Yue Huang Dim Sum

Description and review of Yue Huang, a popular Chinese (Cantonese) restaurant located in the Natomas area of Sacramento.

A friend recently mentioned she was in the mood for dim sum, so I suggested several area restaurants including Yue Huang.  I had not previously been to Yue Huang, but it has been on my “go to” list for a while.  I had heard good things from friends and secondly, I knew that Yue Huang had been awarded Michelin Bib Gourmand status in 2021 (good quality, good value).

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The Inside Scoop

It was a Sunday morning, and we arrived at Yue Huang shortly before noon to find patrons waiting both inside the restaurant foyer and milling about outside.

After inquiring about the process,  I made my way inside to the hostess station and wrote my name and the number in our party on the list.  We were number 39! When I inquired as to the length of the wait to be seated, I was given an estimate of 40 minutes.

As there were only the two of us I felt confident, however, that we would be seated in a much shorter length of time.  I was wrong.  It was closer to 50 minutes before our number was called and we were escorted to our table for two.

While waiting, we both remarked on the large number of people arriving and then departing with their take-out orders.  Take-out, which can be ordered online, is obviously a popular option.

Good-to-Know Tips:

• Everyone in your party must be present in order to be seated
• If a number is called several times (inside and outside) and no one responds to “#23 for 5” (for example), if you are a party of five speak up! Apparently, Yue Huang expects a certain number of people to give up and leave – and your party can be seated in their place

As an aside – When my daughter and I went to the now defunct New Canton Restaurant for Sunday dim sum brunch, we made sure to arrive shortly before the restaurant opened.  That may well be a good model to follow at Yue Huang!

See related blog post:  New Canton Restaurant

Yue Huang – The Restaurant

The interior décor of Yue Huang signals that it is a high-end establishment.  The décor is very attractive, and features comfortable upholstered chairs and elegant light fixtures, among other things.  A series of tanks of live fish line one wall.

Adding to the ambiance were decorative touches added in celebration of the “Year of the Rabbit”.

Yue Huang Menu/Review

Menu

As we were shown to our table we were asked our choice of beverage.  My friend ordered a Diet Coke ($2 ) while I chose hot tea ($?).

Once seated we looked over the menu, and marked our choices.  The menu is divided into categories (steamed, baked, fried, pan fried, rice-roll congee, etc.).

Each dish is pictured, and most are assigned a letter (A. B, C. D, S, K, T) which corresponds to the cost per dish.  Prices for most dim sum dishes range from $4.75 to $11.95.

Our order consisted of seven dishes, five of which it turns out were “steamed”:

• Shrimp Dumplings/Ha-Kao ($8.95)
• Siu Mai ($7.50)
• Spareribs w/black bean sauce ($6.50)
• Beef Balls ($6.50)
• Steamed BBQ Pork Buns ($6.50)
• Crispy BBQ Pork Buns ($6.50)
• Pork w/Vegetable Potstickers ($6.50)

It was about ten minutes from the time our menu was collected before six of our seven dishes were delivered to our table.  The pot stickers arrived less than ten minutes after that.

Review

We had not ordered anything out of ordinary, and each dish was as expected.  I have never been a fan of spareribs with black bean sauce so I had one rib and left the remainder for my dining companion.  The Ha-Kao were plump with shrimp, and the pot stickers were tasty.

My favorite two items were the Steamed BBQ Pork Buns and the Crispy (baked) BBQ Pork Buns.

My friend opined that she thought the dishes were largely “bland”, but that may have had something to do with the fact most of the dishes were steamed.  The only condiments on the table were soy sauce and chili oil.

Service

The restaurant was busy, and the service was efficient.  The water in my teapot was replenished as needed.  We were asked once during our meal if there was anything else we needed which was appreciated.  While we had to catch a member of the staff to ask for our bill, it was only a short wait before it arrived.  We also asked for containers, and each of us took home leftovers for dinner, or in my case lunch, the next day.

See related blog post:  Ming Dynasty Dim Sum

To Sum Up

To sum up, I definitely would patronize Yue Huang again.  There are a number of other dishes I would like to try – such as the Shanghai Meat Dumplings.

Yue Huang seems to me to be a bit pricey, but then dim sum is never inexpensive.

Comments on Yue Huang?

Do you have a favorite dish at Yue Huang?    What is your favorite dim sum restaurant in Sacramento?

Yue Huang Snapshot:

• 3860 Truxel Road, Sacramento, CA 95834
• (916) 621-3737
• Days/Hours of Operation: Monday – Friday (11:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m.); Saturday – Sunday (10:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m.)
• Dim Sum: Opening to 3:00 p.m.
• Parking: Busy shopping center parking lot

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