Hong Kong Saigon Seafood Harbor - San Jose - 4 stars

Last visited on: September 20, 2006. Often visited

Comments: Highly recommended for fresh seafood, recommended for other dishes


Ordered items:
Roasted pork, duck, squab
Steamed chicken
Preserved egg and pork porridge
Steamed bamboo rice
Dim Sum
Alaskan crab - steamed
Fresh fish cooked two styles
Stir fried clams with bamboo shoots and basil
Stir fried giant clam with preserved olives and black bean sauce
Tio-chiu cold crab
Clay pots, etc.
Daily soup

General comments:
Not many people know of this location yet, but a lot of people have frequented its other location: in Richmond, next to Daimo, where it sadly burned down sometime in July. I can confirm it is the same restaurant, because it has the same owner, same manager, same staff, same decor, and the same awesome dried abalones and shark fins in its glass case. The manager told me that they are planning to open in that location again.

New place or not, this new Saigon is as good as the last one. I read online about many average reviews, and I believe it is out of misconception of what type of restaurant it is. This is a restaurant with two different regional cuisines: Tio-Chiu (a city of Canton), and Hong Kong. Hong Kong claims the same cultural roots as Canton, but has evolved somewhat differently. Tio-Chiu itself is another story: different language, different environment, different cuisine. So when you come here, you can expect some very special ingredients and tastes being presented in the dishes. For the Tio-Chiu dishes, I do not claim to know whether it is authentic or not, but though the combination of ingredients is not familiar, the overall taste has its own logic and balance. If you can read the Chinese menu, then you can see which items are from Tio-Chiu, if you can't, then ask. I would say that it is so-so for its Hong Kong dishes, so avoid, unless you have something you like very much. On the other hand, their steamed chicken is very tasty. Fully presents the natural sweetness of chicken, unless oil chicken that relies more on the sauce.

Very, very good restaurant for fresh seafood. Soooooooo many different kinds of live seafood. Currently, they have live spiny lobsters for $35 each. I had it in their Richmond restaurant. Incomparable. The way a lobster should taste. (I never acknowledged Boston lobster as real lobsters. To me, they are just large shrimps. Only rock lobsters are real lobsters.) Another memorable experience: I steamed a whole live Alaskan crab for 3 of us to share. Costed $200, but well worth it. The flesh is so succulent and sweet that I almost weeped at the experience. The body is a lot better than the legs actually, but usually you can only get frozen legs, and the body parts attached acquired that fishy taste much more easily, lacking the protection of the shells. I also had an Australian emperor crab there. Think of dungeness, and times it by five for thickness, two for width. It was lightly fried and then stir fried. The chunks of tender but dense crab meat, drizzled with the delicious yellow eggs/guts...crab heaven. A must for any serious crustacean lovers.

Basic information:1135 N. Lawrence ExpwySunnyvale, CA 94089(408) 734-2828 Hours: 11:00 a.m.-11:00 p.m. Mon.-Fri.; 10:00 a.m. -11:00 p.m. Sat.-Sun.Fresh seafood price is seasonal, varieties change oftenOther dishes betwee $8.75 - $20