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Jade Dynasty Restaurant
Category: Restaurants Chinese Chinese [Edit]
137 E Pender StVancouver, BC V6A 1T6
Neighbourhood: Chinatown
(604) 683-8816
- Price Range:
-
$$
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- Yes
- Parking:
- Street
- Attire:
- Casual
- Good for Groups:
- Yes
- Good for Kids:
- Yes
- Takes Reservations:
- Yes
- Take Away:
- Yes
- Waiter Service:
- Yes
- Outdoor Seating:
- No
- Wi-Fi:
- No
- Good For:
- Brunch
- Noise Level:
- Quiet
- Ambience:
- Casual
- Has TV:
- Yes
26 reviews for Jade Dynasty Restaurant
Review Highlights
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"...every single dish, but we had about six, including congee." In 3 reviews -
"whole separate vegetarian menu." In 3 reviews -
"...friendly when whitey (me) orders in mandarin so that's cute." In 3 reviews
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26 reviews in English
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Review from Farzeen J.
12/20/2011
Not bad at all!
nice hot dimsum, and unique choices as well. one of the more unusual dishes was kabocha dimsum with corn and shrimp, We also had a crab with white truffle pan friend dumpling. aww maan, I want some right now! The wide rice noodles with mushroom was reeeaallly flavorful as well. If you are in chinatown and want dim sum, i would suggest this place. (but then again, i have nothing to compare it to in BC).
Staff was awesome too.. : D -
Review from Zach R.
5/25/2012
M fiancee and I are both from the west coast but now live in Pittsburgh where there are very few Chinese establishments and essentially none that serve Dim Sum. We went to Chinatown excited for the prospect of a delicious lunch and we were not disappointed. The Dim Sum was certainly not the best, but it was the best we'd had in years. We were extremely satisfied until.....
The doom. Food poisoning for both of us. Starting around 6pm (after a late 2pm lucnh) we spent the rest of the night in the fetal position trying to keep our food inside....Yikes!!!
I am not sure when I will be back in Vancouver, but suffice it to say, I will not seek out Jade Dynasty for a tasty meal again...ever. I hope that if you try this place you have better luck than we did. -
Review from Dung N.
5/24/2012 3 photos
We checked out Chinatown, since it was supposed to be the biggest one in Canada. It was kinda dissapointing...Even the food wasn't good. Dim sum was $5.50 per item! The dumplings were bad, it was supposed to be the watery kind and was dry. :(
Expensive and not even good. Boo!!!!! -
Review from Tom K.
5/26/2012
Terrible chicken /cashew, wonderful scallop & prawns, ok service, no monetary allowance for the terrible chicken offered
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Review from Theresa W.
Vancouver, BC
10/4/2011
This place is a choice selection of the eldery Chinese people, and I can never get myself a seat before 11am. The food here is decent, the order sheet has a large variety and the prices are okay. The place is small though, and service isn't the greatest.
Their better dishes include the eggplant and the dough fritter wrapped in rice roll. They used to have the salted egg yolk custard bun, but since removed it from their menu.
It's a very popular spot regardless, and their regular dim sum menu (which differs from the early morning one by having a greater selection of food) is pretty extensive and full of deliciousness. Don't get the deep fried squid though, as it's far too chewy in texture and ends up being a bit soggy on the inside.Listed in: 30 Day Review Challenge, Dim Sum!
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Review from Brian G.
9/19/2011
The Jade Dynasty Restaurant didn't leave me with the best first impression, and since I'm not from the area, that was the only chance they had. I came here with a group of seven on a late Sunday morning. There were four other groups in the restaurant, so it wasn't exactly busy. We ordered several dishes and throughout our visit, we ordered several more. What I noticed was that some dishes came quicker than others even though these seemed more complex to prepare. Does this mean they were sitting on a hotplate and waiting to be ordered while it took over 45 minutes to finally get two orders that we had requested at the very beginning? I don't want to think about that, dear reader.
Overall, my group left full but not quite satisfied with their meal. We will make a better effort to find a decent Dim Sum restaurant the next time we visit Vancouver. -
Review from Todd B.
8/16/2011
My wife and I ate here today, based on a recommendation from our tour guide at the Chinese gardens just down the block. When we arrived, the place was packed and we got the last table. The ratio of Chinese-to-other was about 50/50, which I took as a good sign.
As others have pointed out, they do dim sum for lunch here, but the restaurant is too small to do cart service like they do at big dim sum restaurants. Instead, you get a paper ordering sheet, like at a sushi bar, and a menu and a sheet of photos showing some of the dishes. One great advantage to this approach is that everything is fresher than if he had made the rounds on a cart before stopping at your table.
We made a point to order only things we'd never had before at the dim sum restaurants back home in Denver, and I liked them all. I won't describe every single dish, but we had about six, including congee. They have five or six different variations of congee, and we had one with corn and mushrooms (vegetarian).
