Ton Kiang

Well, the Mighty has fallen… but not that much!
Chin Boon Wong ruled the roosts of Hakka cuisine with 3 Ton Kiangs about 35 years ago, with the preserved mustard greens with pork belly being a singular dish. However, even though the help is courteous and polite (RARE for Chinese eateries) and the restrooms are clean (even rarer), the food has gently become «gentrified» towards a non-​Chinese clientele; that is, westernized.
If this is OK with you, you will love this establishment.
I did prefer the original one on Broadway, though…

Great Dim Sum in SF. Small place but very cozy. Servers were very attentive. They bring out the small dishes to your tables. Good variety. Portions were perfect bite size. Quality was very fresh, especially the steamed dumplings. Prices were very decent for SF too.

Food was good, one of the lobsters balls was not good at all wasn’t cook but other then that is was fine. They kinda rush you Our the door especially family with kids.

Will travel for Ton Kiang. Clean, prompt and courteous service, delicious fresh food & a level consistency that is hard to find. We are happy with the menu selections, as I’ve heard/​read it’s «mainstream,» but we absolutely love eating here, as does my 5 year old son. The parking can be a pain, but it’s worth it. Always recommending this place to friends and always looking forward to our next visit. We usually do two days in a row, as our out-​of-​town treat!

Great dim sum, quick service, and really well priced. Will be back next time I’m in the city.

Fail… we got to Dragon Beaux too late and didn’t want to wait 1-​hour. So hungry!
Ton Kiang for the Unilocal save! Let me start with the «YES“s first:
* YES — Clean resto with 2 levels (recommend upper for better lighting)
* YES — No wait right at Sunday prime dim-​sum time
* YES — Fast, friendly service
* YES — Menu has pics & translations for those whose 1^st language is not Chinese/​Cantonese
* YES — Large menu extends to non dim-​sum Chinese dishes as well
* DRK — Hot Tea = I’d rec diners always get this when eating dim sum… it helps settle digestion when you’re eating so much oily, heavy foods!
* GET — All of below dishes were tasty & authentic :
— Har Gow (shrimp dumplings)
— Siu Long Bao (Shanghai pork dumplings)
- (Don’t know the name) — (mini chewy sweet white bun bites)
— Xia Chang (shrimp rice noodles)
— Niu Chang (beef rice noodles)
— Xien Jian Jiao (fried glutinous pork dumplings)
— Gao Choy Got (shrimp chives dumplings)
— Fun Gor (meat dumplings)
— Wah Tip (fried potstickers)
— Char Siu Bao (BBQ pork bun)
— Luo Buo Gao (pan-​fried turnip cake)
— Dan Tah (egg tart dessert)
* AOK — Custard cream bun = It was tasty but too coconut-​y for my liking
* AOK — Mango pudding = meh, not the best I’ve had
* FYI — Accommodates large groups, ample seating
* FYI — No reservations needed
* FYI — Street parking only
* FYI — Accepts credit cards

DONT GO HERE!!!
If I could. I’d give this place 0 stars. So I was on my trip to SF and I made it a mission, dim sum on Sunday! Unfortunately we all know how hard parking is when it’s Sunday and you’re trying to park in Chinatown. So I looked up multiple restaurants, decided to give this place a try. WORST DECISION! So we got lucky found parking on the street from across the church. Walked over and was seated fairly quickly. The food is mediocre, I’ve had way better where I’m from (Hawaii). I was hoping to see some carts but it’s fine they all go around with trays and put them down. Similar but not that usual carts with all the steamers in em. ANYWAYS back to my experience. First off my gf wanted tea so we got her tea. I didn’t touch it (but I still got charged –_​-​)
The dim sum like I said was okay. Then I needed water. They did not bring me or my gf any water! I had to ask for it at least 10x (literally no exaggeration)
THIS IS WHAT PISSED ME OFF!!!
So I asked the lady for water, she said okay. I got nothing. I brush it off. Then I ask another waitress who tells the same lady and she looks at me. STILL NOTHING. 4 other parties come in and they all get water. Okay now I’m fricken pissed! 20 minutes later and asking pretty much the whole staff. I finally get some damn water. And mind you it’s a tiny glass –_​– I like how they judged me based on my appearance and did not even care to pay any attention to our table. THANKS! And you know what took the cake. When it came time to pay and get the check. The check came I put down my card, not even a minute after, the lady is more than willing to come by and run my credit card. Un-​freakin-​believable! The only saving grace this restaurant had, the guy that came by (looks like he just started his shift), was super polite and very attentive. Where da heck was he during my whole visit?! NEVER coming here again. Lesson learned.

