An Iconic San Diego Chinese Restaurant Returns After a Devastating Fire
China Max Dumpling House is one of the many San Diego Asian restaurants striving to compete in the dumpling space. Inspired by the astronomical success of Din Tai Fung, the privately held Taiwanese soup dumpling chain with 17 U.S. locations, Asian entrepreneurs are modeling their restaurant ventures after the casual dining concept that generates more revenue than any other American dining chain, including Mastro's Restaurants, Cheesecake Factory, and Nobu Restaurants, according to Restaurant Business Magazine. Din Tai Fung also keeps innovating by adjusting to American palates, such as adding chicken dumplings and mango shaved snow desserts to their menu.
Matthew Kang
Matthew Kang
On weekdays, China Max Dumpling House hosts a promotional all-you-can-eat dumpling, soda, ice cream, and New York-style cheesecake deal for lunch and dinner. There's a 90-minute limit at the tables for the AYCE experience, and customers are getting their money's worth. The kitchen team folds wontons and soup dumplings at a rapid pace. The chefs continue to adjust the recipes to customers' tastes, like making the soup dumplings juicier and plumper, as well as adding crab xiao long bao, and a hand-rolled noodle dish with spicy peppercorn sauce.
After five years of closure, one of the most beloved Chinese restaurants in San Diego reopened its doors after an accidental fire destroyed the iconic landmark during the COVID-19 pandemic in April 2020. The incident destroyed the restaurant and any hope that it could participate in the steady takeout business that helped restaurants and livelihoods during the lockdowns. When the original owners, Cindy Woo and her husband, opened China Max in 1983, it became a pioneering institution: one of the first Chinese restaurants to establish itself in San Diego's Convoy District, now well-known for its dim sum and Cantonese restaurants. Always bustling, the restaurant was a gathering spot for families and friends, often boasting lines out the door.
After the fire, the Woos intended to rebuild and reopen the restaurant, but ultimately decided to sell the business and retire. They sold it to a team of owners who have Chinese restaurants in the Convoy District, Encinitas, and several major cities in China. With extensive restaurant experience behind them, the team includes Shuai Liu and Yingkang Lu, a University of California San Diego grad whose family runs several large catering halls in Wuhan. A third partner, Yukun Sun, owns several restaurants and karaoke bars in Kunming, China, including an elegant, high-end Chinese restaurant recognized in the Black Pearl Restaurant Guide, the Chinese equivalent of the Michelin Guide.
In San Diego, the team owns the nearby Cantonese restaurant Taste of Hong Kong, which specializes in roasted meat dishes and other Chinese dishes. (Many of the chefs and servers from China Max went to work at Taste of Hong Kong as the restaurant was rebuilding.) In September 2024, the owners opened Dumpling Bar in Encinitas, which has gained popularity in the beach town. Liu says the success of Dumpling Bar influenced them to change China Max's menu to more of a dumpling focus. Another of their restaurants, Kanpai BBQ and Shabu, opened in August 2023, offering all-you-can-eat barbecue and shabu shabu. And finally, they opened a second Dumpling Bar in San Marino, California on May 1.
China Max's journey to reopening did not unfold without challenges. The fire caused $4.5 million in damages. The team faced several roadblocks in the five-year process to rebuild. It had to navigate the city's permitting process, negotiate with insurance companies, and oversee major reconstruction, including the installation of a new foundation. 'Once the contractors did any part of the work, they needed to ask for reimbursement from the insurance company. [That process] took a long time for evaluations and negotiations,' says Liu.
When the restaurant opened, China Max 2.0 debuted with a more modern interior with tall windows, cushioned high-back chairs, and pink carpet, plus an expanded menu. The former enclosed patio space has been redesigned to be part of the interior footprint. Dumplings are constantly being made by hand in a viewing space just like at Din Tai Fung.
