# Why don't Chinese restaurants open for breakfast? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [June 18, 2002, 3:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-chinese-restaurants-open-for-breakfast/114701 "2002-06-18T15:53:37Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Eva\_Luna](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/e495f1/32.png) [@Eva\_Luna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eva_Luna)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2002, 1:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-chinese-restaurants-open-for-breakfast/114701/21 "2002-06-19T13:53:45Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by MikeG \* > \*\ ***Eva** , did you know that the little bakery place under the El tracks at Argyle has some dim sum things? Specifically I have seen wide rice noodles with BBQ pork and shrimp, sticky rice, and a few kinds of buns (bean paste, pork, and chicken IIRC). I wonder if you couldn’t stop in the before heading upstairs and get a nice treat for breakfast. > > Re: the pig, I assume you are referring to Sun Wah, the Treasure of Chinatown North! You have to try their steamed dover sole- it is simply the best I’ve ever had and everyone I’ve ever given it to has been blown away. Oh, and the Hot sour soup is the best I’ve had on three continents. \*\* Dude, you’re killing me! I’m at work in the Loop, and haven’t eaten breakfast yet… I knew the bakery (you’re talking about the one on the south side of the street, right?) had other stuff, and have tried a few things, but I have to go on the weekends becasue they don’t open until 8 during the week, and I’m already on my way downtown by then. And yes, I was referring to Sun Wah; I’ve never tried their other stuff, because the barbeque was just way too greasy-looking for me to deal with. I’ll have to check out the other stuff, though; thanks for the tip! I’d kill for a good Asian noodle shop of any sort downtown, though; nothing better on a -40 degree day than a steaming bowl of pho… ---
**Author:** ![hawthorne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/c89c15/32.png) [@hawthorne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hawthorne)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2002, 2:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-chinese-restaurants-open-for-breakfast/114701/22 "2002-06-19T14:08:14Z")
Having just returned from China (well the SARs of Macau and Hong Kong and the rebel province/ breakaway state of Taiwan), **congee** seems to be the popular choice. This is rice porridge with various condiments including hundred-year-old egg (not as scary as it looks), pork, pickles etc. Soy bean porridge is also eaten, but I’d stay away from that if I were you. The fried bready thing that goes with is nice though. Congee and a spot of fruit is what most of the locals go for. You can certainly find that for breakfast here (Australia) but most people of Chinese origin presumably breakfast at home. ---
**Author:** ![handy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b5a626/32.png) [@handy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/handy)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2002, 3:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-chinese-restaurants-open-for-breakfast/114701/23 "2002-06-19T15:31:24Z")
I saw a chinese restaurant open in the AM, they just serve american food then. ---
**Author:** ![JustPlainBryan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/57b2e6/32.png) [@JustPlainBryan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JustPlainBryan)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2002, 4:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-chinese-restaurants-open-for-breakfast/114701/24 "2002-06-19T16:30:19Z")
Here in Los Angeles, we have Mexican, Chinese, local steakhouses, and Pizza places open for breakfast (usually on Sundays)! The Chinese restaurant that I know of that does breakfast is called The Empress Pavilion in Chinatown, which the SO has gone to. She had Dim Sum there, and she tells me that it was one of the best breakfasts she ever had. As for the others, Almost every Mexican joint around here has Huevos Rancheros or Chorizo and eggs, both very yummy. Steakhouses usually have generic breakfast fare, and pizza places just serve pizza, which can be a great breakfast in and of itself. California Pizza Kitchen has a breakfast pizza if I’m not mistaken. ---
**Author:** ![rjung](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/45deac/32.png) [@rjung](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rjung)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2002, 6:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-chinese-restaurants-open-for-breakfast/114701/25 "2002-06-19T18:24:59Z")
I don’t know, for my money, L.A.-area _dim sum_ is a toss-up between Empress Pavillion and Ocean Seafood. Though I think the _really_ smart move is to go to Montery Park/Alhambra/San Gabriel and get _dim sum_ there. 😉 (and I notice that **Los Angeles** magazine rated Ocean Star Seafood in Monterey Park as the best place in L.A. for _dim sum_…) ---
