Dining out: Mission Chinese Food

Andrew and I visited Mission Chinese food on 5/27/2011.
We ate with Mariko and Dorian.

This restaurant has gotten so much press lately, so I'd been dying to try it out!

We arrived on a Friday evening at 6:30, trying to get there early to beat the rush. There was already a small wait list, but we had a seat within five minutes!

What we ordered:
Cold Sesame Noodles
Szechuan Pickles
Tea-Smoked Eel
Scallop Dumplings
Thrice-cooked Bacon
Salt & Pepper Shrimp

I loved the freshness of the noodles. This dish came out as an appetizer. It was fresh and light with cucumber and tomato and was soaked in almond milk. Very tasty! I think I would have preferred this to me a sort of inter-miso between heavier courses as a palate refresher.

Szechuan pickles were lovely - sort of a Chinese-style kimchi with cabbage, cucumbers and peanuts.

The eel was served wrapped with rice paper and included smoked ham hock and celery for crunch. This very interesting combination was quite delicious. The almost sweet sauce perfectly balanced the intense smokiness of the ham.

The scallop dumpling were also quite delightful. The menu stated that they were usually made with yellowtail, but our waitress informed us that they'd be made with scallops this evening. The combination of ingredients worked very well together, and the dumpling wrap was fresh and thin.

The thrice-cooked bacon dish may have been my favorite, and not even for the fact that it was bacon-based... the caramelized onions and bitter melon were perfect compliments, and the Korean-style rice cakes gave an interesting chewy texture. The layers of flavors rivaled the best dishes I've ever had in this city!

Finally, we enjoyed the shrimp. They were served whole with chunks of fennel. I prefer shrimp to be served peeled for ease of eating at a restaurant and because you don't lose flavor if the seasonings were on the meat instead of the peel, but many people were eating them shell and all.

Over all, we had a delightful meal which turned out to be about $80 including drinks. Not bad for 4 people at a SF Top 100 Restaurant!