Chef Bob Tam’s Hong Kong and San Francisco roots take a Texas spin in his Prosper restaurant. Fried rice has a Tex-Mex spin showcasing Texas favorite meat - smoked brisket tossed with barbecue sauce, corn, and scallion, topped with pickled red onions, and a creamy mac and cheese sauce with a side of wasabi coleslaw. The pork wontons are not just Sichuan spicy but Flamin’ Hot with a generous sprinkle of the popular snack. 

The stars at Highland Noodles in Frisco are Chinese-style noodles of different widths and thicknesses that are hand-pulled, sliced, served in soup, stir-fried, or in sauce. One would be lucky to have dinner and a show, seeing the noodles made fresh in the open kitchen. 

Uncle Zhou in Plano showcases traditional Henan cuisine from central China and is known for its noodles. The deceptive simplicity of its “dial oil” hand-drawn wide noodle showcases the kitchen’s noodle-making mastery. Other notable dishes include baked noodles made in-house, fish in a sweet and sour sauce, and dragon eggplant. 

Rice noodles are king here. The restaurant specializes in the flavors of the Huaxi area of Guiyang, the capital of the Guizhou province. The signature beef mifen comes in a spicy hot broth with a kiss of sour and delicate, bouncy rice noodles. Don’t miss out on the yogurt, which is made in-house, or the sour plum drink to help manage the heat from the spicy bowl of noodles.

Traditional Chinese music played on Saturday nights in China Queen in Carrolton adds to the ambiance as diners enjoy plates of hand-made dumplings and xiao long bao alongside braised pork belly with abalone. 

Reminiscent of Hong Kong dim sum houses, the expansive ballroom setup is crowded with ten-top tables for celebrating. Get outside the dim sum wheelhouse and try the #27, fried balls of mashed taro filled with pork and mushrooms encased in a nest-like shell. Reservations are highly recommended, especially during weekends and holidays. 

Diners are welcomed into this spot by a window cabinet of hung Cantonese-style barbecue filled with glossy mahogany skinned roast ducks, amber steamed chicken, a side of crispy-skinned roast pork, and a mountain of red char siu pork loins. Order any of these to graze on with rice, alongside other Hong Kong-style favorites, including fresh shrimp wonton noodle soup and yang chow fried rice. 

Tucked into the massive shopping center at Preston and Royal, this North Dallas institution has a devoted crowd of regulars. Hand-pulled noodles (the chilled dan dan noodles are excellent) and xiao long bao (soup dumplings) are made before diners. And Chinese American favorites like kung pao and sesame chicken get a serious upgrade. 

Soupy steamed xiao long bao is the star of this Shanghai-style restaurant’s menu. Other stellar regional dishes include the Hong Shao Rou (red braised pork belly with bok choy) and the pan-fried pork buns. Now with two locations: the original in Irving and the second on Lowest Greenville.