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| Roast Duck |
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| Beef Rice Noodles |
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| Roast Pork Buns |
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| Taro Stuffed with Pork |
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| Steamed Shrimp Dumpling |
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| Shu Mai |
Showing posts with label Dim Sum. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Dim Sum. Show all posts
Sunday, December 1, 2013
New China Pearl in Woburn
I recently tried New China Pearl in Woburn for dim sum, and had the true Chinatown experience without having to deal with the Chinatown parking and crowds. The place was huge and they served all of the standard dishes including several types of dumplings, chicken feet, sticky rice, etc. Here's a sampling of my picks:
New China Pearl was as good as most of my regular spots in Chinatown, and they served all of my favorites including, clams and black bean sauce, roasted duck and taro shrimp. Dim sum for four was around $70 and definitely ordered more than we could eat. If you live outside the city, this is more convenient than Chinatown and I would definitely go back.
Wednesday, July 25, 2012
Guide to Boston's Chinatown
As a foodie, I’m often asked for restaurant recommendations and on more than one occasion have received and email or text from a friend of a friend asking where to go for x or y. One of the most common requests I get is for a recommendation in Chinatown. Boston is known for having one of the largest Chinatowns in the country (although not quite comparable to NY or San Francisco) but people who don’t live in the city or eat there regularly find it intimidating and aren’t sure where to go or what to order. My hope is that after reading this, you will!
The Chinatown Newbie:
If you’re completely new to Chinatown and can sympathize with being intimidated or not knowing where to go, Penang (a Malaysian restaurant) would be a good place to start. It’s located on the corner of Tremont and Washington Street, a very main intersection just on the border of Chinatown. The atmosphere feels a little more upscale, rather than some of the hole in the wall type places you’ll find when you venture in further. There are plenty of adventurous items on the menu, but Malaysian has some similarities to Thai food, which is generally more familiar to people and there are some items on the menu like pad Thai and chicken satay. See the full review here.
Dim Sum:
Dim sum, is traditional Chinese brunch. It is typically eaten family style, severs come around with carts to your table and you choose what you’d like to try. There are usually several varieties of dumplings, fried rolls, and buns, and lots of pork, shrimp, and tofu. My two favorite places for dim sum in Boston are Hei La Moon and Emperor’s Garden / Empire Garden (click either for full review). The options at both are similar but my favorite dish at Hei La Moon is the fried shrimp and taro, and at Empire Garden is the roast duck.
Soup Dumplings and Taiwanese:
When most people think of Taiwanese food, they really mean soup dumplings (also known as juicy dumplings or steamed juicy buns). The dumplings are prepared with a bouillon cube in the middle, and when cooked, the bouillon turns to broth. Eating them is a little tricky (you don’t want to spill the broth or burn yourself) but so worth it! Gourmet Dumpling House is the most well known in Chinatown, and there is almost always a line out the door. While I’ve eaten there and loved it, I don’t love waiting in line and when searching for an alternative I discovered Taiwan Café. The food is just as good, but it’s lesser known and therefore less of a wait. They are temporarily closed for renovations, but definitely worth a visit when they reopen. See the full review here.
Sushi:
Ginza is one of my favorite sushi places in Boston. They serve fresh, high quality sushi at a reasonable price. They are also one of the only restaurants in Boston that does the stone grill, they bring this to your table and you can cook meats, seafood and vegetables yourself.
Vietnamese:
Pho Hua is my favorite place for Vietnamese in Boston, and feels a little more authentic than the chain restaurant around the corner. The pho (noodle soup) is delicious and also great for a Chinatown newbie. The chicken pho isn’t terribly different than American chicken noodle soup if you skip the garnishes, but if you’re brave the hot sauce, fish sauce, lime, and mint add some great flavor. If you’re more adventurous, the curry dishes are also really good!
Authentic Chinese:
East Ocean City might be my favorite restaurant in Chinatown. They have several huge menus including traditional Cantonese dishes, seafood so fresh you can pick your own fish right out of the tank, and a few standard American – Chinese staples. When people want to try Chinatown this is usually the first place I recommend or bring people, and no one has ever been disappointed. See the full review here.
The places I've mentioned are my go-to spots, but if you try all of them and want something new this blog is a great place to start! I've also found Yelp to be a reliable source, and sticking to Beach Street (Chinatown's Main Street) you can almost never go wrong!
