Sunny Dumpling House — Restaurant in Lake Forest

I stumbled upon this spot as I was restlessly looking for a Chinese food restaurant. The fact that Chinese characters are in the actual name of this establishment gave me encouragement to try it out. And let me tell you, it did not disappoint. I may have over ordered but that's not regrettable. I ordered a hot and sour soup, pork XLB, pork and shrimp pan fried dumplings, green beans and beef chow mein. Super convenient with QR code to toasttab, sharing the same tab with anyone who scans the same code and placing an order digitally without the card-receipt-signing dance.

H&S soup was perfectly vinegared but could have used a tad bit more white pepper or chilies. Still hit the spot and was enough to serve 4-6.

Pork XLB was delightfully textured. The wrapping was strong to withstand a few rollovers but thin enough to not be overpowering in chew. Perhaps this is regional flavor, but I found the pork to be slightly sweeter than I am used to but nonetheless pleasant with dark vinegar. Only thing missing is fresh ginger accoutrement (but again, might be a regional style of flavor profile).

The shrimp and pork pan fried dumplings surprised me, in a good way. The crisp is well balanced with the chewiness of the skin and there quite a bit of juice with each bite (like an XLB!). My only wish is that they provided a pork and chive version, too.

Green beans were cooked with a lot of wok heat but lacked the fermented root radish flavor that I'm used to (another regional style difference perhaps?). But the texture was perfect in that it still had a snap and not overly dressed with chili oil.

The beef chow mein was my partner's choice and I didn't give it a try. However, he enjoyed most of it sharing that it had a good balance of Vegetable to meet ratio.

Overall, will definitely come back for staples, and give the Dan...

Absolute treasure in an unassuming spot. The dumplings and XLB are delicious and they even offer frozen ones to cook at home (for dumplings boil at medium temperature until they all float, add a few cups of cold water, then wait for it to come to boil again). I took a group here and we were seated immediately. You order off of a QR code but the food comes quickly and everything evaporated off of the plates so it was hard to give detailed reviews. My favorite are the pork and chive dumplings. 5/5. Pork and shrimp XLB were amazing, another 5/5. We had to ask for ginger and spoons though. The service is great when you ask for it, but just like any other Asian restaurant, they'll leave you alone unless you ask for their attention. Wood ear mushrooms were in a very light and tangy sauce. Also vanished very quickly. 5/5. Someone ordered the scallion pancake. This one came interestingly chopped, which really highlighted its shatteringly crisp texture. This one blew me away 11/10. Someone ordered a kind of sliced and spiced potato. Had the perfect hint...

This place gets a five stars as they have the best Chinese food south of Irvine. Yet while they excel at the quality of food, they stumble on most everything else.

First know that their portions are small. They are not quite tapas, but it is often 2 orders per adult to leave full.

Second, at least I get the impression they want to focus on takeout. The dinning room is bare bones, feeling more like counter service. That would be fine except the bills request tipping. I guess that while ordering, which needs to be done via their website, they will bring out the food to you and that qualifies as table service. They do also clean up tables and now serve the food on a dish, a step up from the paper plates before.

The staff is nice but will avoid you as much as possible. I think they are insecure about their English but I have no trouble speaking with them when I can get them to talk

Lastly know they close early at 8pm and stop taking customers 20mins...