A dim sum week through San Francisco's Chinese tables

For the eater who distrusts a polished launch, Dol Ho Restaurant is the counter-service baseline. Start the week with traditional Cantonese dim sum before chasing newer dumpling styles. Bring cash for its cash-only register, and ask which dim sum is ready first. A queue is not a tasting note.

For dim sum in San Francisco, City View Restaurant gives completists a second opinion after Monday's counter. Its traditional and baked dumplings offer a more useful comparison than another popularity contest. Order those before adding Cantonese dishes. A line, if there is one, proves rather less than the plate.

Handmade xiao long bao make Dumpling Time Design District the next stop for texture obsessives, not trophy collectors. After Cantonese dim sum, pan-fried dumplings beside soup dumplings offer a change of texture. Order that comparison before noodles. Keep the colorful setting in the photograph; the meal need not become a product launch.

United Dumplings is for the eater who wants family recipes after the Design District's broader experimentation. The Bernal Heights kitchen gives Northern Chinese dumplings with California twists a neighborhood setting. Make soup dumplings the first order. Try the 4:30pm dinner opening; Thursday lunch is closed. Scarcity is sometimes simply a schedule.

Dynasty Dumpling suits anyone still comparing pleats rather than collecting restaurant names. Follow Thursday's California twists with handmade xiao long bao and classic Chinese noodles in Pacific Heights. Start with the dumplings, then decide whether noodles add anything. Keep the photograph wide enough for the dining room; another anonymous close-up can wait.

Mission Chinese Food is the deliberate detour for eaters who need a change from steamer comparisons. Its bold Chinese-American cooking brings spice and a livelier Mission setting into the week. Ask about the spicy dishes before ordering for the table. Photograph the room, then put the phone down. Revolutionary, apparently.

For shared-table eaters, Chinatown Restaurant starts with dim sum before a short walk toward House of Nanking on Kearny Street. There, ask about dishes customized at the table before ordering. Compare chili-soy dumplings with the week's other styles; save sesame chicken for shared appetites, not a compulsory second feast.