Ju Feng Yuan Dumpling Cafe — Restaurant in Poway

Food: 5/5 Service and Setting: 3.5/5 Value: 3/5

Ju Feng Yuan is a new restaurant that has opened where a Lao restaurant used to be. The interior has not changed much and there is not even a sign up yet. The restaurant itself is clean. They are very short staffed so while the service is very kind, they do tend to run behind. One of the chefs would come out and serve the food and share lots of information about the restaurant and how things are going in Mandarin, so if you want to practice this a great spot! The young lady helping me in the front told me that this restaurant is an extension of another small restaurant in LA. I was not expecting much, but the food here is exceptionally honest, authentic, fresh, and has a homey flavor. Please come out and support a new small business!

Pork and Chive Dumpling: 5/5 I really wanted to try their xiao long bao 小籠包 and their sheng jian bao 生煎包, the waitress told me that they just sold out. I got the pork and chive dumpling instead and it was very good. The skin was thick and chewy the way a boiled dumpling should be. The filling was lightly bouncy and had a good amount of soup inside. The ratio of meat to chive was perfect as well as well seasoned. I did not like the dipping sauce and would have preferred just some soy and black vinegar, but I did not want to add more to their work load. A stellar example of what a dumpling should be.

Shrimp and Pork Wonton in Chili Oil: 5/5 This wonton was also spectacular. I have always been disappointed with wontons from most restaurants as they tend to use the same filling as their dumplings. At Ju Feng Yuan, they do it the right way with a coarsely chopped meat and big chunks of shrimp. Again, a deliciously thick skin with a wonderfully springiness that soaks in the sauce. I am not a particularly big fan of their chili oil, but it is very complex and hits all of the flavor points, particularly sweet and sour and not so much spicy. To me, it tasted a lot like a sweet and sour version of sha cha jiang 沙茶酱.

Beef Dumplings: 4.5/5 I’m not an expert on Chinese food, but beef and onion dumplings are a Northern style that I do not have a lot of experience with. Always seeing people eat this online has made me crave it intensely and I’m glad I got to try it here. It is not common to serve and they do a good job. The flavor of the meat is strong, almost a bit gamey with some bits of gristle that I think help give it flavor. It was a bit tough, but “tough” isn’t the exact word I would use. Maybe sinew-y? The flavor was shockingly similar to beef kebabs, especially Pakistani renditions. Again, the dumpling skin was great and lots of soup inside with...

First time at Ju Feng Yuan and it didn't disappoint. There was a wait at noon which was a good sign, since they open at 1130am. We were sat pretty quick, but it probably depends on how large the crowd is and how much a group orders.

The orders came out super fast. We couldn't dish out enough to clear room for the next, so you don't wait very long. Make sure you bring friends to share with and everyone wants what is being ordered to keep from ending up with a backlog of dishes.

The dishes themselves were fantastic. I can't speak for how it compares to mainland Chinese cuisine, but compared to other dumpling places I've been to in Taiwan, this was spot on. The xiao long bao were great and had slightly thicker wraps than Din Tai Fung. Personal preference, but I like this better so I don't risk breaking it and losing the soup in the steamer. The ginger serving it came with was generous, but I forgot to ask for vinegar. All of the veggies were extremely fresh, the green beans were my personal favorite. We ordered some fried rice and chow mein as well. The pork chop on the fried rice was great, it seems like it was a very fresh cut and it was tenderized well. Very juicy and a good crisp texture. The egg in the fried rice had a gorgeous orange yolk, which is nice to see they use good quality eggs. The chili wontons had possibly the best sauce I've had in chili wontons. It's very savory with good umami. I love spicy food but not everyone at our table does and the flavor to spice was more mild so almost anyone could enjoy these. I would highly recommend the chili wontons paired with the fried rice. You can use the rice to soak up the leftover chili oil on your plate and add an extra flavor. But the fried rice is delicious on its own. Not too heavy and exactly how a fried rice should be. As for the chow mein, it's not my favorite dish (in general not this restaurant) but I still enjoyed it. The sauce was nice and the diced pork added a nice texture.

The ambience was good as well. The tables were all good heights and the music was loud enough to hear but not too loud to detract from conversation. Kind of a small thing, but the cups are great. The plates are also a nice touch, they have different designs which were nice to look at and just made it feel like an overall really premium experience but without the hassle of larger restaurants.

Overall 5 stars. I think this restaurant could probably get busy and suffer from lack of seating, so it would be nice to see if they are able to get some kind of seating set up outside since the weather is nice almost all year round and it would be a fun experience!

Thanks...

Ju Feng Yuan, second date (C+)

First date with Ju Feng Yuan was great. Unfortunately, 2nd date was very much downhill. Long wait and getting accused of not responding when called (not possible since I was famished and essentially pay close attention to the greeter’s every move), over 30 minutes wait for mediocre food, and the worst chairs ever, I don’t think there will be a 3rd date.

Sauteed string beans (C+ ) : This was a highlight dish the first time we tried JFY. Given the long wait, I expected fresh from the wok, piping hot, savory yet sweet, crunchy string beans. First bite, a total disappointment. It was maybe a touch over lukewarm but not more. The seasoning was a little light, not too bad, but the string beans were quite overcooked. First date was hot, stiff and crunchy. Second date, cold, soft and limpy. A total let down.

Pork spareribs w garlic (B+ ) : The highlight of the night. Freshly fried, steaming hot, savory and crunchy on the outside, juicy meat on the inside. My only complaint - the ribs were somewhat bony. But this was a very good dish, and brought hope to the meal.

Beef chow fun (C+ ) : Okay on the seasoning, felt a little oily, but the biggest problem, beef chow fun served not hot enough is like serving nigiri, or beer that’s too warm. And the beef, again, well seasoned but the texture was a bit mushy, maybe too much baking soda and simply meat that’s not fresh enough.

Combination fried rice (B- ) : First bite, super promising. Light, hot, and some nice fragrance from the egg. A few chews in, the rice wasn’t cooked properly, much too tough, with quite a few clumps, definitely a no-no for great fried rice. The use of spam was smart, giving little bursts of savoriness. The shrimp tasted light and springy. But the pork killed the good traits; tough, dry and the worst part, a frozen,...