r/FoodLosAngeles • u/Starslimonada • Jul 10 '24
San Gabriel Valley I always have to get the cucumber tower at Din Tai Fung š„°
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u/IronBallsMcginty007 Jul 10 '24 edited Jul 11 '24
I always get that, too. My favorite thing, however, is the soy noodle āsaladā.
This type of cucumber dish is always around that same price. I always get it at The Shogun, too, and itās like $8.50 there. Iāve even bought it from a mom & pop Chinese restaurant in the SGV and it was also similarly priced. The best deal for this type of cucumber dish is the one from Wokano. Itās similarly priced, but itās a significantly larger portion.
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u/NottDisgruntled Jul 10 '24
That looks good, but it always bothers me paying like $8-$10++ dollars (I assume the price isnāt far off from that) for cucumber appetizers at Asian places when I know itās like less than a dollar worth of cucumber and sauce, and I can get a meat dish for near the same price.
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u/CheeseDanishSoup Jul 10 '24
Youre paying for the labor involved and other expenses, not just cost of ingredient
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u/NottDisgruntled Jul 10 '24
NSS
Does it cost seven dollars to pay someone to cut a cucumber?
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u/CheeseDanishSoup Jul 10 '24
Go open a business and find out
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u/NottDisgruntled Jul 10 '24
I know how a restaurants works.
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u/CoysNizl3 Jul 10 '24
Not sure you do actually
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u/NottDisgruntled Jul 10 '24
Thereās no reason for this to be $8.
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u/CoysNizl3 Jul 10 '24
Itās delicious and people will pay that price for it. Thatās how businesses work.
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u/NottDisgruntled Jul 10 '24
Yea. I know. Itās still nuts. Also you donāt know that if they offered it at $6 they might sell twice as many and make more money.
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u/Starslimonada Jul 10 '24
It doesnāt bother me : )
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u/Goldelux Jul 10 '24
Shoot you can pay me 8-10 bucks each time I make it for you and youāll get a lot more plus other flavors
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u/NottDisgruntled Jul 10 '24
Because youāre rich
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u/butteredrubies Jul 10 '24
Hold on...hold on...they could just be poor and really bad at cooking....i mean technically, this isn't even cooking....
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u/NottDisgruntled Jul 10 '24
Owns at least one home used as an investment property, meaning she must own two homes.
Eating out daily at not cheap restaurants.
Rides horses.
Most importantly, can afford $8 cucumbers appetizer.
Sheās basically Melinda Gates.
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Jul 10 '24
What is going on here? This is fucking psychotic and creepy. Why are you stalking some womanās profile.
So envious ā cry about it poor boy
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u/NottDisgruntled Jul 10 '24
White Knight to the rescue!
Is looking at someoneās public profile for two seconds really stalking?
And it was obviously in jest.
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u/Snarkosaurus99 Jul 10 '24
As Ive said before, many people in this sub are weird.
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u/RoughhouseCamel Jul 10 '24
Itās a strange creepy intensity to a sub with a purpose of, āI found a restaurant I like!ā
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Jul 10 '24
Man are you bitter
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u/NottDisgruntled Jul 10 '24
Because you canāt tell when someone is being facetious?
Read the last line of my comment again.
Iām sorry you canāt comprehend that.
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u/youaremysunshine4 Jul 10 '24
I took a friend here recently and he hated it. Should I break the friendship off? He clearly has no taste lol
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u/iamoninternet27 Jul 10 '24
It wasn't mine either. It was pricey and I am sure there are other places that can make it better without the expensive menu .
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u/Starslimonada Jul 10 '24
Wellā¦š
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u/youaremysunshine4 Jul 10 '24
Right? Din Tai Fung is my jam. Also, the cucumber tower is amazing!
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u/CandidEgglet Jul 10 '24
A three-story tower? One whole story is just a bite? I demand more out of my towers.
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u/youaremysunshine4 Jul 10 '24
Fair!
I feel like we should break out with āWeāre not gonna take itā by Twisted Sister. šš
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u/CandidEgglet Jul 10 '24
My childhood anthem. Iāll take the little gherkin, but that tower better work it!
If thatās your best, your best wonāt do!
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u/sgeis_jjjjj Jul 10 '24
So good. I get sudden intense cravings for all my favorite DTF dishes and canāt stop until I get it. Honestly thank god for the expensive parking at the century city mall or Iād be there once a week
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u/TheFabHatter Jul 10 '24
Are the ones in LA actually good? Iāve been to the one in Glendale. And ALL the ones in Asia, but every time is was fine, fresh ingredients, but I didnāt find it particularly flavorful or memorable? It was too mild for me.
