A beautiful Michelin-recognized tea house experience with amazing service, flavorful food, and a really unique atmosphere. Stopped by Palette Tea House with The Kid after FoodieLand thinking we were just coming for tea... and ended up having a full experience. We sat at the communal high-top table in the center of the restaurant, which has a small pond built into it with little goldfish and even a tiny rubber duck sitting on the rock formation -- such a cute detail and definitely adds to the ambiance. Our server Ken was fantastic and incredibly knowledgeable about the menu. He recommended the Iron Goddess tea, which ended up being excellent. The Kid ordered the Milk Aroma Oolong, which surprisingly tasted almost like milk tea even though it's just brewed tea. Each tea comes with its own kettle, and Ken even came back to refill the hot water for us. For food, we ordered the Wagyu Beef Fried Rice, which was a huge portion and easily shareable. Very flavorful and well prepared. We also tried the Sichuan Seafood Dumplings and the Iberico Pork Dumplings, both of which were delicious. One order is definitely enough to share. The dumplings come with several dipping sauces including soy sauce, vinegar, chili oil, hot mustard, and a cilantro-based sauce that had a slightly sweet, horseradish-like flavor that really stood out. Service throughout the meal was amazing. Even without a reservation, we were seated immediately. As a Michelin-recognized restaurant for 2025, it definitely felt like a special treat and lived up to the experience. read more

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Out to a new place for dinner with family. Palette Tea House Server - Westley, was so good in helping us pick the best dishes and drinks. Jordan Chardonnay, 2022 Russian River CA Decoy Cabernet Sauvignon, 2023 Alexander Valley, CA Fort Point Villager IPA Dinner Chinese Olive Fried Rice Cumin Spicy Lamb "Longevity" Noodle Palette Soup Dumpling "XLB" Sampler (5 Pieces) Chicken Soup Dumpling "XLB" (3 Pieces) Black Swan Tara Puff (2 Pieces) Lotus Wrap Abaline Sticky Rice Wok Fried Gai LAN and Shitake Mushroom Desert Steamed Custard Dumpling Durian Custard Bao Wow, I could not say which one was my favorite dish. Every dish was great. In addition to the deserts. The deco was real nice and colorful. The had Peking Ducks all set for roasting on display. Must visit. read more

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Went to this tea house first time over the weekend for Mother's Day. We reserved a table days in advance. We chose the outdoor table because of our dog. First off, great vibe and ambient. Modern decoration with touch of traditional Chinese accents. The food was 4 stars out of 5. -5 stars for presentation. -3.5 stars for the taste. The presentation is fancy and luxurious. We ordered both the scallops and abalone shui mai. The abalone is okay but the scallops ones are way better. We also ordered the lotus leaf with abalone. While it looks so fancy, the rice is really wet but not binding together. The flavor is lacking as well. The best dish was the Iberico cha siu (bbq pork). It was so tender and flavorful. All of their food would looks really good on IG but I personally prefer my food have wonderful taste than wonderful photos. The service was good overall but it is a little slow given how fancy the food looks like. Empty plates were not removed until requested or when new plates have nowhere to place. Price point wise..Definitely on the higher end but not too crazy especially this place is in the heart of SF. There is a parking structure next to the tea house but it gets challenging during the weekend. I would rather take ferry and grab a Lyft next time. Will I be coming back? Maybe but it will not be my top choice while I'm in SF. Will I recommend? Yes! You should absolutely try it for yourself! read more

Palette Tea House - Dim Sum Near Me - San Francisco, California

We came here because it's the sibling restaurant of Dragon Beaux, which I tried first, and ordered an assortment of dishes, including the crispy ha gow, fish fillets, sakura shrimp fried rice, pan fried buns, and a cocktail each. Everything was very tasty with an Asian fusion flair, but the sakura shrimp fried rice was by far the star of the show in my opinion. Definitely a good option if you like seafood like me. I could keep eating it indefinitely. The ambiance of the restaurant inside Ghirardelli Square was also really nice, and I loved the unique palette aesthetic. The meal felt like a work of art. I've only come back once since my original visit because it's tucked out of the way, and there's not a lot of parking or transit options. I think it's worth checking out though, and if I'm in the neighborhood again, I'd swing by if for no other reason than to grab some more sakura shrimp fried rice to-go. read more

