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    Bow Hon Restaurant

    3.1 (259 reviews)
    ModerateChinese
    Open 11:00 am - 3:00 pm, 5:00 PM - 8:30 PM

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    BOW HON RESTAURANT ATMOSPHERE

    What's the vibe?
    Moderate noise
    Classy
    Good for kids
    Good for groups

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    Special Order - Fish Salad - This is usually a delicacy only for Chinese New Year. Call them several days in advance to order it.
    Aaa T.

    This restaurant has been a Chinatown gem for decades. Simple food in a cozy, clean environment with very friendly and attentive service. Please support this wonderful San Francisco Chinatown local restaurant. After your meal, you can walk up approx 1.5 blocks away to Ross Alley to buy Golden Gate Fortune Cookies where you can see them make the fresh cookies if you're lucky! :0) As a child, our family often ordered the very special gourmet Fish Salad for Chinese New Year lunch among many additional orders. Despite it not even being close to Lunar New Year, it was a nostalgic delight to order this special dish several days in advance and eat it for dinner the other night. We also ordered Lotus Root Siu-Chow in advance as I don't think this is normally on the menu either. From the menu, we added on eggplant with mushrooms, seafood tofu soup and seafood clay pot. From the items we ordered, their dishes seemed to be on the very low salt and spice levels, you can add spices as you see fit. Thank you for the wonderful dinner and very friendly, attentive service. We look forward to trying more of your Clay pot items next visit.

    Genera Cho's chicken
    Irene Y.

    Excellent service from Tanya. General Cho's chicken freshly cooked, crispy, drenched in the tastiest sauce! Wonton soup only $8.95 mild yet delicious broth! Restaurant is very clean and bright!

    This spot was really surprising. It was clean, cozy, and the food was killer. I thought the service was good. I was the only customer in there and I was confused why, because the food was affordable (Dinner for 1 was $20ish for soup, spring roll, and two entrees), and the ingredients were really fresh. I will be going back for sure.

    Beef noodle soup
    Jolens V.

    This is a really good restaurant, I use to come here all the time when I was working in the financial district. The lunch specials were great. My favorite is the oysters and pork claypot. It is always busy here and sometimes we eat in the upstairs dining area. It reminds me of the restaurants in Hong Kong and Manila.

    veronicaa _.

    This place is awesome! Food feels authentic and scrumptious! The place is nice and clean, and the people are sweet. Wish my hometown had this food, but that just means I will be coming back! 10/10

    Sunil R.

    We went here since the restaurant I wanted to take my friends to next door was closed. Big mistake. It is grungy, the service was brusque and the food was bleh. Won't make that mistake again.

    Closed as of 10/17/23.  Unknown whether temporary or permanent.
    Mike C.

    It's been a really long time since I've dined here in person, guessing thirty plus years. Before a number of neighborhood spots in the avenues opened that specializing in clay pot rice, this was my family's go-to for that. We used to come here weekends or weeknights after school in my grade school years. It was mainly traditional Cantonese cuisine with their signature menu dishes being ones made in a brown ceramic clay pot. Over the years, their reputationcontinues for those and especially their clay pot rice. Shorty before March 2020, I noticed that a familiar waitress who worked at another restaurant around the corner from workplace. Having walked by a few times in November, the building had scaffolding and the businesses were closed during that time. On the Tuesday after Christmas on a misty late morning, I walked in. I was the only customer and chose a table on the right. After a quick study of the menu, I ordered the rice noodle with beef soy sauce (https://www.yelp.com/user_local_photos?select=6oVl5-voVHF4Pzn2hbUWHw&userid=saJuyv784apZzH--psHZ3Q); on other menus it would be listed as beef chow fun, dry style or, in Cantonese phonetically, gon chow ngow ho (sorry, not familiar with using the Chinese character settings). The ingredients are basic with the beef, the wide flat noodles, bean sprouts, and onions. They did this very well as the smoky wok flavor (wok hei) made this dish shine. I tend to enjoy my foods on the spicy side so I added a large dollop of red chili sauce to pair with each bite. As I alternated between bites of this plain and with chili sauce, I learned that the plain was my favorite, better to enjoy that smoky flavor. About halfway through the meal, it started raining and a young couple with a dog wanted to dine here. The waitress kindly asked whether I minded the additional fur guest and I said no. As I packed up to leave, I glanced at the dishes on their table and noticed they ordered the same noodle dish that I did. The waitress was kind and helpful in telling me to let the teabag seep before drinking and offering refills. Sadly, I learned the familiar waitress happened to be off that day. In studying the other parts of the menu, I noticed the clay pot rice is still available. I asked her and confirmed that there are still two sizes for this though the menu only lists one price. Being a workday, I knew time wouldn't allow me to have this. Will hopefully return with friends on non-work hours or order to take home next time.

