r/FoodLosAngeles • u/I-Have-Mono • 8d ago
WHO MAKES THE BEST Who's slinging them HONKIN' BIG, NEW YORK-style Egg Rolls?
You know what I am talking about...And I won't be mad if your rec is on the east side, nor if they do delivery tonight!!!
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u/zotzbombs 8d ago edited 5d ago
I personally have been doing a hunt around LA the last few years to come up with a list of all places that sell New York style egg rolls. Here are my notes:
Fu's Palace (Pico-Robertson): One of the places I have not tried yet, but hope to soon
Egg Roll King (Glassell Park): They use ground chicken for this egg roll, but you won't really taste the difference. It's a solid choice and usually my go-to since I live not too far from there . Also, as you mentioned you were on the East side, this place is on the East side as well
Green Apple Bistro (Studio City): big big egg roll and I'm glad they make it so big. But, they are a little under seasoned inside
Genghis Cohen (Fairfax): Very nice egg roll, except a little bit small
Emperor Express (Van Nuys): Nice and big, but very oily. But, I don't mind the extra grease!
Fair Oaks Burger (Altadena): This place seems to be run by a family of Hawaiian Chinese and their egg roll, though not classic New York style, is still pretty tasty and I would try it again. The skin is not super thick, so it can fall apart a little bit easily.
New Moon (Montrose/Glendale , Downtown LA)I had their egg roll once when they used to have a location in San Marino. It was not good. if you have ever been to Nom Wah Tea Parlor in Chinatown, NYC and had their egg roll, this is kind of what they serve here too. I think Nom Wah claims this is the original egg roll style. I think I read online that it uses an egg crepe as the skin. Thus, this type of egg roll falls apart/gets soggy very easily as the skin is not so tough. You can Google Nom Wah to see pics. New Moon was just like the Nom.Wah egg roll. I would be willing to try it again in their other locations like Montrose or Downtown LA and see if it's any different at those other locations.
Wacky Wok (Westchester, Venice): Haven't tried their egg roll yet, but has been on my list of places to try for a couple years now
Mao's Kitchen (Venice): I just saw someone mention it on this subreddit and looked at their yelp. Yes, want to try this place as well
Twin Dragon (Pico-Robertson): This place has been on my list for a few years as well, but I haven't gotten a chance to try it yet
Mini Chinese Food (Redondo Beach): Someone mentioned this on the subreddit and I just looked at their Yelp, and it looks like what I want. I need to check this place out too
Nim Chan's (San Pedro): First of all, I love this place because it's old and has many layers of whitewashed paint, etc. Their egg roll, from what I remember, was good, but mostly vegetables inside. I would try it again
Bamboo Inn (MacArthur Park): Not in the greatest of neighborhoods, and more or less across the street from Langer's Deli, I love this place. The egg roll is kind of like the Nom Wah style I mentioned above, and it is not the greatest. But, I just love the history of this place because it's been there forever and whenever I go there I end up getting an order of egg rolls, two orders of fried shrimp, and an order of fried chicken wings to go. The egg roll is not going to win any awards, the fried shrimp hardly has any shrimp in it, but the chicken wings are solid. But even still, I love this place and I have never had a bad meal there. It's hard to explain why I like their fried shrimp because there is hardly any shrimp in it, but yet, I love ordering it. Also, their prices are good
Hot Wok (Burbank): Saw someone mention this on this subreddit, so adding it to my places to try
Fu Sing (Torrance): This place has been on my list for a few years as well, but I haven't gotten a chance to try it yet
Randy's Donuts and Chinese Food (Inglewood): This place has been on my list for a few years as well, but I haven't gotten a chance to try it yet
Jack in the Box (fast food chain): As people have mentioned in this subreddit, they do sell an egg roll and it's not bad. It's just small
Fortune Dragon China Bistro (Valley Village): Saw someone mention this on this subreddit, so adding it to my places to try
Gourmet Palace China Bistro (Sherman Oaks, Woodland Hills, Simi Valley): Saw this mentioned online today, so adding it to my places to try
Uncle John's Cafe (Downtown LA): From what I can see online, they sell the Nom Wah style egg roll that I mention above
Won Kok Restaurant (Chinatown): From what I can see online, they sell the Nom Wah style egg roll that I mention above
Tan's House Asian Cuisine (Yorba Linda): Saw this mentioned online today, so adding it to my list of places to try
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u/americanwest 8d ago
This person knows what they are talking about and we can all benefit from their research.
