Mr. Ding is very warm and welcoming, and he is excellent at recommending dishes--everything he suggested was delicious! He is a truly wonderful person! read more

HL Peninsula - Dim Sum Near Me - Castro Valley, California

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The environment was okay, the food was alright, not as bad as I imagined, and the service was very attentive.

It has great food and service I would recommend it too my friends and family. Many people should try it!

Past reviews still stand. This review is to add foods and confirm top choices Shrimp with chives is excellent. It is sweet with good green flavor. We like it a little better than the shrimp and pea shoot ( though it's also good) All shrimp dishes have plump, fresh shrimp New items Pumpkin egg steamed cake -- very interesting! Not overly sweet. The salted egg yolk comes through. It's in the dry side but not unpleasantly so Tender greens with garlic : these are fine. It's baby bok Choi Bbq pork rice noodle roll: I guess we will try next time! The noodle machine was broken. They didn't tell us though. We just waited and waited ! read more

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Very nostalgic - this place reminds me of many dim sum places I went to as a child. Not mind-blowing quality (this is not like Dragon Beaux, and I still rank Koi Palace above this place too) but for the price you get really solid dim sum. The service also reminds me of what I experienced as a child - efficient! The premises are also very impressive - such a huge restaurant and really amazing collection of alcohol decorating the walls, and extremely solid chairs to sit in, and clean and spacious!! They also have some fun specials. My husband and I tried the special Tianjin black sesame twist and it was HUGE! It was a fun novelty though I likely wouldn't get it again; taste was just ok. Again, very solid dim sum place and grateful to have such a solid place close by! read more

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Came here for father's day dim sum and arrived around 11:45. Parking was tough so our son dropped us off while we went in to grab a number. They have a cool system where once you get the number you can see how many people r waiting for tables for various party sizes. It's a huge place so she said the wait would be about half an hour but it was really faster than that. It looked intimating though cuz there were soooo many people waiting. The food was okay and the service was bad. We waited quite a while to be asked what kind of tea we wanted and had to flag someone down for anything we needed. Maybe service is bad because there is an automatic 16% tip added to your bill. All the dim sum prices were considered mainly "large". Bill came to over $100 for the 3 of us. The noodle dish was large for the price though but the dim sum was meh. Got the high tower fried pancake cuz it looked like the ghost from pac man but it was really just fried and a bit greasy with no real taste. Maybe if you closed your eyes you can convince yourself it tasted a little like a churro. The place was noisy and tons of screens allowed you to watch the fifa soccer games. If you don't want to talk to your party come here where it's noisy and you can watch tv instead of talk! read more

HL Peninsula - steamed 3012. Sleamed BBQ Pork Baos - inconsistent filling amounts - Dim Sum Near Me - Castro Valley, California

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Tried this enormous dim sum restaurant that everyone seems to be talking about. The place is huge, with giant TV screens and countless tables, yet it still felt crowded initially. Customer service was okay. We ordered the prawns with wasabi-lime mayonnaise 10/10, pan-seared Australian Wagyu beef with teriyaki sauce, 10/10, flavored fried Chilean sea bass 6/10, Peninsula fried rice 5/10. They were bit dry. The portions were huge, and the meat quality was impressive, although the bill adds up quickly. One thing to note: their lunch and dinner menus are completely different, so make sure you're visiting at the right time if there's something specific you want to try. The only disappointment was dessert. When we asked for the dessert menu, we were told they were closing and would no longer be serving desserts. It would have been nice to get a heads-up earlier. Overall, it was a good experience, and I'm glad we finally checked it out to see what all the hype was about. read more

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Ambiance - this place is huge. It looks clean and classy Service - we were seated immediately. We were given an order form which was quite hard to decipher. The list was long but somehow, we managed to order the right stuff Food - everything we ordered were fresh and delicious. The hargow and shumai here were probably one of the best I've had. The hargow was packed with shrimp and the shumai was moist and large. My favorite though were the bbq pork buns. These were warm and pillowy. I was already craving them even before we finished lunch. We ordered crab fried rice, gai lan, shrimp noodle, sticky rice and many more dishes. We loved them all. read more

