Dim Sum Lunches - Keeping Families Together!

Steamed garlic spareribs

Food always brings people together across the cultures. Among Chinese people, regardless of where and how old they are, going for dim sum is the most popular activity for many of them.

 My parents used to go for dim sum often,  at least a few times a week

Back -steamed meat buns; front -beef meat balls

 
Though my dad passed away a few years ago, the dim sum tradition continues with my mom who is taken out for her most favorite activity every week, sometimes two to three times a week by one of her children.
 

Sui Miu- pork and shrimp dumplings

Dave, our youngest brother and his wife pick up Mom from her senior apartment every Saturday morning and spend almost the entire morning with her at the restaurant, talking and enjoying the dim sum dishes.

What old people would not like that?

Shrimp dumplings

Dim Sum - Dim in Chinese means a little bit while Sum means from the heart. Together, it means the large variety of small dishes that are served in Chinese restaurants ( from the southern region of China) between the hours of around 9.am. - 2:00p.m.

There are a big selection on the dim sum menus

 
Since the selections on dim sum menus are quite large,  patrons can choose somewhere between six to twenty dishes from the menus.










However, only Chinese restaurants with a certain size can afford to offer dim sum to their customers. Usually smaller restaurants do not offer these dishes.

Tofu rolls

Chinese Canadians love going for dim sum as it is a very pleasant experience. 

Yes, the food is good because the serving for each dish is small, therefore, customers can eat more varieties of food in smaller quantities.

The social aspect of dim sum is as important as the food

The more important part of dim sum is the social aspect. Dim sum restaurants usually can accommodate diners of up to twelve sometimes fourteen people at a large table.

This is great for family get together with grandparents, uncles and aunts and so.

Lots of J.'s cousins, uncles & aunts came for dim sum with her

 
Recently, Janice, my niece from Calgary was in Toronto for a visit and she had not seen her many cousins for a long time.

 So her sister sent out an email asking her extended family members to join them for dim sum at the Diamond Restaurant in Richmond Hill.

J.'s cousins love dim sum too!

Twenty- two people in total including Janice's uncles, aunties from both sides of her mother's families and cousins, some married with young children showed up to see her and ate together.

It took three large tables to sit all twenty two people.

Dim sum - great for family and friends to get together

It was an impromptu  family reunion without much fanfare, but just a Saturday morning dim sum time together with loved ones we had not seen for a little while.

Sticky RiceWraps

Dim sum, never underestimate what these little dishes can do to keep the families together!


R.T.
Diamond Restaurant
Richmond Hill, Ontario