This is a standard dim sum place that serves the normal staples but not really anything beyond it. The shrimp balls, steamed riblets, and egg custard were all very good, while the shrimp dumplings and BBQ pork buns were just OK. The string beans were disappointing, however. Considering the two of us didn’t really wait on a Sunday morning and were pretty full with a $ 40 bill (pre tip), this will definitely be on our short list the next time we want dim sum.

The pros and the cons of TK revolve around the fact that caters more to non-​Chinese diners. On the upside, the servers are exceedingly polite (and speak English), and the interior is clean, comfy, and calm. On the downside, it is pricier for what it’s worth, and the menu is more restricted since there is a significant portion devoted to Americanized items such as crab claws, egg rolls, pot stickers, and fruit salad.
Nonetheless, the dim sum is decently authentic, with enough variety that there was no shortage of items to order. In a blind taste test, I think some of the more basic dim-​sum-​cart places would be superior, but TK is good enough to satisfy my expectations (which are rather high, thanks to my many dim sum excursions in Hong Kong).
(+++) Shrimp dumplings (蝦餃) | $ 4.50: Mmm, explosively juicy, meaty shrimp. Probably my favorite dim sum here.
(+) Pork dumplings (燒賣) | $ 4: Quite good, but I’ve had better. I think it needs more broth.
(+) Chinese broccoli (芥蘭) | $ 6.25: Nice crunch, fresh veggies, but a bit too oily.
(+) Stuffed eggplant | $ 5: Tasty, but the eggplant soaked up a lot of oil.
(-) Beef crêpe (牛肉腸粉) | $ 4.50: Probably the most unimpressive, the texture was the beef seemed a bit like meatloaf. Also, the rolls were oddly very flat.
(++) Dried bean curd roll (鮮竹捲) | $ 4.50: Delicious, though the pork seems fattier than other places I’ve had this dish.
(+++) Wasabi mustard sauce | I’m almost never a fan of sauces, but this was a highlight of the meal! The wasabi was strong, synergized well with the mustard, and was an excellent addition to essentially all of the dim sum.
TK is not as gimmicky as the juggernaut Koi Palace/​Dragon Beaux duo, whose multicolored XLB and the like may be more appealing to foodies/​Instagrammers. TK is halfway between upscale fancy d down-​to-​earth good food, resulting in satisfying dim sum in a cozy environment but at slightly marked-​up prices.
The verdict: 4 stars for those with a YOLO’ers, hard-​core foodies, and rich people who work in tech; 3 stars for anyone on a grad student budget like myself :3

This spots claim to fame is all day dim sum. Now if you are OK with this concept that basically negates the idea of dim sum you will do just fine here.
Things haven’t changed over the years and this spot churns out acceptable dim sum. Just beware that they are geared towards regular mainstream items so if you are OK with those you will do just fine. There are better offerings nearby but they do get slammed during prime time.
I would rate them 2.5 stars for what they offer.

