Lunch Out of the Box

Dinkytown’s favorite dim sum palace is back.

The words dim sum are commonly translated from the Cantonese as “touch the heart.”

After 14 years of delivering dumplings, Dinkytown’s favorite dim sum palace was pushed out by development last year. But the campus loss is Roseville’s gain, as Pagoda has taken up daily dim sum service in a strip mall just off Fairview. In a bright yellow room, the carts now circle for a new crowd.

Traditionally, dim sum is a Chinese meal consisting of dumplings and small plates that are shared amongst a table. Usually, there is also tea. The practice, thought to have originally started in China’s southern Guangdong province, eventually took root in Hong Kong, and Pagoda’s dishes are mostly Cantonese and Szechuan in origin. Late morning through lunchtime is the most common time to take dim sum.

Not on the cart but on the menu, duck egg pork congee is a savory rice porridge that serves as breakfast in many Asian cultures. Ask your server for a bowl of this comfort food.

Don’t ignore the tea. Dim sum started in Cantonese tearooms after opium dens were banned during the back half of the 19th century. Order tea first and follow etiquette that says the person closest to the teapot should pour for the table before pouring for themselves.

Custardy egg tarts will beckon you from early on, but save them for the dessert round.will beckon you from early on, but save them for the dessert round.

Carts, laden with small steamer tins holding dumplings and plates with fried foods, are wheeled around the room. When a cart shows up at your table, you choose from the selection on board. Pagoda’s servers are happy to recommend dishes and walk you through what’s what before placing the tins on your table. Then they’ll mark off the dishes you take on your table card, unless you choose the all-you-can-eat option for $36 (in which case the carts keep rolling until you say stop).

Sui mai (shoo-my) is a popular dumpling. Here, it’s pork and shrimp in a thin round wrapper, steamed in a cup shape. Xiao long bao—soup dumplings—are also a favorite, but be careful when taking a bite—they’re filled with pork and hot broth.

2401 Fairview Ave. N., Roseville, 612-378-4710, pagodaroseville.com

Food and Dining editor Stephanie March writes and edits Mpls.St.Paul Magazine’s Eat + Drink section. She can also be heard Saturdays on her myTalk107.1 radio show, Weekly Dish, where she talks about the Twin Cities food scene.

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