Yank Sing Restaurant

We have been fans of Yank Sing since they were in Chinatown, 2 locations before the Rincon Center. We always come for the fresh ingredients, consistent high quality dim sum whenever we travel to San Francisco. It is very expensive but their attention to detail, from the food to service, is admirable.

Pros: Fresh ingredients, unusual dim sum dishes, great service, nice setting

Cons: Expensive

Posted 02/09/09

Very pushy dim sum cart food pushers. However, the food was excellent, I would go back there in a NY minute. Every dish we had was wonderful. Atmosphere is upscale bad Chinese restaurant, so nothing to brag about there. I just wish it wasn't so dangnummit expensive. If the bill was half the price for all the food we had, I would eat there more than once a year.

Pros: Very quick service

Cons: Service was at a frenzied pace, price was way too high

Posted 12/07/08

The atmosphere is great. The waiters & waitresses are pleasant. We had reservations, so, no waiting. The food is good.

I've been wanting to eat here for several months now. Now that I've finally had lunch... I would recommend it if you want to eat at a nice and clean location. But, it's TOOOOOOOOO EXPENSIVE! It's OVER priced!!!! I couldn't believe it! I would recommend going to You's Dim Sum 675 Broadway Street instead.

Pros: Nice & clean atmosphere

Cons: Way over priced!

Posted 07/24/08

We waited 45 minutes mid Sunday afternoon for a table. The one thing will give this place is a pretty location. Everything else was mediocre to poor. The food was mediocre and the maitre d' was downright poor in his manner.

We drove an hour each way to try this restaurant and were very disappointed. We can certainly find better food and better service almost anywhere.

Pros: Location is pretty

Cons: Food, service, help is rude, promptness of being seated etc etc.

Posted 02/16/08

When i read about all positive rating, I was excited to go to Yang Sang since i m a dim sum lover. However, i tried it today and i was disappointed. They are not as impressive as i read. They are just average, clean, high price and overrated.. The food is not extraordinary. And for two people, easily paid for eighty bucks for dim sum which i think is little overpriced. But the location is great.

Pros: location, clean and friendliness

Cons: average quality dim sum, not as creative as i think, high price

Posted 09/01/07

I went to citysearch in search of a great dim sum restaurant. Yank Sing rated extremely high with great reviews so my husband and I were really excited to taste and see if it lived up to the reviews. Sadly, we were greatly underwhelmed. We visited the Stevenson location which was a nice location with a very friendly wait staff that was extremely attentive.

I knew that our meal would be pricey from the reviews on citysearch but I thought that the meal/flavors would be worth the price. I was dissapointed that Yank Sing did not have a huge selection of dim sum to choose from: a fried cart, a steamed dumpling cart and a rice bun cart, that was it. I'm used to eating at dim sum restaurants (found in Los Angeles - Empress Pavilion/NBC) teaming with a plethora of dim sum carts of dumplings, fresh braised vegetables (we were served cold chinese broccoli at Yank Sing), noodle and soup carts, and the list goes on and on.

The flavor of the dim sum was lackluster. I felt I was eating Americanized dim sum and was left wanting a lot more. I tried their signature pork dumpling dish, which the host gladly showed me how to eat on a spoon with their signature sauce. It was, well...ok, but just ok, nothing to be blown away by from a signature dish. At the end of our meal, we paid our $75 bill and walked away thinking, well, we came, we tried, and we'll never come back. It's just not worth the price of entry.

What's funny is that, still craving the dim sum experience that I was hoping for, I went back to citysearch to look for another restaurant the next morning and found Canton Dim Sum restaurant on Folsom, just blocks from Yank Sing. Canton is not at all fancy...in fact, if you were a restaurant ambience snob, then you would not even consider walking in this outdated looking establishment. But you would be missing out on a gem of a dim sum place. Canton had 3x more dim sum variety and was only 1/3 the price compared to Yank Sing. Yumm!

Pros: nice ambience, service friendly and prompt

Cons: parking was $2.50 per 20 minutes, food not worth the price

Posted 07/05/07

i come to yank sing pretty much everytime i visit san francisco. this is some of the best dim sum that i have had - but it pays to know the price of what you are ordering and not impulse buy here. of course, this is hard to do with gourmet dim sum such as soft shell crab and chunks of gingered sea bass constantly wafting past your table. our last visit was a bill for $80 for two people, which i thought was quite high. a small soft shell crab was $19, which we didn't know ahead of time. regardless, if you want a treat and are willing to spend the money - then this is the place to go. great dim sum, fabulous service and nice restaurant.

