Asian Pearl Restaurant Review, Richmond

Asian Pearl in Richmond, California’s Pacific East Mall (Right off I-80) is part of a group of Chinese restaurants in Northern California. We’ve been to this location many time and have found it to offer very good Cantonese Chinese cuisine. We went for dinner. Here is our review of the Asian Pearl Peninsula, Millbrae location.

Decor, Vibe – Big seafood tanks by the door. Fancier interior with big decorative light fixtures and recessed ceiling. They had only 2 of the large food photos seen at the Kitchen. Majority of folks were Asians.

Menu Pictures (Click to zoom into any picture)

Menu looks identical to The Kitchen’s.

Picks:
As per our The Kitchen Review, half empress chicken, Chinese Broccoli, Beef Chow fun were all good.

Beef short rib with Papaya ($12) was an interesting but interesting combo. Not really too sweet. Beef was very tender and had some hints of papaya on it. Papaya itself had some saltiness on its surface.

Vermicelli Chicken Salad ($6.80) had wiggly jelly noodles in a mild spicy sauce with shredded chicken on top. A nice starter with blended flavors and textures.

Giant Clams ($8 each) were fresh from the tank, steamed with garlic and thin vermicelli noodles. Pretty huge clams with tons of meat and not fishy. Decent, but not as good as the out of the world ones we had in Sai Kung, Hong Kong.

Beef Chow Fun ($12), Sauteed Chinese Broccoli ($13), and Empress Chicken ($12 half) were also solid, almost identical to their sister restaurant The Kitchen.

OK:
Free Red Bean Soup with peanuts and tapioca was pretty watered down.

Pans:
None

Service was decent with a friendly server and no lack of tea refills. This restaurant has other locations but each is independently owned and operated, making them a big player in high quality Chinese food in Northern California. If you are looking for high quality Cantonese Chinese cuisine in the East Bay, Asian Pearl is recommended. We suspect their dim sum would also be of good quality.

Also at:

New Canton
2523 Broadway
Sacramento, CA 95818
916-739-8888

Asian Pearl Peninsula
1671 El Camino Real
Millbrae, CA 94030
650-616-8288

Asian Pearl
43635 Boscell Rd.
Fremont, CA 94538
510-979-1368

New Lai Wah
5912 Freeport Blvd
Sacramento, CA 95822
916-428-6183

$25 Dining Certificate for $5

Asian Pearl Overall Rating: (Very Good 2.5)

Come Back?

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

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

Alcohol:	Beer, Wine
Attire:	Casual
Hours:	Sat-Sun 10am - 3pm, Mon - Fri 11am - 230pm, Sun - Thur 5-10pm, Fri-Sat 5-11pm
Parking:	Street
Reservations:	Yes
Prices:	$6 - $138