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The HL Peninsula Chinese Restaurant empire just continues to grow with not only their largest restaurant yet, but also the largest Cantonese restaurant in all of North America! And yes, it is located on the main thoroughfare of a small but quaint city of Castro Valley, California no less! Opened in the fall of 2025 to considerable fanfare, HL Peninsula transformed a longtime Rite Aid location into one of the Peninsula's largest Cantonese dining destinations. The "HL" stands for Hoi Luen, the English translation of the restaurant group's original Chinese name. Founded by Chef Li Yongzhou, the H.L. Peninsula Catering Group has built a strong reputation for its Cantonese cuisine and dim sum, growing from its original South San Francisco location into a beloved local institution with multiple outposts. Having previously dined at both the South San Francisco and Burlingame locations, I knew this newest venture would be worth the visit. The challenge wasn't deciding whether to go, it was finding the right time to experience it, ideally when the crowds had subsided and the service, which understandably faced some growing pains after opening, had settled into a smoother rhythm. Given the size of the restaurant and the excitement surrounding its debut, expectations were understandably high. A group of two diners and myself decided to make a go of it on a recent Saturday morning for a brunch time visit. With both their parking lot and dining room being so massive, we weren't sure how many people would actually be here waiting in line. Thankfully upon entry, there was no wait at all, as they have a massive indoor waiting hall near their front desk and it too was empty as our table for three was sat immediately. With futbol playing on no fewer than six floor to ceiling wall television screens the atmosphere was lively at this location of HL Peninsula to say the least as almost eight months in, they are still thriving here, but I have to admit I thought everything would be more focused as they were sadly still having service issues which in turn would affect the quality of food that we would still enjoy on this initial visit. Ordering during the lunch hour is actually easy at HL Peninsula especially if you speak and read Chinese, but even if you do not, you can fake it till you make it, as many dishes on their lunch menu have images to go right along their names. Diners fill out their own order form meaning you either place a check mark or number in the space provided for the menu item you want to order. The menu at this location of HL Peninsula is separated into categories including their Dishes of the Day, Special Recommendation, Exquisite Seafood, Steamer, Street Favorite, Bakery, Roaster, Rice Noodle Rolls, Congee, Kitchen, Rice & Noodle, Dessert, and their Teas. As fans of their cuisine, we wanted to order a wide variety of dishes, but didn't want to break the bank with the food we were ordering. We noticed that prices at this location were slightly higher than their original location in South San Francisco, so it made us cautious on what to order overall. We always tend to order their Beef Chow Fun Dry Style from their Rice & Noodle section, and at 23 dollars this was in line with what we were expecting as it was a flavorful and truly fulfilling entrée. Instead of traditional chow mein noodles, we ordered their Signature Fried Rice Noodles which had a nice variety of seafood, scrambled egg bits, red and green onions. This was a perfectly tasty and affordable option on their Daily Specials menu that was only listed in Chinese so for those who do not know how to read Chinese it is best to ask your server. We also ordered their Shrimp Dumplings topped with fish roe, Beef & Yellow Chive Rice Noodle Rolls, and Baked Egg Yolk Lava Baos to complete our meal. It should be noted that here at HL Peninsula they do charge for teas and they even charge for hot water, so budget conscious diners should prepare to pay for anything you drink upon visiting. The service remains spotty at HL Peninsula, as it was hard to flag down any dining captain, whose sole job should be to oversee their section of tables, and our plates were brought out in an odd order with the dessert Lava Baos coming out first, of which we let sit there on our table because we wanted to enjoy them last and they were therefore less warm as a result. The real stars of our meal were our two noodle entrées as the Chow Fun was a nice greasy staple of our afternoon and the Fried Rice Noodles were an unexpected surprise. Our total bill came to $98.41, which is admittedly on the pricier side for lunch for three. That said, it felt like money well spent, as we left with enough leftovers for several additional meals. A return visit to HL Peninsula is definitely in order. After all, a drive out to Castro Valley is never a bad thing. With its newest location already making waves in the local dining scene HL Peninsula is just building on their growing success! read more

