Alameda’s 40-year-old dim sum restaurant comes to Walnut Creek

East Ocean Seafood Restaurant has been the dim sum destination in the East Bay for 40 years. Now, the venerable Alameda restaurant is bringing its Hong Kong-style cuisine to Walnut Creek.

Last month, owner David Chan opened a second East Ocean Seafood Restaurant inside his former Dynasty Bistro restaurant in Ygnacio Plaza. The restaurant, located at 1841 Ygnacio Valley Road, is open from 11 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. daily, with dinner service from 5 to 8 p.m. Sunday-Thursday and until 9 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays. For now, the menu is a reduced version of the Alameda restaurant’s menu, but still encyclopedic. There are 20 types of freshly-wrapped steamed, fried or baked dumplings and 14 types of chow mein.

Chan’s decision to shutter Dynasty Bistro was partly a result of the pandemic — he opened it in 2019 — but he also wanted to use the space to bring a little more authenticity to Walnut Creek, he says. In addition to dim sum, that includes live seafood, including lobster with ginger and scallions, whole Peking duck and specialties like fried chicken feet with black bean sauce. Dynasty Bistro favorites, like the glazed Princess Prawns and spicy Northern-style noodles, are still on the menu.

At 58 seats, the Walnut Creek restaurant is a fraction of Alameda’s 500-seat banquet hall. But Chan says he plans to eventually offer the full menu, or close to it, in Walnut Creek. Details: http://eastoceanseafoodrestaurant.com.