San Tung Restaurant, San Francisco

Reviewer: Foodnut.com

San Tung

1031 Irving St (Between 11th and 12th Avenue)

San Francisco, CA 94122

(415) 242-0828

San Tung Website

San Tung San Francisco Exterior Decor

San Tung and San Tung #2 are a popular Chinese restaurant in the inner Sunset of San Francisco. They serve northern Chinese food that has some Korean influence, as the San Tung region of China is near Korea, hence the free Kim Chee. We have eaten here many, many times, back to when it was located west of here. Our latest visit occurred at the end of Summer 2017 to San Tung #2, when we noticed prices up a bit.

San Tung San Francisco Interior

San Tung #2 Notes

San Tung #2 opened next door in early 2014 and is managed by one of the owners brothers.  The menu here is a slight subset of San Tung’s. Interesting, it has its own kitchen. We dine there as the wait was far shorter. Some interesting things to consider:

  • Decor is superior than the original restaurant
  • No free kim chee
  • Chicken Wings, Stir Fried beans are very similar to San Tung
  • Pork Dumplings are made next door, but were cooked till almost dry on one visit
  • There is no Sweet and Sour Pork, just Cherry Pork.  We found it fine, but not up the far better Sweet and Sour Pork to next door.
  • Dry fried mushrooms
  • They have Blue Moon Beer and Sake
  • Younger and friendlier staff

We would stick to the original and wait, unless all you care about is the wings. If you are number 20 on the list, then you should just cave and eat at #2.

The owners also run So Restaurant in SOMA, which also serves the legendary wings.

Decor, Vibe – San Tung has pretty generic Chinese restaurant decor, not much in the way of decorations. This is a busy restaurant with lots of people waiting to get in.  Try not to face the door, you will feel pressure to eat fast. Lots of families, small groups, friends getting together for the delicious fare.

San Tung Menu Pictures (Click to Zoom in on any picture)

San Tung has a special Korean menu for those who can read it! There are dishes on there that are not present on the normal menu.

Website San Tung Menu

San Tung Menu Full Picture Set

Free Kim Chee

San Tung Picks:

San Tung San Francisco Dumplings

Shrimp and Leek Dumplings ($8) are 12 dumplings filled with a savory and tender mixture of ginger and garlic infused ground shrimp and Chinese chives. The wrapper is a bit on the medium thickness side and slightly al dente.  These should be eaten quickly when they are piping hot. Dip in soy sauce or vinegar if desired.

Pork Dumplings ($7.25) are 12 dumplings filled with a tasteful and tender blend of ground pork and Napa cabbage seasoned with ginger and garlic.  Some prefer the shrimp ones over these, but both are very good.

San Tung San Francisco Chicken Wings

Original Dry Fried Chicken Wings ($10.50 for a dozen) are deep fried in batter with garlic, ginger, and red peppers.  One of San Tung’s signature dishes that everyone orders.  Sauce is a little sweet and slightly zesty. These come piping hot out of the kitchen and need to be eaten quickly.

If you have an egg allergy, ask them to dry them without the batter.

San Tung San Francisco Sweet and Sour Pork

Sweet and Sour Pork ($11.50) is a pretty pedestrian dish we would normally not order, but San Tung does it extremely well. Tender chunks of lean pork battered and deep fried tossed with bell peppers, onions, carrots and pineapple.  Could use more pineapple and less onions. Balanced cherry flavored sauce.

If you have an egg allergy, ask them to dry them without the batter.

Sweet and Sour Pork in Brown sauce ($13) has tender chunks of lean pork battered and deep fried. Topped with mixed vegetables and tangy sweet and sour sauce. This was sweeter and more tart than normal. Crunchy meat and nice mushrooms and carrots. A nice change of pace from the red sauce.

San Tung San Francisco Cold Noodles

Black Bean Sauce Cold Noodles ($10) with sliced beef, 2 shrimp, 2 pieces of calamari in a dark soybean sauce served over a bowl of fresh home made noodles are a classic must get dish. Great sauce. Eggless.

Seafood Soup Noodles ($11) had excellent homemade hand pulled noodles, shrimp, calamari, scallops and mixed vegetables in a very good broth.  A pretty healthy sized dish of top notch noodles.

Hot and Sour Soup ($5.95 for small) was not very spicy but still hit the mark.

San Tung San Francisco Green Beans

Dried sauteed String Beans ($8.50) flash fried and tossed in garlicy sauce with Chinese pickle were pretty standard fare.  Crunchy, not overly seasoned, fresh beans, a decent dish but not super special.

OK:

Potstickers ($7) had six Big ones to the order.  Deeply Fried bottom skin, lots of meat filling, juicy, but just too thick and doughy a crust. Order the dumplings instead.

Jellyfish with Cucumbers ($9.50) – Chilled shredded jellyfish and julienne cucumbers tossed in a light soy garlic mustard sauce was a plate full of jellyfish.  The mustard sauce pretty much dominated the dish. Authenticity style points.

Pans:

None

San Tung’s service is slightly better than the average Chinese restaurant.  You still have to hunt down waiters to order, get refills, get the check etc.  Service and pacing fall fast when the kitchen puts priority on to go orders. One wonders why they do not move to a bigger location. Come early and get in line. The waiting at San Tung usually starts as early as 5 pm. You can usually call ahead to have them put you on the waiting list.  Small wine list, cheap $10 Corkage.

Best place to park is near the supermarket Andronico’s.

How do you like their Wing?

Restaurant Map:


San Tung Overall Rating: (Good 2)

Come Back?

Food Rating: (Very Good)
Service Rating: (Good)
Atmosphere Rating: (Good)
Value Rating: (Very Good)

Guide: 0 = poor, 1 = Below/Average, 2 = Good, 2.5 = Very Good, 3 = Excellent , 4 = Extraordinary

Alcohol:Beer, Wine, $10 corkage
Attire:Casual
Hours:Mon-Tue, Thu-Sun 11:00am-9:30pm, Closed Wed
Parking:Street
Reservations:Yes
Prices:$6 - $20

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10 Comments

  • Tom
    October 3, 2008 at 10:58 am

    I love this restaurant. The wait times have gotten very long. Try to go at 5pm or 9pm

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