[projectmaximus]

Originally Posted by bmw335xi

What are some names because I used to live in South Florida as well... I couldn't find authentic places...

Namely, what are some good dim sum or Sichuan restaurants?

For Dim Sum we generally go to South Garden in Kendall when we're more south, or Gold Marquess in Miramar when more central. There's a place called Pine Court up in Sunrise but that one isnt quite as great. Good but not great. There's a couple other places I've been that were very good and some that were just ok...I can picture the great ones in my head but would have to consult my wife's family for names...a lot of them are confusing and have Chinese/English names that are not equivalent when translated.

Sichuan I'll have to think on for a minute. My wife and I love Sichuan food but her parents do not so I'm not sure if we've ever had it in Miami.

Originally Posted by bmw335xi

I don't mean to sound pessimistic, but so far 99% of people who have recommended Chinese restaurants in Florida, don't know what real Chinese food is...

I'm Hakka Chinese from Malaysia and my wife is Cantonese, and ever since I met her 6 years ago I'd guess that 33% of our meals are Chinese. I think I had a good understanding of Chinese food before that but definitely further developed my palatte since we started dating.

I'll add that her extended family over the years (on both her mom's and dad's sides) have owned and operated about a dozen Chinese restaurants in South Florida...most have retired now and only one uncle still has 3 restaurants. Most of them have been American Chinese restaurants, but believe me they know real Chinese cuisine and are extremely picky. So I would guess that I've been to at least a dozen in the region that are legitimate Chinese...of those maybe 5 or 6 are good enough for her family to regularly patronize. If you pick up the Chinese newspaper you'll probably see two dozen advertised, and they're trying to reach Chinese customers so they have to be at least mediocre authentic lol.

Originally Posted by gypsychic

Have you tried Yummy House (one in Tampa, one in Sarasota:

Yummy House

The place has no atmosphere and not the greatest service, but people literally line up for this place, it is always jammed. They have dim sum. I am not a Chinese food aficionado, so I can't give a review, but most who look for authentic RAVE about it.

Actually I now see they have one in Orlando, so you have probably tried it already.

Yummy House actually has two locations in Tampa, only one serves dim sum. It's quite good...I'd say 8/10. I eat there almost every time I'm in the area, probably close to 10 times now. The Vietnamese population helps to support the dim sum in Tampa I've found.

There is also a Yummy House in Altamonte Springs I have eaten at several times as my close friend lives down the street. It's quite good but I don't think they have dim sum there. It's good for some pretty basic but authentic stuff.

[projectmaximus]

Oh yeah and just to speak to the thread topic, I'll provide one anecdote:

This past Chinese New Year's we were in Miami and went to a private celebration at a nearby Chinese buffet. My wife and I were shocked to find it was packed with about 300 people, mostly speaking her family's village dialect. Like, the language spoken in her section of Guangdong province, maybe an hour outside the center of Zhongshan. Yes, it was a CNY celebration for 300 people ostensibly just from her small village in China. So that day I felt like either Miami has a much larger Chinese population than we expected or just an inordinate number of folks from her village. The truth is probably a little bit of both.

Another anecdote...there are about 30-40 uncles, aunts, more distant cousins removed and so forth, of my wife's living in South Florida. Not counting the ones that are our age/generation, 90% of them cannot speak English or Spanish. So they get by with socializing with each other, friends, and the rest of the Cantonese community. It's obviously not a huge community like you find in other major cities, but it's enough for them to survive.

[kapikap]

Is there not an actual chinatown in florida? Most major states have a version of a China Town.

The cuban or peruvian chinese might give a small clue, since the Chinese, no matter how it is mixed with other countries, maintain their language and customs.

There is a community near Tampa, but cant think of the name. Or so, i have heard.

[bmw335xi]

Originally Posted by kapikap

Is there not an actual chinatown in florida? Most major states have a version of a China Town.

The cuban or peruvian chinese might give a small clue, since the Chinese, no matter how it is mixed with other countries, maintain their language and customs.

There is a community near Tampa, but cant think of the name. Or so, i have heard.

There is no true chinatown in Florida although there are some strip malls that are 90% Chinese related businesses. There just isn't a concentrated enough population for it. Vietnamese have a much bigger presence. In Orlando, there is an area I'd consider as a legitimate "little vietnam"

[bmw335xi]

Originally Posted by projectmaximus

For Dim Sum we generally go to South Garden in Kendall when we're more south, or Gold Marquess in Miramar when more central. There's a place called Pine Court up in Sunrise but that one isnt quite as great. Good but not great. There's a couple other places I've been that were very good and some that were just ok...I can picture the great ones in my head but would have to consult my wife's family for names...a lot of them are confusing and have Chinese/English names that are not equivalent when translated.

Sichuan I'll have to think on for a minute. My wife and I love Sichuan food but her parents do not so I'm not sure if we've ever had it in Miami.



I'm Hakka Chinese from Malaysia and my wife is Cantonese, and ever since I met her 6 years ago I'd guess that 33% of our meals are Chinese. I think I had a good understanding of Chinese food before that but definitely further developed my palatte since we started dating.

I'll add that her extended family over the years (on both her mom's and dad's sides) have owned and operated about a dozen Chinese restaurants in South Florida...most have retired now and only one uncle still has 3 restaurants. Most of them have been American Chinese restaurants, but believe me they know real Chinese cuisine and are extremely picky. So I would guess that I've been to at least a dozen in the region that are legitimate Chinese...of those maybe 5 or 6 are good enough for her family to regularly patronize. If you pick up the Chinese newspaper you'll probably see two dozen advertised, and they're trying to reach Chinese customers so they have to be at least mediocre authentic lol.



Yummy House actually has two locations in Tampa, only one serves dim sum. It's quite good...I'd say 8/10. I eat there almost every time I'm in the area, probably close to 10 times now. The Vietnamese population helps to support the dim sum in Tampa I've found.

There is also a Yummy House in Altamonte Springs I have eaten at several times as my close friend lives down the street. It's quite good but I don't think they have dim sum there. It's good for some pretty basic but authentic stuff.

Thanks for the recommendations, I'll be sure to try the two places you recommended in SoFL next time I'm down there.

[kapikap]

And i thought the book and tv show, fresh of th boat would promote or encourage more chinese to orlando.

[bmw335xi]

Originally Posted by kapikap

And i thought the book and tv show, fresh of th boat would promote or encourage more chinese to orlando.

Orlando does have the biggest general asian population in my opinion, but compared to cities on the West Coast or NE, not so much in comparison.

[MrJones17]

I hope you find what you're looking for. As an Asian man, Florida would be the last place I'd want my Asian relatives to come live.

[Hapa1]

Originally Posted by MrJones17

I hope you find what you're looking for. As an Asian man, Florida would be the last place I'd want my Asian relatives to come live.

Really? The last place?

I would think other states in the South or Midwest would be worse since there's almost zero Asian visibility in some of those areas.

[projectmaximus]

Originally Posted by MrJones17

I hope you find what you're looking for. As an Asian man, Florida would be the last place I'd want my Asian relatives to come live.

That's a bit dramatic. Plenty of Asian people, just not dense enough on the scale of the major hubs to offer an enclave. But Jax area has the most Filipinos (not percentage but the most period) in the southeast (meaning, east of Houston and south of DC) and there's decent Vietnamese numbers all throughout FL.

Originally Posted by bmw335xi

Thanks for the recommendations, I'll be sure to try the two places you recommended in SoFL next time I'm down there.

Yeah asked my wife and she's not sure of any szechuan restaurants to recommend.