    Denise C.

    Farewell to Yelp..There was a group meeting to have dinner at Bow Hon in Chinatown..there was a night market event..we ate a full meal and it was for old time's sake..thank u..if you could eat this meal every day...why not? fried rice veggies walnut shrimp...old traditions don't fade out

    Clay pot

    Very nice people, the service was amazing. Not sure who the chef was but he greeted our table and asked how the food was. Amazing authentic food. Would recommend to anyone visiting SF!

    Banquet room upstairs
    Jonathan L.

    I've never noticed this restaurant but my cousin had her wedding rehearsal banquet dinner here and I liked it a lot! There's a hidden banquet room upstairs which has about 5 tables upstairs. We had an 8 course meal which included: 1. Roasted chicken: Felt like this was a bit dry and needed garlic sauce or something. I didn't really like it but it also wasn't terrible. 2. Sweet and sour pork: Sauce was delicious and perfectly fried but there were a lot of piece that were straight up fat and had no actual meal. 3. Honey Glazed shrimp: Perfectly cooked and awesome sauce. Maybe I haven't had Chinese banquet style food in a while but the portion size seems a bit small for banquet style. 4. Roast Duck: The sauce was the best part of the dish. I actually poured the sauce over white rice and it was SOOOO good. The duck itself was also pretty good! I wish it had the buns and hoisin sauce though! It would have been perfect. 5. Mixed Chow Mein: Pretty good! Perfectly cooked noodles and very filling. 6. Gai Lan: Perfectly cooked and not to salty or soggy. 7. String beans: Loved the crunchy beans. Again perfectly cooked and seasoned. Beed was also good and tender! 8. Fruit desert: Such a creative way to present fruits! The grapes were also insanely sweet! ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Overall, service was great and efficient! They brought out each dish very quickly all within 10-15 mins of each other. Did a great job combining plates and making room.

    Orange Chicken
    Jim D.

    I dined here for dinner during the Chinese new year festivities. The place has nice decor. I ordered orange chicken. It came hot and crispy. Flavors were delicious. Thank you, Maggie for the warm hospitality.

    General Tso, Ong Choy, clay pot toppings

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    They would not serve me any claypot because I was white. This is not an assumption on my part but the words of the staff. Pretty wild.

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    2 years ago

    The food had hair in it and grossed us out this place wasnt the best and they didnt do nothing about it when i told them about the situation

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    Authentic and very tasty Chinese food. service was great. don't fall for the other tourist traps, come here.