I thought the service was fine - comparable to other places I've been before, which is to say that you gotta get people's attention if you want something. The waitress will not actually stand around waiting, so you gotta flag her down.
Oh, and even though we ate a lot, the total came to exactly $24. For some strange reason, whenever we go out for dim sum anywhere, it always costs $24. It doesn't matter if we eat a little or eat a lot. In the US, it costs 24 US dollars. Here in Canada, it cost 24 Canadian dollars. Weird.
Speaking of money, we heard they don't take credit cards, so be sure to bring cash. -
Review from Emily-Anne P.
Vancouver, BC
7/17/2011 1 Check-in Here
I'm a big fan of Jade Dynasty. I find the price to food to quality to service ratio to be really good.
They've got a really good selection of popular dim sum items and you can order off the menu for chef's specials etc if you speak a bit of mandarin or cantonese. They're always super friendly when whitey (me) orders in mandarin so that's cute.
I find the amount of food for price to be good for dim sum in Vancouver. It's not overly heavy or greasy as some faster dim sum places tend to be. It's also a nice place right down in Chinatown that is fresh and fast. -
Review from Malloreigh M.
Vancouver, BC
11/8/2011 1 Check-in Here
this place has a (surprise!) whole separate vegetarian menu! i was wandering around chinatown feeling adventurous and slightly hungry (as usual) and spied "vegetarian" on their sign. went right over there and the friendly staff showed me the veg menu and let me peruse it without harassment (which i appreciated). prices were pretty standard but i felt like giving it a go, and sat down at one of the classic chinese restaurant tables for a snack.
ordered the spicy veggie beef with green beans. it was fantastic. totally what i wanted. quality as expected - good flavour. there were quite a few other items on the menu that i really wanted to try. i'll be back with eight+ friends for a party around one of those great big round tables with the spinny thing in the centre.
also got to watch dancing with the stars while i ate. win-win.Listed in: Vegan Vancouver
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Review from Yarn E.
12/28/2011
The food was hot and tasty. I really liked the different kinds of dim sum. Great service, too!
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Review from Diana B.
3/1/2011 2 Check-ins Here
Situation: Party of 5, huge appetites- craving for savory Chinese food
Result: 6 items ordered, only 1 did the job (pea shoots sautéd in garlic) service was excellent overall.
Still in search for some authentic tasting Chinese food in Chinatown.... Any suggestions?? -
Review from kevin l.
8/5/2009
Coming from San Francisco, CA I was hoping Vancouver would have some good Chinese food. Gf and I were walking around Chinatown and decided to catch a late lunch. We were seated rather quickly however the food wasn't very tasty and it took forever just to wave down a waiter.
Poor food quality and service, go somewhere else. -
Review from Yoony P.
1/8/2010 ROTD 2/2/2010
This place has really good dimsum.
Not much else to say--even good egg tarts! -
Review from Lilly T.
9/16/2009
I was really excited to try dim sum because I remember it being really good in Vancouver, back in the day. Apparently it was truly way back then because I was really disappointed with the dim sum here. We were surprised because a local recommended this place ..
Everything was just meh and the prices were unbelievably expensive. I also prefer places where they push the cart so you can see what you want to eat. Here, you have to pre-order with a card. The shumai was also too soft for my liking, but the hagow was good. The fried taro didn't have mushrooms (which I don't mind), but the boy prefers it with.
Overall, an OK experience. I don't think I'll be back here for dim sum. -
Review from Greg R.
8/8/2009
Worse service ever - food not great either!
We came here last week visiting from Seattle and thought we would stop in. They wouldn't give us the bigger table (put a reserved sign up AFTER we sat down but nobody showed up in our hour there) and crammed 8 of us at a 5 person table. Everyone gave us dirty looks when we asked for anything (like forks or napkins since we had two kids). I've eaten at quite a few dim sum places and the food here is pretty soggy and salty as well so save your money for one the other establishments along the same street! -
Review from Jason C.
Vancouver, BC
8/28/2011
I came here once in early 2006 with my coworkers and absolutely loved it. The food is arguably the best in Chinatown and service makes me feel at home. I brought my husband here shortly after and he became a huge fan. We've been regulars ever since. Living in Yaletown, there aren't too many choices when it comes to good Chinese food, so this one is definitely a welcome choice. Every so often, I'd take my friends here and we always have a lovely time. Love this place!
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Review from mimo k.
3/23/2010
My sister's go to place for dimsum in Vancouver. The food was fresh and tasty. Order from a paper checklist, which was new to me. But then I like how the food was delivered fresh and hot. We only ordered from the dimsum menu; the regular menu seemed a little pricey. We were there for lunch on a Saturday and was seated right away.
Not related to the restaurant, but be careful with parking. My sister's car got broken into in a paid parking structure nearby. :( boo. Didn't mar our lunch experience too much though. -
Review from Michelle P.
