If you ask me what is my favorite restaurant in San Francisco, I might be tempted to say Sebo though dropping $50 (minimum) on dinner is not all that cool (I do think sushi rules supreme), Limon would be a contender. Sure it depends what you're going for, who with and your mood. Right now my answer is Hai Ky Mi Gia, a Chinese Vietnamese noodle house in the Tenderloin (only 8 blocks away, precious)

There are some 30 bowls to pick from, from the seafood combo (house special if you will, deservingly popular) to even beef stew. The plethora of options can dazzle for a minute: soup or dry (with a side of soup), thin or wide noodle, and finally egg or rice noodle (you can even get mix both). I've tried most of the combinations (except vermicelli) and by far my favorite is egg noodle, wide, dry

If you get the bowl in soup, it will be hard to get anything beyond the broth which is a clear chicken broth, nothing wrong but it can be so much better. You can mix in more flavors: squeeze some lime, add sugar + vinegar (trust me) and chili oil. Only in the dry bowl can you really appreciate the (egg) noodle, cooked just right with a tiny bit of snap. With the soup as a side, you get the best of both world and you can even add it in to regulate moisture

I really only mess with the following

黃毛雞麵 Shredded chicken (free-range)

Free-range (poulet fermier en français) gets you nice chunks of white and dark meat with skin, with usually a wing and/or drummy thrown in for good measure. It would be heavenly to get only dark meat but the white meat is quite tender; they run out of this by.. I wanna say 2pm

Braised duck leg

On the off chance (it has happened) where I lunch there back to back, this is a good alternative. It is marinated so there are more flavors, the texture is slightly tougher. Mostly it's more work since it comes with the whole leg (I know, laziness is a sickness). The pickled vegetables side is a bit laughable

More
- soy bean milk drink, hot: I usually like to top the meal with that, a bit weird to have it hot but it works; it is kept warm in a weird contraption that looks like an older style rice cooker, they fill up glasses of that with a big measuring cup
- fish cakes or 油炸鬼/Chinese donuts are nice appetizers to share

The restaurant got a recent remodel this August 2007, it's a breath of fresh air (the walls mostly) but I can see how it wouldn't really scream to anyone stepping into the joint for the first time. The decor is what you get for the neighborhood, decent. Same for the service, it's brisk though I get some smiles and nods from going there a lot. The staff speaks Cantonese, Teochew and Vietnamese (and actually Mandarin). Wait is usually minimal though the lunch rush might introduce you to the delights of sharing tables

Hai Ky closes at 6pm, prohibitively early. To reminisce on some good old French habits, I don't mind having this for breakfast or of course lunch. I eat at Hai Ky once a week, it's that good, it's all about the comfort food and it will only set you back $10 (including a drink and tip)

海記家麵
Hai Ky Mi Gia
707 Ellis St
San Francisco, CA 94109
(415) 771-2577
Google Maps (Ellis @ Larkin)

Online
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Cash only

Hours
8am - 6pm
Closed Wednesdays