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    3 years ago

    food and service was excellent in an older biulding. clay pot three meat dinner was outstanding

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    Four Kings 四大天王

    Four Kings 四大天王

    4.2
    (462 reviews)
    0.1 mi
    $$$

    We were visiting SF and my sister highly recommended Four Kings, so we had to try it out during our…read moretrip! Our party of 4 ordered the fried hawt rabbit, spicy Singaporean crab with fried milk bread, Hong Kong black pepper steak, and beef chow fun noodles to share family style. Overall, we were super impressed with all the food. Everything other than the chow fun were super unique, but all the flavor combinations worked so well together. While the chow fun wasn't unique, I'd say it's still a very solid dish. Everyone in my party left full and satisfied. The food is a bit on the pricey side for it what it is, so I wouldn't come here regularly but I think that it's worth coming for a special occasion. Service here is super friendly and attentive--our waitress checked in on us frequently and brought us extra napkins and gloves for our food, which was super appreciated. This restaurant is on the smaller end and does have a long wait, so if you can, I'd recommend making a reservation.

    I saw online that this place is one of the most sought after reservations on Open Table. I tried my…read moreluck at getting a reservation and was pleasantly surprised when I was able to get a reservation! Reservations open 3 weeks in advanced at noon. Walk ins are also welcome. One note is that parking can be a bit challenging so get there a bit early. The inside is lively and filled me with so much nostalgia with the decor. The staff is really attentive and friendly. I also appreciate the free peanuts and cucumber salad that you get when you're seated. My boyfriend and I ordered a lot of food because we wanted to try so many things! The lamb skewer was super moist and had a nice flavor. The XO escargot with milkbread had a nice buttery, garlic taste. The milk bread was fluffy and when dipped in the sauce it tasted very rich. We also got the clay pot rice and it reminded me of when I had it in China. The rice was crispy at the bottom and well seasoned. My favorite dish of the night was the squab. It was cooked excellently and the skin was really crispy. The five spice powder on the side really brought out the flavor of the meat. The eggplant was cooked well and portion was good but it didn't stand out as much as the other dishes. Overall, I would visit this place again. It definitely lives up to the hype. The squab and and clay pot rice were the stand outs to me but all the other food was really tasty as well.

    Photos
    View of kitchen
    View of kitchen
    Sichuan cabbage
    Sichuan cabbage
    Fish fragrant eggplant

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    Fish fragrant eggplant
    606

    606

    4.6
    (605 reviews)
    0.2 mi
    $$
    Family-owned & operated
    Takes reservations

    Traditional Chinese cuisine meets modern atmosphere! Being Chinese, I have a higher standard for…read morewhat Chinese dishes can and should be. (That sounded really snobby, I apologize ) Dim sum is comfort food for me, and 606 knocks it out of the park! Cha siu bao (Bbq pork bun) has a light, fluffy bun and the pork is in the sweet spot between sweet and savory. The siu mai and the shrimp dumplings were very traditionally seasoned and delicious! Mongolian beef was excellent with a subtle kick to it, I didn't expect. Sesame balls and custard buns were nice sweet treats to wrap up the meal. Restaurant was bright, clean, and air conditioned. Some dim sum restaurants can be a little humid and stuffy. IYKYK Owners were very nice and willing to answer any questions we had. 5 star experience!!!

    Finally had the chance to eat here yesterday after seeing it so many times in my yelp search! Fun…read morefact: my mom used to frequent this restaurant when it was New Sun Hong Kong back when I went to school at Sts. Peter & Paul across from Washington Square Park. My mom used to get the pan fried noodles from here and i always used them as my reference point for any other restaurant that also serves this. It's what I remember and grew up with. So far only one has come close! This is all I remember from that place and how delish it was. Fast forward to yesterday. They were really nice and welcoming as soon as I went in. We didn't want to order too much, so we only got the beef hor fun and green onion pancakes. The pancakes were so good! Nice and chewy on the inside and crunch on the outside. The chow fun I had really high hopes for. My memories as a child having had chow fun all the time, had this distinct taste to it and made a certain way. Their chow fun was good, but I think it was lacking a little flavor? I also wish they used the wider noodles instead of these thinner ones. :( It wasn't bad at all, I just had a certain expectation. So far, there's only one place that is reminiscent of what I remember and it's in Sacramento. That being said, we will still come back because I would love to try the Simon's garlic chicken and more of the pancakes!

