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OK 5pm on a weekday and you've got a dim sum crave.... and having scouted all the regular dim sum restaurants in C-town, you realize that dim sum is a weekend offering that is almost a myth on the weekdays.... until you walk by Mandarin Court with its neon lights flashing DIM SUM in your face. Almost with disbelief, I walked in to double confirm the offering was available and to my utter surprise and delight, it was.
While I was elated that I found my dim sum joint, I wasn't sure if this was the kind of place that basically warms up factory made dim sum OR actually produced them in-house. Anyway, I was craving the stuff so much that I was willing to take a risk regardless. So I quickly ordered a few of my favorites.... char siew pau, rice in lotus leaf and spare ribs. Just to be clear, I tried telling the waiter that I wanted the dim sum type spare ribs (since I didn't see that on the menu). He simply cut me off with the "I KNOW I KNOW, I KNOW WHAT YOU WANT" phrase. ok fine, as long as he's aware....
The thing about ordering dim sum on a weekday is that it takes AGES to prepare. 15 mins passed, then 20 mins and after having witnessed the table before and after me get served their food, I was almost tempted to leave. Finally it arrived. And I'm glad to report that the dim sum was worth the wait for it was freshly made on the premise (or so I think) and was good.
BTW I only had the char siew pau (tastes good anywhere) and the lotus leaf rice (didn't have a whole lot of meat in it.... but it tasted fine). Apparently they ended up whipping up some stir fried spare ribs which is TOTALLY not the type served in dim sum. Actually the waiter probably knew it wasn't the right one (remember his earlier exclamation?) for I saw it in his face when he got that dish out of the dumb waiter (the elevator system). YET, HE DECIDES TO SERVE ME THE DISH WITHOUT A WORD. OMG. I had to ask him about it and he immediately told me the chef must have made a mistake. Oh, it was just so C-town for him to serve me the dish despite the apparent mistake. I told him to cancel that order for me since it wasn't what I wanted and I was not about to touch that dish and he did....
Shark fin soup was sort of like hot and sour soup without the hotness.
Roast pork fried rice and shrimp with walnut sauce is still making my mouth water right now.
TsingTao
I've been here a few times and always had a pleasant experience with the food. It seems to be more of a touristy dim sum place, but that's hardly an issue considering the carts pass frequently, so you don't have to wait long and the dishes are delicioius. Yes, try it.
Heard that this place does dim sum every day (as opposed to only on weekends), so decided to roll in yesterday with a co-worker. Definitely very formica-y and plain in terms of the decor, but the food was decent.
Delicious, fatty siu mai (pork dumplings) and flavorful ham sui gok (fried pork dumplings). The har gau (shrimp dumplings) were nicely filled, but somewhat bland and the skins were too thick. Also tried a gou choy/veggie dumpling, which wasn't bad.
Plates were ~$2.50 each; both of us ate til we were stuffed, and the total bill came to $20 including tax and tip. Now, if only I didn't feel like a big greaseball who needed a pack of oil-blotting sheets afterward...
Tip: The selection might be limited, but service is quick, and where else can you get dim sum on a Tuesday afternoon?
You know, I kind of wanted to like this place. Family and friends pointed me to it, and I'm sure I've been here before.
However, the food was sort of meh. But, I thought, well... I just came from Hong Kong, and had dim sum there. So, maybe my standards are a little high right now?
Well, I kept thinking that... until I tried to eat my second chicken foot. The toes... were like rubber. Stiff, hard, rubber.
It was like the bones were wearing a glove. A red, tough, latex glove. The skin around the ankle was still soft and ok-tasting. But, those toes... the closest description I can think of is, well, think of eating Michael Jackson's gloved hand. Like that. Yes.
In all fairness, the other food was decent. Maybe they were having an off day. But, man, those tough rubbery chicken toes... yuck.
I think its the most reasonable Dim Sum in china town. Two of us got out for $17.50 I was pleasantly surprised.
Good selection on the carts. A bit of a language barrier. Pot of green tea and I'm off to carmine street for a cupcake @ Sweet Revenge...
So my aunt and uncle were in town a few weeks ago. They own a Thai restaurant in Washington state so my mom figured that the last thing they would want to eat is something Thai or Chinese or whatever.
WRONG!
My aunt suggested this place because her daughter, who lives in W'Burg, always comes here. And they wanted "authentic" Chinese food. So we came Sunday night, after the crowds had already diminished in Chinatown. There was no dim-sum to be had, just whatever we wanted from the menu. And boy did we order alot. If I remember we ended up with lots of fried rice, some bak choy, lots of chicken dishes, a few fish dishes and lots of crab legs.
