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Dai Bai Dang Restaurant Inc
Rating Details »
- Price Range:
-
$$
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- Yes
- Parking:
- Garage, Private Lot
- Attire:
- Casual
- Good for Groups:
- Yes
- Good for Kids:
- Yes
- Takes Reservations:
- Yes
- Delivery:
- No
- Take-out:
- Yes
- Waiter Service:
- Yes
- Wheelchair Accessible:
- Yes
- Outdoor Seating:
- Yes
- Alcohol:
- Full Bar
19 reviews for Dai Bai Dang Restaurant Inc
Dai Bai Dang used to be Evil's favorite restaurant in town.
Back then, what wasn't to like? Very good food...local place...good service...great location...
A couple of years ago, something changed. The food is still decent, but it just isn't as good. From the calamari to the orange chicken...just not the same. What happened, Dai Bai Dang?
I still love the Crispy Beef. I love it...and I'm not ashamed to admit it.
Despite this unabashed love for the Crispy Beef, this really isn't a destination anymore for the Evil horde.
Sorry Dai Bai Dang...step it up!
i love dai bai dang!!!
i always come here when im in the area. you get a good amount of food for a good price. You have a choice to sit outside or inside and afterwards the theater is like right there. the strawberry lemonade is great!.
good food and service.
Having lived with Chinese chefs and restaurateurs for over a decade now, I was quite disappointed when my date took me to this restaurant and I discovered that the The Restaurant Association (or whatever they like to call themselves) and "Fresno Magazine" is completely full of crap and too overstuffed on sauced-up mall fare to comment on truly good cuisine. Thick goopy sauces and deep-frying cannot make up for bad cooking techniques and low-quality food.
Dai Bai Dang has only one saving grace, and it is their servers -- who are polished, clean-cut, and very quick on their feet despite what seems like an endless dinner rush. Overall, Dai Bai Dang is a very modern-looking Chinese American-style restaurant with family appeal, easy dining options, a half-bar (apart from the dining area), good feng shui, and moderate prices (dinner and drinks per person: $20).
I would recommend Dai Bai Dang for visitors from ... oh, say Thousand Oaks, CA, whose grasp of Chinese American food is P.F.Chang's (which is conveniently located across Blackstone), and anyone passing through Fresno. Otherwise, I'd just say you're better off getting a slice of pizza and a Jamba Juice down the block instead when visiting RiverPark/AMC Edwards Plaza.
REAL FOODIES, CONTINUE WITH A CRITIQUE:
* FOUR DRINKS ($30 total): My date and I are Asian American and we grew up in the '80s during the whole John Hughes movies era, so we were appalled that there was a cocktail called LONG DUCK DONG. Everyone seemed completely clueless as to why this was offensive, but we just joked that the rest of the diners present probably wouldn't order a Cletus Cracker Barrel cocktail if it existed. We just didn't order it. The Singapore Sling came out looking more like a giant highball made with Cherry Kool-Aid (nothing at all like it should have been), and my Adios (Motherf*cker) was missing the essential lemon wedge and maraschino cherry. I had to ask for them. It was blue, at least.
* FIRST ENTREE ($13): I was confused. Our tea-steamed duck was actually deep-fried into oblivion, and I suspect that it was actually a large chicken; there was no subtle tea flavor, and the meat was dry and chewy and very salty. The hoisin sauce accompanying the dish was cold and gelatinous, which makes me conclude that they literally opened the jar from the fridge and just spooned it out -- big no, no. We were given only three large, burrito tortilla-sized crepes for the half-"duck"; it wasn't enough crepes, the size was totally wrong, and the crepes themselves had the consistency of slightly warm playdough. The scallions were also sliced very thick so I had to shred them with my fork, the way ... umm ... you're "supposed" to serve them!
* SECOND ENTREE ($15): My date ordered this salmon dish that, according to the description, was supposed to be steamed and delicate and covered in a fine and light brown soy sauce with ginger and mushrooms. I think we found the total of one sliced shiitake mushroom, but weren't sure as the dark brown sauce was the consistency of mole and drenched the entire plate. The salmon was also overcooked, chewy, like deep-fried alligator; it had a very fishy odor instead of a pleasant, saline, ocean-like scent.
* SIDES: The rice was EXCELLENT. Sweet, fragrant, long-grained jasmine rice that had individual kernels and a very light floral nose. I'd say this was the best rice I've ever had at a restaurant, ever.
There is outdoor seating with humidifiers (Fresno is notorious for its dry heat), and the diners are pleasant. It's not too noisy, so I'd still say that it's a great "first date" spot -- but I wouldn't go too crazy and turn it into a tradition. No thanks!
Yummy, consistent, not too expensive, great for big gatherings.
Foods good. I love eating orange chicken and crispy beef.
Dai Bai Dang, when it first opened it was one of the best asian fusion places in town. Even better than PF Changs.
The ingredients were fresh and quality was top notch!
After they went corporate, the quality had gone down and the service has gone down also.
I cant say its all gone down hill but I gotta say that there are a few stars on the menu.
1) Pork Chops - Great serving, 3 chops and a little spicy.
2) Spicy Calamari
3) Mapo Scallops
4) Vietnamese fried rice
If you have to go to DBD dont expect to much from the service (get your cocktails from the bar).