Dumpling preparation. Matthew Kang
The restaurant relaunched with an evolving menu that is still being expanded and tweaked. Staple dishes include pork xiao long bao, or soup dumplings, along with a pan-fried version of xiao long bao. Other popular favorites include chile wontons, sweet and sour ribs, green beans, sticky rice, hand-rolled noodle dishes, and Beijing duck tacos that come prepared in a steamer basket. Soon to be unveiled on the restaurant's second floor is a buffet featuring Northern Chinese dishes, such as tomato and egg dishes, eggplant with potatoes and green peppers, stir-fried pickled cabbage, shredded potato stir-fry, and sauteed green beans. The dishes are already available for takeout, but Liu, who hails from Shenyang in China's northeast region, hasn't set an opening date for the upstairs buffet. 'Northern Chinese cuisine has become popular in China. I want to bring dishes from the area I grew up in to San Diego, my adopted hometown,' says Liu.
'The original China Max was a pioneer in helping to establish the Convoy District as the dining destination it is today. Lots of people in the Asian community and San Diego were waiting for the reopening, and wondering if it would reopen at all. The fire was a blow to the owners and the neighborhood, says Wesley Quach, director of the Asian Business Association San Diego and Convoy District Partnership. 'The return of China Max reflects our neighborhood, and frankly, our community's resilience.'
The lines for the renamed China Max Dumpling House have returned after five years, even with tighter parking after the city removed some 300 street parking spaces to make way for bike lanes. Sizzling House owner Mrs. Lin told Eater, 'If people don't want to wait in line, some might try our restaurant,' a few doors down from China Max. The Lins (who requested not to use their full names for privacy reasons) reopened in January 2025, after closing in April 2020 due to the China Max fire.
The newfound energy from China Max's reopening has been good for all the businesses. Mrs. Lin says all the restaurants shared information about the bike lanes and how that would affect parking, while China Max also assisted Midnight Skewers by allowing piping to run from its first-floor kitchen to a second-floor kitchen. Kickstarted by the reopening of China Max Dumpling House, Asian businesses in this particular corner of the Convoy District are also rising from the ashes.
Exterior of China Max Dumpling House. Matthew Kang
Dining room. Matthew Kang
Decorative steamer baskets on the wall. Matthew Kang
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Axios
18 minutes ago
- Axios
Survey: Chicago back-to-school spending tops $740 per child
Shopping for school supplies will cost you more in Chicago, according to a new report. Why it matters: Back-to-school is the second-biggest retail event of the year, after the holidays. The latest: The annual Deloitte Back-to-School Survey estimates that Chicago parents will spend up to 30% more than the national average on school supplies. What they're saying:"Chicago parents are expected to spend $740 per child this back-to-school season," Deloitte Consulting's Matt Adams tells Axios. The national average is $570. "Chicago families are also spending more than the national average on packed lunches, extracurriculars and first-day outfits." Reality check: Chicago has outpaced national estimates before. In 2024, the report said Chicago parents would spend $747 per child, while the national average was $586. The intrigue: The biggest category for spending is clothing. 70% of local Chicago parents surveyed say their children's preferences generally influence them to spend more, including splurging on a first-day-of-school outfit. Zoom in: In addition to spending on back-to-school, 97% of Chicago parents surveyed plan to enroll their children in extracurricular activities, versus 90% nationally. Parents expect to spend $629 on fees and equipment, which is also above the national average ($532). Zoom out: 56% of the Chicago parents surveyed are concerned about higher prices and 71% of households report being in a similar or worse financial situation than last year. 51% expect the economy to weaken in the next six months (versus 37% in 2024). State of play: Prices for stationery and other supplies have risen 30% nationally over the past five years. New U.S. tariffs on Chinese imports — including backpacks, pens, binders and shoes — kicked in earlier this year, rose sharply, then came back down to levels still historically high. Yes, but: The full impact of tariffs hasn't hit store shelves yet — and back-to-school season may be the first test of how much price pressure shoppers will tolerate, according to a Wells Fargo Investment Institute report released last month.
