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Quite simply, Shun Lee Palace is one of the best Chinese restaurants anywhere. A Manhattan institution since 1971, this East Sider is arguably the finest Chinese establishment you’ll find that still makes delivery a part of the business.

Shun Lee’s highly trained chefs follow through on famous restaurateur Michael Tong’s dream of taking Chinese delivery from a convenience to an art form. The exquisite dishes at Shun Lee Palace explore the delicate balance of flavors and rich textures of the Szechuan, Hunan, Cantonese and Shanghai regions. The attention to detail and craftsmanship of the dishes is further exemplified by the Beggar’s Chicken, which must be ordered 24 hours in advance so that the chef can sprinkle it with rose petal liqueur every half hour. A genuine example of first-rate Chinese culinary art, this revered New York classic is a good place to start your search for upscale cuisine.

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The entire restaurant accommodates up to one hundred and fifty guests. We have two private rooms available for special events. The balcony room holds up to twenty four seated, and the front room holds up to thirty seated.

Tasting dinners range from $65.00 and up, with six to eight courses.

Shun Lee Palace also offers full service catering and special event planning for family, corporate and social events from twenty up to one thousand.

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Michael Tong, Chef and Owner

Michael Tong was born in 1944 on Mainland China in the village of Anihar. In 1960, Michael went to high school in Hong Kong. In 1963 he came to America to attend college, first studying at the University of Southern California and then at Oklahoma State where, in 1966, he graduated with a degree in Civil Engineering.

Throughout college, Michael earned extra money by cooking at various Chinese restaurants, including one at the 1964 World’s Fair. It was during this hiatus from college that Michael Tong met the chef who would become his mentor, chef Ting Tung Wang. Wang was then chef to Taiwan’s’ ambassador and would later be recognized by culinary cognoscenti, especially Craig Claiborne, as the first master Chinese chef to successfully introduce the American public to Szechuan cooking.

In 1967, Michael Tong joined Chef Wang in opening Shun Lee Dynasty, in Manhattan, the first Chinese restaurant in America to popularize Szechuan and Shanghai cuisine. Shun Lee Dynasty became an instant success and was praised by food critics across the country for its authenticity, innovation and its impact on the American restaurant culture.

As a result of Shun Lee Dynasty’s success, Michael Tong realized that the public was definitely interested in a more authentic and exciting Chinese cooking in a luxurious and sophisticated environment. In 1971, he opened Shun Lee Palace on East 55th Street in Manhattan, and established himself as one of the premier Chinese restaurateurs in the country.

In 1972, Tong opened Hunan, the first restaurant in the US to present a Hunanese menu and the first Chinese restaurant to receive four stars from The New York Times. Finally, in 1981, Michael Tong opened Shun Lee West, opposite Manhattan’s Lincoln Center. Once again, Tong offered New Yorkers fresh ideas in Chinese dining with the including many unfamiliar regional dishes and the introduction of an enormous Dim Sum menu, which is served at Shun Lee West’s Café.

For the past thirty five years, over ten million diners have experienced the many dishes that Michael Tong pioneered, most of which have now standard fare on the menus of the more than ten thousand Hunan restaurants across the country. Tong has created thousand of jobs in America for Chinese immigrants. His influence, both here and abroad, on the past two generation of chefs and restaurateurs is immeasurable.

On June 13, 2001, at its 75th Anniversary Gala Benefit at the Waldorf-Astoria in New York City, the China Institute in America honored Michael Tong – along with director Ang Lee, composer Tan Dun, philanthropists Houghton and Doreen Freeman, actress Michelle Yeoh, playwright David Henry Hwang, author Amy Tan, and Chinese historian Jonathan Spence – for his contribution in introducing China and Chinese culture into the mainstream of American life.

In September 2001, Michael Tong was invited, along with fourteen other Americans who are most prominent in the business, scientific and cultural community – “ambassadors” in their fields – to spend a week in Beijing as guests of the Chinese government.

In May 2006, Michael Tong was awarded the 2006 Ellis Island Medal of Honor, presented annually to American citizens of diverse origins for their outstanding contributions to their own ethnic groups, their ancestral countries, and to the United States.

Michael Tong’s book, The Shun Lee Cookbook, will be published by HarperCollins in 2007. He is currently working on plans to open a cooking school that will offer training to newly arrived Chinese immigrants, as well as assistance in helping them to adjust to the social and economic challenges of their new environment.

Michael Tong enjoys collecting rare Chinese recipes and cookbooks. He is the Vice Chairman of the China AIDS Fund and is active in New York’s Citymeals on Wheels. He has two daughters and two grandchildren, and lives in Manhattan.

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New York City Best Chinese restaurant from AOL City Guide, 2005 and 2006

Received Award of Excellence by Wine Spectator, 2004 through 2006

Featured in:

New York magazine

Crain’s Business News, 2001

The New York Times

FORBES magazine, 2000

Zagat Survey, from 1996 through present

Shanghai Steamed Dumplings

Minced Chicken Soong with lettuce leaves

Beijing Duck—A young seasoned duckling slowly grilled until crispy and golden, the delicate skin is sliced, and the meat is carved separately; served with homemade crepes, spring onion brushes and Hoisin sauce

Beggar's Chicken—Chicken seasoned with pepper and other herbs and spices and stuffed with vegetables and pork, wrapped in lotus leaves and encased in clay oil before baking in a high temperature oven for four hours, and sprinkled with rose petal liqueur every half hour

Grand Marnier Prawn—Jumbo prawns coated with water chestnut flour, cooked till crisp, then sautéed in a Grand Márnier sauce; served with broccoli and sesame seeds

Hunan Lamb—Choice spring lamb with leeks and hot pepper sauce