Lai Hong Lounge Restaurant Review, San Francisco

Reviewer: Foodnut.com Lai Hong Lounge 1416 Powell Street San Francisco, CA 94133 415-397-2290

By Arnold Chan

Lai Hong Lounge Restaurant is a Cantonese Chinese restaurant on the outskirts of Chinatown. They have been around since the Lichee Garden closing, 2012. They are pretty popular for lunch, but it was much more quiet at dinner. We were in the neighborhood so we decided to try it out, being big Chinese food fans. This restaurant appears to be related to Hong Kong Lounge.

Decor, Vibe – A small step up up from standard Chinese restaurant decor. Looks the same as before and smell like it too. Some big groups of friends and families, and couples of all ages were dining.

Lai Hong Lounge Menu

Pretty standard check off traditional dim sum menu along with a couple modern dishes. $1 tea charge per person.

Lai Hong Lounge Food Picks:

Coffee Pork Ribs ($6.50) were excellent. Strong coffee flavor and nice crispy texture. Better than Koi Palace?

Shrimp Dumpling ($4.50) had 4 nicely done har gow. Small shrimp but still worth while.

Steamed Pork Buns ($3.25) are classic buns done right. Good filling.

BBQ Pork Puffs ($2.95) were nice and golden brown. Flaky crust and lots of char siu filling.

Fried Sesame Balls ($2.95) were hot out of the fryer. 4 nice sized pieces of delight.

OK:
Steamed Sesame Balls ($3.25) were fair at best. Chewy, lacking in flavor.

Pans:
Steamed Pork Dumpling ($3.50) should never be ordered!

Chiu Zhou Dumpling ($3.75) were huge and horrible.

Lai Hong Lounge had a bunch of marginal dishes, not what we expected. There are few dim sum options in Chinatown now, making this place still popular with locals. This restaurant is a non touristy place that caters to locals wanting good value in a meal.
Better bets in Chinatown for Dim Sum are Great Eastern and Cityview.