Los Angeles Times
18 minutes ago
- Los Angeles Times
Trump's broad tariffs go into effect, just as economic pain is surfacing
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump began levying higher import taxes on dozens of countries Thursday, just as the economic fallout of his monthslong tariff threats has begun to create visible damage for the U.S. economy. Just after midnight, goods from more than 60 countries and the European Union became subject to tariff rates of 10% or higher. Products from the EU, Japan and South Korea are taxed at 15%, while imports from Taiwan, Vietnam and Bangladesh are taxed at 20%. Trump also expects the EU, Japan and South Korea to invest hundreds of billions of dollars in the U.S. 'I think the growth is going to be unprecedented,' Trump said Wednesday afternoon. He added that the U.S. was 'taking in hundreds of billions of dollars in tariffs,' but he couldn't provide a specific figure for revenues because 'we don't even know what the final number is' regarding tariff rates. Despite the uncertainty, the Trump White House is confident that the onset of his broad tariffs will provide clarity about the path of the world's largest economy. Now that companies understand the direction the U.S. is headed, the Republican administration believes they can ramp up new investments and jump-start hiring in ways that can rebalance the U.S. economy as a manufacturing power. But so far, there are signs of self-inflicted wounds to America as companies and consumers alike brace for the impact of new taxes. What the data has shown is a U.S. economy that changed in April with Trump's initial rollout of tariffs, an event that led to market drama, a negotiating period and Trump's ultimate decision to start his universal tariffs on Thursday. Economic reports show that hiring began to stall, inflationary pressures crept upward and home values in key markets started to decline after April, said John Silvia, CEO of Dynamic Economic Strategy. 'A less productive economy requires fewer workers,' Silvia said in an analysis note. 'But there is more, the higher tariff prices lower workers' real wages. The economy has become less productive, and firms cannot pay the same real wages as before. Actions have consequences.' Even then, the ultimate transformations of the tariffs are unknown and could play out over months, if not years. Many economists say the risk is that the American economy is steadily eroded rather than collapsing instantly. 'We all want it to be made for television where it's this explosion — it's not like that,' said Brad Jensen, a professor at Georgetown University. 'It's going to be fine sand in the gears and slow things down.' Trump has promoted the tariffs as a way to reduce the persistent trade deficit. But importers sought to avoid the taxes by importing more goods before the taxes went into effect. As a result, the $582.7 billion trade imbalance for the first half of the year was 38% higher than in 2024. Total construction spending has dropped 2.9% over the past year. The economic pain isn't confined to the U.S. Germany, which sends 10% of its exports to the U.S. market, saw industrial production sag 1.9% in June as Trump's earlier rounds of tariff hikes took hold. 'The new tariffs will clearly weigh on economic growth,' said Carsten Brzeski, global chief of macro for ING bank. The lead-up to Thursday fit the slapdash nature of Trump's tariffs, which have been variously rolled out, walked back, delayed, increased, imposed by letter and frantically renegotiated. The process has been so muddled that officials for key trade partners were unclear at the start of the week whether the tariffs would begin Thursday or Friday. The language of the July 31 order to delay the start of tariffs from Aug. 1 only said the higher tax rates would start in seven days. Trump on Wednesday announced additional 25% tariffs to be imposed on India for its buying of Russian oil, bringing its total import taxes to 50%. A top body of Indian exporters said Thursday the latest U.S. tariffs will impact nearly 55% of the country's outbound shipments to America and force exporters to lose their long-standing clients. 'Absorbing this sudden cost escalation is simply not viable. Margins are already thin,' S.C. Ralhan, president of the Federation of Indian Export Organizations, said in a statement. The Swiss executive branch, the Federal Council, was expected to hold an extraordinary meeting Thursday after President Karin Keller-Sutter and other top Swiss officials returned from a hastily arranged trip to Washington in a failed bid to avert steep 39% U.S. tariffs on Swiss goods. Import taxes are still coming on pharmaceutical drugs, and Trump announced 100% tariffs on computer chips. That could leave the U.S. economy in a place of suspended animation as it awaits the impact. The president's use of a 1977 law to declare an economic emergency to impose the tariffs is also under challenge. The impending ruling from last week's hearing before a U.S. appeals court could cause Trump to find other legal justifications if judges say he exceeded his authority. Even people who worked with Trump during his first term are skeptical that things will go smoothly for the economy, such as Paul Ryan, the former Republican House speaker, who has emerged as a Trump critic. 