**Author:** ![xicanorex](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/a88e57/32.png) [@xicanorex](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/xicanorex)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2002, 9:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-chinese-restaurants-open-for-breakfast/114701/26 "2002-06-19T21:15:30Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Crusoe \* > \*\* don’t see Indian or Mexican restaurants (to name but two) open for breakfast. Why would Chinese restaurants be any different? \*\* Maybe in London and in other parts of the USA, but at least in Texas **ARE** Mexican restaurants open for breakfast!. They usually offer the regular Mexican breakfast fare or mexican sweet bread with coffee or juice. Chilaquiles comes to mind . . . .yummy!!! XicanoreX ---
**Author:** ![PublicBlast](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/779978/32.png) [@PublicBlast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PublicBlast)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2002, 10:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-chinese-restaurants-open-for-breakfast/114701/27 "2002-06-19T22:12:45Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Eva Luna \* > \*\* > And yes, I was referring to Sun Wah; I’ve never tried their other stuff, because the barbeque was just way too greasy-looking for me to deal with. I’ll have to check out the other stuff, though; thanks for the tip! I’d kill for a good Asian noodle shop of any sort downtown, though; nothing better on a -40 degree day than a steaming bowl of pho… \*\* Second the pho, which by the way is Vietnamese breakfast food. [hijack]Sun Wah is good, huh? I’m always terrified by what I see in the window. There’s usually this orange metroid/jellyfish-looking thing that scares me away to a pho restaurant.[/hijack] [semi-hijack]There are Indian places that serve breakfast on Devon Street. Idli and/or chaat. Hmmmm…[/semi-hijack] I think the overall trend here is that ethnic restaurants in their own communities will serve breakfast, but otherwise they feel that the American clientele are unlikely to stop in for a vaguely foreign breakfast. ---
**Author:** ![Eva\_Luna](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/e495f1/32.png) [@Eva\_Luna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eva_Luna)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2002, 10:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-chinese-restaurants-open-for-breakfast/114701/28 "2002-06-19T22:38:50Z")
The orange thing, I’m told, is barbequed squid…call me a Philistine, but I sure as heck have no urge to eat a barbequed squid! ---
**Author:** ![GopherGod72](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/f0a364/32.png) [@GopherGod72](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GopherGod72)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2002, 10:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-chinese-restaurants-open-for-breakfast/114701/29 "2002-06-19T22:43:47Z")
WHats Dim-Sum? ---
**Author:** ![Eva\_Luna](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/e495f1/32.png) [@Eva\_Luna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eva_Luna)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2002, 11:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-chinese-restaurants-open-for-breakfast/114701/30 "2002-06-19T23:10:18Z")
Kind of like Chinese tapas…small portions of various yummy things, especially various dumplings, which you snatch from various moving carts that are roving the room. Easy to run up a tab quickly! ---
**Author:** ![JillGat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/9fc29f/32.png) [@JillGat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JillGat)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2002, 12:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-chinese-restaurants-open-for-breakfast/114701/31 "2002-06-20T00:11:07Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by acsenray \* > \*\*We don’t get much Mexican breakfast here in the northern U.S., either. McDonald’s used to have a breakfast burrito, though. \*\* Oh, man. Come to New Mexico. Big time Mexican breakfasts here. Huevos Rancheros, menudo, you name it. ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2002, 2:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-chinese-restaurants-open-for-breakfast/114701/32 "2002-06-20T02:04:30Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Eva Luna \* > \*\*Kind of like Chinese tapas…small portions of various yummy things, especially various dumplings, which you snatch from various moving carts that are roving the room. Easy to run up a tab quickly! \*\* When my friends and I go to Dim Sum (Chow Chao City in Boston usually) we always run up a bill that comes to $11/person. It doesn’t matter how long we’re there, or how much we eat, it always comes to the same amount, within a buck. ---
**Author:** ![even\_sven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/dfb087/32.png) [@even\_sven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/even_sven)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2002, 2:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-chinese-restaurants-open-for-breakfast/114701/33 "2002-06-20T02:12:27Z")
In my town it is pretty normal for a restraunt to serve only breakfast and lunch, or only lunch and dinner. The pizza place next door to me is only open for a few hours during dinner. Most of these places are owned and largely run by an single person, employ and a single chef (often the owner) and the same staff works there every day. By remaining open for limited hours, they only have to hire one “shift” of employees. This keeps costs down and keeps them from having to pay an entire staff to keep the restraunt open during less profitable times. I’d imagine many Chinese (and other ethnic) restraunts are owned by individuals and families, as opposed to chains, and have to do the same thing. ---
