715 N Spring St
Los Angeles, CA 90012
(213) 622-5255
Los Angeles, CA 90012
(213) 622-5255
Family Pastry
Category: Bakeries
Neighborhood: Chinatown
Surprisingly this is the first time I ate here today having walked by it at least 100 times. Just finished eating dim sum, walnut honey shrimp, chow fun and Peking Duck at ABC Seafood. That will be next review.
I was surprised they sold dim sum, I just thought it was a bakery/pastry shop. I bought a couple of sticky rice/chicken wrapped in lotus leaves a mere buck apiece... Yum! Excellent again. I zipped in the microwave for 1 minute but it is so big it should take about 1.3 minutes to get it hot. However, if you are a snob, to properly heat it, you should steam it for about 20 minutes. But the baked Char siu baos were surprisingly delicious, but unique. The bread was very light, slightly sweet like Hawaiian sweet bread, larger than average and very generous bbq pork filling. The filling is slightly dryer and not as gooey as most other places, but I kinda liked it and I'm sure many who prefer a less sweet filling will be rocked. They were excellent. Not quite as sweet as most of the other places, but the bread... the bread is exceptional! If you want the Bao's to really taste great, you should put it in a paper bag and zip it for about 40 seconds and then you will fully appreciate the excellent taste. Most of the items I bought would also benefit greatly if I microwaved them. The tart should just be slightly warmed, not hot.
I just finished tasting their giant 65 cent Almond cookie! Excellent! The curry beef filled pastry is like an empanada sized pastry except the pastry is really light and flaky and delicious! This is the best of class for those curry filled meat pastries. Seriously. They are way better than empanadas and 1/2 the price! The egg custard tarts were fantastic! As good as any I've ever had and being Chinese, I've had 50 years of egg tarts. The only way they could be better is if I was able to pop them into my mouth just after they've cooled off enough from the oven so they won't burn the roof of my mouth. The custard filling was perfection and the pastry was delicious and they just melt in your mouth. Holy smokes for 50-65 cents each!!!
Sorry I just ate dim sum at ABC before stopping into this place on a whim so I didn't try out the dumplings, siu mai, har gow, pot stickers and the like, but I'm definitely going to do so at a later date. I completely filled a big pink box for under $8. Those that gave the place below average ratings, the trick is to go early in the morning when they just finish cooking the dim sum... not in the afternoon or end of the day when they've been sitting around all day. This will make a huge difference with the taste, texture and flavors of the dim sum.
A few of the items were the best in my opinion at any price and all that I tried would probably be at least 4 stars but because of the bargain price, I've got to bump them up to 5 stars because of the bargain prices. Take out only.
1/24 Just went back for the third time and I'd now rate the baked dim sum at 4.5 stars and the steamed ones at 2.5-3 stars. I went there around 11am and the har gow and siu mai was from the day before and a bit dried out and cold. The baked char siu baos were cold. Very Average this day. So it really makes a difference if you get them fresh and hot that day.
Update 1/16: Went there again yesterday at 5pm or about an hour before closing. Tried the dim sum, the har gow and siu mai which costs only 35 cents per piece and they tasted good and no funny smell that is sometimes found with dim sum for some unknown reason. This time, the egg tarts looked like they've been sitting around all day as opposed to getting them fresh out of the oven. Makes a HUGE difference. Ditto with the dim sum, fresh out the steamer also makes a huge difference. Every thing was very good, but I am going to trim it back a bit to 4 stars. It is still an excellent place to go to for low price dim sum but go early and it will be better than at the end of the day.
I was surprised they sold dim sum, I just thought it was a bakery/pastry shop. I bought a couple of sticky rice/chicken wrapped in lotus leaves a mere buck apiece... Yum! Excellent again. I zipped in the microwave for 1 minute but it is so big it should take about 1.3 minutes to get it hot. However, if you are a snob, to properly heat it, you should steam it for about 20 minutes. But the baked Char siu baos were surprisingly delicious, but unique. The bread was very light, slightly sweet like Hawaiian sweet bread, larger than average and very generous bbq pork filling. The filling is slightly dryer and not as gooey as most other places, but I kinda liked it and I'm sure many who prefer a less sweet filling will be rocked. They were excellent. Not quite as sweet as most of the other places, but the bread... the bread is exceptional! If you want the Bao's to really taste great, you should put it in a paper bag and zip it for about 40 seconds and then you will fully appreciate the excellent taste. Most of the items I bought would also benefit greatly if I microwaved them. The tart should just be slightly warmed, not hot.
I just finished tasting their giant 65 cent Almond cookie! Excellent! The curry beef filled pastry is like an empanada sized pastry except the pastry is really light and flaky and delicious! This is the best of class for those curry filled meat pastries. Seriously. They are way better than empanadas and 1/2 the price! The egg custard tarts were fantastic! As good as any I've ever had and being Chinese, I've had 50 years of egg tarts. The only way they could be better is if I was able to pop them into my mouth just after they've cooled off enough from the oven so they won't burn the roof of my mouth. The custard filling was perfection and the pastry was delicious and they just melt in your mouth. Holy smokes for 50-65 cents each!!!
Sorry I just ate dim sum at ABC before stopping into this place on a whim so I didn't try out the dumplings, siu mai, har gow, pot stickers and the like, but I'm definitely going to do so at a later date. I completely filled a big pink box for under $8. Those that gave the place below average ratings, the trick is to go early in the morning when they just finish cooking the dim sum... not in the afternoon or end of the day when they've been sitting around all day. This will make a huge difference with the taste, texture and flavors of the dim sum.
A few of the items were the best in my opinion at any price and all that I tried would probably be at least 4 stars but because of the bargain price, I've got to bump them up to 5 stars because of the bargain prices. Take out only.
1/24 Just went back for the third time and I'd now rate the baked dim sum at 4.5 stars and the steamed ones at 2.5-3 stars. I went there around 11am and the har gow and siu mai was from the day before and a bit dried out and cold. The baked char siu baos were cold. Very Average this day. So it really makes a difference if you get them fresh and hot that day.
Update 1/16: Went there again yesterday at 5pm or about an hour before closing. Tried the dim sum, the har gow and siu mai which costs only 35 cents per piece and they tasted good and no funny smell that is sometimes found with dim sum for some unknown reason. This time, the egg tarts looked like they've been sitting around all day as opposed to getting them fresh out of the oven. Makes a HUGE difference. Ditto with the dim sum, fresh out the steamer also makes a huge difference. Every thing was very good, but I am going to trim it back a bit to 4 stars. It is still an excellent place to go to for low price dim sum but go early and it will be better than at the end of the day.
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