Palette Tea House - cocktails - Dim Sum Near Me - San Francisco, California

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Outstanding next level dim sum lunch. Every dish was good and satisfying. Favorites were the Iberico chashu and salty egg Dungeness crab. Sweet, savory and fatty pork with the perfect char and crunchy fresh crab with a umami finish that came right out of the shell without effort. Siumai and hagow were on point and the garlic stir fried pea shoots had wok hei. Can't wait to come again the next time I'm in the Bay Area. read more

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Haven't been here in years so this spot deserves an update. Location is in Ghirardelli Square, a huge tourist spot, and surprisingly, it wasn't busy. I originally booked a reservation assuming that it was going to be extra busy given that the Chinese New Year parade festivities were going on, which also means, everybody was out and about, especially tourists. Anyway, we were seated immediately and our waiter attended to us as soon as we sat down. Aside from that, the interior decor didn't change much at all, but I think the menu did. Great service as usual and good food. We ordered the Wagyu beef fried rice, wagyu pot stickers, wagyu beef with veggies, pork soup dumplings, lobster, and the swan shaped dumplings. Everything was tasty, except my man didn't like the swan shaped ones. Overall, great place to eat dinner. Prices were reasonable considering the location. read more

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Since Covid I've become a total homebody. 8 times out of 10, I really would rather eat at home. Thanks to meal deliveries now being so seamless, having takeout today is a far cry from what pizza & Chinese food delivery was back in the day. For all of you too young to remember... Once upon a time, if you wanted to order any food delivery, you had to call the actual restaurant, from a landline phone, & just wait. No live status reports, etc. The driver's were tipped in cash, in person! And the options really were only pizza or Chinese food. What a long way we've come! Delivery is now the zeitgeist of the post-Covid era. And there are some restaurants that take their delivery more seriously & go above & beyond. Places where something like everyday delivery has become an art form. Palette is one of those places. Each time I've tried Palette has been delivery. The standouts... Peking pork & chive dumplings (so good!) Jumbo scallop siu mai (hubs loves them) Lobster ha gow with butter sauce (delicious!) Salted egg lava bao (I could eat 10!) It seems every time I've driven by their Ghirardelli Square location, it's a bustling atmosphere & there's a crowd out front waiting. Good thing delivery has never been this good. Food 4 stars Presentation 5 stars 4 & 1/2 stars read more

Stroll inside to dine on a quiet weekday afternoon. Wanted to treat myself to a delicious seafood lunch and was feeling extra hungry. I can't remember the cocktail I ordered, but I remember loving it. The restaurant's décor is beautifully done, vibrant, and modern, with artistic elements. I ordered the Dungeness Crab (pricey) and their sweet-and-sour chicken with white rice (yes, I was being a big back). While the texture of the Dungeness crab was nicely done, the flavor was lacking, and it wasn't worth the high price tag. I would've been better off just ordering the sweet and sour chicken alone, which had a nice flavor but nothing mind-blowing. Overall, I might come back because I like the vibes here and have a cocktail and appetizer, but I'll skip the meals. read more

Palette Tea House - Dungeness crab, sweet and sour chicken. - Dim Sum Near Me - San Francisco, California

Very nice dining experience and certainly feels upscale. I really liked the interiors and decor. The theme of colorful palette of dishes was a fun touch. My favorite dishes were the turnip cake, Iberian char siu, and dessert buns. Soup dumplings didn't have much soup but presentation was nice. It is definitely not a traditional dim sum experience, which you would get more eating in Chinatown, but it will hit the spot if you're looking for an innovative modern take. read more

