The Lantern House in Chelmsford

Had Chinese delivered today and it was stone cold. Chips were inedible and we waited over an hour and a half. When I called the manageress was quite rude. It’s usually a good Chinese but haven’t been in a while. Won’t be returning

We had a lovely evening of fabulous service and delicious food. My husband enjoyed the ginger muscles and I chose my usual of mixed hors d'oeuvres and salt & chili squid. We finished our meal with a delicious sizzled prawns in black bean sauce, and chicken curry. Highly recommended and as always, delicious.

Wonderful food, quick delivery, friendly driver, great food for a treat. Be warned, the sweet & sour sauce may stain fingers - as i found out.

Wonderful friendly service when it’s a busy Xmas evening, food was so good and fresh great value for money can’t wait to go back

Best Chinese in Chelmsford or even Essex. Tried many different Chinese restaurants over the years and this is one of the best & lovely staff

Home delivery, less than five minutes walk from the restaurant. Ordered for 7pm, arrived 8:05 after three phone calls (two from us, one from them needing directions). Food was good and tasty but over-salted (except the mini spring rolls) and cold. Not the best experience.

Was 5 stars but changed because last two takeaways have been cold. Said it will take 45mins to arrive instead it was 20mins. It's very expensive. Would prefer hot food. It's been salty as well and end up thirsty after eating it. Don't get takeaway at weekends as it's cold. Better during week. Now portions are less and now very expensive

Are at this restaurant about 5 years ago , lovely , had a takeaway Friday night , spent £50 for two of us , possibly the worst Chinese I’ve ever had , nothing had any taste to it , bland , boring , will not be visiting here again. Plenty of other restaurants and take aways in Chelmsford that are 10 times better , sorry for the review but had to be said

First impressions excellent, drinks were slow to arrive, staff appeared very attentive and first course was excellent, that's where it went down hill, had to find a member of staff to clear the table and order more drink after 40 minutes! After repetitively asking for our 2nd course, a rude and angry waiter arrived with our 3rd course, before our 2nd! On explaining that it was the wrong course, he rolled his eyes and made us feel like it was our fault, needless to say, we left disappointed and let down especially after friends had highly recommended this place. Strongly recommend you consider other options before booking here.

Lovely food, great service, reasonably priced.

Amazing food,excellent service and atmosphere second to none.

Had set menu all very nice but not keen on the beef dish to be fair not a lover of red meat. Service good atmosphere ok could do with a refresh.

Great friendly service. Great food. This was our first visit with the family, but we definitely would recommend it, and we will return.

Probably the best Chinese food in Chelmsford

Top class chinese cuisine. Good wine too. Beautiful flowers! Friendly staff. A hidden gem in Broomfield Road. Opposite The Ship. Handy for a good night out!

Used to come here 20 years ago, came back for a family meal January ‘23 and still just as delicious! Quick and friendly service, great tasting food, good prices. Eight of us, served promptly with all our dishes and drinks. Lovely job 😃

visited for the first time in years.. have to say it was very nice.. tasty dishes reasonably good price. lovely smoked chicken,ribs,shredded beef and duck..all excellent..we will definately return

The food was very low standard gross

For the first time in years we decided to have a Chinese takeaway last evening and as The Lantern House is possibly the closest and has a good reputation we got it from there. I wish we hadn't, it was really poor, apart from the prawn crackers which were fine. The rest was not all enjoyable. The meat had clearly been cooked a long time before we go it. Every dish was sweet - not just the sweet and sour. We had to throw away most of the "vegetables" which were mainly tinnned. Having eaten Chinese food all over the world I can honestly say, bar one experience in Qufu, the birth-place of Confucius, this was the worst I have ever had

The best Chinese restaurant in Essex, if not more. I have been visiting the Lantern House since I was a child and it has never disappointed me. Food is amazing, restaurant is clean and quiet, staff are attentive and friendly. Truly an amazing place.

This is my favourite Chelmsford Chinese sit down restaurant. I live in Hertfordshire with fam in Essex so make a point of trying to go here when possible.

