San Tung

1031 Irving St.

San Francisco, CA

94122

(415)242-0828

Three words. Dried Fried Chicken. Yes, these three little words can have profound effect on anyone who has ever tasted this delectable dish. Mouth watering and found memories rushes back of the first time you tried this dish. Where do you find this magical dish? At San Tung restaurant in San Francisco. Located on Irving Street close to the trendy 9th avenue hub in the sunset district, San Tung has carved out quite a loyal following.

Dried Fried Chicken is why you go to San Tung. There are other dishes, they make a decent shrimp and leek dumpling, hot and sour soup, and a couple of noodle dishes. Most of the other dishes are below average to decent at best. But going to San Tung and ordering any other dish and not order Dried Fried Chicken, is like going to the best steak house in the world and ordering the house salad. You can do it, but I wouldn't recommend it.

Usually I would go with a group of people and we would one vegetable dish so we do not feel as guilty. Then we would order 2 to 3 orders of Dried Fried Chicken. There are multiple versions of Dried Fried Chicken, but I usually only get the diced and dry style. The reason for the dice, is that you get more of the delicious sweet sauce and crispy coating on the chicken. Sometimes we would order the wing version, but that is never quite as satisfying. Once our order arrives, we would always argue if we can finish all of the chicken, yet it never fails that we never have any leftovers.

This dish itself can be best decided as candied crispy chicken. It comes piping hot, with dried red pepper garnish. Upon looking at it, you would think this is quite a spicy dish, yet there is little to no spice in it. The sauce is a sweet sauce, that also taste a malty. There is an underlying garlic flavor that also pro fuses throughout the dish. The skin is crispy, despite beginning covered in a wet sauce. The sauce is wet even if you ordered the dry style. The wet style as much more sauce and I think it takes away from the dish. There are other dried fried meats such as beef or scallops, but trust me. Stick with Dried Fried Chicken. For some reason it taste the best with the chicken. Dried Fried Chicken is what you see at everyone's table, either diced or wings. Always order it with a side order of rice. It balances out the flavor nicely.

The restaurant is very popular especially at lunch and dinner. There is often a sign up sheet and lines out the door. There are other restaurants around the area, but they are no where as popular as San Tung. Once you sit down, they bring your menu, and a small dish of Kim Chee. The Kim Chee is okay, but not as good as some of the true Korean Kim Chee. The restaurant is usually pack, so it's hard time to flag down your server if you need something. They try their best to give good service, but often the servers are over whelmed. The restaurant has a more of a small family run chinese restaurant feel.

I would give the restaurant higher score, but it really is an one trick pony. However, it is one hell of a trick.

Final thoughts: Try Dried Fried Chicken, and you'll become a regular customer as well.

Food: 3 1/2 stars

Service: 2 stars

Price: Good

Overall: 3 1/2 stars