Hong Kong Lounge

A perennial favorite in terms of dim sum quality and dinner menu. HK lounge has been around for a while, as far back as mid-90’s if I remember correctly having dined here at that time. I recall the quality of dim sum being good then and still is. Come early on weekends to avoid waitlisting.

We had a long layover so I was looking for some decent dim sum without breaking the bank. Back in Chicago, I could always find a decent dim sum place. Reddit led me here and reviews were okay. We ordered salt and pepper tofu cubes, deep fried crab claws, almond balls filled with egg yolk lava, curry beef dumplings, dried scallop with taro dumplings, and deep fried shrimp balls. The ones that I thought were decent to eat were salt and pepper tofu cubes, deep fried crab claws, and deep fried shrimp balls. The other ones I forced myself to finish, since the food was a bit overpriced and I hate wasting food. Food overall was pretty mediocre so 3 stars is sufficient. Nothing truly stood out for me. Service was okay, standard in most Chinese restaurants. The place was clean but initially when we walked in there were barely any Chinese people eating there. First red flag. More Chinese people came later but that still didn’t change the quality of the food. This was my second time in SF, and Chinese food here hasn’t really impressed me that much.

I came here after researching, and this seems to be THE place for dim sum in San Francisco. This was a busy place, but it didn't take that long for me to get a seat for lunch. Being from Maine and not having the best Asian food, my mind was sort of altered coming in. This place screams authentic (in my little Mainer mind). They seemed pretty slammed on a Tuesday. I was a little confused on the way to order, but they give you a menu where you fill out exactly what you want. I decided to try something new, a BBQ Pork noodle roll! It was good. These seemed to be made with rice flour. I liked the pork and the strong BBQ flavor. It was a little hard for me to pick up, but a nice lady helped me properly pick it up LOL. I also got the baked BBQ pork buns. Probably my 2nd favorite food item. And so so good. I wish I was having them now. It was a very memorable experience.

We went there early and not many people in the restaurant. We ordered some rolls, beef and pork ribs, sponge cake and porridge. Everything tasted great! The meat was tender, rolls very flavorful, and the porridge was served in a pot, hot and full of umami flavor. I forgot my glasses when leaving and the waiter rushed to catch me up. It was a good meal and we will come again.

The XO fired rice roll, fired pork dumpling and the turnip cake was great. The chive dumpling wasn’t have the pan-fried texture, more like a stream dumpling. Sorry, but the Suimai below average. 8 out of 10, so 4 stars.