sesame steak goo won ton soup was the most unappetizing collection of pieces of chicken shrimp and something else stuffed in a tiny bowl from 20 years ago cold soup despite 5 table in the restaurant occupied

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  5. Philip

    New York City62 reviews

    1.0

    Dined on 27 January 2025

    1. Overall 1
    2. Food 1
    3. Service 2
    4. Ambience 2
    AWFUL to the tenth power............we were the only ones there ............should have left when we saw that it was emptly..............others must know better.............food was poor..........waiter was apologitic......................DONT GO

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  6. Elizabeth

    Western NC4 reviews

    5.0

    Dined on 17 January 2025

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 3
    Amazing Chinese food! Friendly, great staff! Clean restaurant.

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  7. Stephen

    New York City14 reviews

    3.0

    Dined on 7 January 2025

    1. Overall 3
    2. Food 2
    3. Service 4
    4. Ambience 4
    The food is only ok. But the service is good and the restaurant very quiet. It’s not a bad place for old men with hearing problems to have lunch and reminisce about the old days when, among many other things, this was a hot restaurant.

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  8. Concha VIP

    New York City3 reviews

    1.0

    Dined on 2 January 2025

    1. Overall 1
    2. Food 1
    3. Service 1
    4. Ambience 1
    No lo califico porque estaba cerrado!!! No sé porque se hizo la reservación.

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  9. Walter

    Los Angeles3 reviews

    4.0

    Dined on 28 December 2024

    1. Overall 4
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 4
    Great food, a little pricey. $10 for bottled water and ?$17 for 4 soup dumplings is on the high but will come again.

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  10. Anthony

    New York City5 reviews

    1.0

    Dined on 28 December 2024

    1. Overall 1
    2. Food 1
    3. Service 1
    4. Ambience 1
    This Shun Lee was my favorite place in NYC. We took 11 of us for my granddaughter’s birthday. The food was terrible. The waiter talked us out of getting enough food for the table. His recommendations were terrible. Even the Peking Duck was bad and had hardly any meat in the prepared pockets. The wonton soup was tasteless; Half the spring rolls were burning hot and the other half were ice cold. The Captain did nothing to help. At the end of the meal , we asked for desert. The waiter told us they had none; he told us not to eat the cake - that is was horrible. They didn’t even have ice cream for the children. It is no longer a place for us to go - so sorry about that, it really was the best.

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FAQs

Shun Lee Palace does offer delivery in partnership with Uber Eats.

Shun Lee Palace is rated 3.5 stars by 1707 OpenTable diners.

Yes, you can generally book this restaurant by choosing the date, time and party size on OpenTable.

Make a booking

2 people
22:00
Booked 8 times today
Google Map for Shun Lee Palace

155 East 55th Street, New York, NY 10022

Additional information

  • Phone number
  • Price
    $31 to $50
  • Cuisines
    Chinese
  • Hours of Operation
    Lunch Daily 12:00–15:00 Dinner Mon–Fri 15:00–23:00 Sun 15:00–22:00
  • Dress code
    Business Casual
  • Parking details
    Discount parking available after 6:00pm in garage next door.
  • Payment Options
    AMEX, Discover, Mastercard, Visa
  • Executive Chef
    Ling Shing Ping
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Use
  • Impressum
  • Cookies and Interest-Based Ads
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