Tai Chi

When I was craving the sugary deep fried taste of Gen Tsao's chicken, my friends told me this was the place. It wasn't the best I had ever had, but good enough for a filling meal. Service was fast, efficient, and typical of this style of Chinese restaurant. Vegetable dish of stir fried green beans made perfect match.

Posted 03/03/09

When ever I order from here, it usually takes no longer then 20 minutes for them to deliver. The food is consistantly good and they are always nice and efficient on the phone. If you like Chinese you will love this place!

Posted 09/14/08

Hot, fresh, and delicious food every time. I've been a patron of Tai Chi for years. They have never let me down. The Generals Chicken and the beef and asparagus in black bean sauce are two of my favorites. Last week I went with some friends to eat - we had a wonderful dinner and I'm sure we'll be back for more soon.

Pros: excellent quality, lot's of options, delivers to most neighborhoods

Cons: parking can be tough on Polk Street

Posted 08/13/08

Food was fresh, hot and delicious. The service was friendly and prompt and after 3 entrees, 2 beers and a bill of less than $40, I was impressed.

Pros: fast and friendly service, fresh food

Cons: Rest could use some updating

Posted 05/01/08

I like to eat in this small restaurant. Their service is good, and the food comes fast, more importantly, the food taste great. I will come here again for sure!

Posted 02/26/08

Good food! SUPER fast delivery!!! And cheap!!!

Will order delivery from them again and you should too ; )

Posted 01/04/08

The Tai Chi?

I tried this place last night with a few friends from out of town and we were all happy as Larry!

Great food, great service, great portions and even better, a cheap bill at the end!

Decor may be a bit too simple for some but it?s very clean (including the Loo?s (always a good sign))

Haven?t tried the takeaway yet but definitely will.

Very impressed.

Posted 06/28/07

The potstickers are great. Definately worth a trip for a night out of good food. Highly recommended.

Posted 04/02/07

I remember the first time I ate there with a friend from my college days at Chico State in the late 1970s. We were staying around the corner at a local motel, and we accidently bumped in to Tai Chi's for some lunch. Wow, on a college budget we ate to our heart's content. And the food; the tastiest and freshest stir-fried shrimp with equally a fresh side of asparagus. We also ordered a side of chinese eggplant. It was so tasty and affordable that I have taken friends and family there every-time we visit San Francisco. Even my Cantonese wife enjoyed the food! A real gold-mine!

Pros: One block from Van Ness Ave./HWY 101. Great food and outstanding value!

Cons: Parking may take a few trips around the block but hey, it's downtown San Francisco!

Posted 07/06/06

The delivery dude grunted, handed us our food, and shuffled off, we crowded around the table and dug into the meal. We ordered:

Pot Stickers
General Tsos
Lemon Chicken

pot stickers: meh.

The Lemon chicken definately was the most palatable of the courses. Unremarkable breaded white meat with a lemon sauce.

The General Tsos--this destroyed us. Copius amounts of it in a take out box made me incredibly giddy, but once I bit into it, I knew I shouldnt have. This basically was a bucket of soggy, 90% fatty dark meat slathered in spicy, and way too sweet tso's sauce. Some of the bites even actually made me gag. I tried to look for the white meat parts, but those were few and far between. I gave up about halfway into my first serving, pre-emptively drinking some pepto.

Highly, highly not reccomended. We're sitting here now feeling very ill.

Cons: bad health records, sickening, disgusting.

Posted 03/25/06

I read the reviews online, and decided to give this place a shot. The delivery was fast, portions were huge, but the food was sub-par at best. I tried the General Tsao's Chicken since so many peple raved about it, but the chicken was really fatty and not good. The egg rolls were ok, nothing special. The sweet and sour chicken was also really fatty. I would not eat there again.

Pros: delivery, huge portions

Cons: food

Posted 07/06/05

This was the first restaurant I went to when I moved here in 1992 and I keep going back. It is by far the best Chinese restaurant in the city. Their General Tsao's Chicken is the best I've tried in 3 countries. Every dish I've had is fantastic. I can't say enough. The decor is low key but who cares when the food is so good.

Posted 06/03/05

Sure you can get good chinese food in San Francisco (home of the world's largest China Town), but this place is worth a visit, abet outside of the main district. I went for takeout, ordered the Tea Duck and steamed rice. What I got was a takeout pint overflowing with meat and another packed with rice. I would have liked some veggies, but the duck, although bony, was not greasy and oh so tasty. I'll have to go back to try their General Tsao's that everyone seems to rave about.

Pros: Inexpensive, Good Value, Quality Food

Cons: , No veggies with meal

Posted 08/23/04

Tai Chi is the ONLY chinese restaurant I will eat in. Their food is always made with fresh ingredients and higher quality meat than you will find elsewhere. It is not too greasy. And everything I have tried has been great! The decor leaves a little to be desired but made up for by the food.

Posted 06/01/04

The guy that rated this average must have eaten at a different place. Tai Chi is the best Chinese in the city and the General Tso's chicken is the best anywhere! Spicy green beans with prawns is another outstanding, best anywhere dish! And you definitely cannot beat the prices...Eliza's gets all the press, but their portions are too small while Tai Chi's are HUGE! Don't be fooled by the ho-hum decor...this place rocks and they've got the hardest working kitchen in SF!

Pros: Outstanding Food, Best Take Out in SF, Huge Portions

Cons: Boring Decor, Parking can be tough

Posted 12/30/03

I had very high expectations based on other reviews. Unfortunately, Tai Chi didn't even come close to living up to those expectations. The food wasn't bad, just very bland--and we tried several dishes. Delivery was extremely fast and it certainly is fairly valued. But I'd search out for better spots.

Pros: fast delivery, fairly priced

Cons: bland food

Posted 01/03/03

After going around the hood to many places, we only come here now for quick, cheap, and tasty chinese. They have a hot green bean dish and a minced chicken with plum sauce in cabbage dish that we absolutely love. You won't leave hungry and it's all under $20. Service is very prompt. Decor is poor but who cares. It's all about the food. Can't eat decor. One more thing, don't get stuck sitting by the door when it's cold out.

Pros: Quick, Hot, Tasty

Cons: Decor

Posted 10/10/02

The best General Tso's chicken. Worth waiting in line for, but better yet, getting takeout regularly.

Pros: Food, Service, Takeout

Cons: Long Lines

Posted 08/24/02

Tai Chi is definitely my favorite Chinese restaurant in San Francisco. The food is more flavorful by a long shot than any other Chinese place in this city, most of which tend to be bland Cantonese fare. The Hunan food at Tai Chi is amazing. Their specialty is the General's Chicken, which you can see on almost every diner's table, but all their dishes are great. Servings are huge and tend to be even larger if you are there with a large group of people.

Posted 08/18/02

The first time I went there, I noticed a steady stream of Police and Firemen stopping out front and then running in to pick up togo orders. You can't get a better recomendation than that, just don't look too close at the suroundings.

Pros: Food, Price, Service

Cons: Atomosphere

Posted 07/22/02