Monday, January 26, 2009

Dim Sum? Get Some!

So as of January 16, after living in the Chi for four years I have never once ate in Chinatown. Like where have I been and why have I been sleeping on Chinatown!??

My girl Kel and I hit 8am service Sunday and she has a lunch date with one of her colleagues and her associates. I am starving after service so she invites me along for Dim Sum in Chinatown. I am down.. I have yet to eat in Chinatown nor have I tried Dim Sum. Like I've heard of it, but had no clue what it was. It means "Touch of Heart" and is similar to that of Spanish style tapas, where's Chinese appetizers including rolls, dumplings and noodles are served daily during brunch times.

First, can I say that Sunday mornings in Chinatown are the jump off? It took us at least 20 minutes to find a park. People were walking down the street, stopped in the street... I guess Dim Sum on Sunday morning is that deal.

So we go to a restaurant called The Phoenix. Let's just say the wait was extremely long, but since we were late, we were able to sit down immediately with our party. And to top it off, there's no waiting to eat. The ladies are moving through the tables with their carts of dim sum, and since a few of the ladies at the table were natives, they start grabbing dishes off the cart and passing them around explaining what each dish was, what it contained, and if we would like it. I tried fried squid (basically calamari), steamed shrimp dumplings, shomai, veggie pastries, fried pork dumplings, Chinese broccoli, and some other items I really can't recall. The Jasmine tea was pure goodness and I think I got full in a matter of minutes. It was wonderful! Forget Yolk on Sunday morning... I think Dim Sum might have to be a ritual. Plus, who knew that Chinese food could give you the 'itis??!

So I definitely recommend getting Dim Sum in Chinatown. It's fairly cheap (appetizers range from $3-10; for a table of 8, we only spent $20) and filling!

4 comments:

T said...

Oh so that's what Dim Sum means. Teach me girl, teach me. LOL!

Reese said...

I say we organize an outing for some dim sum then, im really partial to joy yis noodle shop as well

PyT said...

Reese.. I'm all about it! I heard that Phoenix was one of the lady's 2nd favorite restaurant, so I'm open to trying another place.

Zenchukovskiy said...

Thanks for the advice! I'll try it as soon as I'll have such an opportunity. And now I spend my time and money on homework essay help