Jing Fong Restaurant

1/24/2017

Great atmosphere. Nothing like sharing tables with strangers and having dimsum.

The good: chicken feet, spare ribs, congee, tea (we got the black). Especially the chicken feet; they were by far the best dish. The ribs were also seasoned well and had a great light chewiness. The service was polite and fast. Price to food ratio.

The bad: carts come around rather slowly. Shrimp dumplings, shrimp rice noodle roll, shumai, and shumai soup were all mediocre; while the flavors were OK the texture was awful (soggy, chewy). Egg custard bun was also pretty bad; again the bun was soggy and the bun felt deflated, not airy. That said, I'm comparing to Vancouver and Hong Kong.

In conclusion, good for NYC.

1/21/2017

• 1 check-in

I'd say the highlight was reverse Dustin Hoffman and Tom Cruise Rain man. Next time I'll get in my finest lines and garb and escalate up like a BOSS.

Maybe you were hungover and feeling specially brilliant as you make your way up the escalators that take you a couple flights up. I'd say coming down would be tougher in that state, but behold as your reach the top to HOARDS of people, tables, noises, and food.

Yep, this is dim sum and efficiency to the max. Sit down with random people at your circular table and behold as carts of magic food circle around you and ask for you stamp card like a Disneyland fast pass as you rack up the bill and cravings.

If you beat the rush on the weekends, you'll probably actually get seated pretty quickly, otherwise expect a wait as this spot is about the experience and people can be seated here for hours. The reason for the meh rating is that the dim sum wasn't anything special and for the price point you can really go oh so more without pointing and shouting at carts if you can't speak the native tongue like myself.

Anyways, this is a large group experience and one you'll want to come to here and there, but I'm ready to check out the various other dim sum / cart experiences before I return to Jing Fong.

Cheers!

1/20/2017

I'm convinced that there are actually no decent dim sum restaurants in Manhattan so maybe you should check out my reviews of all the other Manhattan dim sum restaurants we've been to. You're pretty much gonna read the same review.

This place stands out as the largest one we've been to so far. Still there was a huge line when we arrived at 11AM on Sunday, so we had to wait for about 40 minutes, just like the borderline rude staff warned us.

Standard mediocre, technique-less fare to be had by all here... with a side of nasty attitude and pushiness. Why we punish ourselves at these places I have no idea. I keep telling our group (there were nine of us) that it's all the same. Deaf ears, and average food...

1/13/2017

• 1 check-in

Came here last weekend around 1pm with a party of 5 and were seated fairly quickly. We had to share the table, but that was okay.

At this time, some dim sum dishes were sold out already, but were quickly replenished around 15 minutes later. The food tasted fresh and did not taste weird. The liu sa bao is very good here.

Also, after eating we all left satisfied and did not feel sick or anything after.

Would recommend coming here and I would love to come back here but at a earlier time.

1/17/2017

• 3 check-ins

I feel like this restaurant has been in Chinatown for forever.   My cousin got married in this restaurant a few years back and a few years later, had her Chinese baby shower here.

I've also been here a few times for dim sum.  I noticed that since getting popular on Yelp, the wait for a table has been long.  One time while trying to get a table with my mom, we got #137 and they were just calling out #s in the 50s...it was ridiculous even though the restaurant is huge in size.  I would like to know how many tables there are.   Needless to say, we just left.

One weekend, we got lucky, we got seated as soon as we arrived.

The dim sum is pretty good.   I saw some different items that I've never seen before, but my mom said they have that item here. (it was some fried noodle that is sweetened with syrup.)  I told her to get it but she said it was only us two eating, she didn't want to get it.  We ordered the typical dim sum items.  But we tried to get beef cherng and shrimp cherng, they didn't have it at the moment.  We got full and didn't want to wait for them.   I thunk they also have tables set up on the side where you can order stuff and the cooks will whip it up on the spot.  I don't know what they make because I had never ordered from them.

This restaurant is good for dim sum but I wouldn't go out my way to wait to be seated just to eat here.

12/30/2016

• 2 check-ins

Jing Fong is one of the best dim sum restaurants in Chinatown. Their large dining floor filled with primarily large tables that can seat at least 8 people make it a great place for large groups. In terms of waiting time, you will be seated relatively quickly in comparison to other dim sum restaurants of similar quality such as the Golden Unicorn. One unique aspect of Jing Fong, in addition to their traditional style food carts, is that there is an area in the middle of the restaurant where you can bring your meal ticket and pick out items cafeteria style if you do not want to wait around on food carts. Overall, Jing Fong's dishes fall slightly below the Golden Unicorn's dishes in terms of taste, however, their ability to seat large groups at little to no wait leads me to keep coming back.