    Photos
    606
    Voted Top 100 Chinese Restaurants in the USA! Thank you Yelp and our wonderful and supportive customers!
    Voted Top 100 Chinese Restaurants in the USA! Thank you Yelp and our wonderful and supportive customers!
    606

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    Palette Tea House

    Palette Tea House

    4.1
    (2k reviews)
    1.2 mi
    $$$
    Locally owned & operated
    Speaks Mandarin

    Strong five star experience…read more I came here for a work dinner and it felt like the food just kept coming. I wish I had a better memory of everything that I ate, but there was too much. I do remember that I absolutely loved the Peking duck. They came with very thin, I can only describe it as tortilla crêpe things that you would put it in. I love this so much better than the standard buns. I also loved the fried string beans. It was tempura fried and very light. It didn't taste greasy at all. Out of three places we went to dinner for work, this was my favorite by far. It is right in Ghirardelli Square so there's a lot of things you can walk around and do either before or after. Service was great. They were very attentive. The restaurant itself was very open and lit well. They had us in a back area so it was easy to chat with my coworkers. There wasn't a single dish I didn't like so I would highly recommend coming here.

    We came in at 7 pm and the kitchen closes at 7:30, but no problem. We ordered some wine and our…read morevarious dumplings. The mango kissed Seafood crispy came out first & it was so delicious & it really set the tone for a positive & flavorful dining experience My favorites were the classic Ha Gow Shrimp Dumplings & the Chicken Soup Dumplings "XLB", but everything we ordered was very good. Service was attentive and kind. The dining area is colorful, bright & upbeat. This location is also in Ghirardelli Square, so it is a fun, bustling area with lots to see and do before or after your meal. If you'd like a more authentic dim sum meal, perhaps you may enjoy heading to Chinatown to experience a more traditional set of dim sum offerings, but for our purposes today, this was more than adequate. Peace!

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    Palette Tea House
    Palette Tea House
    Palette Tea House

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    Harborview Restaurant & Bar

    Harborview Restaurant & Bar

    4.0
    (1.9k reviews)
    0.6 mi
    $$
    Outdoor seating
    Happy hour specials

    Harborview serves premium food and their dim sum are seemed to order; always fresh and super tasty…read more I've been here numerous times for yum cha (dim sum bunch) before, and trying their HH (Happy Hour) for the first time today.. and it was just simply excellent!!! The quality dim sum that we've come to expect.. plus two delightful bonuses: Excellent Margarita and their OMG - so Tasty and Addicting Tofu Fries!! YUM yim yummmmy!! Service is excellent and their wait staff checked on us every now and then, and everyone is always friendly and helpful. Nicely located in EC4; the restaurants is always super clean and comfy for hanging out. Their balcony seating also very nice, weather permitting. Bonus: they also validate parking, at (I think ) $6 off your parking rate at the Embarcadero's. Great good + Great service! Recommended!!!

    Since we didn't have a reservation, we were seated in the bar area through a separate entrance --…read morenot sure if that mattered, but this was honestly the worst Chinese food I've had in the U.S. Nothing tasted fresh. Every dish came out fast-food quick, like it had been pre-made and reheated. The meat in the fried rice was tiny and tough, the eggplant skin was chewy, and the fried items were all soggy. The best thing we had was the salad -- dressed in what tasted like store-bought sweet chili sauce. An 18% gratuity was automatically added for our party of three (including a small child) -- no one informed us until the bill arrived.

    Photos
    Black Sesame Mochi with Grated Peanut
    Black Sesame Mochi with Grated Peanut
    Enjoy dining or Happy Hour on our spacious patio!
    Enjoy dining or Happy Hour on our spacious patio!
    Baked Coffee Lava Buns with Crunchy Sugar Crust

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    Baked Coffee Lava Buns with Crunchy Sugar Crust

    Bow Hon Restaurant - chinese - Updated August 2026

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