Katy's new Naperville outpost

Had a wonderful meal at Katy's Dumpling House tonight. After discussing the pleasing numbing qualities (ma) of the Szechuan peppercorns with red shirt man, he offered up a tasty scoop. Katy's will be opening a second location--reportedly much bigger--in Naperville. I'm not sure exactly when. He said "Monday," but made a hand gesture that made me think it might be a week from Monday.

Here's a pic of the sample carry-out menu with the address and website (which isn't doing much right now):


Congratulations Naperville!

Edit: I changed the title of this thread to reflect its change of focus from the prospect of a new Katy's to posters' experiences there.

Just spoke with someone from the now "original Katy's" and he confirmed they opened today and will close at 11pm tonight.

I now know what I am picking up on the way home for dinner! A welcome addition, indeed.

Is this address in the same strip mall as the Binny's?

jimswside wrote:Is this address in the same strip mall as the Binny's?

I think so, but the image in the first post is gone so we've lost the address. There was a Chinese place in that strip mall that changed owners recently, so that's probably it.

^ Indeed it is in the same strip mall as Binny's and City Meat Market, just south of Cress Creek.

The image is gone? Not on my browser. Sorry about that. Here's the info:

Katy's Dumpling House
790 Royal St. George Dr., #115-116
Naperville
630-416-1188 (T)
630-416-8388 (F)
katysdumpling.com

since I am in Naperville alot(I grew up there, and still have family there) this is good news..(I am not a fan of the restaurant choices in Naperville).

I just hope they can live up to the high bar set by the original location.

tapler wrote:The image is gone? Not on my browser.

It's back now. Not sure what happened.

It is the same place as I thought, the former location of Jin Mandarin. Too bad Jin is gone. They had a great lunch buffet.

Most importantly, will Red Shirt Man be at the new location?

This is awesome! A Katy's outpost less than 5 minutes from my house. I thought when I left Westmont I was screwed, this makes my day!

Oh fabulous. Here I come pork with pancakes. I hope they are as good and taste the same.

Dave148 wrote:Most importantly, will Red Shirt Man be at the new location?

I was thinking about that myself. Or will he do Super Hero efforts to be in two places at once? I hope both locations will have the very same standards. I look forward to reading reports.

Regards,

Cathy2 wrote:

Dave148 wrote:Most importantly, will Red Shirt Man be at the new location?

I was thinking about that myself. Or will he do Super Hero efforts to be in two places at once? I hope both locations will have the very same standards. I look forward to reading reports.

Regards,

Can you picture a Katy's outpost in the North Shore? Man, that would be good!

HI,

We can dream!

Regards,

Last few visits to Westmont have yielded no Mr. Red Shirt, though the food has been just fine. The lack of Mr. Red Shirt and the superannuated, wisp-bearded wok master concerned me, but maybe they are just working on the N'Ville Katy's.

Back when Katy's first broke on these boards, then quickly "discovered" by the press, I hoped that the influx of new customers and interest would lead to a large, luxe place such as LSC or a place that one might find around LA, with the same quality noodles and an expanded menu. Maybe this is it. I hope they pull it off.

PS, anyone tried any of the newish menu items at K's in Westmont, such as the Shanghai style fish -- which seems to involve a whole fish deep fried then simmered in the wok based on my most recent observation?

So I stopped last night, as promised, to pick up dinner.

It is definitely in the Binny's lot and still has the Jin Mandarin sign up. The only tipoff that it was indeed Katy's was the enlarged newspaper article in the window. The new location is enormous compared to the Westmont spot with several tables. It was obviously a work in progress with a ladder in the corner by the wall mounted flat-screen TV. It is not an open kitchen so I could not see who was back there. I put my order in and the man asked if I had been to the other location.

When I replied that I had, he smiled and pointed to a gentleman and confirmed that he was the owner of both locations.

I have not been to the Westmont outpost in a couple of months and cannot attest to having seen the new menu. But I can tell you that the new menu here is huge. It had well over 200 items listed. While it still had the noodle dishes I love, it also had many of the usual Chinese options such as kung pao chicken, etc. But it also included many unusual items I have either rarely or never seen offered.

Now for the skinny: the schezuan beef noodle soup I had was delicious and just about as good as I remember. The stir fried noodles and chicken was also up to the task. The onion pancakes with pork (one of my favorite dishes at Katy's) was fair but disappointing. It was dry and lacked the usual depth of flavor.

Being that it was their first night, I will forgive the pancake dish and consider it a very positive start.

So, how long before one of the N'Ville LTHers grabs a menu and posts it?

I'm aiming for my inaugural visit for lunch next Tuesday. Anybody know what time they open?

The picture upthread says 11am-9pm. No days listed though.

nicinchic wrote:The picture upthread says 11am-9pm. No days listed though.

