Jay Eats Worldwide

One of the things that I like to, but not always have time to do, is dim sum with friends.  Either I'm free during the week (and friends are working) or they want to go and wait 45 minutes for a table.  Ahh, memories of the long wait times at Empress Pavilion in the 90's... Thankfully, Kristie Hang has written "The Ultimate Guide to Dim Sum in the San Gabriel Valley" and China Red is on her list.  It's a fairly new restaurant and a place I've heard a couple other people talk about.  During the time I lived in Arcadia, this spot next to the KFC, has changed many many times.  Based on what I had today, this place is a winner, unless the management totally F%#$ it up! For those of you who like the carts and selecting what you want, there are no carts here, just an order sheet.  With suggestions from Kristie Hang , here's a bit of what was ordered: See What Jay Eats... Steamed Beef Noodle Roll The noodle roll is very good and I'm sur...

There are dim sum places in Honolulu  that are really good, but I prefer heading over to  the manapua shops. Manapua is similar to a steamed bao with bbq pork, but not found in dim sum restaurants. There are many manapua places, such as Char Hung Sut, Royal Kitchen,  Island Manapua Factory, or Chun Wah Kam Noodle Factory, just to name a few. All are good, most people have their favorite place, mine is Libby's Manapua Shop in Kalihi. See What Jay Eats... Pork Manapua, Pork Hash, and Half Moons  The Pork Manapua is a steamed bun with a sweet pork filling, just like a Chashu Bao. Pork Hash are steamed dumplings filled  with  a denser  pork filling, similar to S hu Mai.  Half Moons Half Moons have a Ha Gow type of skin, filled with the same filling as the pork hash. (Hawaii friends please let me know if I've got this one right)  No styrofoam food containers here, ol...

Hong Kong Live at The Grove June 14 - 16, 2013 A friend had mentioned "Hong Kong Live" to me last week and asked if I wanted to checkout the Opening Ceremony on Friday. As usual, I was busy working, but when he mentioned cooking demos on Sunday, I told him I'd rearrange my Sunday schedule. The Grove was beautifully decorated with colorful fish throughout the complex The weekend was filled with cultural events, demonstrations, music, dance, and a whole lotta Michelin Stars... See What Jay Eats... (OK, I didn't eat at this one) Chef Kwai-pui Mak Michelin Star Tim Ho Wan  I remember reading about this dim sum restaurant in the New York Times years ago and was on the  top of my Hong Kong list of restaurants to visit. I wasn't surprised when Anthony Bourdain visited on "The Layover" Chef Kwai-pui Mak, being the dim sum specialist, demonstrated siu mai for the crow...

End of a Dim Sum Era! Remembering Empress Pavilion One of the icons of Chinatown in Los Angeles closed for good in early June 2013. It was a large Hong Kong-style restaurant that opened in 1989. It was a good 24+ year run! I had heard some comments in the industry that they were having issues, but my first thought was come on...I guess it was true. According to the Los Angeles Times , they were evicted, the restaurant owners fell behind on rent. I remember when this center opened, filled with  all kinds of shops and a market on the ground floor. Today when I visited, the market has been gone for many years now, the escalators are out of order, most of the stores are empty, the building needs repair work, and there was no way I was getting into  the elevators... It's sad to see the condition that this center is in, but the saddest part is the 100+ employees of Empress Pavilion now out of work,  some of t...

Dim sum translates something close to "touch the heart" but for me it's tea with breakfast or lunch. Having a variety of different choices is always a favorite of mine, love Spanish Tapas too. The variety of dishes range from steamed, baked, and fried or what I call the major food groups. I'm joking, so please no letters. I usually start with the most popular ones: Shrimp and Pork Sui Mai and Shrimp Ha Gow Sui Mai Shrimp and Pork Steamed Ha Gow Shrimp Steamed Cha Sui Bao Steamed BBQ Pork Buns Another steamed menu item This could be a meal in itself, but I prefer the baked ones... Chinese Broccoli Steamed Yes mom, I had my greens today... Usually served with oyster sauce Sesame Seed Ball Fried Sweet rice with a sweet sesame seed paste inside One of my favorites growing up... They didn't really have a lot of different dishes, but I was happy with today's lunch. Now I'm ready for a nap... Happy Dim Sum Saturday! Photos by Jay Terauchi Kahuna of the Kitchen ...