Vital Information wrote:Do you know where they stood on the entirety of the menu. When I went, a week ago Monday, they had only about 4 "Katy" items, not even the XLB, from the one page menu.

As far as I could tell, they seemed to have most everything on the list when I was last there. I've ordered noodles, pot stickers, pancake, sour cabbage soup and haven't been told no. Mr. Red Shirt talked about adding some more items (like some of the other soups, dan dan noodles, etc.) gradually as they get up to speed. I seem to remember a slow ramp up when Naperville first opened, too. They've been there less than two weeks, hopefully the kinks will get worked out.

One of the oddest things is that the space is still overwhelmingly branded Hutong, save the banner outside and the easy to miss xeroxed menu hanging at the end of the wall. When I was in last week, I saw multiple people scanning the giant Hutong menus on the wall, only to get to the tiny Katy's menu hanging near the register before they had their eureka moment. A friend of mine ordered there last week and had no idea at all about the Katy's connection until he saw Katy's on the receipt rather than Hutong, which only confused him. The website is the same, as is the Yelp listing, with a current (March) review making no mention of Katy's at all.

So I assume they're still making the Hutong menu stuff, right? I'd love to know the actual strategy at work. Will the decor eventually change? Will the Hutong menus and other wall hangings be taken down? Right now it's a bit (just a bit, for the sake of the simile) like walking into a Burger King and discovering a special McDonald's menu.

Regardless, it'll be all I can do to avoid going here all the time. Going to Katy's used to be a special trip, so I have to be careful not to burn out!

Vitesse98 wrote:So I assume they're still making the Hutong menu stuff, right?

That's what they told me when I asked last week.

The signage out front is very...odd.

David Hammond wrote:

Vitesse98 wrote:So I assume they're still making the Hutong menu stuff, right?

That's what they told me when I asked last week.

The signage out front is very...odd.

Yes. They will continue to serve the Hutong menu, just as they continue to serve the menu of whatever the restaurant was before them in Napeville. The signage will be updated, though (although it will still say Hutong in the window).

Steve,

It wouldn't hurt to tell Mr. Red Shirt that there are many LTH'ers that would like to see "the pickles."

Evil Ronnie wrote:Steve,

It wouldn't hurt to tell Mr. Red Shirt that there are many LTH'ers that would like to see "the pickles."

I've been telling him since they disappeared from the cooler in Westmont.

Evil Ronnie wrote:Steve,

It wouldn't hurt to tell Mr. Red Shirt that there are many LTH'ers that would like to see "the pickles."

Hammond and I (in a fortuitously random encounter) reinforced this to them today. They are definitely bringing the refrigerator cooler over soon and reinforced the promises of "lots of new authentic dishes in just a few weeks." I'm already on cloud nine with the xiao long bao and shredded pork pancake.

Not a fan of their soup dumpling. Prefer Lao Yu Ju if you're looking for the "tallest midget in the circus". Love the pickled cabbage soup w/pork belly though and of course the pancake mit swine.

I took the Green Line to the Oak Park location, after work yesterday evening (arriving around 6p), and snagged my favorite, Beef Tendon Noodle Soup, for takeout, along with the Stir Fried Onion Pancake w/Pork, due to the many praises I've read here. The SFOPw/P was ok, (probably doesn't take well to being reheated) but the BTNS was just as I remembered from my last visit to the Westmont location, in '06. After arriving home, on the far southside of the city (around 8:30p), I unloaded all from my backpack, gently reheated it on the stove, and the rest was bliss. Finished the leftovers this morning.

I was initially thrown by the substantial price increase (what should one expect after 7 years, right? ), but after biting into the 1st juicy, flavorful tendon, it was no longer a concern. However, are the prices the same at the Westmont and Naperville locations?

Edit: No Mr. Red, or Blue, Shirt, this time, but instead a cute Asian girl, in Black, who offered a welcome glass of ice water, for my wait... the same one in stevez's pic. The ambiance is a 180° change from Westmont, but the culinary quality is, fortunately, the same.

Hi,

I stopped by the original Katy's this evening. They had a red handwritten sign on the door advising new hours: Closed Mondays, Tuesday-Sunday: 11 am until 10 pm. (Note, I already edited the original post to reflect this new information). Prior to this change, they were closed on Wednesdays.

It was the first time in a long time I recognized nobody in the crew. I guess they are all in Oak Park getting that operation launched properly. Now if they would consider another operation the northern suburbs, I would be delighted.

I tried the fried bottom buns this evening from the new menu additions. I am sorry I did not select the soup dumplings, instead, because these fried buns were too dry for my tastes.

Katy's Dumpling House
665 N. Cass Ave.
Westmont, IL 60559
(630) 323-9393

Hours: 11am – 9pm
Closed Mondays
Cash only

Cathy2 wrote:Katy's Dumpling House
665 N. Cass Ave.
Westmont, IL 60559
(630) 323-9393

Hours: 11am – 9pm
Closed Mondays
Cash only

Must have been there a bit earlier than you for dinner. Man, it's good so far. I agree with the sentiment above that it's a little pricier, but the portions are huge, offsetting things a lot. My only quibble right now would be the effort it takes to get the "chili oil", the darker stuff on the tables at Westmont and not the brighter chili paste from the old regime--I actually like the red stuff, but the maroon condiment just seems more Katy's.

