"The Chinese Restaurant" received very positive responses from critics and is considered one of "Seinfeld"s first "classic episodes". Kit Boss, a critic for the "Ocala Star-Banner", wrote that the episode was "like real life, but with better dialogue". Various critics and news sources have praised how the episode defines the show's "show about nothing" concept. Critics have also noted that aside from being a turning point for the show, the episode also became a turning point for television sitcoms; one "South Florida Sun-Sentinel" critic commented that the episode, along with the season four episode "The Contest", " broke new sitcom ground and expanded the lexicon of the '90s." Vance Durgin of "The Orange County Register" praised how the show "wrung" so much comedy "out of a simple premise". The episode was also included in a list compiled by "The Star-Ledger" called "50 events that shaped TV – and our lives" between 1900 and 1999. "The Charlotte Observer" has called "The Chinese Restaurant" the best "Seinfeld" episode, referring to it as "the very epitome of the classic "Seinfeld" format".