Dimsum is a small plates-type of Chinese cuisine, with dumplings and other dishes served in steamer baskets. My favorite dim sum places in Chinatown is Hei La Moon. My go-to orders are the shrimp hargow (top plate in photo) and pork siumai (right plate in photo). I enjoy dimsum brunch very much and if you haven’t experienced it, I suggest you go to your nearest Chinatown and hunker down for a seemingly endless rotation of small bites.
At Hei La Moon (and most other places), carts filled with dim sum are pushed around the restaurant, stopping at each table, so diners can order without leaving their seats. I’ve seen a few places that do a la carte dim sum, but often they would have a smaller menu, and of course the experience does not compare.
Part of the fun with eating dim sum is waiting for the carts to come to the table, the server lifting the cover of the steamer basket so we can peek at the selection, and then pointing to our choice. Most of the servers speak little English so orders are typically done with lots of pointing fingers, with simple questions like “shrimp" pork"” (I always say yes to both.)
When you’re eating dim sum, you should also partake in drinking hot tea. The house tea at Hei La Moon is jasmine tea, which is delicious and pairs well with the food. It’s no brunch mimosa, but it’s still perfect. Just like the pork siumai and shrimp har gow.
Hei La Moon | 88 Beach St, Boston Ma 02111

The post Dish o...