Anyways, as to the cash only comment, unless they changed between the time I paid and C2's dinner, the house takes cards.

Vital Information wrote:Anyways, as to the cash only comment, unless they changed between the time I paid and C2's dinner, the house takes cards.

Hi,

I happened to pay cash last night. I did see a sign stating 'Cash only,' by the register. Maybe they prefer cash without that pesky 2% to the banks, so they keep the cash only sign to encourage a cash payment. Or it is such a new change, they forgot to take the cash-only signage down.

We were there around 6:00 pm, it was a nice stop for dinner on our way back from Bloomington. We would have been delighted to see all of you.

I am a bit bummed that their new closed day is Monday. It was a favorite stop when mushroom club had a meeting in the southern suburbs.

Regards,

stevez wrote:ATTENTION OAK PARKERS: They deliver, which makes me a very jealous guy.

This just seriously made my day!

Cathy2 wrote:

Vital Information wrote:Anyways, as to the cash only comment, unless they changed between the time I paid and C2's dinner, the house takes cards.

Hi,

I happened to pay cash last night. I did see a sign stating 'Cash only,' by the register. Maybe they prefer cash without that pesky 2% to the banks, so they keep the cash only sign to encourage a cash payment. Or it is such a new change, they forgot to take the cash-only signage down.

We were there around 6:00 pm, it was a nice stop for dinner on our way back from Bloomington. We would have been delighted to see all of you.

I am a bit bummed that their new closed day is Monday. It was a favorite stop when mushroom club had a meeting in the southern suburbs.

Regards,

Were you in the Oak Park Katy's, on Lake? I was in today and I asked them about your post. What you write is true...for Westmont.

The OP Katy's is open 7 days a week and takes Visa and Mastercharge, but not Amex.

Rob,

I specifically stated I was in Westmont underlined by including their address.

Sorry for any misunderstanding, I never thought of Oak Park. Now if you can put in a good word for expanding to the northern suburbs, I would be delighted.

Regards,

Cathy2 wrote:Rob,

I specifically stated I was in Westmont underlined by including their address.

Sorry for any misunderstanding, I never thought of Oak Park. Now if you can put in a good word for expanding to the northern suburbs, I would be delighted.

Regards,

Sorry, just assuming we were talking about OP. Did not pay attention to what was clearly there!

We had dinner at the OP Katy's last night. The husband ordered his favorite dish from the old Hutong menu - the Hutong spicy chicken. He said it was pretty much the same as it's always been before. I noticed a few items on the Hutong menu have been covered over (Old Beijing Noodles, for one), and when we tried to order the tofu rolls (what our child wanted), we were told that those are off the menu as well. We also ordered the juicy pork dumplings (soup dumplings), boiled pork & bok choy dumplings, and the stir fried onion pancake with pork. Both dumplings were fine, but the stir fried onion pancake with pork was a salt bomb. The only thing I could taste was salt, which was a huge disappointment. I like salt and salty foods, but this was really way too salty, even for me.

Yuck. Not the norm at the other locations, though, as a less-salty-than-most kinda person, I can say that the Naperville outpost runs saltier than Westmont in my visits. I have yet to check out the OP location. I won't go until they start offering Dan-Dan. If I went to Katy's and didn't get Dan-Dan, I'd more than likely have to go back the next day. I'm weird like that. It's like going to Uncle John's and not getting links. I would HAVE to go back.

I think the overly salty stir fried onion pancake with pork was a fluke. We've had it at Oak Park, and found it essentially identical to Westmont.

Has anyone asked if they have frozen dumplings to go at Oak Park? I'm almost out and it would be great not to have to remember what day Westmont is closed.

Ann Fisher wrote:it would be great not to have to remember what day Westmont is closed.

At least they've changed it to Monday, so it's easier to remember. I can't begin to count the times I showed up in Westmont on a Wednesday because I forgot that they had an odd closing date. By moving to Monday, at least I have a fighting chance of remembering.

Ann Fisher wrote:Has anyone asked if they have frozen dumplings to go at Oak Park? I'm almost out and it would be great not to have to remember what day Westmont is closed.

I purchased a bag of pork and chive dumplings to go on Thursday. It was $20, which is substantially more than I remember at the Westmont location, but will not stop me from purchasing frozen dumplings when my cupboard is bare.

deesher wrote:I purchased a bag of pork and chive dumplings to go on Thursday. It was $20, which is substantially more than I remember at the Westmont location, but will not stop me from purchasing frozen dumplings when my cupboard is bare.

Yes, even at Westmont I was disappointed to see that the prices of frozen dumplings (pork and napa, pork and chives) have gone up from $14 to $20, which is a good 40% increase in one shot.

