A great dim sum meal

[Discerning1]

The quality of the ingredients, the consistency and flavors made this the best dim sum I've ever eaten.

Peking duck as a small plate? Delicious and unctuous with wonderful fresh buns. The best hargow ever with big pieces of fresh prawns. Crunchy gai lan. Tasty steamed pork buns with beautifully seasoned barbequed pork. Chicken stir-fried with pine nuts in lettuce leaf. Very good lo mai gai with a nice balance of sticky rice, chicken, lap cheong sausage. It all went well with good chrysanthemum tea. A lot of food for about $26.

Attractive, clean ambiance, helpful staff. Where has this place been all my life?

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City View Restaurant
662 Commercial St, San Francisco, CA 94111

[vincentlo]

I often wonder why City View is so popular with both the born-abroad Chinese and the non-Chinese American crowds. It strikes a good balance in many ways: It's clean and prices are commensurate with the quality of food. I know there are folks from Hong Kong that won't have dim sum anywhere out of Millbrae (except Koi Palace of course), and there are folks that only go to Yank Sing for the lack of hassle in getting a table on weekends. City View is a step up from many cheaper restaurants in Chinatown.

Vincent

[Euonymous]

vincentlo,

I don't get it. You seem to think City View is pretty good. So why are you surprised it's so popular? Are there things about it in particular that you do or don't like? If so, I'd be interested to know what they are.

I've only been there once, myself, and thought the food was OK, but nothing special (I'm part of the non-Chinese American crowd).

I've been trying to find a place for good dim sum in or around the Richmond neighborhood, so if you can help me with that I'd appreciate it. (Yes, I have done extensive Chowhound searches.)

[sfbing]

Try Hong Kong Lounge in the Richmond. At the moment, it is the best in the city. I would go so far as to say that it gives Koi Palace a run for its money, after a really subpar visit to Koi Palace two months ago.

[kuri]

May Flower is our favorite dim sum place in the Richmond neighborhood. There are some creative items not found at other places, and the prices are very reasonable. Give it a try.

[joisey al]

I haven't been there in over a year, but; try Golden River Seafood Restaurant on 5827 Geary Street. The dim sum is delicious and reasonable. Ton Kiang is next door but more pricier and longer lines.

[Tripeler]

I am also a fan of Golden River, and this has been my experience as well. However, it helps if you can read some Chinese because the wall signs offer a lot of great seasonal specialties.

[vincentlo]

It's just that City View scores okay to pretty well in many aspects (food, service, decor), and it strikes a pretty good balance among them, unlike say Koi Palace (A in food, F in tranquility). In fact my best white friend won't join us (Chinese) at Koi Palace because he can't stand the chaos. (This kinda reminds me of another friend who steadfastly refuses to eat at Asia SF regardless of the food quality because he really thinks in his heart that the performers there are sick.)

If it's not too far for you to get to the Sunset district, how about South Sea Seafood Village? They offer a deeply-discounted dim sum menu on weekdays.

Vincent