Enter The Dragon - Striving for the Pinnacle of Dim Sum Goodness! Dragon Beaux [Thoughts + Pics]

Hi @JeetKuneBao,

Nice! :smile: So glad you enjoyed your visit. Yah we’ve only experienced Arsicault first thing in the morning so maybe our experience is skewed, but every time it’s been amazing (fresh out of the oven, still warm / fresh).

Wow, they had a sesame ball and winter melon dessert at Dragon Beaux when you went?! It sounds wonderful. Was it a special only? (or on the menu?)

I love their dim sum, and definitely better than So Cal unfortunately (for us).

Which tea did you decide on? :slight_smile:

Over all the years I’ve never gotten a sandwich at Molinari’s but never leave without something. Great shop.

ETA: Did you walk or take a bus from one to the other? Meaning from dim sum to the bakery :slight_smile:

Got to Molinari from Crissy Field/Palace of Fine Arts via Muni Union St bus. Fell asleep on that bus and half woke up and saw City Lights bookstore so I jumped out onto Columbus.

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I am basic.

Chrsythamneum Tea (spelling!)

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Good job. When we went to DB via bus we then took the 38 Geary to Union Square for a glass of wine. Then to the Ferry Bldg. to Hog Island Oyster, then the 30 Stockton back to our motel. Another day we took the 30 in the other direction and met friends for lunch in North Beach. So nice to not have to drive.

Update 3:

Continuing our wonderful trip, we had to make a stop at Dragon Beaux.

As before, a testament to the efforts for higher quality at Dragon Beaux are the offering of 21 different types of Tea to choose from for your Dim Sum. :open_mouth:

We decided to try:

Li Shan Tea:

Excellent, aromatic, delicate fragrance. Definitely not like any of the generic Teas at our local So Cal Dim Sum restaurants.

Abalone Tart:

Huge thanks to @PorkyBelly for this recommendation, this was a standout item: Real meaty, tender whole Abalone topped on a crisped Pastry shell with a deeply savory base. Delicious. :slight_smile:

Baked BBQ Pork Bao:

Slightly crunchy, toasted top. Fluffy interior and a balanced sweet-savory Charsiu (BBQ Pork). I’m so glad @chandavkl @beefnoguy turned us on to this Tim Ho Wan-style preparation. :heart:

Egg White Fried Rice with Dried Scallop:

If you ever wondered how much better Fried Rice could be from the typical offerings around town, then you owe it to yourself to try Dragon Beaux’s Egg White Fried Rice with Dried Scallops.

The amazing Wok Hei (Breath of the Wok) from someone in the kitchen who knows how to cook with a Wok. It’s light, not oily, it is outstanding once again! :heart: I can see why @ipsedixit orders Fried Rice here. (@JeetKuneBao @Ns1 and others.) :blush:

Abalone, Chicken Sticky Rice in Lotus Leaf:

Interestingly, Dragon Beaux serves their Abalone & Chicken Sticky Rice Lotus Leaf dish with parchment paper on the outside. Perhaps to prevent the leaf from tearing?

Regardless, the inside ingredients are still steamed infused with Lotus Leaf flavor.

This was a solid representation of the dish. Not leagues ahead of So Cal places for this particular dish, but they had a nice big piece of Abalone in each serving. Tasty. :slight_smile:

Roasted Pork Belly:

Crispy, crunchy Roast Pork Skin. Tender, fresh, meaty Pork Belly meat underneath. SO GOOD! :heart: To get this quality of Hong Kong Roast Pork Belly during Dim Sum is reason enough to celebrate! :blush:

(Special) House Special Roasted Spring Chicken:

The one miss of this meal, the House Special Roasted Spring Chicken was essentially that Hong Kong / Cantonese style Crispy Chicken dish (where they cook a Chicken pouring hot oil over it repeatedly to crisp up the skin while cooking the meat within).

The Chicken skin was crispy in parts (which was great), but the actual Chicken didn’t taste that fresh. :frowning: This was listed on their daily special list, not on their regular menu.

Bitter Melon Chicken Rice Crepe Roll:

Silky, smooth, pliant Rice Roll texture (not stuck together or gloppy like some So Cal places), nice light bitterness from the Chinese Bitter Melon and tender pieces of Chicken. This was a great Rice Roll. :slight_smile:

Jumbo Scallop Shiu Mai:

Just a fantastic Shumai! The silky, tender Scallop on top is the highlight, but the actual Marinated Ground Pork and Shrimp filling in the center is balanced, not littered with chunks of Pork Fat or filler like too many Dim Sum places around LA (and the other place in SF we went to).

It is clearly a cut above these places. Excellent! :blush:

Five Guys Xiao Long Bao:

As before, normally we’d never bother ordering Xiao Long Bao (Shanghai Soup Buns) for Dim Sum, but based on the excellent first time, we knew what to expect.

This visit didn’t disappoint: While ostensibly gimmicky, Dragon Beaux’s 5 different colored Xiao Long Bao are fantastic! A thin-medium skinned XLB, each one had a distinct flavor. The Beets Skin XLB actually had the unmistakable earthiness of Beets from the skin, and a nice Ground Beef filling.

