Hollywood East Cafe, Wheaton - Owner Janet Yu Now in Wheaton Shopping Center - STILL OPEN

[schulju]

Is it too early to stand in line??

[DanielK]

Where do you think I'm sending my updates from?

[Scott Johnston]

And I took one for the team and said we could "help" make sure the waitstaff and barkeeps are ready if they have a soft opening or pre opening event. Tim posted some great ino on his blod about the Chef getting some additional training.

[fuzzy510]

A nudge to the top to point out that, per Twitter, they've passed their electrical inspection at the new location. Inching closer......

[schulju]

And I took one for the team and said we could "help" make sure the waitstaff and barkeeps are ready if they have a soft opening or pre opening event. Tim posted some great ino on his blod about the Chef getting some additional training.

Count me in!

[pjnewman]

Any news on Hollywood East opening? did a search on their website but found nothing.

Not open yet. They regularly update their twitter account with their progress. http://twitter.com/HWoodEastCafe

[deangold]

Link from twitter....

This was what was oing on today at HE!!

Some Dim Sum soon?

[Sthitch]

Link from twitter....

This was what was oing on today at HE!!

Some Dim Sum soon?

I kind of expect to see Jack Burton come crashing through that wall at any moment.

[BookGuy]

Hollywood East in Wheaton looks very close to actually opening in the Wheaton Plaze Mall. They might actually be able to do a dim sum thing for a large group of people. I do know that when they were at their previous location, you could order dim sum at any time.

[DanielK]

Hollywood East in Wheaton looks very close to actually opening in the Wheaton Plaze Mall. They might actually be able to do a dim sum thing for a large group of people. I do know that when they were at their previous location, you could order dim sum at any time.

They've been "almost done" for 2 months now. I wouldn't count on anything immediately.

[TheMatt]

Sayeth the Twitter feed, @HWoodEastCafe:

Chefs are in and prepping! Will be OPEN by tomorrow (saturday) evening!!

[MC Horoscope]

It's at Exit 12 of the mall. You can park in the garage that is at the intersection of Reedie and Veirs Mill. Coming from Reedie you can go straight into that garage. You go into the mall through 12, then the restaurant is immediately to the left.

[DanielK]

There's a small asterisk to tomorrow's reopening of Hollywood East.

That's a HUGE asterisk. I thought their dim sum was spectacular, but there are better choices for dinner in MoCo.

[Lydia R]

That's a HUGE asterisk. I thought their dim sum was spectacular, but there are better choices for dinner in MoCo.

Right dat. I drove by yesterday to just see how close they are to opening [this time].

There was a sign taped to a front window noting their opening this evening and inviting folks in to pickup a menu. The door was open, Alan and crew were setting up the front cashier area and I got a menu. Really red walls and the tables in the front room are in place. At 5p today, I'll be at the other not-so-soft opening.

HollywoodEastCafe_April2010.pdf

[Heather]

Scrapped my cooking plans and got takeout from Hollywood East tonight: double cooked pork, panfried noodles with seafood, spicy crispy tofu, & chicken with broccoli. I'm so glad they're open again. Everything was very good. The 20 minute drive for carryout is worth it.

[DanielK]

Apparently they did have a limited dim sum menu today, according to their Twitter feed, but that's some serious price inflation on the cost. $3.25 for the "Small" dishes? I think New Fortune is a buck less!

[deangold]

Had an extrememy good first dinner there. Ate too much: Cold pigs knuckle & beef shin, duck in lettuce cup, salt fried squid, cold pressed tofu. All better than in the old days on University.

Hope Tom Sietsema sittting at the table next to me enjoyed his meal too!

[Lydia R]

Apparently they did have a limited dim sum menu today, according to their Twitter feed, but that's some serious price inflation on the cost. $3.25 for the "Small" dishes? I think New Fortune is a buck less!

