It's just down the street from the San Gabriel Mission Arcangel, which was built in 1771, and in the heart of San Gabriel's downtown. In fact, Mission 261's rancho adobe architecture is authentic, having been built more than a hundred years ago as San Gabriel's city hall.
Imagine how old this cactus must be.
The inside is very serene and elegant. No loud voices, no dim sum carts.
You get a picture menu with the various dim sum offerings and a check list so you can order by number. The prices are also listed, which thankfully takes out some of the mystery of those little stamps on my receipt that I usually get at other dim sum restaurants. A small is $1.98, medium is $3.55, and large is $4.25. Higher priced items and chef's specialties are also listed. Tea is $1 per person.Char siu bao (Chinese barbecued pork buns) were tender, packed with meat. The bun was a little drier than I like it but still very good. I think this was $3.55.
Abalone mushroom dumplings were a gorgeous lime green hue.
Stuffed with lots of diced abalone mushrooms. The abalone mushroom, not to be confused with abalone, is a large mushroom that resembles and tastes like abalone. $3.55.
The har gow, my gauge of a good dim sum restaurant, were translucent and chewy. $3.55.
The chicken feet were really spectacular with a rich black bean sauce. $1.98.
Shrimp cheong fun (Chinese shrimp in rice noodle), with soy sauce on the side $4.25. This was very fresh, the noodles pliable and tender, the shrimp had a nice fresh crunch.
What do you think happened in the steamer to make the two rabbits on the right whisper about the rabbit on the left? The rabbit-shaped dumplings with a sweet custard paste are one of the house dim sum specialties. Cute eh? $3.55.
The pork spare ribs were really flavorful and tender with little chunks of taro as a pleasant surprise. The taro bits had soaked up all the juices and were so soft and yummy.
The total for all of the above with the 20 percent off discount was $20.48, before tax and tip.
I took photos with my new camera on another visit with much nicer photos.
Other dim sum restaurant posts:
Bon Marche Bistro/B Village Cuisine (Dim Sum) - Monterey Park
Capital Dim Sum & BBQ - Monterey Park
CBS Seafood Restaurant (Dim Sum) - Los Angeles (Chinatown)
Dim Sum Express - Monterey Park
Elite Restaurant (Dim Sum) - Monterey Park
Full House Seafood Restaurant (Dim Sum) - Arcadia
Lunasia Chinese Cuisine (Dim Sum) - Alhambra
NBC Seafood Restaurant (Dim Sum) - Monterey Park
Ocean Star Seafood Restaurant (Dim Sum) - Monterey Park
Sea Harbour Seafood Restaurant (Dim Sum) - Rosemead
Seaworld Seafood Restaurant BBQ & Dim Sum To Go - Rosemead
Looks yummy! Hardly seen the abalone mushroom dumplings in the usual dim-sum rest. And the rabbit custard is indeed cute!(Seems that rabbit eaten too much carrot and overdose of beta-carotene in the body...heeehee)!
ReplyDeleteI just saw your comment at Rasa Malaysia's site, and your samosa-like puffs sounded so good, I came over to check yours out!
ReplyDeleteYou are a terrific resource for Asian cooking. I already learned a lot looking through your last few posts. Thanks!
Susan from Food "Blogga"
Tigerfish,
ReplyDeleteHaha! Yes, the rabbits did love their carrots. :)
Hi Susan,
Thanks for visiting! I'll have to get around to making those samosas so I can post the recipe just for you.
wah the bunnies are soo cute!!! this place seems like a good deal on weekdays. but i don't ever go out to that area until the weekends. :D
ReplyDeletebuddingcook,
ReplyDeleteI think NBC is a better deal and better tasting dimsum. But on weekdays, Mission 261 is good with the discount. And you can't beat cute dumplings. :)
Yum, the chicken feet looks so amazing, I'm drooling right now. I love the disgusted look my hubby gives me when I eat them. :)
ReplyDeleteJadedone,
ReplyDeleteI agree. Chicken feet are yummy! :)
Bill,
ReplyDeletePusher is the key word. Har gow are like crack! Just one more! One more!
I vow to make it over there this week! Looks delicious. And, I think it might be kinda nice to avoid the hard-sell on weekdays at some places. =)
ReplyDeleteHi Steen,
ReplyDeleteThanks for visiting! Through you, I've discovered new restaurants to add to my list too. :)
I know what you mean though, sometimes I'm not in the mood to ask the dim sum cart ladies to lift all those lids and point. Picture menus are nice sometimes.