Hong Kong Lounge II (San Francisco, CA)

Hong Kong Lounge II
3300 Geary Blvd
San Francisco, CA 94118
Dining date: 12/24/11

Hong Kong Lounge (formerly Hong Kong Flower Lounge) has been a popular dim sum option in San Francisco for decades. I haven’t been there in a long time (maybe over a decade), but it’s a consistently popular place capturing much of the Richmond district dim sum market. Just earlier this month, they opened up an offshoot a few blocks from my parents house where the old Straits Cafe used to be. It was time for a return.

After a breakfast of porchetta from the Roli Roti truck and a cheeseburger from 4505 Meats at the Ferry Building Farmers Market, I awoke from a long nap hungry for something  a bit lighter. Some steamed dumplings sounded like just what the doctor ordered.

There are no carts here; everything is ordered off the menu upfront. It was just me and my dad for lunch and we ordered many of our standbys.

Shrimp Dumpling

The skin was a bit thicker and denser than what I was anticipating, but the shrimp was plump and juicy. I prefer a thinner skin, but these were good dumplings.

Siu Mai

In my first bite I thought to myself “these are really tender and moist.” My second thought was the realization that there was a high level of fat content, much more than I usually see. I didn’t really like this – I wanted more meat. Also, there was hardly any shrimp.

Juicy Pork Dumpling

A little doughy but I appreciated the fact that these were quite soupy. Presentation-wise not so hot, but the porky flavor was right on.

Baked Pork Bun

These were interesting. I usually see the crispy stuff on the top on sweet buns filled with a cream or custard or something. Here I thought it added a nice textural element to the BBQ pork and onion filling. Not too shabby.

Shrimp Noodle

Similar to the ha gow, the noodle was good…but a little thick and dense. The shrimp pieces were pretty large and cooked well.

Fried Pork Dumpling

This wasn’t as flavorful as other examples I’ve had. It needed more pork filling; the glutinous skin dominated in both texture and flavor.

Fried Chicken Wings

These were quite good, juicy with a crispy skin. The chilies and scallions added much of the complementary flavor.

It’s been too long since I’ve been to the original so I can’t compare them, but this was pretty close to my expectations. The dim sum was good, but nothing was particularly noteworthy in the world of dim sum. All of this food was thirty dollars after tax, so I thought the price was pretty good. I suspect if my parents ate dim sum on any regular basis, this could be the spot for them out of sheer convenience. However, I’m sure they would agree with this assertion – Koi Palace is worth the drive.