Our dear friend Kelly reports (on Facebook) that her grandmother passed away yesterday. Whatever we might think of recent meals at Sun Wah (and the timing of this discussion is unintentionally awkward), we on LTH have great love for her and her family, and great respect for a restaurant that is a true GNR thanks to the entire Cheng family. I know I speak for all of us in expressing our condolences. When the family has passed their sadness, I am sure that they will review Sun Wah. Until then, much love from us all.

Many condolences to the Cheng family.

As posted here I've been twice in the last 30-days and it was the same as always. In other words, very damn good. I'm especially fond of the shrimp dumpling noodle soup with added duck and roast pork for a quick inexpensive lunch. The new(ish) hotter with more flavor chili oil a bonus.

14 family members descended on Sun Wah for a feast, including my brother who is a regular at Ton Kiang for salt baked chicken. I got to bragging on Sun Wah's version to him and, when I made the reservation I told this to Kelly. Sun Wah went out of the box with a stunning, both presentation and taste, table-side salt baked chicken. Dinner was an absolute home run, seamless service, terrific food and hyper-reasonable price.

Kelly with table-side Salt Baked Chicken

Just home from dinner at Sun Wah and it was wonderful as always. I was the only one at our table who had been before and everyone was impressed and happy. We did duck but also salt baked chicken as well as several great vegetable dishes for my vegetarian son. Kelly and team made us so welcome - really lovely service. And where else could we get such an amazing spread of food for such a reasonable bill?

On top of all that, I discovered that my new apartment puts me on a bus line that makes visiting Sun Wah a snap ... I see many visits in my future!

Quick question for the Sun Wah pros.

Can you get the full Peking duck service at lunch, or is that a dinner only option? Also, do you need to pre-order it if you're going for lunch?

turkob wrote:Quick question for the Sun Wah pros.

Can you get the full Peking duck service at lunch, or is that a dinner only option? Also, do you need to pre-order it if you're going for lunch?

Yes. You can get it and chances are they would have one on hand ready to go, but it couldn't hurt to call ahead and let them know you want a duck just in case.

Thanks Steve.

We had a dinner with several relatives of Mr. X at Sun Wah last night. We had preordered two ducks to wow the out of town guests, one of whom had never had duck. Other dishes that made our table: fried shrimp, soft-shell crab, pan-fried rice noodles with beef and vegetables, beef tendons, fried squid, sauteed baby bok choy and soy-baked chicken. (I didn't preorder Mike's chicken so we went with the soy-baked.) The only remnants of the meal is some white rice and a few small pieces of chicken. Excellent meal, excellent value.

Has anyone heard about Sun Wah plans to offer their wonderful Beijing Turkeys for Thanksgiving?

Kelly: If no plans have been announced yet, would you please let us know what you plan to do? Thanx.

What are Beijing turkeys?

DutchMuse--

Turkeys that are prepared in the same manner as Beijing Duck and made available for pick-up on Thanksgiving Day. Fantastic!

Last year, Kelly posted this notice on Nov 9, in the "Sun Wah" topic:
"for those interested, we are now taking turkey orders. email or phone please! i don't check these boards as often as i like to answer everybody. =D

quack quack!
or in this case,
gobble gobble!
kelly

_________________
5041 N. Broadway
Chicago, IL 60640
773.769.1254
sunwahbbq@gmail.com"

i know you guys have been patiently waiting. thanks as always! =)

quack quack!
kelly


Our annual BYO turkey for thanksgiving is on again! Things will be a little bit different this year. So, please follow the “rules” below. Gobble gobble!

1. There will be a limited number of slots available for different times throughout the day.
2. We will be accepting turkey orders (either our birds or yours) now.
3. You can come in and leave a $15 deposit to hold your turkey's place. We take cash, visa, or master. You can call in and leave a deposit on the phone. We ONLY accept visa or master over the phone. NO CHECKS ARE ACCEPTED. We will determine the final price when your turkey is brought in.
4. ALL birds must be brought in no later than 6pm on November 19th, 2012, if it is FROZEN. ALL birds must be brought in no later than 6pm on November 20th, 2012, if it is DEFROSTED. Any birds brought in after those times MUST be approved by Kelly, Laura, or Eric.
5. If you buy our turkeys, the same process applies. You MUST call or come in and leave a deposit. Exceptions will only be made through the express approval of Eric, Kelly, or Laura.
6. Pricing is as follows: BYO is $1.40/lb, our turkeys are $3.90/lb.

