Dim Sum? Dim Yum!

After a visit to San Francisco's Coit Tower to take in 360 degree views of the city, my travel companion Carl and I found ourselves in the middle of San Francisco's Chinatown. San Francisco's Chinatown, which is one of the oldest and largest in America, is full of tiny produce stands and food stalls with the most peculiar items (some with a rather odious smell). We weren't in Chinatown just for fun, we were on a mission. Our mission was to find a sit-down Dim Sum restaurant serving the Chinese brunch fair in the traditional style so that I could experience it for the first time. After we found the place we were looking for to be a carry-out only restaurant we did what any travel guide would tell you to do- we asked a local! She directed us to a phenomenal sit-down Dim Sum restaurant called Gold Mountain restaurant (located at 644 Broadway). When we walked through the door we were reassured we chose the right place after a quick once over revealed we were the only caucasians in the entire place!

The waiter escorted us to two available seats in the back of the restaurant near the kitchen. This was prime seating to catch the servers right as they exited the kitchen with steaming hot fresh dishes. For those of you unfamiliar with Dim Sum, it's similar to a Chinese equivalent to tapas. Servers circulate the restaurant with small portions served off of rolling carts. They yell out (in this case in Chinese) the name of the dish they're carrying on their cart. If the dish suits your tastebuds you accept. If not, you decline!

Our first selection was sticky rice served in a banana leaf. This rice was unlike anything I've had before. As soon as we pealed open the banana leaf there was a perfect portion of the stickiest rice I've ever consumed. Complimented with bits of succulent beef, the rice melted in my mouth. Shortly after the rice, I started to experience sensory overload. Before I knew it, it seemed like ten servers had approached our table with everything from shrimp dumplings to sweet red bean sesame balls. All of which they assured me was "very good very good". With all the options coming my way, all the smells wafting through the air, and all the laughter from those around us, I didn't know which dishes to take and which to decline! With help from Carl, I was able regroup and navigate carefully through the selections and avoid things that were too unfamiliar to me to taste, like duck feet and cow's blood.

Among the options we did try were shrimp dumplings, shrimp potstickers, beef noodles, shrimp tofu, red bean and brown bean sweet balls, and pork bun. My absolute favorite were the shrimp dumplings. The dumplings were just slightly larger than a golf ball and the shrimp inside was cooked to perfection! Carl's favorite was the pork bun. The bun was fluffy white bread shaped in a square. When I bit into the bun I was met with the pleasant barbeque taste of pork. I also enjoyed the sesame balls with red bean paste. The sesame dough is really sticky and on the inside is a small red ball of red bean paste. It's a sweeter dish, which provides and nice contrast to the saltiness of the other dishes.

I loved the entire Dim Sum experience. Next time I'm in San Francisco, maybe I'll have the courage to try one of the more obscure dishes, but for my first time it was everything I'd hoped and more!

Some of our half-eaten Dim Sum dishes

A server with the traditional Dim Sum cart.