I returned to this newly remodeled spot today for lunch. I had dim sum and dumplings. Everything was legit, but not as good as Lunasia. The crystal cake was good (not on the menu, just ask for it).
Do you have pictures of the restaurantās interior? Thanks!
No, sorry. Oddly, it did not look much different than I recalled. Same furniture. Possibly a new wall covering.
For some reason Iāve never had the meals at Elite that everyone else has, as my impression has always been that the dim sum is too hit-or-miss for the price point; Iāve always much preferred Lunasia, King Hua, and of course Sea Harbour.
Whatās the consensus on the food; has anything changed the last couple of years for me to give it another chance, or is it basically the same as before?
+1 on your comment for my entire family. Iāve been puzzled why weāre out of step with everyone (or everyone with us) on Elite.
We ate there some years ago and really liked it. It was the first dim sum place weād been to with menusā¦and I wish they all did.
mcmichael, what the difference between ādim sum and dumplingsā please?
Dumplings are like those goodies you get at DTF (on the Elite menu they are called āShanghai Dumplingsā). Iām not an authority on this, but you might also consider a visit to Mama Luās Dumpling House for research purposes.
Those are buns actually. Dumplings are har gow etc.
-source - Iām pretend Asian
Well, Iāll disagree with both of you
Xiao long bao aka soup dumplings are dumplings and are Taiwanese. The below are dumplings that are dim sum:
FWIW, Elite has the best QPR to me and the only one that consistently have contrasting texture in many of their dumplings. Sea Harbour has the best steamed dim sum in terms of flavor but their baked and fried ones were lacking on my last visit.
King Hua, while itās solid, is no better than Lunasia and Elite flavor wise but comes with smaller portions. However, itās underwhelming considering that I get less but having to pay more at $25/person there in compared to about $21 at Lunasia, $17 at Elite and $30 - $35 at Sea Harbour ($$$).
You can disagree all you want, bao means bun, which is a different category from dumpling.
p.s. Always got love for Elite, it was our go to for a couple of years after graduating NBC and Ocean Star (this was a while back)
Typically, bao does mean bun. No disagreement there, but in the case of XLB, it is a steamed dumpling.
Dumpling is a subset of dim sum.
SMH.
Closed/sealed from the top = bao (which I suppose is bun to non-Chinese speakers).
Closed/sealed from the side = dumpling
XLB are bao (hence the āBā in XLB). The āsoup dumplingā moniker which was applied to XLB was born out of ignorance of the above, and this misnomer has now been perpetuated in the common vernacular to the point of no return.
Yeah but significantly less wait time at King Hua = priceless
Thatās why I only go to Elite when I can make it there before 11 and almost never go to Sea Habour.
Thank you. Shocking we still have to explain this in 2018
Typically youāre right but today youāre wrong.
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Not sure whether dough has to be sealed in order to qualify as a dumpling??
Edit: On a second thought, I think my confusion stems from the fact that Iām thinking of a more generalized categories of dumplings rather than something more specific. Many ādumplingsā at dim sum arenāt closed and are still generally labeled as dumpling. I suppose youāre referring to jiaozi or Chinese dumplings in particular so they have to be closed?
Edit #2: After digging a little deeper, even HK dim sum joints call dumplings that arenāt closed é¤å/jiaozi so Iām even more confused now!
Siu mai are open, but there is controversy (in my family at least) whether these are true dumplings.
Armenian boraki are open too. Not sure if the locals consider them dumplings (paging Nemrozā¦)