Shi Hai signage changed

But, but, JGold – he of the Pull-Leetz-ER – crowned it possibly the “best dim sum restaurant in the San Gabriel Valley

What could have happened?

Could JGold have been … (wait for it) … wrong?

i think it was tonyc who raved about shi hai. as for gold’s review, IIRC he was careful to say that you were best off ordering the simpler things on the menu - which i took to mean that the more expensive items were dreck.

i know you hate gold, but you lose on this one.

EDIT: actually, the headline was: "Jonathan Gold: Alhambra’s Shi Hai is best at its simplest " which to me was code for, yeah, i got comped to review it, and this is the nicest thing i can say about it.- end EDIT

1 Like

Gold’s words are what they are. He called them “the best”. 'Nuff said.

Yelpers are already in on it. At least they’re good for something.

1 Like

The Minty suggests this is just a rebrand of Shi Hai because Shi Hai translates to World Seafood. I don’t know. if she’s correct. Dim sum menu has changed and is cheaper. Congratulatory plants festoon the premises. But it was sure renamed and reopened quickly.

This much is. Correct, that is.

But the Chinese names, and Chinese signage, for Shi Hai and World Seafood are not the same.

no he didn’t, it’s your smarting ego talking. this is beneath you.

Apparently much ado about nothing. I stopped in today and spoke with someone there (head waiter?), who told me it was simply a name change and everything is the same. Same owner, same chefs. Man, I swear, what would you folks do without me? :slight_smile:

So it is still one of GQ’s top 25 restaurants in the US? and still “the best dim sum at its simplest”? or has the dim sum menu changes as @chandavki had noted?

lol what else is on that list I wonder?

Comparing the dim sum at World Seafood to my visit to Shi Hai when they opened a little over 2 years ago, I’d say that it’s gone way downscale. The old menu was peppered with interesting and expensive varieties. The World Seafood dim sum menu is fairly ordinary. One of the major knocks on Shi Hai was that it was rather expensive. My four dim sum dishes at World Seafood earlier this week added up to $12. What I don’t know if whether these differences are new or whether they occurred during the old regime.

2 Likes

I don’t have a before menu to compare to an after menu, but I defer to chandavkl on menu changes. They were putting up new signs touting the bargains while I visited

The menu is indeed cheaper.

I spoke with one of the principals earlier this week just by happen chance and was told they were not turning nearly enough tables with their previous prices and in order to readjust their market positioning they needed to rebrand because people associated “Shi Hai” with $$$, if not $$$$.

3 Likes

So, would it be fair (and accurate) to describe this as a “rebranding” or is “repositioning” better? …or both?

Probably both.

I only mentioned it because I did not want there to be the impression that World Seafood (nee Shi Hai) changed names for some other more nefarious reasons that have been bandied about on these here boards.

1 Like

I hear you on that, ipse and thanks for the explanation. Since the story on KCRW, that reason is probably the first thought when there’s a restaurant name change. Driving past Camellia Square in Temple City, I saw a sign in the window of the upcoming Summer Rolls location reading “Now Hiring”. Erm, yeah…

I went to dim sum at World Seafood yesterday for Sunday Dim Sum with a few friends and encountered problem with limited parking and waiting in line for a table. This means business is better than before. After we were seated, the service were great but dim sum offerings was definitely not the same as I remembered. Several signature items such as the cute steamed pig bun with pink ears on cute painted faces were no longer listed. Their signature roast pork dish was also completely different. The roast pork while very good is not in the same league as the as the original version.
Finally, What is this KCRW nefarious restaurant name change conspiritcy?

Thanks for the report back. Good to know.

I stopped by last Saturday for dim sum. Place was packed, but wait for party of eight was only about 10 minutes or so at 11 a.m. Parking lot is out of control - they double park cars now, so I suggest just skipping the headache and parking on the street nearby.

Food is definitely cheaper now with most dishes coming in under $3. Others are right that the menu has changed. It’s funny because they were known for their steamed buns that resembled pigs. Well, there’s still a picture of them on the menu, but I didn’t see any where that you could order them. I found the food to be fresh, service to be decent. Compared to similar priced places like Atlantic, Monterey Palace, and Five Star, I thought World Seafood’s portions were larger, the preparation was cleaner, and the food tasted fresher.

1 Like