Wing Lee Bakery

Pin It Now!

When you don't feel like lining up early in the morning with the Chinese grandmas for a table at Hong Kong Flower Lounge or Koi Palace, you can pick up to go dim sum at Wing Lee Bakery.  This place has been here forever and its one of the most popular to go dim sum spots in the city.

I love how the English menu matches the Chinese menu exactly.   Most Chinese places have a special Chinese menu and neglect to give the English version.

Best thing about dim sum is that you can always just point at whatever looks good.  Left to right:  steamed combination chicken bun, shrimp dumplings (hai gow).

Left to right: pork dumplings (siu mai), shrimp dumplings (hai gow).  The dumplings here are big and juicy and the quick turnover ensures the freshest dim sum available.  The hai gow does have a thicker skin than the average hai gow.

Besides the dim sum, the preserved egg jook is quite popular.  It usually sells out early in the day, but this time I got lucky and was able to pick some up around noon.  The gelatinous, salty preserved egg is mixed throughout the thick rice porridge.  Little bits of pork also give the jook some flavor.

One of my favorite things to eat here is the combination chicken bun.  Its not a common item in dim sum and can be hard to find in Chinese dim sum bakeries.  Its a little larger than a steamed bbq pork bun because literally everything is stuffed inside.  Encased in the fluffy bun is ginger marinated chicken, an egg, and shittake mushrooms.

I love chicken with sticky rice.  Sticky rice mixed with pieces of juicy chicken are steamed inside a lotus leaf which give it an earthy smell.  Disclaimer:  You cannot eat the leaf! (I've actually seen people try to eat it before!)

Address:               Wing Lee Bakery
                               503 Clement St.
                               San Francisco, CA
 

Type:                      Chinese/bakery

Popular chomps:     preserved egg jook
                                 chicken with sticky rice
                                 shrimp dumplings (hai gow)
                                 pork dumplings (siu mai)
                                 combination chicken bun

Chomp worthy:       chicken with sticky rice
                                 preserved egg jook
                                 combination chicken bun
                                 

Random facts: