SD chinese food news

Saw Eater SD and KirkK (I’m not affiliated) both liked a new Hunan style place called Village Kitchen. Any personal reports?

Tasty Noodle House on Convoy is relatively new. It has a huge menu, and although the xlb were not good for me, some of the other dishes, including the shen jian bao, were good for SD. Good addition to SD chinese food scene.

Saw another report on Eater a while back about another new chinese place (can’t remember the name or if it has already opened) that makes their own noodles–also sounded interesting.

The eggplant with thousand year old eggs is good, as is the lamb stew. If you’re going to go, wait another month or two. They should still be around.

The meat pies are pretty darn good there.

Heck, should be around for another 999 years- at least one dish.

Thanks. Tried out many of your CH SGV recommendations when I lived up there, most with positive results. Actually kind of surprised that your comments for both sd places were rather positive.

It’s good for SD Chinese.

But that said, the Chinese food scene is slowly improving. There’s only so much capacity that SGV can handle (both west and east).

That’s why places like Diamond Bar, Walnut, etc. are all feeling the Manifest Chinestiny.

Now it’s SD’s turn.

Any more reports from this place? We got ramen at Yamadaya a few doors down the other night and saw the new sign for Village Kitchen.

Went for first time tonight. Mostly Chinese customers. Service was fine. Had to get the attention of the servers for ordering and the check but just waved and they came right over. After ordering all food was at table piping hot by 10 minutes. Preserved vegetables and pork bone soup was okay, a bit bland but nicely porky. Noodle dish for kids was awful, as others have noted, keep to Hunan type dishes and stay away from the dumplings and noodle ones. Soy sauce potato shreds was really good as was some farmer dish–sorry forgot the name but had pork and green peppers, maybe shishito but not totally sure. Also got pork belly with buns which was very fatty but good. Ipsedixit recommended the lamb stew but we didn’t get it this time. Overall impression: thrilled to have this place in SD! It has a Los Angeles SGV feel to me which is a good thing. Would it make it in the super competitive SGV? I dunno but happy to have it as an option in SD.

I am very excited to try the new Chinese offerings around convoy, Tasty Noodle House, Village kitchen, Green China Grill, etc…But I’m having a hard time convincing the wife as the relatively new Chinese place in Poway, Bejing City, is so freakin consistently good. We have yet to have a even a so so dish. One of our favorites is the fish in spicy bean sauce and even the ubiquitous Chinese American dish of kung pao is totally addicting. The owner of Bejing City owned and operated Spicy City on Convoy for years, but sold and made the move to of all places, Poway. Nothing that unique, but great tasting quality ingredients cooked very well. It’s a solid Chinese eatery for San Diego in the China Sea of mediocrity.

I’m aware of this place as it’s convenient for me but have been hesitant to try as pics and menu seem so similar to so many of the other mediocre Chinese places in town and well it’s in the land where restaurants go to die–Poway. Have enjoyed many of your other recs so will try. Thanks for heads up.

Try it, you’ll like it!

I was really disappointed by the House Sauce Noodles and Pork Buns at Tasty Noodle House yesterday. Not very interested in returning, but if I do I’ll try a meat pie, as ipse suggests. Village Kitchen is on my list to try, but will stay away from noodles and dumplings per RedDevil’s comments.

A bit OT but I don’t in general understand why people are visiting restaurants where you have to know strength and weakness of the menu beforehand to avoid disappointments. If a restaurant can’t cook all dishes to a certain standard they shouldn’t be on the menu (and it doesn’t matter if it is a high-end or ethnic restaurant or bistro etc). Once they put low quality dishes on the menu just to “satisfy” certain expectations I am doubtful they can execute well on any dish and would avoid the restaurant in general.

1 Like

I suppose strictly for business reasons, some restaurants (and it seems especially Chinese restaurants) have huge menus, trying to have something for everyone. They can’t possibly do every one of their offerings superlatively and consistently. This is where I think a place like Nishiki Ramen is on the right track, with a very limited menu (especially when they first opened!). Still, some places with extensive menus do have gems to offer, if you only know what to order, and it’s a shame to miss out on these if you’re aware of them. I actually had “meat pies” written in my notes to order at Tasty Noodle House, presumably after having read ipse’s earlier post. But I failed to read my own notes before going!

Isn’t that what steakhouses (or chophouses) do with fish or seafood selections?

Or how enchiladas at Super Sergio are not nearly as good as their burritos or carne asada fries?

Or the karaage or rolls at Tadakoro, they sure ain’t as good as the nigiri.

And how about the quinoa burger at Burger Lounge? You like that as much as you do their other burgers?

And, oftentimes, whether a dish is a strength or a weakness will often turn on the individual diner’s preferences and tastes.

I don’t think one is missing out on restaurants who have one or two good dishes in a list of hundred dishes.

I should have said restaurants with long menus because no kitchen can have the knowledge/capabilities to produce 100s of dishes on the same level. Those kind if restaurants should be avoided. (and yes steak houses with fish (and other “unusual” dishes) are to be avoided)

Sorry but that’s not happening.

Two of my favorite steakhouse, Wolfgang’s and Keens, both have seafood items (the former, fish, and the latter shrimp) and they are not nearly as good as the beef they serve. But I’m not deserting them any time soon. Or maybe ever. At least not other “unusual” menu items.

Sorry TNH didn’t do it for you. We went tonight and there was a 45 min wait and place was mostly populated by Asian clientele so maybe/hopefully your experience was a fluke or maybe those 2 dishes just weren’t for you. With such a big menu there are some gems but also some clunkers and some inconsistency. My suggestion is to give it another shot with a big group so you can try more dishes and to go at a busy time as that seems to help the quality I think. It’s good for sd Chinese food but nothing exceptional.

The what??

Village kitchen revisit: different dishes this time, lotus root, chicken gizzards and radish dish but same great result, good Chinese food finally makes it to SD.