While in San Francisco’s Chinatown for a family thing, I finally got a chance to dine at Lucky Creation, a hole in the wall type of place serving Cantonese vegetarian food. Surprised I hadn’t eaten there before as it’s been around since forever.
I wanted to try their veggie bao for the longest time but I don’t really get up to Chinatown all that often. Probably been at least ten years since the last time I was in the area. Initially, I planned on just grabbing a bao to go but the family actually agreed to eating there.
We ordered three dishes: Deep-fried Taro Root Fish with Sweet and Sour Sauce, pictured above. Though the “fish” didn’t taste anything like fish. There’s no seaweed or kelp or anything with a seafood-like flavor, just mashed taro with a fried, crispy coating in the shape of a fish. The soft, creamy taro interior contrasts nicely with the fried exterior.
Minced Bean Cake (Spoon Shaped Tofu), a favorite of the table – savory minced tofu spoon shaped into a large oblong and fried. Topped with what looks like noodles at first is actually stir-fried mushrooms and broccoli in a sauce.
Imitation Sliced Pork with Vermicelli, it may have pork in its name, but it didn’t taste at all like pork. But that doesn’t mean it wasn’t any good, on the contrary, the pieces of gluten have a nice, chewy texture. Served in a clay pot with Cantonese vermicelli (also known as cellophane noodles or glass noodles) and vegetables.
We enjoyed all three dishes and wanted to try more, a lot more. Alas, we only had a limited amount of cash on hand and it’s cash only here. I can’t emphasized this enough, we were all surreptitiously checking our wallets (even the tween) to see what we can actually order with tax and tip, plus paying for parking which was also cash only.
Potentially embarrassing money fiasco averted, but without any more cash, I didn’t get to try the veggie bao. Hopefully, it’s not another ten years before I make my way back to Lucky Creation.
Related Posts
Ramen Yamadaya SF Japantown
Kokio Republic Food Truck
Loving Hut SF Westfield Shopping Center
I love the name of the place – lucky that you had enough cash to be able to get the three dishes though. The noodle-like mushrooms look particularly appealing, and deep fried tofu can only be a good thing really. I hope you didn’t have to share the dishes between too many people and you got to load up on taro and tofu!
We were lucky, it was just the right amount of food for everyone to be full and a little bit of leftover to take home. Still bummed I didn’t get to try the bao though.
All the choices you made look tasty. I’ve been to Lucky Creation, and enjoyed it, but I can’t remember a single thing we ate there. I should look back to see if I posted about it. It’s been a while since I’ve been to San Francisco — time for a trip. There are so many great places to eat there.
It’s so awesome there, I wish it was closer to me. :-)
Love Lucky Creation! The pot stickers are solid, and I highly recommend the sauteed mushrooms and bean curd rolls. Also, next time you visit, I highly recommend you take me along. ;)
We were going to get the pot stickers but they got cut due to lack of funds. :-( For sure, next time you’re coming along. :-)
I loved Lucky Creation! I’ve only ever eaten there once and I don’t know if / when I’ll end up back in that neck of the woods but their bao were delicious and you should definitely get one next time you’re in the area!
You’re killing me, I really wanted to try their bao. :-)