Pros: creative, delicious dim sum

Cons: prices are high - ask for costs ahead of time

Posted 04/03/07

One of the best tasting dim sum restauarant I've ever had. It gets filled on a Monday morning. Amazing! Opens at 10 Am which is a bit late. Food was really good. We actually sat at the table at the bottom right of the picture. Exact spot. The tea is nice in a big glass bottle. Located inside the Rincon center. Service was good. Real clean!

Pros: Great Dim Sum, Clean restroom

Cons: Tucked away, not easily seen

Posted 02/20/07

Full disclosure: I grew up in LA, so heavily influenced by dim sum in Monterey Park. Yank Sing is pretty good, though some of their items aren't your typical dim sum. Don't get me wrong, everything I've had tastes good. Just some things you wouldn't see on your everyday dim sum cart, which you may or may not like. I'd prefer if they were open later, but that's just me.

Posted 10/25/06

Yank Sing is one of the first restaurants where I ever ate Dim Sum (back at the old Battery Street location) so I do have a fondness for this restaurant. The dim sum itself is terrific, in my opinion. Great Har gow, terrific noodles, great Sea Bass, etc. I adore the onion pancakes (although they aren't everyone's cup of tea). There are a number of downsides to Yank Sing, though, that mean I go less and less frequently. The high prices. The need for reservations. The long wait. Did I mention the high prices? The food is very good, but frankly, I think we now have enough choices of great dim sum in San Francisco, that not everyone feels the need to go to Yank Sing. If someone else is buying, or it's a special occasion, you'll see us here. Otherwise, we head to our alternative, more economical choices, realizing that below average decor is a fair trade off for above average dim sum, at average prices. I'll still go, but it would be great if they'd lower the prices a bit, and not make people wait when they have reservations.

Pros: Terrific dim sum, some unusual dishes

Cons: Long waits (even with reservations) High Prices

Posted 09/24/06

Looking at these reviews, it's clear that most of them are negative. So how in the world is the rating number so high? Having been a fan of dim sum for years, I've tried many dim sum restaurants (including in China and Hong Kong). The dim sum here was alright. Not great and not bad. But the prices ARE outrageously expensive. A bill of $160 (tax and tip) for 4 people was not justified. The same food at other GOOD dim sum restaurants in the Bay Area would cost only a third of that.

Pros: Good ambience

Cons: Gotta-sell-my-car-to-pay-for-brunch costs!

Posted 09/03/06

i came across this place after reading an article in a San Francisco travel guide, and i have to say that i found the food, service, and ambience exquisite. being a frequent dim sum eater in the southern california area, i can honestly say that Yank Sing is definitely number one on my list of chinese restaurants. the dim sum wasn't greasy, the service was pleasant, and the restaurant was clean. if you love dim sum as much as i do, you definitely should check this place out. just be weary that you get what you pay for -- stellar food at stellar prices.

Pros: great dim sum, great service, great restaurant

Cons: pricey!

Posted 08/12/06

Very nice selection of dim sum. This is a tablecloth chinese restaurant not a hole in the wall joint...very safe to bring out of towners to. All dim sum are very fresh and tasty.

Posted 08/08/06

Yank Sing certainly does not deserve a high ranking for its dim sum. Growing up in Canton, I am a total dim sum snob and I went to Yank Sing out of its reputation. It was a total disappointment. It was very much Americanized (and maybe that is why many people think it is good). If you want more authentic dim sum, I would recommend the Canton Dim Sum Seafood Restaurant down on Hawthorne and Folsom, much more authentic and good dim sum.

Yes, the serving staff in Yank Sing speaks English, if that is more important than food quality then you probably would choose Yank Sing. Yank Sing has relatively good ambience, but to me, it is a little over done and commercial. It is in a good location, convenient for business lunch to please your clients. But for me, food is really the essence of a restaurant and Yang Sing certainly is overrated.