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u/tracyinge 7d ago
You can cross out Hot Wok. He does fried rice and a few other things very nicely but eggrolls are not travel-worthy at all.
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u/Due_World7962 1d ago
Wow! You deserve a job at Eater for this list! (Can confirm the egg rolls at Ghengis Cohen are totally decent!)
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u/Jujulabee 8d ago
Twin Dragons is wretched.
And I am fond of the sub genre of cuisine which is the comfort food of my childhood.
But this is really not a good representation of the cuisine
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u/mysocalledmayhem 8d ago
Genghis Cohen. On Fairfax. So, not the east side.
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u/I-Have-Mono 8d ago
I like them there. Have they moved into a new space yet, anyone know?
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u/MurrayCypher 8d ago
They have a spot at 448 Fairfax now that is only pickup and delivery.
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u/yestrask 8d ago
This is correct, also I'm hearing they may be doing dining again within a month or so
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u/godofwine16 8d ago
The worst Chinese food I ever had
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u/nooooodlepastasalad 8d ago
Idk why you’re being downvoted. I tried it bc everyone was saying it’s great and it was so ass 😫
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u/blackd0gz 8d ago
Yeah it sucks ass. Minus maybe their ny egg roll.
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u/PISS_IN_MY_ARSE 8d ago
Their egg roll is the only thing half decent there. Maybe the sesame chicken too
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u/blackd0gz 8d ago
Their Kung Pao was absolute shit. And burned to all hell. God they suck.
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u/PISS_IN_MY_ARSE 7d ago
yeah they had a bogo on beef&broccoli and it was actually foul. Broccoli was fine but the beef consisted of the most unseasoned pieces of leather u can imagine, lol. i don’t know if I could cook something so badly if i tried
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u/IceTurtle4 8d ago
They used to do egg rolls like this! They switched to the tiny pre frozen ones now. Very sad to see the quality here go way down. Used to be my favorite.
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u/mysocalledmayhem 7d ago
Oh reallly?!?!! Damn it to hell!
I will just have to do some personal investigation & visit soon.
The website still characterizes them as huge NY ones so I hope it was just a wild fluke occasion for you 😨
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u/Jujulabee 8d ago
Fu’s Palace on Pico
Address: 8751 W Pico Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90035
I am from Brooklyn and no egg roll compares to the ones of my childhood but these come close as did the Genghis Cohen when it was still open. Their other dishes seem to have gone downhill
The spare ribs from Xian in Beverly Hills are excellenT.
Anyoje who suggested Panda Express has no idea of what an egg roll should be but then they are eating mall food. 🤷♀️
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u/No-Penalty1722 8d ago
I've been here for 8 years, and Fu's Palace is the best NYC-style Chinese I've had in LA.
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u/New_Personality_3884 6d ago
Was just at Fu's and can confirm dishes were legit and they had the "apricot" duck sauce and a stellar hot mustard. But the egg roll I had was the usual L.A.: kind puny with the flimsy, albeit crisp, wrapper. Nothing like the picture here. I would LOVE to find one of those fat NY eggrolls AND a bowl of freshly fried wonton strips, like chips, at the table w the duck sauce... that's NY Chinese food...
