NYCGuide
The Best Dim Sum Restaurants In NYC
photo credit: Kate Previte
Dim sum is just as much of a NYC tradition as bagels and BECs. There are a lot of worthwhile options across the city, many of which are massive Cantonese banquet halls where you can supplement your taro dumplings and turnip cakes with family-style dishes. Whether you want to eat top-tier chicken feet in Flushing, have some sticky roast pork and beef tendon in Sunset Park, or enjoy a round of flawless xiao long bao at a Shanghainese spot in Bensonhurst, here’s where to go.
THE SPOTS
photo credit: Molly Fitzpatrick
You'll want to invite everyone you know to Asian Jewels—this cavernous shumai cathedral with red-and-gold, chandelier-filled dining rooms could probably accommodate you all. Asian Jewels is our favorite place to eat dim sum in Flushing. We love the tender beef spare ribs, the crispy fried shrimp dumplings, and the supremely garlicky salt and pepper squid, though half the fun is picking out something unexpected from whichever cart might pass next as you eat yourself into a happy, chrysanthemum tea-soaked stupor. Take a number and expect a wait on weekends, when both the lobby and the valet parking lot are filled.
Even if you don’t factor in the majestic retro facade with neon that can be spotted from outer space, Flushing’s New Lake Pavilion is still one of the most regal dim sum experiences in town. On weekend mornings, every single seat in the vast, carpeted dining room is filled, and carts zoom around glossy white columns, delivering fresh pork buns and sticky rice to families sitting at big round tables. The crisp, chewy deep-fried shrimp rice rolls are essential, and so are the pork-filled taro puffs and tender chicken feet that arrive saturated with caramelized soy flavor.
This list is full of dim sum spots where flagging down carts is half the fun, but Dim Sum Palace is a blast even without putting their pork buns on wheels. The plump har gow, crispy short rib niblets, and shredded duck spring rolls just taste better fresh from the kitchen, and there’s plenty to amuse you while you wait for your dumplings to cool down. The Chinatown location of this local chain is the only one that’s open until 3am. At any given hour, you’ll walk into a packed room, where most people seem to be celebrating something and taking full advantage of the restaurant’s liquor license. Follow their lead, and top your dinner off with a plate of orange slices for good luck.
At Mr. Bun in Bensonhurst’s Chinatown, you can get dim sum and Shanghainese cold dishes at any time of day. This is especially appreciated on weekends, when we don’t get up early enough to avoid the hours-long wait at the popular banquet halls filled with roving carts around the city. Come here for sticky rice shu mai, perfect xiao long bao, and pan-fried juicy buns that are ASMR-level crispy on the bottom. With anime-style wall decals and a high-energy playlist, Mr. Bun is a great casual spot to grab dim sum if there are kids or teens in your group.
It's time to play hooky and go to weekday dim sum brunch instead. Choose Royal Seafood, a palatial and carpeted spot in Chinatown that serves dim sum on carts seven days a week. Look out for plump har gow, perfect mounds of sticky fried rice, and slippery rice rolls with beef and shrimp. Even on a Tuesday at 9:30am you'll see someone pairing their chicken wings with a bottle of Hennessy, so come here when you'd like to briefly forget about all of your responsibilities, and just focus on eating a lot of shrimp.
photo credit: Kate Previte
At Ping’s, you should make a point of getting at least a couple of rounds of their bouncy har gow. They’re salty and sweet and taste like the ocean. The beef and chive rice rolls are also wonderful. Not every dim sum offering can be found on the cart, so if you see something you like on the menu, you should ask your server about it. Ping’s always has a crowd, but it never feels full—which is part of why we love it so much.
Did you recently get married or earn a degree in something? If so, have a celebratory brunch at Golden Unicorn. For special-occasion dim sum, this classic bi-level Chinatown spot is our top pick. The fancy curtains and colorful mood lighting make Golden Unicorn feel fun and festive, and the pig-shaped custard buns are both adorable and delicious. Get an order of those, and don’t skip the leek dumplings, crispy turnip cakes, or spare ribs in black bean sauce. Golden Unicorn also serves dim sum at dinner, so stop by then if you want to avoid the crowds.
photo credit: Noah Devereaux
Sunset Park has nearly as many dim sum spots as Manhattan’s Chinatown, and most of them could have made this list. But if you want our all-around top choice, head to East Harbor Seafood Palace. On weekend afternoons, the bustling space feels like a neighborhood clubhouse, with TVs, chandeliers, and servers efficiently zipping around with carts of rice rolls and pork buns. They serve a good variety of dishes, and the standouts include beef tendon and crispy taro pork dumplings. Despite the fact that you’ll inevitably have to wait 30 minutes to get seated, East Harbor Seafood Palace should be one of your go-to spots for a casual group outing.
Don’t weep for the old Jing Fong. Sure, you might miss the long escalators at the old space on Elizabeth Street, but the relocated version north of Canal is maybe even better. Get some steamed egg custard buns and chicken feet, and don’t miss out on the fried turnip cakes. Jing Fong’s dim sum always tastes like it just arrived from the kitchen, and they also serve worthwhile non-dim sum dishes, including some of the crispiest roast duck in Chinatown. Unfortunately, everyone seems to know about Jing Fong. Either stop by on a weekday (when they don’t do cart service), or prepare for a serious wait.
photo credit: Kate Previte
The shu mai and har gow at this Sunset Park institution are great. In fact, all of the dim sum here tastes like it received a little extra attention in the kitchen, the seafood items in particular. But that’s not why Bamboo Garden is one of our favorite places for a daytime meal. We keep coming back for the roasted meats, which you’ll see on display near the windows up front. Be sure to get a plate of the juicy, caramelized roast pork for everyone to share. With its shimmering ceilings that feature enough glass fish to populate an ocean, this place feels just a little bit fancy, so it’s a good choice for when you need to impress some folks (your in-laws, say).
Tim Ho Wan is a modern, upscale dim sum chain from Hong Kong with two NYC locations—one in Hell’s Kitchen, and one in the East Village. We think the East Village spot has slightly better food, but there’s almost never a wait at the Hell’s Kitchen location, so pick based on what's more important to you. The selection at both is slightly more limited than what you'll find at other spots on this guide, but there's still plenty to choose from. Try the tiny baked pork buns with a crackly, sweet topping, and get the deep-fried eggplant stuffed with shrimp and lava custard sesame balls. Circle your order on a slip of paper, order a pot of tea, and settle in for a few rounds of food.
