Tai Pan Chinese Food

Find Black Truffle and Curry-Filled Sheng Jian Bao at This New SGV Pop-Up | Eater LA

"On a quiet tree-lined street in El Monte near a couple of auto parts stores, I visited Little Pan-Fried Bun’s pop-up at 10627 Main Street and found they whip up Chinese sheng jian bao with real skill — the traditional buns (filled with ground pork and gelatin that melts into soup when cooked, then pan-fried on the bottom) come out crispy on the base, juicy and pillowy soft, often thought of as the pan-fried cousins of xiao long bao. They do the classic well and push it further with creative fillings like curry pork, corn cheese, purple yam and cheese, and even a 24K gold black truffle variety; the menu also includes seafood pancake, oxtail soup with tomato, millet congee, and puff pastries filled with durian, hawthorn, and jujube. Inside, a white statue of Atlas holds the world on his shoulders against light-gray walls decorated with a modern mural of Chinese characters, and the operation — which also has a permanent location in Santa Ana and was started by China native Vicky Liu, who studied business at UC Riverside — is open Tuesday to Sunday from 11 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. and 5 p.m. to 8 p.m." - Jean Trinh