The Chinatown Newbie:
If you’re completely new to Chinatown and can sympathize with being intimidated or not knowing where to go, Penang (a Malaysian restaurant) would be a good place to start. It’s located on the corner of Tremont and Washington Street, a very main intersection just on the border of Chinatown. The atmosphere feels a little more upscale, rather than some of the hole in the wall type places you’ll find when you venture in further. There are plenty of adventurous items on the menu, but Malaysian has some similarities to Thai food, which is generally more familiar to people and there are some items on the menu like pad Thai and chicken satay. See the full review here.
Dim Sum:
Dim sum, is traditional Chinese brunch. It is typically eaten family style, severs come around with carts to your table and you choose what you’d like to try. There are usually several varieties of dumplings, fried rolls, and buns, and lots of pork, shrimp, and tofu. My two favorite places for dim sum in Boston are Hei La Moon and Emperor’s Garden / Empire Garden (click either for full review). The options at both are similar but my favorite dish at Hei La Moon is the fried shrimp and taro, and at Empire Garden is the roast duck.
Soup Dumplings and Taiwanese:
When most people think of Taiwanese food, they really mean soup dumplings (also known as juicy dumplings or steamed juicy buns). The dumplings are prepared with a bouillon cube in the middle, and when cooked, the bouillon turns to broth. Eating them is a little tricky (you don’t want to spill the broth or burn yourself) but so worth it! Gourmet Dumpling House is the most well known in Chinatown, and there is almost always a line out the door. While I’ve eaten there and loved it, I don’t love waiting in line and when searching for an alternative I discovered Taiwan Café. The food is just as good, but it’s lesser known and therefore less of a wait. They are temporarily closed for renovations, but definitely worth a visit when they reopen. See the full review here.
Sushi:
Ginza is one of my favorite sushi places in Boston. They serve fresh, high quality sushi at a reasonable price. They are also one of the only restaurants in Boston that does the stone grill, they bring this to your table and you can cook meats, seafood and vegetables yourself.
Vietnamese:
Pho Hua is my favorite place for Vietnamese in Boston, and feels a little more authentic than the chain restaurant around the corner. The pho (noodle soup) is delicious and also great for a Chinatown newbie. The chicken pho isn’t terribly different than American chicken noodle soup if you skip the garnishes, but if you’re brave the hot sauce, fish sauce, lime, and mint add some great flavor. If you’re more adventurous, the curry dishes are also really good!
Authentic Chinese:
East Ocean City might be my favorite restaurant in Chinatown. They have several huge menus including traditional Cantonese dishes, seafood so fresh you can pick your own fish right out of the tank, and a few standard American – Chinese staples. When people want to try Chinatown this is usually the first place I recommend or bring people, and no one has ever been disappointed. See the full review here.
The places I've mentioned are my go-to spots, but if you try all of them and want something new this blog is a great place to start! I've also found Yelp to be a reliable source, and sticking to Beach Street (Chinatown's Main Street) you can almost never go wrong!
Wednesday, May 16, 2012
The Food Court at Super 88
The food court at the super 88 is a bit of a hidden jewel and a mini Chinatown located within an Asian grocery store in Allston. I discovered it on yelp when searching for new dim sum places, and found a restaurant that serves dim sum all day (Dim Sum Chef) plus several others including Asian BBQ, Korean, and Indian. I recently went with another foodie, tried a sampling of several different places, and had a great meal.
We started with Kantin (the BBQ place) and tried a roast quarter duck and full rack of ribs. Although they weren’t hot, they were both very good. The duck was falling-off-the-bone tender and the ribs were sweet and flavorful.
Next, we tried Dim Sum Chef and agreed this was our favorite. The food was standard dim sum fare, but hotter and fresher than some of our regular dim sum restaurants where the food has often been sitting out on a cart. The taro shrimp was my favorite, although the short rib rice rolls with fork tender beef and roasted carrots were also very good and reminded me of my mom’s beef stew.
We ordered some vegetable noodles from the Korean place, but were so full we barely took a bite each and didn’t even get a picture. We left satisfied at trying half of the places on our first visit and a plan to try the other half next time!
We started with Kantin (the BBQ place) and tried a roast quarter duck and full rack of ribs. Although they weren’t hot, they were both very good. The duck was falling-off-the-bone tender and the ribs were sweet and flavorful.
Next, we tried Dim Sum Chef and agreed this was our favorite. The food was standard dim sum fare, but hotter and fresher than some of our regular dim sum restaurants where the food has often been sitting out on a cart. The taro shrimp was my favorite, although the short rib rice rolls with fork tender beef and roasted carrots were also very good and reminded me of my mom’s beef stew.
We ordered some vegetable noodles from the Korean place, but were so full we barely took a bite each and didn’t even get a picture. We left satisfied at trying half of the places on our first visit and a plan to try the other half next time!
