Post-paddling Prawns: Dim Sum at LTH

Today was the 5th annual Flatwater Classic, a canoe/kayak race on the Chicago River, from about Addison on the north side to 19th street (Ping Tom Park) on the south. Mrs. F. entered it for the first time, and made a quite good time of 1:57 for the 7+ mile trip. I drove to several points along the way for photographs, but avoided eating so we could hit Chinatown after the finish.

So a nice walk down and back on wentworth to stretch kayak cramped legs, and we went into "Little" Three Happiness. Dim Sum was still available at 1:30 (they serve till 3, as do many in Chinatown), and we weren't hungry enough for main courses, so we ordered what we thought was very little, seeing as each dish was $1.50 to $1.80. I figured that would get us, for instance, 1 Char Siu Bao, not 3!

1) Shrimp Dumplings : nearly transparent dumplings filled with large pieces of shrimp. Very tasty, great texture.
2) Spring Rolls : always a favorite of mine. These are waaaay above average, filled with meat (dunno if it's pork or chicken, probably pork), shrimp and mushrooms, not just cabbage and bean sprouts. (Only 2 of these, 3 of everything else)
3) Char Siu Bao: These were hot, steamy and fluffy, with tasty meat inside.
4) Shrimp Balls: basically shrimp toast without the toast. Almost too hot to eat, minced shrimp held together by egg whites (and probably cornstarch). These went well with every one of the sauces they provided (soy, hoi sin, chili garlic).
5) Beef pancake rice noodle. We didn't know what we were getting here, and it was a pleasant surprise. Ground beef in a thin layer between rice noodles. Dark soy sauce drizzled on. This is the kind of thing that a high-end restaurant could get away with $11 on an appetizer menu and get raved about in the newspaper, assuming there was a parsley garnish (heh). Very tasty, but we were getting full here, and only polished off two of the three (the third is in my fridge, I don't know if it will survive the chill well).
6) Sesame balls: classic fried sticky dough with sweet sesame paste inside. Ate one on the way home, the boys got the other two.

For $11 and change, we had a feast! I'll have to go back next time I'm there and try a real meal. They had an enormous menu, with dozens of specials on the wall all of which sounded very interesting (what is XO sauce, anyway?).

XO Sauce is a seafood based sauce. Made with chilli oil, dried scallops, dried shrimp, etc. It's really good with fried rice, beef ribs, and basically anything. You can get a bottle made by Lee Kum Kee at almost any Chinese grocery store. I used to make a bowl of white rice last by eating it with the sauce... =)