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u/sonjjamorgan 8d ago
Girl, Genghis Cohen is mall food. It's just a different kind of mall 😂 right now...a semi defunct one
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u/Jujulabee 8d ago edited 8d ago
I am not a huge fan but it isn’t mall food. It is a slightly tongue in cheek replication of neighborhood Chinese restaurants of the 1950’s and 1960’’s which is a specific type of food that is recognized by New Yorkers of a certain age which is why people know immediately what the Platonic ideal of a New York egg roll is
I am not sure what you mean by a different kind of mall food is but the neighborhood joints in the boroughs were not mall joints and there weren’t even malls back then. All the ethnic restaurants were essentially made and pa enterprises. I went to elementary school with the daughter of the owners of Joy Fung which is a much lamented Chinese restaurant in Avenue J in Brooklyn
https://petercherches.blogspot.com/2007/01/chinese-food-early-years.html
https://www.boweryboyshistory.com/2009/12/joy-fong-and-memories-of-chinese-food.html
That is like saying the pizza joints in Brooklyn are just Sbarras
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u/sonjjamorgan 8d ago
Totally get where you're coming from and that makes a lot of sense. Genghis Cohen just gave a fake weird vibe I didn't get. Like if Disney made it.
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u/Upnorth4 8d ago
Not all egg rolls are new york style. The authentic Chinese egg rolls are different
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u/kikijane711 8d ago
See these pop up once in a while as posts. I thought I was nuts moving from Boston to LA and finding these stupid puny egg rolls with a few glass noodle and carrots. Searching for the fat, fried, LOADED ones I grew up on in MASSACHUSETTS.
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u/Timescape93 7d ago
LA has great food, but as another masshole transplant, egg rolls are one of a handful of random things I regularly find myself missing/haven’t found a solid stand-in for.
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u/alwaysasweetheart 7d ago
Yes! i didn't grow up in MA, but i lived there for a decade. I'm constantly comparing things i eat here to things i had there, & while there's plenty of tasty bites in LA, a lot of things i loved either can't be found or simply don't hit right lol
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u/Cheffie 8d ago
Green apple Chinese bistro.
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u/DreamStater 8d ago
Love their NY egg rolls.
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u/chasingthegoldring 7d ago
I get them almost every time I order from there but I think the skins could be a bit thicker and as someone mentioned, they need a little seasoning... but they are so good.
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u/TheRealTroyMcClure 8d ago
I have no idea what a NY egg roll is but friends from the east coast say Wacky Wok has them. Venice and Westchester.
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u/Ispellditwrong 8d ago
I had to stop going there when they kept raising their prices and the quality just didn't seem worth it. Still love them, but you can easily spend $80 for two people there.
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u/Jujulabee 8d ago
Prices have gone up everywhere including the neighborhood Chinese restaurants.
Prior to the pandemic I would eat lunch regularly at Fortune House with my father because he liked the food and it was convenient.
The lunch specials were all under $10.00 and now are $17.50 and $19.50 for the shrimp or more upscale choices.
And their regular menu prices are all $20 and above with some like a 1/2 serving of Peking Duck being $35.00
This is not an upscale restaurant - decor hasn't changed literally since I started going in the mid 1980's.
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u/Lardypoos2 8d ago
I moved from NYC to Venice. Can confirm they are the closest I have had on the West Side.
The mustard sauce is hot AF. There is also a location at Abbot Kinney and Washington Blvd.3
u/I-Have-Mono 8d ago
Thanks, never heard of that one!
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u/Clean-Bat-2819 8d ago
The stir fried rice there w/ shrimp, pork, and chicken - almost as good as home. Almost - I try to stay away from them but if I needed a fix in a pinch - the egg roll was passable. I bought them more than once and they kept fine in the fridge
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u/Mean-Temperature-561 8d ago edited 8d ago
When did these become "NY Style"? Grew up in/around Chicago and this is just what eggrolls were at every Chinese restaurant. Like 40-50 years ago...
Edit to add: And I have been looking for/needing these MFers for 20 years out here in LA...lol. Making my way to Eggroll King STAT
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u/Confident-Square-438 8d ago
Does anyone have any recs for the sgv?
Grew up with great, authentic establishments around me in the sgv but sometimes I miss egg rolls like these that I could only get in big cities on the east coast or in Europe 😂
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u/AnonBaca21 8d ago
Genghis Cohen. To boot, their house duck sauce and hot mustard is right/close too. They even put their spare ribs in that foil baggy! If you’re on the west side Wacky wok is good too but they only do duck sauce and mustard in the packets not house made.
