UYE Happy Garden Dim Sum Dinner #4

As a young child I’ve been told by many that I worry too much. I stress out easily.
To be frank, when I host my UYE’s I worry about it. I want my guests to enjoy themselves. I want them to appreciate the food here. I want them to laugh and have great conversations during the meal. And because of Hawaii’s culture, you’ve got to have enough food because if you don’t the people will sure remember you for that!!!
I’ll admit that when I hosted #4, I didn’t stress that much compared to previous ones. But I almost had a panic attack when I went to pick-​up my pre-​ordered almond cookies from Lynn’s that morning. Initially I was told they didn’t have it because it disappeared (as in selling it to someone else)!
This evening there were a total of 22 Yeeps, where I had a pair of out-​of-​town Unilocalers (Samantha G. and Eric A.) from Washington state who were in town and RSVP’d to this dinner. I also had the honor of Christian G. and Daniel G. who squeezed in this dinner before leaving Oahu for good as they are relocating to Kentucky. I would also like to recognize these 3 awesome Yeeps who came to ALL FOUR of my UYE’s: Cathy T., Maka K. and John N. I appreciate the support, thanks guys!!!
This place is BYOB and thanks to Anthony C., Victoria M., Michael C. and David T. for bringing red wine and sharing it with others. And Mahalo to Michael C. who brought plastic cups for the wine.
We had a handful of first timers for my UYE series: Wayne C., Sharon C., Peter C., Ashley S., Mahina C., Florence K., Arynn I., Victoria M., Clarice G. and Lien V. I thank you all for being so brave!
I’d also like to thank Miller Royce of Wing Shave Ice and Ice Cream for extending his business hours for us again. I was advised this was the last time he’ll open off hours for us as his personal time (which is not much) is important.
Many thanks to Happy Garden for accommodating to our needs and bringing out our food quickly and fresh. I’ll admit the portions were larger than usual that night.
This evening went by quickly but I did enjoy the laughter, picture taking and great conversations. In the end I was exhausted and relieved it ended on a high note.
Yes, I did stress over this UYE and it was worth it. I’d do it again in a heartbeat.

I always need to bring someone who is knowledgeable in dim sum or speaks Chinese because I never know how to order the dishes I want. Somehow the menu doesn’t connect to what I remember I like. That’s where these dim sum UYEs come in! I really love dim sum and enjoy eating with fellow Unilocalers. While eating has always been a favorite pastime of mine, it is less so now that I am on a diet. I am always on a quest to try the next great thing in food while trying to not get fat! It is a difficult yet fun journey as a Unilocaler.
The evening started off with everyone sitting at two large tables. Chairs were really close together because this place is small, which kept things cozy. Shortly after choosing my seat Anthony C offered me some wine. Who am I to turn down wine?! Thanks so much!
The ordering of food came next and I let Paul C take over. It was very easy to order as I just let Paul know that anything was fine. I should have been a little more specific as chicken feet and pig intestines came to the table! It definitely was an adventure in food!
At every table there were cookies that Paul brought and seemingly endless plates of food. I was more than full, but the food kept coming. I had a very happy stomach.
Thanks so much Paul for the cookies and organization of the event and for getting Wing’s to open its doors after ours. I can’t wait to eat more dim sum!