At a late solo lunch today I asked for the Dim Sum menu [attached] and they were not currently serving #13, #18, #43, #46, #48, #50 and #51. There were no dessert carrots on the menu. In addition to a lunch combo plate, I got an order of #11 Steamed Pork Bun. I was expecting the large, fuffy, white, almost hamburger-sized Char Siu Bao, but instead it was served as three dumplings filled with the BBQ pork. It was good because there seemed to be a higher ratio of pork overall than if it had been one large bun. I am looking forward to finding time during baseball season to get back during Dim Sum "prime time" hours.

I agree about the pricing - I don't think I've seen such a tight shell pattern of dim sim prices [there is usually more of a price differentiation between the small, medium and large plates - here, the small should be under $3].

It was a good opportunity for a first visit to their new location. I probably won't sit next to the huge windows again. They were open to an internal hallway of the mall. It really felt like a food court environment. Also distracting: HEC had an unsustainable over abundance of FOH staff [they looked sad and bored].

HollywoodEast_DimSum_April2010.pdf

[schulju]

Thanks for posting the menu, Sunday can't get here fast enough!

[TheMatt]

Hmm. I'm probably not going to be able to make the Sunday outing (still up in the air, but unlikely, sadly). I wonder how sad/odd/weird I'd look if I went tomorrow morning for some dim sum...alone? Do they even allow solo dim sum on the weekend?

[Lydia R]

I wonder how sad/odd/weird I'd look if I went tomorrow morning for some dim sum...alone? Do they even allow solo dim sum on the weekend?

Looks like Janet's issued an invitation:

-----Original Message-----

From: Janet Yu

To: Janet Yu

Sent: Fri, Apr 9, 2010 8:39 pm

Subject: Hollywood East Cafe: It's all that and Dim Sum!

It's all that and Dim Sum!

Join us this weekend as we reintroduce our FULL Dim Sum menu starting at 10 AM Saturday, April 10, 2010.

We've got all of our crowd favorites ready for your dining pleasure...

Dumplings, we got it!

Buns (Steamed & Baked), we got it!

Noodle Crepes, we got it!

... and so much more!

See you soon.

xie xie,

Janet, Alan and the Yu Family

[TheMatt]

I was able to get to Hollywood East this morning and my appetite was satiated. Especially because of:

Woohoo!

[deangold]

Yesterday we actually ate at HE twice Sunday. Had dim sum and then picked up some soup on the way home from the restaurant.

Dim Sum: all very good to excellent. While the selection seemed pretty standard {just stuff off the paper menu and no specials or the famous desserts} at 11:00am, everything was very well flavored. There was a soup dumpling which was a bowl of soup with a more bread dough like dumpling that was really outstanding. I thought the dough maybe a tad thick but Kay loved it. The soup broth was very well flavored, there was cabbage leaf and a well spiced, moist without being overly fatty meat filling in the dumpling. The bean curd skin roll and the water chestnut cake were also exceptionally flavorful.

We needed some soup on the way home, and we were pass so we ordered pork & water cress soup with a little BBQ pork. The pork was good but the soup was again very good. The broth had more flavor than is usual at HE.

But the best part of the meals was that we had the feeling that HE is back on stride.

[Scott Johnston]

say hi next time

We were there at 12 and echo deans comments especially on the soup dumpling!

Yesterday we actually ate at HE twice Sunday. Had dim sum and then picked up some soup on the way home from the restaurant.

Dim Sum: all very good to excellent. While the selection seemed pretty standard {just stuff off the paper menu and no specials or the famous desserts} at 11:00am, everything was very well flavored. There was a soup dumpling which was a bowl of soup with a more bread dough like dumpling that was really outstanding. I thought the dough maybe a tad thick but Kay loved it. The soup broth was very well flavored, there was cabbage leaf and a well spiced, moist without being overly fatty meat filling in the dumpling. The bean curd skin roll and the water chestnut cake were also exceptionally flavorful.

We needed some soup on the way home, and we were pass so we ordered pork & water cress soup with a little BBQ pork. The pork was good but the soup was again very good. The broth had more flavor than is usual at HE.

But the best part of the meals was that we had the feeling that HE is back on stride.

