Dim Sum at Sun Ya Seafood Restaurant

June 29, 2009 by Edy Kizaki · Comments

Seattle’s Internatonal District is famous for it’s exotic flavors and a myrid of choices, and rightly so. One of my family’s favorite Sunday morning activities is heading to one of the traditional Dim Sum restaurants sprinkled throughout the International District. Last week it wasn’t even Sunday, but we were nearby it was lunchtime, and what are we waiting for? Sun Ya Seefood Restaurant was nearby and we stopped in.

One of Seattle’s oldest neighborhoods, the International District was at first Seattle’s Chinatown, which emerged at the edge of Pioneer Square in the 1880’s as Chinese immigrant workers arrived to work on the city’s emerging railroads, coal mines, and salmon harvests. Now over 100 years later it has matured into the only neighborhood in America where Chinese, Filipino, Japanese, Vietnamese and Southeast Asians live and work together, side-by-side. For Seattlites, the bounty of authentic and diverse asian cuisines is first rate. But as I said, my family can’t resist the dim sum. The restaurant we went to has a long history in Seattle, not to mention it’s own parking lot which is important in the crowded area where parking is at a premium and the lot charges are pretty high. Inside are tanks with live fish, shrimp, crabs and lobster, and a row of roast ducks hangs invitingly behind glass as well.

You can also take a Chinatown Tour, and there is the yearly Seattle’s Chinatown-International District Summer Festival 2009 taking place on July 11 and 12 at Hing Hay Park! There are dancing dragons and lion dances, firecrackers popping, taiko drumming and a whirl of food and treats. There is also a special kid’s activity corner where the whole family will find enjoyable themed activities.