Anything but a Ho Hum Bistro in Newport Beach

At times, I have driven 20 miles--enduring the traffic on Coast Highway and the summertime crowds on Balboa Peninsula--just to eat the Chinese chicken salad at Ho Sum Bistro.

This salad arrives in a clear glass bowl, piled up in a gravity-defying mound of roasted chicken breast, lettuce, crispy noodles and a colorful, tangy red ginger dressing. It’s a perfect hot-weather meal, and it alone is worth the trip to the peninsula.

But Ho Sum has much more to offer: Tai Tai Mein, a spicy blend of cold noodles, sprouts and chicken in a peanut sauce; Szechuan chicken roasted with garlic, ginger, scallions and cilantro; pork cha sui--thin, lean slices of barbecued pork; and pot stickers, plump chicken dumplings crispy on one side and soft on the other.

At Ho Sum, the food, called Califoriental cuisine, is always flavorful and inventive, and the prices are always affordable. The menu mixes healthful, light veggies with spicy Szechuan and other Chinese and Thai influences. Its genesis came about six years ago, when former owner Robert Mah, a UCLA professor, suffered a heart attack and modified his favorite Chinese dishes to be more health-conscious. His home-cooking was so popular he opened a restaurant, and it’s been a hit ever since. Ho Sum’s recipes use little oil, and no beef, only chicken and extremely lean cuts of pork, yet even the biggest beef freak wouldn’t miss the fat, since the dishes are so full of flavor.

This restaurant has an array of regulars, Ho Sum “addicts” who know what they want even before they sit down. With its ultra-high ceiling, Ho Sum is small, casual and noisy (but not obnoxiously so), offering only five tables and several long counters. It’s the perfect antidote for Newport Beach’s touristy, high-priced restaurants. You’ll feel comfortable in jeans or even beach wear. Although it’s always full on weekend nights, the wait is usually no more than a few minutes.

The current owners (for the past two years) are Edward O’Neill and Mark Willhoit, who have continued Mah’s healthy tradition. The food remains just as good as when Mah ran the place. Their staff of 13 is friendly, with everybody pitching in to toss a salad, cook up a batch of fried rice and chat with guests.

The chicken salad (a must at $5.40) is plenty for two. Share one, and then order two or three other dishes (everything here is around $5 or less) from the menu’s three soups, dim sum and a variety of meat, noodle, fried rice and mu shu entrees. I have tried nearly all, and none is disappointing.

The chefs, led by Gregorio Diaz, also will occasionally surprise guests with some special concoctions. One recent Saturday it was lobster won-tons, crispy morsels served with a lobster and fruit sauce. A Sunday dim sum champagne brunch, at $9.95, which includes free-flowing champagne, steamed rice, soup, and a choice of dim sum, is also popular from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.

And don’t forget dessert: almond cookies dipped in dark chocolate.

Ho Sum Bistro, 3112 Newport Boulevard, Newport Beach. Open 11 a.m to 10 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Friday and Saturday, and 10:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. on Sunday. (714) 675-0896.