MenuPages

I have been going to the Nom Wah Tea Parlor since 1966, when I was 12 years old & my Dad took me there. The past decade had not been kind to the place, and it was closed for awhile, but I ate there this past Saturday and the food is better than ever. Gone is the old system of trays of food being carried around, with the diner picking dishes off the tray... but other than that, the place is unchanged. It has a new coat of paint but still has the funky casual feel. But the food is great. Truly better than ever... Nom Wah has been reborn.

This place is a dim sum gem! The owners are friendly, the food is inventive and delicious (try the crab claw), there is a nice tea selection and wine list, and they even cater to people with food allergies (most of the dim sum can be made gluten/egg/nut/sesame-free). In short, I LOVE this place and can't wait until my next meal.

I don't think visitors or city residents will be fooled by this place. The food is really poor. Nam Wah pretends to be a serious dim sum parlor. The extraordinarily dumpy walls and furniture are reminders that this is a genuinely old establishment, but the food has been downgraded and homogenized. The result is utterly bland (at best), and outright poor (like the scallion pancakes and pork-chive dumplings). A customer at a nearby table asked for chili paste. The waiter pointed to a bottle of Louisiana-style hot sauce on the table. When the knowledgeable customer persisted, the server brought a small dish of chili paste. There is little doubt that the management knows real from fake, but there's a sense of trying to get away with everything from the quality of the dim sum to the tiny, inexpensive condiments, and pricey optional teas. How Nom Wah can survive is beyond me. It's unlikely that fans of dim sum (I am one of those) will return, and visitors who know enough to bring themselves to a dim sum restaurant are not likely to be pleased either. We ordered a good deal of food because we wanted to give the place a chance. Here's a rundown of what we had: The "original" egg roll is battered and deep-fried; it's worth having. scallion pancakes: I have never had worse. cilantro and scallion rice roll; also shrimp rice roll: bland shrimp with unusually greasy rice noodles. The shrimp paste in ALL of the following dishes seems to be the same: 1) shrimp sui mai 2) fried shrimp ball 3) shrimp & snow peal leaf dumpling 4) tofu skin roll. Pan-fried pork and chive dumplings are surprisingly poor. The filling is dry and under-seasoned; the wrappers are as thick and tough as any I've ever had. Nom Wah is no longer cheap. It's no longer authentic--and, worst of all, the food leaves a lot to be desired. I'd turn back if I were you.

The tea parlor was a most welcome treat over the push cart parlors. Their menu had a good description of the teas and food offerings -- a welcome treat if you are new to this type of food. Since there was only 2 of us, we had only 5 dishes -- which was more than enough. Their house special egg fried egg roll was exceptional. We are planning to go this evening to sample the other items. Also they have done a great job in restoring this 90 year old shop to its former self .