'There's no sort of rationale for this other than the president wanting to raise tariffs based upon his whims, his opinions,' Ryan told CNBC on Wednesday. 'I think choppy waters are ahead because I think they're going to have some legal challenges.' Trump is aware of the risk that courts could overturn his tariffs, prompting him to say on his Truth Social platform: 'THE ONLY THING THAT CAN STOP AMERICA'S GREATNESS WOULD BE A RADICAL LEFT COURT THAT WANTS TO SEE OUR COUNTRY FAIL!' The stock market has been solid during the recent tariff drama, with the S&P 500 index climbing more than 25% from its April low. The market's rebound and the income tax cuts in Trump's tax and spending measures signed into law on July 4 have given the White House confidence that economic growth is bound to accelerate in the coming months. Global financial markets took Thursday's tariff adjustments in stride, with Asian and European shares and U.S. futures mostly higher. Brzeski warned: 'While financial markets seem to have grown numb to tariff announcements, let's not forget that their adverse effects on economies will gradually unfold over time.' As of now, Trump still foresees an economic boom while the rest of the world and American voters wait nervously. 'There's one person who can afford to be cavalier about the uncertainty that he's creating, and that's Donald Trump,' said Rachel West, a senior fellow at The Century Foundation who worked in the Biden White House on labor policy. 'The rest of Americans are already paying the price for that uncertainty.' Boak writes for the Associated Press.
NBC News
19 minutes ago
- NBC News
Tariffs on dozens on countries take effect and Kremlin confirms Trump-Putin meeting: Morning Rundown
Sweeping tariffs on dozens of countries have taken effect. A doctor fears that a rift with UnitedHealthcare could bankrupt her clinic. And a conservative community fights to keep a beloved teacher from being deported. Here's what to know today. Trump's tariffs take effect, affecting everything from food to cars from around the world After months of threats, delays and extensions, President Donald Trump's sweeping tariffs took effect overnight, raising the overall average tariff rate to more than 17%, its highest since the Great Depression. Everything from European Union appliances and Japanese cars to food, furniture and toys from China TVs from South Korea will be hit. However, selected oil and gas imports, along with some smartphones and goods covered by a pre-existing trade agreement with Canada and Mexico, are not affected. Trump has indicated his trade offensive won't stop. The president said he still plans to impose import taxes on pharmaceutical products and semiconductors. Amid that pressure, Apple said it plans to invest $600 billion in the U.S. over the next four years amid pressure from Trump to shift its supply chain to American soil. Meanwhile, Trump hiked the tariff rate for India to 50% because of the nation's purchases of Russian oil, and he said he could raise the European Union's tariff level to 35% from 15% if it reneges on an investment commitment. The Trump administration has already insisted tariffs are working, pointing to billions raised in new monthly revenues for the federal government. While the White House says nations have pledged hundreds of billions of dollars in investments, it hasn't released details of how that money will be spent. While the full effect of the tariffs is yet to be felt, the U.S. economy appears to be on much shakier ground than at the start of the year. Price growth has continued to pick up, employment growth in manufacturing has flatlined and other non-manufacturing sectors are feeling the pinch. The Kremlin said Thursday that a meeting between presidents Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin has been agreed in principle and will happen in the 'coming days,' teeing up their first in-person encounter of Trump's second term. At the same time, Moscow all but dismissed Trump's proposal for a three-way summit involving Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, continuing the Kremlin's longstanding resistance to such a sit-down. Trump's efforts are part of his campaign promise to resolve Russia's war in Ukraine, and his wider 'America First' pledge to end involvement in foreign conflicts altogether. 