Friendly staff and good food for a good price. 3 min walk from the station car park. Complementary prawn crackers and the beer is crisp from tap. Service was quick with post dinner wipes and chocolate. Great for quick bite or full dinner experience. Would 100% recommend

FOOD 5/5 Come here for quality. We have chosen Lantern House for years and nowhere in Chelmsford has beaten it. Went with a friend who regularly dines out and he still says it's the best Chinese restaurant that he's been to. The owner is very pleasant and regularly reviews her food against other Chinese restaurants, knowing the reputable places in London. ADVANCE BOOKING We always book ahead if going on a Friday night as it is usually full including a line for collection. RECOMMENDED: Ribs in Peking Sauce, Satay Chicken, Sesame Prawn Toast, Duck, Prawns in Garlic Sauce (with carrots and spring onions), Egg Fried Rice and Banana Fritters. VALUE 4/5 Prices have gone up everywhere. If I compare what I had at Joy King Lau recently Vs here, the outlay was similar at £45-£50 per person (including alcohol + tip) however, it was much better here.

This was the best Chinese we have ever had,the staff and service was exceptional,the food was amazing and the pricing wasn’t bad,we had the set meal which was mixed starters followed by crispy duck,delicious,rice,crispy chilli beef,beef in black bean and chicken and vegetables,truly was a great evening 🤩

Bit expensive for a Chinese and beef was not good

My go-to Chinese takeaway! I've ordered fromhere for about 20 years. Generally get food to take home on the way back from the train station. I love their chicken chow mein an chicken curry too.

Order arrived 90 minutes late. Prices on their website are wrong, they have gone up. Portions are small. Food was mediocre and the noodles were soggy. Waste of time and definitely waste of money, when there is so much better out there. Won't be ordering from there again.

Ambience and customer service was great during my visit. Ordered take-aways but picked it up from the restaurant myself so I was able to have look and feel of the environment. Paid Parking is available around the area. 1st time ordering from the restaurant and the food was good.

Been going here since I was a kid. Its the only Chinese I will go to. If its shut I'll have something different it's that good. Lovely staff that have run it forever. Takeaway is beautiful and it's even better when you dine in house. 5***** in my opinion.

Lovely freshly cooked food. Calm welcoming atmosphere. Very friendly staff

My daughter who is at a local university training to be a nurse purchased £35 worth of Chinese to take away , they took it 5 minutes down the road to discover it was not edible , watery, chicken under cooked, zero egg in the egg fried rice , I called to complain, rude response, eventually they agreed if she brought some back they would refund her. ,she scraped what she could back out of the bin, they reluctantly refunded £10 even though they could see it had not been eaten , terrible service and awful food

Just moved to the area and I’m glad we tried here first. All the staff on the phones and delivery drivers are so polite and friendly. The food always arrives hot and is so damn tasty. Full of flavour and not greasy. Proper proper good Chinese food. I’m very fussy about chinese restaurant food but this is 10/10. Highly recommend.

Totally excellent, we just had a late evening meal there our 1st visit and we were both very happy with the value for money excellent food and excellent friendly staff 5*****

Best Chinese restaurant in chelmo

So disappointed I ordered first Tim for collection, the food was cold and when opened it’s not my kid even full up, not worth it never ordered again.

Lovely place with delicious food served beautifully

A no fuss, great tasting classic British Chinese. Got a takeaway from here with some friends over the weekend. We ordered a bunch of things to share once home - roast pork noodles, egg fried rice, kung pao chicken, crispy beef, lemon chicken, prawn toasts, spare ribs, crispy seaweed and the stir fried veg. All of it was great - excellent portion sizes at a decent price, it was more than enough food for the group. There really wasn't a single dish that was a let down. Would happily order from here again!

Love this place. Friendly staff..quality food ..Best Chinese in Chelmsford by far..

Lovely friendly staff really look after you Food is always delicious Well priced and clean definately recommend

The portion size is not very good. We ate in the restaurant and ordered a set menu. I had to ask whether they had brought food for one person! The service was without a smile 😔. £60 for not very much food and a very below average experience...

