Dim sum done right

Literally hidden off of Airline Highway on Delcourt Avenue, Baton Rouge’s Dim Sum Restaurant might not catch your eye straight away—but if you pass it by, you’re missing out on a unique culinary experience. Though their menu includes the typical somewhat Americanized offerings that you can find on almost any Chinese take-away place, it’s their second menu that sets them apart. Dim sum, a Cantonese tradition that sprang from “yum cha” or afternoon tea-tasting, involves a meal made of several small dishes, essentially finger food, most of it in manageably bite-sized portions. At the Dim Sum Restaurant, this tradition is alive and well, and the food is truly authentic. Some dishes, like the stewed chicken feet and the jellyfish salad (with, yes, real jellyfish) might worry even an adventurous eater, but there’s plenty to appeal to the tamer Western palate. Shrimp siu mai, for instance, is a delicious dumpling stuffed with ground shrimp and veggies, steamed to firm and tasty perfection. The ha gow is another kind of dumpling, thinner-skinned and also shrimp-stuffed. And even the pickiest eater can appreciate the cha siu bao, a steamed bun filled with sweet Cantonese-style barbequed pork. The restaurant is jumping on the weekends, especially Sunday morning, when Asian families from all over the Capital Area pack the place for a weekly dim sum indulgence. But weeknights are quieter, and a table can usually be gotten right away for a leisurely and very traditional Chinese meal meal. You can get a preview of some of the restaurant’s dishes at their Facebook page, and decide if dim sum is right for you. (Photo by Dave Gallent)