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Elevated dim sum in the heart of Ghirardelli square. Selection is limited in the classic dishes: no crepe rolls, porridge, or barbecue items. Vegetarian egg rolls: crunchy, inside was filled with carrots, cabbage. Chicken and mushroom siu mai: not a favorite, would prefer the chewiness of a pork Chicken claw with kabocha squash: 3 pieces with three pieces of squash. Black bean pork rib with taro: could have been steamed for a bit longer, chewy texture Pork XLB: love the presentation of individual spoons for the dumpling, pork was gingery, top dish of the day Lotus wrap abalone sticky rice: comes out in a log with 1 piece of abalone on top. Two color rice, enjoyable dish Steamed custard dumpling: they did not have this in a bao vecustard was decadent but the skin was thick for the dumpling. Place can be difficult to find. Open dining space where it does not feel cramped. Interior is beautifully designed. A Cantonese speaking server assisted us and we were grateful because a few in my party required assistance for the menu. the portions can be small for the price, wish they would expand the menu for more dim classics. 5% service change unless you let them know you want to tip instead. "Hello I would like to tip in place of the service charge please" read more

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Came here for solo dim sum and ate a ton of really good food. Everything I had here was great. Some of my favorites were the crab fried rice, the Peking duck and the soup dumplings. Service is great and it's in a prime location in Ghirardelli square. I didn't realize it was a chain and was pleased to find out there's one near me in Orange County read more

Palette Tea House - A06 Lobster Dumpling with Butter Sauce (3)Pork & Shrimp Siu Mai (3) A15 Chicken soup dumpling "XLB" (3) - Dim Sum Near Me - San Francisco, California

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Officially my new favorite dim sum in the Bay Area!!! Yes, it is expensive AF but well worth the price because of the quality of food, attentive service, ambiance, and booking ease. We actually came here TWICE during the Thanksgiving holiday because we loved it so much. My family is considering making this a Thanksgiving tradition (who needs turkey when you can have Peking-style roast duck?!). Our favorites are the jumbo scallop-topped siu mai, the savory turnip cake (it rivals the ones I have had in Hong Kong!), calamari (the squid was so tender we thought it was fish!), and their lotus-leaf abalone sticky rice. And as much as I enjoyed their XLB (just the standard ones are enough!) Wagyu fried rice, roast pork and aforementioned Peking duck crepes, my opinion is that anything with seafood here shines! Parking is a pain but if you time things right you can avoid crowds. I also love how Palette offers their fancy dim sum all day, in case that is how you roll! read more

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Made reservations here for Christmas Eve. The classic dim sum dishes were just okay--we still prefer dim sum from H&L Peninsula. The real standouts were the Peking duck, sea bass, lobster, and crab. We also loved the unagi crepe and the rainbow roll. The fusion-style honey walnut prawns weren't our favorite, but I'd definitely come back to try the truffle menu. Surprisingly, the service was excellent--much better than what you usually expect at most Asian restaurants. read more

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We had a lovely Christmas dim sum lunch here! We made reservations a few days in advance. There was a sizable line for walk-ins when we arrived but we were able to get seated pretty easily with reservations. The inside of the restaurant is beautiful- feels nice and open, with a cute palette theme going on. Service was prompt and to the point. It was pretty busy since it was Christmas. We ordered the peking chive dumplings, black swan taro puffs, siu mai, lobster butter dumplings, xo shrimp dumplings, and wagyu beef chow fun. Everything was so good!! I honestly couldn't pick a favorite. I was worried the taro puffs would be a little disappointing because they look so cute (sometimes there's a trade off with aesthetics and taste) but they were delicious. I would get everything again. I do wish the dishes came in even numbers since we were a party of 2 (some came in 3 or 5, making it harder to split) but the quality makes up for that. Overall, would recommend this place for a more upscale dim sum lunch if you're in the ghirardelli area! read more

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Came her for brunch to celebrate a wedding! This is the nicest dim sum place I've ever been to and also the most expensive. There were some classics we ordered like har gow and shumai. We also ordered uni and salmon roe congee, Peking duck, and their signature black swan puffs. The black swan puffs were crunchy, light and had a great inner filling of taro and shrimp I believe. The duck was tasty with crispy skin. The uni creaminess and roe in congee was super unique! Overall a great place for celebrations or special occasions however for every day dim sum it may be a bit on the pricier side! read more

Palette Tea House - Uni roe congee - Dim Sum Near Me - San Francisco, California

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Very nice atmosphere, the dim sum menu had many options and everyone at our table had something to pick from. The decor inside is very appealing and walking through the doors we didn't expect to be blown away by what we saw. The food is easy to order and our server was patient and answered all of our questions. read more

