Canton City

[Hughlipton]

I am in search of the almond duck sweet and sour style. I started a thread on the San Francisco board which has resulted in slim pickings in the City By The Bay. Noticed that Canton City in Monterey Park area had sweet and sour duck on the menu. I don't know if that means pressed almond duck or not. I gather it also is old school Cantonese. Any thoughts on the restaurant would be appreciated. I know that there have been previous threads on this quest for the Grail, but hope springs eternal. Thanks.

[raytamsgv]

If you find a place with almond duck and sweet and sour pork or chicken, it would be trivial for the kitchen to put sweet and sour sauce on your duck instead of the usual sauce. Good luck in your search.

[Chandavkl]

Well, if you're looking for salty, crunchy, greasy pressed duck squares, this is the almond duck for you.

[Hughlipton]

So, do you another place that may serve a better version? Tried Paul's Kitchen in Monterey Park but found their sauce to be way too sweet.

[Chandavkl]

I had the version in brown sauce, not sweet and sour. It was very reminiscent of the almond duck squares at the San Pedro St. branch of Paul's Kitchen back in the 1970s.

[SoozyQ]

Not sure if you realize but Paul's Kitchen has been gone from Monterey Park for sometime now and Canton City is on Garfield in Montebello. Our last trip to Canton City was not a good one. My husband, who loved that place, finally agreed with me that the food was not good compared to all the other choices we have in Monterey Park. Never been back. They have been open for years so business must be good. I refer to their offerings as cardboard food. Way overcooked and tasteless.

[Chandavkl]

There's a good reason why there is almost no Americanized Chinese food in the San Gabriel Valley since there is no comparison to the authentic stuff. However there is a place for stuff liked pressed almond duck and other oldtime Chinese American food, either from a nostalgia viewpoint or personal taste.