Andy F.
Yelp
New ownership isn't always a good thing as some might believe.
Harbor Village Cuisine recently switched over in the past year, and boy, I must say, the dim sum was incredibly disappointing. The staff and menu and interior remains the same. Kama'aina discount still applies! Gotta ask of course! Discounts are never automatic.
Starting with the Pan Fried Chives Cake... The filling was bland and the wrapper was unusually soft and did not crisp up even the pan fried part. At least it had decently sized pieces of shrimp..
Next was the Steamed Seafood and Chives Dumplings. It's the same bland filling and the same thin and soft wrapper. In this case, the softness of the wrapper was fine, but the blandness was not acceptable.
The Baked Golden Cake was a disaster. It was clear to me that the heat was too hot because the outside sesame crust was dark brown, the size was smaller than usual, and the inside was sticky and doughy. And quite bland as well!!
The Chicken Feet was okay. Meat was soft and tender. Very one note though. Just garlic and oyster and soy sauce? Where's the fermented black bean and chili? Is there supposed to be black pepper in this?
The Steamed Beef Ball was actually not too bad, but quite different from other places. The color was very light--as if it was mixed with mostly pork. It was JUST meat. No water chestnuts, scallions or cilantro. They were juicy and tender, but one note flavor.
The Pork Spareribs were strange as well. The pieces were so big, and there was not enough cooking time, so the meat was not tender at all. The flavors were lacking as well. I see it, but the tastes do not come through at all.
Lastly had the Fried Stuffed Tofu with Minced Shrimp from the regular menu. This was fried well, but don't you need some salt or flavoring on the tofu? Relying solely on the soy dipping sauce doesn't work.
Overall, this was quite a disappointment. The food and execution was subpar. The service was good though, except during cleanup. We asked for a box and a small sauce container for the tofu and sauce. While putting the tofu away, the sauce was taken away along with the rest of the empty dishes by another person. Gotta look!
Well, now Harbor Village can join the "nothing is good to eat in Hawaii Kai" list.