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The place is huge! and I want to let you know that there are so many rooms you can rent for special occasions. There are plenty of parking places. We went at around 11am and we were seated right away. Out of our order, what stood out was the durian pastry, which was served warm on the inside with plenty of fruits, and deliciously crunchy on the outside. The beef with noodles dish on sizzling hot pot style warmer, also had the flavor that will keep you wanting more and more. The dimsum small dishes are just ok in my opinion, but the beautiful decorations throughout the place made up for this wonderful dining experience. read more

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Came for DIMSUM. Arrived at 10 am and already pretty packed. Small parking lot. Large TVs which is a huge plus. Clean and fast service. Kinda pricey but what do you expect from a new places delicious and would come back. read more

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Huge restaurant, beautiful aesthetic, service is mediocre as the restaurant is so big and expansive. Not sure if they were short staffed or that just normal amount of waitstaff. Took forever to put our orders in and honestly I feel bad for the workers for the amount of walking they need to walk to serve the dishes. We had ordered the usual dim sum fare. I won't say anything with the piggy mango pudding that came out first as those were already prepared. We got our soy sauce chow mein first then the short ribs then beef rice rolls. Various orders came out and then we sat for the longest time waiting on Shrimp dumplings, siu mai and chicken feet. The most traditional items for dim sum came at the end of the meal. Flagging waitstaff is worse than being a student in a huge lecture hall. Flagged like 3 waitstaff and thought I was acknowledged because he nodded at me. Another 10 mins went by and still no check, I swear I could've walked out of there without paying and no one would notice. Finally, a 4th person came by, and I asked for my bill, ended up walking to the cashier to pay my bill, otherwise risk sitting there for another 15 minutes before we can leave. Eats: Shrimp dumplings are huge and savory, turnip cake was ok, fried hom sui gok was freshly made to order. Soy sauce chow mein was actually a nice surprise, it has a nice lemony finish to it. Probably my favorite dish out of everything that we ordered. Skip the scallion Pancake, I like that it is not oily but super bland. Also skip the mango pudding and the chocolate pudding. Bigger restaurant does not mean it is better. They need to figure out a way to streamline the service or at least have a better delivery system of food efficiently. Assigning servers to designated sections should be helpful in providing more consistent service and prevent guests from being overlooked. read more

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The atmosphere was really classy, would definitely be a great wedding banquet hall as they have sectioned areas and private rooms. The food was decent, but everything came out extremely slow. Everytime I thought dinner was over, one dish would come out and this repeated for the rest of the meal. I think everyone in our party was confused as well because people would keep getting up and sitting back down throughout the whole dinner. There's a supermarket next door so the parking lot fills up pretty quick, but there's still plenty of spaces available around the corner. read more

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Mr Ding is so kind! He let us know about the specials for the day and was so nice when we asked for accommodations! HL peninsula is a very big banquet hall and very nice lighting interior. The food is spectacular and they really put effort in every dish! My parents even complimented how the Chinese food is well prepared and not salty!! read more

HL Peninsula - Dim Sum Near Me - Castro Valley, California

We had HL Peninsula for a part of my birthday celebrations and the food never fails. We had the rice skin wrapped with shrimp, har gow, siu mai, roast duck, buns and more! Everything is so well made and it's become our local favorite. We are elated we don't have to drive across the bridge to get HL anymore. read more

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Had dim sum with my family at HL Peninsula, and it had been such a long time since I last had dim sum that this meal reminded me how good dim sum can be! My aunt and uncle handled all the ordering, and everything that came out was tasty. There was a great variety of dishes, and I enjoyed pretty much everything we tried. The restaurant is huge, with lots of seating and large screens throughout the dining room, making it a fun spot for a family gathering. Overall, it was a solid dim sum experience and a nice reminder of how much I enjoy this type of food. I'd come back again with family. read more

