Ipse,
I am a small midwestern woman who, thanks to her Brooklyn dad, makes a heck of a shrimp with lobster sauce. The smallest but most important ingredient? Dried fermented black beans. That just add that oomph that you don’t get any other way.
So yay beans, and extra yay to fermented ones : )
Mmmm … genuine Chineses-American cuisine. That was my fav back then. Thanks for the memories.
When am I invited over for shrimp with lobster sauce in that case ??? 
Kevin -
Do you eat shrimp?
I just got takeout from this place, and I gotta warn everyone about a shady business practice: they add a $0.50 surcharge PER ITEM ordered to-go!!
This is NOT what the menu board says, which only states that “To-Go Orders: +$.50” and not per item…not that I think to-go surcharges are particularly above-board or anything, either…
Will update once I’ve eaten my food…
FOOD REVIEW:
Okay, I’ve eaten the food, and I can’t say I was blown away at all. I ordered the Black Bean and Pork Noodle as well as an order of the steamed pork dumplings.
The dumplings were the better half of the meal, though I’d say they were only above-average. My to-go bag only contained a tiny packet of cheap soy sauce, so that was all I had to dress the dumplings; unsure if there is anything different for sit-down. Dumpling skins were nice and thin, but also not falling apart. Filling was a bit bland, though, and the soy sauce was truly awful–just salty tasting and containing added sugar according to the ingredients list (couldn’t taste it over the iodized salt, just empty calories).
The noodles were a disappointment. I didn’t find anything special about the noodles themselves, and they certainly didn’t seem house-made in appearance or taste. The sauce, however, was pretty bland. It was thick with a starchy taste to it (why? It goes over noodles…), and the pork and onions really only provided texture. Overall it was just sweet-tasting, and very little in the way of savory.
I much prefer the version that is over at Hong Kong Ban Jum 0410 / Paik’s Noodle at 6th & Alexandria, which has more of a savory taste to it and much more bold-tasting onion notes.
@strongoxman, thanks for the report. Bummer to hear about your to-go order.
I would have to say, to be fair, many types of food don’t hold up well to-go versus eating it fresh right at the restaurant.
I’m no expert on noodle life span, LOL, but in all seriousness, I’ve had takeout / to-go Dumplings from Din Tai Fung (we had a potluck at a friend’s house nearby), to-go from 101 Noodle Express, to-go from Mei Long (XLB), to-go from J&J (XLB), to-go from Shanghai No. 1 Seafood, all of our old SGV Hounds favorite Dumpling / XLB places (I have some friends in the area and we visit from time to time)… NONE of the to-go Dumplings ever taste as good as eating it in the restaurant. I wish it did.
Not making an excuse for what you had, but that’s my experience with all those beloved places that the SGV peeps recommended.
If you eat at Lee’s, you get 2 types of Vinegar (White and Dark) and bottled Soy Sauce (I usually just have a dash of Vinegar as what my Korean friends taught me with this type of dumpling) and it’s great.
Noodles as well… I don’t think pre-cooked Noodles or Pasta holds up very well. Then again, YMMV. Thanks.
@Chowseeker1999 Thanks for the detailed response; I should clarify that I live in the area, and my walk home was less than 10 minutes. I found the dumpling skins to be fine–just the filling was under-seasoned.
As for the noodles, I was expecting something that seemed house-made, given the title of this thread. Now, I didn’t see the inside of the kitchen to know for sure, but I’ve yet to see house-made noodles that were so perfectly uniform in length and thickness. The dumpling skins, however, I truly believe were house-made, and those were excellent.
Good to know that my to-go surcharge wasn’t to compensate for the labor of pouring any dumpling vinegar into small plastic containers. Seriously, where the hell do they get off on that?
Great write up. Lots of mixed reviews about Lee but most seem to think the JJM is pretty good. Home made noodles always a plus.
The place downstairs at Galleria used to be our go to place.