There were eight of us, with alot of food ordered, and all in all the total for the bill was just over $130 - with tip! Just amazing!
Perfect place to take someone (or just yourself) for the class "Dim Sum 101", but definitely not a satisfying place for the dim sum brown belts or black belts among us.*
I agree with Grace K.--the severe non-Asian-ness of the clientele was a bit off-putting. I really prefer to be one of the only whities in the crowd. But we were on a schedule, so we stuck to our plans and ate here on a not-very-crowded-at-all Sunday mid-morning.
Why do I think it's a perfect place for dim sum newbies? It's clean; it's large (i.e., there's room to maneuver between tables); it's not chaotic; it's not that loud; the food is a good and authentic representation of dim sum; and the cart ladies are pleasant and English-speaking. In short, it's authentic but not scary-authentic.
I would definitely return if I'm bringing a newbie, but otherwise I'd go somewhere else like Hop Shing.
* Yes, I mix metaphors. So what? You wanna fight about it? 'Cause I'll fight you. And, trust me, you don't want to go there.
I feel like this place has some definite potential. visited a few dim sum places that are super busy so I was excited to walk in and find that it was a smaller place with a few empty tables.
Unfortunately, there was a big lack of options on the carts that came around. I was disappointed to see that of the 3 carts that came by almost all had the same items. We tried several of them and while the food was decent, it was certainly nothing that would convince me to go back again.
However, I gave this place its second star for one big reason. Cold can of coke. I'm addicted to canned coke and I can honestly say that I don't think I've ever had a colder can! How do they do that?! If they could put all that excellence to tastier and more options, then I might go back. Until then...I'll just pop down to one of the busier places.
I've never been dim suming before. Is dim suming even a word? Probably not but life is too short to worry about verbing nouns. All my friends enjoy the dim sum and told me to try it but, being the tool that I am, I always waited to try it. Finally a friend of mine was visiting from out of town and he wanted to dim sum. He dragged me along and we decided to travel to Mandarin Court mostly because all the hater yelp reviews seemed to be from people who view themselves to be dim sum experts and who prefer to have their dim sum in crowded, dimly lit, small, and to have their dim sum experience to be more about the ridiculousness of it rather than actually enjoying their dinning experience. I'm glad I ignored their advice.
Mandarin Court is a large space with plenty of room to lounge and relax. You won't feel as if you're sitting in someone else's lap. The food is cooked fresh and is constantly being delievered to your table by little old chinese ladies. My friend and I had a late, 2:30 lunch on a Sunday and we saw a constant flow of freshly made rolls. Many things were brought to our table that I never even heard of but all of it was delicious. The dumplings are divine, the fried rice is delicious, and all the little deep fried things make me hungry thinking about it.
The only negatives is that the water glasses are kept as full as I would like and the service, for non-dim sum related things, was a little spotty. But it was, all in all, an enjoyable experience.
Pretty good dim sum. The best thing about this place is that it's small and you don't have to deal with a huge crowds you find in the other dim sum banquet halls. And you can pretty much get your own table even if you come with two people. The service will be a bit better, you will get chili sauce, water, etc when you ask.
Don't come too late though, since this place is small when it nears late afternoon the crowds trickle out and they stop making fresh dim sum and cart around the old stuff over and over. But you can request certain things that you don't see. There is a small menu on each table with a list of the dim sum items.
Having been here quite a few times, I've noticed that it is a completely hit or miss experience.
Pros: If you can't find what you want on the cart (or if they aren't filling the carts with variety for some reason), you can just order dim sum items from the menu, which is nice. It's relatively cheap.
Cons: The food is ok. As other reviewers have said, the high number of non-Chinese people is a dead giveaway that it's not really authentic and better dim sum can be had elsewhere. The waiters are surly even for Chinatown standards.
Giving it one star due to an altercation a hot-tempered and rude waiter had with my mother who was visiting from out-of-town. He was completely out of line, and when we tried to talk to the manager, she tried to run away.
Hey you. Yeah, you- the person scrolling through all the reviews trying to figure out why some people hate this place and some people like it. Take it from me- a real life Chinese person- that this place is pretty good. In fact, it's my go-to dim sum place now. I've had some not great experiences here, but if you follow my advice, you'll have a great time:
1. Get here by 11:30 at the latest. Aside from the crowds that show up at 12, getting here early ensures that you get fresh food. Dim sum places cook a lot of food early and then cart it around until it's all gone. Only then do they cook new stuff. So if you get there late, you run the risk of them carting around the SAME OLD SHIT for like 20 minutes while you're starving and hung-over and then you just cave and point to the one plate of dumplings surrounded by plates of egg custard and other desserts that should be signaling to you that THIS SHIT AIN'T FRESH but now it's too late and the lady snaps up your little price card before you realize it and then you're stuck eating a plate of fucking COLD ASS dumplings, which may not be so bad in your state, but then 10 minutes later you see a cart of piping hot fresh dumplings coming around and you think to yourself "FUCK! That looks so much better than the shit I'm eating!"