Pros: good location and ambience

Cons: overrated dim sum, definitely over-price for its dim sum quality

Posted 08/04/06

This was a wonderful restaurant. Great food, great service and good for groups. The staff were very polite and provided great service.

Pros: great service, food

Cons: parking, very expensive

Posted 05/28/06

Great tasting dim sum becomes more expensive when you add in the spacious restaurant and minus out the sights, sounds, and smells of Chinatown. During peak hours you may end up eagerly searching for a different cart rather than the one that keeps circling in front of you. However, if all the forces are with you and you just got paid, (or found someone else to cover the bill) this will be a most enjoyable experience.

Posted 06/02/05

It just doesn't get any better than this. I've been eating here for 15 years. When i go more than a week without going - it just doesn't seem right

Posted 05/17/05

I'm a SF native and remember Yank Sing when it was a small restaurant in Chinatown where it was a treat to go for dim sum. My husband & kids took me to the Rincon Annex Yank Sing for Mothers' Day and I was disappointed. They were short staffed that day and everyone was overworked. The har gow dumplings were small and I didn't like the fried beef triangles. The food didn't seem as tasty as I remembered from years ago. I was equally surprised to see them serve a cole slaw-type"salad", definitely not Chinese. They continue to make a delicious fluffy egg tart. As others have previously stated, it's a restaurant which seems to have lost it's ethnicity, catering mostly to the upper echelon white tourist trade. It cost us $100 for 4 of us for lunch. I could've had equally good or better food for less.

Pros: nice atmosphere

Cons: long lines, non-traditional food

Posted 05/13/05

You haven't lived yet until you've sampled the 50+ dim sum dishes at Yank Sing. We recommend doing this in a few separate lunches to prevent undesired stomach pains.

Posted 03/13/05

I went there with my wife for dim sum. The service was very good. Even though we were seated in an out-of-the-way location, all the carts stopped by. The wait-staff was very good, the food tasty and I had some dishes that I usually don't order, but which were very tasty as well. Was bummed that I didn't see some "standard" dim sum dishes. The biggest downer was $60 bill. We live in the LA area and they have many excellent dim sum restaurants in LA and the San Gabriel Valley. The same meal would cost $30 and you would have a larger variety of dim sum dishes to choose from.

I'm not too familiar with dim sum places in SF so we chose Yank Sing because it seemed like a "safe" choice. I just wish their prices were more reasonable and jibed with what you get.

Pros: Nice place, Tasty food, Good service

Cons: Way overpriced, Not enough variety

Posted 02/27/05

As a chinese, I have enough Chinese food everyday to be able to tell what is real good dim sum, if you think this is the best Dim Sum you ever had in your life, you are missing out a lot out there. This is the most expensive Dim Sum place I ever been to. The restaurant is nice, the service is nice, the food?? ??? Honestly, just so so, not that bad, not that good either, definitely NOT worth the price. Specially the beef rice noodles, different restaurant makes it differntly, you can tell which one do a better job on this one by looking at the skin, the sources and the meat in it.

Posted 02/24/05

If you want to try out a variety of tasty Chinese treats without the "authentic" China Town experience, this is the place. It's clean, the service is good, and the servers understand you. There's a pay lot across the street so parking isn't a worry. The food is fabulous across the board.

Pros: Food, Service, Cleanliness

Cons: Slightly Pricey

Posted 01/26/05

My husband and I were really looking forward to Dim Sum in San Francisco. Unfortunately, the Yank Sing ended up being below our expectations. We ate there on a Monday at 11:30, which was great since there were fewer people there (we didn't have to wait to be seated). For only being open a half-hour the food was surprisingly luke warm or cold. Also, the food was way overpriced. Our bill for 2 people was about $70 after tip. We have eaten excellent Dim Sum for four for less than that price in Vancouver B.C., which is only a two-hour road trip from us in Seattle. The food was average, but not excellent. I have had better dim sum elsewhere. We may have just caught the Yank Sing on a bad day, but our expierence won't make us go back there next time we go to San Francisco.

Pros: Clean, Nice Atomosphere

Cons: , overpriced

Posted 08/28/04

This restaurant has the greatest dim sum -- everything is made from the freshest ingredients, the taste of the items is clean & not oily (BIG plus), and they are reasonably priced. All in all, just a great dim sum restaurant.

