Dim Sum lunch at Full Moon City, The Hague
After the nice All-You-Can-Eat dim sum and hot pot at restaurant Full Moon in The Hague, I also wanted to try their regular dim sum restaurant, Full Moon City. It is the first time that I went there and it was super crowded. I asked for a table of four and because there were no other empty tables, we were brought to an 8-person round table. It was comfortable, as we had a lot of space, so we didn't really mind. There was however no dim sum forms or a menu available at the table and it went unnoticed for quite a while. I tried to catch the attention of one of the waiters, but they seemed to be averting their eyes from me or they were just too busy to notice me. It took me 15 minutes, but I was able to stop a waiter, when he walked past. After handing in our dim sum form, the rest went great. The various dim sum and other dishes were brought to our table at a good pace and we didn't had to wait long for our food, as we were pretty hungry after a day of sightseeing in The Hague.
We ordered five kinds of dim sum: sharkfin dumplings, siu mai, beef balls, fried seafood salad roll, and ham sui kok. The sharkfin dumpling (not real sharkfin) had a lot of filling and it was really delicious. The siu mai had large, juicy prawns in it and the pork meat was tender, but the fish roe on top has melted due to the heat.
The beef balls with water chestnut were just as good as at the AYCE restaurant Full Moon. Maybe, a bit better.
The fried seafood salad roll is a new dim sum to me. It has a nice breadcrumb crust and a soft, sweet seafood filling. Together with the mayonnaise, it reminds me a bit of the Dutch fried snack, kaas souflé.
The ham sui kok is one of my favorite fried dim sum and although it looked nice and crunchy, it was strangely really bland. I don't know if they just had a bad batch or if it is supposed to be this way. But from what I remember when I was a kid, these were supposed to be larger and with a savory crunchy crust, a sweet, chewy mochi skin, and a salty, minced pork filling.
This is my favorite Hong Kong noodle dish, the fried rice noodles with beef. My male younger cousin always orders this when we have dinner together and every time, someone turns the round wheel on the table and the dish ends up in my sight, I cannot help, but get a serving. I feel very sorry, because he likes to eat the whole plate by himself. It is something I want to do too. Who says, that you always have to share? Being selfish once in a while, feels pretty nice too. I think it is the same like when you feel bad and just want to eat a whole bucket of Ben & Jerry's ice cream by yourself.
My second favorite noodle dish are these soft noodles, 伊麵 (aka Yee mein, E-fu noodles). These are stir-fried with XO sauce and enoki and shiitake mushrooms, spring onions and some chili peppers. I like the flavors, but the noodles were a little bit too soft.
Lastly, we ordered a small dessert, the goji and chrysanthemum jelly cubes. Although we wanted to eat these as dessert, we got this the first. So, it became a refreshing appetizer instead. It was still a bit cold and the goji and chrysanthemum flavor was just right, not too strong or too weak. It also had a nice agar agar jelly texture.
Although the prices of the dim sum looked a bit expensive at first glance, a couple of dim sum and two noodle dishes were enough for us, a group of four, to feel full. When you divide the bill by four, it was only €12.70 per person. The Chinese tea that we drank with the dim sum was complimentary.
sharkfin dumplings €4.25
We ordered five kinds of dim sum: sharkfin dumplings, siu mai, beef balls, fried seafood salad roll, and ham sui kok. The sharkfin dumpling (not real sharkfin) had a lot of filling and it was really delicious. The siu mai had large, juicy prawns in it and the pork meat was tender, but the fish roe on top has melted due to the heat.
siu mai €4.50
The beef balls with water chestnut were just as good as at the AYCE restaurant Full Moon. Maybe, a bit better.
beef balls with water chestnut €3.90
The fried seafood salad roll is a new dim sum to me. It has a nice breadcrumb crust and a soft, sweet seafood filling. Together with the mayonnaise, it reminds me a bit of the Dutch fried snack, kaas souflé.
Fried seafood salad roll €4.50
The ham sui kok is one of my favorite fried dim sum and although it looked nice and crunchy, it was strangely really bland. I don't know if they just had a bad batch or if it is supposed to be this way. But from what I remember when I was a kid, these were supposed to be larger and with a savory crunchy crust, a sweet, chewy mochi skin, and a salty, minced pork filling.
ham sui kok (咸水角) €3.90
This is my favorite Hong Kong noodle dish, the fried rice noodles with beef. My male younger cousin always orders this when we have dinner together and every time, someone turns the round wheel on the table and the dish ends up in my sight, I cannot help, but get a serving. I feel very sorry, because he likes to eat the whole plate by himself. It is something I want to do too. Who says, that you always have to share? Being selfish once in a while, feels pretty nice too. I think it is the same like when you feel bad and just want to eat a whole bucket of Ben & Jerry's ice cream by yourself.
Fried rice noodles with beef €12.95
My second favorite noodle dish are these soft noodles, 伊麵 (aka Yee mein, E-fu noodles). These are stir-fried with XO sauce and enoki and shiitake mushrooms, spring onions and some chili peppers. I like the flavors, but the noodles were a little bit too soft.
Fried soft noodles in XO sauce €12.95
Lastly, we ordered a small dessert, the goji and chrysanthemum jelly cubes. Although we wanted to eat these as dessert, we got this the first. So, it became a refreshing appetizer instead. It was still a bit cold and the goji and chrysanthemum flavor was just right, not too strong or too weak. It also had a nice agar agar jelly texture.
goji and chrysanthemum jelly €3.80
What do I think?
Although the prices of the dim sum looked a bit expensive at first glance, a couple of dim sum and two noodle dishes were enough for us, a group of four, to feel full. When you divide the bill by four, it was only €12.70 per person. The Chinese tea that we drank with the dim sum was complimentary.
