Recently craving for grilled fish so I decided to check this place out. The place itself is very causal and laid back with comfortable seating. It is good for a casual lunch/dinner or a small gathering. Service was very attentive and welcoming. They do always check on you to fill your water and other needs.We ordered their "Grilled Fish with Picked Cabbage and Tofu" mild spicy. I would suggest to get spicy or medium spicy to bring out more flavors. But if you are a person who can't eat spicy at all, then just go with mild. I'd say this dish is a 5/5. The fish is delicious with spicy flavors of Sichuan cuisine. It is a perfect choice for those who enjoy spicy and savory flavors. The portion is HUGE, it is more than enough for 2 people. But you can always order a side of vegetables if it's not enough for you. We've also ordered "Stir-Fried Chinese Flowering Cabbage" 3/5It was good on the first bite and the more I eat, there's this bitterness in the cabbage that throws me off. Might just be me.
David H.
Had their house special tofu fish house special. The flavor was good though packed with oil and using catfish wasn't my favorite choice. Gassy outtake after. Not sure if I get this dish again.
Marlon B.
My wife and I would eat here semi-often. However yesterday after a take-out order, my wife spent the whole night puking her brains out. It was the sliced pork stir-fried dish. While the food was generally good, service and cleanliness of this restaurant has always been suspect. Now we won't be going back.
Ryan M.
One of my favorite restaurants in the Bay Area. Whenever I leave for any extended period of time, I crave Pings. The food is always flavorful and perfectly spicy. Have dined in and ordered takeout many times and the dishes are always very consistent. If you dine in, you order using a QR code system and the service has always been prompt. Will be back many, many times.
Ariana Huang
Highly recommend the three dishes we ordered with mild spicy, and we finished them all!1. Grilled fish ? with pickled cabbage & soft tofu2. Sauteed sliced pork belly with lean meat3. Sliced asparagus lettuce & minced porkI have never seen a shredded asparagus dish and it tastes really amazing, including the sauce, the pork, the asparagus, just everything inside.The service was a little slow though and we saw multiple to-go orders coming out earlier. They told us the dishes would be slow early and we feel they were worth the wait.
Ed Yu
Ping's has become my go-to place for Hunan food. I went to the Fremont years ago but wasn't too impressed but I'm glad to say I now like the San Mateo one. I would categorize this restaurant as more neuvo Hunan instead of traditional Hunan restaurant because it has its own interesting twist to Hunan food especially the very special 肉炒肉 which is lean pork stir fried with fatty pork. It was simply delicious. The frog meats are decent albeit very expensive for how much they give you. The crawfish over rice is very spicy and I enjoyed almost all the dishes I tried there. The shrimps in the shrimp & spare ribs are delicious but the spare ribs are too big and too hard. Overall I think this is definitely worth going if you like spicy food.
Henry H.
Very good Kao Yu from Pings Bistro. I haven't had this in the Bay Area much but unlike Z&Y in Chinatown (gave me one-side of the fish), this place gives you both sides of the fish. LA still has the best Kao Yu though and they give you a lot more veggies and side items in the pot. I am used to going to Pings in Fremont and known to eat their spicy individual dishes, which is always good but super spicy
ShuJane L.
All Our Dishes was yummy good, for me, some dishes was bit much red chilly in it and spicy level were not my tolerable, but still all of them look delicious, do wish they have a "hot level chart" show to people, so not regularly eat chilly hot customers can still enjoy their yummy food. Services was good, restaurant was nice pretty in designed, comfortable seating, noise level was bit high but that was from the customers. Yes, I 100% recommended.
Jim T.
Food is great, just like how they taste from the east bay location. Interior deco is horrendous though. Doesn't feel like a restaurant, more like a retro disco bar. That said food was spot on, the grilled fish (烤鱼) was delicious. Their dishes usually are on the greasy side so make sure to ask them for "less oil".
Pol Mauri
Pretty yummy chinese food! The service was slow at first as we waited a long time for the first dish, but then the rest came quickly. I loved the pork intestines, but the amount they give is not the most generous in my opinion. A bit too salty as I was thirsty all night long after this meal. There's plenty of parking in the back.
It looks a bit sketchy from the outside but is really nice on the inside! The food is amazing but all of it is spicy so be prepared to drink a lot of water. Would really recommend the crawfish. Some of the dishes are quite large so make sure to go with a group.
Dharma M
Yummy Hunan/Sichuan dishes. Love the pork belly and garlic sauce. Lotus root ball is vegetarian and it is yummy. The pork rib and shrimps are very numbing. It is bit too salty for me. Also looks like the saltines and sweetness don't mix well. It is yummy but I couldn't fully enjoy this dish. Overall good. Price is bit high but service was good.
Dharma M.
Great choices of hunan and sichuan . Love the pork belly garlic. The beef and shrimp on iron pot is too numbing and salty. Lotus root ball is good too.
kailiang huang
The Ping’s bistro is a mix of Hunan style food and Sichuan style food, regardless, it is spicy.The clams clay pot is spicy, juicy and meaty, as the clams are almost one and half or double the size of regular clams.The spicy chicken pot is great to pair with rice.The portion is generous.A great spicy food restaurant.
