The police said a car was set on fire in Main Street, Crumlin, between 03:20 BST and 03:40 BST on Saturday and the blaze spread to the takeaway.
Residents from flats above the takeaway escaped without injury. Other premises on the street have been damaged.
The police said, at this stage, they were not treating the incident as a hate crime.
SDLP councillor Thomas Burns said it was unclear what had actually happened but it looked like the car had been rammed against the shutter of the restaurant.
"This is an absolute disgrace," he said.
"Whether this vehicle has been moved or burnt and has been rammed against the shutters of this takeaway, for the people living upstairs, it could have been an absolute disaster.
"If the blaze had got going, if the people had not got out, the smoke could have killed them, never mind the fire.
"I'm horrified that these Chinese people have been targeted. Why it was them, is a question that is being asked."
Councillor Mervyn Rea of the Ulster Unionist Party said: "That vehicle could have exploded, it could have caused damage where it was parked, it could have caused injury to anyone on the street and, equally so, when it propelled into the shop and set the shop ablaze.
"It could have caused a nasty accident when it was veering across the street."
Anne-Marie Logue, Sinn FÃ©in councillor, said people in the area were "aghast as to why this has happened".
"We are very annoyed for the business involved as well and the family are devastated," she said.
"It's obviously put them out of business for quite a few weeks.
"Opportunists decided to break into the car. The car was put on fire and unfortunately it was directed towards this shop. I'm just glad that nobody has been hurt."
She said Â£700,000 had recently been invested to upgrade Crumlin Main Street.
The police are treating the incident as a suspected arson attack and have appealed for information.

Paul Bingham spotted the blaze on the M6 near Coleshill, Warwickshire, and pulled up to help the stricken party.
He then transported the youngsters to the National Motorcycle Museum, where parents were waiting.
Thirteen people were treated for smoke inhalation - with four 10-year-old girls taken to hospital.
Nobody was seriously hurt in the fire, which remains unexplained.
More on this and other Warwickshire stories
Mr Bingham was on his way back to his coach company's headquarters in Ashton-in-Makerfield, Wigan, when he saw the group, from a school in the Black Country, standing on the hard shoulder.
He said "small flames were coming out the rear at the bottom of the engine" before the bus was eventually engulfed.
Pictures later showed the vehicle reduced to smouldering remains.
"I was there with an empty coach, so it all fell into place," he said.
"I did nothing really. I just parked my bus and said 'jump on'. I got 60-odd people away from the scene and allowed them to sit in comfort."
Mr Bingham said he was grateful the children hadn't seen the extent of the fire, as that would've been more "stressful" for them.
He added that his bosses at Eavesway Travel told him to "crack on" and "deal with it".
The four girls taken to Birmingham Children's Hospital were not thought to be in a serious condition, West Midlands Ambulance Service said.
The ambulance service commended Mr Bingham for his actions.
A spokesman said: "We would like to pay tribute to the Eavesway Travel of Wigan coach driver who spotted the issue, stopped at the side of the motorway and helped evacuate the children."
A Chinese restaurant in County Antrim has been destroyed in an arson attack.
[NEXT_CONCEPT]
A coach driver has described the "dramatic" moment he helped 59 pupils and seven teachers escape a burning bus on a motorway.