Yum Cha Palace's alcohol license suspended

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Yum Cha Palace, at 1039 El Camino Real in Menlo Park, on Jan. 30, 2024. Courtesy Andrea Gemmet.

Yum Cha Palace, a popular Chinese restaurant at 1039 El Camino Real in Menlo Park, recently had its alcohol license suspended, according to the California Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC). A spokesperson for ABC said the suspension was the result of Menlo Park Police Department and ABC conducting a minor decoy operation on July 23, 2023.

The restaurant, which specializes in serving dim sum dishes, had its license suspended on Jan 24. The suspension will last 25 days, according to ABC’s website.

ABC said that this was the second sale of alcoholic beverages to a minor, with a first violation occurring on Jan. 20, 2023.

Yum Cha Palace, which opened in January 2017 after the location had been vacant for years, was previously home to Su Hong, which closed in 2012 for renovations but never reopened.

This isn’t the first time the restaurant has found itself in hot water recently.

On Oct. 2, 2023, Yum Cha Palace was also closed by the Environmental Health Services for failure to correct a major violation. The California Retail Food Code violation that the agency said was not addressed at the time of the closure was a cockroach infestation.

Yum Cha Palace is currently operating at its normal hours.

A call to the restaurant for comment was not immediately returned.