House of Dim Sum — Restaurant in San Francisco

My conclusion: Avoid this place! It is NOT HONEST business. There is no price on the menu for any item, which is a red flag in itself already, but we were too stupid to realise that. So we don’t want others to fall for the trap/scam too.

The server will selectively tell you pricing of items, saying that they come in groups of 4, 6 or 8, giving the impression that everything on the menu comes in such group pricing (when actually, it is not). And when we asked for the price of one item or just 2 buns for example, she will say groups of 4 or 6 or 8 would be more worth it and just refuse to tell us the price of just ONE bun/tart/etc. You should just leave if that happens.

In the end, the bill does in fact have the price of ONE item multiplied by 4/6/8, so effectively, customers are being LIED to. It’s just not honest business.

The buns/dim sum are huge by the way, so ordering in groups of 4/6/8 is really A LOT. We couldn’t finish so much food because we were led to believe that dishes come in groups of 4/6/8 and thus that was what we had to order. There’s no point packing away as the food is not good anyway and we wouldn’t want to eat it again. So it’s such wastage of food AND money.

Authentic dim sum (which this shop is not) comes in small sizes so people can order many different dishes.

Our order costs us about $140 for 2 adults and 3 kids, which was the most expensive and disappointing dim sum meal ever. And we are of chinese descent who’ve traveled the world and eaten dim sum in many places including Hong Kong.

And to think that the server kept asking us if we would like to order more when we put in the order, when she obviously would know what we’ve ordered would be way too much for us to finish was just Very dishonest and greedy behaviour. Ashamed for my fellow Chinese.

If you still want to try the food, ask for the price of everything you want to select BEFORE you order, else you get a shock when you see the bill.

A food place that does not display price transparently is out to cheat and therefore...

SCAM! I don't like being cheated. No one does. We ended up going here when the dim sum shop across the street was closed (I think it's called Delicious Dim Sum-and they are really good and cheap there!). The lady here way overcharged me and when I asked about it and realized it she tried to make it as though I just didn't understand. I WISH I'd read the other reviews before we went because what happened to others is EXACTLY what happened to us! She charged us $4.50 for everything even though clearly it said an order was $3.50. There is nothing that is $4.50 in the whole place ($3.50, $4, $5, and $6, but mostly $3.50 an order) and when I asked about it (then went back again cause I was pretty upset at being cheated) she tried to say she gave me a double order of something and kept trying to point to other prices (nothing was $4.50). I didn't get any double orders. I gladly would pay more money if it was my choice, but don't cheat me!

We had planned on eating every bite and enjoying the food regardless. BUT we just couldn't. The food was awful. I LOVE food and eat everything, but spit out SEVERAL pieces. It was the end of the day, but if the food is going to be cold and bad at the end of the day then don't sell it. After several pieces were cold and tasteless or just not good we just gave up and literally didn't eat it (and trust me, we just don't do that, especially when we were so hungry!)

I hope it's worth it to them to cheat people out of $6-$10 (looks like some people were cheated out of a whole lot more!) because they are open later than other places and, I guess don't care about reviews. It's shocking to see so many other people saying the same thing. Do...

Okay. So you're going for incredible dim sum in Chinatown. You know you're expecting something from a "run-down" place, eating in a bit disheveled table and a chair that tips, a wall with peeled paint and history, But one thing you have absolute no compromise for is mediocre dim sum. There are a dozen or more dim sum shops in a 3x5 block range, and given it has survived this far, you want it to be buns from heaven.

Well, House of Dim Sum disappoints in that department, but for a weird reason. First things first, the dim sum is hand made, authentic, very homely, unique, and tasty. For example, I've never had cha-siu bao with such tender pork, or a chewy seasame ball with a unique family blend of the bean jam that oozes attitude. These are not made for mass confectionary or baked goods. These are hearty pieces of love.

But what is wrong is the way that they are keeping them before sold. Yes, you are going to make a lot of them, display them behind glass, and sell them to a long line of customers. But when you receive the dim sum, you do not expect it to be luke warm, nor even remotely cold. Also, most likely, these were made hours ago, if not the prior day.

As we chewed on somewhat cold dim sum, we all wondered how lovely they would be when they come out fresh from the steamer or oven.

Sure it was a house of dim sum, but the house certainly does not provide the right way for customers to enjoy the food in an optimal setting.

If this is the norm for this shop, they're only surviving because their neighboring competition is overflowing and those who don't want to wait spill over.

I sense potential for the House. Please step up operations and provide the ideal...