Ming Dynasty

As someone who enjoys going out for dim sum, Sacramento has surprisingly few choices to partake in it. A few places have closed down (goodbye New Canton and Hong Kong Islander) without new places to replace them. So we are left with just a few in town.

Ming Dynasty is one of the places that Sacramentans get to go to if they want some traditional dim sum. It’s not a new to Sac, and folks have been enjoying the food here for a number of years already. The restaurant isn’t trendy and isn’t that pretty to look at, but it does do the job.

One of my favorite things about Ming Dynasty is the fact that they still employ push cart ladies to bring the dim sum to you. The traditional way of having dim sum is to select the food items you’d like from carts that roll around the restaurant. There are a number of different carts and they all carry different food items. When one comes your way you can ask them to stop; then you just tell the lady which items from the cart you’d like. Once you’ve chosen all the things you want she’ll grab your bill and stamp off how many things you got to keep track of everything.

It’s a unique and fun way to dine. Unfortunately, after the COVID pandemic, many dim sum places stopped the carts and just went to a table menu for you to order items off of. I hope that restaurants that went to this method will go back to the traditional style as it is so much better of an experience.

Dim sum places always seem to be crowded and Ming Dynasty is no different. The restaurant is bustling with patrons all the time. Go early, go late… there always will be people in there eating.

Thankfully, there are many seating options… even for large parties. I love getting ten people together and sitting at a big round table with a lazy susan in the middle. We all get to share the different dim sum dishes the people select.

When it comes to the types of dim sum at Ming Dynasty, they have pretty much all the traditional ones you can think of. Some of my favorites include the crispy taro balls and the rice wrapped in bamboo leaves.

My friends always order the pork buns, har gow (shrimp dumplings) , shumai (ground pork dumplings), egg tarts, and turnip cakes.

I’m actually always tempted to order the chicken feet because they are so flavorful, but I tend to chicken out as I’m not a huge fan of the texture. I will admit the flavor is delicious though! I have you haven’t had them, I’d suggest you try them at least once.

Other than the carts, you can also order noodle and rice dishes off the menu to supplement the dim sum. I personally love getting Hong Kong style (half crispy and half soft) noodles, wet chow fun, and Singapore style noodles.

All-in-all the variety is there but the quality is middling. Ming Dynasty does the job you want, but in the back of your mind you know there are much better options out there. This is the place that’s local and does a decent enough job when you want dim sum.

Website: www.mingdynastysac.com

Address: 1211 Broadway, Sacramento, Ca 95818