Harbor Village Cuisine

After an early morning hike at Hanauma Bay Ridge (just over 3 miles round trip!), my friend and I were starving and craving one thing: dim sum. We’d been meaning to try Harbor Village Cuisine in Hawaii Kai for a while now, and this post-hike hunger felt like the perfect excuse to finally check it out.

Unlike the typically packed dim sum spots in town on a Sunday morning, Harbor Village was quiet and calm — exactly what we were looking for after being out in the sun and wind. No long wait, no noisy crowds, just a peaceful sit-down meal with good company.

While Harbor Village doesn’t have the traditional dim sum carts rolling around, every dish we ordered came out fresh and hot. We tried:

• Shrimp dumplings (har gow)

  

• Pork dumplings (siu mai)

  

• Spinach and shrimp dumplings

  

• Fried seaweed rolls

  

• House special cake noodles

Everything hit the spot. The dumplings were juicy, the fried seaweed rolls had the perfect crunch, and the cake noodles were saucy and satisfying — exactly what we needed to refuel after the hike.

Bonus: The restaurant also offers fresh crab and lobster if you're looking to splurge. (Market price for crab that day was $85.)

We left full and happy. If only it were a little closer to town! For now, we’ll keep it on our post-hike eats list whenever we’re on this side of the island.

HARBOR VILLAGE CUISINE

7192 KALANIANAOLE HIGHWAY

808-395-2311

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Visit San Francisco: Peony Seafood Restaurant

After a fantastic morning at the Farmers Market, we met our friends from the Bay Area who drove us across the Oakland Bridge to treat us to lunch at Peony Seafood Restaurant - a hidden gem known for its Cantonese cuisine and DIM SUM! Our friends did all the ordering for us, and included some classic dim sum dishes, as well as some dishes that I have never tried before. Everything we ate was amazing! I wish I had known about this place when I lived in the Bay Area for graduate school. I would have been here every weekend!  

The only thing I didn't like about this experience was the traffic heading back to the city (scroll down to the last pic!). But it was definitely worth it!

 

PEONY SEAFOOD RESTAURANT

388 9th Street (#288)

Oakland, CA 

510-286-8866

Closed Tuesdays

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Visit Hong Kong: Crystal Jade La Mian Xiao Long Bao

Our first dim sum experience in Hong Kong was at Crystal Jade La Mian Xiao Long Bao.  They are a Singapore-based chain, where they have received a Michelin Star (they have received several Michelin Bib Gourmand awards in Hong Kong).  We went during peak lunch hours, so there was a bit of a wait, but like most other Hong Kong restaurants we dined at, the whole process is very efficient.

You request a table via kiosk.  We were the only 5-party request so we thought we'd have a very long wait, but the wait was maybe about 10 minutes.  They also have a time limit during the peak hours, so the tables turn pretty quickly.

You order via mobile and the food comes out super fast.  

Mango Aiyu Special

Snacks

Snacks

We didn't get charged for the snacks that are automatically delivered to the table, unlike some other places we've been to.

Shanghai Pan Fried Buns

Chive Pancakes

Sichuan Dandan Ramen

Drunken Chicken

Shanghai Fried Rice Cake

Shanghai Xiao Long Bao

Eggplant

I loved the Chive Pancake and the Shanghai Fried Rice Cake.  Their signature Xiao Long Bao and Pan Fried Buns were great as well.  I love eggplant, but the Eggplant dish was served cold, which I didn't really care for.

The Sichuan Dandan Ramen was pretty spicy, and I thought the Drunken Chicken was good.

Highly recommend Crystal Jade La Mian Xiao Long Bao for great dim sum!

Crystal Jade La Mian Xiao Long Bao

Queensway Plaza, Shop E01-E06

LAB Concept, 93 Queensway, Admiralty, Hong Kong

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Visit Hong Kong: Paradise Dynasty

After a long morning of exploring, we went to Citygate Outlets and had a late lunch at Paradise Dynasty.