[goodeats]

It was still pretty quiet this past Saturday morning at 11:30am, but the staff still seemed overwhelmed, for some reason. Had as wonderful time as I could with a lovely friend that also trekked from Virginia, as between us, there was 3 kids vying for attention, who did pretty well sampling the various wares.

Am sad that the steamed pork buns were smaller compared to other dim sum places in the area. Some stuff also just didn't seem extremely hot, but seeing the warmer on the way out may explain that. I did like how the har gow (shrimp dumplings) did not skimp on shrimp, but overall, I just felt underwhelmed. All the glutinous stuff (fried pork dumplings; steamed chicken glutinuous rice in banana/lotus leaf; carrot dessert) felt chewy, but not flavorful. Agree with above posts that the bean curd wrap stuffed with pork, shrimp and bamboo shoots was the highlight of this meal. Even at the new place, the food felt a bit mechanical and not alive.

The weirdness award went to the bacon wrapped shrimp or pork roll. Huh?

Plus, all the kids rejected the mango pudding. That made me sad, but then I understood why when I tasted it. Strange texture (not sure what they used to gel it) + odd fake mango flavor = not liked.

I'll be the lone stand out here and trek my way back to Silver Fountain next time if I venture up this way for dim sum.

[beefnchedda]

Goodeats,

My girlfriend and I were also at Hollywood East this past Saturday. Maybe they were having an off-day, but we too were underwhelmed by the offerings and felt that the dim sum we normally get at Oriental East was much better. Let see if I can remember what we tried: har gau, sui mai, some sort of duck dumpling, shrimp balls, taro cake (mistakenly ordered, since I thought the waitress said turnip cake), fried taro dumplings, pork spare ribs (with the green pepper and black been broth), chinese brocolli, and sesame balls. Needless to say, were were inredibly hungry when we arrived. Everything tasted rather "bland", with the har gau, in my opinion being the standout of the bunch. None of the food was bad, per se, but I dont think we will be making the drive out again, when other options are much closer. The waitstaff was incredibly attentive, with employees stopping by frequently making sure everything was going well with the meal.

[goodeats]

The waitstaff was incredibly attentive, with employees stopping by frequently making sure everything was going well with the meal.

Say hi next time! Thanks for reminding me about this part -- one of the main floor people did stop by frequently to make sure things were going well at our table too. I also felt bad for the poor server who tripped somehow and spilled 2 plates of roast pork onto the ground -- hope you didn't get in the pork spray. One of the main guys was great to the really embarrassed and apologetic server, saying that "it's only food," which I thought was a fantastic attitude by them.

[LustyPalate]

Yesterday we actually ate at HE twice Sunday. Had dim sum and then picked up some soup on the way home from the restaurant.

Dim Sum: all very good to excellent. While the selection seemed pretty standard {just stuff off the paper menu and no specials or the famous desserts} at 11:00am, everything was very well flavored. There was a soup dumpling which was a bowl of soup with a more bread dough like dumpling that was really outstanding. I thought the dough maybe a tad thick but Kay loved it. The soup broth was very well flavored, there was cabbage leaf and a well spiced, moist without being overly fatty meat filling in the dumpling. The bean curd skin roll and the water chestnut cake were also exceptionally flavorful.

We needed some soup on the way home, and we were pass so we ordered pork & water cress soup with a little BBQ pork. The pork was good but the soup was again very good. The broth had more flavor than is usual at HE.

But the best part of the meals was that we had the feeling that HE is back on stride.

I've been a fan of the original HE, when it was in that tiny strip mall behind the GIANT. About 9 years ago, my former Asian roommate is the one who introduced me to it. We would drive from DC to Wheaton any time we craved Chinese food. We'd always feast on: shrimp with the head on, Chinese broccoli, noodles & pork dumplings, and some other entree & bubble tea. One of my favorites was the lightly fried Ling Fish with ginger, cilantro & a yummy brown sauce. We actually started getting our manicures & pedicures a few doors down & expanded it into GIRL SUNDAYS...mani/pedi then late lunch at HE.

- Went only once to their Dim Sum when they were on University Blvd...no big deal. China Garden in Rossylyn was better for Dim Sum.

