Fung's Kitchen

Like a great banquet hall, Fung’s Kitchen brims with smiling faces on weekends. How can they not help feeling happy with carts and carts of dumplings whizzing by – all for their pleasure. While pricier than many dim-sum places, it’s hard to fault the quality at Fung’s. While so many Chinese restaurants take short cuts with their dim-sum offerings, Fung’s delivers fresh, quality choices.

The xiu mai, bursting with pork, resembles overflowing moneybags. They’re firm, packed with meaty flavor. The Chinese barbeque pork buns are yeasty and fragrant. The white steam buns are tender and delicate rather than gummy like at so many places. The har cao, or shrimp dumplings, are firm, like expertly gift-wrapped presents. Dozens of choices are available to choose from, some common and others less so. The fun is in trying, and you might make a new discovery.

Aside from dim sum, Fung’s has a reputation for serving Chinese wild-game dishes, such as wild boar. Many of the items are off the menu, so ask the waiter. Chinese are very passionate about fresh seafood. If it doesn’t move, it isn’t fresh. All along the back wall are aquariums filled with live seafood, including Alaskan King Crab, New Zealand green mussels and Maine lobster.

Fung owner-chef Hoi Fung frequently travels through China with his friend Martin Yan. Food writers credit San Francisco-based Yan for helping to launch Chinese cooking into the mainstream  with his PBS show Yan Can Cook. Fung and Yan travel through China to research techniques and unique ingredients. Fung brings back these ingredients for his Chinese clientele, some of whom are willing to spend thousands for the opportunity to savor something rare.