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Got takeout here. I will say that the XLB do not travel very well- they absorb all the soup so that was a bit disappointing. The swans were amazing though. So flaky, crispy, and savory, and very rich! The durian custard buns were a bit too chewy with not enough custard, although they were cute. Definitely want to go back and try more things. read more

Palette Tea House - B04 Durian Custard Bao (2), Black Swan Puff (2), Original Pork XLB (3) - Dim Sum Near Me - San Francisco, California

I had made a reservation at what I thought was Palette Tea House in Ghirardelli Square, when in actuality I made a reservation for 24 people at Palette Tea Garden in San Mateo! (Only a 22 mile discrepancy -- yikes!). I was horrified at my mistake, arriving with 24 hungry co-workers but NO reservation. Fortunately, Dennis and his co-workers were amazingly gracious and able to accommodate our large group of people. The food was AMAZING!!!!! Best dim sum I've ever had. Even my fellow employees (who are normally meat and potato types) were impressed and pleased with the food and beverages. Our servers were attentive and gracious, the ambience is lovely, but the food was the star here. I can't say enough wonderful things about Palette Tea House. Do yourself a favor when you're in San Francisco and visit this restaurant! I live in the Los Angeles area, but next time I go visit my mother-in-law, I'm taking her to Palette Tea House! Yummy!!!!!! read more

The service was great and punctual, and the food is consistent. All in short, I'd recommend this place and will personally revisit. Truffle duck taro fried rice: It was really fragrant and nicely flavored. It will be perfect if it's a bit more moist. Dim sum: It's great and we don't regret getting two orders for 3 people! Radish cake: My favorite dish and will def get it again. The XO sauce on top of the crispy radish cake adds the kick to it. Chicken dim sum: I will personally skip this one next time. Nothing outstanding. Pork dim sum: This one doesn't stand out too much as well but is a better choice than chicken dim sum. Scallop dim sum: Will probably get this one next time too. The shrimp and scallop were big and nice. Taro pork ribs: My second favorite dish and is usually my must get at a dim sum restaurant. Seasoning is great, the taro is cooked very well that melts in your mouth. The portion is bigger than usual dim sum place. read more

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I love going to Koi place whenever I'm in town so I decided to check out their sister restaurant, which has a more "fine-dining" feel. I usually am skeptical about these types of places but I was thoroughly surprised about how good the food was. Majority of the dishes still have the Cantonese touch and was very flavorful. Pan fried radish cake with XO sauce - 5/5 Wow this was so good. The radish cake was perfectly pan fried and they were generous with putting xo sauce on top which cake the dish a nice kick. Highly recommend. Xiao long bao sampler - 5/5 Classic, very good. We also got the har gow, xo sauce noodles, and pan friend pork and chive dumplings. Everything was solid except I might skip out on the xo sauce noodles because the rice rolls weren't as crispy as I typically like them and it tasted a bit like chow mein ish with the bean sprouts. Nevertheless, this place is good but the price is a bit steep. Would come again for a nice occasion. read more

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Came by around 1pm and the place looked pretty empty, but the host told us there'd be about a 20-minute wait for an indoor table. It was a bit chilly outside, so we decided to wait--but luckily the host came back just a few minutes later and said a table would open up in about 5 minutes. Score! We ordered a mix of dishes, but IMO the durian bun was a miss--mostly bun with barely any filling. The real star of the show was the lava custard bun! I didn't get a chance to snap a photo of the inside because the filling practically spills out as soon as you take a bite (exactly how it should be!). The bun was super soft and fresh, and the lava custard was so, so good. Would come back just for that! read more

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3.5 Stars A "higher end" dim sum experience - don't expect the traditional, authentic experience of a tea pot brought out in the beginning and ladies pushing around carts. The presentation of everything was beautiful but honestly, the flavor fell a bit flat. More pricey than traditional dim sum. I love the concept - the "palette" plates and the variety of sauces on the table. Dim Sum: -Soup Dumplings Sampler ($16 for 5 flavors) - the soup dumplings were honestly, just okay. I found them kind of flavorless and lacking in soup. -Wagyu Beef Chow Fun ($27) - Delicious, albeit pricey! Other items that were good - BBQ Pork Buns ($9), Fried Mochi Dumpling ($10, super cute and designed like pears), Abalone Sticky Rice ($10). Service was weirdly super sparse. They lost one of our order sheets and completely forgot it, and we had to reorder. Located in Ghiradelli Square. The interior is stylish. read more