Posted 05/25/04

i read some of the reviews earlier about not being authentic. i strongly disagree! i see a lot of chinese around and they offer the same selections chinatown have but yanksing tastes muchhh better and they have a lot more selections. i have to agree that yanksing have some of the best dim sum. i went to great eastern, lychee garden, golden mountain and new asia. great eastern is good but of course not as good as yank sing. the others were just horrible!

Pros: good food, free parking, tons of selections

Cons: , kind of pricey

Posted 05/02/04

We were seated in the dead zone - the carts just ignored us. I can't help but notice how inconvenienced the server looked when she was forced back to my table with the desert cart. For our meager dim sum feast - about 4-5 dishes in all - we dropped over $60 on this meal. It was not worth it.

Cons: , high prices

Posted 03/31/04

Not an authentic dim sum experience. Definitely geared towards the non-Chinese crowd. The food would seem good and tasty to those who don't know what real dim sum is, but to others it would seem fair at best. Then once you get the bill you realize what you're paying for...their rent, the dishes, and the gold trimmed restrooms. My advice, go where the Chinese go. Since I'm not from SF, I couldn't tell you where that is but look around, if you don't see any Chinese customers around, get outta there!

Pros: Clean Restrooms, Attentive Service

Cons: , Overpriced

Posted 03/21/04

I agree with the other reviewer that this place is for non-Chinese. But not entirely. There are some Chinese people go there & like the food & can afford it too. If you compare it to a more authentic dimsum place in Chinatown where everyone speak Chinese, of course you dont wanna go there if you can't speak the language. You'll feel left out, dissapointed, cant get what you want.

The presentation is very special, thus price goes up with appearance. I understand that some ingredients are more expensive than others, but for standard items such as pork dumplings & steamed buns, they're too pricey.

Pros: Fancy names, Fancy presentation

Posted 03/15/04

Absolutely incredible dumplings of all kinds. The sea bass dumplings were especially delectable. Outstanding Peking Duck. The egg custard tarts were the stuff of legend.

Go at 11am when they open. You'll get a quick seat and first crack at the freshly made dumplings. One of my top ten best gastronomic experiences of all time.

Pros: dumplings!, egg custard tarts!, Peking Duck

Posted 11/29/03

ONE OF THE BEST DIM SUM PLACES IN TOWN, ALTHOUGH IN THE EXPENSIVE SIDE, PORTIONS ARE WORTH PAYING FOR. WHERE ELSE IN "THE CITY" CAN YOU FIND FREE PARKING ??? WELL WORTH IT!!! FIVE STAR ESTABLISHMENT.

Pros: EXCELLENT FOOD, GOOD SERVICE, FREE PARKING

Cons: EXPENSIVE

Posted 11/14/03

Waited for over an hour at dim sum to discover the hostess misplaced our name on the list. As a party of 4 we ordered nothing extravagant and got slapped with a HUGE bill. The culprits were the duck (at $4 per 1" x 1" piece, who knew) and fried green onion- yes, that's it- at $8 a plate!! Won't be returning.

Posted 11/08/03

The Dim Sum is really good at YS. I had some of the best fish dishes in a long time. It helps to go with someone who knows how and what to order. They have what seemed like a thousand dishes. This place is less intimidating than the Chinese language places in China town. The ambiance is a little bit cafeteria meets food court, but otherwise a good place to eat.

Posted 06/09/03

One of the worst dim sum I've had in the bayarea. The food is pricey too. The presentation is good but the taste is not. I agree with other reviewers that this restaurant is for non-Chinese only.

Posted 05/16/03

While the food is decent, and the restaurant amenities are nice, I was extremely disappointed with the service and the management of Yank Sing - on more than several occasions. You can get much better food at a fraction of the cost anywhere else - but if you want to pay those dollars, you should try Koi Palace.

Pros: amenities

Cons: service, management

Posted 04/13/03

Nice ambience and that's all. Price tag is equivalent to that of Sausalito. Stingy portion. Unauthentic dim sum. No wonder all the diners are not Chinese.

Pros: Ambience

Cons: Horrible food, Outrageous price

Posted 02/20/03

You'd think they had a restaurant in Tiburon at these prices! Average to good dim sum, so-so ambience. If you are taking visitors out to "safe"(americanized) dim sum and don't mind spending big bucks(seriously... cha-ching!) to sample a variety, go for it.

