Great China

Cuisine	Chinese
Price	$$ (16-30)
Rating	7/10
Last Visit	March 4, 2023
Location	SFBA: Berkeley + Oakland

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General Notes

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Great China is a somewhat upscale Chinese restaurant, right at the southwest corner of Berkeley campus. Ambiance is nice and food is very good (I was pleasantly surprised by the Peking duck!). The decor is not what you'd typically expect for a Chinese restaurant (it's got the fancy modern bar), but it's a nice touch.

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Positives

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> They take reservations for very large parties (on their menu, they specifically state "20% service charge will be added to parties of 25 or more") -- good place for larger groups. Do note that they have a $35 per person minimum for all pre-booked reservations (we hit almost exactly that for lunch)

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Dishes Tasted

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• ★☆☆☆ Eggplant with Hot Garlic Sauce -- Not my favorite dish -- the eggplant was a bit overcooked, and the sauce was a bit watery for my taste.
• ★★★☆ Chinese String Beans -- also served with minced pork
• ★★★☆ Sauteed Snow Pea Leaves
• ★★★☆ Guo Ta Fish Filet -- cilantro, garlic, scallions. I really enjoyed this -- it's basically deep-fried fish filets served with a cilantro, garlic, scallion, soy-based sauce. Lovely flavor, super tender.
• ★★★☆ Peking Roast Duck -- 24 pancakes, plum sauce, scallions. Prepared well -- the duck was tender + flavorful, and the skin was delightfully crispy. The plum sauce was a nice touch.
• ★★★☆ Hot and Sour Soup -- pork, prawns, vegetables, egg. The flavor isn't too strong (it's not very spicy), which works out quite well. I thought I didn't like hot and sour soup, but I really enjoyed this one! The consistency of the soup is perfect.
• ★★☆☆ Sizzling Rice Soup -- chicken, prawns, vegetables, fry-puffed rice. Not my personal favorite (I'm not a big fan of the texture of fry-puffed rice), but the soup itself is prepared quite well.
• ★★★☆ Seafood and Pork Dumplings -- prepared pretty well, the dipping sauce is a nice touch
• ★★★☆ Garlic Fried Rice