Friday, May 4, 2012
Emperor's Garden
The Emperor’s Garden (or Empire Garden, depending on which sign you read) is a restaurant in Chinatown, that I discovered when my coworkers at my last job chose it for my going away party. We had a large family style dinner with tons of great dishes and drinks, and I had been meaning to try it for dim sum ever since. I finally made it in a few weeks ago and had another great experience.
Although the food is excellent, one of the things about this restaurant that truly stands out is the atmosphere. It’s located in an old opera house, with high cathedral style ceilings, and spectacular decorations. During my most recent visit, for dim sum, we were seated at possibly the best location in the place: right in front of the kitchen door where the carts came out.
I went with a group of three (in the past I’ve only gone with two), which meant we got to try a lot more dishes including chicken feet for the first time. As an adventurous foodie I had been wanting to try them at least once, but wasn’t sure if I’d like them. A couple of friends had told me that they were fun to try as a novelty, but they weren’t crazy about them. I actually really liked them! They were similar to a chicken wing, but a little bit different texture and not as crispy. I would definitely order them again.
In addition to the chicken feet, we tried several different dumplings, rolls, and buns. Some of the dishes that really stood out were:
We paid our check and prepared to leave full and completely satisfied, but one thing on our way out made us slightly less so. We walked past a buffet station that we hadn’t noticed on our way to the table. We paused to check out what looked like baby clams and other seafood, and although they offered us some, we declined and decided it was just one more reason to go back!
Although the food is excellent, one of the things about this restaurant that truly stands out is the atmosphere. It’s located in an old opera house, with high cathedral style ceilings, and spectacular decorations. During my most recent visit, for dim sum, we were seated at possibly the best location in the place: right in front of the kitchen door where the carts came out.
I went with a group of three (in the past I’ve only gone with two), which meant we got to try a lot more dishes including chicken feet for the first time. As an adventurous foodie I had been wanting to try them at least once, but wasn’t sure if I’d like them. A couple of friends had told me that they were fun to try as a novelty, but they weren’t crazy about them. I actually really liked them! They were similar to a chicken wing, but a little bit different texture and not as crispy. I would definitely order them again.
In addition to the chicken feet, we tried several different dumplings, rolls, and buns. Some of the dishes that really stood out were:
Roast Duck
Seafood Dumplings
Made to Order Shrimp Rolls
We paid our check and prepared to leave full and completely satisfied, but one thing on our way out made us slightly less so. We walked past a buffet station that we hadn’t noticed on our way to the table. We paused to check out what looked like baby clams and other seafood, and although they offered us some, we declined and decided it was just one more reason to go back!
Saturday, January 21, 2012
Hei La Moon
Hei La Moon is a Cantonese restaurant located near South Station, just outside of Chinatown. They serve dim sum and dinner, although I’ve only tried them for dim sum – a traditional Chinese brunch, typically served family style, with many shared small dishes. I’ve also heard dim sum described as Chinese tapas. Severs come around with carts of food, you choose the dishes you want, and they stamp your bill which is totaled at the end and usually very cheap ($3-$4 per dish). The language barrier means you don’t always know exactly what you’re getting, but I enjoy this and think of it as part of the experience. I could however, see this as difficult for vegetarians or less adventurous eaters.
I’ve never had dim sum outside of Boston, which I’ve heard doesn’t compare to NY or San Francisco, but Hei La Moon is by far the best I've had. The food is always fresh and high quality, and even when the line is out the door, I’ve never had to wait more than ten minutes for a table. It does get crowded during peak hours, but the place is huge and they do their best to keep the line moving. They seat smaller parties together at large tables, and the carts go by quickly. I’ve had to flag down my favorite carts and have seen people get up from their tables and find specific carts, but I also see this as part of the experience.
The options are standard dim sum fare including several types of dumplings (most with pork or shrimp), steamed and baked buns (pork, chicken, and shrimp), tofu rolls, shrimp rolls, chicken feet, rice wrapped in banana leaves, crispy noodles, spare ribs, steamed greens, etc. My favorites are the fried taro and shrimp dumplings, shrimp rolls, and pork buns. The pork buns are the best I’ve had, both the steamed and baked are light and fluffy, and stuffed with tons of roast pork.
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| Pork and Chive Dumpling |
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| Fried Taro and Shrimp |
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| Pork and Shrimp Dumpling |
One of my friends introduced me to this place several years ago, and although I have tried others since, Hei La Moon has remained my favorite. I’ve brought several friends in over the years, and they’ve also agreed it’s the best in Boston. It’s a fun alternative to typical Sunday brunch, and the perfect meal after a Saturday night out!
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