I’ve been to Ton Kiang many, many years ago before Unilocal… they used to have 2 locations and Ton Kiang is a special restaurant for me as I spent many, many times with my grandmother having dim sum, lunch or dinner here. This was our «Go To» Chinese restaurant.
Now that I finally came back and checked in, here’s my review…
The dimsum has plenty of choices and taste really good. My favorites are:
Shrimp balls — just perfectly fried
Steamed Spareribs — has actual meat instead of usual bones only
Shanghai Dumpling — sweet
Sticky rice — perfect sauce of pork meat & some shrimp
Pork Siomai — ohhhhh… myyyyyyy…goshhhhhh soooo good!
Pan fried Chive dumpling — yummy
We also tried some of the following:
Shrimp & Spinach — so good
Shrimp & Cabbage — definitely a must try
Shrimp dumpling — okay
Shrimp noodle — okay
Chicken feet (don’t eat it but parents said it was tender, juicy)
Crab claw — it’s okay not my favorite
Pork Bun — more please… yummy
Peking duck — it’s okay there was some burned skin
I still want to come back for some «non-​dimsum» food too. Try to come before 11:00am as it gets pack fast; otherwise, you have to wait a while. Parking can be a problem too (well, it’s SF so what do you expect… right?) :0

Delicious dim sum. This is a two floor restaurant and is quite crowded. It definitely is catered towards non-​Cantonese speaking groups which is awesome. Come early as it can get a bit crowded at times.

I’ve been there twice and everytime I’m in there, I feel like a minority in a dimsum joint. I believe this place is catering to Americans. They have pictures of their food to show what you’re ordering. When you’re in a table with a few non-​speaking chinese folks, they actually say their dimsum dishes in English. I don’t know some of their stuff in English and expect them to say it in Chinese.
There were 10 of us when we went and I thought the service was okay. I felt they didn’t attend to us as much as we liked especially when we wanted our check, it took awhile. The total was about $ 220!!!
Meh, we were about to go to Tong Palace, but they were doing construction.
MEHHH!!! It would have been better if it were a little cheaper and the service was better.
Parking is okay, still have to find it and it’s metered, unless you know the area and you can park in the residential areas.

In observance of Lent me and my little group of friends for the day couldn’t eat meat. So we literally ordered shrimp (minus one plate of calamari) in so many different ways. We got shrimp dumplings, shrimp fried balls, shrimp flat noodle, and their honey walnut prawns. Ordered appetizer calamari and rice too. SO MUCH FOOD but we were absolutely starving. Ended up finishing everything actually… Lol back to the food, calamari was delicious. Their honey walnut prawns were good but it kinda looked like we got skimp cause there were 4 of us and we only got 2 – 3 prices each. They separate the walnuts and the shrimp on the plate, which was beneficially since I don’t like the walnuts and two of the other eaters loved them. Made it easier to access and easier for me to get away from. The dim sum was the typical, nothing amazing but not gross or bland either. One thing that was disappointing was that they didn’t give us the rice till half way through out meal so we were kinda passed that point and over eating rice.
We got there at about 3:30 and they were still open and taking orders for dim sum. As many of you may know, not all dim sum places are open all day or serve dim sum all day so that’s a plus! I’m assuming that they do the dim sum carts during the morning but only take it by order during the day. At least that’s what it sounded like when we spoke to the waitress.
The food is good, it’s clean, and service was nice too. Bathrooms located in the back and I saw stairs so they may have an upstairs too!

Gimme Sum Dim Sum!
If you’re a fan of authentic Dim Sum, hit up this spot ASAP. The place is always packed, it’s super reasonable on the wallet, and delivers every time. Worth the trip into the Richmond district no matter where you’re coming from.
My favorites are the onion pancake, Shanghai dumplings, crab claws, shrimp balls, pea and shrimp dumplings.
Lunch offers traditional dim sum where the servers pass your table often and dinner is «order» dim sum for your table. I’ve never had any of the Chinese dishes, but if they are anything like the dim sum, I don’t think you can go wrong.

I was just gonna give this place two stars, cause it’s aight. BUT, our bill for a party of six was under 70 dollars and that’s a steal, so three stars for you!
I prefer Hong Kong Lounge down the street, but I wouldn’t mind coming back here.
As my friends say: it’s a place you take people you don’t really care about that much cause it’s not too expensive.

