Jing Fong

[Stone]

A while back I went to a function-type dinner at Jing Fong and had some amazing Chinese food. The place is on a small street in Chinatown and you have to go up an escalator to get to the dining room. The room it huge and gaudy, often packed with numerous parties -- weddings, birthday's, etc.

I recall that for the function (it was law school), for hours the staff brought out plate after plate of food. The fried rice is probably the best I've ever had. The rice was light and fluffy, not at all greasy. It has a yellowish color too it -- reminded me of something I once saw on Iron Chef when raw eggs were scrambled into the rice before frying. This is also the first place I had walnut prawns -- that wonderfully rich dish of prawn with a walnut/liquer sauce that is amazing for the first five bites and then deadly rich thereafter.

A few years later it was the site of a waitstaff/tipping scandal when it came out that the owners were stealing the waiters' tips and paying something like $.50 an hour.

[Bond Girl]

It's still the best dim sum place for us chinese in chinatown.

[Pan]

I've never had dinner at Jing Fong, only dim sum. A Chinatown resident I know said their dinner was very good but expensive. Was it expensive?

That's lousy about the tip-stealing, but I'm not really that suprised.

[Bux]

Was it Jing Fong that had the scandal? I seem to remember another place that was picketed for a long time. Then again that place was on the Bowery, but also up an escalator, if I'm not mistaken. Jing Fong is on Elizabeth Street.

[Pan]

Bux:

You and perhaps DStone are probably thinking of Silver Palace, which used to be on Bowery just south of Canal. It become Nong Khanh or something recently. I went once for dinner and liked it. Now, I'm not sure what's in place of the former Silver Palace.

Edited January 11, 2003 by Pan (log)

[anil]

Jin Fong can be a hit-or-a-miss depending on where you sit. Sometimes you could be seated really far off from the cart staging area, by the time they reach your table, many of the dim-sum entries have turned cold. On weekends (that's when we have visited ) it can get hectic at any large Chinese restaurant --

[Pan]

For dim sum at Jing Fong, the best bet is to sit as close to the exit from the kitchen as you can. Also, don't forget that there are some nice items that don't move and can be bought at a counter. I don't remember whether all of them are fried, but some are, and I particularly like the friend agar-agar with water chestnuts.

[anil]

For dim sum at Jing Fong, the best bet is to sit as close to the exit from the kitchen as you can. Also, don't forget that there are some nice items that don't move and can be bought at a counter.  ....

Correct, that is why it is not always possible to get a seating near the area. The counter exists on your left as you get off the escalator - mostly shell-fish and some fried stuff.

[Pan]

Yesterday, I posted a meal report on a dim sum lunch at A&B Lobster King House. Today, I went to the renovated Jing Fong for lunch. It was clearly superior to A&B. From the circulating carts, I had chicken feet (not as garlicky as at A&B, but at least as good if not better - I think the chicken may have been of somewhat higher quality); spare ribs (again, as good as A&B, though perhaps not better - they were a little fattier at Jing Fong, I think, though not drastically so); red pork buns (solid, and better than A&B); vegetable dumplings (very tasty); and ground shrimp (with the consistency of a packed-together paste, but not "shrimp paste" = belacan!) in fried, sesame-covered batter skins, which were flaky and not noodly (excellent). One of the things that's very advisable to do at Jing Fong is look at what's on offer against the wall that doesn't circulate. I selected one skewer apiece of fishballs (5 ball per skewer, I think) in different sauces. One was an excellent Malaysian curry (many of you would recognize it as a "Thai" curry) of fishballs, a rich sauce with coconut milk - surprisingly good, and evidence of the heritage of the owner, who I understand is from Ipoh, an ethnically diverse Malaysian city that has a large and prominent Chinese community and is known for its great food. The other fishball skewer was also good but I didn't catch the name of the sauce and I prefer the curry.

It's almost unbelievable that I ate all of that for lunch today!

Anyway, it cost $19 plus tip.

I was picked to be on a jury for a trial that starts tomorrow afternoon, so I guess I'll be having lunch in Chinatown for a few more days (though perhaps not tomorrow)...