Yah, I agree about the surcharge. Restaurants have strange policies (I still don’t agree with the ones that charge an additional 3% (or those that charge an automatic 18% service charge (forcing you to pay that additional amount even if the service / food sucked)).
From your response in the other JJM thread, wow, sounds like you didn’t get the right noodles. It’s definitely worth a mention to them during the day (when I went twice during the day, there seemed to be at least 2 employees that seemed to be like a manager / owner type and they were friendly). Maybe bring it up with them about the wrong noodles and other stuff?
Or maybe they sold out of their handmade noodles during the day and used storebought noodles (as backup?) on days that they run out of their handmade noodles? I’m just guessing.
i think i figured out why i found the refinement of the JJM, while excellent in terms of technique, so…jarring; in my experience, korean food tends to up the ante, so to speak in terms of flavor & texture/contrast. to see it go the other way, especially when adapting a street vendor dish from a different culture, just seems… wrong. almost westernized, if that makes any sense.
Of course.
And that’s seriously no fucking joke.
strongoxman:
i have yet to experience ANY noodles-to-go that weren’t HORRIBLY undermined by the to-go process.
anywhere, any restaurant, any style,
if you are talking about Lee’s noodles, i’ve been there several times now.
imho, the sheer quantity and quality of the food they have served me is such an incredibly wonderful value, that, imho, your description of 50 cent charge as “shady” is over the top.
if you ever go again, and you see me there, please identify yourself to me so that i can donate $1 to you to help you get over your outrage/anger at this inconsequential charge that was made by a mom 'n pop operation that offers wonderful deals to their customers practically across-the-board.
in the big picture, their food and their deal, to me, is so TERRIFIC that i drive to and from LAX to get there.
i’m sorry that you are not as pleased with them as i am.
That’s great, except after seeing @Chowseeker1999 's photos in the other JJM thread, I can confirm that I was NOT given the same house-made noodles as mine looked quite different from the ones in the pictures.
Overcharging is overcharging, and when my receipt contained a line “TO-GO X2” and the words on their own menu indicate that a To-Go ORDER is a $0.50 surcharge, not each to-go item, I’m going to take exception to it. Your mileage may vary, but when the register price does not match the advertised price, I’m going to note it whether it be at Whole Foods or your personal favorite little new restaurant.
No, I’ll pass on your snide offer, but thank you so much.
So…do you enjoy getting bent out of shape when someone doesn’t agree with your assessment of a restaurant? I really don’t see why you’re taking my review so personally; I reviewed MY experience, and it was a complete let-down. You’re completely free to have your own, different opinion based on your own, different experience(s).
In the future, though, I would appreciate it if you would refrain from making things personal, as I kept my comments to the restaurant and food without attacking the character of anybody here who happens to like this restaurant.
Thank you for your understanding.
Looks like @J_L_ had the same experience with the noodles at Lee’s as I did, except he can’t be scapegoated for getting his to-go! Glad someone else can vouch that those did NOT taste house-made or anything special at all:
I was out and about yesterday and planned my stops so that the hubster and I could have lunch at Lee’s. I was all set for the spicy seafood soup - and they were closed! 
Can’t believe with all my checking and maps, I didn’t check to see if they were closed on Tuesdays. They are. My bad.
But I remembered Dommy! and her guy had gone to a place called The Bun Shop that was not so far away, so we googled it’s address and headed out. Thankfully they were open and - it was excellent!
But I still want to make it to Lee’s : )
the last time i went to lee’s their noodles were different than they had been the first few times.
the first few times= sublime
the last time= fine/ok
Westsidegal - thank you for the update.
It makes me sad that there has been a change in quality but at least now I’ll go knowing - they could be great, they could be okay.
Still worth a try : )
So glad to hear you admit to this experience after you were so combative towards me earlier!
As long as they still have FRIED TWINKIES, I will be going back.
Ohh… I want the fried egg!