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 quite tasty and I sipped the whole large bowl.

After that, it took a few more minutes for the item to arrive. The rice was on one side and the winter melon with beef was on the other side. Portions are generous, but the beef is not the best quality and slight tough (but quite edible). The melon bits are bitter as expected, but also savory with fermented soybeans (dou-shi) and it is a very unique flavor combination.

Drink and lunch rice plate together with tax came out to be just over 17. I left a 20.

While quality of food isn't the best, it is quite good, and price is very reasonable. You also go here for the nostalgia, as this is one of the few restaurants that still serves chop suey, egg foo Yung, and other Chinese-American food. Let's say this is 4/5

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The Hidden Chinatown of San Francisco

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