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What You're Eating: Best Chinese Dishes in Chinatown

Shrimp with Candied Walnuts
(credit: The New Moon)

What are the best dishes in Chinatown? Whether you're searching for tempting spicy ramen, delicious dumplings, crisp shrimp, or classic sweet and sour dishes, you'll find them all in Chinatown, where exotic tastes and reasonable prices combine to provide Far East feasting day and night.

Sweet and Sour Pork
(credit: Alice W./Yelp)

Sweet and Sour Pork
Plum Tree Inn
913 N. Broadway
Los Angeles, CA 90012
(213) 613-1819
www.plumtreeinn.com

Traditional Chinese food may not get any better than the succulent sweet and sour pork at Plum Tree Inn. A culinary institution for over 35 years, Plum Tree Inn's take on this dish is served sizzling hot, the sauce the penultimate blend of sweet and sour. Crisp carrots, onions, green peppers, and sweet pineapple are also a part of this classic. While dining, check out the tasty Mai Tai's, too.

: Ooey Gooey Fries
(credit: Chego)

Ooey Gooey Fries
Chego
727 N. Broadway
Los Angeles, CA 90012
(323) 380-8680
www.eatchego.com

Celeb chef Roy Choi has a variety of signature dishes on tap at Chego, where he makes fusion food his own, combining Chinese, Korean, and Mexican elements in Western-style dishes redolent of the East. What's best? For full-on decadent satisfaction, it has to be Choi's Ooey Gooey Fries, which come crisp, beer battered, and topped with a variety of cheeses. Not traditional Chinese food by any stretch, but the chilis and pickled garlic make this dish a cross-cultural, rib-sticking winner.

Tonkotsu Tan Tan Ramen at Ramen Champ
(credit: Ramen Champ)

Tonkotsu Tan Tan Ramen
Ramen Champ
727 N Broadway
Los Angeles, CA 90012
(213) 316-8595
www.ramenchamp.com

With all soups made from scratch and ingredients that are farm-fresh and free range, it's hard to choose which ramen makes the Best Eats list at Ramen Champ. But the Tonkotsu Tan Tan is a top contender at this newly reopened hot spot. Made with a spicy, delectable Sichuan meat sauce seasoned with peppercorns and garlic, the noodles are medium-thick and perfectly crafted; and the dish is topped with komatsuna greens, white sesame, and chili. Fine and fiery with a rich and complex broth, this is a don't-miss-dish.

Slippery Shrimp at Yang Chow
(credit: Michael S./ Yelp)

Slippery Shrimp
Yang Chow
819 N Broadway
Los Angeles, CA 90012
(213) 625-0811
www.yangchow.com

Yang Chow is an iconic Chinatown restaurant, and one of its most renowned dishes is their Slippery Shrimp. Sweet, crunchy, well-spiced, the deep fried batter is garlicky and crisp. With a strong hint of lemon zest and dotted with scallions, this dish is a classic Szechuan style feast that's as memorable as it gets when comes to traditional Chinese cuisine.

Dim Sum Sampler at Ocean Seafood
(credit: Natasha K./Yelp)

Dim Sum Sampler
Ocean Seafood
750 N Hill St
Los Angeles, CA 90012
(213) 687-3088
www.oceansf.com

The cavernous Ocean Seafood is famous for it's dim sum, with seafood dumplings such as scallops, lobster, and shrimp one of the top contenders. The best dish? A sampler that allows diners to experience a wide selection of Hong Kong-style dim sum. The beautifully spiced Har Gow shrimp steamed dumplings should definitely be a selection; the Pork Siu Mai which blends the sweet and spicy inside a crisp shell, is another must-eat.

Image: Kung Pao Chicken at The New Moon
(credit: The New Moon)

Kung Pao Chicken
The New Moon
102 W 9th St
Los Angeles, CA 90015
(213) 624-0186
www.newmoonrestaurants.com

Yes, there's the sweet, crisp, and delicious combination of shrimp with candied walnuts, but the signature dish here - by a small margin - is the Kung Pao Chicken. Even those who normally don't like it hot line up for this Northern Chinese regional speciality. At The New Moon this dish is delicately spicy with sweet red and green peppers, crisp roasted peanuts, and fiery whole chilis that make the well-seasoned chicken pop.

Sizzling Rice Soup at Full House Seafood
(credit: Keila N./ Yelp)

Sizzling Rice Soup
Full House Seafood
963 N Hill St
Los Angeles, CA 90012
(213) 617-8382

At Full House Seafood, there's scores of stellar fish dishes on the menu, but it's this soup that's the restaurant standard bearer. Sizzling rice soup has the snap, crackle, and pop of crunchy bits of rice added to the deliciously rich broth, which also includes soft grains of rice, snow peas, and mushrooms. The broth is so flavorful and fresh it seems like it's cooked to order.

Fried Tofu at Golden City
(credit: Mary O./Yelp)

Fried Tofu
Golden City
960 N Hill St.
Los Angeles, CA 90012
(213) 253-2660

Comfortable and homey, Golden City is a repository of classic Chinese dishes. Tops on the menu? Vegetarians can delight in this dish, the perfectly crisp, flavorful, and tender fried tofu. Dried garlic and chili give this dish a spicy heft, crisp scallions and chopped green peppers add texture. But it's the fluffy pillows of well-seasoned tofu themselves that makes this dish a winner.

Genie Davis is a multi-published journalist, novelist, and screenwriter. She lives near the beach in Los Angeles. See more on: CBSLA | eco-exist.com | geniedavis.com | Divulge.com | Twitter.
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