04/02/09

Great Food

by holliessis

Staff is very friendly and the food is so good. I crave it at least once a week. Service is very fast and the chinese portion of the menu is excptional as well.

• Pros: Very Tasty and always consistent

10/11/08

We come for the Food but keep comming back for the Service

by Cranksta83

Mai Lee has the most Delicious Vietnamese cuisine I have ever tasted...My Fiance and I have been comming in for over 3 years and it is our Absolute Favorite Resturant in STL...Not just because of the food But because of the Hospitality. All of the employees know us by name, they remember our favorite dishes, strike up genuine and entertaining conversation and make sure everything is perfect for us every single time...They treat us as if one of the family and go out of their way to show us a better time than before every time....Quy...Anh Yeu Em-We love you Man

• Pros: Everything!
• Cons: Small Place

10/08/08

CHECK YOUR CARRY OUT BEFORE YOU LEAVE

by palmboy

FOOD IS WONDERFUL..........IF YOU DO A CARRY OUT, MAKE DARN SURE YOU CHECK YOUR ORDER...I AM SO TIRED OF NOT GETTING WHAT I ORDERED !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

07/28/08

Best Asian Food

by MRFuzzy

I have been going to Mai Lee's ever since they first opened and have yet to be disappointed by a meal. The menu is large but each dish I have tried has been well prepared and moderately priced.

There are two pieces of advice I have for new patrons. The first is to show up early on the weekends because the place is usually packed with customers. The second is get to know the owners and the staff and you will be treated like one of the family, I know from first hand experience.

07/13/08

Great job re-vamping service - fantastic food - great overall experience

by konabean7

My fiance and I have been to Mai Lee several times and have always had a great experience. The food is fantastic - you have a LOT to choose from - the staff is very friendly, and if you ask them for recommendations on what to order you won't be disappointed. The shrimp with cucumbers and steamed rice is fantastic. We even had our dog tied up outside one day, and the host fed her a grilled chicken breast (no charge) so our dog would have a nice treat like we were enjoying inside. He washed his hands afterwards, of course. The spring rolls are great, and if you end up taking your time to enjoy the meal, we have never been hurried even when the restaurant/kitchen had just closed. Instead, the waitstaff chatted with us and asked us how we liked our meals - both meals were, as always, delicious. If you haven't tried this place definitely do - it really seems like the service has been revamped since a year+ ago.

• Pros: Spring rolls - yum.

05/17/08

They lied to us

by zzzzzzzzzzz

I went to order something and they told me that they had just got in a fresh lobster. They said it would take half an hour to make a dish. I had to run an errand so I left and came back. When I came back, they told me that the lobster was not fresh. This is AFTER they had checked in the kitchen and told me it was freshly bought today. This is not the first time. I had a stale fish dish before after they assured me that it was fresh. It's a pattern of lie after lie. Go eat at your own risk.

06/17/07

Great food, but be prepared to witness the worst service ever

by jibberish81

I have been to Mai Lee about 6 times. There are 2 absolutes that I have noticed when going there. First is that I will thoroughly love the food, especially the spring rolls. Second is that I will get the absolutely worst possible service known to man kind. I personally witnessed two gentlemen arrive about five minutes after my friend and I were seated, and they had their food almost completely eaten before we even got our menus. I wish I could say that I was exaggerating, but unfortunately in this case I am not. Every time I have been there I felt that I have been almost completely ignored. For the most part it is the "being ignored" part that is their Achilles Heel.

Some of the other people who have written reviews have commented on the cleanliness, but I have never witnessed any issues regarding that.

I also have not had any problems with them demanding tips, but I also tip 20% regardless. I am a former waiter, so I try to pay back my debt to society by tipping well.

I also have not had any issues with people smoking, but that could very well change depending on the circumstances.

So if you want good service coupled with friendly smiles, go to Denny's. If you want some awesome spring rolls with some killer cashew sauce served to you by an unfriendly staff, then Mai Lee is for you.

Seriously, check out the spring rolls if you go there. Mmmm...... :)

• Pros: Great food with an expansive menu, easy to find
• Cons: Small establishment, small tables, TERRIBLE SERVICE, PREPARE TO BE IGNORED

02/12/07

CUSTOMER SERVICE IS A NIGHTMARE. A FEW STAFFS ARE VERY RUDE.

by dan636

MAI LEE NEEDS TO CARE MORE FOR THE CUSTOMERS NOT JUST THEIR MONEY. WHEN YOU CARE ENOUGH FOR YOUR CUSTOMERS, MONEY WILL COME. BAD SERVICE MEANS BAD TIPS. BAD SERVICE MEANS CUSTOMERS EAT SOMEWHERELSE. DEMANDING TIPS IS RUDE. IF YOU SERVE WELL PEOPLE WILL TIP YOU WELL. LEARN IT.

11/23/06

Worst Service in town

by m0n0p0l1

Good Food, Worst Service

The place is filled with second-hand smoke as well as horrible service. They are rude and will demand a tip because most people will not give them a tip. Visit Mai Lee and observe the worst service in St. Louis.

• Pros: Large Menu and Good food
• Cons: Unsanitary, horrible service, very small gets crowded quickly.

02/20/06

Tons of secondhand smoke, rude waitstaff

by seejanebee

A friend and I tried Mai Lee after hearing they had the best Chinese food in STL. We didn't think there was a smoking section because there was no divider in the (smallish) room. However, moments after being seated people lit up cigarettes on one side of the room - only 2 tables away from us. I don't have a problem eating at places with a divided off smoking section but this was awful - there didn't seem to be any ventilation system. We looked through the menus for 5 minutes and in that time we were asked 3 times if we were ready to order and when we said no, the waitstaff acted annoyed (the menu is 8+ pages long). Then even more people lit up so we left without ordering.

The food may be as good as I've heard but I won't be going back to find out.

• Pros: easy parking after 5
• Cons: secondhand smoke, rude waitstaff