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About to go for a dim sum lunch for the first time

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CarlKillerMiller

Diamond Member
Hey, I was invited to go toa dim sum lunch at a new local chinese restaurant and I had a few questions about it. First, how does it work? I mean, I have the basic gist of a cart of various dim sum foods being brought around, but do you pay to enter then eat as you like, or do you pay as you eat?

With that question in mind, if you eat as you go, about how much money should I bring?

Third, is there any specific etiquette that I should follow in terms of ordering/eating?


Thanks ATOT!
 
Originally posted by: Yossarian
if you try something and don't like it, be sure to put the uneaten part back on the cart. someone else may want it.
Click to expand...

LOL! funny...

Typically you'll see people pushing carts around and they'll offer you different dishes. Ask them to show you and if it looks good, which most of it is, try it. Dip the stuff in soy sauce and chili oil is :thumbsup:

And you don't pay as you eat, they'll stamp this card thing that keeps track of what you eat, its per plate usually. I would bring $15-20.
 
Dim Sum virgin! j/k

The receipt is on the table and the servers mark/stamp as your order per dish. Different prices per dish (small ~$1.20, med ~$2.00, large ~3.00, special ~$4-5, depending on the area). It's ok to ask the server what's in the dish and refuse if you don't like it.

Depends on how much you eat... the most I've (average 20-something male) spent is $15, including tips. Just bring a ten and a several ones.

The food comes bite-sized so people could share. If you are using chopsticks to give someone food, it's nice to flip the chopsticks to the other end which you haven't been eating from, just wipe afterwards. Making sure everyone's tea cup is filled is nice too.

I usually try the salty dishes, then the sweets, and order chow mein or fried rice as a end filler. Don't order the green veggies, they usually rip you as a special plate.
 
some of the newer restaurants dont do the pushcarts thingy anymore, everything is made to order, you have to order it with a tiny card/menu, and wait 10-20mins for the dimsum to come....
 
Originally posted by: richardycc
some of the newer restaurants dont do the pushcarts thingy anymore, everything is made to order, you have to order it with a tiny card/menu, and wait 10-20mins for the dimsum to come....
Click to expand...

That sounds lame... it's a part of the appeal to have some hasslin' chinese lady bump you with a cart and hassle you to eat more dishes.
 
Originally posted by: richardycc
some of the newer restaurants dont do the pushcarts thingy anymore, everything is made to order, you have to order it with a tiny card/menu, and wait 10-20mins for the dimsum to come....
Click to expand...

Went to one of those this weekend. The dim sum tasted a lot better. You don't have to worry about your favorite dim sum running out by the time the cart lady comes to your table.
 
Originally posted by: ironcrotch
Originally posted by: Yossarian
if you try something and don't like it, be sure to put the uneaten part back on the cart. someone else may want it.
Click to expand...

LOL! funny...

Typically you'll see people pushing carts around and they'll offer you different dishes. Ask them to show you and if it looks good, which most of it is, try it. Dip the stuff in soy sauce and chili oil is :thumbsup:

And you don't pay as you eat, they'll stamp this card thing that keeps track of what you eat, its per plate usually. I would bring $15-20.
Click to expand...

dimsum cost more than that now.......
 
Originally posted by: ironcrotch
Originally posted by: richardycc
some of the newer restaurants dont do the pushcarts thingy anymore, everything is made to order, you have to order it with a tiny card/menu, and wait 10-20mins for the dimsum to come....
Click to expand...

That sounds lame... it's a part of the appeal to have some hasslin' chinese lady bump you with a cart and hassle you to eat more dishes.
Click to expand...

that's my mom - she does it on sundays (although i keep telling her to quit.)

people can be REALLY rude at dim sum places, it's astonishing. my mom tells me stories of how people bitch that they shouldn't have to pay 3.50 for this plate because it's not worth it, they try to make her unmark the card because the food "didn't taste good enough" etc.

but if i go when my mom's working, she'll throw food on the table and not have it marked. same with some of her friends, depending on the cart their pushing. you can't be too obscene with it - i.e. have 20 plates and only three things marked, but it's a good deal. plus she brings leftovers home (she has to pay for it, but they charge her for one dish and give her three.)
 
I've always spent about $15 including tax and tip per person eating Dim Sum.

Unless if you plan on hanging around the place for hours and gorge yourself, it shouldn't run higher than $20 with tax and tip.

If you are going with friends what will happen is that they will mark a card with what you've ordered and since everything is pretty much shared, you just split the total bill equally at the end.

My Favorite is the Xiao Jiao ( Ha Gao) and the fried stuffed taro balls.
 
"dim sum" - literally, choosing heart. or picking what pleases you

i still like the personal servers. i was waiting for my parents and had to politely decline the servers for 20min... once my mom came and sat down, they all flocked over like seagulls and my dad had to walk through them to his seat, ha ha...
 
Originally posted by: FoBoT
so what does "dim sum" mean? al le carte? something like that?
Click to expand...


literal translation, it means dot the heart or choose the heart.

But it refers to any small pastry, snack, or dessert.
 
Originally posted by: amoeba
Originally posted by: FoBoT
so what does "dim sum" mean? al le carte? something like that?
Click to expand...


literal translation, it means dot the heart or choose the heart.

But it refers to any small pastry, snack, or dessert.
Click to expand...
newbiepcuser pm'ed me a link
Literally meaning "to touch your heart," dim sum consists of a variety of dumplings, steamed dishes and other goodies such as the famous egg custard tarts. They are similar to hors d'oeuvres, the hot and cold delicacies served at French restaurants.

Originally a Cantonese custom, dim sum is inextricably linked to the Chinese tradition of "yum cha" or drinking tea. Travelers journeying along the famous Silk Road needed a place to rest, so teahouses began springing up along the roadside. Rural farmers, exhausted after long hours working in the fields, would also head to the local teahouse for an afternoon of tea and relaxing conversation. Still, it took several centuries for the culinary art of dim sum to develop. It was originally considered inappropriate to combine tea with food - in fact a famous 3rd century Imperial physician claimed this would lead to excessive weight gain. However, as tea's ability to aid in digestion and cleanse the palate became known, tea house proprietors began adding a variety of snacks, and the tradition of dim sum was born.
Click to expand...
 
Yes, always keep everyone's cup full of Tea. If someone pours tea to you, use a finger and tap on the table(next to the cup) until s/he done.
 
Originally posted by: Chraticn
Thanks for all of your help, everyone!


That 20$ seems quite a bit pricey, but for a one-time thing it should be cool.
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I usually do fine with about $12 to $15. you are really eating quite a bit at $20.

and remember thats with tax and tip.

I mean if I go to olive garden and get a mid range dish that'll probably run me 9.99 + tax + tip + drink and push me to about $14 $15.

 
the price really depends on how expensive each plate is. in toronto chinatown each plate is only 2 bucks canadian at this one restaurant. in michigan, the place i go to charges around 2.50-3.25 a plate and that can get expensive.

when hungry i can eat 20-30 bucks worth of dim sum after a nice tip 🙂
 
Originally posted by: Chraticn
Hey, I was invited to go toa dim sum lunch at a new local chinese restaurant and I had a few questions about it. First, how does it work? I mean, I have the basic gist of a cart of various dim sum foods being brought around, but do you pay to enter then eat as you like, or do you pay as you eat?

With that question in mind, if you eat as you go, about how much money should I bring?

Third, is there any specific etiquette that I should follow in terms of ordering/eating?


Thanks ATOT!
Click to expand...

Let the Chinese person you're going with order...tab for 4 people ~$40.00



 
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