STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. — East Pacific at the Staten Island Mall is gearing up for a Lunar New Year bash on Saturday, Feb. 21, 2026 as the Year of the Horse trots in. The restaurant at 2655 Richmond Ave. is already taking reservations and working on a permit for fireworks to make the night sparkle.
This celebration comes as East Pacific continues a tradition of serving dim sum and Cantonese cuisine to Staten Island diners.
“I try and retire, but I like to work. I like to see everyone—just like friends,” says Helen Lau, who runs the restaurant with her family and manager Sunny Ng.
Helen Lau is a ping pong enthusiast who celebrates her years in the restaurant business, inspired by long-time guests who have become like family. (Advance/SILive.com | Pamela Silvestri)
Dim Sum and Then Some
East Pacific serves dim sum daily from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., with rolling carts on weekends. Saturdays and Sundays bring a lively scene with 45 varieties—think pork spare ribs, shrimp rolls, sticky rice in lotus leaves, pork buns, beef meatballs, shumai, and rice rolls with fried dough.
Dim sum here is a feast for the senses, with prices averaging $4 per container. Fried favorites include crispy spring rolls, taro rolls with delicate phyllo curls, and sesame balls filled with sweet bean paste. Steamed classics shine with shumai and ginger-scallion tripe; and then there’s lotus leaf-wrapped sticky rice, a fragrant parcel of glutinous rice layered with chicken, shiitake mushrooms, Chinese sausage, pork belly and dried shrimp. Unwrapping it is part of the experience: first the earthy lotus scent, then the sweet aroma of sausage and soy. The layers of flavor and perfume are real with each bite.
Clockwise from 12 o’clock: lemongrass beef with spicy radish salad, pineapple chicken, sticky rice dim sum, sesame balls, translucent shrimp dumplings, spring rolls and fried squid.
Sweet endings? Custard tarts and the beloved Mexico bun. Despite its name, this treat is a Hong Kong bakery staple with roots tied to mid-20th-century Chinese-Mexican influences. Picture a soft, buttery roll crowned with a thin, crunchy cookie-like crust—a golden top that adds just the right sweet snap to the pillowy bread beneath.
And don’t miss the savory extras: bowls of congee, collagen-rich chicken feet soup (Sunny Ng swears by its beauty benefits) and the latest hit—soup dumplings bursting with hot broth.
Helen suggests eating them in one bite for the full experience.
Helen Lau and Sunny Ng discuss reservations for longtime customer Anna Payne’s family, who celebrate Chinese New Year at East Pacific each year—a tradition that blends her American roots with the joy of the holiday.(Advance/SILive.com | Pamela Silvestri)
The People Behind the Plates
General manager Sunny, 72, is a Staten Island Chinese food veteran, a famous face on the restaurant circuit. He spent 35 years at Crown Palace and owned Sunny’s Palace before joining East Pacific. Helen, the matriarch, also runs Empire Szechuan on Amboy Road and oversees a team of 74 employees, many of whom she treats like family—providing rides from Brooklyn to work and hosting staff parties.
Helen’s entrepreneurial story is one of classic immigrant grit. Originally from Fujian, China, she moved to Staten Island 30 years ago after a brief stint in Queens. A former gym teacher and table tennis champion, Helen came to the U.S. with plans to study but left Hunter College after two weeks when tuition proved too steep. Instead, she took a job as a busser in Chinatown, saved every dollar, and eventually opened her first restaurant with her sister. From there, the journey unfolded—and the rest is history.
East Pacific, a fixture at the Staten Island Mall since 2001, evolved from its early pan-Asian roots into a dim sum destination and catering hub. It is an anchor and major destination at the Mall.(Advance/SILive.com | Pamela Silvestri)
A Mall Fixture with a Twist
The Staten Island Mall, built in 1973 on the former airport site, has housed East Pacific since 2001. Before that, the space was home to Pan East, a pan-Asian concept launched in 2008 that blended Vietnamese, Japanese, and regional Chinese dishes with American-Chinese favorites. Over time, East Pacific evolved—adding sushi around 2016, briefly showcasing Peking ducks in the window, and offering Cantonese ribs and pork belly for takeout. About a year ago, sushi left the menu, but the restaurant continues to shine with its large-party catering, now a signature service both in-house and off-premises.
Flashback to last year: Hostess Anna Payne, third from right, beams alongside her children during her 2025 Year of the Snake Chinese New Year party at East Pacific. Staten Island Advance
Lunar New Year Traditions
Helen says the holiday is all about sweeping away bad luck and welcoming prosperity. “Clean the house, decorate with red,” she advises. Red envelopes filled with money go to children and unmarried adults for good fortune. On New Year’s Eve, abundance and longevity shine through the food: long noodles for a long life and round dishes like dumplings for harmony. Lion dances in red and gold ward off evil spirits and set the tone for a fresh start.
Sesame balls symbolize happiness and unity—their golden, round shape represents wholeness and good fortune, and that sweet bean paste inside is a little bite of celebration.
East Pacific plans to host Lion Dancers at 7 p.m. on Feb. 21, and Helen hopes the Year of the Horse brings promise and progress. Think of the horse—free-spirited and roaming, she says. People born under this sign are optimistic and adventurous, though sometimes impatient. For everyone, it’s a time to move forward with energy and confidence.
A taste of East Pacific’s specialties: fried mahi mahi in the foreground; Peking duck two ways with plum sauce; and sautéed jellyfish at center.