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Happy Valley Seafood Restaurant
Categories: Restaurants Seafood Restaurants Chinese Dim Sum Seafood, Dim Sum [Edit]
3432 Lougheed HwyVancouver, BC V5M 2A4
Neighbourhood: Renfrew-Collingwood
(604) 255-2280
- Price Range:
-
$$
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- Yes
- Parking:
- Private Lot
- Attire:
- Casual
- Good for Groups:
- Yes
- Good for Kids:
- Yes
- Takes Reservations:
- Yes
- Delivery:
- No
- Take Away:
- Yes
- Waiter Service:
- Yes
- Outdoor Seating:
- No
- Good For:
- Lunch
- Alcohol:
- Full Bar
- Noise Level:
- Average
- Wheelchair Accessible:
- Yes
Joanne C. said: "Pink Peppercorn makes my heart (and my belly) sing. I went to the Cannery a few times with out of town family years ago, so of course we made our way to Pink Peppercorn to check it out. I've brought my parents and my boyfriend here…" read more »
15 reviews for Happy Valley Seafood Restaurant
15 reviews in English
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Review from Kenneth E.
Vancouver, BC
5/7/2012
For the quality and pricing, have to say it's one of the better ones on this side of town.
The shrimp dumplings were fresh, and just the right size, skin didn't 'stick' to the one beside it lol.
Just that the parking is quite bad for this size, had to wait 5min. while luckily my parents' job was to get a seat ;)
Above average decor, and quite the bustlin' place.
Definitely will be back. -
Review from Reena M.
4/25/2012 5 Check-ins Here
I love Happy Valley! But it didn't start out that way. For a long time I've been loyal to Sun Sui Wah for my dim sum choices. However, I've been coming here with my co-workers quite a bit and have found the dim sum dishes that make them so awesome!
1) Honey Garlic pork chop! omg! So good but soooo bad!!
2) Shrimp puree on egg plant. Genius! And delicious!
3) Deep fried tofu with peppery garlic -- a staple of many chinese restaurants but this one is pretty good.
4) Egg tarts are in a yummy flaky pastry
These are my faves and why I keep convincing my coworkers to come here every week! Alas, it isn't good for my waste line.
They are always busy at dim sum, which is great because you know they have a high turnover then. -
Review from Hilda L.
6/30/2011
(Really a 3.5* but I'm feeling generous)
I come here for dim sum when I'm too desperate to commute all the way to Richmond. I'm kidding, this place is pretty good in its own right. Their menu is standard - there aren't any inspiring creations. But sometimes it's good to stick to classics like har gao & cha siu bao. Even if it's not the tastiest dim sum you've ever had, the food is consistent, which is equally important. You order from a sheet ; no carts.
This place is pretty busy on the weekends. It's often full of large families occupying tables of 8 or more. When it's just the two of us, we walk in and on average wait around 20 minutes. You can make a reservation but like all dim sum places, you still have to wait (but a little shorter than if you don't have a reso) unless you're a regular. I can't remember the exact times and discount but it's something like 10% off before 11am and maybe even more before 10am (will update after next visit).
Food: 3.5*
Ambiance: 3* (plain, a bit dated, but clean)
Service: 3.5*
Value: 4* -
Review from Garth C.
11/3/2010
When I was working in the area Happy Valley was my little valley of happiness for group lunches, I love Dim Sum!
I've been to this location too many times to count, it's not the best Dim Sum place there is but it's pretty good when you factor in the price and lack of options in the area. The thing that sets this place apart is the size of the dumplings, they are HUGE! Yes size matters!
The downsides, no cart service. I normally prefer when people come along and offer you food like most Dim Sum joints, there is something about picking from big tray of dumplings.
Hmm, all this talk about Dim Sum is making me hungry, I think I just made myself lunch plans for tomorrow! -
Review from Amy T.
5/12/2011
During the odd times when I need to work in Burnaby, I like to eat lunch at Happy Valley.
Portions are decent sizes, food is delicious and prices are totally reasonable. They have a few dishes other restaurants don't usually have for dim sum such as the jellyfish. I'm a sucker for jellyfish! It's not for everyone though, I introduced this to one of my Caucasian friends and she now thinks I'm disgusting. She loved everything else though! -
Review from Johnson C.
Vancouver, BC
11/25/2009 3 photos
As part of a large Chinese family, dim sum is one of the things I take for granted. Letting the elders pick where we were meeting up - I have never really formed a strong opinion on dim sum places. However, with my recent, frequent visits, Happy Valley is starting to become a favourite.
Reasonable prices, huge servings of tasty dim sum - you can't go wrong. Coming here on a holiday, in a group of 10+ hungry CBCs - the restaurant was at critical mass. After struggling to find parking, the standard dim sum wait and negotiating over the order sheet (no pushcarts here) - all our dishes came out surprisingly quickly despite the frenzy of the holiday crowd.
Also, pay attention to the 'special'/large dishes back of the order sheet. I usually skip over these when going for dim sum (focusing on the classics) - but they add a slight twist to their food and I was shocked to see they had deep-fried soft-shell crab (which wasn't bad). However, as this place is relatively new, it seems that their menu is still evolving (my friend being extremely disappointed that they no longer had a dish that she loved the last she was there).
