Gastro888

I did not say I interviewed every one of the Asian population but I know a fair number. No, you're not trying to be a pest - you're just making a point to show that you're some sort of expert on dim sum and you know more about dim sum than I do. Like many other foodie boards, this is a board where people post their opinions on food. Opinions are not fact and I've never stated my opinion as fact. This isn't a pissing contest, I'm not trying to make it one. @Deangold: That's not fair to compare SF dim sum to MD dim sum. That's like comparing Kobe Bryant to a really good college basketball player in his second year! Side note: I wish someone would invest the money needed into a real dim sum restaurant in the DC/MD/VA area. I wish there was a place that had fresh, piping hot, expertly made dim sum every day with great service. I wish I would get mustard, chile oil and XO sauce on the side without having to ask for them. I wish I could get Iron Goddess of Mercy tea instead of the swill that's normally served.

Sounds almost too good to be true! Did they have anything else besides shrimp in the ha gow? Some places put a bit of bamboo shoots or water chestnuts. Sorry to hear about the turnip cakes. A mushy turnip cake is a bad thing. What items did you miss that weren't available on their dim sum carts?

I was referring to the Asian community at large.

Thanks for the heads up! How was the ha gow?

True, tastes vary. I don't know what you consider good; the restaurants you mention as good really aren't given much thought as stellar dim sum places. His reputation is that is the best (in MoCo) and the queue during the weekend speaks for itself. Yes, you can blame the size of the restaurant and management issues but there isn't a 30 person deep queue in front of either of the restaurants you mention.

We went to Good Fortune a few months ago and it's average for MoCo. If I wanted dim sum where I didn't have to wait in line, I will reluctantly go there. The ease of parking and finding seats wins over fighting for better food depending on the company. Oriental East puts out better quality food than Good Fortune but the lack of space and FOH/BOH management causes issues in terms of seating and serving. My main gripes with Oriental East are that you do have to queue up 30 minutes prior to opening and the food service is erratic. You'll have a wave of carts and then nothing circles the room for a good twenty minutes. Not a good thing. In regards to who is in the kitchen, Oriental East's dim sum chef is the same one that's been working there for years since they opened in the original location across the plaza. Is he the best? Yes, for MoCo. His baked buns are pretty good. I need to hit up the other places to find out how they are in terms of quality. The lack of decent Chinese food in the area makes me focus on Vietnamese instead. It's easier to find a decent bowl of pho than it is a well made ha gow (shrimp dumpling). Oh well.

One note: be careful when you're buying faat choy as there is "fake" faat choy on the market. My mom warned me about how they just take random vegetables and process it to look like faat choy and it ends up all mushy instead of having the bouncy/slightly crispy/firm texture. It's not like the milk scare but it's more of a "buyer beware".

Don't laugh! I know someone who made $80K one summer with a Mr. Softee truck. Granted, that's soft serve ice cream, but that's a nice chunk of change!

Go to Maxim Supermarket in Rockville, MD. When you enter, turn to your left and you'll see a prepared foods section where the Cantonese roasted meats are along with several steam tables worth of food. There is also a cold foods section but your best bet is to walk past the steam table directly to the cooler lining the wall. There you'll find prepared offal: fu qi fei pian, or “husband and wife” slices of offal: tripe, tendon and tongue, pig's ears and beef tendon in chile oil. FYI: They also make a dish of jellyfish in ginger scallion oil and one of fried whiting with jalapeno and peanuts. Let the jellyfish come to room temp while you reheat the whiting dish. What I usually do - and yes, it's tedious as hell - is pick out the jalapenos and put them aside. Place the whiting and the peanuts on a foil lined tray and pop them in a toaster oven that's been preheated to 350. Keep an eye on it while it heats up. When it's done to your liking, about 5-7 minutes, remove and mix with the jalapenos. Serve with beer. Note: All these dish are found in the pre-pack section of the cooler lining the wall next to the steam tables.

We usually go to these two restaurants. Oriental East is always our first choice but it's a hassle. If you're not their early, you have to wait forever for a table. Also, the queue that forms before opening gets ridiculously long so plan accordingly. When we don't want to deal with the hassle, we go to Good Fortune. It's relatively good for what it is which is dim sum in Montgomery County except the decor and the bathrooms are in need of a major update. I've been spoiled by the offerings of better skilled dim sum chefs in Flushing, NY so it's hard for me to say any dim sum is good in the DCMDVA area. Oriental East Restaurant www.orientaleast.com 1312 East West Highway Silver Spring, MD (301) 547-8200 Good Fortune Chinese Restaurant 2646 University Boulevard West Wheaton, MD (301) 929-8818

Go there if you want a very casual, very informal dinner. It's like a super casual Jewish steakhouse. Go for the old school LES experience (pre-hipster). For more info, click here: http://www.umamimart.com/2010/03/umamiventure-23-sammys-roumanian-steakhouse-nyc/

1) Working in the kitchen requires lots of physical stamina and strength. 2) Attending a culinary school will give you the foundation you need for your career. Also, it will allow you to make contacts in the culinary field and help you figure out what you want to do. 3) Culinary school costs a pretty penny so I'd take the advice of doing a stage (if you can) before enrolling. 4) Yes, those chefs did not attend culinary school but their situations are unique. I have friends who attended pastry school at ICE in NYC. It is a great program and they enjoyed it. One did her stage at Jean-Georges. However, it was quite expensive and tiring to do the program.

They stink less when frozen. It's still there but not it's not full on. You don't know how much less until you've something to compare it to. I've been to Malaysia during durian season and it was scary.

Hi Don, thanks for the shout-out. Been around, eating here and there. Nice update to the site!

Primehouse http://www.brguestrestaurants.com/restaurants/primehouse_new_york/index.php Striphouse http://www.yelp.com/biz/strip-house-steak-house-new-york Both places have great food and good atmosphere sans the old school "steakhouse" feel. Yes, Primehouse is part of the B R Guest restaurant chain but they produce great food, have good service and I like the fact that I am not surrounded by dark wood, black leather and no light. Primehouse is more modern while Striphouse is, well, like a bordello in a slightly kitchy way. That may work for what you're doing. PL is great for what it is: no frills, old time, old school, not great on customer service, pre-hipster Brooklyn steakhouse with great food and no ambiance. It all depends on what you want. If you want to cross the bridge and have to pay cash only for your steak dinner, go for it. You could try BLT Steak but I was disappointed by the quality of their meat. Great sides and popovers but the meat was below average.