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My friend and I wanted to try to Palette Tea House since they were participating in SF restaurant week. We made a reservation for Tuesday night dinner. The prix fixe menu looked good so we went ahead and ordered that. It was a dinner for two for $95. Supreme seafood soup (4/5): This had crab, shrimp, dried scallop, and silken egg. It was a good starter. It is the typical soup you'd get during an Asian banquet dinner. Chilled cucumber salad (3/5): This was an okay cucumber salad. The dressing wasn't my favorite. I like a garlic marinade usually. Wok fried wagyu steak (5/5): This was SO good. Very tender and medium rare. The flavor was great. It was a garlic soy. I was surprised by the portion size. The vegetables it was served on top of was interesting too. Black truffle duck fried rice (4/5): It was topped with black truffle and had shiitake mushrooms and little taro bits. I don't care of truffle too much but this was a good fried rice. Decent portion size as well! Not too salty or anything. Garlic pea tendrils (5/5): It was heavy on the garlic which I enjoyed. Very good texture as well. Nicely wok roasted. Portuguese egg tart (2/5): This was definitely not their strongest dish of the set. It was a little limp. It wasn't even caramelized at the top which is the signature for the Portuguese style. Overall, I enjoyed set menu! I didn't have a problem with any item. The space inside is nicely decorated and large so it is great for small and big groups. The regular menu seemed like they had a lot of other items like dumplings and peking duck. Would I come back? Not sure, there are so many other Chinese restaurants in the bay to try. Probably a good place for a work dinner since a lot of the patrons seemed like they were coworkers. read more

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Tried out Palette on a Sunday. Didn't have to wait for a table for two and got the chilled cucumber salad, lobster dumpling w/ butter sauce, jumbo scallop siu mai and truffle duck fried rice. I liked the sauces and palette plate they give you as it felt very unique. The dumplings were big and had good amount of shrimp in them. Lobster didn't have much lobster flavor and the duck fried rice felt a little bland. Service was decent but could've been better given this is supposed to be a nicer restaurant. read more

Palette Tea House - E01 Smacked Cucumber Salad (cold) - Dim Sum Near Me - San Francisco, California

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I made a reservation using Tock. Party of three at 11:30am. First standard question- what kind of tea? 1/2 chrysanthemum and 1/2 pu erh. But now it's a pu erh tea bag! Why? And tea pot not on a warming candle. The menu has been revamped since my last review five years ago. (Although I've frequented the Hillsdale location several times). The three of us ordered 7 items using the paper ordering menu - * ha gow - generous pieces of shrimp * abalone siu mai - very meaty * chicken feet - three huge feet. Very flavorful. * rice crepe roll - my favorite. Plenty of finger size rice crepe rolls. In a nice XO sauce. * black swan taro- signature dish. A must order. * garlic broccoli - we were thinking Chinese broccoli. But it was American broccoli. Our mistake. A very generous dish. Perfectly sautéed. * calamari - big sheets of squid. Battered and deep fried. It was my two friends first time here so they were looking forward to eating here. Everything was delicious. My favorite was the crepe rice rolls. Very similar to Dragon Beaux's. Diners came & went while we were there. Service was attentive and dirty dishes removed. We stayed 1 1/2 hours. read more

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we were in town and were able to get a reservation the morning of! beef chow fun was the highlight for me. I was skeptical because it was a little pricey but I was blown away. the wagyu was tender and there was a good char on the whole dish. the wagyu black truffle pastry was delightful was well. crispy and the puff pastry was perfectly flaky and buttery. the filling was juicy and flavorful but a little too rich and buttery for me to have more than one. kimchi pork dumplings were cute and looked like little cabbages! flavor though wasn't anything special. likewise with the prawn ball. the egg tart's puff pastry was flaky but not buttery. the custard was a miss, instead of being smooth and rich, it was closer to curdled. read more

