Blog post 2(revised)

“Oh, no! It’s raining. What am I going to do for the whole day?”

“Do you want to try some Chinese food?”

“Is it spicy?”

“No. Why are you asking that?”

“Everybody knows Chinese food is spicy. Isn’t that right?”

“Not true.”

Although spicy dishes are typical representatives of Chinese food, not all Chinese food is spicy, such as my favorite, Cantonese food. The Cantonese are famous for eating everything cooked in every possible method you can think of, but the best part of Cantonese food is breakfast, which we call “drinking tea.” It’s not just about tea, as the name describes. It’s about a group of friends sitting together and enjoying a variety of Dim Sum, which is the general name for breakfast dishes. This ritual of eating Dim Sum often starts at 11 o’clock and lasts about two to three hours. I thought I was never going to find Dim Sum here, but fortunately, I did at the Oriental Pearl Seafood Restaurant.

“Is it far? It’s raining cats and dogs and I don’t want to get wet.”

“I won’t say it’s close, but it’s really convenient. By the way, if you want to stay dry, I guess you will have to stay indoors all day.”

The Oriental Pearl Seafood Restaurant is located in Chinatown, which is a ten-minute walk from the Chamblee MARTA Station. It’s pretty convenient to go to from Georgia Tech even if you don’t have a car. I have been there many times, and it takes me about 40 minutes. When you get to a large sign “China Town,” make a left and you will see the restaurant, or you could choose to chase after that superb smell.

“Perfect! I walked all the way here and I am thoroughly wet now. I am warning you that it’d better be something good.”

“Calm down. The food will make up for everything. Now, choose what you like.”

“Are you nuts? What’s the matter? What’s wrong with you? I have no idea what any of this stuff is, and they don’t even have their English names on the menu. How am I supposed to order?”

“Relax. Forget about the menu. Go pick out whatever you like from that cart.”

Here is the nice thing about the restaurant. You don’t have to make a choice from meaningless names and pray for something edible. Waiters will come to you with carts full of different kinds of Dim Sum so that you can see the food and pick something that attracts you. While fluent in Mandarin and Cantonese, most of waiters don’t know much English, but many people who can speak only English told me they have no problem getting what they want.

“Hey, that’s enough for a meal!”

“But there is still not a lot on our table.”

“Don’t be such a pig. It’s impossible to get a pack of everything at one time. There are only two of us. Let’s get started and finish these first.”

When people eat Dim Sum, their eyes will always be bigger than their stomachs. Always keep in mind that you are not going to try everything at one time.

“What’s that translucent thing? Is that good?”

“Try it”

“Oh, man. Unbelievable! Is that shrimp in it? What’s it called?”

“Yup, unbeatable shrimp dumpling.”

Shrimp dumplings are my favorite Dim Sum. They are the first thing I try when I go “drinking tea” in a new restaurant, and it plays a dominant role in my opinions about a restaurant. This restaurant obviously did a good job. There were four shrimp dumplings in every pack, each with fresh shrimp in translucent skin. When putting it inside my mouth, I felt the skin was dissolving, and the dumpling suddenly collapsed, leaving the shrimp jumping in my mouth. With a tiny bite, the sweetness of the fresh shrimp occupied my mind. I couldn’t help but chew it, swallow it and pick up another one to satisfy my taste buds.

“Are those chicken’s feet? Which part am I supposed to eat? The skin? Or the bone?”

“Just eat it! Then you will figure it out.”

Chicken feet are another classic type of Dim Sum. It’s something you see on almost everybody’s table. The chicken feet here impressed me. The skin of chicken feet shed from the bone as soon as my tongue touched it. Soft skin as well as crispy muscle fiber with a combination of sweet and salty taste made me almost forgets to spit out the bones.

“They are terrific! I am going to get more.”

“Hold on. Worry about what you have ordered first. I bet it’s too much.”

“No. For these, I am a bottomless pit”

“You are a pig.”

There are many other good dishes. One of them is sticky rice, an appealing type of steamed rice with chicken covered in lotus leaves. The aroma dominated the whole room as someone opened a pack far away from me. I ordered it as soon as I smelled it. Pork dumplings are also delicious but also adorable as they look like a meatball. However, they consist of much more than just meat. The meat is enhanced by mushrooms, and water chestnuts offer a slight sweet taste that makes it less oily.

“Hey, check this out! Ice-cream in a bun”

“What? Really!”

Although they make rich cream buns, accidents do happen. I once found that the cream was still cold in a cream bun, so I called the waiter immediately. Then, the waiter called the manager. Five minutes after an apology, another pack of cream buns that were perfectly heated arrived at our table. Moreover, I got 20% off for that meal.

“What’s that? It looks disgusting.”

“I have no clue. I have never seen this in China. I guess it’s fried squid.”

“You guys have squid for breakfast?!”

“Aren’t you listening? It’s also the first time I’ve seen fried squid for breakfast too!”

They even served types of Dim Sum that I didn’t recognize. I was asked if I wanted some fried squid. I was confused because I had never heard about fried squid for breakfast in China. However, after talking with the waiter, I decided to try it. This decision turned out to be a smart one. Tender meat topped with some special sauce made me not want to stop chewing. There are dishes that you have no appetite for when you first see them, but you want more soon after the first bite. Fried squid apparently is one of them.

“What a delicious meal! It makes up for all the trouble it took to get here.”

“Are you full?”

“My stomach is full but my mouth isn’t”

“You pig! Don’t try everything. Leave something for the next time. Let’s get the check and go”

“Hold on. It must be expensive, isn’t it? I only have 20 bucks with me. Probably I’ll have to wash dishes for them.”

“To be frank, I wish you did, but fortunately for you don’t have to. That’s enough.”

The Oriental Pearl Seafood Restaurant is nowhere close to expensive. Different kinds of Dim Sum have different prices: a small dish costs $2.45, a medium $3.45, a large $5.75, and an extra large $7.95. Actually, you don’t need to pay too much attention to cost. Just have whatever you like. Always go with some friends so that you can try more kinds of Dim Sum since it is sold by the pack. After splitting the cost, you and your friends will pay about $10 to $15 each.

“So how do you feel?”

“It’s the best Chinese meal I have ever had. The food just gave me a lesson on Chinese food. It’s easy to order food since you can see it right away, so you won’t get something you don’t want. In addition, it’s first come, first served, so you don’t need a reservation…”

“So it’s good?”

“It’s excellent! When can we come again?”

Oriental Pearl Seafood Restaurant

★★★★☆