Restaurant: 海珍大酒樓 888 seafood restaurant [1, 2, 3]
Location: 8450 Valley Blvd, Rosemead, CA 91770. (626) 573-1888
Date: February 12, 2023
Cuisine: Cantonese Dimsum & Banquet
Rating: good not great, but awesome room and a lot of fun
As has become a bit of a tradition, Superbowl Sunday hedonist style is an all day affair at 888 Seafood. Not one but two meals!
The frontage.
Nothing like hanging out in the hall with the hanging meat!
Jeffrey’s sauce bar.
We have been in this giant private room both with a single monster table and with the current two large table configurations.
Overall, dim sum here was very “meh.” It was certainly the worst I’ve had recently in the SGV (as I’ve been going to good places), but solid enough to be enjoyable. In general, skins were too thick and things were a bit overcooked. They do have a lot of variety but the “banquet” side of 888 is way better than the dim sum side.
Jellyfish. Pretty meh jellyfish with a decent texture but no flavor. Jellyfish needs an acidic sauce/marinate.
Cold meat plate. The pork was excellent, the duck solid, the chicken fine, and the pink pork “wurst” stuff incredible. Great “cured meat” quality.
Steamed Chicken Feet in Brown Sauce. People said they were gross.
Sparerib in Black Bean Sauce. Very piggy and unpleasant version of this typical dish. Texture was okay but the flavor was terrible.
Premium Har Gow. These weren’t so premium. The skins were a little thick and over-steamed and the interior, while fine and full of solid shrimp, was bland and under seasoned. Still not bad or anything, but bland.
Pork & Shrimp Siu Mai. A touch oversteamed but savory enough, so reasonably tasty.
Chiu Chow Style Pork & Peanut Dumpling. These had a heavy wrapper but the filling was delicious with a mix of peanuts, meats, and various veggies.
Shrimp & Chives Dumpling. Again the wrapper was a little thick and the inside okay but a touch underseasoned.
XLB. Pretty decent actually for dim sum XLB. The pork itself was very tasty but there wasn’t really any juice.
Bean Curd Skin Rolls in Brown Sauce. Actually one of the better dim sum here with a nice texture and decent flavor. Not as nicely white peppered as the best versions, but certainly enjoyable.
Steamed Rice Noodle Roll with Shrimp. Solid Chow Fun with good texture and lots of shrimp. Sauce wasn’t sweet but did work.
Steamed Rice Noodle Roll with BBQ Pork. Again, a pretty good Chow Fun as the BBQ pork here is good.
Pan Fried Shrimp Rice Noodle Roll. I think I actually tried to order the Red Rice Noodle Roll and got this instead. It was pretty good though, being basically a dried shrimp and chive Chow Fun that was pan fried. Tasty in a greasy way.
Steamed BBQ Pork Bun. THe pork inside was very sweet but there was a good amount of it. The dough was over steamed and soggy.
Baked BBQ Pork Bun. Decent but sweet filling, so-so bun.
Contents.
Pan Fried Dace Fishcake. Dense and very fried with an interesting flavor. Not to everyone’s taste but I kind of liked it.
Deep Fried Shrimp Spring Roll. Solid enough version of this with a heavy but crispy shell and lots of shrimp.
Pan Fried Water Chestnut Cake. We didn’t know what to expect from this, and certainly not what we got, but it did turn out delicious. It was gelatinous and vaguely sweet — quite yummy.
Eggplant with Shrimp Paste. The fried fish ball was good, but this kind of straight up baked or steamed eggplant not my favorite texture.
Egg Tofu with Fish Paste in Brown Sauce. I like the soft egg tofu texture and the fish paste (which might have been shrimp paste?) was good, so this was a pleasant dish. Could it have been better with a stronger peppery brown sauce and a more seasoned fish cake? Sure, but it was pretty good anyway.
Steamed Beef Ball. Solid and chewy version of this classic. Very stuck together.