Pros: good "safe" dim sum

Cons: got an expense acct?, cha-ching!, BIG BUCKS!

Posted 02/01/03

This place caters to the non-Chinese palate. The dim-sum here is below average but the atmosphere and service are better than most Chinese restaurants. It's also way over price...A plate of Peking Duck which cosists of 5 pieces of meat costs $12.00! Also the dumpling filling is too thick and does not melt in your mouth! If you want dim sum in North America, head to Vancouver BC!

Posted 01/22/03

Yank Sing is one of the better Dim Sum place in San Francisco, but it is so pricey that it's simply not worth it. You can definitely get comparable dim sum in the city and the bay area without paying that over the top premium $$$. However, if you want to impress your friends to a expensive, comtempory chinese restaurant, go to Yank Sing, you won't be disappointed.

Pros: nice decor

Cons: too $$$$$$$

Posted 01/05/03

I've even been to Hong Kong and still have yet to find Dim Sum better then Yank Sing!

Pros: Quality food, take reservations, waiters speak english

Cons: expensive

Posted 11/19/02

This place is a modern Chinese restaurant. Don't expect to see a restaurant the same as those in China town. The dim sum is good although the quantity per dish is less than usual, and the choices are not many.
Great service with friendly waitress! I've been tired to see the waitress with cold face in most Chinese restaurants. This place is different.
BTW, the price is unbelievable, twice of what you can have in SF Chinatown.
If you like a clean and modern place, you can give it a try; if you like kind of trad'l atmosphere of dim sum place, you may think about again.

Pros: nice service, clean and modern plac

Cons: price, no trad'l atmosphere

Posted 11/14/02

This restaurant is what San Francisco is all about! Great Food, Great atmosphere and service! Don't miss the egg custard!

Posted 11/10/02

The food is spectacular. You may have to wait for your vegetarian items, but it is well worth it. The asparagus is spectacular. While you wait for your mushroom steamed buns or spectacular spinach pot stickers, you will enjoy the delighted squeals of your canrniverous friends as they eat their minced pork r whatever. This place is one of the best Dim Sun places in the Bay Area, with a nice modern Chinese decor in the Rincon Ceter. If you are unfamiliar with the Rincon Center check out the WPA murals in the Mission Street side and the fountain in the center of the food court.

Posted 11/08/02

Wonderful decor! Tables not to close together. Food is fresh and hot.

Posted 11/08/02

I was refused service for being a single diner and was directed to a take out site next door. Very disturbing.

Pros: decent food

Cons: refused service

Posted 11/08/02

I used to be a Yank Sing regular with every visit to SF. Last time I went (In March of 2002) it was terrible. Food quality mostly was poor, the ambience at the new location is awful and the prices are still too high. I'll never go back as this place is clearly trading on its old reputation (which was great) Now, my number two place for dim sum is elevated to #1----------The Mayflower out on Geary and 29th avenue

Posted 11/08/02

This is definatly THE place to go to. I've been here three times during the normally busy lunch hours and have always been seated promptly. The dim sum is so good, words just don't do it justice. The jasmine tea that is served here is amazingly fragrent and sweet. The glass mesuem tea pot that its served in is a nice touch and available to buy for $39. The steamed dumplings are soft, just slightly sticky, and undoubtly fresh. The selection is great with about 60 varities daily. The steamed BBQ pork buns cha su bao are light, fluffy, and just slightly chewy. The service is excellent. The only drawback is the price, but it is an amazing experience if you can afford the $50-60 meal for two.

Pros: excellent dim sum, great service, plenty of seating

Cons: price

Posted 11/05/02

I ate there about 2 years ago. The atmosphere was great and the DIM SUM tasted ok. The DUM SIM was also over-priced. I guess it would be since it is in a prime location. I am going back out there in a couple of weeks. I plan on having some DIM SUM but not a YANK's. If you want great DIM SUM try a restaurant on San Bruno Ave.

Posted 11/04/02

delicious food, parking in the building, great place for out of down guests. noisy and efficient.

Pros: delicious food, hughly efficient

Posted 11/03/02