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  Turnip cake, BBQ chicken feet, and eggplant stuffed with shrimp

  Turnip cake, BBQ chicken feet, and eggplant stuffed with shrimp

1/14/2017

Huge place, very authentic, great food and service.
I've been there 3 times already and plan to keep going. Is an amazing experience, servers everywhere offering different dishes (some of them you have no idea what it is). I always try new stuff and most of the times I like what I pick.
Depending on the number of people in your party you can be placed on somebody else's table which is a great thing too (you can always meet new people). Highly recommended.

11/20/2016

What a strange and weirdly awesome place. Arrive before 11 or you'll be waiting in the chaotic lobby for a long time. Feels like a herd of cattle downstairs, but once your number is called you ascend a very log escalator into dim sum madness. Think hotel ballroom or casino, but with carts of food flying around. These folks are very attentive.

I've certainly had better dimsum, but there was a larger-than-usual selection. There is a tea setting fee for each person. After stuffing ourselves silly and enjoying a bottle of champagne (FRESH SQUEEZED HONEYDEW MIMOSAS) our total was about $23/person, including tax and tip. Sweet deal if you ask me! Not a whole lot of options for those who don't eat meat or seafood.

I would come again, but not with a group smaller than 6 or 7.

Not the place to go if you're looking for an intimate setting, as it is loud and chaotic. Fun dim sum experience.

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  Craziness in the lobby

  Craziness in the lobby
• See all photos from Paige A. for Jing Fong Restaurant

1/22/2017

• 1 check-in

Good food! Was definitely an experience. Wouldn't recommend entirely for vegetarians because the options are very limited (I got the vegetarian dumplings and spring rolls), but nonetheless was still delicious!

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  Vegetarian dumplings

  Vegetarian dumplings

12/29/2016

• 1 check-in

I was so excited for this place because we were in Chinatown and we were getting Dim Sum. For whatever reason, the Baltimore area doesn't really have a ton of Dim Sum places, so I was excited for Dim Sum in an authentic Chinese setting. I definitely talked Dim Sum up to my friend who has never tried it. Based on Yelp reviews this seemed like one of the only authentic Dim Sum places as far as the food actually coming around in a cart.

We got there and it was a huge ball room with traditional dim sum carts going around. I was ready. The first cart came to us relatively quickly and we got a few items. After that, the carts were few and far in between. The carts that kept coming around were filled with the same things over and over again. When carts would get restocked a bunch of people would go up to the carts with their paper and take all the new items. The women pushing the carts had no set route and would meander close to your area and then turn around and go the other way without stopping at any tables in our area. My mom is from Hong Kong and has always expressed annoyance at the people who get up and go over to the carts, but I really had no choice here otherwise we were never going to get any food. The food itself was ok, but not any better than the few restaurants we do have in the Baltimore area. There were a few items we never even got that I was wanting because we never saw it coming around, or if we did see it then the lady never came over to us. It was a disappointing experience for sure.

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  Roast pork buns

  Roast pork buns
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  Sticky rice

  Sticky rice
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  Cheong fun

  Cheong fun

10/4/2016

• 1 check-in

• Listed in When in New York

Not bad for NY Dim Sum.

We arrived with a party of 3 shortly after they opened and were seated immediately. But, as the clock got closer to 11-1130am, the lines got considerably longer. Food was decent. I don't get to eat much dim sum here in CT so I get super excited for any opportunity to. But, there wasn't that much variety in the food. Despite how large the dining room is, the push-cart ladies moved fast. Near the middle though were "premium" dishes that weren't being carted around and were a bit more expensive (chinese spinach, turnip cakes, various shrimp dishes)

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  so many dumplings!

  so many dumplings!
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  dim sum towers!

  dim sum towers!

12/18/2016

• 1 check-in

All-around awesome dim sum place! If you plan to dine on a weekend, i highly suggest going as close to opening as you can. One time we went around 12 or 1pm, and there was already a 1.5hour wait time. The other time we went when they opened, and when we finished the lobby was full of waiting diners.

Food:
All around great! Love the chicken feet, sticky rice with chicken inside, durian puffs... mom loves the fish congee. Also loved the harkow (shrimp dumplings) and shrimp rice rolls when i wasn't allergic yet. Beef balls were odd though.
Definitely try the salted egg bun if you haven't yet! Salty and sweet runny gold inside a soft bun, yum :)

Service:
Used to the be usual gruff and clipped service from Chinese places, but they have improved a lot! I feel like there are more cart ladies who speak English and some who are not able to speak English, but understands what you're asking and hails the appropriate cart lady who has the dish you like.

