out and about: chin's szechwan

stone ipa: one of the most well-respected and best-selling ipa’s in the country, this golden beauty explodes with tropical citrusy, piney hops flavors and aromas, all perfectly balanced by a subtle malt character.

sauvignon blanc, excelsior: a crisp and vibrant bouquet of passion fruit and lime leads to complex flavors of citrus, herbs, and gooseberry on the palate

Y’all know I won’t tell you to go anywhere I don’t actually go myself. I’m not out there trying restaurants I wouldn’t actually frequent on the regular. So let me sing it from the roof tops…

I’ve finally found a chinese restaurant in la jolla that’s worth eating at… and let me tell you, it’s been a long time coming.

Ocean kitchen was the go-to staple for all of my growing up years in bird rock. And, until now, there hasn’t been an equal.

But now, there’s chin’s. And we silently rejoice. Kids love it. Jamie loves it. I love it. It has completed that need for quick and easy chinese that tastes like actual chinese food - and not like an american replica.

And did I mention it’s less than 5 minutes away?!?

Just so we are being honest, it’s a small restaurant that does mostly take out. They have five indoor booths, and an outdoor bar area… so if you want to dine in, make sure to make a reservation ahead of time. You can order delivery through all the usual suspects or just drop by to pick up…whatever floats your boat. Regardless of how you want to get it, this is not one to sleep on. Trust me.

pot stickers: handmade pan-fried pork dumplings served with a chef’s special sauce and homemade chili

Always have to get the pot stickers. One of the kiddos will devour them single handedly, so we usually have to get two. But the homemade batter and the perfectly seasoned filling make it worth the two orders. And when you dine in, you get both a regular and spicy chili crisp. This is not something to sleep on. The spicy is totally the way to go. I mean, unless you hate spice…but they’ve got you with the mild option too.

salt & pepper chicken wings: salt & pepper chicken wings wok-tossed with garlic and green onions

Oh my god, you guys. Y’all know I’m in my wings era. And can I tell you that these wings, well, they just blow all the other wings away. Seriously. No sauce needed, just extra garlicy goodness at the bottom of the plate.

As jamie said, these are the most tender wings I’ve ever had. Even the crispy skin is tender. How does one accomplish that?

imperial double happiness: select scallops and shrimp wok-tossed with broccoli, mushrooms, snow peas, and carrots in a garlic white sauce

One of my favorite things about eating in the chin’s restaurant proper, is that they have a whole guide for you about what the sauces and flavors of each dish really mean. It’s basically a cheat sheet, and it’s brilliant.

For example, the imperial sauce is described as: meat wok-tossed with broccoli, mushrooms, snow peas, carrots in a garlic white sauce. It’s so fun to read about all the different ingredients and what you can order, in an entirely different way.

Back to the double happiness. Ordering shrimp and scallops can always be a questionable endeavor, but not here. Both were super fresh and perfectly cooked. To throw it back to jamie once again… it was the perfect (and favorite) reheated dish of his. Didn’t lose any flavor, and still tasted just as fresh the next day and a microwave cycle later.

shanghi crispy pork: lightly braised meat wok-tossed in a sweet and sour shanghi sauce

This is a dish we wouldn’t have normally ordered to eat at home, since we tend to stick with the family’s tried and true favorites. Dining in is a whole other vibe. We were able to ask our server what they recommend, what the popular dishes were, and what the chef recommended for that night.

And holy moly guys! This crispy pork is not to be slept on. Seriously. Order. The. Crispy. Pork. I want to put it in a bao bun and smother it with pickled veggies (stay tuned). It’s like eating popcorn. It’s that good, and once you start, you can’t stop.

lo mein soft noodles: create your own wok-tossed soft noodle dish with bean sprouts, cabbage, onions, and carrots. Your choice of chicken, pork, beef, tofu, or vegetable, shrimp, house special (shrimp, beef & chicken), seafood (shrimp, krabmeat, and scallops)

Always have to order lo mein. One of my kiddos is an absolute fiend for lo mein. In fact, before we even left for dinner, he requested that we bring back five orders, “just for him.”

And this is what having teenage boys is really all about. But I digress.

Don’t ignore the lo mein. Clearly, it’s not to be missed. Oh, and order your own portion separately, so you don’t have to share…or worse, give it up entirely.

This trip we added the beef, but we’ve had it with chicken, tofu, and just veggie. Not too picky about the protein around here, as long as we have the noods.

szechwan braised string beans: mildly spicy, slight chili powder and flakes

I haven’t mentioned it yet, but for any dish with spice, you can adjust the level to your own personal preference…even if that preference is for no spice whatsoever.

We love these string beans… and like to get them on the spicier side. More chili powder, more flakes, some spicy oil…it’s a spice-a-holics dream.

And the beans themselves? They are perfectly blistered. And if you know blistered beans, it’s a whole other level of natural flavor.

spicy honey and sesame chicken (orange): lightly battered meat wok-tossed in a spicy honey sauce, hili peppers, and sesame seed.

Another highly recommended (and highly ordered by miss avy) dish was the spicy honey and sesame chicken…which is chin’s version of orange chicken. And, while it’s billed as spicy, you can request no spice whatsoever if your children, as my daughter does, like no spice…just the flavor.

We’ve ordered this dish on repeat since chin’s started delivering and were delighted to find that it was one of the most popular and most highly recommended in house.

Here’s the thing, I’m a self-obsessed air fryer leftover re-heater. I hate microwaving food. But, we aren’t in our house, thanks to the slab-leak fiasco of 2023, and there is no air fryer in our airbnb. But guys! I (gasp) microwave reheated it (‘cause I had no choice) and…it was still crispy and not soggy.

Chin’s…what is this magic?

Seriously?!?

Here’s the deal: with a large family, any cuisine where you can order multiple dishes to feed everyone’s different appetites is a win. That doesn’t mean you want to skimp on taste or flavor. And let me tell you, the fallacy of being a foodie—who made her own baby food and always cooked for her children—comes back to bite you when it comes to eating out. You have to make sure that everyone’s palates (‘cause they all have them) are satisfied.

Anytime you find a place that can do all that, and that tastes better than anything I can make on my own, yeah, we call that a keeper around here!

Thank you chin’s for taking a chance on la jolla, and giving us (finally!) a chinese restaurant we can be proud of, and excited to go to and order from again and again.