Dim Sum at Triumphal Palace (review + pics)

[pleasurepalate]

January became the start of my 12 month odyssey checking out a different Dim Sum restaurant a month all over LA County. My trip started last month with Triumphal Palace in Alhambra.

Triumphal Palace is one of the Dim Sum restaurants where dim sum is ordered off a menu versus getting them off runaway carts. This is only my second experience with ordering off a menu and I have to say that I really prefer it that way. With carts, it sometimes feels like you're a mad dog rushing after a speeding cat. You either catch it or you get completely left behind. Now how frustrating is that? At least, with a menu, you'll definitely get what you order eventually. Anyway, on to the food.

My dim sum that morning consisted of 15 various dishes. Of the 15, there are two I would never order again. One was the House Special Dumpling in Supreme Soup Stock. I didn't taste the soup so I can't speak to it, but that Special Dumpling was definitely not that special. It was rubbery. Enough said.

I also didn't fare well with the Shanghai-Style Dumplings. With them being referred to as Shanghai-Style, I was expecting "juicy" dumplings, but I should have lowered my expections because there was really no broth to be found.

Of the 10 left that were savory options, 4 stood out for me. One was the Rice Noodle with Hot and Sweet Sauce. I loved the duality of sauce flavors and I liked the fact that the noodles weren't sticky-starchy and had a nice smooth eating texture to them.

Second was the deep fried chicken wings. The skin was golden and crispy and the chicken had a tanginess-hotness to it that I liked a lot. Third was the deep fried shrimp in seaweed roll. Deep fried seaweed is quite crunchy and when combined with deep fried shrimp, it's quite easy to enjoy every bite of this fun pairing.

Last was the Sticky Rice in Lotus Wrap. The rice was moist and had just the right consistency of being "sticky" without being over done. As for the flavor, I appreciated both the sweetness of the rice as well as the savory aspect of the meat and sauce that was part of the rice.

As for the 3 desserts we shared, one item caught us by surprise. We ordered a "Sweet Sesame Ball" and was expecting the round sesame-coated bread balls with some kind of sweet bean paste and got something not fitting that description.

Instead, what came to us were these three "dough-like" spheres coating with something powdery and inside was more of a runny black bean liquid. Interesting flavor, but not what we were looking for.

Overall, when looking at my Dim Sum experience at Triumphal Palace, I'd say that our Dim Sum choices were for the most part, good solid dishes. While I did have my favorites, there wasn't anything in particular that would make me want to take a special Dim Sum trip back to Triumphal Palace at this point.

Perhaps a second visit with different menu choices will garner me a better culinary experience, but for now, Triumphal Palace wasn't quite the triumph for me just yet.

To see pics, go to:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/la_addic...

Triumphal Palace
500 W Main St
Alhambra, CA 91899
[phone]

Thanks,
Abby

[cheesecustard]

I recently went to Triumphal Palace. I've read the reviews on chow and I thought I'd check it out - WHAT A BIG DISAPPOINTMENT! Sure, the place was pretty, but the food was mediocre and the service was terrible. After we got seated (which was a long wait to begin with), we had to wait at least 15 minutes for anyone to even notice that we were there! My family and only ordered a couple of plates and decided to have dim sum some place else. We ended up going to the Ritz Garden down the street (old fashioned cart-dim sum). Much better price and much better service.

[ipsedixit]

Wait a minute.

You aren't implying that the food at Ritz Garden was actually BETTER than that at Triumphal Palace are you?

While I might agree with you that the prices at Ritz may be cheaper (or "better" in your words), and without passing judgment on whether Triumphal Palace is necessarily the best place for dim sum, the food at Ritz is embarrassingly awful.

You're better off scrounging for stuff at the Asian food section at the Costco down the street and eating that stuff cold straight out of the wrapper then having dim sum at Ritz.

[monkuboy]

Ugh, the Ritz Garden sucks. That said, they do dim sum better than the other food although it is nothing special. Dinner, however, is a dismal disaster. We went there last Saturday and were literally the only patrons in the entire place for our whole meal (this was not my idea; my mother-in-law likes going there). The food was just out and out horrible. The sauces they used were akin to making BBQ ribs using only ketchup. Roast chicken was this scrawny, undernourished thing that was cooked until it was grey. Ritz Gardens is one disgusting place. I do have to had it to them, they are consistent, though.

[Wonginator]

Why did you wait 15 minutes? If you haven't gotten the menu or a pot of tea within 5 minutes, just stick your hand up to get the attention of one of the servers. I consider this a general rule for Chinese restaurants, to stick your hand up if you need something. They should have at least given you a menu to mark down what you want to order. If they didn't, stick your hand up to get their attention.

When you're ready to order, stick your hand up to hand the list to the waiter. This way, the waiter doesn't have to hover over you while you're making decisions on what to order, which might happen at American restaurants. This is one of the major differences between ordering off-the-menu dim sum vs. the roaming carts.

How was the quality of the few dishes that you did order? You don't say in your post. How cheap are the prices at Ritz Garden? Triumphal Palace has a $2/$3/$4 price structure for their A/B/C items. Is Ritz Garden $1/$2/$3 pricing?

I haven't been to the Ritz Garden yet, so I can't compare them.

