Dim Sum-- Yum Yum!
Under new management, The Tea House China Bistro is neither a tea house nor a bistro, but it is a place to go for outrageously good and steaming-hot freshly-made dim sum. Unlike Yank Sing in San Francisco's Rincon Center, which has gotten WAY too big for its britches, TTHCB makes dim sum in small batches, carried by hand in small bamboo steamers right from the kitchen to the guests' tables. In fact, the food arrives so hot that diners must wait several minutes before being able to indulge without a first degree burn on the roof of their mouths! Diners are given a proper pace to eat, not too fast so as to find themselves stuffed before they've even taken off their coats, nor so slow that they'll strain their necks looking for the next tray to come through. Forgive this reviewer, for if you are new to dim sum, the protocol is important to know before you are seated. Though you will have a waitperson tending to your table for drink orders, in fact you will be served by a variety of servers, in this case carrying trays (some dim sum restaurants push carts) with a variety of steamed or fried dishes-- some might say Chinese Tapas? But I digress... You should be prepared to wait: this place is popular on weekend mornings, where to deal with the multicultural nature of the clientele, the TTHCB has come up with the novel system of giving guests numerically ordered admission tickets in lieu of taking names. The seafood is very fresh, evidenced by the multiple tanks of live seafood lining the back wall of the restaurant . Seafood is the focus here, though authentic dim sum specialties are served, including steamed tripe, chicken feet, and all sorts of gelatinous, sesame laden deserts. For the less adventurous diner, don't miss the bao (steamed bar-b-que pork buns), shui mai (made with shrimp and pork), divine shrimp and green onion dumplings, pea sprout dumplings, and quite possibly the best sticky rice in Oakland, with Chinese chicken sausage wrapped in real lotus leaves. If only for the experience of impressing friends and family with your erudite foodie-ness, The Tea House China Bistro should be on your list. The Jack London Square neighborhood begins to feel a bit like a vacation if you make your visit on a Sunday and stroll westward after brunch to the Farmer's Market. Enjoy!
Recommended: Dumplings, dumplings, dumplings!
Food: 8
Service: 8
Ambiance: 6
Overall: 8