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u/getwhirleddotcom 8d ago
Jack in the Box
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u/biggnate83 8d ago
Always add a 3 piece to any order from there. They shouldn't be as good as they are.
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u/kikijane711 8d ago edited 7d ago
They aren't as "good as they are". lol. the filling is like baby food veggies from a jar.
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u/Goldelux 8d ago
Yo, those Jack in the Crack egg rolls are surprisingly goated
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u/Gay1SinceDay1 8d ago
💯. Try them with the avocado sauce instead of the sweet and sour. Life changing.
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u/I-Have-Mono 8d ago
You serious? I thought the just had those small ones but now that you say it I do recall they once had some giant one, haha
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u/kikijane711 8d ago edited 7d ago
They aren't. Lame, limp, maybe a notch above general egg rolls but with retirement home veggie mush inside. . Nothing like the genuine NY article, in the least.
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u/kikijane711 8d ago
people who say this are nuts. Those are NOT the right kind and mushy, no fillings, not crispy. Nothing like NY style
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u/ShakeWeightMyDick 8d ago
They used to have these at the Song Hai Inn in Silverlake. They called them “Shang Hai style.” I miss that place.
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u/Cool_Cartographer_39 7d ago
Oh lord how I miss it too! Started going when their son used to do his homework behind the register and watched him grow up.
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u/ShooterJennings 8d ago
I like them New York crispy and traditional… but not like, too big. They get really soggy and nasty that way. A great egg roll to me in NYC is Wo Hop (17 Mott St downstairs). Also a place in Nashville as a kid in the Bellevue mall called Chop Stix was my first ‘correctly done’ roll.
So I search against these.
My favorite rolls in LA: Twin Dragon’s Chicken Egg Roll is fantastic.
Hot Wok right around the Lankershim/Vineland convergence in Burbank makes one of the best egg rolls I’ve ever had.
Nobody else has touched those two. Genghis Cohen is a good substitute but nowhere near these other two. Let me know if you find a better one…
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u/VaguelyArtistic 8d ago edited 8d ago
We have taco trucks. Washington DC has egg roll trucks just like these. Can’t we have just one? 😭
Edit to add that in the 80s Panda Express had these instead of the spring rolls they have now.
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u/americanwest 8d ago edited 8d ago
Green Apple China Bistro actually does the tiny shrimp and pork filling or chicken. Egg Roll King is very similar but only uses chicken. I’ve told the staff there that they’d sell even more egg rolls if they offered the tiny shrimp and pork filling.
I do think Egg Roll King’s egg rolls wrapping technique and amount of filling is better, but to be honest I’m happy to have both options.
Green Apple China Bistro’s other food is actually also quite good for flavors and preparations similar to your average NYC or Long Island preparations.
Eagle Rock Green Dragon is also similar, but better overall.
I know Green Dragon and Egg Roll King are owned by very kind families and I assume the same is true of Green Apple China Bistro. We are lucky we can support all of them.
Egg Roll King and Green Dragon are within a ten minute drive of each other, so I have occasionally picked up the egg rolls from egg roll king and then the rest of my meal from green dragon order to complete my ritual.
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u/blackd0gz 8d ago
Green apple is very mid. Or less.
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u/americanwest 7d ago
Compared to what? In terms of resembling your average Chinese takeout spot in NYC or Long Island, it’s very close. In terms of every different style of Chinese cuisine that you can get it Los Angeles, it’s very low ranked.
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u/zotzbombs 7d ago
Green Apple would probably be the best NY style egg roll in town if they just salted their filling a bit more
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u/PerformanceDouble924 8d ago
Mao's Kitchen in Venice has them at $2 per. Delicious, and vegan.
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u/MostlyPotStickers 8d ago
The outsides of these are blistered and tasty like they should be, but they’re skinny and don’t really have the interior ingredients or flavor of the kind of eggroll OP is looking for.
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u/realrichieporter 8d ago
Green Apple, in Studio City. They’re good, not great. Everything else there is GREAT, IMO.