- Just went to the newly opened HE with my boyfriend & his 11 yr old picky eater. Gotta say the food was spot on. We ordered the Orange Chicken, General Tso's & the Fried Ling Fish, which was HUGE. All 3 dishes were delicious...even to the picky 11 yr old.

Glad to see they are back....& better food than they had when they were on University Blvd.

[deangold]

ANother good din sum outing although one of the two steamed foods carts has lukewarm fare while the other had piping hot stuff. All was qute good. Janet told us to order live prawns and we got abo9ut 8 nice prawns for $13.00. Quite good.

Don't tell Porcupine till AFTER you go, but they had Pine Nut Tart Carrots & Green Tea Balls!

[Ootek1]

A group of 10 of us is planning on heading to Hollywood East for dim sum this Sunday. Assuming we want to be there for the first seating (they open at 10:00), how early do we actually need to be there? Will there be a long line already gathered to get in, or would we be fairly safe to arrive actually fairly close to 10? I'd rather not get there at 10 and find that I have to wait a full cycle before tables open up again...

Thanks in advance for any info!

[TheMatt]

A group of 10 of us is planning on heading to Hollywood East for dim sum this Sunday. Assuming we want to be there for the first seating (they open at 10:00), how early do we actually need to be there? Will there be a long line already gathered to get in, or would we be fairly safe to arrive actually fairly close to 10? I'd rather not get there at 10 and find that I have to wait a full cycle before tables open up again...

Thanks in advance for any info!

The one time I showed up on a weekend around when they opened it was me and another couple. That's it. And that when they just reopened. But, that was a Saturday, not a Sunday. Still, I don't think you'd have much trouble at all if you get there at 9:55 or 10:05 or something. (It has been a month or two since I last went, so maybe it's different now? Hope others can chime in.)

[DanielK]

A group of 10 of us is planning on heading to Hollywood East for dim sum this Sunday. Assuming we want to be there for the first seating (they open at 10:00), how early do we actually need to be there? Will there be a long line already gathered to get in, or would we be fairly safe to arrive actually fairly close to 10? I'd rather not get there at 10 and find that I have to wait a full cycle before tables open up again...

Thanks in advance for any info!

They take reservations.

[Ootek1]

They take reservations.

Even better info!

Thanks guys. : )

[TheMatt]

Oh yeah, reservations. Heh. Guess as I'm usually there as a single, it doesn't occur to me. And, of course, now I might have to go to HEC this weekend. Got the dim sum cravings building...

[Soup]

This has been my experience on every visit to OE, which is why I get my dim sum fix at New Fortune or Hollywood East instead.

Haven't been to the new HE. Do they have carts? How is the variety?

HB

[DanielK]

Haven't been to the new HE. Do they have carts? How is the variety?

HB

The new HE is much the same as the old HE, but without the suffocating crowds. IMHO, they operate at about 90% the quality of the old place - they're just a touch off on some dishes, but that still puts them with New Fortune as the 2 best dim sum parlors in the area.

[cajcaj]

The new HE is much the same as the old HE, but without the suffocating crowds. IMHO, they operate at about 90% the quality of the old place - they're just a touch off on some dishes, but that still puts them with New Fortune as the 2 best dim sum parlors in the area.

So if we wanted to show up for dim sum on a Saturday, what time would you recommend to avoid a long wait?

[DanielK]

Well, you can make reservations, but I was there recently at 1pm on a Saturday and there was NO wait.

I don't know if there is one at 11:30 or 12, which previously was the hardest time to show up and get a table.

[cajcaj]

Well, you can make reservations, but I was there recently at 1pm on a Saturday and there was NO wait.

I don't know if there is one at 11:30 or 12, which previously was the hardest time to show up and get a table.

Oh, I didn't know reservations were excepted - thanks, good to know! It will be our first time here and really looking forward to it..!

[wisehands]

Went for dim sum with some trepidation because the last time I ate there (in Aug.) it seemed to have slipped a bit since the move. Happily to say it was as good as or better than at the old location. Although it was around 1:30 pm on Sat. (BTW, no wait to be seated), they were still bringing out plenty of good choices from the kitchen. Hen hao!

