(UPDATED 1/16/19) New Canton has apparently closed its doors permanently. The restaurant parking lot and building has been enclosed by a fence for some time now. No known reason for the closure.
Original Post
Description and review of New Canton which is known, in particular, for their dim sum.
Dim Sum for Sunday brunch – who could ask for more? My daughter and I have been going to the New Canton Seafood Restaurant on Broadway for dim sum for years. Most often it has been on Sunday in the late morning (aka brunch).
New Canton is a bit worn and dated, but don’t let that put you off. If you have not been there before – just head upstairs. The upstairs dining room is good-sized but it does fill up a bit later in the late morning with the after-church crowd.
There is a parking lot in front of the restaurant, but I prefer to park on the street nearby.
On a recent Sunday a friend and I had planned to have brunch prior to going to the movies. I was in a dim sum mood, and she had never been to New Canton, so it was fate. New Canton opens at 10:00 a.m. and we arrived shortly after 11:00 a.m.
How Dim Sum Works
When it comes to dim sum the more the merrier. New Canton has a number of large tables with a glass Lazy Susan in the middle of the table to accommodate large parties.
SacramentoRevealed.com – All Things Sacramento (from a personal perspective)
You are served tea immediately after you are seated, and then the parade of carts leaves the kitchen and starts making its way around the room. Four or more carts can be making the rounds at the same time.
As each cart stops at your table the server will immediately show you the content of the various steamer baskets if you do not recognize the name of the dish. You can then indicate yes/no and the server will mark your order on the bill left on the table when you were served tea.
Other carts will have offerings in plain sight and it is just a matter of pointing and indicating you would like that particular item. Pointing is perfectly polite when having dim sum.
If you want to know a bit more about a particular dish you can always ask – but that does not mean that the explanation will necessarily enlighten you.
It never hurts to order something that you have not had before – you may like it. If not, it is not the end of the world. Dim sum means small plates.
If a particular cart does not have anything you want – another cart will. It is wise to choose several dishes to start and then pause to decide how hungry you are before making additional selections. Keep in mind that if there is something you really want – and you pass it up – it may not re-appear before you are full and ready to go.
My friend really enjoyed our dim sum experience. Before we left she was already planning to introduce a young woman she is mentoring to dim sum.
Some of my favorite dishes dim sum dishes are: Siu Mai, Steamed BBQ pork Bun, Baked BBQ Pork Bun, Pot Stickers, Steamed Beef Balls, Hai Gow and almost everything else with scallops and shrimp.
See related blog posts: Walk Down Memory Lane and Annual Sacramento Restaurant Review Recap (2017)
Comments on New Canton?
Where do you like to go for Dim Sum? What are your favorite dishes?
Subscribe to SacramentoRevealed.com to receive the weekly (with an occasional hiatus) newsletter direct to your inbox! Comments are welcome.
We really like dim sum and have had it often in various cities for our “breakfast”.
When we moved back to Sacramento about 6 years ago, we went to New Canton on the recommendation of our neighbor. It was without a doubt the worst dim sum we’ve ever had.
The interior is really tired and left me feeling that it might not be all that clean either. Most every dish was cold when it should have been “steaming”. The ingredients did not taste fresh and the sauces — which should vary from dish to dish–essentially were two– a sweet “red” sauce and an unflavored, flat chili. It was an extremely disappointing experience. We have not been back since.
Pat, thanks for your comment. Kathy