They're open from 11 am to 9 pm everyday. I just called to confirm it.

=R=

Looks like their website is up and running and it seems only the Westmont location is closed on Wednesdays.

ronnie_suburban wrote:

nicinchic wrote:The picture upthread says 11am-9pm. No days listed though.

They're open from 11 am to 9 pm everyday. I just called to confirm it.

=R=

Thanks Ronnie.

JeffB wrote:So, how long before one of the N'Ville LTHers grabs a menu and posts it?

As someone mentioned, their website is now up. The menu is posted there.

http://katysdumpling.com/

I like the photo of the owner in his chef outfit holding some handmade noodles.

pancake wrote:

JeffB wrote:So, how long before one of the N'Ville LTHers grabs a menu and posts it?

As someone mentioned, their website is now up. The menu is posted there.

http://katysdumpling.com/

I like the photo of the owner in his chef outfit holding some handmade noodles.

Isn't that Red Shirt Guy?

Basil Lamb?? Dang, why does Naperville need to be so far away!

Are credit cards accepted here?

Guess I know where I am taking the Bride for dinner tonight.

I went to The Naperville Katys for take out last night. The interior is not what I would call decorated. That isn't a big deal to me. It is ALL about the food.

The orders included: Kung Pao Chx, Seseme Chx, Pork Egg Roll, Crab Rangoon and Boiled Pork Dumplings. Kung Pao was adequately spiced with chilies and had good flavor. The portion was pretty big (container was 6"x3") and filled to the top. Only issue was the chicken parts were cut so small you couldn't tell what was the chicken. Seseme Chicken was the hit for my companions. Chicken chunks were HUGE vs the kung pao and caused a couple ohhh and ahhhh's. It had a bit of the spice but the dish wasn't sweet or goopy. not a big fan of goopy anything. I didn't try the pork egg rolls. The concensus was they were better than average. Crab rangoon was bad. They over cooked it enough that the pockets of the crab/cheese were dried out. I will forgive that one - first time I have had something that would have been sent back to the kitchen. Dumplings were spot on. Just like Westmont. Good stuff.

Mr Red Shirt was cooking last night. He was bringing out the take out orders. I saw him when another diner was picking up. He recognized my face and we shook hands and I congratulated him on the expansion. He talked to the gentleman running the front of the house and asked me why no noodles today. BUSTED!! Yes, I have a weakness for the beef noodle soup. I told him that soupy goodness isn't a take out order. That would have to be for the first sit down visit. We shared a laugh and he went back to the kitchen. He brought out my order. I was getting out of the chair to go and Mr Red Shirt hugged me. I was surprised, but I hugged him back. He was very happy about the new location. He did say that he will be working in both locations. I hope that means that the quality will maintain in Westmont and blow peoples socks off in Naperville.

JeffB wrote:Back when Katy's first broke on these boards, then quickly "discovered" by the press, I hoped that the influx of new customers and interest would lead to a large, luxe place such as LSC or a place that one might find around LA, with the same quality noodles and an expanded menu. Maybe this is it. I hope they pull it off.

I hope they don't. Like LSC used to be, they were great as local neighborhood joints. But once you introduce the "Check Please CURSE" these places go downhill and are forced to shutter their doors soon afterwards. If they don't close down, they get gradually CRAPPIER. I have not stepped foot into LSC in 4 years. I have eaten "takeout" from there but I simply refuse to pay the "celebrity surcharge" that Tony has added to his prices over the years. I'll happily eat at Spring World with better food and lower prices.

I hope Katy's stay true and doesn't go "Hollywood" like Tony @ LSC.

BiGGie Nick wrote:

JeffB wrote:Back when Katy's first broke on these boards, then quickly "discovered" by the press, I hoped that the influx of new customers and interest would lead to a large, luxe place such as LSC or a place that one might find around LA, with the same quality noodles and an expanded menu. Maybe this is it. I hope they pull it off.

I hope they don't. Like LSC used to be, they were great as local neighborhood joints. But once you introduce the "Check Please CURSE" these places go downhill and are forced to shutter their doors soon afterwards. If they don't close down, they get gradually CRAPPIER. I have not stepped foot into LSC in 4 years. I have eaten "takeout" from there but I simply refuse to pay the "celebrity surcharge" that Tony has added to his prices over the years. I'll happily eat at Spring World with better food and lower prices.

I hope Katy's stay true and doesn't go "Hollywood" like Tony @ LSC.

Not speaking for Jeff but he did specifically mention "same quality noodles" in his post. I'd love to see Katy's and the whole scene expand to L.A.-like proportions. Imagine having that multitude of choices. It'd be fantastic, as long as the quality of the food remained high, as it is in L.A. From a business perspective, I wish for nothing more than prosperity for these folks. They've certainly earned it via the quality of their craft. The whole starving artist concept is bullsh*t, if you ask me.

=R=