[cheesecustard]

We did eye and wave at the guys in the suits and tried to stop the waiters/waitresses. None of the waiters/waitresses seemed to speak/understand English - they just pointed at the guys in suits - they were too busy tending bigger parties - there was only three of us - which, shouldn't have matter at all. Customers are customers. It was so frustrating. We didn't get our tea right away. We also wanted cold drinks, but opted out because that probably would have taken too long too. We ordered the baked BBQ pork buns, egg custard and roast duck. The baked BBQ pork tasted and smelled funny (like it was spoiled) and the bread stuck too much to the roof of my mouth - like it was underdone. The egg custard was bland - I like them sweet and creamy. The roast duck we got was nothing but bones and fat - the skin wasn't even crispy (which I think is important to roast duck). True, that Ritz Garden's steamed dishes aren't that great, but I only do dim sum for the baked dishes anyway and theirs were much more satisfying than the ones we had at TP. We paid a total of $20 at TP (including tax and tip) and only $10 at Ritz (including tax & tip - a total of 5 small plates). Plus, it was just down the street. After a terrible time at TP, we were still hungry and didn't feel like driving very far.

[raytamsgv]

That's bad service, to say the least. I hope you will find better service and food elsewhere.

[Wonginator]

That does sound pretty bad, but usually, you do want to get the attention of the guys in the suits, not the bus boys who are cleaning up the tables or the servers bringing the food.

General rule for dim sum: it's referred to as "yum cha" in Chinese. "Cha" is Chinese for tea. Just say "cha" and make a drinking motion with your hand, and most Chinese-speaking people will know what you're talking about.

As for your item selections, I'm not a big fan of the BBQ pork buns (ate too much of it as a kid and got burned out from it) so I can't comment on the ones at Triumphal Palace. I thought the egg custard (daan taat) dessert here was fantastic, but it is best when it's hot and fresh. If it was cool and gelatinous, then that's a bad sign that it's been sitting around awhile.

I'm also a big fan of roasted duck, but I've rarely ordered it at dim sum times, usually only getting it during dinner. It can be hit or miss sometimes, especially when you get a skinny bird with no meat on it. I love crispy skin of duck also.

All I can say is that I think your experience was a fluke and not the norm at Triumphal Palace. It will be up to you as to whether you give them another chance or not, but I have found it to be among my favorite dim sum places to visit, and I'll be back again in the near future.

[slacker]

I haven't tried Triumphal Palace yet, but I have not heard any good reports outside of all the props that it somehow gets on this board.

[cfylong]

We passed by Triumphal Palace some time ago on a Sunday, prime time for dimsum and there was no line. The roast duck was still quite good, but the dimsum was a bit pedestrian and not what I remember it to be. Okay, but not outstanding. I had heard some rumors that it may be closing.

[raytamsgv]

Sorry to hear you and your family had such a bad experience. Being served tea immediately is hugely important for a meal in a Chinese restaurant. As Wonginator wrote, the best thing to do in this situation is to raise and wave your hand and get attention of one of the well-dressed wait staff.

I haven't been to Ritz Garden in a few years because the dim sum was truly forgettable. But if you like it, that's all that matters.

[Food_Fiend]

The sweet sesame ball is mochi with black sesame filling. At most dim sum joints, it's coated with peanut powder. Usually a favorite dessert of mine, but I was disappointed with the quality of the ones from Triumphal Palace. I went there for my birthday last year, and there wasn't anything that would particularly make me want to go there again.

[chowmominLA]

Thanks for the great review. I look forward to all the others. I hope Sea Harbour is on your list. I tried it today and it's awesome. The dim sum is served the same way as at TP, but even better because the menu has pictures so you can see what you're ordering (e.g., that their sesame balls look more like mochi than sesame balls!)

[M_in_OC]

the sweet sesame ball looks good! those are similar to the sesame balls you boil in water for a soup. the flavor of the black sesame is wonderful! the dough is most likely made from rice flour. yum!

[notmartha]

Thanks for the review!

What's the Dim Sum of the Month club? What other 11 restaurants are on your 'hit list'?

The sweet sesame ball looks suspiciously like mochi to me. I went to Triumphal Palace a while back, but like you it's not my favorite and I never went back. Time after time I go back to the oldie but goodie Sea Harbour/Happy Harbour.

[pleasurepalate]

I run a dining group and for 2007, I decided to create a dining series exploring a different Dim Sum restaurant a month and since I tend to do multiple dining series at one time, I give them names; hence, the Dim Sum of the Month Club.

Right now, here's the list:

January -- Triumphal Palace
February - Capital Seafood
March - Sea Harbor
April - Mission 261
May - Ocean Star
June - New Capital

And that's it so far. I still haven't picked out the other six. Anyway, if you'd like to check out my dining group, go to:

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Pleasur...

[notmartha]

Thanks for the info! I think I've been to every one on your list so far except for Capital Seafood...

[slacker]

dang, I missed Sea Harbor.

[Dommy]

WOW!! You guys did some good ordering at that table! Thanks again for the great time Abby! So far, TP has been P.'s favorite Dim Sum in L.A.! :)

--Dommy!

[Ernie]

Good review. I also like TP's house specialty chicken wings. Their 排骨 (pie-gwat, or little pork ribs in black bean sauce) are among the meatiest and best I have had.

[SilverlakeGirl]

As always a wonderful review with photos. Thank you. I love your posts!

[pleasurepalate]

Awww...thanks so much. That's nice of you to say. :)