Oakland, California Chinese Food Restaurants are such that the best one, or the one you may prefer, is hidden away, tucked in a small part of a neighborhood you may not know, on the other side of town from where you are. It’s with that fact in mind that this presentation of Oakland residents giving suggestions for favorite Chinese Food Restaurants is important.
This blogger happened to spot the discussion on the Glenfriends listserv and took notice of Chinese Food Restaurant names I’d never seen before. So, without using the names of the Oaklanders who wrote the suggestions, here are their suggestions.
It all started with this question:
Can anyone suggest a Chinese Restaurant they like in and around the Glenview area?
Thanks in advance.
But, Wait, What’s The Glenview Neighborhood, Anyway?
Before we go further, we have to ask just what is the Glenview Neighborhood, anyway.
Well, Visit Oakland, Oakland’s version of the convention and visitors bureau, has a great description of The Glenview:
Main strip: Park Boulevard
Who dwells here: Residents looking to escape the hustle and bustle of city life
Population: 6,252
Founded: Early 1900s
Architecture: Bungalows
Neighborhood giant: Dimond Park
Where to mingle with locals: Blackberry BistroThe vibe
A sweet neighborhood of California bungalows in the lower Oakland Hills, Glenview feels more like a very quiet Rockridge with a couple good restaurants and well-manicured gardens. The main strip of Park Boulevard is pretty much where anything happens now and where it happened then: More than a century ago, the now bustling street was a path where redwoods traveled to get from where they were felled to the lumberyard. The elementary school is Art Deco, built in 1927; and the local breakfast joint serves dishes like eggs (and grits!) till 3:30 p.m. on the weekends. A lazy slice of California.
But, as you will see, some of the suggestions point to places that are actually just outside of the Glenview, but nearby. Piedmont Ave is way not in the Glenview; it’s closer to the Kaiser Medical Center, and a good two miles away! And, not one Oakland Chinese Food Restaurant located in Oakland’s Chinatown was mentioned!
With that, here are the suggestions ordered by number (no, not a ranking):
1. In my estimation Little Shin Shin on Piedmont Ave is the best nearby.
http://littleshinshin.com/index.html
Name withheld
2. Shan Dong on 10th in Oakland’s Chinatown. Short on ambience but food is excellent.
In Berkeley (Elmwood), Shen Hua.
3. Actually Ly Luck on Fruitvale across from Safeway is pretty good.
4. My preference is “Holly’s Mandarin” on Piedmont Avenue at 41st (across from Citibank). At one time, Holly worked at Little Shen Shen, but left them, taking some of the crew with her, and opened her own restaurant. Great lunch at an unbelievably low cost. Veggies are always fresh and crisp, cooked with minimal amounts of oil; brown, white, or pork- fried rice choices, (my favorite is the pork fried rice with veggies and eggs); large entree selection (chicken, beef, pork, prawns)……….Used to choose the Mongolian Beef, now choose Mongolian Prawns………. lunch comes with soup at the beginning.
I am not a “connoisseur” of Chinese food, but like this one a lot. There were a couple of great Chinese restaurants at the top end of Solano Avenue (beyond Safeway) in Albany which I have not been to in years. Holly’s is closer.
East Ocean on Webster Street in Alameda (enter from the tube side) has good dim sum.
There is a good (either Taiwanese or Vietnamese…..fusion Asian ?) restaurant on Piedmont Avenue. Same side as Fenton’s Ice Cream place, bit just a couple of doors up before you get to the cross street. Loved it!
6. After 17 years in the Glenview hood, I would say there are zero. Unless a new one has popped up in the past couple years. I tried them all, from College Ave to Fruitvale and Piedmont. The only okay one, in my view, is Little Shen Shen off Piedmont. If you want really GOOD Chinese I’m afraid it’s Berkeley. King Yen is super delicious and big menu. There’s a Glenview business opportunity here for someone!
And on that, Little Shen Shen was the only Oakland Chinese Food Restaurant that had a video review on YouTube. This one from the PBS Show “Check, Please” – which I hesitate to mention because they blew off my email request to be an Oakland restaurant reviewer a few years ago, but oh well:
7. The following Chinese Food Restaurant suggestion is from this blogger: Yang Chow Oakland. Yang Chow Oakland has been my personal favorite Chinese restaurant for almost two decades. Located at 3211 Grand Ave, it’s just across Grand from the Grand Lake Theater, and a great place to have an affordable dinner before catching a movie there – which, by the way, you should do. Yang Chow also has a fantastic lunch buffet that goes from 11:30 to 2 PM, Monday through Friday. Considering some in the Glenview are passing up the Grand Lake Theater Area for Piedmont Ave, Yang Chow is closer. Check it out.
In closing, if anyone has a Chinese food eatery to suggest, please do so in the comments section, below. Also, TripAdvisor has it’s own list of the 10 Best Chinese Restaurants in Oakland.
Stay tuned.