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Palette is located in ghiradeli square. It is a modern dim sum place, not a traditional tea house. There are some creative options and twists on traditional dim sum offerings. Prices are on the high side with average dim sum dish ~$10. More substantial dishes like fried rice or noodles will be ~$25-30 for the standard offerings. Quality is good and ambience is trendy and lively. We had their popular fried taro pastry, crab dumplings, abalone sticky rice roll and seafood pan fried noodles. Parking can be tricky but there is validation for discount at ghiradeli garage our you can try your luck with street parking. read more

Palette Tea House - Dim Sum Near Me - San Francisco, California

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Food was great, service not so much. Came on a week day and our server was so missing in action on a not crowded day, I was like bro, where'd you go? They didn't even care it was our family's birthday meal. Like, do we have to beg you for a free dessert? Cause I won't. So because the service was so slow things came out cold or we had to get stuff ourselves like napkins and plates, etc. Don't even get me started on how our server wanted a bigger tip. What's with a 30% expected tip nowadays? Bro, you have to earn that. We also had to chase down items that our server forgot. I really like Palette when they get things right, but when they don't it's sad. There were two people that said the manager was not there that day, or else we would have spoken to the manager. Maybe they knew I wanted to give my two cents. read more

Palette Tea House - Dim Sum Near Me - San Francisco, California

I am a big fan of Palette Tea House but this location is not it. When I first tried Palette Tea House in Las Vegas, it was among the best dim sum I have ever had. The quality of their unique dishes combined with the attentive service made it an elevated experience. They recently just opened their Irvine location so I am no stranger to this place. But our experience here for lunch last Saturday was so mediocre that it felt that we were at a different restaurant altogether. We arrived for our reservation and there was a large group ahead of us with nobody at the front. So we stood there for 10 minutes before someone even greeted us, only to walk into a restaurant that was mostly empty. After serving us water, the waiters never stopped by. We had to flag down a waiter to put our order in, flag them down again to order a drink, flag them down to order a few more items, then flag them down to ask for our check. How can you not check on a table even once for the entire duration of our meal? What was even worse was that we were seated near the kitchen and someone must have left the rear door open. So all of the cigarette smoke from someone's smoke break was wafting into our table. We were dining with both of our mothers and two young children and it was completely off putting. It felt like we were dining at some dingy dim sum hall in China Town. Needless to say we did not have a good experience. The food that came out was fine, but there is literally no reason to pay for expensive dim sum for this kind of experience. If you have been wanting to try Palette Tea House, save it for a different location. read more

So far it is most fancy dimsum I tried in CA, service is great. Great presentation and the taste is okay! The price of the dimsum is pretty high (but they all look like an art ), it will be good to eat with friends. I think it is worth a try. Our bill comes up to $150 including the tips for two of us! read more

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This is one of my favorite dim sum spots in the bay! Everything cooked here is always so fragrant and packing with flavor. Service is typically great and I love how easy it is to get a table here. Black truffle chow fun- (5/5) the wok hei (smokey taste) is delightful and the chef sure knows how to highlight the mushrooms. The shaved truffles aren't really necessary in the dish because the flavor from the noodles and the morel mushrooms are already superb. Peking duck- (3.5/5) This dish is a hit or miss since the meat is not always tender and some times feels like it's been sitting for a while. The skin is typically crispy and I enjoy that they use the traditional wrap instead of bao. Iberico chashu- (5/5) meat has the perfect char and smoker flavor. Meat is succulent and is well marinated. Jumbo lobster with noodles- (5/5) lobster is filled with meat and is super fresh! It is definitely worth the price point and is very filling. Overall great spot to have dinner or dim sum at! read more

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The food was good, and certainly better than most of the other restaurants in the close area - but that isn't necessarily saying much given Fisherman's Wharf doesn't have much to offer. However, it was a nice meal, but I am sure there are better dim sum restaurants in SF if you venture outside of this tourist trap of an area. It was very quiet for a Friday night! read more

