Pasadena Cantonese or Mandarin

[Pan]

Hi, everyone! A friend of mine is looking for a good Cantonese or Mandarin-style restaurant in Pasadena. Short of going to the San Gabriel Valley, do you have any suggestions?

[rjwong]

From the intersection of Los Robles & Colorado Blvd. (near City Hall and the Paseo Colorado shopping center), your friend can drive about seven miles or about fifteen minutes to Alhambra, Monterey Park or Arcadia for great Chinese food:

Triumphal Palace on 500 W. Main St. in Alhambra (That's where we ate dim sum, Pan!)

NBC Seafood on 404 S. Atlantic in Monterey Park

Din Tai Fung on 1108 S. Baldwin Ave. in Arcadia

And driving fifteen minutes in Southern California is nothing!! Mind you, to answer your question, I don't know of any good Chinese places in Pasadena.

[Pan]

Thanks, Russell. And no, 15 minutes isn't much at all.

[SG-]

Thanks, Russell. And no, 15 minutes isn't much at all.

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Another suggestion Sea Harbor in Rosemead for cantonese food.

[rjwong]

Thanks, Russell. And no, 15 minutes isn't much at all.

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Another suggestion Sea Harbor in Rosemead for cantonese food.

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Thanks, SG-. I've been there twice and that place is very good. The decor looks expensive and so are the prices, compared to Chinese hole-in-the-walls.

BTW From the same intersection of Los Robles Ave. & Colorado Blvd., the distance is just over 9 miles or about 17 minutes, if you can handle driving for over 15 minutes.

[SG-]

Thanks, Russell. And no, 15 minutes isn't much at all.

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Another suggestion Sea Harbor in Rosemead for cantonese food.

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Thanks, SG-. I've been there twice and that place is very good. The decor looks expensive and so are the prices, compared to Chinese hole-in-the-walls.

BTW From the same intersection of Los Robles Ave. & Colorado Blvd., the distance is just over 9 miles or about 17 minutes, if you can handle driving for over 15 minutes.

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Yes supplemented our dim sum this morning with a local spiny lobster fried with scallion and ginger.... tasty but added $90 to the tab..

[hzrt8w]

I agree... why save a 15 minute drive while one can have the best Chinese food in southern Cal?

That said... I had some good experience at Panda Inn (not to be confused with Panda Express, though run by the same corp) in Pasadena. They claimed to have award-winning Mandarin dishes. Their services are very good compared to other Chinese restaurants. Atmosphere is usually very nice. I had dinners at their Pasadena, San Diego (Horton Plaza) and La Palma locations and they were all good (>6 years ago, hopefully still are good).

Not Cantonese cuisine. Order things like Kung Pao, Smoked Tea Duck and such (Sichuan and "Mandarin").

http://www.pandainn.com/

PASADENA PANDA INN

3488 E. FOOTHILL BLVD.

PASADENA, CA 91107

PHONE: (626) 793-7300

DIRECTIONS: CROSS STREETS - ROSEMEAD BLVD. & HALSTEAD

Edited December 10, 2007 by hzrt8w (log)

[rjwong]

Mind you, to answer your question, I don't know of any good Chinese places in Pasadena.

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Mea culpa!! Bu hao, bu hao!! I made a big mistake!!

Yujean Kang's on N. Raymond in Old Pasadena.

They serve gourmet Chinese cuisine. I ate there once. It wasn't bad, pretty good. I ordered the tea smoked duck. It was a bit dry for my taste. It's a small-to-medium sized restaurant, maybe about 50 people. The restaurant is a little accommodating to American diners. Mind you, I tend to be "traditional & authentic" about Chinese cuisine, whatever that means.

If you have to stay in Pasadena, go ahead and try Yujean Kang's. As for me, I'll drive the extra 15 minutes further into San Gabriel Valley, which Pasadena is a part of anyways.

[hzrt8w]

Din Tai Fung on 1108 S. Baldwin Ave. in Arcadia

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Just one advice on Din Tai Fung in Arcadia: Their restaurant is a high-volume, rapid turn-over style with table-sharing. Not a fine-dining place or a place to sit for long if that's what one is looking for. The xiaolongbao and dan dan mein are excellent but their menu choices are limited.

Edited December 11, 2007 by hzrt8w (log)

[Paul Tepper]

You might also check Carl Chu's book, Chinese Food Finder: Los Angeles and the San Gabriel Valley. It's a wonderful resource.

Paul

[savvysearch]

I liked Yujean Kang in Pasadena. Sure, it's a bit americanized, but I still liked it.