**Author:** ![Motog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/85e7bf/32.png) [@Motog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Motog)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2002, 7:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-chinese-restaurants-open-for-breakfast/114701/34 "2002-06-20T07:27:00Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Eva Luna \* > \*\*Kind of like Chinese tapas…small portions of various yummy things, especially various dumplings, which you snatch from various moving carts that are roving the room. Easy to run up a tab quickly! \*\* Would this be the same as what we call Yum Cha in Australia? Anybody here experienced both? BTW, to Australians Dim Sims refer to a specific item of food: little deep fried pastry dumplings containing pork, cabbage etc - otherwise known as mystery bags. ---
**Author:** ![Theobroma](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b5a626/32.png) [@Theobroma](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Theobroma)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2002, 9:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-chinese-restaurants-open-for-breakfast/114701/35 "2002-06-20T09:53:57Z")
[slight hijack] **Doug Bowe** said: Think of migas as a Mexican omelet with tortilla chips crunched in. …?? I live in Arizona and I’ve never heard of migas either…but it’s nice to know that Mexicans eat Matzo brei!! 😉 [/slight hijack] ---
**Author:** ![Shalmanese](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/45deac/32.png) [@Shalmanese](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shalmanese)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2002, 9:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-chinese-restaurants-open-for-breakfast/114701/36 "2002-06-20T09:58:51Z")
Thats what I was thinking as well, in Australia (and indeed, china) it is called Yum Cha and it involves little carts with a couple of mouthfuls of food and LOTS of TEA and a REALLY long time if you do it right. If we ever go have traditional Yum Cha, it takes from 11 am to 2 pm. Dim Sums in Australia are something that pretends to be meat wrapped in something that pretends to be pastry. ---
**Author:** ![Kegg](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Kegg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kegg)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2002, 10:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-chinese-restaurants-open-for-breakfast/114701/37 "2002-06-20T10:41:48Z")
yam cha means drink tea , and it means to go to a tea house, drink tea and eat dim sum. truditonaly, they are only open 'till 1 P.M. (yam cha is cantonise, I don’t speak mandrin. I think dim sum is the same in each. dim sum means “point hart”) Hijack, how do you get the spelling checker to work on these posts ??? ---
**Author:** ![Kegg](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Kegg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kegg)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2002, 10:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-chinese-restaurants-open-for-breakfast/114701/38 "2002-06-20T10:42:51Z")
that should have been heart (you see, I realy need the spelling checker) ---
**Author:** ![sailor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a587f6/32.png) [@sailor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sailor)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2002, 10:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-chinese-restaurants-open-for-breakfast/114701/39 "2002-06-20T10:51:56Z")
Yum Cha and Dim Sum are different things. Yum Cha means “drinking tea” and refers more to the ocassion or event (social, gossip etc) where Dim Sum is eaten. ---
**Author:** ![JustPlainBryan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/57b2e6/32.png) [@JustPlainBryan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JustPlainBryan)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2002, 2:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-chinese-restaurants-open-for-breakfast/114701/40 "2002-06-20T14:31:33Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by rjung \* > \*\*I don’t know, for my money, L.A.-area _dim sum_ is a toss-up between Empress Pavillion and Ocean Seafood. Though I think the _really_ smart move is to go to Montery Park/Alhambra/San Gabriel and get _dim sum_ there. 😉 > > (and I notice that **Los Angeles** magazine rated Ocean Star Seafood in Monterey Park as the best place in L.A. for _dim sum_…) \*\* Oh man, now I need to go to both! Monterey Park is a bit out of the way, but I’m sure I could make the trek one Sunday morning! [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-chinese-restaurants-open-for-breakfast/114701.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-chinese-restaurants-open-for-breakfast/114701.md?page=3)