Highest-rated Chinese restaurants in Des Moines

Forget General Tso's and chop suey. Today's Chinese restaurants are skipping the American takes on Chinese food and instead are bringing diners on a culinary journey through the diverse regions of China. Fiery chili-infused Sichuan food, stuffed bao from Beijing, Shanghai-style soup dumplings, Guilin rice noodles, and Cantonese seafood and dim sum are just some of what the country has to offer.

By seeing the world through social media, more consumers have learned that there's more to Chinese food than fried rice, sweet and sour chicken, and egg rolls. Consumers increasingly want to go deep into Asian cuisine and understand the variety of flavor profiles, which in turn is influencing how we eat. Forty-five percent of consumers believe that Asian food and flavors will have a big impact on food trends, second to American cuisine by just 1%, according to the American Culinary Federation's 2025 trends report.

That's evident in the rise of chili crisp as a must-have condiment, which was on menus 77.8% more times between 2023 and 2024, compared to just 10.5% for hot honey, according to Technomic.

Social media and restaurant review sites have made it even easier to hunt out unique and delicious options for Chinese food. Stacker compiled a list of the highest-rated Chinese restaurants in Des Moines based on diners' reviews on Yelp as of July 2025. Restaurants with at least 20 reviews tagged as "Chinese" on Yelp and within a 10-kilometer radius of Des Moines were included. Some restaurants featured may serve other food items besides breakfast food. Also, in an effort to highlight independent businesses and local chains, national chains with more than 10 locations nationally, based on the Yelp data, were not included.

Dragon House East

1 / 24

#24. Dragon House East

- Rating: 2.7/5 (44 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 2470 East Euclid Ave. Des Moines, Iowa
- Categories: Chinese
- Read more on Yelp

China Buffet

2 / 24

#23. China Buffet

- Rating: 2.7/5 (31 reviews)
- Price level: $
- Address: 2010 Southeast Delaware Ave. Ankeny, Iowa
- Categories: Chinese, Buffets
- Read more on Yelp

China Garden

3 / 24

#22. China Garden

- Rating: 2.7/5 (47 reviews)
- Price level: $
- Address: 1679 Northwest 86th St. Clive, Iowa
- Categories: Chinese
- Read more on Yelp

Taste of China

4 / 24

#21. Taste of China

- Rating: 3.2/5 (50 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 4212 Douglas Ave. Des Moines, Iowa
- Categories: Chinese
- Read more on Yelp

Tsing Tsao West

5 / 24

#20. Tsing Tsao West

- Rating: 3.3/5 (54 reviews)
- Price level: $
- Address: 3846 100th St. Urbandale, Iowa
- Categories: Chinese
- Read more on Yelp

Mr Eggroll Chinese Fast Food

6 / 24

#19. Mr Eggroll Chinese Fast Food

- Rating: 3.3/5 (39 reviews)
- Price level: $
- Address: 3330 Indianola Ave. Des Moines, Iowa
- Categories: Chinese, Chicken Shop, Soup
- Read more on Yelp

China Moon

7 / 24

#18. China Moon

- Rating: 3.4/5 (58 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 225 Southeast Oralabor Road Ankeny, Iowa
- Categories: Chinese
- Read more on Yelp

Tsing Tsao South

8 / 24

#17. Tsing Tsao South

- Rating: 3.5/5 (69 reviews)
- Price level: $
- Address: 4230 Fleur Drive Des Moines, Iowa
- Categories: Chinese, Soup
- Read more on Yelp

China Place

9 / 24

#16. China Place

- Rating: 3.6/5 (68 reviews)
- Price level: $
- Address: 2414 University Ave. Des Moines, Iowa
- Categories: Chinese
- Read more on Yelp

Wong's Chopsticks

10 / 24

#15. Wong's Chopsticks

- Rating: 3.7/5 (121 reviews)
- Price level: $
- Address: 5500 Merle Hay Road Johnston, Iowa
- Categories: Dim Sum
- Read more on Yelp

