Henry Ng’s well-hidden Rosemead restaurant doesn’t even have a sign. Thankfully, Genevieve Ko’s Gourmet article from May led the way behind the grey building and past the glass doors to Chuen Hing, a Chiu Chow style restaurant that delivered one of the most memorable recent meals in the San Gabriel Valley.

When we sat down, I asked our young waitress for the best dishes and she said, “They’re not on the menu.” She walked me to the framed Gourmet article, pointed to some photos and suggested chow mein, brisket soup, green beans and oyster porridge. The porridge will have to wait, but we took her three other recommendations.

We started with a plate of cool, crisp green beans ($8.95) coated with addictive spicy ginger sauce.

For his chow mein, Ng made the fettuccini-like noodles in-house and loaded them with a blizzard of ground pork, scallions, briny dried shrimp and both red and green chilies. The topper: nearly a dozen gigantic shrimp. The flavors were completely harmonious and left a subtle chile sting on our lips that built in intensity with each bite.

When we ordered, there was no telling how much the chow mein would cost, but when we saw the massive shrimp, we braced ourselves. Thankfully, when the bill arrived, the chow mein cost $21.95, which was a bargain considering the massive flavor and generous portion. The dish could have easily fed four people.

Brisket soup ($9.95) had a clear almost pho-like broth, minus the complexity and accompanying vegetation and plus cross sections of turnip. The slices of brisket were tender and the was soup was just fine, but with the chow mein on the table, it might as well have been invisible.

After our meal, Chef Ng opened lifted the top on a golden bull and invited us to each take a candy. Apparently the bull imparted good luck. Not that we needed it after eating his chow mein.

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3. China Islamic - Rosemead, CA - December 13, 2007
4. Malan Noodles – Hacienda Heights, CA – February 6, 2010
5. Phong Dinh – Rosemead, CA – April 30, 2006

1. Gourmet Pigs, October 29, 2009:

   Those shrimps are indeed gigantic. Thanks for the report. I don’t usually order chow mein when I go eat, but if that’s one of their best dishes, then I’ll have to try it.

2. Joshua Lurie, October 30, 2009:

   Chow mein isn’t usually my first choice either, but Chuen Hing’s version is light years ahead of other versions. Give it a shot.

This entry is filed under California, Chinese, Los Angeles, San Gabriel Valley, Southern California.