Prototype Issue
Mission 261 Accomplished: San Gabriel Valley Eatery Captures Hong Kong Vibe
By Judy Asman
(page 1 of 1)If you’re taking a stroll along San Gabriel’s Mission District during Chinese New Year, you’re likely to see orange-paper lanterns with Chinese calligraphy hanging outside 261 South Mission Drive—the stately home of the Cantonese restaurant and dim sum emporium known worldwide as Mission 261.
Granted, Chinese décor at a Chinese restaurant doesn’t elicit surprise, especially if it’s embellishing faux-dynasty-period architecture. Nor is it unusual to find authentic dim sum restaurants in the San Gabriel Valley—an area richly populated with Chinese communities, particularly since the Hsi Lai Temple in Hacienda Heights opened in 1988.
But Mission 261 is different. Its late-18th-century adobe-style architecture and large Hong Kong-style banquet halls decorated with Mexican artwork stand out against the area’s Spanish-colonialist style. And its location directly across from Mission San Gabriel Arcangel allows patrons on its patio to watch multiethnic parishioners come and go during Mass.
RealTALK LA spoke with Mission 261’s proprietor, Harvey Ng, who opened the restaurant three years ago. Ng recently hired general manager Robert Hung and executive chef Danny Lee to build the restaurant’s growing customer base.
The Chinese presence in this region dates back to the California Gold Rush of 1848-1855. Does Mission 261 bridge a cultural gap between the Mission District’s present-day Chinese population and its other communities? We did a lot of research when we purchased this building and thought it was a good location for a Chinese restaurant. The city of San Gabriel also thought it would be a good idea, since the Chinese are also a part of early California history.
How does Mission 261 encompass the authentic Hong Kong dining experience? When I go to a restaurant, I don’t like if it’s dirty, smelly or has bad service. With Robert, who’s worked in the restaurant business for 20 years, we’re [transitioning] into the higher-quality dining experience for Chinese restaurants—one that reflects the real standard of Hong Kong. Our Hong Kong customers say they can’t tell the difference between our restaurant and one in Hong Kong because we’ve captured its trend of higher-quality cooking.
Chef Danny says the shumai (ground-pork and mushroom dumplings) are so succulent because they’re freshly steamed. Is this one benefit of ordering from checklists as opposed to choosing dim sum from circulating carts? Yes, the checklists started with the upper class in Hong Kong so they could enjoy dim sum made to order.
How popular is Mission 261 with the global Chinese community? The economy in mainland China is booming, so a lot of Chinese are doing business in America. We cater to a lot of Chinese who come here and need to entertain their business partners. Our restaurant serves a lot of celebrities, politicians and high officials from Taiwan, Hong Kong and mainland China.
Is it also popular outside the Chinese community? We’re always working toward mixing our customer base. That’s why we’re here…to introduce authentic Chinese food to Americans, Mexicans—the entire neighborhood.
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