Chef Ma’s Chinese Gourmet Restaurant

Reviews

• Michael P.

  star star star star star 29 May 2026

  Head to Overland for a unique and delicious dining experience at Chef Ma's. Ma is celebrated in the world of Chinese cooking and his accolades he proudly posts around the dining room, including a 2008 win on Iron Chef.
  
  On our visit we had the salt and pepper calamari, golden pumpkin shrimp and the fish soup. Our bill was less than $50 for two.
  
  The space is an old Taco Bell, now decorated with televisions playing the most random and entertaining videos and world  news.
  
  Chef Ma gave us personal attention and helped us navigate the menu. We made the right choices and can honestly say he has one of the best calamari we've had anywhere! Soup was fresh with organic vegetables. Shrimp was the most surprising and unique dish--who would think to deep fry shrimp alongside chunks of pumpkin ?? So good tho!
  
  We will for sure be back! Skip the airport lobby food and head down the road to Chef Ma's if you have a St. Louis layover. And city folks, there's some amazing food in the County, go explore!!

• Melissa M.

  star star star star star_border 29 May 2026

  This is one of my regular take-out restaurants that I frequent. Two things I have to order consistently at EVERY visit are the salt and pepper calamari (it is always fried perfectly and has an amazing spicy flavor from the sliced jalepenos and red pepper flakes) and egg rolls (they are the best I have ever had from a restaurant
  ... ever).
  
  My husband regularly orders the beef & broccoli as his entree and loves it. I used to order the golden pumpkin shrimp, but a couple of times, it was too oily and the pumpkin pieces were mushy, so I have switched to ordering the sesame chicken.
  
  On our last visit, the egg rolls did not make it into our bag, so we had to run back to get them. Luckily we live close! Just check your bag before leaving. They did give us a complimentary treat to make it up to us!

• Frank K.

  star star star star star 26 May 2026

  Chef Ma first came out in his civies to greet us. I asked him to please stand for a photo with us and he graciously went back to change into his award winning "Iron Chef" competition uniform for this photo with my kids!
  
  Don't let the exterior former Taco Bell motif fool you! Chef Ma's cuisine that we enjoyed yesterday is easily very competitive with any of the very best Chinese restaurants in San Francisco, Los Angeles and Vancouver Canada Chinatowns!
  
  And his "Chewy Rice with Chinese Sausage" was better than the best I've had in GuangZhou, China! Cheers!

• Joshua K.

  star star star star star_border 21 May 2026

  Like no other Chinese restaurant I have ever been before, Chef Ma's is located in what used to be a taco bell, and evidence of that is very clear.  I love taco bell so I was hoping that Chef Ma's would be able to live up to its predecessor, and it definitely did.
  
  They have a mix of authentic and Americanized Chinese food to please anyone.  We ordered the Mandarin pork chops, and the Szhechuan style steamed fish.  The pork chops were delicious.  They were crispy, sweet, salty and cooked perfectly, an absolute must have.  The fish was also really good, although not as good as the pork chops.  IN my opinion you could tell that the fish was not very high quality, which made it a bit less tender than some of the better fish I have had of this style of dish.  The flavor though was great, and it sure as hell was spicy.
  
  This place is a very neat experience with very good food.  The prices are extremely reasonable for this type of food.

• Rebecca M.

  star star star star star 17 May 2026

  Truly blown away by this hidden gem!
  
  The exterior and interior of this restaurant is a bit modest (I read that it used to be a Taco Bell which wouldn't surprise me) but the food is really good. Chef Ma serves both traditional Chinese dishes as well as Americanized Chinese dishes, and both looked great.
  
  I had the szechuan beef noodles which were phenomenal. I asked for it mild, which was the perfect amount of spice. And the beef brisket was hands down the best I've ever had - so tender and delicious!
  
  Highly recommend stopping by this place even if it's out of the way. They only have a few tables, so get here early! If you're lucky, Chef Ma will stop by your table to chat.