aSiAnRiCk

I'm going to San Diego to hang out with a fellow FT'er for a week in September

Can someone local suggest an authentic dimsum restaurant as well as a good all-you-can-eat sushi place?

I'm willing to drive to LA for it

Thanks in advance ^

rar indeed

Empress Pavillion is tasty for dim sum. All you can eat sushi doesn't sound all that good at all... sushi buffet? Ew.

bigguyinpasadena

The finest dim sum IMO is at gourmet(something-I forget the full name as it is also the restaurant)in San Gabriel across from the Auditorium.
I have not been to New Concept since they changed chefs-I was not impressed upon my visit.
Empress Pavillion in Chinatown is very good if you want the full big dim sum hall experience-better than anything in Monterey Park.
Also there is a place on the west side(Santa Monica)that is great-albeit a little expensive.
I can't help on the sushi buffet-I have not found one that I can recomend.Lots of folks like Todai-I find the sushi there to be totally void of quality.But if quantity over quality is your goal.
I will do some reserch and add the names of the places I am fuzzy about.

sandiegofun

For dim sum, both Jasmine and Emerald on Convoy St in Kearny Mesa are about the best in town.

Numerous sushi shops have all you can eat lunches, but for dinner the only one I am aware of is Todai in Mission Valley, which is ho-hum, but good for the price.

cstead

I lived in SD for 5 years for college, and I found that the dim sum options were quite poor (not nearly as good as LA or SF options, but not as bad as eating panda express). As far as sushi goes, San Diego has several decent sushi options. La Jolla cove, Hillcrest and the Gaslamp all have decent enough places. My favorites, however, are far from the fancy, expensive places were people congregate.

Ichiban, Niban, Sanban (soon to open)
-its really cheap, like $5 a roll, and pretty good. This is a more of a college hangout and gets pretty lively and crowded. I prefer Niban because of the location.

Point Loma Seafoods
-the best for fresh seafood in san diego imo. the sushi and sashimi here are fantastic: extremely fresh and simple. Again, it gets relaly crowded, and the atmosphere is fish market, not Japanese restaurant.

PM me if you need more info, or other food recs

hiyo

Not "All You Can Eat," but you can eat all you want for not much - SUSHI DELI - nice location, great sushi for cheap, no reservations. Be prepared to stand in line with all the students and slackers, but it's worth it. ^

Somewhere in the Bargain Travel Forum, I have my recommendations for value food in San Diego, including Point Loma Seafoods. It is first and foremost a fish market, as mentioned. Back in the day, when I was a commercial fisherman, Mrs Kelly sold fish sandwiches out of a little window on the side of the building, and it has grown into today's restaurant. Back then, we called it "Smelly Kelly's," but with much affection.

FlyinHawaiian

Have you tried Triumphal Palace on Main and Garfield? It's pretty darn good too. Sorry to hear that New Concept's chefs have changed.

bocastephen

Todai's quality has dropped significantly over the past couple years. Skip Todai and go for the far better and more upscale O'Nami Seafood Buffet that offers a better experience. The fish is fresher and the portions more reasonable. There is a location in San Diego at Mission Valley Mall off I-8 and one in LA at West Covina Mall off I-10. The O'Nami location in Torrance can be avoided.

Sushi buffet will never match the quality of sit-down restaurant, but O'Nami comes close.

Also, many Benihana locations offer an "Endless Sushi" program where you sit at the sushi bar and can order anything you want off the menu (sushi, sashimi, appetizers, hot entrees), as much as you want, all for a fixed price. I frequent the location at Georgetown Mall in DC and it's the best option if you can find one out west. The price is in line with Todai and O'Nami.

kingalien

O'Nami is not exactly that great either unfortunately. Agree that most Todai's have gone downhill and O'Nami is the better alternative. However, Todai in the Puente Hills mall is quite good...the one in Arcadia should be avoided.

kingalien

I believe bigguyinpasadena is referring to Mission 261. They're a bit pricey but good.
http://www.mission261.com/homepage.asp

I hear that Sea Harbour Seafood Restaurant in Rosemead also has good dim sum. I've never tried it because of the long lines that form at least 30 minutes before it even opens. Dim sum here is ordered off a menu (versus off a cart). Here is a review: http://lowendrestaurants.blogspot.co...ea-harbor.html

cstead

I forgot to mention LA area dim sum, though I'm sure its well documented elsewhere, like here on FT and aolcity guide. My favorites in LA are Ocean Star in Monterey Park, Empress Pavilion in Chinatown LA, and Sea Empress in Gardena.

I agree on the all-you-can-eat sushi places. The quality sucks.

REC1111

Jasmine for dim sum and sexy hostesses ( sorry, bad boy). Onami in Fashion Valley is better than Todai but all-you-can-eat or discount are words that really don't go with sushi. Not trying to be condescending but
it's truly one of the things where you get what you pay for. In SanDiego, I highly recommend Sushi Ota....been there many times and never disappointed with the quality.....pay a little, get the quality stuff. If money's an issue, go for lunch and get the chirashi which is a large bowl of sushi rice topped with a variety of fish.

bigguyinpasadena

Actually this is the third chef-and after the horrid second chef this one is getting good marks-but after my last trip there I am hesitant.

aSiAnRiCk

Thanks for the reviews & recommendations guys! I made a list of the restaurants mentioned so far in this thread ^

Believe it or not, I have found two "good" all you can eat sushi place.
One is in South Florida called Sushi Takara and the other one is in Richmond, BC (about 30 mts south of Vancouver).

You see .. South Florida is lacking a good selection of asian restaurants. We do have couple good ones but I was told Cali is the place to be (though in my experience, nothing tops the varieties in Richmond, BC!)

So because I'm staying in SoCal for a week, I'll have the chance to try the best of the best

Thanks again and feel free to keep the list going

bocastephen

Where is Sushi Takara located? Is it better than Kyojin in Ft Lauderdale? Kyojin used to be one of the best around, but their quality has started to slip abit.