I loved the Turmeric-infused Crab Roe XLB, and Natural Flour Skin version (traditional) was a better Xiao Long Bao than many we’ve tried in the San Gabriel Valley. :slight_smile:

Rainbow Taro Paste Bao:

Phenomenal! Arriving freshly steamed, piping hot, the eye-catching, fluffy Steamed Bun exterior gives way to some of the best creamy, lightly sweet Taro filling we’ve had in years! :heart:

Do not miss out on this Dessert if you’re at Dragon Beaux! :blush: :heart:

Portuguese Egg Custard Tart:

Having had a real Portuguese Egg Tart at Portuguese restaurant Uma Casa a few days earlier, this Hong Kong / Macau interpretation is one we find more pleasing:

Arriving hot (nice touch), with an eggy, Custard center, it is far less sweet than Uma Casa’s version, which is what we prefer. :slight_smile: (@attran99 @TheCookie)

Service is rather standard, average service that’s on par with Chinese restaurants around the San Gabriel Valley, but better than most of the Dim Sum restaurants (plates are cleaned and tea refilled without asking). But nothing noteworthy or outstanding like a Michelin-starred place around SF like Californios or Saison.

After having recently finished a long Dim Sum Journey around So Cal, trying Dragon Beaux again, there is absolutely no doubt that it is superior to L.A.'s Dim Sum restaurants. It’s not even close.

There are a couple dishes that might taste rather similar (e.g., Sticky Rice in Lotus Leaf), but where Dragon Beaux shines is in its execution and consistency. Add in the more creative dishes, like the 5 Colored Xiao Long Bao, Rainbow Taro Paste Bao, Fish Chip Rose Red Rice Crepe Roll (say that 3 times fast!), Scallop Shiu Mai and more, and add in vastly superior traditional dishes like the Roast Pork Belly that completely blows away every single Dim Sum place we’ve tried except Monterey Palace, and phenomenal Wok Hei Fried Rice, and you have a place that is well worth a visit and something we wish we had in L.A.

Dragon Beaux
5700 Geary Blvd.
San Francisco, CA 94121
Tel: (415) 333-8899

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@TheCookie this is what you would be coming for!

Great report as always @Chowseeker1999! Looks like you are having a blast up here, and glad to see it!

Too bad about the chicken…it’s bad enough they called it “roasted” in English when technically it’s fried. I just wrote about the way the chicken should be prepared traditionally in @moonboy403 's Mott32 Las Vegas thread:

The abalone probably comes from the precooked canned versions that Koi Palace sells at their restaurant, and these are no slouch they can go for $50+ per can but at least are of a decent size to make the tart.

Try the egg white dried scallops rice next time but have them add salted fish in addition (probably will cost you a few dollars extra but do it). You heard it here first!

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@Chowseeker1999 Next stop in Hong Kong?

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Nice @Chowseeker1999

My Monterey Palace meetup keeps falling thru. I’m looking forward to Dragon Beaux! :slight_smile:

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Hi @beefnoguy,

Thanks for the info on preparation. It sounds similar to what our friend from Hong Kong mentioned a few years ago when we were asking about this dish. Have you found any places in SF or LA that prepare it properly?

The Abalone tart was awesome here. :slight_smile:

Fried Rice: What? :open_mouth:

Wow, you can have them add Salted Fish to the Egg White & Dried Scallop Fried Rice?! Why didn’t @ipsedixit or you mentiont this earlier?! :cry: :smile: We loved their BOSS Abalone Fried Rice last time and the Gold & Silver Fried Rice, but this sounds like it’ll be another winner as well w/ the great Wok Hei here.

Something for the next trip. :slight_smile: Thanks.

I see some items I need to try on my next visit…taro bao, roast pork, and adding salty fish to fried rice!

Though I just can’t bring myself to order XLB’s at dim sum based on principle!! My Shanghainese and Cantonese ancestors from above will highly disapprove.

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There’s also the fact that XLB are always done poorly at dim sum!

I’ve assumed that also as how could they be on a cart. But with DB, I don’t know. So much good food, so little time :smile:

DB’s XLB is definitely much better than other dim sum joint’s but it’s still a pass for me.

There are SO many selections why go ‘off-topic’ :slight_smile:

Koi Palace Dublin is definitely a great backup option. Just a note that it can be packed on weekends.

Went yesterday for the first time with some friends… I’m not very experienced dim sum eater (mostly just been to Yank Sing SF which Ive thought is trash past few times I’ve gone , but this was vastly superior to anything I’ve ever had… ive even sworn off that I didn’t like dim sum hahah.

Thank you for all the reports in this thread, made ordering easy… fried rice, pork belly, scallop shiu mai, XLBs…we ordered the roast chicken special that someone had earlier in this thread, it was fine but definitely a miss as they reported. Everything else great including the tea. Going to try to go again Tomorrow with my family.

And for the record, our har gow came out perfectly with awesome plump shrimp.

)

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Hi @skramzlife,

Nice! :slight_smile: So glad you enjoyed your first time Dragon Beaux!

Which of the 21 Teas did you try? :slight_smile:

I love their Roasted Pork Belly and the Gold & Silver Fried Rice, Egg White Fried Rice w/ Dried Scallop and if you ever see it come back on the menu, the Boss Abalone Fried Rice. :slight_smile:

Try one of their Rice Crepe Rolls and Baked BBQ Pork Buns, and for dessert Rainbow Taro Buns next time. :slight_smile:

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We got the golden eyebrow tea it was great! We also got the bbq pork, which was a big hit at our table. The fried rice was really great amazing wok hei.

Hopefully I get to go back tomorrow before i head home to La.

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How was the okra? Doesn’t look like the same prep as previous photos.