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One of the most difficult challenges for the cheftestants on Bravo’s “Top Chef All-Stars” was to prepare dim sum in a large restaurant in New York’s Chinatown. The group failed miserably. Cooking constantly to keep the carts filled with a myriad of dishes is no easy feat.
My sister Sandy loved this episode. She had never eaten dim sum.
I have been craving dim sum for weeks, so I e-mailed a colleague and asked which Chinatown restaurant has the finest. Ocean Harbor, which offers it daily, was the reply.
You don’t go for dim sum for a quiet meal a deux. You go for the clamorous experience and the fun pointing to food on stainless steel carts expertly pushed around the dining room by a bevy of women.
We decided to dish on dim sum on a blustery Sunday afternoon. Edward parked while Sandy and I were met at the door by lines of people waiting to get in. It was a madhouse, indeed.
Since Ocean Harbor was a first for us, I asked about a table for three. A kindly gentleman told me to expect a 25-minute wait and gave me a number.
“I will call you when your table is ready,” he said as staff bustled around the restaurant, changing table linen and setting up for service.
Within 20 minutes, we sat down, a woman brought us a stainless steel pot of hot fragrant jasmine tea and placed a card on the table. Then the fun began. The dim sum carts came rolling toward us at a measured pace.
Here’s how it works: You ask questions if a specific dish looks unusual. There was a language barrier from time to time — and we had wished cousin Henry, who speaks fluent Mandarin had joined us — but for the most part the descriptions were fine.
We began lunch with spring rolls, salt-crusted shrimp, rice balls and Chinese broccoli in a light soy sauce. Whoever serves you places a “0” on your card. Soy sauce, hot sauce and vinegar are the only condiments on the table to spiff up a bland dish. The spring rolls were run-of-the-mill and lacked flavor.
Edward and I dove into the prawns and were delighted to see their heads intact. Staring at a prawn’s eyes did not disturb me, but I immediately knew to remove the head before offering Sandy one. They were uncommonly good, nice and hot with just the right amount of salt to keep us happy. We asked for another order.
The rice balls were tasty — a little lukewarm, but we enjoyed them just the same. We liked the creaminess inside while the bits of shrimp retained a bit of bite. Chinese broccoli is akin to broccoli rabe but lacks its bitter flavor. It was difficult to eat with chopsticks so I just picked a piece up with my hand and enjoyed.
There was an unusual dim sum called a shrimp roll that I had never eaten. It was shaped like a fat log with crumbs on the outside, a creamy almost cheese-like filling inside studded with bits of shrimp. Its savory flavor appealed to us.
Although the shrimp dumplings were freshly prepared, they were bland. I poured some vinegar and hot sauce onto my plate, which pepped the dish up a bit.
The steamed barbecued pork buns were heavenly. Edward and I detected a hint of cinnamon. Whoever prepared the pork did one fine job. Another first was a savory confection made with seasoned pork wrapped in a pastry-like wrapper and topped with sesame seeds, sort of a Chinese version of the classic Cornish pasty. It had a crumbly texture, which was on the dry side.
Our dim sum totaled $38.50. At these prices, it was worth the cacophony that is the dim-sum experience.
Two tips of the toque to Ocean Harbor. SPR
Ocean Harbor
1023 Race St.
215-574-1398
Contact the South Philly Review at editor@southphillyreview.com.
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