GARLIC CHIVE DUMPLINGS

Years ago on late evenings, I would head over to the DPD (一品香) on the corner of Jackson and Kearny, or the Taiwan Restaurant (臺灣飯店) at Broadway and Columbus for some water dumplings.
Water dumplings (水餃) are not the same as what Cantonese people call by that name. The northern version is a pocket of savoury filling inside a handmade skin, either boiled till done or steamed. It is the origin of potstickers, because if there any left-over they can be panfried the next day.
What the Cantonese call 水餃 are usually wonton, somewhat larger than normal, with a shrimp filling.

Both are fine products if done properly. But if you had a yen for shwei jiau, you will be incredibly disappointed when soei gaau show up. That isn't what you wanted to eat at all!
What is wrong with the world?!?
Oh woe! Profound despair!

Neither the DPD nor the Taiwan Restaurant still exist.
The corner where the DPD stood is now a Thai Restaurant, and the location of the Taiwan Restaurant has gone through several incarnations in the last decade - Mexican grill, Arab pizza joint, bankrupt business, and pizza joint again. Plus something else that lasted so short a while in between pizza joint and bankrupt (or bankrupt and pizza joint) that I cannot remember what it was.
There is almost nowhere in the old neighborhood where one can get real Northern Dumplings.



白加士街
[PARKES STREET, KOWLOON]


MTR station at Jordan Road (佐敦道) and Nathan Road (彌敦道).
At Jordan Road turn left.
Parkes Street (白加士街) is on the right, runs three blocks from Jordan to Saigon (西貢).

CLEARLY VISIBLE LANDMARK: MacDonald's on corner of Jordan Road and Parkes Street. This is NOT why you are here. If all you wanted was a snack, the Wonton King (雲吞王) is in the middle of the first block of Parkes Street, on the left hand side.
It isn't especially good, but it's better than Mc-flaccid beef muck on sponge.
發仔記點心小廚 just up the block, same side, is marginally better.

However, further up Parkes street, on the other side of the intersection with Nanking Street (Namkeng kai: 南京街) well before Ningpo Street (寧波街), is an oasis.
There is a Seven-Eleven on the corner of Nanking Street, in case you are lost.
What you need is five doors up from the corner.
It's right next to 鹵鵝皇 (the Brined Goose Emperor). Kam Seng Jook Mien is on the other side. There's a Szechuan Restaurant right opposite (麻辣王).


唯珍上海麵家 WAI-TSAN SEUNGHOI MIEN KAA
125 Parkes Street, Ground Floor
Telephone: 2770 4763

Roughly translated, the name is "rare delicacy Shanghai noodle restaurant".
Except your focus is not so much noodles as the pan-fried pork cutlets - either with noodles or rice, or on top of soup - and most especially the garlic chives pork dumplings.
Everything here is 好新鮮 (ho san sien) - very very fresh!

豬扒 (chyu paa) pork cutlet.
韭菜豬肉水餃 (gau choi chyu yiuk soei gaau) garlic chives pork dumplings.

The dumplings are real Shui Jiao - water dumplings, northern type. Handmade skins enfolding a mixture of chopped pork and vegetable. Both the dumplings and the cutlets should be eaten with lots of hot sauce. Real hot sauce (mashed chili paste), bright red and juicy, rather than the typical brown-fried chili flakes in darkened oil common at many other dumpling shops.

真唔錯, 真好味! 食得爆呀!

It's a relatively small place, only one table for a large group, plus some 2 and 4 person seatings.
If you're rushed, just grab a flaky meat roll (餡餅) or a sweet bean turnover (豆沙餅).

Parkes Street is rather narrow, with just enough space for parking and two lanes in between the buildings. The Public Light Bus Service (公共小型巴士) red tops go up Parkes Street, the green tops go down Jordan Road.



昃臣街
[JACKSON STREET, SAN FRANCISCO]

A few weeks ago, on a rainy weekend evening, I left the office after dark.
On Jackson Street (昃臣街) between Kearny (乾尼街) and Grant Avenue (都板街) I found a new place. I had seen the owners preparing to open up for business quite a while back, but hadn't paid much attention at the time, other than to wonder how wise it was to open up their kind of business in a neighborhood populated mostly by Toishanese and HK immigrants on tight budgets.


上海飯店 BUND SHANGHAI RESTAURANT
640 Jackson Street
San Francisco, CA 94133
415-982-0618

Scoping out the menu in the window, what caught my eye was one key term: 韭菜豬肉水餃.
Yes! Garlic chives dumplings! Exult!
Had a full plate. Delicious. Tender delicate toothsome skins, perfect filling.
Glopped 'em with real hot sauce.

While I ate I listened in on the 老闆娘 telling her waiters which tables needed extra attention, make sure those kids don't hurt themselves, more peanuts, and will someone please answer the phone I don't speak English!

It is traditional to eat dumplings during the new year.
But I'm not waiting twelve months to eat here again.
This place is worth several second visits.
There's finally a place for water dumplings near home.


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