Dining review: Add Golden Palace to your list of go-to Chinese spots

We arrived at Golden Palace a few minutes before the restaurant opened on a Saturday morning. We were there for dim sum, and as we waited for the doors to open, I explained my dim sum strategy to the rest of our party of four: Get there early so you can be among the first in line. Once inside, try to get a table near the kitchen so as to have the best selection when the carts start rolling into the dining room.

We may have to be assertive, I said. Golden Palace has only been open a few months, and it’s one of just a handful of dim sum houses in the Triangle. Seating is usually first-come, first-served, but in my experience that doesn’t prevent dim sum veterans from rushing past you to secure a prime table.

Then the doors opened, and we were the only party to enter. A young man – I’m guessing high school age – escorted us into the dining room and said, “Y’all just sit wherever you like.” Thus began the most entertaining dim sum experience of my life.

Our waiter’s welcoming words – a phrase heard thousands of times a day in diners and cafes all over the South, but never in my experience in a dim sum restaurant – was the first clue that we were in for an unusual experience. The second was when he put dinner menus on our table rather than the traditional card that cart-pushers use to mark dishes as they’re served. When I asked him if dim sum was indeed in the offing, his confused look made it clear that he was not, shall we say, steeped in the tradition.

“I have no idea. This is just my third day here.” This would prove to be his default response to just about any question put to him, confirming that his training hadn’t gone much beyond issuing him the Chinese embroidered red silk waiter’s jacket he was wearing. He was pleasant enough, though, and willingly sought answers from the manager – who confirmed that, yes, dim sum was indeed in the offing.

We barely had time to order a pot of tea and take in our surroundings (the owner has done a commendable job of giving the former Captain J’s International Buffet building a makeover, though the wall-spanning mural of iconic North Carolina scenes and historical figures remains as a jarring reminder of the building’s earlier days as an O’Charley’s) when the first cart arrived.

And close on its heels, the second. This made another key element of dim sum strategy – namely, to pace yourself – a greater challenge than usual. The selection was the most extensive I recall seeing in these parts, which made resisting temptation even harder. In no time, our table was covered from edge to edge with dumplings, buns and other dim sum dainties.

Of the more than a dozen items we sampled, only a couple fell short of the mark: chewy beef short ribs and siu mai marred by thick, gummy wrappers. Everything else was solidly executed, from shrimp dumplings to baked pineapple custard buns. Fried taro root dumplings, turnip cakes, Chinese broccoli, shrimp rice noodle rolls (ordered separately), and the Chinese rice porridge, congee (here enriched with pork and preserved egg), were all on point. Golden Palace’s rendition of my perennial favorite, sticky rice in lotus leaf, didn’t let me down.

But the consensus hit of the table was a new one to me, featuring savory spheres of minced shrimp encased in crisp ribbons of fried wonton. Our server didn’t know the English name of the dish (the language barrier can be either frustrating or entertaining, depending on your mood), but a handy dim sum menu with pictures informed us that they’re simply called fried shrimp balls.

The dining room was beginning to fill by the time we left after an hour or so. According to the manager, the late-arriving dim sum crowd is not unusual here. So much for my elaborate strategy.

Broad as it is, the dim sum menu is dwarfed by the dinner offering, an extensive survey of authentic regional specialties – mostly Cantonese and Szechwan – with a sprinkling of Chinese-American favorites. The half dozen dishes I sampled one night barely scratched the surface, but they were enough to win Golden Palace a place on my go-to list of Chinese restaurants.

Hong Kong-style wonton soup, chockablock with translucent pork- and shrimp-filled wontons and bok choy, and served in ample portion for two or more to share, will spoil you for ordinary wonton soup. And it’s easy to understand why fried lamb, a fiery stir-fry punctuated with mushrooms, peppers, onions and cashews, is one of the handful of items listed under the Chef’s Specialty heading.

Salt & pepper soft shell crabs, fried leek crescents (think turnovers, but savory and authentically oily), and Chinese broccoli in oyster sauce are also on the money. And fans of xiaolongbao, the exquisite soup dumplings once served at Captain J’s (and to my knowledge, nowhere else in the Triangle), will be thrilled to know that the chef who made them has returned to Golden Palace. They’re as good as ever.

Peking duck is high on my list of things to try next. Also one of the spicy hot pots, and twice-cooked pork belly, and edamame with mustard greens. Since dim sum can always be ordered from the menu (it’s served from the carts only on Saturdays and Sundays from 11 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.), the fried shrimp balls are a must.

In theory, I suppose you could even order an entire meal in the evening from the dim sum menu. But think of the entertainment you’d miss.

This story was originally published November 5, 2015 at 6:00 AM with the headline "Dining review: Add Golden Palace to your list of go-to Chinese spots."