Dim Sum c/o Joy Tsin Lau

The Sunday morning after my grill fest found me once again on the deck. I may have even been blogging. I know I filled out a job application. At some point my phone rang and it was Mr. Ass asking if I'd like to join him and LBM for dim sum. I was skeptical about LBM, as I have been trying to get her to go to dim sum with me for five years and she never does, but Mr. Ass insisted that the chances were very much in our favor for seeing LBM in a dim sum context. I would have been happy to dim sum one way or the other, so I did not delay in accepting the invitation. Of course between that initial call and my actual arrival at Joy Tsin Lau, LBM had bowed out, which left just Mr. Ass and me to dive deep into dumplings. We were seated in a not-too-terrible spot, which pleases me given the number of times I've been put at a table that makes it impossible for carts to get to, or happens to be by a leaking fish tank. And all my favorites were in attendance. I'm always a bit fan of this shrimp and rice noodle dish, which is topped with a sweeter kind of soy sauce. I think some might be put off by the texture of the noodles, but I really dig it. Mr. Ass had a bowl of wonton soup. I don't think that in all my years of dim summing, which go back to my childhood, I have ever actually ordered a soup or congee on a dim sum day. Perhaps next time I'll try to branch out.

Mr. Ass is a bigger fan of these pork buns than I am. Perhaps it's the consistency of the bread/dough that surrounds them...not quite for me. I think when I was younger, however, they may have been one of my favorites...behind shrimp dumplings of course.

Here you'll see the bean curd wrapped mystery, shrimp dumplings, spinach dumplings and shumai coated with brown rice.

The brown rice element added to the shumai was something I'd never seen, but I must say it was actually a pretty good twist. The earthiness of the rice, which had a definite tooth to its texture, really complemented the salty meaty goodness of the hidden dumpling within.

While LBM was a no show, I was still glad to have a dim sum experience to counteract the shit show that was Ocean Harbor on Chinese New Year. I also walked to Chinatown and was glad for the exercise.