HL Peninsula - Vibe - Dim Sum Near Me - Castro Valley, California

This time around, I left feeling disappointed. The level of service I experienced previously was noticeably lacking during this visit. We spent a significant amount for lunch, yet waited nearly an hour for the piggy custard buns. Throughout that time, multiple servers passed by our table assuring us the order was on its way--but it never arrived. Later, we were told that a second order had never been placed, despite it clearly being marked on our menu. It appears the order was never entered into the system, which is frustrating, as that's not something the customer should be held responsible for. At the end of the day, it wasn't really about the buns--it was about the principle. The lack of accountability, the miscommunication, and especially being met with blame instead of a solution made the experience even more disappointing. There also didn't seem to be any effort from the staff to follow through or check with the kitchen regarding the missing order. Unfortunately, this experience took away from the overall dining experience. The automatic gratuity for larger parties may also play a role, as it can sometimes reduce the sense of urgency or ownership in service. Because of this visit, I'm hesitant to consider this restaurant a top choice moving forward. read more

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Was excited to try this new dim sum spot! It is huuuuuge, barely a wait on the sunday before CNY! the only thing was the parking lot is small compared to how big the restaurant is! Food is all very standard and yummy, I love dim sum so I loved it all! read more

HL Peninsula - Pan-Seared Rice Noodle with Seafood and Mushrooms - Dim Sum Near Me - Castro Valley, California

We stopped by around noon and it was packed. I quite liked the dish I had but the service was SLOW. Unlike most dim sum places only one cart came by, everything else we ordered off the menu. We ended up cancelling subsequent items bc we had to go. I would go back if we had more time to spare and more people so we could try more things. read more

Not sure if I went on an off day, but I had by far the worst dim sum experience here. I visited on a Tuesday during lunch and it was horrendous. We were there for over an hour and a half, which is extremely long for a lunch service in my opinion. The restaurant is huge but barely half was filled, so not sure why service was so slow. Service was terrible and inconsistent. At first, the servers were attentive but many times we were having to flag down servers for more water, to get a status on our food, etc, which of course also leads them to be a bit annoyed. Our tables around us also were waiting long times for their dishes. We ordered about 8 dishes which all came out scattered, where we had some food then we'd have to wait another 15+ minutes for the next item. It took 50 minutes for our congee to come out which is ridiculous. We couldn't eat our food consistently which had us wanting to order more because the food was taking so long and we were hungry and waiting, we ended up ordering chow fun last minute and Shanghai dumplings which we noticed they forgot to add from our first order.. Surprisingly the Shanghai dumplings came out still before the congee from our first order. The dim sum itself was fine, smaller pieces and portions were smaller than other spots. We got the general tao chicken wing and two pieces weren't cooked thru and at that point, I was genuinely annoyed and over it. We didn't complain or anything, I just finished as quick as I could so we could leave. I won't be back and don't recommend this spot. Their menu is limited compared to other spots so it baffles my mind that service was THAT slow on a weekday. I cannot imagine what service is like on a weekend when it's a full house. Prices are on the higher side for the portion and quality as well. There are better dimsum spots I'd rather make the drive to. It was almost $200 for three adults + 3 items I placed for to go. That's insane! read more

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Been here a few times for lunch and it's consistently good: - service - quality food, I like the kitchen foods more than the dim sum, but enjoyed the durian green tea mochi - max 10 minute wait, 10ish and 12ish (no wait) Improvement - more bathrooms And THE most important thing: NO MSG headache!!!! read more

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When this restaurant first opened, it was celebrated news because we finally had a decent dim sum place in town. My friend booked a banquet event there but were tricked into paying for a higher-priced menu without their consent, since they were never provided a written receipt on the selected menu at booking. This manager (in picture) spoke to us very rudely and aggressively when we questioned the charges, with his Cantonese attitude "don't come here if you can't afford it", making the entire situation even worse. What a shame for HL to allow this kind of person working there! Meanwhile, I have seen and also heard multiple people comment that this same person is consistently rude and unwilling to help other servers during busy times, which contributes to slow service and a poor dining experience overall. I truly hope HL improves its management and customer service standards. One negative experience with the wrong employee can completely ruin what otherwise could have been a great restaurant experience. read more

HL Peninsula - Dim Sum Near Me - Castro Valley, California

Came here for dim sum on a holiday weekend and got seated right away. Food was good and comparable to other dim sum restaurants in the east bay. Service and ambiance were great as well! read more