I came here for my friend's bachelorette dinner per her request and I was skeptical because of the bad reviews on here. I told her and the girls that this place got bad reviews and they told me they don't know why since there hasn't been a single thing they've tried here that they haven't liked! I guess the only thing consistent about all the other reviews is that the customer service isn't really all there. They told us the wait was 5-10 minutes and even with a pager, it was more like 30 minutes and they never even called us! We had to ask the status of our table! The food however, it was good and I loved it so much, I asked the girls to take me back to the apartment so I could save it in the fridge instead of heading straight out to the clubs! I ordered the potstickers and the seafood pan fried noodles. There was so much food leftover and I couldn't even finish the potstickers! My friends' dishes all looked yummy too! A lot of them like the caramelized walnut shrimp and the garlic shrimp looked tantalizing too! The scallops in my dish were cooked perfectly and the sauce was amazing! The pan fried noodles I really didn't care for, but everything else in my dish was just what I expected!
Mediocre "East-West fusion" food at its finest.
"Dai bai dang" is Cantonese for tiny, family-owned, shophouse restaurants one finds up and down the side streets and alleyways of Hong Kong and southern China. They seat no more than 15 patrons, there's a menu sign on the wall, the noodle dishes are prepared at a noodle stand at the front of the shop; everything else comes out of a small kitchen in the back. The family usually lives over the restaurant.
I know a dia bai dang when I see one, and this is no dia bai dang. Instead, it's a hellishly overpriced joint that creates bland, usually very salty, duck, beef, and chicken dishes. I've had fresh spring rolls whose wrappers were tough and difficult to chew through, sizzling beef that was more like beef jerky, and sweet and sour chicken that was more like chicken candy it was so sweet.
I've been there three or four times, and I keep telling myself never again. Unfortunately, I have a friend who adores this place, so I keep getting dragged back.
I am going to start this review off strong!!
Im half filipino and there are two words that make me do a little flippy dance "MANGO MARTINI" WOOOOAH!! alcohol and mango's? Im in heaven!! lol no really they have some stellar cocktails here. a few drinks while you wait and you'll be in buzz mode ready to eat some food. Although this is not authentic that is expected its a fusion bistro come on we don't come here to get authentic Chinese food no no no. Overall the food is pretty good nothing spectacular but it is good. The only thing is they get a little abusive of their sauces they seem to find a good thing and then ruin it by covering your food in it, i guess they never heard that too much of a good thing can be bad. TO tell the truth my companions usually complain more about this place then I do and that is probably because I get a buzz and go into instant love mode because of the cocktails lol. Plus its in a convenient location...Riverpark oooooooo the apex of Fresno life now right??? I guess *sigh*
I gave this five stars before but the food and service here have suffered ove rthe years. It's time for them to step it up again at this place. The food is rushed out of the kitchen, the staff isn't very attentive and it just needs more attention to customers.
1 Previous Review: Show all »
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8/19/2005 First to Review
This place has a great vibe and the food is very good. The must have things are the california… Read more »
I know some people here feel the food is "mediocre" or not "authentic". But I'm Asian too and, to be honest, I wouldn't go to Dai Bai Dang for 'authentic' (instead you would want to come up here to the SF Bay Area for that). However, I would go there for some tasteful dishes. I personally LOVE the banana beef despite the hefty $14 price tag (so my New Year's resolution is to figure out the recipe!). It's not authentic (again, the "A" word), BUT it's a flavorful dish. The Malaysian white fish is also worth trying.
The service all the several times I have been there has been outstanding. They anticipate your needs even before you ask, and if you have feedback, they gladly accept it (like I told them they are a little slow every time in giving me the bill).
Again, if you want authentic, come up here to SF. But if you want an enjoyable dining experience rivaling PF Chang's and want at least something flavorful to remember, then check it out.
How about renaming the place Dai Bai Dung . . . a better representation of what is served there.
If you can get past your frustration with the throngs of obnoxious high school students who make River Park their nighttime hangout, Dai Bai Dang may very well qualify as the best upscale restaurant in Fresno.
So many items on their pan-Asain menu are worthy of sampling; I've tried everything from vegetable egg rolls to Thai peanut chicken salad (yum!) to orange chicken and have never been disappointed. My absolute, unchallenged favorite, however, is the walnut shrimp: honey-glazed prawns and carmelized walnuts served atop tangy mustard greens. Incredible as it may seen, this dish singe-handedly makes Fresno a nicer place to live.
I think the food is mediocre, however considering the location and all it is not that bad. I live in SF, however I have to visit one of my offices in Fresno and Dai Bai Dang is close by. Coming from San Francisco, well this would be considered ok Chinese food, however considering it is in Fresno...you have to give it a break. I would say it is a couple of steps above Panda Express...
The actual restaurant is clean and modern...which goes against many "authentic" restaurants in the city...and it has an ok bar too.
Modern American contemporary touches to Chinese cuisine. A successful attempt at where PF Changs fail, making Chinese food for the non adventurous. Where PF's is quite mediocre, DBD has made some decent fare. Even my Mom likes this place and she's as picky as it gets.
The first place I think of to eat Chinese if I want a restaurant. I LOVE! the bar, the funky monkey tiki drinks and the slammin' hot food. I'm still always surprised this is a Fresno restaurant and not an LA one. The lines are always long, service good and food reliable and tasty.
I only go there for the duck. I always have picked off from the plate of the person sitting across from me and haven't had anything good there beside the duck. I don't think it is fair to judge it as Chinese food and if you do want good Chinese food then you should leave River Park. The service is usually good and have only needed to call the manager over a couple times. The best part about this place is sitting outside with all the people passing in the area.
As an Asian, I've tried countless restaurants that served "authentic" and "fusion" Chinese food. My brother and my first visit to Dai Bai Dang was also the last. The food was a huge disappointment. We order two different entrees to get some variety and they were either bland and tasteless or too salty. The only good things I can complement on their restaurant are their decorations and dishes. They have nice dishes.
My favorite place to eat, hands down. I love the food, have never had a bad dish. Fast service, friendly staff. Prices are very reasonable for the quality, quantity, and selection.