Sorry Paul if I’m late with this review. Life intruded a bit in the last few days, as it sometimes does. I just want to say what a marvelous time I had at your event. Often I sit around like a stick in the mud so it might not have looked that way, but who could not enjoy the amazing food at Happy Garden, and the equally amazing company? I certainly did, and I know your 20+ guests did also. The two hours of laughter that filled the tiny dining room was proof of that, as was the smiles on the faces of all as dinner concluded. For myself, I saw old friends, made some new ones, and got introduced to a wonderful little restaurant.
Life is not always pleasant. Just walking the sad streets of Chinatown at night reveals how tough life can be. But I can remember those years when downtown was a happier place after dark. At that time the bright lights of restaurants, bars, stores, and little show rooms lit up Hotel Street and adjacent avenues from Nuuanu to River well past midnight. Music filled the air. And on Friday nights the sidewalks were so mobbed with people that the crowds overflowed into the streets. Now sadness and darkness has overtaken the area, and this can happen to people too. It can happen to me. It can happen to anyone. You never know. So it’s important to fill your life with as many happy moments as possible. Seize the day, as the old saying goes.
So what the hell does that old slogan have to do with a Unilocal UYE? Everything actually. Unilocal events bring people together to enjoy life and to make new friends.. But they also serve to promote local merchants. My favorite restaurants and coffee shops I discovered through UYEs. Were it not for Unilocal I would have passed by these places and never ventured in. I’m sure this is also true of others. So these events no only strengthen the individual they also support neighborhood merchants. It’s win-​win. The entire community benefits.
I probably never would have tried Happy Garden were it not for this UYE. Now I know I will return for dim sum and also to sample some of their other dishes. I will invite a friend or two. These friends might invite their friends and this little place on Maunakea will be better because of the work Paul put into his UYE. And if this business thrives perhaps another will be encourage to open its doors near-​by. A community can grow this way. And maybe Hotel Street will again be a brighter place.
For those of you who missed this event, please come to next one Paul hosts. You won’t be disappointed. In the meantime give Happy Garden a try. Paul made sure we were well fed. Tray after tray kept rolling out of the kitchen. There was pork and shrimp shumai, calamari, an interesting hybrid cabbage, taro balls, and I lost count of what else. We also had «fear factor» food. I was expecting insects. Instead I ate the foot of some poor chicken, and had a serving of pig intestines. I found the latter a bit disappointing. (Sorry Happy Garden but my grandfather in Virginia made them better. He would deep fry them so they came out crispy like an onion ring. You then eat them with chili sauce while getting drunk on Pabst Blue Ribbon beer, but that’s another story.)
And while we were feeding our faces, Paul helped out with the serving and made sure everyone’s water glass was filled. That’s a true host. Our host also made sure we would have an after dinner treat at Wing Ice Cream. He asked Miller to stay open late. I had local mango, a perfect ice cream to conclude a perfect UYE. Together we spread a little happiness around that evening and helped out two local merchants. What more could you ask for.

THANK YOU PAUL! Happy Garden = Happy Unilocalers.
I had such a great time with everyone! What a success this event was! I have no idea how many plates of food was brought out nor what everything was but I have to say I ended the night full and content.
I met some new people: Lien, Clarissa, Ashley… and great to see some regular faces! I loved that Paul had name tags and party favors. Those cookies from Hono Ono cookies were super yummy! Thank you for helping me catch up and stuff my face guys! :)
I really enjoyed the flavors of all the dishes brought out; I’m sure I will have to go back to try other items. I ended up sitting with the table that was getting shrimp dishes so I steered clear of those. But I really liked the choice of dishes that Paul had ordered. I didn’t take photos of any of the dishes; I left that up to Gary and Maka since they took photos of everything! :)
If you weren’t able to make it out to this UYE, hopefully you’ll come to the next one. I’m sure there will be another Happy Garden UYE! And I’m hoping that I can keep coming!

Whenever I anticipate (or know) going this hidden gem, this mantra newsflash comes to mind. «Happy Garden makes me very HAPPY»!
A mark of a true foodie is one who totally enjoys the food regardless of the surrounding atmosphere. HG is such a place where the dim sum trumps everything else in this tiny, narrow-​sized eatery. Yes, tables are in close proximity so no dim sum carts are used here.
What they lack is otherwise compensated in a variety (the best around town in my opinion) of awesome dim sum offerings:
1. Chicken feet — most deliciously marinated and tender poultry appendage; it’s finger-​licking good.
2. Shiumai — steaming hot and plumb pork + shrimp pieces enclosed in such wonderful LARGE (oxymoronic lol) morsels of pure delight.
3. Vegetarian look funn roll — pan fried to a crispy goodness served with a nice hoisin-​shoyu dipping sauce.
4. Har gow — fresh steaming hot tender shrimp dumpling that marks the standard for any decent dim sum house.
Happy Garden = Happy Place. Since I haven’t made it back to Hong Kong since the 90’s as a daily dim sum loving connoisseur walking down the market in the morning wee hours (and of course it’s a little pricier to fly over) for dim sum, at least I have HG.
Eating HG dim sum is as good as eating in the birthplace of dim sum.

