I have read about several Seattle restaurants that offer Dim Sum: House of Hong, Sea Garden, Ocean City, Floata, and Top Gun Seafood. Which would be the best choice?

These are all quite reliably good. I haven't been to any recently, though, as I tend to patronize restaurants in our south Seattle neighborhood for dim sum visits. Of the ones you list, I suppose I'd vote for House of Hong.

The key to getting the best dim sum treats, both freshest and most varied, is to go relatively early. But be careful of that approach, though, since if you go *too* early, the kitchen will still be preparing some of the most interesting stuff, and you'll be full before it appears on the carts.

Fritzrl

I would agree with HoH, although we haven't been to all you listed. One advantage HoH has is parking, both in their own lot and in the big lot under the freeway half a block away. HoH does a big business and is pretty reliable. Go for the glutenous rice - requires patience; they don't come around with it very often.

Do NOT go to Ocean City. I've eaten my way through Hong Kong and Taiwan and it has to be one of the dirtiest restaurants I've been in. I haven't eaten there in years because of it.

You can also try Seven Stars, it has received good reviews.

We love China Gate in the international district and they valet your cars which is BIG in the ID as there is no parking there.

Jade Garden is the best dim sum here. Another place that is good, but a bit south of the city, is Imperial Garden in Kent (I'm sort of curious to know where you got that list? I don't think those places make anyone's list of the best dim sum, except I know HOH has it's fans).
BUT, fyi, Seattle doesn't have a lot of great dim sum. We really suffer in comparison to dim sum in Vancouver/Richmond B.C., which has the best Chinese food in general in North America.

If you want to read a thread about places to go and places to avoid at all costs, here you are: http://forums.egullet.org/index.php?showtopic=74873

Someone suggested Seven Stars Pepper-it's a fantastic place, but it is Szechuan-they don't do dim sum.

I should mention-on weekends, if you go between 10:30 and 12:30, expect a wait at Jade Garden. Of course, if you go early or late at any dim sum place you won't get as good a selection, so my advice is to go then (especially on Sunday, when selection is best), just don't be surprised at the wait.

If more diners would hang around the kitchen door when big boxes of frozen dim sum are delivered, there would be less enthusiasm for it.

Gone are the days when I used to watch ancient Chinese in the back of restaurants making wonton.

Actually, I know of one tiny, hole-in-the wall restaurant in the ID in which one can dine and watch the proprietor sit at a nearby table hand-rolling dumpling dough, and filling each one with carefully-seasoned fillings. No frozen stuff in the place.

And, no, I ain't tellin' where -- it's hard enough to find a seat in the place already

Thanks for all the suggestions and the link to the other thread about Dim Sum places. It looks like Jade Garden, House of Hong, Honey Court and Sun Ya are the favorites and that it would be a good idea to arrive before 11 AM for Saturday lunch. I appreciate all your help; now we just have to make a choice!

If you peek into the kitchen at Jade Garden, you'll see about 15 different stations where they're making dim sum.

If the frozen story is true, maybe that's why everyone says most of Seattle's ds is no good.

Maybe PMS knows something I don't know.

When I googled "frozen dim sum manufacturers" I got 129,000 hits. Somebody must be buying the stuff, but, if this site is to be believed, no restaurants in Seattle.

You can buy frozen dim sum at any Asian grocery, so all those hits may not be aimed at restaurant sales.

But, no one here is saying some restaurants don't use it. We're only saying that our favorites don't. I'm sure there are plenty of bad places willing to use the cheapest stuff possible.

Oh!

I am reminded of the TV ad in which men dining at the "world renown" Geneva Restaurant (on First Hill) don't have a clue when their first course is switched for a burrito from Taco Bell.

Also of English friends who, after belittling tea bags, swooned over tea in a pot but choked when they took off the lid and found two tea bags within.

I believe in angels, and I would like to believe that my dim sum is made for me in the back room by my neighbors using knowlege passed on to them by the dim sum guru, but that frozen dim sum delivery wised me up and left me crying in my Tsingtao beer.