**** Harmony Pot Sticker has closed
Last week I read in Eater San Diego that guotie shop had opened on Engineer Road. So, having some time on my hands this past long weekend, I decided to check them out. According to Eater, Harmony Pot Sticker is part of a chain from Shenyang. I showed the Missus photos and She told me it does look like that style of guotie.
The shop takes the place of Korean Meat Market.
The menu is fairly tight, pot stickers, soups, liang cai, porridge, and some drinks.
The pot stickers range from the $8.99 – $9.99 price range, which is definitely not cheap. The young folks working here were very polite and quite a pleasure.
I decided to start with the Smacked Cucumbers ($4.99); which turned out to be a pretty hefty portion.
This was a decent version of the dish; balanced flavors, and not to salty. So, I guess if you're not feeling like making whatever version of Pai Huang Gua (派黄瓜) at home, this might do it for you. It's also quite refreshing and helps cut through any greasiness….which is something I needed on this day with the Pork and Cabbage pot stickers ($8.99).
These did somewhat resemble the Qingdao Guotie that I enjoy; except that these are quite elongated and open at both ends so you can see the filling. The wrapper is decent; nice texture with a bit of "pull". It was pretty greasy and the filling really lacked flavor….to the point that I had to actually pour black vinegar into the pot stickers which added some oomph and helped to cut the grease.
Since I was behind on work; I went in on President's Day and decided to reward myself with lunch afterwards….I thought I'd give Harmony another try.
This time I started with the Jiang Niu Rou; the classic cold sliced braised beef ($6.99).
This was much more moist and tender than other versions I've had recently. Nice beefiness; that sauce added a touch of pungent spice. a very nice dish.
This time; I decided to have the Pork and Suan Cai Guotie ($9.99); to see if the Missus would like these.
The filling was much better this time around; it actually had a bit of flavor from the pickled cabbage which really added to things. And while this wasn't greasy at all; it wasn't crisp enough….notice how the bottoms are too light in color; it just lacked the crunch I was looking for. Also, ten bucks for this was kind of pushing it….we were heading into DTF pricing here. 
At this point; I think I'll give this place a rest for a couple of weeks. I think it shows some potential and surprisingly; it's the non-guotie items that I enjoyed the most. And then maybe I'll be able to take the Missus here.
And while this is more of a "snack" type of place; two orders of guotie and one side dish might do it for two of you….if you're not big eaters.
Harmony Pot Sticker
7905 Engineer Rd.
San Diego, CA 92111
Hours:
Mon – Thurs 11am – 3pm, 5pm – 930pm
Sat – Sun 1130am – 930pm