Yoof Yoof
Ordered their clam dish and half of the clams were bad. The clams looked black and tasted awful.????Got the spicy frog legs and it didn’t taste that fresh and there weren’t that much frog. Mostly it was the vegetables and peppers.Spent 90 dollar for these two dishes and we walked out of the restaurant with half empty stomach
Recently craving for grilled fish so I decided to check this place out. The place itself is very causal and laid back with comfortable seating. It is good for a casual lunch/dinner or a small gathering. Service was very attentive and welcoming. They do always check on you to fill your water and other needs.We ordered their "Grilled Fish with Picked Cabbage and Tofu" mild spicy. I would suggest to get spicy or medium spicy to bring out more flavors. But if you are a person who can't eat spicy at all, then just go with mild. I'd say this dish is a 5/5. The fish is delicious with spicy flavors of Sichuan cuisine. It is a perfect choice for those who enjoy spicy and savory flavors. The portion is HUGE, it is more than enough for 2 people. But you can always order a side of vegetables if it's not enough for you. We've also ordered "Stir-Fried Chinese Flowering Cabbage" 3/5It was good on the first bite and the more I eat, there's this bitterness in the cabbage that throws me off. Might just be me.
Had their house special tofu fish house special. The flavor was good though packed with oil and using catfish wasn't my favorite choice. Gassy outtake after. Not sure if I get this dish again.
My wife and I would eat here semi-often. However yesterday after a take-out order, my wife spent the whole night puking her brains out. It was the sliced pork stir-fried dish. While the food was generally good, service and cleanliness of this restaurant has always been suspect. Now we won't be going back.
One of my favorite restaurants in the Bay Area. Whenever I leave for any extended period of time, I crave Pings. The food is always flavorful and perfectly spicy. Have dined in and ordered takeout many times and the dishes are always very consistent. If you dine in, you order using a QR code system and the service has always been prompt. Will be back many, many times.
Highly recommend the three dishes we ordered with mild spicy, and we finished them all!1. Grilled fish ? with pickled cabbage & soft tofu2. Sauteed sliced pork belly with lean meat3. Sliced asparagus lettuce & minced porkI have never seen a shredded asparagus dish and it tastes really amazing, including the sauce, the pork, the asparagus, just everything inside.The service was a little slow though and we saw multiple to-go orders coming out earlier. They told us the dishes would be slow early and we feel they were worth the wait.
Ping's has become my go-to place for Hunan food. I went to the Fremont years ago but wasn't too impressed but I'm glad to say I now like the San Mateo one. I would categorize this restaurant as more neuvo Hunan instead of traditional Hunan restaurant because it has its own interesting twist to Hunan food especially the very special 肉炒肉 which is lean pork stir fried with fatty pork. It was simply delicious. The frog meats are decent albeit very expensive for how much they give you. The crawfish over rice is very spicy and I enjoyed almost all the dishes I tried there. The shrimps in the shrimp & spare ribs are delicious but the spare ribs are too big and too hard. Overall I think this is definitely worth going if you like spicy food.
Very good Kao Yu from Pings Bistro. I haven't had this in the Bay Area much but unlike Z&Y in Chinatown (gave me one-side of the fish), this place gives you both sides of the fish. LA still has the best Kao Yu though and they give you a lot more veggies and side items in the pot. I am used to going to Pings in Fremont and known to eat their spicy individual dishes, which is always good but super spicy
All Our Dishes was yummy good, for me, some dishes was bit much red chilly in it and spicy level were not my tolerable, but still all of them look delicious, do wish they have a "hot level chart" show to people, so not regularly eat chilly hot customers can still enjoy their yummy food. Services was good, restaurant was nice pretty in designed, comfortable seating, noise level was bit high but that was from the customers. Yes, I 100% recommended.
Food is great, just like how they taste from the east bay location. Interior deco is horrendous though. Doesn't feel like a restaurant, more like a retro disco bar. That said food was spot on, the grilled fish (烤鱼) was delicious. Their dishes usually are on the greasy side so make sure to ask them for "less oil".
Pretty yummy chinese food! The service was slow at first as we waited a long time for the first dish, but then the rest came quickly. I loved the pork intestines, but the amount they give is not the most generous in my opinion. A bit too salty as I was thirsty all night long after this meal. There's plenty of parking in the back.
Restaurantji Recommends
It looks a bit sketchy from the outside but is really nice on the inside! The food is amazing but all of it is spicy so be prepared to drink a lot of water. Would really recommend the crawfish. Some of the dishes are quite large so make sure to go with a group.
Yummy Hunan/Sichuan dishes. Love the pork belly and garlic sauce. Lotus root ball is vegetarian and it is yummy. The pork rib and shrimps are very numbing. It is bit too salty for me. Also looks like the saltines and sweetness don't mix well. It is yummy but I couldn't fully enjoy this dish. Overall good. Price is bit high but service was good.
Great choices of hunan and sichuan . Love the pork belly garlic. The beef and shrimp on iron pot is too numbing and salty. Lotus root ball is good too.
The Ping’s bistro is a mix of Hunan style food and Sichuan style food, regardless, it is spicy.The clams clay pot is spicy, juicy and meaty, as the clams are almost one and half or double the size of regular clams.The spicy chicken pot is great to pair with rice.The portion is generous.A great spicy food restaurant.
Ordered their clam dish and half of the clams were bad. The clams looked black and tasted awful.????Got the spicy frog legs and it didn’t taste that fresh and there weren’t that much frog. Mostly it was the vegetables and peppers.Spent 90 dollar for these two dishes and we walked out of the restaurant with half empty stomach