Don’t sleep on Morning Star Pastries, a newcomer to Bustleton Avenue in Northeast Philly. This no-frills shop sells more than just pastries — early hits include steamed rice rolls dressed in sweet soy sauce, chow fun, and Hong Kong wonton soup.

Salina Ko and her husband, chef Ming Feng, run one of the largest Chinese restaurants in the city (not many others boast hundreds of parking spots), serving the growing Chinese community in Northeast Philly’s Mayfair neighborhood. A banquet hall, wedding venue, and karaoke spot in the evenings, China Gourmet lets diners pick their seafood from tanks and take in an immersive dim sum experience. Come with a party of at least six to maximize your sampling potential from carts including meat-and-peanut dumplings, deep-fried pork and mashed taro puffs, and jiggly, sweet black sesame rolls.

Co-owned by Sichuan native and Drexel graduate Mark Rao, this hip and modern Sichuan spot in Powelton Village has laid-back vibes with a cheery, playful panda mural by Chinese artist Chenlin Cai. Executive chef Jack Xue (formerly of Jane G’s) trained in Chengdu in the 1970s; here, he spoils diners with crispy, gooey twice-cooked trotters doused in leeks and fermented broad beans, sour and spicy beef soup with glassy noodles and pickled mustard greens, cumin Mongolian lamb, and diced, baked chicken thighs loaded with celery and peppers.

With one location in Philly’s Chinatown and another in South Carolina, Spice C specializes in chewy noodles pulled and shaved by hand. Order the Bomb soup with spicy Sichuan broth and add pickled cabbage to balance the bowl’s tender assortment of sliced beef, tripe, brisket, and tendon.

This small, unassuming takeout spot in Chinatown offers fresh soy milk (plain or sweetened), silken tofu in ginger syrup, and sweet black sesame paste soup. Heung Fa Chun Sweet House also sells sticky rice galore: individual servings loaded with sweet lap cheung and mushrooms, saran-wrapped rice burritos filled with pork floss, and banana leaf-wrapped zhongzi advertised as Asian tamales and based on Hong Kong, Taiwanese, and Shanghai styles, stuffed with mushrooms, peanuts, cured pork belly, and salted egg yolk. If you still haven’t had enough, cross the street for more treats from sibling Asia Bakery.

The closure of extravagant Chinese banquet halls across the country signals a dying era, yet the 2022 opening of Grand Palace in South Philly bucks the trend. Anchoring the bustling New World Plaza in Little Saigon, Grand Palace’s pink tablecloths and red-covered seats make this a festive multi-room venue for weddings and parties, while carts full of stir-fried clams in umami-rich black bean sauce, steamed dumplings, glazed vegetables stuffed with seafood, and custardy tarts make it a staple for weekend dim sum. And if you ask your server nicely, you might even be able to order chef Johnny Akiong’s off-menu specialty, fried whole lobster.

Husband and wife Jack and Cherry Wong opened this adorable, sky-blue bakery on Oregon Avenue in South Philly in 2021. Dodo Bakery bombards the senses with Hong Kong-style pastries such as crunchy sugar-topped pineapple buns, bruleed Portuguese egg tarts, crispy red bean cakes, and mini chicken pies with glossy, hatch-marked puff pastry crusts. Keep an eye out for the durian mooncake during the Mid-Autumn Festival.