i want sum dimsum!

Ocean Seafood Restaurant
750 N Broadway
Los Angeles, CA 90012
(213) 687-3088
www.oceansf.com

price: $$
verdict: tasty, try it!

i brought two friends here for some dim sum because i was FLOORED when i found out that they've never been. "WHAT?!" i exclaimed in disbelief. "how can you live in l.a. for so long and never been to dim sum?" i immediately volunteered myself to become their token chinese friend. in my mind, i already had the perfect place to take them for their virginal dim sum experience, ocean seafood. my family have been patronizing this place for many, many years. i was confident that they will love their dim sum here as much as i do.

suprisingly, there was no wait when we came this morning. we were seated immediately and just as our tushies hit our chairs, we were bombarded with a bunch of dim sum carts (this is what i LOVE about dim sum, being able to eat immediately). since i speak cantonese, it was a nice opportunity for me to practice. HOWEVER, you do not need to speak the language in order to get great dim sum or good service. this restaurant has made a concerted effort to have their staff speak a few words in english because they are trying to expand their customer base. at the very least, you will be told what you're eating and what's in it. in fact, when i spoke cantonese, one of the employees there responded in english!

for my friends' virginal dim sum experience, i went for the following dishes because i knew they were easy on the the taste buds (i only know the cantonese way of saying some of these dishes so i will do my best to describe them):

-for our tea, we started off with "goke boe" which is a mixture of chrysanthemum and black tea. if you don't request a specific tea to start your dim sum experience, the default tea is jasmine which is also pretty nice. they don't have a tea menu just in case you are curious. i know they have "goke boe" because my family orders that all the time.
-ha gow (steamed shrimp wrapped in a transparent rice wrap)
-siu mai (nuggets of pork. yummy)
-seasoned shrimp (with the heads still on it. the shells are crispy enough for you to consume THE WHOLE thing, shell and all. do it.)
-seasoned calamari
-cheung fan (white rice rolls with a choice of shrimp or pork)
-chinese brocolli with oyster sauce for dipping
-baked cha siu boas (baked pork buns)

we stopped there. that's a lot of food. our bill came out to be about $42 for three people not including tip. i didn't order my typical chicken's feet, jelly fish, or seaweed, but it wasn't missed today. maybe in the future, i can convince them to be more adventurous and try these old favorites of mine.