DIM SUM

[dumpling]

I would tend to agree that Chinatown doesn't necessarily have a lot of creative new selections in that sense. Probably the best ones for that would be Sweet and Tart at 20 Mott St and Golden Unicorn. These places also have some other interesting things on their menu, particularly at Sweet n Tart. Their dim sum are generally very fresh and quite good.

There are also some places tthat you could explore in Queens-one place I recall that had some great pai gwot fan-some little spareribs and sauce steamed over rice.

[Pan]

Do you remember a name and location for the place in Queens?

[Suzanne F]

The relatively new place at the confluence of Mott, Worth, Park Row, and all the rest, A & B Lobster King, had some very tasty offerings from the carts. Including some items we'd not seen before. But for someone who IS familiar with dim sum, ordering off the menu will gain some even more interesting items.

For the novice, there's always Dim Sum GoGo. Beautiful items, and nonthreathening.

[robyn]

Robyn, I don't rule out places that are in Midtown. I love Grand Sichuan on 9th Av. between 50th and 51st, for example.

You made valid points, but we're coming at this from different angles. If I were within walking distance of Shun Lee West, I'd also be able to walk down to 9 Av. and the 50s and eat something I liked better. In addition to which, several eGulleteers have recommended some places a little further uptown on Columbus for brunch or lunch, for example @SQC, so I'd consider those. [Edit: If I'm eating out, I'd rather have something good that's in a neighborhood than have food in a Chinese restaurant just because it's there, if you get my drift.]

Pan - The main point I was making is there's a decent dim sum place on the upper west side for someone who wants to eat dim sum in that neighborhood - for any reason. On my part - on 2 occasions - it was combining a meal and a museum trip on the upper west side with family/friends - also from out of town - who insisted on dim sum - and didn't want to spend half the day making the round trip to Chinatown. That's how I found the Shun Lee Cafe.

Is it the best dim sum in New York? No. Is it the best food on the upper west side? No. It's just a place people can keep in mind if they're trying to put together the kind of afternoon I was asked to plan (dim sum and MOMA or the Museum of Natural History).

By the way - in one case - the friends in question had never eaten dim sum - and they enjoyed the place a lot. In the other case - the family in question were experienced dim sum eaters and they also enjoyed the place. So did we. Particularly because we weren't rushed out in 30 minutes (which sometimes happens when you slog down to Chinatown - the round trip from mid-town takes more time than the meal). In my opinion - it's just one option out of many for people to consider. Robyn

[robyn]

The relatively new place at the confluence of Mott, Worth, Park Row, and all the rest, A & B Lobster King, had some very tasty offerings from the carts. Including some items we'd not seen before.  But for someone who IS familiar with dim sum, ordering off the menu will gain some even more interesting items.

For the novice, there's always Dim Sum GoGo.  Beautiful items, and nonthreathening.

Just curious - what do you think is "threatening"? There are some Chinese things I don't like - like sea cucumber - but I don't think that a sea cucumber has ever threatened me .

And what do you think is interesting?

I live in a pretty hick place when it comes to Chinese food - but I am an experienced eater. Just recently - we had an immigrant Chinese family open a large Chinese buffet. Best in the area. Clientele is about 75% Chinese. And the combination of foods is kind of strange. Everything from chicken feet and sesame balls and longevity peach buns to apple pie and pizza. I am not sure which of these is threatening - and which is interesting . Robyn

[SobaAddict70]

Fish eyes might be threatening to some people. Definitely not to me.

Chicken feet is another. Take a look at Ellen's Mongolian foodblog (see part 8) and don't tell me that cicadas or chicken embryos on a stick aren't threatening to some person, somewhere.

Soba

[herbacidal]

For the novice, there's always Dim Sum GoGo.  Beautiful items, and nonthreathening.

Just curious - what do you think is "threatening"? There are some Chinese things I don't like - like sea cucumber - but I don't think that a sea cucumber has ever threatened me .

[dumpling]

Pan, I'm not recalling the name of the place at the moment but I believe it's on the corner of 38th Avenue and Prince; it's next to the parking lot in between 39th and 38th.

Edited January 25, 2004 by dumpling (log)

[Pan]

Thanks, dumpling. I know the parking lot you're talking about, so that at least narrows it down.

[robyn]

Fish eyes might be threatening to some people. Definitely not to me.

Chicken feet is another. Take a look at Ellen's Mongolian foodblog (see part 8) and don't tell me that cicadas or chicken embryos on a stick aren't threatening to some person, somewhere.

Soba

I've never seen fish eyes - except sometimes when I've ordered a whole fish. Never thought to eat them. Have you run across a dish in the US somewhere that features fish eyes out of the fish?

If the Chinese buffet in Jacksonville serves chicken feet - they can't be threatening (you can find chicken feet in other local places too). Never ran across cicadas or chicken embryos in a US restaurant. Have you? Robyn

[robyn]

To many people, I would say that any part of an animal or fish other than the traditional meat is threatening. 

More for me.

I find that the word "threatening" carries too much baggage - at least it seems to here. Sounds like little kids - I dare you - I double dare you. I suspect the relevant question is are there other animal parts worth eating - and - if so - are they worth whatever risk they might entail (e.g., my husband and I used to eat a lot of offal - including brains - we don't now). Robyn

[jschyun]

For your reading pleasure, an old thread on NY vs SF dim sum. I thought it was funny.

NY Wins!

[robyn]

For your reading pleasure, an old thread on NY vs SF dim sum. I thought it was funny.

NY Wins!

I didn't read the thread that way. It said "except perhaps for Dim Sum...".

One thing the thread was "right on" about is that things have changed a lot in the last 20-30 years. Thirty years ago - you went to "Chinatowns" because they were exotic and had food that couldn't be found elsewhere. Now - there are many cities - particularly on the west coast - with sizeable middle class Asian populations. These people are 1 or 2 generations removed from "Chinatowns". They live in suburbs. And - since restaurants follow people with money - you'll find a lot of the best restaurants in the suburbs.

By the way - I don't consider San Francisco the height of anything (except perhaps liberal politics) in the US. You can go to many West Coast cities (e.g., Los Angeles, Portland, Seattle, Vancouver, etc. - not to mention cities in Hawaii) and find excellent Asian food. Robyn

[jschyun]

Yeah, I was kind of being sarcastic, but it didn't work. I didn't think it through.

I hate to say this, but I agree with you on SF, at least in terms of some types of Asian food. Good Korean and Chinese are not really to be had in SF area, with a couple of exceptions. L.A. is a totally different story.