This is kind of last minute, but we’re thinking of dim sum in the East Bay this weekend, and want to know what’s the latest intelligence on East Ocean Seafood (Alameda), Hong Kong East Ocean Seafood (Emeryville), or Asian Pearl (Richmond) in terms of price and quality. We’ve been to all three over the years, but I don’t think we’ve hit any of them post-pandemic, and a lot may have changed. Any recommendations, either between the three or for another in the area? We want to stay in the East Bay, and no further north than Richmond, nor over the hill, so WC/San Ramon are out. Easy (and free) parking is also a plus.
My take is East Ocean in Alameda has better dim sum and is run well. The owner is usually there and on top of things. I was there last year and when things opened up again in 2021 and they set things up smartly for pandemic. All the standards were good and well executed…nothing weird. HK East Ocean is a view restaurant (tack on a $ or so) with okay dim sum but the view is nice and so is a walk outside on a nice day. I’ll likely be going there at the end of the month with relatives from the East Coast, it’s not a food first thing. Sorry no new report.
Another family deal will happen in April and looking at HL Peninsula in Castro Valley as an option. Out of curiosity and it’s a memorial and person would likely pick it…out of curiosity, and it’s suppose to be the largest dim sum /Canto restaurant in the country.
SFGate: America’s largest dim sum parlor opens in a former California Rite-Aid
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I agree, Alameda East Ocean’s dim sum is better. I think they still have carts on the weekends. Parking may be difficult, but there are a few spaces in the lot out back. At HK East Ocean, a runner brought the plates to a staging area in the room, where they sat and got cold until a waiter brought them to our table. Yes, nice views, nice nature along the coast, though.
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EOS/Alameda wins hands-down. We go regularly, and the Chinese locals have been supporting them in the best way possible: large groups are now a regular occurrence, especially at lunchtime - and this INCLUDES weekdays, not just weekends.
We’re retired so can verify food took a steady improving direction when the second generation took over.
Be aware that dim sum is no longer cheap. There are some carts but it’s best to mark the plastic-coated menus on each table. Their best dim sum are:
- Combination Meat Dumplings
- any steamed shrimp/crab/scallop dumplings
- Pai Qwat, Black bean steamed pork spareribs
- Siu Mai
- Wu Kok (mashed taro around a ground pork/gravy filling, wrapped in caul fat and deep-fried)
- Lo Mai Gai, steamed sticky rice in lotus leaf
- BBQ pork (especially when fresh)
- Har Cheong Fun, shrimp wrapped in rice noodle
- Ngau Yiuk Yuen, steamed beef meatballs w/cilantro
- XO chow fun, cut in small lengths, moderately spicy
- Yeung Hai Kim, stuffed crab claws
- Yong Dow Fu, seafood or shrimp stuffed deep-fried tofu
- Lung Har Gak, deep-fried shrimp dumplings (sometimes scallop; pleated on top)
- Stuffed Mushrooms (if they have them; they don’t always show up)
Tip: Skip the dan tat, custard tarts. They’re good, but PO TAT are what you want - Portuguese egg custard tarts, in flaky pastry.
Suggest skipping - just average:
Kuo Teh, potstickers
Lo Bak Ko, pan-fried turnip cake
Chicken bao (altho my spouse loves them from anybody)
Eggplant stuffed with shrimp (a little too greasy)
EOS makes an excellent lobster e-fu mein. We aren’t 100% sure but last year we saw the NE Lobster Co./Burlingame truck making deliveries to EOS!
Their Peking Duck is also very good.
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Wow, thanks for the endorsements! I knew Onions would come through! @Lethe2020, I’m sorry to hear that the lo bak go is just average, because that’s one of my faves! We usually skip the eggplant, too, because one of our party is mildly allergic to eggplant.
@ernie_in_berkeley, we’ve actually never had a problem parking at EOS in Alameda. Maybe we’ve always been lucky. I hope I haven’t just jinxed ourselves!
@ML8000, one of these days we’ll try HL Peninsula in Castro Valley, but this weekend will not be the day. I wonder if their big draw is their size? Some of the comments elsewhere are kind of lukewarm and suggest that the quality/price quotient does not hit the mark. I hope you’ll report back after your family gathering there (although I’m assuming it’ll be more banquet than dim sum).