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u/Dokterrock 8d ago
If anybody knows any in Ventura or Santa Barbara county please post them here, too
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u/LavaPoppyJax 8d ago
These look a lot like the ones I make and I just bought the stuff for them tonight. The insides could be totally different but I use chicken, cabbage mix, bean sprouts m, cilantro and seasoning. They arent too hard to do. You have to get the hang of rolling them
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u/BookkeeperSame195 8d ago
Fortune Dragon China Bistro on Whitsett in the Valley makes NY style egg rolls and they taste like nostalgia
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u/Jumpy_Implement_1902 8d ago
As a former New Yorker NY egg rolls are over rated. They are tasty but I wouldn’t drive out of the way for one. LA Asian food is 10x better. Get some Vietnamese eggrolls with fish sauce
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u/sonjjamorgan 8d ago
This is objectively true and yet sometimes the crappy thing is the thing we want. See - the Jack in the Box taco. Hahah
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u/littleclaww 8d ago
Yeah, I'm half Chinese, grew up eating authentic Chinese home cooking and even ate dinner once a week with a best friend who's dad was a chef when he lived in China. I still sometimes crave crappy Americanized Chinese fast food in the same way I specifically crave Taco Bell because it's a separate category from actual Mexican food.
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u/DecelerationTrauma 8d ago
New York egg rolls are their own thing. The best I ever had were from a place called Syn Kow in the suburbs North of Chicago where I worked in the early '80's.
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u/frank_nada 8d ago edited 8d ago
true but i’ve had plenty of the skinny little veggie rolls here. i miss the thick daddy egg rolls i grew up with. and duck sauce!!
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u/kikijane711 8d ago
Unless you find a special egg roll place sorry but you are wrong. I lived in NY and grew up in Boston and most are lame here. Even Vietnamese places. Used to love Absolutely Phobulous but the Beverly Center before it closed bc they had pork and crab but most LA egg rolls are sad, like throwaway. No crisp, no true savory filling.
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u/ValhirFirstThunder 8d ago
I can't say this enough in this sub, but a lot of transplants have hard time giving these up for better food for the same cost...
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u/burntdaylight 8d ago
It's not a "better" thing. It's a craving thing. If I ever leave here I'm sure there's plenty of things, fantastic and just okay, that I'll have a hankering for.
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u/Ispellditwrong 8d ago
People laugh when I say the egg rolls from Jack in the Box are better than most of the Chinese places in LA, but it's not a joke.
Which also tells you the lack of quality I've found here compared to NY.
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u/SantaCruzSucksNow_ 8d ago
I have a similar issue with Panda Express having the best Kung Pao chicken in town.
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u/TheSwedishEagle 8d ago
Yes, if there’s one thing LA lacks it’s quality Chinese food.
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u/Ispellditwrong 8d ago
A place can have a quality menu in general, and still have bad or just not great egg rolls. That's what I meant.
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u/Pizza_900deg 4d ago
Green Apple in Studio City. Kind of strange though, the cabbage is undercooked, they use whole Bay shrimp and chopped char siu. Not much flavor.
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u/Due_World7962 1d ago
I make mu shu pork, and pancakes from The Woks of Life website, the greatest Chinese food blog ever! But I wasn’t about to make egg rolls too.
One day I will try!
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u/beagle72 22h ago
Not promising NY egg roll nirvana, but surprised to stumble on semi-legit looking egg rolls at the Whole Foods hot bar @ Plaza El Segundo a bit south of LAX. Filling is cabbage/veg only, some are a little greasy but flavor profile in the ballpark. Quasi-NY vibes if you need a quick hit. (Heated up leftovers in convection oven at home served w/duck sauce packets smuggled from NY.)
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u/AssistSignificant546 8d ago
Anybody know of anywhere that puts peanut butter in their egg rolls? A local place we used to have had huge egg rolls like this but the secret ingredient was a small amount of pb.
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u/Intrepid-Anybody-704 8d ago
I love American Chinese food but I just can’t get on board with those egg rolls compared to the ones you get at dim sum or at viet places. American egg rolls are just so doughy and bready at the ends and scrape my mouth in an unpleasant way with how heavily fried they are.
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u/cloud_busting 8d ago
Egg Roll King in Glassell Park, and they have packets of duck sauce too