Rain Modern Chinese
259 Lark St., Albany
• Food – 3.5 C’s (out of 5)
• Service – 3 C’s
• Overall family friendliness – 3.5 C’s
When the Family Chow is in the mood to expand the boundaries of our taste and texture comfort zones, we look to dim sum. We’ve been lucky enough in our travels to have experienced Chinese brunch in many far flung locales so we were really excited to hear about a local option, Rain Modern Chinese. Rain opened in 2013 and serves dim sum on the weekends.
We arrived on an appropriately rainy Sunday afternoon and lucked out with a perfect parking spot on Lark Street. The restaurant reminded us of spots we’ve been to in New York, with a big glass entryway followed by steps leading up to a host stand. We were warmly greeted and guided to a window-side table with a great view of the weekend hustle of downtown Albany. Besides the natural light from the large windows, the space is enhanced with interesting indoor lighting, a large bar area and tasteful, modern decor. We were happy to find cloth napkins, chopsticks AND forks waiting at our table. However, we were a bit disappointed to note the absence of one of the best parts of dim sum – the roving carts of food. Perhaps this was a result of the small number of patrons, but instead of carts, there were laminated cards with pictures to help guide our ordering.
Another great thing about dim sum is the size of the dishes. It is a perfect way to try something new without committing to a giant plate of food. Rain offers Small Plates ($3.75) and Large Plates ($4.75) with about a dozen different choices in each category. There were some familiar offerings, such as spring rolls and ribs, and many less familiar ones, like bean curd skin and chicken feet. There were also three slightly more expensive options ($7), including snow peas and fresh clams. While we sipped the very good complimentary tea, we marked down our choices on the ordering sheet provided at each table.
The food arrived within minutes, and we each started off grabbing a roast pork bun. Normally one of Son’s favorites, he agreed with the rest of us that while the meaty filling was tasty and the bun was a perfect soft texture, the lukewarm temperature took away from the enjoyment. Next up were the pork siu mai – dumplings of meat surrounded by a thin sheet of dough. This time the temperature was nice and hot, and we took note of the larger-than-normal size of the three dumplings. Dad and Daughter thought they had really good flavor, while Mom was wishing the pork had been minced into smaller pieces.
We moved from chunky to smooth, when we sampled the turnip cake. One of Mom’s favorites, she loved the version at Rain. A rectangular cake with a soft, almost creamy interior held together with a crispy top and bottom layer. Actually made out of daikon radishes rather than turnips, the mild flavor was a nice background to the hoisin sauce served on the side. Dad was reminded of snacking on turnip cakes on walks through New York City’s Chinatown. He also enjoyed the pan fried sticky rice, while Daughter loved the crunchy “gooey-ness” of the shrimp and pork bun that had a fried dough-like crust. Over Son’s objections, we ordered the sauteed snow pea leaves on the recommendation of the waiter, and it turned out to be one of our favorite dishes. The al dente stems and leaves were bathed in a delicious, garlicky broth that highlighted, rather than drowned, the vegetable.
We ended our meal on a sweet note, with orders of sesame seed balls and egg custards. The yellow bean filling of the sesame seed balls was just sweet enough, while the sesame seed covered exterior was thick and chewy. The egg custards had a deep egg flavor and a light, flaky crust. They were a big hit with Son and Daughter.
Overall, we enjoyed our taste and texture adventure at Rain Modern Chinese. The service was attentive and although we missed the fun roving carts, we found the ordering process easy and efficient. We give Rain Modern Chinese 3 C’s for service, 3.5 C’s for family friendliness and 3.5 C’s for food.
The Family Chow hails from the Capital District and review area restaurants based on service, food and family friendliness.