Vancouver, BC
4/13/2011 1 Check-in Here
One of the best Dim Sum feasts I've had for a while. The food came quick! Make sure you come hungry because everything is tasty! Eight of us sat down starving, eight of us left full and content.
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Review from K C.
Vancouver, BC
9/18/2011
We went to our standby dim sum restaurant this morning and the quality is as good and consistent as ever. A bowl of congee, barbecue pork rice rolls, har kow, bean curd and mushrooms, radish cake left us satisfied and full. Oh, I almost forgot we also had one of their signature dim sum items, shrimp paste and eggplant....very good. It would be nice to have more vegetable options but the quality for the price is very good. They also have a discounted menu for early risers which attracts quite a few seniors which adds welcome character to the restaurant.
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Review from Luisa D.
7/1/2011 1 Check-in Here
I'll definitely go back here. The first course of simple gai lan was so tender compared to some woody offerings at other restaurants. This place isn't fancy but it's fast and delicious. I got little headache after which made me wonder about MSG though. I'm going to give it another try before I come to any conclusions.
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Review from Calvin L.
9/21/2008 1 photo
Came here three times it was that good. First came for dinner. The crab was huge (3 1/2 lbs), fresh, moist, tasty, and not overpowered by the sauce. The vegetables were also very fresh and tasty (unlike the veggies we had elsewhere in Vancouver).
We came because my father-in-law asked a local about the best place to eat and this was the recommendation. This was despite me not liking the general look & feel of Chinatown. It feels more beat up and dirty than even San Francisco's Chinatown. I saw someone shooting up in an alleyway.
After the dinner, we came back twice for dim sum. It was the best dim sum that I've had in a long time (maybe in 10 years). Everything was excellent unlike most dim sum places where at best you get one or two good dishes: the shrimp dumplings, beef riblets, mango pudding (shaped like fish), chicken feet, shanghai dumplings, beef balls, congee, etc...
If you come before 11, you get the cheaper menu. It seems to be get very crowded for dim sum by 11 with business from local older folk and tourists. It seemed less crowded at night with at least 1/2 being the non Chinese crowd.
Plates could be a little cleaner. -
Review from pete d.
Vancouver, BC
6/7/2010
Only been here for dim sum.
Word to those who might remember this location as the "Buddhist Vegetarian" - it's not anymore.
While I do love my dim sum served from a cart, depending on the time of day and number of people in the restaurant the cart food can be a little less that optimally fresh. When ordering Jade Dynasty's dim sum you check off what you want from a list, which actually works pretty well in ensuring the food you get is freshly prepared and piping hot. There's pictures on the menu - so it's *almost* like ordering from a cart.
Food's well prepared and reasonably priced.
Regarding Mona's comment, unfortunately the area is rife with petty crime from the nearby skid row area so:
1.) don't leave ANYTHING of any value visible in your car (even loose change) - stow it in your trunk
2.) if you have out of province plates, be extra careful where you park -
Review from Douglas L.
8/17/2008
Being from Southern California, I wasn't ready for the way they serve Dim Sum. They bring you a menu with what they serve, and you pick it like a sushi menu. Then they prepare the dim sum to order, and serve it hot out of the steamer.
Priced reasonable, and excellent flavors and quality. -
Review from Roger A.
9/13/2009
busy, seemed dirty.
food decent. -
Review from Chris C.
6/23/2010
Absolutely disguisting! We had chicken and mixed vegetables, chicken fried rice, and wanton soup. All of it was terrible. Our meal was $42 and we ended up eating afterwards because we could not eat the horrible food at Jade. The chicken was poor quality. It was like we were eating joints and cartilage (maybe we were). You've been warned!
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Review from Yao C.
Vancouver, BC
8/31/2011
My friends visited Vancouver last week, and I wanted them to try dim-sum, and this is one of the rare places that serve dim-sum near downtown. It is a small restaurant and they did not have a website. Though it was a Monday, it turned out to be quite busy and I was glad I had reserved a table. The menu and order sheet are in Chinese, so westerners have difficulty ordering. A western couple sitting beside us pointed to our food and asked what that was, and we had to read the number to them. We ordered 10 dim-sum items, and the waitress commented that it was a lot, but we insisted. She also suggested to the couple that they had ordered too much, and may not be able to finish. Our portion was adequate for 3 persons. We liked the fried taro, siew mai, fried dumplings, bean curd rolls. The waitress served us one wrong dish, but we didn't realise till we finish. They did the same to the couple, and just as the lady picked up the item, the waitress came back and took the chopstick from her and put the item back into the steam basket. Towards 2pm, the items were running short, and the couple did not get one of their orders, so we gave them our share. Throughout the meal, the staff's manners were curt. The bill was reasonable, though my friend wondered it they only gave fortune cookies to westerners, ;-). On the whole, if you prefer dim-sum near downtown, instead of traveling to Richmond, and do not expect much from service, this is a place still worth going for the food.