We just love this Chinese restaurant. Shirley really makes you feel so welcome . The food is amazing . The green lipped mussels are stunning . We love coming here . Beautiful and clean and an adult atmosphere. Highly recommend. Best in Chelmsford.

It's was very good. Friendly staff and good food. Nicely decorated throughout. Thanks for a great time!

Xmas eve, so busy but staff were brilliant, and the food was amazing

Long wait last night but could not be helped as was busy, my friend and I were given chairs to wait and they took our order and gave us some beer and prawn crackers whilst we waited. The food was really worth waiting for, and the serving staff were polite and friendly. Been here before, always made to feel welcome and will go again

Great service and delicious seaweed!

First time I'd ever been here. The food was absolutely beautiful. Really fresh and tasty and they were pretty good with all of us considering there were 10 of us. Really looking forward to going back.

First off the place looks ok, a warm welcome and a large table for 8 enable a good choice of dishes and some sharing. The overall service was good and the staff worked hard. The food was as expected in the UK, however the presentation was excellent and the food seemed to have flavours and texture compared to so many other places with everyone agreeing the meal was one of the most enjoyed Chinese meals in a long time. The final bill was a pleasant surprise as we did not hold back on the beverages either making the whole experience a pleasurable one

A friend and I met up for an early evening mid week meal. We had seaweed, prawns in satay sauce, sweet and sour chicken, pineapple rice and chow mein, plus beers. The chicken was as good as expected but the starter prawns were really excellent. The helpings of rice and noodles were of a good size but the amount of seaweed was a little less than expected. The staff were attentive and it is always nice to have the table cleaned between courses. All in all, up to their usual high standard. Prawns recommended, seaweed less so.

The best Chinese in Chelmsford by far. Been ordering from here over few years now & never get bad meal, delivered or when picked up. You Can tell it’s not cheap Ingredients like most other take away Chinese in the area.

Very long time since we've been (due to Covid lockdown). Seems even better than I remember it - excellent.

Poor food and cold too. Chips looked days old and the pork dish was horrible. Even the prawn crackers were stale. They also forgot to send the curry sauce. Won't be using again. Very disappointed.

Food was nice but had to wait ages for our food and the waiting staff are so miserable!

Came across the Lantern House as was close to the hotel staying in. Atmosphere and food was simply amazing! Will have to say they do the best prawn toast have ever had! All the food was freshly cooked and presentation was excellent. The two ladies who served us were polite, efficient and a pleasure to deal with. This is certainly somewhere would visit again. Thank you so much.

Very nice food and good service to

We love coming here . Food is always stunning . I love their chicken curry. . Shirley is always fantastic . Sitting by the water feature is beautiful. X x

Had a great meal here. The food is so nice. The presentation is good. Really enjoyed my meal good quality and quantity.

We ordered our food on the telephone and the staff were rude and said the food would be here 35mins to an hour, after 2 hours the food was still not here and we had called several times in between but again very rude. We served the food at home and all food was very cold so not a nice place to eat. Liars and rude, we were told 35mins to hour for delivery but instead it was over two hours and we had called a few times and they said it was on way and it was with the driver and they said they would call the driver but another lie because the had not called him. The food was really cold and we did not eat it and we telephoned them and they said the driver would be back to collect and again we had to wait up till gone 10pm for him to collect two bags which they told us to send back so we did, then they told us they would refund some of it because all the food wasn’t there but it was because we sent it back in two bags. Not good enough for me and my children and wont be ordering from there ever again.

First time order, food was cold beef curry, mushrooms, and all other food wot was ordered was cold etc, waited hours for delivery and .. come to my door gone 10pm at night to collect the food before a refund would even be thought off.. waiting how many days and only refunded partly of wot it cost and not whole refund not happy one bit, very bad Chinese, very bad staff, attitude, and rude, and one workers shouted at me down the phone some man for asking talk to a manager.. WOULDNT EVER ORDER FROM AGAIN OR GO ANY WHERE NEAR THIS PLACE AGAIN Lucky I couldn't give 0 star unfortunately I gotta pick 1 star before posting my reveiw VERY BAD CHINESE

Great food quick service. 4 adults we Just felt a little rushed to leave the table considering it wasn't that busy 🤔

En centralt belägen restaurang med en hemtrevlig miljö. Maten är god och vällagad. Servicen är på topp. Helt klart värt ett besök

Superb food and fabulous staff. Ask for recommendations and have a wonderful surprise!

