It’s too bad Harbor-UCLA Medical Center doesn’t...

It’s too bad Harbor-UCLA Medical Center doesn’t just serve its patients takeout from across the street--namely the Hong Kong Garden Chinese restaurant. It would make their stay more tolerable.

If you can’t find something that appeals to you on the menu of the Hong Kong Garden, you simply don’t like Chinese food. With 221 dishes offered

and several specials, something is bound to tempt you.

Owner Spencer Chun opened this handsome Torrance restaurant in 1971 after receiving his training in Hong Kong. He says he frequently returns to that bustling city to keep up-to-date on the latest trends in Cantonese cooking.

At lunch, Hong Kong Garden offers the tasty little snacks called dim sum. Among the favorites are har gow (three for $1.75), which are shrimp-filled steamed dumplings; char siu bow (two for $1.75), baked buns filled with marinated barbecued pork; and sil mye (three for $1.75), seasoned ground pork with shrimp and bamboo shoots.

Though the price fluctuates, the fresh crab with curry sauce currently goes for $8.95 and the whole lobster with black bean sauce is $12.95 a pound.

As at the grand establishments of Hong Kong, there are many shrimp dishes on the menu. Hong Kong Garden offers 21. One of the most popular is the shrimp with glazed walnuts ($11.95). Nearly two dozen medium shrimp are coated with water-chestnut powder, braised with a touch of mayonnaise and honey, then topped with walnuts that have been glazed in water with rock candy.

Among the 24 poultry dishes listed is the Cantonese-style fried chicken ($6.95). This moist and flavorful half chicken is coated with a honey-vinegar mixture, rubbed with cinnamon salt and star anise then deep-fried in soy bean oil.

Hong Kong Garden is located at 21718 S. Vermont Ave. (310) 320-8802. Open Sunday through Thursday 11 a.m. to 9:30 p.m., Friday and Saturday 11 a.m. to 10:30 p.m. Karaoke till 1 a.m. Beer and wine served.