The best Chinese restaurants in Los Angeles in 2026 are Sea Harbor for Cantonese seafood and dim sum, Chengdu Taste and Szechuan Impression for Sichuan, Din Tai Fung for soup dumplings, and Newport Seafood for its house special lobster. Almost all of the best are in the San Gabriel Valley, 20 to 30 minutes east of downtown.
LA's best Chinese food is not in Chinatown. It is in the San Gabriel Valley — Alhambra, Monterey Park, San Gabriel, Rosemead and Arcadia — where strip malls along Valley Boulevard hold regional cooking from Sichuan, Shanghai, Taiwan, Guangdong and beyond. Plan a lunch there and drive between two or three spots.
Cantonese seafood and some of the best dim sum in the US.
Sea Harbor is a large Cantonese restaurant known for dim sum ordered from a paper menu, not carts. Shrimp dumplings, baked barbecue pork buns and rice rolls set the standard.
At dinner, live seafood from the tanks is the draw.
Good to know: Weekend dim sum gets crowded by 11 a.m.; arrive at opening.
3939 Rosemead Blvd, Rosemead, CA 91770
Fiery Sichuan cooking that kicked off LA's Sichuan boom.
Chengdu Taste serves full-on Sichuan food heavy on chili and numbing peppercorn. The toothpick lamb with cumin, mung bean jelly noodles and boiled fish in chili oil are the dishes to order.
It is a small, busy room, so expect a wait at peak times.
Good to know: Put your name down and wait outside. Tell staff your heat tolerance.
828 W Valley Blvd, Alhambra, CA 91803
Modern Sichuan dishes in a bright dining room.
Szechuan Impression serves Chengdu-style cooking in a more polished setting than most of the Valley. Spicy wontons, cold dishes and the tea-smoked pork ribs are favorites.
Portions are generous, so order family style.
Good to know: Good for groups. Parking in the shared lot.
1900 W Valley Blvd, Alhambra, CA 91803
Taiwan's famous xiao long bao, folded in an open kitchen.
Din Tai Fung, from Taipei, makes soup dumplings with 18 folds each, plus noodles, fried rice and green beans. The Arcadia location at Westfield Santa Anita was the chain's first US restaurant.
It is consistent and easy for families.
Good to know: Join the online waitlist before you arrive.
400 S Baldwin Ave, Arcadia, CA 91007
Cambodian-Chinese seafood famous for its house special lobster.
Newport Seafood is a Chinese-Cambodian-Vietnamese seafood restaurant whose house special lobster, wok-tossed with pepper, garlic and scallion, is the dish everyone orders.
The beef luc lac is the second must-order.
Good to know: The lobster is priced by weight; ask before ordering.
518 W Las Tunas Dr, San Gabriel, CA 91776
Imperial-style Chinese banquet cooking in an elegant room.
Bistro Na's serves Beijing-style imperial cuisine in a formal room. It has been recognized by the Michelin Guide, and dishes such as crispy shrimp and the braised pork are elaborate and carefully plated.
It suits celebrations and group dinners.
Good to know: Book ahead for dinner and for larger groups.
9055 Las Tunas Dr, Temple City, CA 91780
Hand-made dumplings and long, folded pan-fried hui tou.
Hui Tou Xiang is a small noodle and dumpling shop named for its hui tou, long pan-fried dumplings folded like envelopes. Soup dumplings, wontons in chili oil and noodle soups are cheap and good.
It is a quick, casual stop.
Good to know: Order the hui tou and the spicy wontons.
704 W Las Tunas Dr, San Gabriel, CA 91776
Crisp-bottomed sheng jian bao and cheap Shanghainese plates.
Kang Kang is a cafeteria-style counter known for sheng jian bao, the pan-fried pork buns with crisp bottoms and hot soup inside. Shanghainese cold dishes and noodles fill out the steam-table line.
It is one of the cheapest good meals in the Valley.
Good to know: Let the buns cool a minute — the soup inside is very hot.
27 E Valley Blvd, Alhambra, CA 91801
Taiwanese dishes made with local produce, in Silver Lake.
Pine & Crane is a counter-service Taiwanese restaurant with beef noodle soup, dan dan noodles, three-cup chicken and plenty of seasonal vegetables. Some greens come from the family's farm.
It is the best Chinese option without the drive east; there is a second location downtown.
Good to know: Order at the counter, then find a seat.
1521 Griffith Park Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90026
Taiwanese street-food snacks and noodles from the Pine & Crane team.
Joy is a casual Taiwanese spot on York Boulevard serving dan bing, popcorn chicken, noodles and small dishes. It is quick, cheap and popular with the neighborhood.
It works for a quick lunch in Highland Park.
Good to know: Order at the counter. Street parking on York.
5100 York Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90042
In the San Gabriel Valley, east of downtown. Alhambra, San Gabriel, Monterey Park, Rosemead and Arcadia have the most regional Chinese restaurants in the US, from Sichuan to Cantonese to Taiwanese.
Chengdu Taste in Alhambra and Szechuan Impression in Alhambra are the two best known. Order the toothpick lamb at Chengdu Taste and the spicy wontons at either.
Din Tai Fung is the famous chain for xiao long bao, with its main LA locations at Westfield Santa Anita in Arcadia and in Glendale and Century City. Hui Tou Xiang in San Gabriel is a smaller, cheaper favorite.
Chinatown is worth a walk for its bakeries and history, but for a serious Chinese meal, the San Gabriel Valley has a far wider choice.
Most San Gabriel Valley restaurants take walk-ins and work best for groups who share. Weekend lunch is busiest, so arrive at opening.