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Quick Review of Today Food (601 Kearny)

Today Food, a small unassuming shop at the corner of Sacramento and Kearny, is a surprisingly good dumpling shop that's open for early brunch. Half of the store is taken up by the counter leaving only about 8 seats separated into 2 small tables and 1 medium table.  The menu is simple: dumpling can be served with soup, without soup, pan fried. Dumplings themselves can be had with various fillings, such as pork, chicken, shrimp, or veggie.  They have a couple other things, but dumplings are their primary offerings, so I ordered that.  It is interesting they serve everything in to-go containers and disposable utensils. Portion sizes are relatively small. The dumplings are size of a wonton, not jiaozhi, so a dozen of them would fit in a medium bowl.  On top are some bits of cilantro and seawood, but the seaweed needs to soak in the broth first. If you try to eat them dry they're too chewy. The soup is a bit savory and good, however, they give you those cheap shallow plas...
Recent posts

Quick Review of New Woey Loy Goey Restaurant (699 Jackson)

New Woey Loy Goey (NLG from now on) is one of three "basement" restaurants left in Chinatown (the other 2 are "Cloud and Spice" ex-Chef Hung's, and Kam Lok). This one is an old restaurant that still has the "bachelor bar" setup on the left as you enter, a lot like New Tin Lung Cafe (reviewed earlier).  Went in for lunch, asked the waitress to recommend a rice plate for lunch. She made an unusual choice: beef stir fried with winter melon, over rice. Winter melon, also known as bitter melon, is often stir-fried with beef and thick gravy so you can serve it over (or next to) rice, but it's an... Adventurous suggestion, something very... Oldskool. I accepted the choice, added a Diet Coke (which they don't have and I accepted the substitute, Coke Zero Sugar).  They served the house soup (low-fuo-tong) which actually came in a generous large bowl, not the normal rice bowl. It has lotus roots, daikon, and carrots, plus peanuts and pork bits. It is qui...

Quick Review of New Fortune Restaurant (815 Stockton)

New Fortune is a bit of "hole in the wall" restaurant with a tiny kitchen turning out familiar plates for locals and a few adventurous tourists. There are only a dozen seats as you're sitting almost elbow to elbow with others. Most people order to go here, and just stand near the door to wait. And business is still brisk as they are next to the bus stop, being across the street from Cafe New Honolulu (previously reviewed).  Pretty average restaurant with slightly below average prices, IMHO. I've ordered the standard "beef chow fun" (gone-chow-au-haw) and it's pretty good, but again, not amazing.  3/5

Quick Review of Taqueria Mana (439 Stockton)

Taqueria Mana is technically not in Chinatown, being on the OTHER side (the Union Square side) of the Stockton tunnel from Chinatown, at 439 Stockton (next to the Boba Guys). However, it is a proper Mexican restaurant, one of the few near Chinatown (which also includes Taqueria Zorro and El Farolito North Beach) Ordered tamales meal and horchata lunch combo to go. Price is over $20, as expected. It's pretty good, but not like amazing good. Tamales feels a little dry, and there's not quite enough salsa to offset that. Still it's pretty flavorful.  3.5/5

Quick Review of San Sun Restaurant (848 Washington)

Right on the corner of Ross Alley and Washington, San Sun Restaurant is basically a "tea restaurant" that caters to everybody with a HUGE menu. However, it does have a few offering that are rather unique in Chinatown that could make it worth a visit.   I went in for lunch and was one of the few early birds (it's right at noon) and asked the waitress what she'd recommend. She said "Satay Beef Rice Noodles (with Chinese Brocolli), but it's spicy." I am not exactly a heat-eater, and my tolerance is pretty much Shin Ramen, but I'm willing to give it a try, so I said "make it medium spicy?"   After a few minutes, I got a plate that's almost uniformly dark. The beef is dark, the gai-lan (Chinese brocolli) was a dark leafy veg, and the rice noodle was darkened with soy sauce. So it's a dark mass (mess?). While the taste isn't bad, and the spice level is fine, Chines Brocolli is slightly bitter, and doesn't fit with the other tastes...

Quick Review of Food Express (714 Grant)

Food Express, nestled between The Wok Shop and Snow Garden Restaurant on the 700 block of Grant in Chinatown, serves cafeteria style to-go food. However, I would recommend you skip this place.  I tried it one afternoon, hoping to find some fast food to go as I was in a hurry and I don't want a sit-down meal.  I went in, tried to order, was told they are out of rice, please give her a few minutes while she go get some. And indeed, a few minutes later she's back with some rice. Unfortunately, the rice is pretty much room temp by the time I get to consume it.  I tried picking out a few entrees on the cafeteria style steel basins, but these are even worse than Panda Express items. At least those are relatively fresh and plentiful. Here, they look like leftover scraps that's been kept lukewarm by the hot water bath under the basin for too long. Beef and broccoli turned into almost unchewable mess. Veggies have lost their texture. Rice is clumpy. Even reheating in microwave did...

Jet Li in SF Chinatown? Via Videogame?

Everybody knows who Jet Li was, but few people remember his video game, Rise to Honor, that came out on PS/2 in 2004.  Even fewer people knew that a promo photo for the game was shot in Chinatown back then, probably 2003. Now, the only reminder is this photo archived on Mobygames .  The location, at least for those who lived in Chinatown for a while, is very obvious: 100 block of Waverly pl, an alley in Chinatown. Utopia Cafe is clearly visible.  This was what Utopia Cafe looked like circa 2002 Utopia Cafe is still there, albeit, rebranded with a completely different sign and awning. 

About the author

Kasey is a professional tour guide and amateur historian who specialized in Chinatown History and Tours. You will often find him guiding groups sampling delicious food and learning interesting historical tidbits about Chinatown most weekends.