Most dim sum dishes are around $3 - $4 each and most large/special items starting at about $5 - $6.
I suggest ordering in multiple rounds off the order sheet as the food comes quickly and the portions are much bigger than most other dim sum places to avoid over-ordering. Unfortunately, our group overdid it and we had much more food than we expected. After overloading our craws with tasty dim sum, another pleasant surprise was that the bill was much lower than we expected.
This is now my go-to dim sum joint.Listed in: East Van Eateries, Yum Cha
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Review from Patricia L.
Vancouver, BC
2/4/2011 1 Check-in Here
Yum yum dim sum found here! Always fresh, hot and delicious. The order portions are very generous as well and the service is good. It's nothing fancy, but you get good quality food at a reasonable price
Everyone from the hostess to the waiters to the nice ladies bringing your dim sum to you fresh out of the kitchen are very nice. -
Review from Crystal H.
Vancouver, BC
3/21/2009
A packed house...on a week day afternoon...A healthy mix of families (mostly Asian) and men on business lunches (enjoying beers with their dim sum). I had never seen that before at dim sum, and I liked it!
The food was well priced and decent. Not my favourite dim sum (that's in Richmond) but close enough to Vancouver to satisfy a dim sum craving with large enough selection for my liking. -
Review from Kevin L.
Surrey, BC
8/28/2011 1 Check-in Here
Love the food here. Dim sum is great as is dinner.
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Review from Gersham M.
Vancouver, BC
11/29/2009
Perfectly reasonable Dim Sum spot at Boundary and Lougheed. If you're in this part of town and craving Dim Sum it's well worth stopping here.
The food here is pretty decent, nothing was top in category except perhaps the chicken wings which were quite good. Get here early to avoid the crowds. If you're looking for a Dim Sum destination there's better places through out Vancouver, but this will meet your need. -
Review from Rose N.
Vancouver, BC
4/8/2010
Great portions, quality items!
I've been here many times on weekends with family and friends and for lunch and dinner as well. It's authentic and typical items that you will find at most Dim Sum places.
Lunch & Dinner, again typical, nothing special but quality items for reasonable price. Not cheap by any means.
Service is quick and again, expect your typical service at Chinese restaurants, eat and get your butt out. There are usually line ups at any given time during the weekends.
It's reasonably priced for the amount of portions. Just bring many friends to enjoy the full experience of true dim sum! -
Review from Raymond O.
Vancouver, BC
6/7/2009 5 photos
"Just over the hill...a happy place...in this case a Happy Valley."
I was bracing myself for disappointment, having seen the restaurant from the outside whenever we passed by Lougheed Hwy. It was sitting on it's own lot just over the hill and away from any strip mall...but right beside an indie car shop.
At 11.30am, the lot was full which freed up past noon. Once inside, it's definitely a better atmosphere. It's a front and back paper menu the size of a placemat. No push carts here.
Don't mind the pricing, the serving size is big for dim sum standards. The pork siomai for example was gigantic. Of course the composition of which you'll find large chunks of fat as fillers.
Preparation for some of the dishes were a bit different from what I was used to (i.e. the radish cake which usually arrived in three square 1/2-inch thick pieces came instead in a stainless steel bowl that was steamed rather than pan fried.)
Apart from the regular dim sum dishes, here are other items to try:
- Sticky rice (not the mini version). This is a plate full of sticky rice and Chinese sausage..
- Honey-garlic pork chops. Exactly what the name says. It's that sweet.
- Rice noodles in XO sauce. (In fact, take your pick from a vast selection of rice noodles. From the basic rice noodles wrapped around Chinese donuts to whatever they can think of.)
I'll stop short of comparing the quality with other well-known dim sum places, but the price to food ratio left us leaving with a load of take out boxes. Definitely better experienced with a group. -
Review from Andy H.
Vancouver, BC
2/4/2010
Service was surprisingly good. Dim Sum is standard in taste but not size. The saying goes...everything is bigger in Texas. Well, I guess Happy Valley adopted that way of thinking because their dim sum is on steroids. Everything is huge; and seriously for the people who is obsessed with getting max portions for their declining dollar...bigger isnt always better. haha. FYI, if you pay with debit or credit make sure you add your tip on there and dont leave cash tip on the table. Dont ask me why. Just trust me on this!
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Review from sticky r.
Vancouver, BC
11/7/2009 2 photos
YVR is packed with dim sum places but Happy Valley is unique with its traditional style dim sum dishes. I've included photos, one of which includes the iconic pork and mushroom dumpling (siu-mai). You'll quickly notice that it doesnt' have the thin yellow wrapper. This is the classic style siu-mai from the olden days - wrapperless and contains a side of pork liver and ham. (Note: if you're attached to the generic siu-mai you see at most dim sum places, it is available.) In terms of the "fat filler", that's actually part of the recipe b/c it provides the texture. The stuffed eggplant was also very good (see photo). I'd definitely come back but be prepared for lineups.
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Review from Elsa C.
Burnaby, BC
5/27/2010 1 Check-in Here
Large portions and reasonable priced dishes. They are not the traditional cart pushing dim sum, but the paper-and-pencil checking off type. Service is fast.
I prefer to park outside of their parking lot since the parking lot is usually packed.
