San Francisco Hot-Off-the-Press Review – Fresher Than the Food We Got

There’s a newly opened Peninsula in Castro Valley (East Bay) with seriously upscale decor. Worried about post-opening chaos, we waited over a week before trying it. Since it’s Friday night and we weren’t in a rush, we decided to check it out. Ended up waiting an hour and a half for just two dishes 😂 The pacing felt like a Michelin-starred tasting menu — but not in a good way. We arrived around 6 PM — no one greeted or seated us at first. Finally got to our table by 6:10. By 6:15, a waiter took our order… and then walked off. We assumed everything was entered.👍 Then we noticed other tables had order slips — we didn’t. Turns out, the waiter never actually put the order in. Our real order time? 6:36. At that point, we had a bad feeling — but stubbornly decided to stay. Then began the long wait. You’d think dishes like soy sauce chicken and oxtail — usually prepped in advance — would come out quickly. Nope. We waited 40 minutes for the first two dishes.😀 And just like fine dining, they came out one by one. To be fair: The soy sauce chicken was tender and flavorful — not too salty, even the breast was juicy. The oxtail with sun-dried tomatoes and kidney beans was rich and fell apart perfectly.🎈 We eyed the fried rice at the next table — it looked amazing, but they waited 50 minutes for it. By 7:30 PM, we had to leave (my daughter’s bedtime is 7:30). No one came to check on us, so we walked to the front to pay.☺️ Right after paying, another waiter brought out the stir-fried rice noodles we’d ordered. He didn’t know we’d already settled up, so he left it on the table. We explained we’d canceled that dish while paying, but he insisted we take it — “It’s already made.” Nice gesture (and better than re-serving it), but sadly… It was the worst dish of the night 😅 The noodles were mushy, soggy, and totally lacking wok hei. Even basic cha chaan tengs do it better. Final take: The space is beautiful and clean, but management needs serious work. Maybe wait a few weeks before trying — hopefully they’ll speed things up. Or go only if you’re not in a hurry — the 6 giant screens showing NBA games are pretty sweet, though. 🏀 #BayAreaLife #BayAreaMom #EastBayLife #EastBayEats #EastBay #EastBayHomes #BayAreaFood #BayAreaFinds #WeekendInTheBay