Side notes: we will be open for business thanksgiving day from 8:30am-6pm. First pick up times will be 9am. Last pick up time will be 5:30pm. If you are running late, please call us so we know. Please bear in mind that we may run out of time slots as we're trying a new logistics system this year. If the time you want is not available, please be amenable to a different time slot. Please feel free to email any questions you have to Kelly at sunwahbbq@gmail.com.

hello everyone,

yes, it's been a bit since i've last updated everyone. it has been a busy year for us. we've had some new additions to our menu and a couple of new additions to our family as well. =) my brother had a son in november. my daughter is now one. my, how the time flies.... =P our winter season dishes are back, so if you're in the mood for pork belly with taro or some of our homemade bacon, come on over! several of our new menu items include our pan seared tofu w/ garlic and bean paste sauce and fresh tofu skin rolls. both are vegetarian and both are finished products of items from our tofu factory, sun xien soy.

our neighborhood's lunar new year parade will be on february 16th beginning at 1pm. besides floats, shaolin monks, and dragons, we will of course have firecrackers to help us kick off the year of the snake. this year, there will also be someone around passing out "red envelopes" filled with "lucky" items. tradition dictates that children receive lucky red envelopes from their parents and elders as a sign of luck and hope for them in the coming year. we have changed up the tradition a little bit so that everyone in the neighborhood can be included. the contents of the envelope will be a coupon from one of the neighborhood businesses. these are limited edition coupons and every envelope will have a coupon from a different business. if you are in the neighborhood, drop on by to see the show and support our local businesses. =)

our annual chinese new year's feast is now open for reservations. i've posted the rules below. hope to see some of you there!
1. the feast will take place on sunday, february 10, 2013 and monday, february 11, 2013. you will have the option of one of the dates. we will start seating at 6:30pm and dinner will begin at 7pm.
2. there will be 120 seats available each evening. if i hit the maximum, you will be placed on a waiting list. i will let you know if you are on the waiting list.
3. the seats are a first come first serve reservations only. YOU WILL NOT GET A SEAT IF YOU ARE NOT ON MY LIST!!! so, no trying to sneak in.... >=)
4. seats are paid in advanced and non-refundable after friday, february 8, 2013 at 5pm. cancellations will be given to those at the top of the waiting list. parties on the waiting list whose number is bigger than the cancellation will have first right option. after that it will go on to the next party on the list.
5. you may pay in person (cash or credit card) or you can pay over the phone with a visa or master. we do not take any other credit cards. no checks are accepted.
6. you may buy a whole table, each table will seat 10. if you are a small party, we will arrange for other small parties to sit with you. if you buy the whole table, you can sit more than 10 at your table, but we will not be responsible if there is not enough to eat. =)
7. the feast menu will not be posted until monday, february 4, 2013 on our website http://www.sunwahbbq.com
8. cost of the feast this year will be $30/person, tax included. gratuity and drinks are separate. if you do not purchase a drink or any other extras, we would prefer cash for the gratuity. make's the servers' lives easier. you may byob, server will charge bottle fees at the end of the meal.
9. we do not have parking still. please do not ask us (again) if we have parking. be aware you should allow time to find parking. there is usually parking along some of the side streets and on argyle there is meter parking. public transportation is always a plus. we are right off the red line. =)
please do not post or pm me on the boards with questions or to make a reservation. calling is the only way to make the reservation. we would prefer to not have anyone's sensitive information out there if we can help it. also, i don't always answer posts, pms, or messages from the forum.

we sincerely wish everyone a happy year of the snake, gung hay fat choy!

quack quack!
kelly

Just reserved for 3 on the 11th - the 10th already sold out! We can't wait!

