Mary L.
Yelp
Don't expect a nice clean looking place, but do expect to get some old school style Dim Sums with a more relaxed Chinese style service. It's a very old place and not huge inside. Share tables with the locals. Most are seniors over 70 years old today. No lines for sitting down, but definitely lines at checkout at the front counter. Women staffers were very hardworking and busy. It doesn't stop here. I came here to experience the old Dim Sum place, got seated immediately next to an older couple in their late 70s and 80s. We shared the same table area and ended up chatting up a storm during the full hour of lunch. Foods tasted great, but certainly not as good as it used to be decades ago. They've been in business for over 30 years. I've been in the San Francisco Bay Area for 39 years. Old ladies used to run the place with much better tasting foods, but today's staffs were mid aged/much younger than previous generations. What I noticed was the location near a corner on a slope. It's away from most of the shops, restaurants, and grocery stores, which makes it easier to go inside to grab a few good bites away from busy street crowds.
My total including taxes was a bit over $33. I also left a good amount of tips. Very manual process here. Older Chinese seniors enjoy huddling here for tea time or coming here to use their public restrooms. They do accept credit cards if you purchase more than $10 minimum here. Some places are cash only. Glad they accept all kinds of credit cards here. Saw the logos. I ordered a hot pot of jasmine tea. My order included shrimp dumplings, shrimp & Chinese parsley dumplings, shark fin dumplings (yellow), custard buns, steamed spareribs with black bean sauce (favorite), and a bowl of steamed chicken & sausage over rice. Delicious. Regarding the custard buns, the skin or bun can use more work to make it taste less dry and more moist. Don't expect too much as you can find better ones in Chinatown, but I certainly enjoyed the environment and the foods have its own tasty style. They try to stay in business. Note, most of the items are already made and stored at the front window area. Some items require bit longer to come out. Big pieces of shrimps stuffed inside those dumplings! Evenly blended with ingredients in the fillings. You'll rarely find the meats over rice served like ones here at other restaurants. It's their style of steaming meats over rice which makes them unique. Small plates $4.75 each. Large plates $5.75 each. Not too bad at all. I will revisit next time, but for now, I really enjoyed being there today. They should use more helpers too. Getting a menu to look at can sometimes take a longer time to arrive to your table when they are working under pressure. Great hardworking staffs who mainly speak Chinese-Cantonese.