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Second time coming to this restaurant. The first time it was with friends of the family on a Christmas Eve. We enjoyed an array of wonderfully delightful food. The waiters here move fast to bringing food, filling up your glass with water and making sure you're doing ok. We sat at the bar area it was lovely, had a great view of the Christmas tree set up outside the restaurant. read more

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Fancy! We were able to book the reservation same day on Sunday. We arrived right at opening and were immediately taken to our table. The ambience was warm and vibrant. Food arrived 15 min after placing the order. We enjoyed what we ordered. It was a different take on the traditional dim sum. We both agreed that it's a good place to bring visitors or for a celebrations . We came, we ate, we were impressed. read more

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I've been to Palette multiple times in the past few years and both the food and service have been significantly declining. The last couple of times we went, the service was beyond bad with servers who just wouldn't look our way so they wouldn't have to help us with anything...even to order more food/drinks. Only one Hispanic server, was friendly and tried to provide service. The food quality and choices have gone downhill as well. They don't have a very limited dim sum menu. Even though the location is convenient and the restaurant is decorated nicely, we will never go back. read more

TLDR : Amazing Asian food place for good drinks and a nice meal Visited Palette Tea House for dinner on a Sunday while reservations are recommended the place was fairly open for a Sunday Dinner. We were seated quickly and we're promptly served. Tried the lychee cocktail and the kiwi mocktail which were good and not too sweet! The food was great, the lobster and the dumpling samplers were amazing. The squid ink fried rice was good as well. Overall a good experience read more

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I wasn't sure what to expect since this is in the part of the tourist spot. The happy hour is excellent and really delicious dumplings. The tart was authentic as well. Absolutely recommend and easy to hang out at the bar especially since I was by myself and on a work trip. read more

Palette Tea House - Pork soup dumplings - great tasting and so hearty given how cold it is here - Dim Sum Near Me - San Francisco, California

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The day before we departed San Francisco after a conference, we decided to try something away from downtown. This restaurant popped up when I was looking on Yelp for recommendations. The place definitely didn't disappoint. Although it took us a while to find the entrance, we were immediately drawn to the interior design. We went around 4 p.m., so it wasn't busy. The server was attentive and helpful. After reading the menu and reviews on Yelp, we ordered a variety of dishes to share. The dim sum was amazing and very well made, and we recommend all the dishes we ordered. We truly appreciated the fine dining experience. If we travel to San Francisco again, we will try this place again, just to order different dishes. read more

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We were in San Francisco and we were looking for something good to eat and decided to try the Palette Tea House. The entrance is easy to miss, you enter through an inconspicuous entry way that takes you to a courtyard that was bustling with activity. It was actually very cool. They have a 2 person tasting menu, so we tried it and we were not disappointed. It was a nice representation of their menu and a perfect amount of food for two. The cucumbers were crunchy and fresh, the soup dumplings were very good. The shrimp presentation was lovely, although neither of us ate all of the batter. The truffle duck fried rice was delicious. The egg tarts served as a nice dessert to round out the meal. Our servers were attentive and the decor was festive. read more

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I came here for brunch with my family and overall had a great experience. We tried several of their menu items, including the lotus wrap abalone sticky rice ($10), classic "ha gow" shrimp dumpling (3 pieces, $9.50), radish cakes with XO sauce (4 pieces, $10), lobster dumpling with butter sauce (3 pieces, $12), pork and shrimp siu mai (4 pieces, $10), steamed BBQ pork bao (3 pieces, $9.50), hot and sour soup ($18; enough to feed 4-5 people), and the salted egg lava bao (3 pieces, $9). My favorite items were the classic "ha gow" shrimp dumpling (although this is always my favorite/go-to) and the salted egg lava bao. The most unique item I had was probably the abalone sticky rice (mostly because I've never tried sticky rice with abalone). The rest of the items were good as well - no complaints! The interior is modern and fancy, and the service was professional and friendly. The prices were a bit hard to swallow, hence the four stars; some of it felt reasonably priced (for example, $18 for hot and sour soup seemed excessive, but then I realized the portion was quite generous), whereas some of it was not ($3+ for EACH piece of shrimp ha gow). Overall, it was definitely worth a visit! read more