Hong Kong East Ocean Seafood Restaurant in Emeryville is a place to go to for a special occasion, or if you feel like splurging. They serve dim sum, Chinese food, seafood, and brunch, and accommodate groups. The place is clean, light, airy, and visually appealing. The food here is excellent, but pricey. Go during the daytime to take advantage of the ocean view if it's not overcast or foggy.

The dim sum items offered are on hand-carried trays, not carts. For dim sum, there's a check-off list divided into the following categories: northern dim sum, southern dim sum, specialties, and desserts. The prices are as follows: small is $2.50, medium is $3, large is $3.50, extra large is $4, and the special is $5.75. There are also other menu items you can ask for that have even higher prices. Mark off the items and quantity desired and your order will be brought to you by a well-trained staff member although there's no joy nor smile in their otherwise top service.

The items that we tasted and recommended are: East Ocean Jumbo Shrimp Dumpling, where the translucent skin holding the shrimp mixture is very thin and delicate (the way I like it, not thick as a lot of places do) and the Steamed Meat Roll, wrapped in tofu skin, deep fried, and submerged in a thick sauce. The tofu skin is also wonderfully thin and soft, a pleasure to bite into and taste its light flavors. There are also the Clams in Black Bean Sauce, best when it's still hot right from the kitchen, and Mango Pudding, which has a nice, real, fresh, rich taste of mango and excites my taste buds. This is probably one of a few places that serves really excellent dim sum though on the expensive side. Ample parking, credit cards accepted.

Public Transit: Emery Go Round or 511 TakeTransit Trip Planner.

Mon-Fri 11am-2:30pm, Sat-Sun 10am-2:30pm, dinner daily 5pm-9:30pm

There are two East Ocean Restaurants in the East Bay. I have previously written about East Ocean Alameda. This review, however, is of East Ocean Emeryville.

East Ocean Emeryville is much fancier than East Ocean Alameda. Nestled along the San Francisco Bay on the east facing the sea, the view is fantastic. Floor-to-ceiling windows gives way to an impressive pan view of the entire Bay Area.

This is probably one of the best-tasting and nicest dim-sum places in the Bay Area. Chinatown dim sum joints tend to be dirty and loud, and there is no feeling of dining. East Ocean Alameda has great service, food, and views. On a Sunday afternoon you really feel like you're having a nice brunch.

The place is crowded from open till close. But the place is huge, so waiting doesn't take THAT long. Try to get there early (before 1pm) to take advantage of special dishes, as they usually run out after 1pm.