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A Really Great Chinese that I haven't been to yet.

My 13 year old daughter Jackie just had a birthday & we have a family tradition that the birthday girl gets the meal of their choice, either home cooked or restaurant. Jackie wants a great Chinese Dinner, so I said Seaharbour Seafood which she loves But....... she wants me to find a new place so its more of a discovery!!! We love discovering new places. I need some suggestions. Some places we really like & go to regularly (thus they are disqualified) are Ocean Star Seafood, Golden Deli, Triumphal Palace, Empress Pavillion, Pho 97(79), Giang Nan, Din Tai Fun, Mei Long Village, Schezuan is probably too spicy, so help a family man out & even recommend a dish or two. Thanks

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  1. I'm no expert by any means, but for something great, different and not too spicy, how about China Islamic on Garvey in Rosemead?

    1. Capital Seafood on Garvey/Garfield in Monterey Park, especially if you go on a weeknight. They are having a dinner special where you can get shark's fin soup + abalone + Chinese dish for $35 a person. Not a big deal. Very yummy food too. It's located close to Ocean Star.

      Empress Harbrous next to Ocean Star is pretty good.

      Full House in Arcadia is also very yummy for Cantonese cuisine.

      1. Two suggestions for you.

        1. Seafood Village in Temple City - get the house special fish and the garlic crab.

        2. Macau Street in Monterey Park - chicken and ginger hot pot, lamb with giner, chicken knees, and the egg tarts.

        10 Replies
        1. re: ipsedixit

          i went back to macau street about a month ago and found the food to have gone way downhill. we ordered like 7 dishes between two people. (everyone kept staring at us like we were crazy) they were all mediocre... may have been an off night but why put up with occasional off nights when you dont have to?

          1. re: ipsedixit

            haha ipsedixit, we're always on the same SGV boat. i'm gonna say the same thing - really love the Chiu Chow style Chinese food at Seafood Village. Temple City seems to be pretty packed with all the folks from Arcadia, San Marino and El Monte. I just go to the one on Garvey/Chandler. And yes, the garlic crab at $6.99/lb.

            If your daughter can handle spicy food, Chung King Szechuan on San Gabriel Blvd is delectable as well.

            I also like Green Village in the Great Mall of China on valley/del mar. they have this one thing i refer to as Chinese Fish n' Chips. It's white fish battered w/ seaweed threads - so crispy. Served with salt and vinegar... called "tai tiao huang yu" (yellow fish strips). Xiao long bao's there aren't bad.

            1. re: eatdrinknbmerry

              Green Village is adios for months now. I actually think I posted about its demise because it was the most recent vanishing restaurant to distress my elder pup. Replaced by most tasty Dong Ting Hunan restaurant.

              The fish you called was listed as "Ningbo" fish on the menu. I am told by Chinese American friends that they serve the same fish at MeiLong Village and that its pretty good.

              1. re: jenn

                While the Green Village in Focus Plaza (the 99 Ranch plaza) has been replaced by Dong Ting Chung, there is a new Green Village (with a different Chinese name -- not Lu Yang Chun like before, but now Da Shanghai) that has opened in the former King's Palace space east of the Focus Plaza on Valley. See today's LA Times article by Linda Burum.

            2. re: ipsedixit

              Does Seafood Village have several stores, and, if so, are they all equally good?

              1. re: David Kahn

                I think the one in Monterey Park off of Garvey is the best.

                The one in Temple City isn't bad, but service is terrible.

                1. re: WHills

                  Service is bad only if you don't speak, yell , AND curse in Chinese. :-)

                  1. re: raytamsgv

                    yes, i think Seafood Village in MP is the better one.

                    1. re: eatdrinknbmerry

                      I disagree. I prefer the Temple City one.

                      But then this is really like arguing which is a better car ... a Bentley or a Rolls-Royce?

                      Cheers. :-)

                2. re: David Kahn

                  The one in Rowland Heights is fine... and service was downright pleasant, which was a shock.

              2. It's super casual, but has Jackie ever been to a Chinese style "beer hut"? I know, she's way too young to partake in the beer part of that description, but they're really not like that. It's like saying you took your kids out for fish n' chips doesn't necessarily mean you were in a dark bar full of drunk people.

                There's one near Rosemead and Valley, but I'll have to find the name or rely on other hounds who remember.

                Basically, it's a lot of fun small plates of food. There's a lot to choose from: clam soup, various cuts of meat that are grilled on skewers, some deep fried appetizers, the usual Chinese tea drinks to choose from. It's mostly street food, but my teenage sisters and under-10 cousin have a fun time when we go. We've only been for lunch though, so I don't know how the crowd gets for dinner. Even if you don't go for her birthday, you should go for lunch some time because it would definitely be a discovery!

                For a birthday blowout dinner, Sea Harbor is going to be hard to top, but I've always enjoyed 888 as well.

                1 Reply
                1. re: Pei

                  yes i was going to suggest "indian". good taiwanese pub food and fun atmoshpere. definitely kid friendly. and as a dad, you'll appreciate the cute waitresses with feathers in their hair.

                2. I don't know if this is within the area that you're searching, but in West L.A. there's a restaurant called Hop Li. I think its on Pico, near Veteran. That's my favorite Chinese restaurant :)