HL Peninsula - Dim Sum Near Me - Castro Valley, California

We just had the chance to try out HL Peninsula and the dim sum, chow fun, and chow mein was fantastic. You can tell the shrimp bonnets and pork crab siu mai is fresh not frozen. The beef in the chow fun and the assorted meat in the HK style crispy chow mein was fresh. They were also good sized portions. The custard tarts came out first and were kind of sad looking. I ate half and lucky me, nobody at my table was tempted so I ate the other half, super delish. 8 of us came at 1 pm on a Sunday. They were super busy but we were seated in 15 minutes. Normally, I wouldn't come so late because the fresh food is usually ready just before noon. No leftovers from the day before reheated and everything should be heated and ready. However, food was surprisingly still fresh at 1 pm. They ran out of two sweet items, a pancake & a sweet bao. There is an automatic tea charge and also a 16% service charge. The 8 of us were sat at a table for 12 so we had plenty of room. There were no places for extra chairs. They leave them around the table. I'm just glad we were seated and could put our purses on the chairs and sit in more than one chair. The waiting area had lots of chairs too and they were in good shape! The employees were working hard. They did seem a bit disorganized. There was a manager who was trying to lead the employees but there was so many customers and so many little things customers wanted or needed, that more experienced workers would have made everything run more smoothly. I asked an employee for boxes for our leftovers and he brought one box and one bag. I needed 3 boxes. If he was trained to look at the leftovers and estimate how many boxes were needed, confirmed and got them, he wouldn't have needed to make two runs to get enough boxes. I love dim sum and it was very good. I would go back if I was in the area. read more

HL Peninsula - 3019. Piggy Creamy Custard Bao - Dim Sum Near Me - Castro Valley, California

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Came here around noon on a Sunday and I expected a long wait. Luckily we were seated immediately! Food arrived pretty quick and everything was made to order. I tried a few new items and I would have to say I'm pretty satisfied with every dish! Will come again! read more

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Second time here. First time we came late (8pm), the huge restaurant was pretty empty, and we had three dishes - one was very good & memorable: Chef Special Blackened BBQ Pork! Today, we came at 10:45am and it was already packed - President's Day holiday & the day before Chinese New Year. The large parking lot was already full. Even so, we were seated immediately. The many staff & servers were nice, efficient & seemed to work well together. The restaurant is huge, spacious & clean. We ordered the traditional Har Gow (shrimp dumplings), Siu Mai (pork & shrimp dumplings), Beef Chow Fun Dry (we asked for no bean sprouts & it was no problem), and Tomato Beef Chow Mien with Pan Fried Noodles (which isn't on their menu ... and they made it anyway & made it very well!). We also ordered Green Beans with Garlic (also not on their menu & they made it well anyway!). We also had Pan-Seared Chive & Shrimp Dumplings and Short Ribs with Teriyaki Sauce. The four of us are Chinese and have eaten lots of Chinese food in our lives. My Mom is especially picky & unfiltered about how she feels about Chinese food. We all felt all of the food was delicious! The prices may seem a bit high though the servings are quite large too. And there's an extensive selection of teas. I'm sure we'll be back again soon! read more

HL Peninsula - Near the end of our lunch! ;) - Dim Sum Near Me - Castro Valley, California

This spot is so pretty and huge inside! 5 stars for the beautiful large space with BIG TV screens. I think this spot is severely underrated to watch a big game! They had 3 large screens playing the Warriors game with volume. We got seated immediately once they opened for dinner on a Sunday - no more long wait if you come here early enough! During dinner on a Sunday there was definitely no wait and tons of seating available. The staff tried to upsell us on seafood (live seafood, the group menu, etc). They kept trying to offer different items and such. We ordered mostly dim sum and a few noodle/rice dishes. I recommend ordering their main dishes, rice/noodles, etc. Anything but their dim sum. Their dim sum was just OK, definitely had better at other spots around the East Bay. BUT, I think their main dishes and seafood is where it's at! The hallways to the bathrooms and private rooms was a fun walk. It felt like you're in a casino with high ceilings, tall doors, etc. The private rooms looked perfect for a family gathering if you want something private. They have a HL express and a bakery attached to the spot so if you're in need of a cake to add to your dinner, you get a special discount if you order directly from the bakery (pricing is affordable too). read more

