Four Kings

So glad I was able to snag a table for 2 on a Monday at 6:30pm on OpenTable. I was beyond excited to try this spot since it was all over IG and it did not disappoint! We arrived right when they opened at 6pm and there was already a line for walk-ins on the left of the restaurant. We proceeded to line up on the right side, and we were immediately seated within 5 minutes.

I loved all the decor and the Chinese music because it reminded me of my childhood. I ordered the fried squab, XO escargot w/ milk bread, and claypot rice w/ Chinese sausage & bacon. Every dish was spectacular. The squab was nice and crispy, but my favorite was the claypot. It was full of flavor, especially with the sausage and bacon. This is the best claypot I've had!

Great service, awesome food and amazing ambiance. What more can you ask for?? I would definitely be back to try other items on their menu! I did notice that if you wait in line before they open, they will seat the first group. I think less than 10 ppl? Definitely come here if you are looking for delicious one of a kind Chinese food.

I've been hearing about this restaurant for a while but hadn't been able to secure a reservation until Last Saturday night.
While out in the city, my friends and I decided to grab a bite after some drinks around 9:45 PM. We were a group of five and decided to try our luck as a walk-in. To our surprise, they had a table for six reserved that never showed up, so we were seated right away!

When we received the menu, we were informed that they had run out of squabs and escargot, but everything else was available. We decided to share a variety of dishes:

- Ginger scallion cut chicken
- Lamb skewers
- Popcorn chicken
- Steak chow fun
- Salted fish fried rice
- Black bean clams
- Fish fragrant eggplants
- Green beans

Every dish we tried was exceptional, with each one surpassing the last. We cleared the entire table and even finished the complimentary peanuts and cucumbers!

It's been a while since a restaurant has pleasantly surprised me, and this one was a delightful experience. Our waitress was attentive and kept our beverages refilled throughout the night. I'm usually not a fan of eggplants, but theirs was outstanding--perhaps the sauce and bonito flakes made all the difference.

Two days later, and we can't stop talking about our meal! I'm making a reservation right after this review because I doubt we'll have the same luck with another walk-in.

This restaurant truly lives up to the hype! I'm eagerly looking forward to trying their squab on my next visit.

Four Kings lived up to its hype! I saw how tough it was to get a reservation, so I made one awkwardly in advance but it worked out.

The good:
- Great vibes and unique but radically familiar food. Favorite dishes were steak chow fun, green beans and jelly fish-- but I can see how people would like the mapo spaghetti as well. I'm looking forward to trying their squab!
- our waiter was very attentive and kind

The meh:
- It still took us 15 minutes to be seated at 9:30pm, and I wasn't aware our reservation for 4 was for the counter-- the experience trying to talk to everyone and share the 9 dishes we ordered was a very meh experience at the counter seating we were at. The restaurant was overall very small and we were pretty cramped.
- some of the dishes were misses imo, like their $26 clay pot that was pretty bland. The crispy rice wasn't easy to get to and the meat was tough. Their mango pudding was different but I don't really think it all worked together.
- I think it would be helpful for waitress to explain how many pieces came with what dish since we were all sharing + to offer a knife to cut.
- I didn't like their special rose recommendation (we got a bottle) and wondered why the waitress was so excited to serve us it at 10pm.

Small, intimate Cantonese restaurant with innovative dishes great for date night or just catching up with 2-4 friends. The service was great and the food was pretty good. Standouts were the Fish Fragrant Eggplant and the XO Escargot w/ Milkbread.
- The steak chow fun was just okay. The noodles lacked flavor, but the pickled onions really tied the dish together. They skimped out on the beef as well sadly.
- XO escargot flavor was phenomenal. Definitely a must try here, but the milk bread was a little tough and not super light and fluffy.
- Salted egg squash croquettes were just so so. You can't taste the salted egg at all. Wouldn't recommend unless you LOVE squash.

Four Kings in SF is a contemporary Cantonese restaurant with a nostalgic twist, featuring posters of 1980s Hong Kong celebrities. We went on a Sunday right when they opened, and although we were on the walk-in waitlist, we ended up waiting an hour, which was shorter than expected. The food was definitely a highlight--everything we tried was delicious, especially the fish eggplant and the salted egg squash croquettes. However, the portions were pretty small and a bit on the salty side, which was disappointing considering how pricey everything was. The fried squab, claypot rice, and cabbage were all tasty, but the eggplant dish stole the show for me. Our server was great--very attentive and took the time to explain the menu and check in throughout the meal.

By 7 PM, they had already sold out of two specials, including the Singaporean crab, which I was really looking forward to. Despite the portion sizes and price, I would recommend this place if you're in the mood for an authentic Cantonese meal, just be prepared for the smaller servings. I'd definitely like to go back and try the dishes we missed out on!

Wow, what an incredible place. We all LOVED the food, and the service is great, especially given how crazy busy they are. Also loved the fun vibes and the Canto-pop music. Absolutely cannot wait to come back again.

Definitely understand the hype of this restaurant at the moment. Saw this when it first opened and was finally able to get a reservation for 3. All us abc's see this menu and knew it felt promising. However it didn't really hit home for me. The price range is set way too high and I wasn't too impressed with the food, good but not blow my mind away typa feel.

Loved how the servers constantly refilled our water. Really small inside so tables for 3, one person will be sitting in the walkway. I bumped into a few people by accident.

They do allow walks ins however I only think the first group got in before everyone else with reservations.

Parking- they open at 6, wait til 6. Tons of parking on Kearny.