Just grabbed two seats for Monday.

I have a table of ten reserved for Sunday. It looks like I may have a few seats open up due to cancellations. If you would be interested in filling an open spot at our table, please PM me or post here. I probably won't know for sure exactly how many seats (if any) are available until Friday, but if you're interested and seats open up, I'll let you know by PM.

stevez wrote:I have a table of ten reserved for Sunday. It looks like I may have a few seats open up due to cancellations. If you would be interested in filling an open spot at our table, please PM me or post here. I probably won't know for sure exactly how many seats (if any) are available until Friday, but if you're interested and seats open up, I'll let you know by PM.

steve, i'm interested, but i was hoping to check out the menu on sun wah's website first. it's not there, even though kelly said to look for it after 2/4. but please put me on your wait list. i've no doubt dinner will be a feast, thanks joan

i think i'd better take myself off the sunday night wait list, steve. i just have too much to do this weekend, and i'm still struggling with a cold in its second week. have a great time; i'm sure you all will. joan

Fifille and I will be there Monday night, looking forward to good food and seeing some familiar faces!

sunwahrestaurant wrote:6. you may buy a whole table, each table will seat 10. if you are a small party, we will arrange for other small parties to sit with you. if you buy the whole table, you can sit more than 10 at your table, but we will not be responsible if there is not enough to eat. =)

How many seats will fit at one table? I think I remember fitting 12 in the past, but curious to see what others think.

laikom wrote:

sunwahrestaurant wrote:6. you may buy a whole table, each table will seat 10. if you are a small party, we will arrange for other small parties to sit with you. if you buy the whole table, you can sit more than 10 at your table, but we will not be responsible if there is not enough to eat. =)

How many seats will fit at one table? I think I remember fitting 12 in the past, but curious to see what others think.

I've had up to 12 at one of the big tables in back.

Agreed. It can be done but 12's cramped. Especially w/grande fressers. Sat @ a round table for 8 w/lazy susan just yesterday w/4 and it was crowded.

I have three seats available at my table for Sunday night. If anyone is thinking about going, let me know and they can be yours.

Edit: All seats are filled. Thanks for playing.

I just noticed the menu is posted now, http://www.sunwahbbq.com/cny2013feast.pdf

I'm really excited try try a lot of these dishes tomorrow. Hope someone posts some spoilers after tonight's meal! It has been quite a long time since my wife and I have feasted on a House Full of Children.

I still have 2 seats available at my table for tonight. If anyone has interest, please pm me.

Thanks!

Glenn

Super excited for tomorrow night ... any one interpreting the menu?

I have also been abusing F5 looking for reports frim tonights dinner. That's what will get me through tomorrow.

Dinner tonight was a tour de force. I'll try to get some pictures posted in the next couple of days.

Here are some pictures, along with the menu, of last night's Chinese New Years dinner dinner. I've done my best to put the pictures in the order of the menu, but things were served out of order in some cases and it was hard to hear exactly which dish was being served at times. Hopefully others have better notes than I and will be able to chime in with corrections and details.

Sun Wah Year of the Snake Menu


Ambitious Plans Enacted

BBQ pork and duck

Five Color Happiness to Bring Sons

Ribeye steak with carrots, onions and peppers


Housemade charcuterie made by Mr. Chang

At this point, I lost track of the dishes (except for a couple of obvious ones), so I'll just post the pictures in the hope that someone can identify them for me.


Cabbage cooked in soup stock and topped with dried scallop


Cabbage purses filled with a ground pork filling and tied with a scallion


Described as being made with pork and a vegetable resembeling a baby's penis

Wealth in Abundance

Soft tofu topped with shrimp paste balls



Wealth Rolls In

Tofu skin stuffed with mushrooms and other veggies


Crispy pig's knuckle served with American broccoli

Pockets Filled With Treasure

Fried tofu pockets stuffed with shrimp

The Chefs Take a Bow


The Next Cheng Generation


I'd like to thank the Chang family for once again sharing their great talent and hospitality with us. Good luck in the year of the snake. Gung hay fat choy!