Wild Pepper

We had dinner last night at Wild Pepper in San Francisco. Wild Pepper is the new and improved incarnation of the "Long Island Chinese Restaurant" (formerly near 29th on Church) — same owners, different name and location.

The food is still tasty, the service is still pleasant and efficient, and the prices are still economical. However, the menu is larger, the venue is larger and prettier, and parking is quite a bit easier. What's not to like?

We started with the tofu with chili and scallions appetizer (provided gratis this evening as we waited for the rest of our party. I'm not usually a fan of tofu. These were delicious. Small (half-inch or smaller) cubes of warm tofu in a light, clear sauce, tossed with tiny slices of green scallion, they melted in my mouth. (I had thirds :)

We ordered Crab Rangoon, Hong Kong Style Wonton Soup, Jade Prawns, Lemon Chicken, and Dry Sauteed String Beans.

Crab Rangoon is what Long Island Chinese called "crab cheese puffs", deep-fried wonton-wrapped crabmeat appetizers. These are one of my favorite dishes and I was happy to see them make the transition, albeit under a new name.

"Hong Kong Style" wonton Soup (also known as "Yee Wonton" elsewhere) means the wontons have first been fried. This isn't my favorite style, but the broth was tasty enough to offset the wontons — a dark rich broth reminiscent of French Onion.

The "jade" in Jade Shrimp refers to the lightly-steamed spinach, snow peas, and broccoli surrounding the prawns — a treat for both the eye and the palate. The Lemon Fish had a light, sweet lemon sauce, far different than the usually cloying variant found elsewhere. The chunks of fish were decorated with bright red strips I thought might be red pepper — these turned out, to my delight, to be candied ginger!

The Dry Sauteed String Beans were as good or better than I've had anywhere. They were neither too greasy, too limp, nor too hot (we ordered "mild"). All in all, a most satisfactory meal.

The total came to $8 per person for a party of six. That's hard to beat.

When you're in The City:

Wild Pepper Chinese Restaurant
3601 26th St. (between Guerrero and Valencia)
Three blocks from BART... reservations accepted... free local delivery.

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May 25, 2006

Wild Pepper Reviewed

Woo Hoo! We went to Wild Pepper for dinner last night and they had a review from the SF Bay Guardian posted on the front door. It's a good review (and funny, too).

Wild Pepper ( in category Show & Tell ) - posted at Thu, 29 Dec, 11:31 Pacific | «e»