Dim Summing

Yesterday, I finally made the trek up to Daly City and got some Dim Sum at Koi Palace, much touted as the best dim sum in the Bay Area. We called beforehand to get a number, then got there around 2pm and got ourselves...another number, and about 25 minutes of waiting. Not bad, considering there is usually a 1.5 hour wait time. I spent most of the time totally riveted by the older Chinese gentleman making Dragon Beard Candy in the foyer.

We ordered some of the usuals: Har Gow (shrimp dumplings), Wu Kok (flaky fried taro dumplings stuffed with minced pork), Chang Fen (shrimp wrapped in sheets of rice noodle and drizzled with soy sauce), jellyfish and seaweed salad, along with a few unusual Northern Chinese picks... mostly squidgy vegetarian tofu stuff.

Was it good? For the dim sum staples, sure; the rice noodles were fresh, the Har Gow tender and tasty. The Northern dishes, maybe because I'm more used to southern Chinese cuisine, were less exciting. Was it worth driving an hour and then waiting again? I'd say not.

For those in the South Bay, we found a much better dim sum option at Dynasty in the Vallco shopping center in Cupertino: fewer crowds, closer, fresher and more traditional dim sum. Overall, a solid, decent dim sum experience on par with the better LA dim sum restaurants (I'm not sure why people on Yelp seem to hate this place--are they really suggesting that dump Mayflower in Milpitas is better? I haven't been impressed with most of the Bay Area dim sum choices, including Joy Luck Place in Cupertino Village). Also, and this is a huge plus--the service at Dynasty is quick and attentive, and the restaurant is much newer than the usual dingy-grand Chinese palaces you might be used to. I can see why a lot of people choose this place for traditional wedding receptions.

Above: Har Gow at Dynasty
Below: Busy Dynasty waiters.

Food Nazis and Hainanese Chicken

Had dinner tonight with Asta at my favorite Malaysian restaurant around Castro, Spice Islands. She alerted me to this SfGate.com article about the tyranny of the mass of "amateur food critics" (ahem, including myself) who are ruining fine establishments before they even get a chance to get off the ground.

Read and weigh in, but from a consumer's point of view, I think it's tough luck, buddies, and you really shouldn't open a restaurant if you're not "ready." Kinks or no, everyday people don't get a second chance on a first impression, and neither should restaurants. Just my humble opinion.

Anyway, Spice Islands really should get a second, third, etc. glance-over. I got exactly what I wanted today, which was Hainanese Chicken, the comfort food of choice in SE Asia. For the unitiated, the dish consists of cold boiled (steamed?) chicken in a pool of soy-based sauce, two kinds of dipping sauce, one vinegar-y and spicy, the other a fragrant, delicious blend of garlic, ginger, and magic. Served with rice that had been boiled in chicken broth--yum. I asked for an extra saucer of curry dipping sauce on the side.

We also splurged on the chicken satay ($6.45), juicy grilled meat lollipops that we slathered with rich peanut sauce. Sorry for the lack of pictures, I forgot my camera. Lame, I know.