Went end of April after football match with the superb Accrington Stanley, restaurant full but lovely lady said hold on we can make the Deliveroo table 16 I’ll make up. We were spoilt rotten and the food fantastic brilliant restaurant I had fallen out of love with Chinese food, but now back in love

Been going years and always good, if it's not broken then don't fix it

Haven’t been here for years cuz I moved away! Called in for lunch when I came thru chelms again as a last minute thing and it hasn’t changed at all!! Amounts are spot on, prices are good and quality hasn’t changed in over a decade! If I was in chelmsford still I’d b here every week without fail!!!!!

First order I received chicken balls instead of prawn balls that were ordered. The next 3 times chicken was found in the chowmein even tho they were told every time to use a clean pan as it was for a vegiterian. I gave them the benifit of the doubt for making mistakes, but continued to happen. Revised review I decided to try again last night and food was perfect. Thank you for taking the time to check, <3

This place was so bad. The food was awful. The crabmeat soup was like slop and I actually gagging. The egg fried was terrible and the prawns were glued together. Won’t be going back.

Was recommended this restaurant but pretty much the whole experience was poor. The food took almost 1.45hrs to be delivered despite being told 1hr. We phone twice and was told both times the food was on its way. When the driver arrived, 40mins after we were told they’d left, he said he’d only left left 15mins ago. However the food was Luke warm so not sure who to believe now. Despite all of this if the food had been good we’d have forgiven the lies or confusion. However I have never had Chinese food that has tasted so bland in my whole life. I really do. Not like leaving poor reviews. I understand restaurants are in a very competitive market but I also believe consumers should see reviews that show the whole range of experience. As someone who has headed up customer experience programmes for some of the largest brands in the UK I would just ask the owners to ensure that customers are 1) told the truth and 2) provided with quality food. I do wish the owners all the best in improving things and hope that the experience of future customers improves and is genuine

Wonderful food , great atmosphere, excellent service.

Visited for the a valentines meal , the restaurant looked amazing filled with red heart balloons . The food was delicious and we ordered off the menu at they standard prices … made the evening so much enjoyable knowing they had not put up they...

We booked this restaurant based on the reviews , sadly this was to be a terrible experience . On arrival we were told there’s your table so we walked round to the table without any assistance. We ordered drinks then good so far fine ,...

We bought our first take-outs from here yesterday, two set meals A and G. The collection took only a minute or two. Meal quality was very good indeed. We'll be back.

Terrible delivery service, called to see if they will deliver to my area, after some backwards and forwards they confirmed they would for a £35 minimum order. Then I called back to place the order after checking the menu, told it would be a £40 minimum order! I queried this then they said fine, £35, but there will be a delivery charge. Cancelled order and went elsewhere.

Very reliable takeaway food. It has been our go-to takeaway for a few years. Winning plates are salt and pepper squid, tofu dishes, special fried rice.

Friendly staff, good menu (good value, large portions, freshly cooked).

Went as part of a group for Christmas buffet lunch. Food good although beef in black bean, was rather short of sauce. As was the chicken platter. But tasty and plenty to eat. Staff friendly and helpful. Had some problems getting served at bar, on arrival. But overall pretty good.

Normally really enjoy a Chinese from the lantern house but on Friday when ordering at 5 o’clock when the restaurant opened was told it would be ready in ten minutes. Once we got home and started opening the boxes could definitely tell it was not up to normal standards. Singapore nice noodles didn’t have much colour or taste, chicken curry had abnormally chewy chicken in it so hardly touched it plus the duck was really dry and didn’t have much crisp to it. All in all we were very disappointed as we normally love the food there but something definitely went wrong in the kitchen that day.