'At the suggestion of the American side, an agreement in principle was made to hold a bilateral meeting at the highest level in the coming days,' Putin's longtime foreign policy aide, Yury Ushakov, said in an audio idea of a Trump-Putin-Zelenskyy meeting 'for some reason was mentioned by Washington yesterday' but 'not specifically discussed,' Ushakov said. The Russian side had 'left this option completely, completely without comment.' The Trump administration is currently still set to impose secondary sanctions on Russia this week, despite a meeting yesterday between U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff and Putin. An administration official said secondary sanctions 'are still expected to be implemented on Friday.' Zelenskyy said he spoke to Trump after Witkoff's meeting and reiterated the country's insistence on defending its independence. Putin's longtime foreign policy aide, Yury Ushakov, said the talks were 'very useful and constructive,' adding that Russia has 'forwarded some signals ... on the Ukrainian issue.' Read the full story here. More politics news: As the fight in Texas over redistricting plays out, take a look at who draws congressional maps and how they do it. Also, review how nearly a decade of Supreme Court rulings have given states more redistricting power. National Intelligence Director Tulsi Gabbard declassified a document on Russia's 2016 election interference with relatively minimal redactions despite objections from CIA officials. Trump said he's considering a federal takeover of Washington, D.C.'s local police force. The Trump administration is scaling back the State Department's annual Human Rights Report, which is widely read around the world. A Republican running to succeed Mitch McConnell is leaning into the same anti-establishment sentiment that sent JD Vance from the private sector to the vice presidency. Texas surgeon fears insurance dispute may force her into bankruptcy Dr. Elisabeth Potter said she was midway through performing a breast reconstruction surgery when she got a call from a UnitedHealthcare representative who wanted to talk about the patient on the table. During the call, Potter said the representative wanted more information on why the patient needed an overnight hospital stay, even though the surgery had been approved. 'If they can ring me in the operating room, not for something urgent, just for that, and to ask me to justify her staying overnight ... we have lost our way,' Potter said in a TikTok video that has racked up nearly 6 million views. Potter said UnitedHealthcare denied coverage for the hospital stay. An insurance spokesperson said the stay was approved but there was an error with a separate request. Now, Potter believes UnitedHealthcare is retaliating against her because of her social media posts but not allowing her clinic in Austin, Texas, to join their in-network list of providers. Without being able to accept UnitedHealthcare patients in network — the second biggest player in the market, according to the Texas Department of Insurance — Potter said she likely won't be able to stay in business. Experts say the dispute is one example of ongoing tension between insurers and health care providers. Potter's dispute, in particular, comes as UnitedHealth Group comes under intense scrutiny. A new CDC report is the first to provide estimates about how much ultra-processed foods make up Americans' diets. It's more than half. A federal prison camp in Texas where Ghislaine Maxwell was transferred has increased security measures in response to her arrival. And while there, Maxwell will be barred from participating in a puppy training program. The Trump administration has suspended $584 million in federal grants for UCLA, the first public university whose funding has been targeted over allegations of civil rights violations. Scientists want to stop AI from turning evil. Their solution? Teaching the models some bad behavior. I am endlessly fascinated by the stories of people dealing with the effects of major political decisions, such as the overhaul to America's immigration policy. I was especially interested in this incredible story from Daniela Pierre-Bravo about a Haitian immigrant who has become a beloved fixture in his Ohio community, where 83% of voters backed Trump last year. Science teacher Marc Rocher saw serious violence in Haiti. After a close friend was kidnapped and killed was the final straw, he left for the U.S., finding his way to Putnam County under temporary protective status. While it may be a reliably Republican corner of the state, Putnam County's church-goers, students and community members realized that losing Rocher to the country's immigration policies, which they helped put in motion as Trump voters, would mean losing a pillar of the community. Now, the pastor of a conservative church is standing up for Rocher. High school students are sending letters pleading with DHS Secretary Kristi Noem to let him stay. And a family with adopted Haitian children say Rocher has helped their sons heal from the trauma inflicted in their home country. To them, Rocher puts a human face on a polarizing political issue. — Michelle Garcia, NBC BLK editorial director NBC Select: Online Shopping, Simplified NBC Select has been testing fitness trackers for years now, and these are their favorites from Apple, Oura, Garmin and Fitbit. Plus, the brand On has a wide range of sneakers, but which are the right ones for you? We created a handy guide compiled our favorite On sneakers and apparel. here.