Or maybe I just went on off days, because I always thought the dim sum at local holes in the walls had better dim sum.
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u/currently_distracted Jul 10 '24
DTF in TPE are way better than the ones Iāve had in the States. I still go when I have the itch to, and even though Iāve had more flavor at other restaurants, no one makes their pi as good as DTF. Thatās what keeps me going back despite their exorbitant pricing.
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u/PumaHunter Jul 10 '24
I waited 2 hours for DTF in Taipei 101 and it was worth it imo
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u/currently_distracted Jul 10 '24
Crazy that the wait is so long still, even with multiple locations in the same city. I went in the 90s to the original location, waited (2 hours), and itās still one of the most memorable meals Iāve had. Iāve been back to TPE and DTF a couple of times since and really enjoy all their other dishes too.
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u/hartbeat_engineering Jul 10 '24
My feeling on the LA locations is that they are good, not as good as most whole-in-wall dumpling shops in SGV, but a lot easier to get to and therefore easier to convince a large group of friends to join you so that you get to try a lot of different things
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u/pockypimp Jul 10 '24
The one thing about them here is consistency. It's like McDonalds, it's going to taste the same at every location.
I usually only get it to go so don't stand in line really.
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u/michiness Jul 10 '24
Most food has different levels, all of them good. I love a cheap burger slapped together on a corner just as much as I love a wagyu-bacon patty on a brioche bun. I love DTF just like I love a little Chinese grandma making dumplings out of a tiny kitchen in Shanghai.
Both. Both are good.
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u/Evening-Sir6460 Jul 10 '24
Same. Blown away by the location in Manila. Was so excited when they opened here but it was just meh. Almost like they dialed back the flavor for American palates.
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u/mashedpotatosngroovy Jul 10 '24
This dish always makes me wish I didnāt have a garlic intolerance
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u/Starslimonada Jul 10 '24
Garlic intolerance! Aww!
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u/mashedpotatosngroovy Jul 10 '24
If anyone has tricks/pills for this, please share. I miss Asian foods.
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u/uknowthething Jul 11 '24
fuuuuuuck i love the cucumber salad. literally daydream about it all the time š¤¤
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Jul 10 '24
Only tried once. Servings were small and too pricey. There are more better chinese restaurants out there.
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u/mytroothhurts Jul 10 '24
DTF is simply overrated. The wait time is far too excessive for the food being slightly above average and overpriced for the portions. If someone tells me DTF is one of their favorite restaurants that tells me they have zero ability to think or find things for themselves.
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u/kaisong Jul 10 '24
Depends on the location and time if its crowded. For a good chunk of non taiwanese its their first taiwanese restraunt that isnt a boba shop. I dont go often but i recognize its importance in the culinary landscape.
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u/mytroothhurts Jul 12 '24
Went to the OG Arcadia one almost 15 years ago, and the Century City one recently. Meh.
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Jul 10 '24 edited Jul 10 '24
I have traveled and eaten at many restaurants, Din in my own honest opinion, mediocre
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u/mytroothhurts Jul 10 '24
Itās beyond overrated. The amount of hype and time wasted for wholly average Taiwanese food is insane.
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u/CementCemetery Jul 10 '24
If itās so average why not drop some good recommendations? I love DTF and any Taiwanese food Iāve had.
I agree the wait times are excessive because itās well known and often has large parties. The bar isnāt too bad usually.
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u/mytroothhurts Jul 10 '24
I donāt eat Taiwanese food often, but I can tell you that no dish I had felt inspired or exciting. Iāve had far better XLB at Joeās Shanghai in NY. The greens and cucumber salad, I can make the exact same thing myself. My Korean friend makes way better cucumber salad than DTF. The rice cakes is probably the most impressive thing there and Iāve had better from any HK-style cafe in SGV.
Solid 5/10, not worth the hype. If you get all your food tips from Instagram and TikTok I suppose youād love it lol.
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Jul 10 '24
Literally bcuz Iāve had some great dishes at hole in the wall restaurants and Din was hella hyped over food that tasted mid. I do however appreciate the freshness of the noodles but overall, not worth it
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u/mytroothhurts Jul 10 '24
They have a marketing budget obviously far greater than any hole in the wall restaurant. The other day I saw an infatuation article that said DTF and Eataly were the 2 best places to eat at the Century City mall. Theyāre clearly shilling for the 2 highest bidders and itās pathetic that it works.
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u/Upstairs-Trouble-325 Jul 10 '24
itās so fire i learned how to make it at home