As an Australian who lives with a British Chinese partner. I would say I have tried a wide variety of Chinese food, good and bad. Lantern house is fairly priced, the service is exemplary and fast. Most importantly, their food, recipes and ingredients rival the best I've ever had. I would recommend Lantern House to anyone looking for authentic Chinese food without breaking the bank.

WARNING: DO NOT EAT HERE IF YOU ARE VEG/PESCATARIAN! There was a huge piece of beef in my mushroom chow mein. I only found it when I was chewing it and it was an odd texture as I’ve not eaten meat in 5 years. Spat it out to find a disgusting piece of beef. The woman on the phone tried to tell me sometimes the mushrooms are chewy so I took the beef back down there and asked for a refund. I was offered 50% off my next bill and when I said I don’t want to eat here again I just wanted my refund I was told I could only get a 50% refund. Will never be going back there again. Even if you do get lucky to not have a piece of beef in your vegetarian dish, your dish will most definitely be cooked in meat juices and it shows the high lack of care in the kitchen.

We visited the Lantern House as part of a search for a replacement for our favourite Chinese restaurant which was forced to permanently close. We were pleasantly contented, the food was very acceptable, the portions were decently sized and not extravagantly priced. The other advantages to the restaurant was it is close to the City Centre and open at lunch time.

The food was delicious, but the courses arrived very slowly, also an extra dish was added to our bill and we never received our tea and coffee that were supposed to come with our set meal.

OK Chinese.. Nothing outstanding but good

Ordered a take away, was given an eta of 7:30 pm it arrived at 8:30 pm,and was only Luke warm. Really disappointed! Please be realistic with your eta it would help customers decide if to order or not ! And now with a £5 delivery!...

We have ordered from here many times and food has been great. Our recent takeaway was awful. No flavour and very bland. Im not sure if the Chef has been changed. We ordered two chefs special chow mein. Very disappointed.

Amazing set meals. For 6 people , we had for 2 people each - D3, D4, D5. Lots of delicious , tasty and plentiful dishes. Staff very helpful 👍

Good food and service. Restaurant looks like it has been refurbished too. Will definitely go back

The best Chinese takeaway I have ever had in my life

Good traditional menu. Grilled dumpling and squid were delicious and very fresh.

Tried egg fried rice, noodles and soup. Didn't really like it. Very oily. And egg fried rice wasn't at all like what is normally expected. It's literally just plain rice mixed with egg. Totally tasteless.

We have been going to the Lantern House even when it was just a takeaway and now it's grown into a fantastic restaurant as well. The proprietors of this establishment are really nice. I have a severe allergy to fish, well anything that comes out of the sea and made from them. They are very accommodating with my allergies. For this reason I wouldn't go to another Chinese restaurant.

Always have great service sit in or takeaway. Food best in Chelmsford and are so good at food allergy arrangements.

Lovely food, lovely people couldn't fault it will eat here again for sure!

The lantern House has always set high standards.A well deserved 5 Star.

Brilliant food as ever, can be very busy when ordering take away. Well recommended

Lovely meal - the decor has been updated and the restaurant looks great. The staff were very friendly and welcoming. We enjoyed every dish and the portions were just right. Every dish tasted fresh and full of flavour. This restaurant is a little gem, far...

Great restaurant! Been going here since I was a kid! The cooking is 👌🏻

Very much enjoyed my meal this evening. It was vibrant, fresh and tasty, delivered hot and on time. Much appreciated

Best in Chelmsford for Chinese. Fresh, tasty, hot and on time.

Excellent food brilliant service

Excellent food and service. I got a set meal that cost £25. It is steep for a Chinese meal but it is most definitely worth it. I got a delicious three course meal that was (to me) worth much more than that. The atmosphere is excellent, it feels welcoming, but still feels up-market. Left with a very full belly (go very hungry), and feeling content with the flavourful food. I strongly recommend eating in, as the atmosphere is lovely.

Great food ! Best we have found in chelmsford .. arives piping hot .. smelling great .. and on time .. !