[Poodles]

Hollywood East for Dim Sum

11160 Viers Mill Rd

240-290-9988

We ate there Sun. Nov.14, had to wait about 15 mins for a table. Food comes out a little slowly which is probably why patrons tend to linger longer at tables. Dumpling cart comes around quite often, but if you are waiting for specialties such as clams in black bean sauce, chinese greens, etc., you may have to wait 15-25 mins for those dishes to appear.

You can also order off their regular menu during dim sum hours. Service is hurried, but can be easily overlooked due to the quality and selection of the food.

[DanielK]

I want to love this place. I want to go and remember when it was the best dim sum in the area, when the owner walked around saying hi to all the regulars, when waiting for a table was part of the experience.

It's still very good, but 3 visits in the last 2 months expose rotating weaknesses that were never there when they were on University. Today it was deep fried items that were leaden with oil (including the beloved carrot dessert) and served at room temperature. Last time it was har gow and siu mei that had been LONG overcooked.

Don't get me wrong, it's still very good, and even with the occasional misfire the rest of the meal is great. But they used to have the most steady hand with the fryer and the most delicate items on the steam table, and now there's just enough inconsistency to give them rivals. I'll continue to come back, but New Fortune in Gaithersburg is ahead in my eyes (and stomach) these days.

Note: no lines, and half-full dining room at noon today. A shame.

[Xochitl10]

Had dinner here last night with Azami and his cousin. Azami's salted fish and shrimp fried rice was the highlight -- everything was thinly coated with crisp cooked egg, and the salted fish flavored each bite without being overpowering. I didn't get one of his pork dumplings, but they looked delicious. Vegetable spring rolls were good, if nothing special, and his cousin had a tasty vegetable lo mein. I ordered the deep-fried tofu filled with minced shrimp, which we found bland and one-dimensional without seasoning (the textures of the minced shrimp and tofu were almost the same, and the shrimp didn't taste very shrimpy). It improved considerably with the addition of soy sauce, and was really good when I added some red chile oil.

[Heather]

I've been here for dim sum three times in the last couple of months, and would swear that it's slipping. Fewer & less interesting items, and not executed well, particularly the fried stuff. We've also been to New Fortune twice recently, and both times I felt the quality & selection were better. Anyone else been recently? What do you think?

[deangold]

We ahve had issues with non hot and have not tried fried stuff but over all our last meal was very good to great! Fortune is the wrong direction so we have not been in ages!

[Lori Gardner]

I would love to hear more on this. We went for dinner months ago and had such a bad meal I couldn't go back. I would like to return for dim sum but have resisted based on the dinner experience.

[DanielK]

I completely agree, Heather. I went twice in the last month because of convenience, and it's no longer destination dim sum to me. But I think it's because of crowds - even at prime time on the weekends, the dining room is no more than half full, so dishes are rarely fresh from the kitchen.

New Fortune has ALWAYS had a significantly higher selection, especially in BBQ, but in the past has usually been near or a shadow behind Hollywood East. No longer - New Fortune is a clear winner. And I never understood the lines at Oriental East in Silver Spring, which is good, but not as good as New Fortune.

[Rhone1998]

Maybe it's because we went on Christmas day and the place was jam-packed, we found the fried food to be really fresh. We were positioned to see stuff come right out of the kitchen, and several times servers came by with trays (not carts) of various fried delicacies and specifically mentioned to be careful since they were right out of the fryer. Strangely, even with a packed house, I do agree with the comments about the variety. You'd think big crowds would have given them just the right opportunity to throw the works at us, but we saw the same cart pass by just a few too many times...not really sure why. But overall we were all happy with the food.

