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The array of noodle choices and condiments on the table showed us the broad cultural influences Teochew cuisine had to offer. One good thing is that the ubiquitous stereotype of cheap Chinese food is slowly being chipped away as customers demand better quality ingredients. When dining at the new transplant hot pot chains like Xiao Long Kan Chinese Hot Pot or HaiDiLao, it’s rare to get out for under $50 per person. With the emergence and proliferation of these more elevated restaurants, there’s a clear link between China’s rise as an economic superpower and Chinese prosperity here.
New Kim Kee Noodle House
Johnny told me that Kim Kee Noodle is a classic Teochew noodle spot representing the long history of the Teochew diaspora and their presence in the SGV. The Teochew people have cultural roots in the eastern part of Guangdong province, the southern part of mainland China. They’re also one of the dominant groups of ethnically Chinese peoples throughout Southeast Asia including Singapore, Malaysia, and Cambodia. Many Teochew Chinese people were merchants and sailors that ended up in Thailand, Vietnam, and Cambodia. Now the population has spread across the world all the way to New Zealand and North America. In 2019, I took a break from chef life in restaurants and began my master's degree in cultural anthropology at Cal State LA.
LunAsia in Alhambra: Rice Paper Rolls
There are no carts at LunAsia as everything is made fresh to order. An old mainstay on Garfield, this place is known for its cold table which is a buffet-style display filled with a mixed selection of cold marinated salads and dishes that are pre-prepared and ready for takeaway. Anything from the cold table can be eaten as an appetizer, with rice, or as a side to the rest of your meal. The menu is a glimpse into what you might find in the Yunnan region in Southwestern China bordering Laos, Myanmar, and Vietnam. The dishes can be on the spicier side and often feature fresh herbs and a variety of mushrooms. There’s truly something for everyone here; best to just go and taste.
Nearby Hotels
At Kim Kee, some noodles dishes represent the introduction of wheat into Chinese cuisine, while others are made out of rice, with sauces that range from chili to modern-day Srirachas. Kim Kee Noodle easily flies under the radar of most foodies and food media because it’s so simple, yet the restaurant is a cornerstone of the community. One of the long lasting restaurants that serve Teochew flavors.
Pearl River Deli’s compact menu is everchanging, with a few mainstays like his famed Hainan chicken on weekends and his juicy roasted char siu pork. To his mind, Johnny’s evolving menu reflects what people want to eat. Foodwise, they’re known for their pho whether it is beef or chicken, all the pho here is pretty good. After coming here for years and years, it is safe to say most things on the menu are pretty good. I don’t know a dish here where I would say to never get.
Dim-sum restaurants are declining partly because the traditional dishes are extremely labor-intensive and require a very specific skill set to execute. Staffing and compensation are huge barriers to success for many dim-sum restaurants, leading to the closure of many the banquet halls over the last decade. LunAsia is one of the few dim sum restaurants that continue to open locations, having just opened the third in Cerritos. Diners from all backgrounds love and respect dim-sum, the demand is high and the good stuff in LA is east of Chinatown.
Says enough for 2 people but we stretched it out to 4 adults having 3 rolls each. One of the very few newer-generation Cantonese restaurants. Ho Kee has a smaller menu than most of its similar predecessors, but it does a few things right and roast duck is one of them.
The ingredients are fresh, and they are wrapped well without the wrap getting dried out. Bun Rieu (Crab Tomato Soup with Udon-like Noodles) – There is a strong tomato-y taste with lots of crab/pork pieces. LOL, it satisfies my craving for pasta strangely. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited. As the oldest Teochew restaurant in Far East Plaza, it’s been open since the 1970s and is worth checking out.
The pork was well marinated and full of flavor, and you can never go wrong with the fish sauce dressing! I was only able to eat half the bowl because it was just that big. The only thing I wish they did differently was slice the pork.
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Unlike Peking duck, the skin is not as crispy but overall the Cantonese-style roast is more flavorful. If you’re a Peking duck person, you’ll swoon for this succulent duck. Monterey Park, an “ethnoburb” and America’s first non-white dominant city, is just twelve miles east of LA’s historic Chinatown. It marks the beginning of this sprawling multi-generational and visibly Chinese-dominant region that grows all the way out to Diamond Bar. For many in Los Angeles, the San Gabriel Valley (SGV), has always been known as “that other Chinatown” or “the place with the good dim-sum,” but the restaurant scene there is quickly changing. Dim-sum banquet halls and decades-old Cantonese restaurants are closing and, in their place, trendy internationally-backed hot-pot places, mainland Chinese restaurants and boba chains are popping up.
When China’s economy does well, it’s felt and seen in SGV. The cars are nicer in the parking lots and the driveways, the houses are bigger and more expensive, and the lines are longer at the restaurants. If something is trending in China, it’s also trending in SGV. As a result, you can now see fewer Cantonese restaurants and more skewer or fancy hotpot places.
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Johnny hopes his inspiration can push people the extra ten miles to also experience this stellar food. In some ways his Pearl River Deli can be thought of as a portal to SGV. Opening up the menu to dishes beyond his Cantonese heritage has allowed Johnny and his team to keep it interesting for all generations, while still using techniques like wok-cooking to honor tradition.
Johnny is deeply passionate about Chinese cuisine and SGV history and how both have changed over his lifetime. At one years old, Johnny moved with his family from Taishan, Guangdong to Lincoln Heights and shortly thereafter to SGV. He grew up in a Cantonese home eating the simple foods of his family’s region. His restaurant has received accolades from LA Times, NY Times, Eater, infatuation, and more.
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