Mushrooms and vegetables.
Sticky Rice Wrapped with Lotus Leaves. I didn’t get a chance to try.
Custard Egg Tart. Very meh version. Eggy, and certainly not offensive, but not great.
Wines.
The coma.
BBQ Suckling Pig. Absolutely awesome and probably one of the best Chinese pig’s I’ve had. It was porky in the best way with a crispy skin and that “sizzling pork fat” thing going on. Really delicious.
100 Flower Chicken. Nice version of this relatively rare dish with the crispy skin and the luscious shrimp paste. Could have been a touch more seasoned but still delicious.
Hot and Sour Soup. Just okay with a decent texture but wasn’t really hot or sour.
Beef Brisket in Chili Oil. Tasty but not amazing.
Crab in Salty Egg Yolk. I don’t love the salty egg yolk prep as it’s kind of heavy and has a grainy quality, but this was one of the best crab’s I’ve had with it. The shell’s were very tender and there was a lot of meat so one could crunch through and really enjoy the sweet meat.
Lamb, onion, cilantro, and mushroom stir fry. I guess this was a variant on cumin lamb (without much cumin). It was soft but quite enjoyable.
Typhoon Style Garlic Lobster. Really nice lobster with lots of meat and crispy garlic.
Eggplant and String Beans. Okay but not my favorite.
Cauliflower with Southern Chinese Sausage. Yum, that sweet porky sausage makes any vegetable good.
Yang Chow Fried Rice.
Kung Pao Fried Rice. Interesting.
Piggy!
New Flavor — Cherry Bakewell Tart Gelato — While watching every episode of the Great British Baking Show I was introduced to the Bakewell Tart, which I liked it enough to make a gelato — Sicilian Noto Romano Almond Custard Base is layered with house-made Honey Almond Graham Crackers and Cherry Preserves. For extra fun I made an Almond Icing and glazed the Grahams with it in the traditional pattern (first time trying it) — made by me for @sweetmilkgelato –#SweetMilkGelato #gelato #dessert #icecream #FrozenDessert #nomnom #dessertlovers #dessertporn #icecreamlovers #gelatoitaliano #foodporn #gelatolover #food #foodgasm #foodblogger #desserttime #foodphotography #gelatoartigianale #dessertlover #icecream #icecreamlovers #Sicily #Almond #Cherry #GrahamCracker #BakewellTart #tart #bakewell #jam #icing
One of my earliest Signature Flavors —Tiramisu Gelato — The base is a highly technical Zabaione of Egg Yolk, Fresh Mascarpone Cheese, and Sweet Marsala with Fresh Brewed Espresso. It’s dusted with Valrhona Cocoa powder and layered with house-made Vanilla Rum Espresso syrup-soaked Lady Fingers — the final result is totally Tiramisu — made by me for @sweetmilkgelato –#SweetMilkGelato #gelato #dessert #icecream #FrozenDessert #nomnom #dessertlovers #dessertporn #icecreamlovers #gelatoitaliano #foodporn #gelatolover #food #foodgasm #foodblogger #desserttime #foodphotography #gelatoartigianale #dessertlover #icecream #icecreamlovers #Tiramisu #Espresso #coffee #chocolate #Marsala #Zabaione #Eggyolk #Rum #Mascarpone
Wines.
Out in the main hall!
Dimsum at 888 was solid, but not particularly interesting or super fresh. Definitely a notch or two down from the made to order places. Shells were a bit “sticky” which indicates they have been sitting in the steamers for a bit. Also, because we were starting at 2pm the dim sum kitchen was closing and so they brought EVERYTHING out all at once.
The banquet food was better, pretty good actually. It’s not the best Cantonese restaurant in the SGV for dinner, but it’s certainly way way better than anything further west and really quite good. Service is very nice and good for the SGV. And that mega banquet room rocks. They have a couple of them too but ours is the best. Really great private party space even if a little garish.