After something like a 19 course meal with steamed and deep friend dim sum, sitr-​fried dishes, noodles, fried rice, cookies, and wine (AND MORE!)
I believe everyone was completely STUFFED after this awesome UYE!
Hawaii Unilocalers are some of the best people to hang out with and I’m always happy to catch up and meet new friends!
I ate way too much food, probably drank too much wine, and had so much fun it was probably illegal in some states!

Thank you Vince B for telling me about this UYE via Unilocal Talk! This was one of the highlights during my visit on Oahu.
I had attended (and hosted) a few UYEs back home in Seattle but I have to say, Paul C. brings UYEs to a whole other level! Paul was very welcoming and organized. I like that he provided name tags so it was easier to learn everyone’s names. He even had goodies for us at our seats with a bag of almond cookies which were tasty.
I guarantee, you will not go hungry during these UYEs. Paul asked everyone what they preferred for dim sum and just order multiples of everything for both tables. Some of the things we tried were taro balls, chicken feet (so good here!), pig intestines, Shu mai, beef chow fun (not my favorite dish of the night), shrimp dumplings, corn dumplings, shrimp look fun, and many more. I was almost stuffed half way and couldn’t force myself to sample the rest since I had to save room for dessert.
Speaking of dessert, Paul managed to have Wing’s extend their hours just so us Unilocalers can try some of their homemade ice cream. I shared the Li hing mango and avocado ice creams and enjoyed both flavors.
There was so much good food but the conversations and making new friends was definitely the best part of the UYE. It was great to be sharing food with one another and just talk story with everyone at the event.
Much mahalos Honolulu Unilocal for welcoming me to your ohana. This has definitely been a memorable experience and I hope to attend another UYE when I visit next year, or even just hang out. Until then, if anyone happens to be visiting Seattle in the future, I would be more than happy to meet up with you all! Until then, SYOY!

Ladies and Gentlemen:
This review is brought to you by the letters «F» and «W».
FOUR:
This was the FOURTH event hosted by Paul C in the UYE dim sum dining series. Having been to three out of the four UYE’s he has hosted since last year, I can only say that these dinners just continue to impress me. Yes, it’s mostly the same food served at these dinners, and it usually is the same crowd of people. However, I find that when the Unilocalers in our community come together to enjoy each other’s company, good food, and drinks, there is always a good time to be had. Toss in great laughs and good conversation and you’ve got yourself a party for sure!
FUN:
This UYE was a lot of FUN! Laughter, conversation, picture taking, and «talking story» filled the Happy Garden restaurant for nearly two hours. Being that this event was held on a Monday, this UYE was a terrific way to unwind, get over those Monday blues, and start off the work week in a positive way.
FRIENDS:
Dinner would not have been as fun and lively were it not for the people
present. Of course, some of the «usual suspects» were in attendance, including Gary N, Cathy T, Maka K, John N, Victoria M, and David T among others. We were also privileged to have fellow Unilocalers visiting from Seattle, Samantha G and Kevin A, join us for the festivities. Other new Unilocalers I had the pleasure of meeting included Lien V, Ashley S, and Clarice G. And last but not least, it was great to see Sharon C and her husband Peter as well!
FOOD:
I was beyond thrilled that taro puffs were on the dinner menu. Paul once again was kind enough to make arrangements with the restaurant to have these prepared fresh for the UYE. That was pretty awesome! Thanks Paul! Of course, all the food was delicious, as usual. And so much of it that there were leftovers to take home as well. Out of all the courses that were ordered, I would have to say my favorite dish of the evening was the calamari! It was so good!
WINE:
Thank you David T, Anthony C, and Victoria M for sharing each one bottle of wine with us all. As the saying goes, where there’s a wine there’s a way…
WINGS:
After dinner was finished, there can be no better dessert more appropriate than Wing Shave Ice & Ice Cream. Located around the corner from Happy Garden, Paul once again kindly asked Miller (the owner) if he wouldn’t mind opening up shop for our group after hours. Thankfully, Miller obliged, and it seems a post UYE dessert tradition has been born.
FOUR the record:
THANK YOU Paul once again for hosting a dim sum dinner that was FUN and full of laughter and good FRIENDS! Your attention to detail, enthusiasm to make sure everyone had a good time, and thoughtful preparation has produced yet another successful and enjoyable UYE.