Chinatown Dim Sum

A local eatery in San Francisco’s Chinatown whose layer of grime conceals authentic Chinese dim sum. The familial love among the workers is a bond felt by anyone entering the establishment, and the display of just cooked food in their platters invites even those wary of its graffiti and rough charm.

Seating: Nonexistent. The only table available was taken up by freshly made dumplings, and the store advertises its to-go nature on the front window, so no surprise.

Decor: Definitely Asian. There were bamboo plants growing in a pot near the back, and various other plants on shelves around the room. However, the steam pot segments lying around the room gave the place a rustic appeal, where ethical cooking methods and ingredient purity were important. Beyond that, there were no decorations, implying that the owners themselves enjoyed the decorations that were up.

Actual Food: With a ~30 item menu, I felt a bit overwhelmed by the quantity of choices, some in barely passable Engrish. But the server could unveil the steam pans near the register to show off anything and I only had to order one thing by asking from the menu; the rest of the items I just pointed at to order. The food is placed in a clear plastic container, and you get a fork. It was marvelous! The shrimp dumplings were hot and tender and bursting with flavor, the egg roll crispy. Their dumplings had ginger, but sparingly, so only briefly interrupted my enjoyment. Their BBQ pork bao zi had gloriously soft and sweet bread stuffed with a small amount of pork, but the bread was pleasurable enough to eat by itself even without meat to back it up.

Rating: This welcoming neighborhood eatery, though targeting the Chinese, serves authentic dim sum at fair prices to all audiences, and maintains genuine Chinese culture in their decor.  9/10 kind old Chinese ladies.