Chinatown Dim Sum Palace Serves Up Delicacies, Chaos
by Marisa Katz on March 10, 2003 in Culture
Sometimes a chaotic, clanging, think-fast-or-you-lose experience is what I need to get myself going on a Sunday morning. When it’s one of those days, when the world is still bleary from late night revelry and I can’t yet bring myself to crack open the stats, I head for Chinatown - to the triple-decker palace of dim sum that is Chau Chow City.
Apparently many other people have the same idea on a recent Sunday when, despite sheets of rain and umbrella-busting wind, the crowd waiting to be seated packs the front entryway and then some. The windows steam up with hot breath. A loud speaker squawks numbers to the unlucky lot still outside.
All around is movement. Tables are cleared and quickly reset. Formally dressed waiters rush to replenish pots of steaming jasmine tea. Sure-footed women deftly navigate carts along narrow aisles.
Dim sum, for the uninitiated, is a mid-day meal of dumplings and other bite-sized Cantonese delicacies. There’s typically no menu. You take your pick from the carts whizzing past, naming - or pointing to - the contents of stacked metal containers and bamboo baskets.
The process does not accommodate the indecisive. The person closest to the carts, at least, needs to be quick to accept or deny.
But the choice need not be arduous. You only get a few bites of each dish, after all. And with prices ranging from $1.90 to $4.70, the commitment is low-level.
As a veteran dim summer, I recommend just diving in and embracing the experience. Don’t worry too much about exactly what you’re eating. The fillings may not be the highest quality. The grease on some dishes may be overwhelming. But with a big group especially, dim sum is a lot of fun - and often quite tasty.
Some good choices:
Har gau: These are steamed shrimp dumplings in a transparent wrapper. The flavor is mild, but the firm shrimp and delicate though slightly gummy wrapper make for an interesting texture combination. Har gau are particularly good with a dash of soy sauce.
Siu mai: These are shrimp and pork pouches, open on top, and yellowish in color. They are denser in consistency than har gau and infused with a gingery flavor.
Cheung fun: These are flat, crepe-like rice noodles - filled with beef, pork or shrimp - and served doused in their own dark sauce. The texture is slippery verging on slimy. With the right noodle-to-filling ratio, they are delicious.
Lo mai gai: This dish, probably my favorite, consists of sticky rice wrapped in lotus leaves to help maintain moistness. It is essentially a clever way to use leftover ingredients. The rice is studded with bits of Chinese sausage, roast chicken, mushrooms and pork. Though a staple of dim sum selections, sticky rice is sometimes hard to come by on the carts and may require a special request.
Chau Chow City serves dim sum daily from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. But it’s really a weekend tradition, and the widest selection is available when the restaurant is expecting peak crowds. The best time to go is between 11:00 and 11:30 a.m.
So if you’re in the mood for crowds and commotion, and you can rally a group down to Chinatown, head to Chau Chow City. To Boston dim sum aficionados, it’s the Cadillac of the bunch.
Chau Chow City
Dim sum about $7 a person
83 Essex Street, Chinatown
Serving dim sum 8 a.m.- 3 p.m.
Regular menu 8 a.m. to 3 a.m.
617.338.8158
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