If you are thinking about trying Dim Sum for the first time then you are in for a real treat. It’s basically a meal of Chinese food that’s served on small plates and has smaller portions. This allows for those enjoying the meal to try a little bit of everything and not fill up on just one thing. Before trying dim sum for the first time, this is what you need to know.
At The Restaurant
Going to a Chinese restaurant when they are serving dim sum is really a unique experience. It’s often served during the midday and it can get rather busy. When diners first sit down they will need to choose a tea. Black tea (Bo Lei) and white tea (Sau Mei) are the most common choices. The waiter will bring a teapot over filled with the tea you chose. When your pot is empty and you’d like a refill you just simply prop the top on the top of the pot. Menus aren’t always given out, but if they are you usually will check off items you want to order. More often than not attendants will push steam carts around the restaurant that have different dishes for diners to choose from.
What To Try
One of the nice things about dishes that are smaller portions is that they tend to be cheap. This means that if you decide to try something new, but don’t really like it, you are only out a few bucks. These are some of the more common dishes:
-Djeen Dui: Fried Sesame Balls
-Ngau Cheung: Beef Noodle Rolls
-Char Siu Bao: Roast Pork Buns
-Siu Luhng Bao: Steamed Soup Dumplings
-Nor Mai Gai: Sticky Rice In A Lotus Leaf
-Djah Daan Cao: Deep Fried Egg Puffs
There’s so much activity going on at a Chinese restaurant when they are serving dim sum that it can be overwhelming. If you aren’t sure how to order or what to eat, look around at the other tables. Observe how they do things and see what dishes seem to be popular. Try to get a table near the kitchen so that you can ensure you will get first crack at the dishes before they are pushed around the restaurant for other diners to choose. Don’t forget to pace yourself a bit. Don’t gobble down a bunch of different dishes to quickly as you can as you risk getting full too fast and not being able to truly enjoy the dim sum experience.