2. Try to get a seat by the front. The carts all start from the front, so you can get first dibs. If you're in the back, you will notice that there are two large tables near the front that are inevitably filled with families with demon spawn whose appetites know no limits, and whose flustered parents snap up two or three plates of everything in a desperate effort to placate them just so that they kids will shut the fuck up on the ride home because the fucking drop-down DVD player in their Ford Excursion is broken.
3. Try not to share tables. You might end up sitting across from the Chinese family that has not taught their kids to chew with their mouths closed because, SURPRISE!- the parents don't do it either.
4. Order the deep fried shrimp, and eat them whole, shell and all (I don't eat the heads though). Peeling them makes you look silly.
5. Leave a tip.
I had cold shrimp noodle rolls $2.10 for itty bitty portions
Expired Shiu Mai $2.10
Rubber beef balls $2.10
And this place is one of the most expensive in chinatown.
Not ever coming here again
Originally meant to try another dim sum place in Chinatown but it was closed. So this place was recommended by the lady in the greeting card shop across the street!
Like any good dim sum place, you get seated quick and the food cart is rolling at you. It was small and narrow so only two ladies manned the carts and rotated the food carts after each cycle. Which meant the food was freshly cooked and nothing sat out for too long.
What I ate:
white noodle stuffed with shrimp drizzled with soy sauce
sticky rice with ground pork
baby bok choi with soy sauce
shrimp dumplings
marinated chicken feet
egg custard
Everything was good. I waddled away happy!
I would like to believe that my "EH" experience at this place was probably because my friends and I were there on a weekday around 11:30. There were only two other tables full (2 person each with our 5 bringing the grand total of eaters in the restaurant to be 9, it was kind of sad). The food for the most part was cold and hard (there was only one cart coming around with the same stuff in the beginning).
HOWEVER the chicken Shiu mai was good compared to everything else. It made my mouth go "THIS IS CHICKEN?!?!" (I'm used to pork/shrimp shiu mai). haha :D
I guess as a Chinese girl growing up in Brooklyn, I'm used to LOUD dim sum restaurants filled with boisterous Chinese patrons and screaming babies.
This is a great place to yamcha. It's not on the grand scale of some of the other places: no superhigh ceiling, no traditional decor, no mob scene. A worthwhile tradeoff.
I didn't have any trouble getting everything I really wanted here, except for eggplant. I was very happy with the ha gow, with excellently thin skins and lovely vegetables. The char siu bao was unremarkable, but the char siu sou was a standout: deeply flavorful and flaky, not too starchy or oily. The wu gok (taro dumplings) were deliciously filled. The nor mai gai is huge and contains everything but the kitchen sink: two types of pork, shrimp, chicken, Chinese sausage, an egg, all very yum. I've had better jin dui, but it it's decent (mmm red bean paste), and by that point I was so full and happy that you couldn't have wiped the smile off my face.
Actually it's sort of embarrassing to look at this review and realize just how much I eat when I yamcha. Yet, it also makes me hungry.
Chinese Cuisine.
I haven't been here in a while since my paternal grandfather passed away. But this place always had reasonably good food. It's not a place to die for, but the food is always good. It is not as big as some of the bigger and more popular places in chinatown, but the food makes up for the size. If you don't want to wait for many of the more popular places, just come here and take a try. You won't be disappointed.
if you want dim sum for dinner, you better know what that porky-blob is called. otherwise, eat your uncertain fate. i don't mind.
i've never been for weekend AM dim sum. I will have to break from my routine of Jin Fong or Ping's to try it. on a weekday in the evening it's usually not very crowded. sometimes we're the only ones there. strangely, i am ok with this. I usually don't like that in a restaurant.
service is nice.
Good dim sum, small dining area, hard to understand cart ladies. For cheap dim sum, little to no wait time, this is the place to go!
First off, the food will satisfy the dim sum craze. Have come here a few times and for the most part, the experience has been satisfying. It would be nicer if they had a greater variety, but for a low-cost venue hard to ask for something too fancy. But at least you know what you are paying for and for that value, it is good. Will be back soon!