Again, thanks, all. I’ll report back, and try to remember to take some pix, too.
I had a really good meal at HL Peninsula in CV, but we went right when it opened. One of the draws is that they have offerings I’ve never seen anywhere else. They don’t wheel carts around the room (the room is huge)–you order through a server.
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Is the second generation the younger women 30-ish often at the door? Yes they keep things moving and will step in if you need help. In 2021, they did a great job distancing tables. And weekday lunch is busy and the food still good. EOS seems to be the only decent sit down dim sum in Oakland, Alameda and Berkeley. A lot of places have moved further East, Dublin, Pleasanton, Castro Valley.
Thanks Stephanie L on the quick report on HL. I think the curiosity factor is the stated size.
re: HKEOS … yeah they’ve been weird and a bit off for a long time, especially for the higher prices. At least 20 years. Didn’t want to say anything since I haven’t been for a long time. Will have to look at the menu, might have to avoid but 93 y.o. aunt. So usually pick the nicer environment.
The last time we went to HKEOS was nearly 10 years ago, celebrating Spawn2’s graduation from Cal. We got there about an hour before their lunch closing time, but about half an hour before, so 2pm-ish, we started getting the stink-eye from a LOT of the staff. It really put a damper on the joy of the occasion, but I ignored it the best I could.
The best part was watching my FIL, who was a born-and-bred meat and potatoes midwesterner, lean over to whisper to MIL periodically, and Mrs. ricepad and I enjoyed speculating what he was saying to her. Mostly we figured it was, “What is that? Can I eat it?”
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I wonder what’s going on with the Richmond Saigon Seafood Harbor. It’s been closed since 2024 for “renovations”. Their dim sum and other dishes were always reliable.
We never made it there. Whenever we were in the area, we always went to Asian Pearl. I think it was my aunt’s favorite.
My birthday is in January, and for one ending in zero I gathered a bunch of friends for a crab feast at SSH in Richmond. I think we went through four or five crabs in various presentations among the six of us.
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Forgot one other dish we like at EOS/Alameda:
The spicy won tons were very good. Although we’re not big fans of Sichuan peppercorns, these were a better quality than many restaurants use. Spouse really liked the sauce, a blend of soya, garlic chile sauce and Sichuan peppers. It’s a generous serving, and we brought some home. I thought they would be great in soup, and they were - in fact, we order them now just to bring home.
I make a soup of half-Japanese dashi and half homemade chicken stock, and add the dumplings and sauce. Really excellent with some good ramen noodles added.
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Construction going on at Saigon Seafood Harbor. Banner says something like “opening soon - all you can eat hot pot” and something else….will pay closer attention next time I drive by (was on my way to pick up cannolis at Gran Milan!).
Can confirm, they were still doing weekend carts as recently as last summer.
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We arrived at EOS in Alameda shortly after 1pm on Sunday, March 15. It was pretty packed when we arrived, but the crowd slowly thinned, and by the time we were finished (about 2:15, IIRC), the place was about ⅓ full. We were fortunate to be seated right outside the kitchen, so we were either the first or second table to get the carts as they came out, and the first one came even before the tea had hit the table. We got our usual assortment: har gow, siu mai, gai lan, dow see pai kwat, jin dui, chive dumplings (don’t remember the Chinese name), dan taat, cheung fun (shrimp) and lo bak go. Also got some dry fried okra, salt & pepper chicken wings, and probably a couple more I’ve since forgotten. The stars were the dan taat (really flaky pastry, which we prefer over short crust), the chives dumplings, and something else we’d never seen before and did not understand the server when we asked what it was. They looked like black har gow except made with a wheat wrapper that included either charcoal or squid ink and were deep fried. They were so good that had they not come out toward the end, when we were already pretty full, we probably would have had another plate of them. All in, it was about $220 for four people, although the son-in-law frequently eats as if he were two (no bevs besides water and tea). Parking was a breeze - found two spots on the street just around the corner, one on either side of the fire station.
As usual, I forgot to take pix. I guess I’m just not of that generation.
[edited to correct a typo]
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