Happy end to Black History Month. I hope that throughout last month, you had a chance to read, listen or watch stories of Black Americans and their struggles. Black History Month is more than just a celebration of Black American’s accomplishments and is more than just a month. Black history is something that we need to understand so that we can increase our awareness to the struggles that Americans have gone through. So, I encourage you to keep learning and advocating for the cause of Black justice throughout the year so that we can make Black history more than a month.
Recently, I had the chance to try Lazy Susan Chinese, a brand new restaurant located on the outskirts of Hayes Valley in San Francisco. This restaurant was started by Hanson Li who has started a few other restaurants around the Bay Area and who’s goal with Lazy Susan is to create fast, casual and high quality Chinese Food. Also, the restaurant’s head chef comes from Mister Jiu’s, a prominent one Michelin Star Chinese restaurant in San Francisco’s Chinatown. So, clearly this restaurant has a lot of talent and lofty goals. Now how well did they meet these expectations?
Website: https://www.lazysusanchinese.com/
Press for Lazy Susan: https://sf.eater.com/2021/2/16/22280521/lazy-susan-chinese-american-takeout-delivery-general-tsos-chicken-eric-ehler-sf
My Experience
Disclaimer: I got food from Lazy Susan on only the second night they were open. As a result, anything that could be improved could have already been improved as they have gotten more and more into the rhythm of being open.
I first found out about Lazy Susan through a news article on Eatery that talked about it opening up and the goals it had. What I did not know at the time was that when my family and I ordered it the next day, it was only the second day that they were open! After reading the article, what intrigued me about Lazy Susan was the fact that they were attempting to serve elevated Chinese takeout. This is such a simple concept yet not nearly enough restaurants do it. Sure you have your typical Panda Express or other fast food Chinese place. But in my opinion, not nearly enough restaurants in San Francisco are attempting to take your typical Chinese takeout food up a notch with fresh and high quality ingredients. As a result of this I was immediately excited to try it.
We placed our order mid morning on the second day they were open (which was a Thursday) and by the early afternoon they were completely sold out for the day. We ordered some of the dishes that were supposed to be their specialities, such as Chow Mein, Crab Rangoon and Shrimp Fried Rice, and we also ordered some of their other dishes such as Potstickers, Green Beans and Spring Rolls. I believe the only way to order is through their online site, which is annoying, but I am not quite sure. If you do plan to order from them, I highly recommend doing it early as they often sell out for the day by the early afternoon. But, I believe that it is worth the wait. So, here is what we thought about the experience and food we had at Lazy Susan.
My first thought is that the restaurant is a bit tricky to find. Essentially, it is located in Hayes Valley and is actually right next to the San Francisco Jazz Club and basically in the same building as it. You will know you are there when you see a glass door with a picture of a lucky cat on the window and the words Lazy Susan. When I arrived to pick up my food, I was immediately greeted and picked up my order within a few seconds which was amazing. The person who greeted me was super friendly and appreciative of the support that we had shown through our order. While picking up the food, I could not help but notice that the space for the restaurant was super small. Just to let you know, this place is strictly takeout as I did not notice any tables at all nor any room for them in the future. But, I believe that that is what they were trying to achieve with this restaurant and in my opinion it works.
Upon receiving our food, we immediately drove home and upon arrival began to enjoy it. Luckily Chinese food can stay good for a decent amount of time after cooking and it is not required to be eaten immediately after its ready which is good. Essentially, it is food that is meant for takeout. Here are the dishes we ordered and what I thought of each of them.
Tip: Order a bottle of their homemade Sriracha and a container of their Umami Crunch, you will not be disappointed
Potstickers:
One of the first things I got to try were their potstickers. Now, I have had a lot of potstickers throughout my life and know what separates the great ones from the good ones. In order for a potsticker to be great, it has to have a skin with the perfect consistency, has to be fried to get the bottom super crispy and has to have a filling that does not overwhelm the outside but complements it. What I can say about these potstickers were that they lived up to my expectations as a great one. The highlight by far was the fact that they had an insanely crispy bottom and skin. Oftentimes, you get a potsticker that is greasy and not nearly crispy enough. But these were the exact opposite. Furthermore, the filling in these potstickers was stunning. It was a simple veggie filling but it was done right, not overloaded and did not detract from the dish. Overall I would say you should definitely get your hands on these potstickers.
Crab Rangoon:
I am often not a big fan of crab rangoon but these actually surprised me in a really good way. Oftentimes, I find that crab rangoon are too big and have too much cream cheese which overwhelms the crab flavor. The crab rangoon from Lazy Susan were the perfect size as they were wrapped in a thin wonton that could be eaten in one to two bites. Also, they had a good ratio of crab to cream cheese that made it so that the flavors balanced well. Overall, I am not usually hyped about crab rangoon but these ones were pretty good.
Crispy Spring Rolls:
I love a good spring roll and these were no different. In order to be a good spring roll, in my opinion, it has to have a super crispy wrapper and cannot be too overloaded with the filling. These ones had the word crispy in the name and they definitely lived up to their title. These spring rolls were insanely crispy on the outside and had a filling of vegetables that provided a nice flavor. Also, the filling had all the right ingredients in it for a good spring roll and was carefully layered into the wrapper to make it not too messy which was great. To top it off, the sweet chili dipping sauce provided a sweetness to balance out the strong vegetable flavor.
Shrimp Fried Rice:
This dish could have been the highlight of the night for me. A good fried rice is pretty simple to make at home but its often not an amazing fried rice as it lacks flavor or consistency. This fried rice proved to me that you do not have to over complicate things to make them good. Lazy Susan’s Fried Rice was simple, had a ton of sautéed vegetables and perfectly seasoned shrimp to top it all off. Also, their rice was crispy so it had that nice bite and flavor to it. Finally, the ingredients all blended well together and the flavors matched which makes a big difference in a fried rice. I will definitely be ordering this again when I get the change to go back to Lazy Susan.
Sautéed String Beans:
My family and I always like to get a vegetable dish to go with our Chinese food and this was no different. Oftentimes, vegetables at Chinese restaurants can be bland or boring. These string beans were the exact opposite. they were sautéed well and the spicy hoisin sauce on top provided the boost of flavor that they needed. I found myself going in for seconds on these which is a rarity for me.
Vegetable Chow Mein:
This was one of the last dishes I tried that evening and was another highlight of the night for me. The chef who used to work at Mister Jiu’s perfected his Chow Mein skills while he was working there and boy does it show. The ingredients surrounding the noodles provide the backdrop and then the sauce and noodles combined make it a complete dish. My favorite part of this dish by far was how much flavor they were able to get into the Chow Mein noodles. I have made Chow Mein myself before and really struggle to get deep flavors to sink into the noodles. This was one of the best Chow Meins I have had and I think I am going to come back just for that, it was that good of a dish.
Final Thoughts:
Lazy Susan is trying to achieve something that is desperately needed in San Francisco right now: simple, high quality Chinese takeout. And from what I tasted on just their second night of service, I believe they are already achieving that goal. The background of the ownership as well as the chefs provides a great backbone to the restaurant and allows them to produce food that tastes amazing. Furthermore, their commitment to fresh and local ingredients makes it so that their dishes do not have to be overdone and can be simple but good in their own right. One thing I wish is that they had a better ordering system so that you do not have to order so far in advance. But, I believe that will change with time as they get more into their rhythm. So if you get a chance, I would head over to Hayes Valley. After all, I plan to be going to Lazy Susan a lot in the near future, it is that good. Thanks so much for reading this blog post and I hope an amazing Chinese takeout meal is in your future.
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