I look somewhat dimly on dim sum as a brunch option. It doesn't matter if breakfast only gets 1/3 of the letters in brunch - it might as well be 100% for me. But my guest in town suggested dim sum and I took it as an opportunity to broaden my horizons.
I found Mandarin Court's dim sum to be pretty good if lunchy and energy-sapping. The prices are around $2 per plate of three and the carts of food keep-a-coming. There are enough carts that I never saw the same cart twice. It can be a bit overwhelming to a newbie. Of the many things I tried, my favorites were the vegetable dumplings and pork rolls (three types - a plain breaded and lightly shelled w/ mashed taro were better than a third one that used the gummy rice shell used for dessert mochi). A red bean sesame ball made for a good dessert but I saw an even nicer looking nice egg custard tart on the way out.
There was no wait pre-noon on a Sunday but it got packed shortly after. There's not much ambience here but that's par for the course.
End verdict? I'm still not a dim sum fan for brunch but Mandarin Court is a worthy venue to challenge such a POV and a better one if you hold the contrary opinion...
Aww boo. My first Yelp disappointment.
Okay, I'm going to go ahead and play the race card for this one review, but my one blaring signal that Mandarin Court could be an iffy choice for delicious dim sum was the fact that I walked in and every other table was occupied by Caucasian folks and that it was clean and QUIET.
WHAT!? A QUIET DIM SUM PLACE AT NOON? Out of the question.
Still, I was going to give it a shot because, as I've said, Yelp has never failed me before.
SAD SAD SAD I was when each dish came out and was horribly disappointing. Don't get me wrong... the food wasn't awful, but it was just "okay." A lot of it was bland and a few of the won-ton types of dishes literally tasted like it had come out of a freezer bag and then re-heated. The deep fried taro (which is one of my all-time favorites) was so strangely flavored and a bit off-putting, but it wasn't gross, it was "okay" so I finished it... but with a little sadness.
Oh Yelp, I feel a bit cheated. Maybe it was an off-day, but I guess SF Chinatown or Cupertino will have to suffice for trusty dim sum until my quest for good dim sum in New York can continue.
They shoot restaurants, don't they?" Here is a prime candidate for "shut it down." Food is simply terrible, no redeeming factors whatsoever. This was for dinner. No dim sum carts available. Someone obviously doesn't care anymore. Prime suspects: the chef, the owners, and the wait staff. Bye, bye!
I've been here three times and it gets better with each time for some reason. Been looking for good dimsum in the city and this place was really good the last time I was there. For a setting that's usually known for rude waiters, we had great, quick service even though we did not speak Chinese.
Favorites: cai lan, fried shrimp roll w/carrots and sweet fish sauce dip, the usual ha gow and shu mai were good (they had both pork ahd chicken shu mai), and the seafood pan fried noodles were tasty but not as crunchy as I would like since the sauce had soaked in already.
Also try their crab ha gow--it's a different take on the usual.
The dim sum here is pretty damn good. But I have had instances where what I was served a dish that was cold. I was not feeling that at all. Aside from that, the food itself is very good. I think it all depends on what time you go though (let's hope).
One more thing, if you are not familiar with Asian cuisine/culture, I'm telling you right now, do not ask for sugar to put in your green tea. That is not cool. You will embarrass the sh/t outta any Asian person you came with.
My friend and I stopped by here for a quick bite.
For a little over $20, we had the Black Bean Curd with Shrimp and Oyster sauce, Soft-Shelled Crab with Spicy Salt, Steamed Shrimp Dumpling, and Steamed Shrimp and Pork Dumpling.
Very good and affordable.
I didn't see any pushcarts - we simply ordered from the menu.
I have always preferred this place for dim sum when I don't want to go to a cavernous joint that is like a bus station at rush hour. The last two times I went for dim sum with other people, we went to a large cash-only place on the Bowery called HSF which was fine, but I found myself longing for the smaller, chiller atmosphere of Mandarin Court.
Ambience--none. The fish and lobsters in the tank up front look suicidal. But the dim sum are excellent. I had breakfast there this morning and I had numerous delicious items I have had other places, usual dim sum fare, along with two things I would never have tried if the woman hadn't insisted I try them on a previous visit. One was a fried taro dumpling that looked like it was wearing a mohair sweater. Three enormous blobs of taro with a savory spicy ground pork filling. It's insanely good. I made the tourists at the next table have a plate of them on me, and they couldn't thank me enough. The other thing I got was a small plate of some kind of beef or pork bit, complete with cartilege and small bits of bone, in a pepper and black bean sauce. I have no idea what animal, what body part, but it was great. All the dishes have three or four pieces per serving, and none are ever, it seems, more than $2. Many dessert options come rolling at you, and they all look great, but I have always been too stuffed to try any.
