Yin Du Wonton Noodle — Restaurant in San Francisco

Yes yes yes finally, another place in Chinatown that I actually like. While their offerings remind me, in a way, of a severely limited version of Hai Ky Mi Gia's menu, I suppose their dishes are actually fairly different. Okay, ignore that comparison.

Anyway, coming with a few coworkers, I ended up ordering their roast duck wonton noodle soup. And while the amount of duck that was in that bowl was kind of pitiful, I really wasn't expecting much for $5. In fact, at $5, I was more than pleased: the bowls may be on the small side for most, but were actually perfectly portioned for my appetite. Logistics aside, the food itself tasted fantastic: the broth had excellent flavor, the noodles were nice and springy, and the wontons were also quite tasty.

Definitely hitting up this place more, especially since the new office is right in this area!

Accessibility Info

Venue - A decently sized space, with tables positioned in such a way that only the ones at the ends are easily accessible. Don't go during busy hours, and you should be fine.

Bathroom - Didn't...

I have no idea what people are talking about when they claim this place is a "hole in the wall." The holes in my walls certainly don't have clean wooden floors and shiny mirrors.

Brisket wonton noodle soup is definitely the thing to get here, with the main attraction being the springy noodles themselves. Stretchy and al dente, they're a good match for Hong Kong streetside shacks (now speaking of hole in the wall joints...).

The brisket itself takes second place, largely because they're cut into chunks of meat just a little too small to be interesting, and the tendon-y squishy bits of beef aren't quite there. Very soft and probably fell off some bone, as reviewers say, but give it to me in a more hefty way!

The wontons aren't worth your time. For the cost, it makes sense that they can't really pack it with shrimp, but even the pork filling seems mealy and underflavored.

Service is speedy and not...

I was one of the regular customers at the restaurant but lately the management is getting out of hand ! I came across with one of the people who worked there with some issues, after I had my lunch there and I asked for one more dish to go and total cost is about $40 and they don’t take credit card so I paid with cash and with not much of service there I put down $2 as tips and the manager there then asked me to pay $2 more according to her “oh you need to put down at least 10% as tips” What ! I don’t think so …….. tips is based on service and food and also the customer liking not demand by the restaurant owner or manager ! I don’t think I would ever go back to them after 42 years I might be just one customer but if they keep doing this I think one day there will be more and more customers stop going then they probably will be realize what they have...