Been here 3 times for dimsum and each time something is always missing. If you come soon after they open, almost guarantee to get a table without a wait. The space is very big and holds maybe over 100 tables varying in size. With such a big space though, there is only one bathroom. Depending on where you sit, you may have to walk all the way across the restaurant. Food: nothing spectacular. Just like any other dimsum restaurant. The timing of when food comes up is questionable. On two occasions, I had ordered two of the same items (eg. 2 Siu Mai, 2 chicken feet). Only one order comes out. I ask the server and they said the other order "is coming." The second order comes when we are almost done eating. Now sure how two of the same items can be steamed at different times. Dinner service is so-so. Portion size for food dinner dishes are small. We had a large family dinner here and ordered a few appetizers then entrees. All the food came out at once. My assumption would be that apps come out first, then once done, the entrees. This wasn't because the restaurant was busy...the had closed down half the restaurant seating because it wasn't full that evening. In addition, they started to bus our table before we were ready to leave. Overall, overhyped and not worth it. read more

Came in on a Saturday morning at 10 AM and it looks like they open a bit earlier than that on weekends. We had a group of 5 so we were able to order a bit more than before. Overall, the food was solid and the pricing is fair (they add in a 15% service charge but leave no line for adding in a tip). Food arrived hot and although we waited for a few things, everything did come out as ordered. read more

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Tried HL Peninsula Sun 2/8/26 Super Bowl day, it was full at 11am but we still got a table no wait. We got 10 dim sum dishes prices $6.80-10.80 and tea was $3.70. Beef roll was no good, weird beef that comes out of the rolls. Chicken feet - good Pork spareribs - ok Tofu roll - ok Tripe - hubby liked Egg tarts - good Shrimp chive dumpling - ok Turnip cake - was almost cold, meh Seaweed and jelly fish - ok Pork shrimp shui mai - ok Maybe worth going if nearby, I probably won't go back since it's 30min each way and not cheap. read more

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We were pleasantly surprised with how good our experience was! We were a bit apprehensive since this location was new. However, even on a Saturday, we were seated quickly, they picked up the orders, and food came promptly. Quality-wise, we enjoyed everything. I don't have the capacity to list everything we ate it was all solid. Except the hand-pounded iced tea. There was a strange floral taste to it and very watery? Shout out to the gangster host. He's keeping it real. But they should hire a professional lemon pounder. read more

This is the second time I'm here for dim sum. We got here at 10:30 am. They opened at 10 am. We got the next to last round table for 10 people in the main dining room. They have a great selection of dim sum. The quality of the food is good. It took a little while for the food to come out. However, once it started coming, it continued to come out. We ordered so much food that I had to take some of the food home to eat. My one complaint is that I had to ask for soy sauce around 6 times before someone finally gave it to us. None of the tables have soy sauce on it. Some people have said they think the restaurant wants us to eat the dim sum without soy sauce so that we enjoy the natural flavors of the food. I agree the dim sum tastes great without the soy sauce, but there are some foods I prefer a little soy sauce with it. I asked a worker to take our group's picture. Don't know what he did. Every picture, someone is blurred. He must have changed my picture settings as it should have taken the whole group without any problems. Just a fyi that this is the second time the women's restroom had a line. For the size of the restaurant, the women restroom should be larger. I've only been to this restaurant 3 times. The line appears to happen when the restaurant is busy. Parking can be tough so that's why we came early to avoid the headache of trying to find a parking space. read more