I agree with the other Yelpers in that this is my preferred spot for dim sum in Chinatown. The pushcart servers are pretty eager to get you to try their fare, especially if you're not Chinese. I've seen quite a few tourists try stuff they probably wouldn't have simply because the servers insisted it was good. And I've been persuaded a time or two to try something new myself. Aw, they really care.
I liked this place the two times that I've dined here. Good food although the service could've been better. Came here on a weekend afternoon and it was fairly busy. It's your standard Chinatown dim sum house but not quite as obnoxious. It's worth a try if you are in the area.
this is our family's favorite rest in chinatown for dinners. they have great authentic food - don't get the stuff on the menu. tell the waiter what you like/dislike and trust their judgement. you'll benefit from this. and for the love of god, please tip them nicely - i witnessed an embarassing incident amongst several adult women who were lowballing the poor waiter. omg! to clarify - this is a rest for authentic chinese food in plate style not a dim sum cart rest.
I'm a big Dim Sum fan, and while Mandarin Court isn't the greatest Dim Sum on earth, the food is very, very good. The place is small, usually crowded, but not that expensive-- which is a definite plus over a lot of other restaurants even right next door. Every once in a while when I come here, though, the food isn't so great-- I think they have a different chef one day of the week or something. I've been there about 20 times and I'd say that once it was really not good, and once it was sorta below average. All other times, though, it's been fine--and certainly edible in either case. I always take out-of-town friends here, since it's cheap(ish), easy, and delicious!
As usual Chinatown is a nightmare during the weekend due to the tourists and all of Beijing wandering the streets. Hole in the wall place that I went to last year during the summer. Service is good and fast! The restaurant does fill up on the weekends so you may want to get there early. We had various items ranging from tripe, steamed rice in lotus leaf, sui mai, ha gow, shark-fin dumplings, steamed pork ribs, fried baby squid with jalapeos, and of course hot tea. Overall I'd rate the ambiance = 2, service 4, food quality = 3, price = 3. Nothing too unique as far as selection or quality but a decent run-of-the-mill dim sum joint.
This is one of my favorite restaurants to go to in Chinatown. I don't like the hustle and bustle of the bigger restaurants when it comes to dim sum. Sometimes you have to wait for a long time before a cart comes but, but not here. You get the typical dim sum dishes, but I remember getting the fish balls (or was it shrimp?) with curry. Man, that was the best!
I never knew this place served dim sum until my grandmother told me to buy it from here. Adhering to her strict instructions I ordered a little bit of everything from chicken feet to steamed buns. I was surprised by the variety of dim sum they offered. It wasn't the most creative or most delicious I've ever had but it will satisfy the average person's cravings. The one advantage this place has above all the rest is the take out counter is not crowded at all. Unlike Grand Harmony where you're mobbed by throngs of old chinese ladies trying to order boxes too large for them to carry, you'll be in and out in no time.
my friend & i ended up having dinner here one very cold night. the place was nearly empty except for a big group that was celebrating something that night, plus a couple looking like having a serious talk. the place looked like it's newly renovated. i had some chicken lo mein plus dumplings. it was OK, not bad. their dumpling used that kind of sticky rice flour variety, so it tasted somewhat differently. i would have wanted some soup noodle dish, but they didn't have it....my friend had a dish that had ripe mango in it, which tasted good. service was friendly and courteous; i also like being handed a warm wet facial cloth which was great. i may just be back, if i find myself in the area again.
Two stars" is pretty generous. We ate here based on reviews. It was midafternoon and there was maybe one other tables occupied (which could be a good thing). The ladies (2) with carts came by but neither could tell us what anything they had was (ok one said "sweet sticky rice" about one dish but that was it). We had shrimp dumplings $2.50 or so for 4 or 5. They were ok, I guess - not much taste but not bad. We had shrimp fried rice, roast duck, and pork dim sum. The pork was ok, duck was mainly fat and bones but that may be the way duck always is, and the shrimp in the fried rice had clearly not been deveined. Kind of unappetizing with the big black veins down very translucent shrimp. Service was at best average. All in all I would not not go back and would eat at one of the scores of Little Italy places a block away. Realize I'm not a big Chinese food lover or authority but unless you really know the menu and what you like, I'd try something else. It was a good experience for the family, maybe, but it was not something I'd repeat.
Woodbridge, NJ
Category: Grocery
Neighborhood: Chinatown
Category: Dim Sum
Neighborhood: Chinatown
Category: Dim Sum
Neighborhood: Chinatown
Category: Chinese
Neighborhood: Chinatown
Category: Dim Sum
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