Canton Delights, Cupertino

Once upon a time, I worked in San Francisco. I took public transportation to and from work. Within a one-block radius of the office, I could get my morning coffee from Peet's or Starbucks or Tully's. The lunch possiblities seemed endless -- and this was even before the Ferry Plaza really became a culinary scene.

Now I work in the suburbs. And one of the things I hate the most about my job location is that you have to drive most days in order to get a decent lunch. So when a co-worker suggested we try this Cantonese dim sum place within walking distance, I was all for it.

During lunch, Canton Delights offers a choice of dim sum (which is wheeled to your table) or lunch entrees that you order from a menu. We went with the former, deciding that we should try a lot of them to really get a feel for whether this place would warrant repeat visits. Of the three of us, I was the only one who had no knowledge of the Chinese language; one dining companion spoke Mandarin, while another spoke both Mandarin and Cantonese. Basically, I just had to sit back and let them do all of the food-selecting.

Here's what we ended up ordering:

• Cha Siu Bau (steamed barbecue pork buns)
• Fung Jao (steamed chicken feet in spicy sauce)
• Naai Wong Bau (steamed egg custard creme buns)
• Ha Gau (steamed shrimp dumplings)
• Siu Mai (steamed minced pork dumplings)
• Siu Lun Bau (steamed Shanghai minced meat dumplings)
• Fun Gwoh (steamed veggie dumplings)
• Daan Tart (baked mini egg custards)
• Ha Cheun (rice-noodle rolls with shrimp)
• Loh Mai Gai (steamed rice with meat, wrapped in a lotus leaf)

If you're thinking that this was a lot of food for three people, you would be absolutely right. But most of the dishes, unfortunately, were just slightly above average. My favorite of the bunch was the steamed pork bun, which had a good ratio of bun to sweet pork filling. We initially ordered the baked mini egg custards as our dessert, but they weren't very satisfying; the crust was a bit gummy, and not flaky. The steamed egg custard creme buns were a better way to end the meal.

So, while there is definitely better dim sum to be had in the South Bay, we may still find ourselves back at Canton Delights some day... When we're craving dumplings and no one wants to drive to Joy Luck or HC Dumpling House.

Canton Delights
10125 Bandley Drive
Cupertino, CA
(408) 777-9888

Hu-Chiang Dumpling House, Cupertino

Yesterday, the co-workers and I were wandering around the Cupertino Village strip mall, which is full of all sorts of Asian eateries. It was hot and we needed to make a decision quickly. We didn't feel like going to Joy Luck again. We walked into a restaurant that smelled bad, so we quickly walked out. And then I remembered a place that Catie had written to me about a couple of months ago: the Hu-Chiang Dumpling House. So that's where we went -- and I'm so glad we did!

The dining room isn't very large, but the tables are packed in pretty tightly. The slipcovered chairs dress up the space a little bit, but there's still not much that stands out about the decor here. The service is friendly and efficient. And if you go for lunch, don't come too late. When we sat down around noon, about one-third of the tables were still empty. By the time we left, there were folks waiting around.

After her visit to the Hu-Chiang Dumpling House, Catie had nothing but good things to say about the crab dumplings -- which happened to be one of the items we ordered. She was right; they were great. (She also mentioned that the dipping sauce is "a tad vinegary" -- again, I agree with her.) The crab dumplings and the Hu-Chiang juicy dumplings were both of the soupy variety, which I believe is considered Shanghai-style. You've got to eat these in one bite, or else you'll lose some of that juicy goodness. And the wrapper is quite thin, so be careful when you pick them up or else they may fall apart. The pork and cabbage dumplings were less soupy, and therefore, less favored by my lunch companions and me. One of my co-workers grew up in Hong Kong, and he would not stop raving about the juicy dumplings (he's already talking about going back next week).

Now, that brings me to the one thing at our table that I would definitely not order again: the soup with "fresh and salty meat." The meat turned out to be extremely fatty pork. The broth for the soup was fine, but I couldn't handle all that fat. The one co-worker who ended up eating most of the soup later got sick. I'm convinced it was that soup. So I wouldn't go there.

Oh, and another warning: The dumplings are ridiculously hot when they're brought to you. But they're worth it, even if you burn your mouth.

Hu-Chiang Dumpling House
10877 North Wolfe Road
Cupertino, CA
(408) 873-4813

Joy Luck Place, Cupertino

First rule about going to Joy Luck Place for lunch: Get there early. We arrived around noon today and it was fairly packed. The restaurant is located in the Cupertino Village strip mall -- behind the Ranch 99 there. There's a massive dining room, with private space available for large groups as well.