[JonS]

I unfortunately agree with Heather as well. When they first re-opened, Janet explained to us that they were having some issues with either the fryers or the warmers, I don't recall which, which was affecting the fried items. We've been back since, though never followed up with her about this, but it doesn't seem to us that the quality ever recovered to what we'd become used to at the old location. As for the selection, what we've observed at least is that over the course of an entire service, the selection isn't bad (not to say that other places don't have better, but it isn't bad); but it doesn't match what ends up being available over the time that a typical diner might spend there. We don't rush through a meal, but we constantly end up seeing new items when we're about to leave that we would've liked to have seen when we were still eating. For now, we haven't sworn them off yet and keep hoping the quality will return to what it used to be, but we're open to other dim sum options at this point (which would be easier if it weren't for what might happen if the kids didn't get custard carrots at the end of a dim sum outing).

[DonRocks]

I unfortunately agree with Heather as well. When they first re-opened, Janet explained to us that they were having some issues with either the fryers or the warmers, I don't recall which, which was affecting the fried items. We've been back since, though never followed up with her about this, but it doesn't seem to us that the quality ever recovered to what we'd become used to at the old location. As for the selection, what we've observed at least is that over the course of an entire service, the selection isn't bad (not to say that other places don't have better, but it isn't bad); but it doesn't match what ends up being available over the time that a typical diner might spend there. We don't rush through a meal, but we constantly end up seeing new items when we're about to leave that we would've liked to have seen when we were still eating. For now, we haven't sworn them off yet and keep hoping the quality will return to what it used to be, but we're open to other dim sum options at this point (which would be easier if it weren't for what might happen if the kids didn't get custard carrots at the end of a dim sum outing).

Maybe it's because we went on Christmas day and the place was jam-packed, we found the fried food to be really fresh. We were positioned to see stuff come right out of the kitchen, and several times servers came by with trays (not carts) of various fried delicacies and specifically mentioned to be careful since they were right out of the fryer. Strangely, even with a packed house, I do agree with the comments about the variety. You'd think big crowds would have given them just the right opportunity to throw the works at us, but we saw the same cart pass by just a few too many times...not really sure why. But overall we were all happy with the food.

I completely agree, Heather. I went twice in the last month because of convenience, and it's no longer destination dim sum to me. But I think it's because of crowds - even at prime time on the weekends, the dining room is no more than half full, so dishes are rarely fresh from the kitchen.

New Fortune has ALWAYS had a significantly higher selection, especially in BBQ, but in the past has usually been near or a shadow behind Hollywood East. No longer - New Fortune is a clear winner. And I never understood the lines at Oriental East in Silver Spring, which is good, but not as good as New Fortune.

I would love to hear more on this. We went for dinner months ago and had such a bad meal I couldn't go back. I would like to return for dim sum but have resisted based on the dinner experience.

We ahve had issues with non hot and have not tried fried stuff but over all our last meal was very good to great! Fortune is the wrong direction so we have not been in ages!

I've been here for dim sum three times in the last couple of months, and would swear that it's slipping. Fewer & less interesting items, and not executed well, particularly the fried stuff. We've also been to New Fortune twice recently, and both times I felt the quality & selection were better. Anyone else been recently? What do you think?

Although I haven't been to Hollywood East in a good couple of years (with my mom and Matt, actually, and I remember my mom fuming about their profit margins even though she didn't use that precise term (my mom certainly knew that rice, which we got an awful lot of that day, costs only pennies)).

Anyway, although I haven't been in these couple of years, I think this is a pretty compelling case of the cumulative experiences of Heather, Daniel, Dean, Lori, Dan, and Jon, trumping the opinion of any given "expert" in town.

You guys form a rock solid core of experience, and I absolutely believe what you say, enough so where I'm going to be changing the Dining Guide based solely on your opinions - how could I not? I'd be a fool not to listen to what you're saying here. Yes, I can, and eventually will, try it myself, but I'm certain that my experience will only solidify what you folks already made perfectly clear.

Posts like this change the Washington dining scene whether you know it or not.

Thank you for all you do here, and I love this democratization of dining via a panel of unofficial experts (although you're certainly official in my eyes (I suppose you could say it takes an "expert" to spot it, and sure, I'm an expert at reading and evaluating posts written by our world-class members here - you six are a highly respected group, for sure)).

Cheers,

Rocks