Shang Yuen Chinese Fast Food

11 / 24

#14. Shang Yuen Chinese Fast Food

- Rating: 3.8/5 (57 reviews)
- Price level: $
- Address: 5717 Hickman Road Des Moines, Iowa
- Categories: Chinese
- Read more on Yelp

Heavenly Asian Cuisine & Lounge

12 / 24

#13. Heavenly Asian Cuisine & Lounge

- Rating: 3.9/5 (141 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 225 5th St. West Des Moines, Iowa
- Categories: Chinese, Vietnamese, Cocktail Bars
- Read more on Yelp

China House

13 / 24

#12. China House

- Rating: 3.9/5 (49 reviews)
- Price level: $
- Address: 2916 East University Ave. Des Moines, Iowa
- Categories: Chinese
- Read more on Yelp

Lucky Bamboo

14 / 24

#11. Lucky Bamboo

- Rating: 3.9/5 (119 reviews)
- Price level: $
- Address: 1555 Se Delaware Ave. Ste 1 Ankeny, Iowa
- Categories: Chinese, Asian Fusion
- Read more on Yelp

Tsing Tsao Chinese Fast Food

15 / 24

#10. Tsing Tsao Chinese Fast Food

- Rating: 4.0/5 (69 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 2231 East University Ave. Des Moines, Iowa
- Categories: Chinese, fast food
- Read more on Yelp

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Cool Basil

16 / 24

#9. Cool Basil

- Rating: 4.0/5 (420 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 1250 86th St. Clive, Iowa
- Categories: Thai, Sushi Bars, Chinese
- Read more on Yelp

China Cafe

17 / 24

#8. China Cafe

- Rating: 4.1/5 (30 reviews)
- Address: 5969 Merle Hay Road Ste B Johnston, Iowa
- Categories: Chinese, Asian Fusion
- Read more on Yelp

De Rice

18 / 24

#7. De Rice

- Rating: 4.1/5 (79 reviews)
- Address: 8430 Birchwood Court Johnston, Iowa
- Categories: Thai, Chinese, Sushi Bars
- Read more on Yelp

China Chef

19 / 24

#6. China Chef

- Rating: 4.2/5 (66 reviews)
- Price level: $
- Address: 5010 Southwest 9th St. Des Moines, Iowa
- Categories: Chinese
- Read more on Yelp

China Dragon

20 / 24

#5. China Dragon

- Rating: 4.3/5 (37 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 2351 Sunset Drive Ste 103 Norwalk, Iowa
- Categories: Chinese
- Read more on Yelp

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Wasabi

21 / 24

#4. Wasabi

- Rating: 4.3/5 (108 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 8481 Birchwood Court Johnston, Iowa
- Categories: Sushi Bars, Asian Fusion, Chinese
- Read more on Yelp

Fawn's Asian Cuisine

22 / 24

#3. Fawn's Asian Cuisine

- Rating: 4.3/5 (77 reviews)
- Price level: $
- Address: 1107 East University Ave. Des Moines, Iowa
- Categories: Chinese, Asian Fusion
- Read more on Yelp

Rolling Wok

23 / 24

#2. Rolling Wok

- Rating: 4.3/5 (106 reviews)
- Price level: $
- Address: 1534 East Grand Ave. Des Moines, Iowa
- Categories: Chinese, Vietnamese, Thai
- Read more on Yelp

Sam's Fine Food Egg Rolls

24 / 24

#1. Sam's Fine Food Egg Rolls

- Rating: 4.5/5 (129 reviews)
- Price level: $
- Address: 3300 Southwest 9th St. Ste 4 Des Moines, Iowa
- Categories: Chinese
- Read more on Yelp

This story features data reporting by Wade Zhou, writing by Jill Jaracz, and is part of a series utilizing data automation across 317 metros.