~Food~
Ginger scallion chicken: interesting cut of chicken. Looks and taste like ham but definitely chicken. Personally wish the ginger scallion was a little stronger/saltier. Good appetizer to start. 4/5

3 colored egg- taste like moms cooking lol nothing special. 2/5

Mapo spaghetti- Way too oily. Love the concept but execution wasn't there. Most popular item because honestly it sounds delicious but maybe a little less oil and it might've fused better. 2.5/5

Escargot- So good! Kinda taste like Cajun but the snail was not slimy at all which scarred me when I was younger lol. Comes with house made bread and I gotta say that's some of the best bread I've ever had. Don't forget to dip it in the sauce! 5/5

Squab- meaty and juicy. Cooked medium rare unlike Chinese restaurants where it's just super dry. 4 pieces for $45. 4.5/5

Singaporean chili crab(seasonal/special item)
Never been able to try this dish until now. Sauce is perfect, not too spicy. Also comes with their in house bread which is FILLING. Looks small but don't underestimate it. Pre-cracked crab parts so a lot of the sauce was able to seep through which is very much appreciated. My favorite item, get it while it's still here! 5/5

Pork chop- Can't tell if it was just the last item that came out or my taste buds changing from the chili crab but i thought this dish was off from your late night Chinese cafe order. Pork chop was more of a Japanese tonkatsu. 1/5

The hype is real. This was such an incredible food experience-- if it wasn't so darn hard to get in, I'd already be plotting my return.

We sat down right at 6pm on a Saturday, and we quickly learned that you have to make quick decisions as there is a chalkboard with the amount of specials left...and they go fast.

Thankfully we snagged the last Singaporean crab with milk breads. It was incredible. That was the standout. Along with the Mapo Spaghetti and the beef chow fun. Wasn't as blown away by the squab as the rest, but it was a high bar.

Can't wait to come back when the hype dies down a bit. But glad I made the effort when I did!

Arrived on a Friday around 5:45pm with one other friend. There was a walk in's line of about 8 people to the left side of the entrance and a short line for reservations to the right of the entrance. Around 6pm the host came out to greet guest, they were able to seat the first 8 or so in the walk in line, we were added to the waitlist/reservation list and informed a table would be ready in about 90 minutes and they would text us when a spot opened up. Got a text around 7:15pm (75min wait) and had a 10 min grace period to return to the restaurant.

Drinks: Ume Highball - this was okay, sweet lightly sparkling, served in a 6oz glass with ice, wish this was served in a taller glass with more sparkling water to really deliver on the highball experience, would probably skip this and opt for beer. wine or sake next time

Food: Haricot verts with tofu dressing: great starter, light and refreshing with a nice creamy tangy tofu dressing, nice acidity, green beans had a great snap and helped cut some of the richness of the other dishes

Fried Soft Shell Crab - a special for the evening, a single soft shelled crab cut in half battered and fried, served on top of an aioli with crunchy fried shallots & garlic, chili's, and fried basil leaves, really tasty, crab was tender and juicy, sauce really added richness and toppings added some textural contrast and pops of flavor

XO Escargot & Milk Bread - favorite dish of the night, the order came with 6 escargot per order, bathed in a delicious xo, chili, garlic butter that you'll want to soak up with the soft pillowy milk bread, love this twist on escargot and truly a must order if you visit

Mapo spaghetti - a generous portion of spaghetti tossed in a spicy pork ragu with a bit of Sichuan spice, nice amount of chili, this was good but probably wouldn't order again, wish there was a bit of creaminess from silken tofu to round out the mapo concept

Yellow nectarine hot silken tofu - a soft custardy silken tofu base topped with a hot yellow nectarine puree, overall didn't love this combo, the tofu portion had great texture but the ginger and yellow nectarine puree just felt like a clash with the tofu

Service was good, team is super efficient (felt a bit rushed), with great recommendations and knowledge of the menu. Food came out very quickly (almost too fast) but totally understand the restaurant wanting to turn tables. Water was refilled regularly and staff checked in throughout our meal.

Overall really enjoyed my meal at four kings, it's an exciting elevated and innovative Chinese restaurant that's really applying fun fusions throughout the menu. Would rate this as a 4.5 overall given the dessert and drinks could be improved but would love to come back and try more of the menu. Definitely give this spot a visit, worth the wait!

I came to their pop up at Buddy and loved their chili oil pig ears so I was super excited to try out their full fledged restaurant...but man is it hard to get a reservation!

So only 5 whole months of waiting later...My friends surprised me with a 9:30pm reservation for my birthday and i was beyond thrilled! Having lived in Taiwan during high school, the mandopop tunes really took me back. I loved the atmosphere and the food was very solid (the tomato pork chop is my new favorite). Would definitely go back when I'm allowed next :)

So excited to finally try four kings! Booked a 9:30pm reservation because that's what was available. We live nearby so it was no biggie. They are very organized and when you get to the front door they have signs for walk-ins and reservations. We arrived a few mins before and a waiter immediately looked over and walked us in.

The space is small and cozy and honestly, I love that.

We decided to order a Chinese almond milk high bal (recommended by our waiter), the ginger scallion cold cut chicken, black bean clams, xo escargot w/ milkbread and the salted fish fried rice. Everything came out gradually so we were able to enjoy the chicken and escargot with milk bread on its own. The clams and fried rice came out around the same time which was a great pairing.

Everything was exceptional. The escargot had a garlic butter sauce that went perfect with the milk bread, the cold cut chicken was unique and had really nice scallion flavor, the clams were drenched in a great black bean sauce with a hint of spice that was complimented with the Chinese almond milk and the fried rice was salty with a nice crispy fish.

Can't wait to go back and try more items but will mostly order almost all the same dishes haha. Also would like to try the scallop vermicelli.