Imperial Tea Court - Berkeley

Veggie handcuffed noodles is the best. Too bad they close well.

I have been customer of the Imperial Tea Court in Berkeley for over ten years and while I am sure that the rest of the menu is delicious, the always lasting #1 special, extreme garlic hand pulled noodles with spicy pork, is my go to dish! Sometimes I order an appetizer of the dim sum (either the steamed BBQ pork rolls or the dim-sampler, if with friends and regularly add extra greens to my duck of noodles because they are so delicious. In addition to the excellent food, the tea in the shop is excellent. My favourite is the Imperial Jin Xuan Milk Oolong, with a narrow second place in the Orchid Oolong. Once you find a favorite tea (the only hard part is the choice because all teas are exquisite, make sure to brew a loose sheet at home! (And no, before someone asks, I've never worked here, I'm just a big fan of them!

My friend and I have been moving to East Bay for almost a year to smuggle really clean Chinese food. I'm sure we missed some places, but that's the best we've tried so far. Everything was exceptionally fresh – there was no cheap oil or oversalination. It tasted home. Really wonderful!

Authentic noodles. I wish they had Bok Choy or another traditional filling for vegetable balls, as I did not like the crowned greens filling (bitter and rough). relatively expensive.

The dumplings were good, and the service was fantastic. Only complaint is that the grating in the table was gross. We especially enjoyed the organic greens, and green tea dumplings. Nice outdoor seating and kid friendly.