The Empress Seafood Restaurant

The Empress Seafood Restaurant is a classic dim sum joint. It's huge and always bustling, with first dates tentatively bumping chopsticks over Singapore noodles, family gatherings at big round tables, sometimes even a karaoke setup left over from last night’s sweet-sixteen party. Although you can order almost every Chinese dish (American-style) imaginable off the big menu, dim sum is the real draw here. The offerings are listed on a separate, paper dim sum menu, or you can just grab dishes from the women walking by with carts full of buns, dumplings, tripe, taro root and other delights. Service is efficient and friendly, and with seating for 300 (or more), there’s never a worry about having to wait for a table — unless it’s a Chinese holiday. But then you can watch the party while you wait.