So I'm going to apologize because I don't know the official name of most of the food I ate today. I was lucky enough to have two Chinese-speakers with me, so they could easily communicate with the servers. I can recognize my favorite dim sum items, but with this pair in tow, I was able to get a few dishes I don't normally order and I trusted that they would choose wisely for the table. (Note: I've heard that the service here can be bad, and that may be the case if there's a language-barrier.)

From what I can remember, this is what we ordered: shrimp rolls, shrimp dumplings (har gow), crispy shrimp dumplings (in a fried wonton wrapper, served with sweet mayo), pork and chicken with rice wrapped in banana leaves (mai gai), steamed pork buns (char siu bao), baked pork buns, pork in a sweet crust/shell, pork dumplings (siu mai)... Hmmmm, I don't know why we seemed stuck on shrimp and pork today... Oh, and we did grab a plate of the turnip cake -- as our veggies for the meal. (Nevermind that it was pan-fried and thus, probably the unhealthiest of everything we consumed.)

Except for the pork item with the sweet exterior (I didn't like the flavors) and the turnip cake (too mushy), all of the choices on our table were quite good. I thought the shrimp rolls and the mai gai were the best of the lot. I'm looking forward to going back soon and sampling even more of the dozens of dim sum items on Joy Luck's menu.

Joy Luck Place
10911 N. Wolfe Road
Cupertino, CA
(408) 255-6988

Sino Restaurant + Lounge, Santana Row

When my sister and I walked by Sino the other day, we couldn't helped but be lured in by the beautiful design -- the water wall, dark wood furnishings, hip metal curtains, curved bar, deep red walls, leather seating.

The place is so gorgeous, we knew it would be tough for the food at this three-month-old modern Chinese restaurant to live up to the decor. And, it doesn't really, but it is still a perfectly good dining option in Santana Row (albeit pricier than your average dim sum spot).

Since we were there for lunch, we focused mainly on the dim sum menu; the only entree we ordered was the short ribs -- which were fine, nothing special. Like traditional dim sum restaurants, the servers here bring trays to your table (you can also order from the menu). We immediately picked up a bamboo steamer filled with tasty pork buns. It was a great way to start off our meal.

Everything that followed was pretty good, although there were a couple of missteps with the service/menu: The Shanghai Dumpling, although listed as a ground beef item, was actually made with ground pork. Weird. And the waiter presented us with what he said were Scallop Mushroom Dumplings, but they turned out to be the Shrimp & Chive Dumplings. Not a big deal... Except we had also picked up a plate of the Har Gow (steamed shrimp dumplings).

Since we're both big fans of mango, we ended our meal with the Shrimp & Mango Roll (plump shrimps and slices of mango in a rice-flour wrapper); and the Mango Pudding. Since the roll was deep-fried, the mango was warm and I just couldn't get over/used to that so I only had one bite of it. The pudding, however, was fantastic. Its delicate texture was derived from the combination of mango ice cream and gelatin -- making it lighter than your usual puddings.

Since the menu is so extensive, there are plenty of options to choose from here. So I'm sure we'll be back to sample some of the other dim sum offerings... and order that Mango Pudding again.

Sino Restaurant + Lounge
377 Santana Row
Suite 1000
San Jose, CA
(408) 247-8880

Dim Sum Spots

Me. My parents. Christmas Day. We were hungry. But our dining options were limited. We were driving around near my sister's house when we saw a parking lot full a cars -- an indication that SOMETHING was open. It was Loon Wah, a Chinese restaurant that serves both Mandarin- and Hong Kong-style dim sum.

Initially, we were a bit confused, but we eventually worked out that you can get your food two ways: 1) look at the picture menu, write down what you want on the piece of paper supplied to you, hand it to a server, and wait; or 2) ask for items that are coming around on the carts.

My dad and I consumed: scallion pancakes, porridge, fried eggplant, shrimp dumplings, pork buns. My mom polished off a plate of greens of some sort (she's the sole vegetarian in the family). It was all quite tasty.

Prior to the visit to Loon Wah, the last time I enjoyed a good dim sum meal was in Millbrae. My friend Barbara suggested that we meet up at Fook Yuen, a place she frequented with her family when she was growing up in Pacifica. I can't tell you want we ordered because: 1) I don't remember (which is why I need to blog about things -- serves as a record of what I did); and 2) she ordered a lot of the dishes in a language that is foreign to me.

But if you find yourself on El Camino Real in Millbrae one of these mornings, definitely stop in at Fook Yuen. It may not look like much on the outside (there are fancier/bigger dim sum restaurants on that street), but the food is awesome. And you'll want to go early on the weekends; this place gets crazy-crowded.

Loon Wah
1146 S. De Anza Boulevard
Cupertino, CA
(408) 257-8877

Fook Yuen
195 El Camino Real
Millbrae, CA
(650) 692-8600