Snacks

Upon being seated, we were given some snacks (they were not complimentary).

Crispy Spring Roll

Deep Fried Scallion Pastry

I love the Deep Fried Scallion Pastry.  It's a new fave for our family.  One of my kids loved it so much he asked me to try and make it at home!

Signature Dynasty Xiao Long Bao

The Signature Dynasty Xiao Long Bao features 8 different flavors that you are supposed to eat in order, but since we all shared, we all tried different ones.  The flavors were (from middle, down and clockwise) Original, Luffa Gourd, Foie Gras, Black Truffle, Cheese, Crab Roe, Garlic, and Szechuan.  

Deep-Fried Pork Ribs

The Deep-Fried Pork Ribs had a mayonnaise sauce, and it was very tasty!

Shanghai Fried Rice

Pork Ribs with Plum Sauce

The sauce for this dish was reminiscent of li hing mui!

La Mian with Black Fungus

We had to have noodles!  The La Mian was delicious.  

Sliced Pork in Minced Garlic

Ma Po Tofu

I always enjoy ordering Ma Po Tofu, and this dish did not disappoint.

Everything we ordered was full of flavor, and the dishes came out quite quickly.  Service was good, and Paradise Dynasty turned out to be a great spot for lunch!

Paradise Dynasty
Level 3, Unit 326A Citygate
Tung Chug, Hong Kong

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Kaneohe Dim Sum Station

We finally have a dim sum restaurant on the Windward side!

Kaneohe Dim Sum Station recently opened in the Windward City Shopping Center, next to Subway (across from McDonald's).  The owners have two other dim sum restaurants in town - Kapiolani Seafood and Honolulu Seafood. 

It's not a traditional dim sum house where carts of dim sum are pushed throughout the restaurant. Instead, all orders are placed at the cashier. If you're dining in, they'll bring your order to your table (they have tables and chairs for dine-in customers). If you're getting it to-go, they'll call your number when your order is ready.

I came here twice during their first week of business. The dim sum is excellent! Here's what I tried:

Crispy Green Onion      |     Seafood Bean Curd Roll

Shrimp Look Funn

Shrimp Dumpling (Har Now)

Abalone Sticky Rice

Seafood Bean Curd Roll from second visit

cross-section of the seafood bean curd roll

I still have a lot of exploring of the menu to do, but so far everything has been amazing. I will say though that the 'crispy green onion' was not crispy at all, but I still liked it. The shrimp look funn is one dish that I will always order when I come here.

The portions are large and that is reflected in the price. But, the dim sum is good and I think people will keep coming back here, especially since it's the only dim sum restaurant in Kaneohe. 

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KANEOHE DIM SUM STATION
45-480 KANEOHE BAY DRIVE
808-247-8928

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Yung Yee Kee Dim Sum

Every now and then I get a craving for good quality dim sum, and that's when I round up my gal pals for lunch at Yung Yee Kee Dim Sum. We like coming here for dim sum because it's located outside of Chinatown, has parking for customers, and the dim sum is delicious. They don't come around with the carts .. instead you mark your selections on a piece of paper and the food starts coming to your table.  The menu has pictures of the items which is always helpful.

One thing I should  mention is that since this place is very busy, don't be surprised if they ask you to leave after you are done with your meal. It's definitely not the place to go to if you want to take your time and not feel rushed. They also charge for tea!

Reservations are accepted and highly recommended. Take-out is available.

ShangHai pork dumplings

deep fried shrimp dumplings

look funn with shrimp

pork hash w/shrimp

spare ribs w/black bean

bean curd roll w/pork

chicken feet w/black bean

pan fried turnip cake

sticky rice in lotus leaf

inside the lotus leaf

shrimp dumpling

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YUNG YEE KEE DIM SUM

1411 KAPIOLANI BLVD.

808-955-7478
 

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