Finally I’ve found my San Francisco dim sum spot! A friend who lives in Tennessee MUST have his dim sum fix whenever he visits our coast, so we’ve been on the hunt since moving up from LA more than a year ago. This is it!
LOTS of veggie options which thrills me, kid-​friendly, clean, no line even at 10am on a Sunday. Appropriately grumpy service. DO NOT BOTHER with Chinatown unless you have the stomach for truly authentic (I do not, which I’m not sorry for). I’m sure there are other lovely dim sum options, but this one fits the bill so nicely that I have no intention of looking elsewhere.

Decided to try TK because it was a favorite of an acquaintance I know at a place I volunteer who has been going for years. Unfortunately after trying half a dozen dim sum places in the city from fancy to ordering at the counter and going home with a plastic bag of dim sum TK didn’t impress. It was no better than the latter. There are two places in the city we go for a quick dim sum if we don’t want to wait for hours in Chinatown and Richmond. TK isn’t any better. It was nice that there is virtually no wait.
I was nostalgic for the carts that go around the tables which seems to be disappearing. So when we got to TK and saw that they go around the tables with a tray of dim sum but without the carts I thought I would like it but I find that I actually don’t. I guess I’m a convert. Food arrived cold. I guess ordering from a list and them making it is best because they can make it to order and it arrives pretty warm, less waste? The downside is you don’t get to see the dish before you order, so you have to know what your ordering or know Chinese. Either way I think i like ordering from a list if my food arrives warm or the temp its best served.
Food is actually not bad but comparable to cheaper places not worth it. Probably not coming back since there are lots of alternative.

Always a line here because it’s the nicest neighborhood dim sum in the Richmond. It’s pricier than other ones in the area but it’s cleaner so it’s better for when you want to have a nice sit down dim sum.
Unlike the place in Chinatown, they walk around with trays of dim sum rather than pushing a cart around. They have a menu on the table in case you want something in particular and didn’t want to wait until they come around.

This is a full on dining dim sum experience but the food wasn’t up to par. Out of all the things, my favorite item was probably fried shrimp balls that were served with a crab claw handle. It was clever use of what would normally be throwaway claws, but who am I to say it wasn’t throwaway in the first place. All other items we ordered were bland and the signature items felt like they were frozen and not fresh. I ordered Chinese donut wrapped in rice paper that wasn’t available in the carts the dim sum ladies pushed around and that really disappointing. The donut was overly fried and had way too much oil remnants.
For a Saturday brunch, it ended up costing about 90 dollars for 3 people. Even for San Francisco standards, that seemed a bit excessive to me and they likely had an up charge for the weekend. I normally don’t mind paying a pretty penny for great food, but this was not great by any stretch of the imagination. I would save your money and go experience better dim sum at the many smaller hole in the wall type places around Sunset and Richmond.

I have always wanted to check this place out but it’s normally really busy, we got here right when it opened and got the first seat. This meant we had to order the stuff we wanted off the menu as they were not bringing dim sum out to the tables yet.
The crowd of patrons is a little more well rounded here than some of the other places I frequent and that’s alright. I like white people dim sum. As far as the food is concerned it’s totally legit, not super expensive and the portions of the special items is good sized.
This is what we got:
Shanghai meat dumpling (balance of flavors is exceptional)
Green beans (Awesome)
Vegetable Egg rolls (killer)
Fun got (Mushrooms and shrimp) (killer)
Sticky rice (killer)
Hargow (just okay)
Siumai (just okay)
Sticky rice (killer)
Fried shrimp balls (bland)
Salt and pepper shrimp (whole unpeeled deep fried — not a fan)
Mustard and chile vinegar are brought to the table after you sit down, really good flavor and a nice touch. That will bring me back again.
I always go to the place right next door, I always order about the same amount of food and let’s just say it’s a trade off, price or quality,