12/8/2016

• 4 check-ins

A place reminiscent of my childhood as I attended many banquets and dinners as a kid. Now, it is still my to-go if I have dim sum with friends or visitors from out-of-town. The large scale of this place really blows a lot of people away. It's an organized craze. This place gets so busy and packed on the weekends, so be prepared to wait!

You have to get a ticket and wait for your number to be called. Once upstairs into the dining room, it's the usual drill. Ladies in carts push around dim sum and there are tables with food set up at which you can just go up and get food yourself. Food is standard dim sum. Their to-order noodles and rices are a bit smaller than most restaurants, but still taste delicious. There is now ladies who push around alcohol carts, which I guess caters to the non locals.

Food is good but don't except anything mind blowing. Also service is on and off. The usual you would expect from a Chinese restaurant. So don't get fussy if the waiters seem to walk right past you and don't immediately hither your way. Good dim sum, but I would usually go to the more local dim sum places with family to avoid the crowds and for just as good food!

12/11/2016

Very spacious banquet hall and can take in huge groups , came in with dining partner before 11 so was able to get shared table  with other dining  pairs.

Then it was mad dash for your dimsum.

Do not wait for the carts ! Unless you want to die of hunger .. pick out the ladies with the carts continuing dimsum favorites and order as you stand by them,  armed with your stamp card.

Instant gratification achieved!

Food is ok and price reasonable ...

you come here for experience ..

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  And the glorious char sieu steam buns

  And the glorious char sieu steam buns

12/17/2016

Great dim sum place that is huge and not crowded so there are plenty of carts coming around.

The wait staff are very attentive maybe a bit too much since they are standing literally by the table and watch you eat.. lol maybe it was because we came on a friday morning and they were still slow.. anyways if you can dimsum is only 2.95 per item Monday-Friday that is a steal bill!!!!

1/18/2017

Definitely an unique one time Dim sum banquet style experience. Its a huge gaudy party room with women pushing carts everywhere. We tried different kinds of dumplings, buns and also shu mai. My favorite was the carrot shaped dessert, which looks like a carrot but tastes nothing close to a carrot. The food was ok, nothing great as I had exactly similar shu mai from trader joe's frozen section.
Also if you do not speak mandarin and cannot shout out for the carts, I would not recommend going here. I was lucky to be accompanied by my chinese friend who exactly knew what to order. While coming out we realized there was a buffet set up too but no one told us about it before. Also sometimes if you are a group of 2-3 you might end up sharing the table with complete strangers.
So at the end of the day I would not go here again!

12/1/2016

• 1 check-in

Came here for the first time when they were serving dim sum. This place is huge and we got seated all the way towards the end where there were barely any tables. So that kinda sucks because the lady who are wheeling the dim sum cart often didn't even bother to come our way. I had to tell one the the bus boy what we wanted and he had to flag the lady down. Food was good nothing memorable.
Surprisingly the bathroom was nice and clean. I say surprisingly because let's face it this is Chinatown.

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• See all photos from Debbie K. for Jing Fong Restaurant

11/25/2016

I think I've found the spirit of Chinatown, amidst heckling waiters and shoulder-to-shoulder seating. Either that, or they must've planted something in our pork sio mai

Your only viable option for a big group in this part of town, and I'm talking in the 10+ range. A perfect introduction for friends new to the dimsum scene.

They managed to keep the old 70's Bruce Lee movie design after all these years. The ambiance is speedy and loud, so don't bet on having any deep philosophical (or dare I say political) conversations. Your time should be spent scarfing down their never-ending tapestry of lo mein a mile a minute.

1/17/2017 Updated review

• 1 check-in

I think Jing Fong has made slight improvements over the years. I haven't been back for dim sum since my last review so I can say their dim sum and service has improved. Let me start off by saying that we initially waited on line at Tim Ho Wan but after hearing there was going to be a 2 hr wait, we left and headed to Jing Fong instead. I only have so much wait tolerance for dim sum and 2 hours is just obnoxious. Besides, after reading reviews about THW, it doesn't seem like it's worth it. Anyway, I digress. Jing Fong guarantees that there will no wait time unless you have a huge party. Regardless, you get seated pretty quickly. We came right before the noon rush so we were able to get the staple dim sums before they were all up for grabs.  Their har gows actually taste better than what I remember. It's not overstuffed with shrimp unlike some places where they can actually charge you a premium instead of the standard price.  I also like their chicken feet and sticky rice, which were all really fresh. The one thing that surprised me was that most of the servers and cart ladies start off by speaking English to you.  It just shows how much the demographics of their customers has changed.

1/22/2017

Great Dim Sum! Get here early to avoid the lines, but being in such a huge room with such great atmosphere is worth the wait!