I am about ready to forever write off the Naperville location as a restaurant. I have had lunch or dinner there about five times, lured by dumplings. I tried again this Sunday evening.
They have added a 10 piece dumpling appetizer which is good, but an assortment would be better. I ate five and saved the rest. Maybe I should only order appetizers as the rest of my meals are disasters. I like noodle dishes and each type of noodle that they have is good, but add a sauce and you may end up with an inedible dish. Most posters and reviewers have commented on oversalting on most dishes. There seems to be no control over seasoning at all.
This evening I ordered "Tripe clear noodle" (one pepper). I had had a nice menudo that morning and welcomed the comparison.
I made sure that the one pepper meant that the dish would be less spicy than the "'dan dan' noodles (two peppers) that I had had previous trips. A nice bowl was delivered with visible clear rice noodles in a bright red, shiny broth. The tripe could not have been 3 ounces, julienned on the top-it looked like a garnish! The broth tasted of nothing but salt and heat-it was close to inedible. The staff said that's the way it is supposed to be and the dan dan is much hotter! The broth was covered by at least an eighth inch of oil and red liquid as if chorizo (same color, different spices) had been fried down and the rendered fat poured into the bowl on top of the broth. Not ready to write off the place yet, I ordered a dan dan to go with NO sauce. Later I confirmed that the noodles are indeed good, the greens fine, and although the sauce was milder, it is mixed in with the ground pork and overall the dish was awful. I love the subtle seasonings of pho, ramen, even tom yum, and have a hard time believing that the cooks at Katy's can be so bad.
With what I consider to be great alternatives in Lisle and Downers Grove I don't want to waste another meal here unless someone thinks that I have been ordering badly and has a favorite they are confident in.

Inedibly spicy and a slick of oil in top sounds LUSCIOUS to me. Different strokes, maybe.

Went to the OP Katy's for the first time this weekend, and the regular chef from Westmont was in the kitchen. I hope he stays there, because the fried noodles and pancake dishes were spot on, and they did have some of the homemade chili sauce on hand to spice things up a bit. We also had the potstickers (shrimp), and they also tasted the same. My wife, who has no real love of Chinese food, stated that it was excellent, and so if they stay on top of their game I may get to eat more of it in Oak Park now, so I hope they continue to maintain the same quality. But with the Westmont chef here in OP (at least on the weekend), who is now cooking in Westmont? Mr. Red Shirt himself?

Had the pancake there yesterday. While the taste profile was pretty much the same, I felt that there was a bit of wok hay missing and will mention that next time.

Had the pancake there yesterday. While the taste profile was pretty much the same, I felt that there was a bit of wok hay missing and will mention that next time.

I didn't necessarily note that myself, although I was gobbling up my meal pretty fast, so perhaps I didn't pay quite as much attention to the items as I could have. Since the restaurant they are in is somewhat new, it would not be a surprise that they are using somewhat new woks, and I have a feeling the stoves don't have quite the same BTUs there as in Westmont, but I don't know that for sure.

Been to OP location twice in the last week. First visit (carry out) had the Dry Chili Fried Noodle. The noodles were excellent but was disappointed with the lack of Shrimp compared to what I remembered from Westmont (been awhile) Most notable was the total lack of Heat . While the dish was loaded with blackened dry chili peppers it was as if the the peppers were fried separate and just added to the dish. I had to add Sririacha to get some spice.

Last night ordered from the Hutong menu. Kung Pao had a sweet sauce and no heat. Also had the Pork Bao

The wife who travels to China several times a year, really liked the noodles but again was disappointed at the lack of spice. She also said the Bao had good flavor but was to thick and doughy.

They answered the phone as Katy's and now have an official printed Katy's menu The menu is greatly expanded including dishes like shell on Salt & Pepper Shrimp, Beef Stew in spicy beer sauce and Pork Kidney w. Sour Chili pickle just to name a few. Chengdu Dan Dan Noodle is on the menu and was to be available starting today.

Marshall K wrote:While the dish was loaded with blackened dry chili peppers it was as if the the peppers were fried separate and just added to the dish. I had to add Sririacha to get some spice.

Last night ordered from the Hutong menu. Kung Pao had a sweet sauce and no heat. Also had the Pork Bao

The wife who travels to China several times a year, really liked the noodles but again was disappointed at the lack of spice. She also said the Bao had good flavor but was to thick and doughy.

Regarding low heat, I had the Korean Noodle Soup and it was, for me, pitched to just the right amount of heat. The giggly and friendly servers seemed concerned about me (warning me it was hot and then coming by twice to ask, "Too hot?), but I thought it was just fine and plenty hot.



Warning: contains Krab, but otherwise a good counterpunch to an increasingly aggressive sore throat.

I made my third trip to the Katy's new Oak Park location this week. As a city dweller, I'm very happy to have a closer option than Westmont. I was happy to see that Dan Dan noodles were added to the Oak Park menu. As they are generally not the easiest item to share, we ordered two bowls for our table of three. When the noodles arrived, they were not in soup as they are served at the other locations. They were excellent and I will certainly order them again every time I go to any Katy's, but it was surprising that they were served in such a different fashion than the other locations.

I was also surprised that while downtown Oak Park was bustling, there was no one in Katy's (although there were a few to go orders picked up while we were there).