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I've said this before and I'll say it again: In my family, if you don't eat fast, you don't eat at all. So it was a challenge getting pics/vids of our dim sum experience at HL Peninsula in Castro Valley. But I did manage to get some, albeit rushed. This location is Castro Valley is new. And huge! It's the largest dim sum restaurant in the US, which can seat over 800 guests according to their website. I was worried that it would be difficult to get a table as dim sum restaurants tend to cater to a larger crowd (depending on the size of the restaurant). But that wasn't a problem for our party of three as there were plenty of tables to accommodate smaller parties. And if your party is particularly large, they have private dining rooms. One of the rooms had the largest table I've ever seen at a dim sum restaurant. It looked like it can fit 40 people... I imagine the lazy Susan is constantly moving lol. As for the food: really good for the most part. The star was the crispy pork belly. It was incredibly delicious! The pork was crispy and had a good balance between salty and sweet. The cucumber it sat upon brought a freshness to the fattiness of the pork. Which, btw, was rendered well where it wasn't oily. And the sauce also added some lightness to the dish. It was worth the wait! Other highlights include the sesame pancake, that had an eye-catching presentation due to its height, wild rice roll with shrimp, and the baked bbq pork bun. The rice roll was soft on the outside, with a satisfying crunch on the inside. The baked bbq bun was sweet with a pleasant sugary coating. Ones that didn't quite hit the mark were the taro puffs and shrimp dumplings. The texture of the taro was clunky, as if it had been sitting out for a while. And the shrimp dumplings weren't bad. I actually liked the popping texture from the roe. But I've had shrimp that was more plump and flavorful elsewhere at a lower price point. I think this dim sum restaurant is more of a place where you try something new as opposed to the more common dishes you can get anywhere. As far as service, I thought it was great, especially considering how insanely large this place is. It didn't take long to flag someone down when we needed assistance. And the food came out at a normal pace, though not every table had a party in my section. They have special CNY/LNY hours, so they're open earlier than usual. Call ahead to confirm. And definitely check it out if you're in the area. read more

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We made a special trip out to Castro Valley just to try this restaurant, which is touted as the largest dim sum house in the US. We got here around 11:30 a.m. on a Saturday and didn't have to wait for a table. The dining room looked elegant and spacious. Are tea arrived quickly while we were still studying the menu and selecting our dim sum items. I'm not sure what type of tea kettle it was, but our tea remained hot throughout our lunch. The menu had typical dim sum items, but there were also quite a few unique dishes that piqued my curiosity (such as the fried pancake tower), but we stuck with the basics on this first visit. Our food arrived at a steady pace, and everything was delicious. Our favorites were the crab & shrimp dumpling (sui mai), baked bbq pork buns, and soy sauce chow mein, but everything was top notch. The servers were pleasant, and there was plenty of parking when we arrived. By the time we left (around 12:30 p.m.), every table was filled. There is a 16% service fee that was added to our bill, which I didn't know if that was considered the tip. I asked about that and was told everything is included and no additional tip needed. I thought 16% was kinda low for a tip, but I guess that's how it is. Overall, a wonderful meal and a new dim sum place to add to our favorites. read more

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I want to preface that I came here closer to the restaurant grand opening, ( forgot to post for a while). The service was incredibly slow, they put us in on of those rooms and we just got forgotten. Other tables in this room seemed to experienced the same service as they left frustrated with trying to ask for boxes and for the check to be paid. Food was very mediocre, nothing special, and it didn't justify the price tag. The inside was new and similar interior to the other HL peninsulas in the bay. This location did not impress, hopefully they have fixed some of the operations by now. read more

HL Peninsula - Dim Sum Near Me - Castro Valley, California

Despite the negative reviews, we decided to give this place a try for dim sum lunch. The restaurant is huge, and we were seated right away with no wait. The parking lot can get busy, but there is additional parking available in the back. The newly constructed restaurant is beautiful inside, with impressive displays throughout the dining area that create a nice atmosphere. As for the food, it was actually pretty good. The dim sum was enjoyable, and overall the quality met our expectations. Unfortunately, the service was where things fell apart. It seemed like the restaurant was understaffed. Not only were we trying to flag down servers to place our tea and food orders, but several nearby tables appeared to be having the same problem. Even adding an extra order during the meal was difficult because it was hard to find anyone available to help. If you're in a hurry, this probably isn't the place for you. Service moves slowly, and getting a server's attention can be challenging. Since the restaurant is still relatively new, perhaps they are still working through staffing and operational issues. Overall, I'd give it 3 stars: 4 stars for the food, 1 star for the service. I'd consider coming back, but only if the service improves. read more

