Hakka Restaurant - Chinese, San Francisco

Best: Chinese Bacon with Preserved Greens (aka Pork Belly), Spicy Salt & Pepper Spareribs, Pumpkin Strips with Salted Egg

4401 Cabrillo Street, San Francisco CA 94121
(415) 876-6898
Parking: street parking
Hours: Mon-Thurs 11am-9:30pm, Fri-Sun 11am-10pm

Last Visited: January 7, 2017

Food: 4 to 5 stars
Atmosphere: 3 stars
Service: 3 stars
Price: $ to $$$

Like many other Chinese restaurants in San Francisco, the decor at Hakka Restaurant is pretty simple - white paper placements over white linens for larger tables and glass tabletops over linens for smaller tables.  The large front window brings in a lot of natural light and what's unique about Hakka are the colorful photos of featured specialty dishes decorate the wall.  That's one thing about marketing that they've done right.

While the commercials on the local Chinese television station are been running for some time, the 30 second spot isn't nearly as effective as the beautiful color photo menu and how enticing everything looks.

At Hakka style restaurants in general, there are three popular dishes - steamed chicken, tofu, and braised pork belly.  If any of these three are bad, the place won't survive.  After three visits, I've tried two of the dishes and if they're any indication, this is one of the best Hakka places in the Bay Area and maybe even on this coast.

Upon ordering, even for lunch, you receive a complimentary bowl of soup.  The soup is served family style, and while service varies, sometimes, they'll portion out the soup for you, and sometimes, you're on your own. During our first visit, the server did it for us, but during the two most recent visits, they left us with the soup and went on to do other things. 

- Braised Pork Belly/Chinese Bacon with Preserved Green - Chinese bacon is braised for four hours to tenderize the meat, remove the excess fat, and soak up all of the flavor of the seasonings and preserved greens.  While someone unfamiliar with this dish will probably be in shock about the quantity of fat in each slice (think super thick cut bacon, but very tender meat like a shortrib), it is a very popular dish and as mentioned earlier, excess fat has come out of the meat.  The completed product is placed over fresh cooked iceberg which soaks up the flavor from the juices.  Absolutely delicious!  Compared to the authentic style of cooking in Hong Kong, I would give this four stars, but comparing it against other versions that I've had in the US, I give it five stars.  If you eat meat, you MUST order this dish.  Just think, a side of pork belly at a ramen house runs about $2 for a chunk or two.  This is a bargain!  Don't tell anyone, but I would be willing to pay a few dollars more for this dish without blinking an eye. $8.95

- Pumpkin Strips with Salted Egg - Another one of their specialties, kabocha pumpkin is sliced into 'strips' which are more like moon shaped pieces about 1/4 inch thick, battered, and deep fried.  The salted egg gives each piece a slightly sandy texture which contrasts the crunchiness of the batter.  The salted egg yolk also adds some golden coloring to each piece.  This is a terrific appetizer and the flavors are rich and delightful.  Another must try and a great alternative if you can't enjoy the crab version of this dish (see comments below)! $7.50

- String Beans with Minced Pork in XO Sauce over Rice - This dish comes off of the lunch menu.  While it is normally available as an entry, this and a list of other dishes are available for under $5 during lunch.  Served with a large scoop of rice, the minced pork is just a little spicy and the preserved turnip that is cooked with the string beans add a little bit of sweetness.  Good. $4.95

- Pork Stomach with Preserved Veggies over Rice - While pork stomach is a delicacy and can be quite difficult to cook properly, I found the texture to be a little too chewy.  Some pieces were better than others.  The mustard greens are very fresh, and the celery gives the dish that extra crunch.  $4.95

- Braised Fish Fillet and Tofu over Rice - Another dish like the two above, they give you a generous amount of fish and tofu for this low low price.  Good.  $4.95

- Beef Dry Chow Fun - Chow fun can often be hard to stir fry because it has a tendency to burn.  This chow fun, although cooked with the traditional ingredients of bean sprouts, green onion, and onion, was also just okay.  I found that there was a little bit of the burnt smell in the noodles from what had stuck to the wok.  This wasn't bad, but it isn't their specialty.  A small drizzle of soy sauce improved it a bit.  $6.95

- Spicy Salt & Pepper Spareribs - AMAZING!  This is probably one of the best salt and pepper spareribs I have ever had.  While the pieces are small and more like mini pork chops, each piece is so perfectly battered and crunchy and the flavors are just perfect.  Must try this dish - it's phenomenal!  I also love how they deep fry string beans and add it to the dish for color.  During this visit, the staff had this for lunch too which goes to show just how good it is. $6.95

- Steamed Eggplant with Garlic - This seemed less special than I thought it would be.  Japanese eggplant is quartered and then cut into long strips.  The pieces are lightly coated with oil and steamed with preserved vegetables, garlic, and topped with green onions.  While the flavor feels very healthy, it seems like a dish one could make at home pretty easily.  It might have just been high expectations though.  Okay.  The amount is certainly plentiful.  $6.95

- Deep Fried Oysters (6)- These medium sized oysters are lightly battered, fried, and served over shredded iceberg lettuce with a side of sweet and sour dipping sauce.  While not stunning, they were okay - good sized and fresh tasting.  I would have preferred a few fresh lemon wedges over the sweet and sour dipping sauce, but perhaps it would be easier to bring my own lemon in that case if I'm preparing to come.  Good.  $7.95

- Salt & Baked Chicken (half) - The first time I tried to order this, I was told that the wait time would be 40 minutes.  With that in mind, we decided to get the steamed chicken.  For the next visit, I called in and ordered this dish ahead.  I like how the skin is just a touch crispy and the flavor is really nice.  It's served with a dipping sauce made with Chinese ginger powder mixed with oil.  If you're not a chicken enthusiast, you might not appreciate the subtleties of this chicken, but it's quite good.  $11.95

- House Special Steamed Chicken (half) - A Hakka specialty, you'll find that although this dish is served cold, it's still very good (I prefer it to be served room temperature).  The skin has just the right texture - it's hard to describe, but the Chinese word for it is crisp (which is different than crispy as in deep-fried).  The meat is tender and the flavor of salt has gone into the meat without being too salty.  Chopped fresh ginger in oil and a separate plate of Chinese ginger powder mixed with oil are served with the chicken. Very good.  $9.95

I find the complimentary soup for lunch to be very generous.  The first one I had was a tofu egg drop soup and the latter two visits were more Chinese herbal/dried vegetable style soups.  Considering that most Chinese restaurants that serve complimentary soup only do so during lunch, this is a terrific bargain and there's really no reason not to be full at the end of the meal.

If pumpkin isn't your thing, but you still want to try the salted egg yolk over something fried, they also offer crab made this way.  I'm waiting for crab season to order the dish because in summer, it's running $31 a pound which a little higher than what I'd like to pay.

Service is efficient, but not particularly warm.  They get the job done and do it fast.  If you want a place with servers that check on you frequently throughout the meal, you may be disappointed with that here.

Hakka is pretty busy at night and usually requires reservations.  Although it's not a fancy place, the food quality is high and the dishes that I mention as being best above are superb - far and away better than what you might find in the Bay Area.  I know I'll be back for more!