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San Francisco

Chinese restaurants in San Francisco

  1. A

    Chef Jia's

    All three of the sauces on the menu here make nostrils flare in eager anticipation: spicy black bean sauce, tangy brown vinegar sauce, and savory-salty oyster sauce. Mix and match your choice with standbys of chicken, pork, and squid and/or green beans, eggplant, or yams. Dishes are generous to the point of embarrassing, but don't neglect the sublime onion cakes with peanut sauce.

    reviewed

  2. B

    House of Nanking

    Meekly suggest an interest in seafood, nothing deep-fried, perhaps some greens, and your brusque server nods, snatches the menu and, within minutes, returns with Shanghai specialties: meltaway scallops, fragrant sautéed pea shoots, garlicky noodles and a tea ball that blossoms in hot water. Expect bossy service, a wait for a shared table and a strict cash-only policy – but also bright, fresh flavors at reasonable prices.

    reviewed

  3. C

    Spices

    The menu reads like an oddly dubbed Hong Kong action flick, with dishes labeled 'fire-burst!!' and 'stinky!', but the chefs can call zesty pickled Napa cabbage with chili oil, silky ma-po tofu and brain-curdling spicy chicken whatever they want – it's definitely worthy of exclamation. When you head toward the kitchen for the bathroom, the chili aroma will make your eyes well up – or maybe that's just gratitude. Cash only.

    reviewed