My credentials are: I'm Chinese and have been eating dim sum all my life :) To me, dim sum is hard to mess up and HL Peninsula aligns with that opinion. I ordered typical Chinese staples and my craving was satisfied. My favorites were the chicken feet and the pork spare ribs in black bean sauce, as they were savory, flavorful and tasted exactly as I thought they would. I prefer my har gow to be smaller and have a thinner wrapping and for my siumai to have more shrimp flavor pull through so those two were alright but could have been better in my opinion. I always need a side of chili sauce and loved that they provided the dim sum big three. Come early on the weekends just in case, but it's quite spacious up in this joint so I don't think they would disappoint. Service was decent and again typical. Sometimes I wonder how non-Chinese speakers navigate dimsum as I feel like it would be quite daunting. Dimsum places move in quick and there's usually a lot of hustle and bustle but the table next to me spoke only English and I thought the servers handled it perfectly, in their own Cantonese way :-) Would definitely recommend read more

HL Peninsula - 3007. Chicken Feet with Black Bean Sauce, 3001. Shrimp Dumpling, 3021. Steamed Fish Balls with Cilantro, 3006. Pork Spareribs - Dim Sum Near Me - Castro Valley, California

Having frequented many HL Peninsula locations in the Bay Area, I don't understand all the hate over this new location. Honestly seemed better run and more modern/cleaner than other ones I've been to. Food actually came out really quick - all of the steamer items like spare ribs and chicken feet came out piping hot. Good sign! We also ordered two specials - beef and rice noodles with sha cha sauce and sauteed lobster with sticky rice and pine nut. Both came with a generous portion and tasted great. My only complaint is that the beef and rice noodle dish could've used a lot more beef. Enjoyed a satisfying meal here though! read more

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Came here multiple times with my family, sometimes for dim sum and sometimes for dinner. The food is ok and the service is adequate though sometimes you have to ask multiple times for things. We tried fried rice, stir fry pea sprouts, lamb clay pot, honey walnut prawns, steamed oysters, fried squab, chicken, clam claypot and they were mediocre. I have definitely had better elsewhere. I did really enjoy two dishes: Tofu with Fuzzy Melon & Fish To-Fu Simmered in Fish Broth and the crab soup. They usually give you free dessert after dinner; it's usually red bean soup. read more

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FOOD: I mean it's hit or miss and of course dependent on individual taste buds. The beef was delicious. The okra was surprisingly delicious. The stir fried combination rice noodle was nasty and flavorless. The cha shui in the rice noodle was black, dark, and dried. The mushroom truffle to me was too much... too much soil and earth taste. The steamed bbq pork buns made folks go #2 rather quickly. The chive and shrimp dumpling was good... lots of stuffing filled to the brim. The fried glutinous dumpling with pork was delicious!! The dough for once was cooked through and chewy to the tee. The fish and crispy donut rice noodle rolls were dry but different which I appreciated. ***their rice noodle rolls are definitely unique and highly recommended to try at least one*** SERVICE: Yes they're rude. Yes they don't care. Yes they shrug you off. Yes they're unresponsive to feedback. Yes they say "no speak English" as an excuse. The table sitting next to us arrived at about 207pm (when they close for break at 230pm), the server pushed them every 2 minutes to order and to hurry up as the kitchen is closing. If I were in that table's shoes, I would've been pissed. Then as 230pm hit, server gave them boxes and the bill. They barely ate... yeah I get it, from their perspective, I want to quickly go on my break, too. Should've forewarned these customers. AMBIANCE: Very very very fancy with very very very fancy bottles and boxes of alcohol lining the walls. We went when there was a celebration going on so I don't know if that made the difference. Loved their separated rooms and orange decor profile. Casual meets fine dining. ***THEY ADD A MANDATORY 16% SERVICE FEE*** Located next to MeiMei Supermarket and some wonderland/boba cafe plaza. Plaza is under construction currently. Huge private parking lot. Would I come back? I'd probably go to the Milpitas location first. read more

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