Openings: Dim Sum Bloom on 1st Avenue

Photos and reporting by Stacie Joy

Dim Sum Bloom has opened at 228 First Ave., between 13th and 14th Streets. 

The fast-casual restaurant specializes in dumplings, noodles, fried rice and other Chinese comfort-food favorites. This is the brand's latest outpost, following its 2023 debut on the Upper West Side and expansions to Queens and other locations. 

One of Dim Sum Bloom's calling cards is its high-tech kitchen. The restaurant bills itself as home to "NYC's only robotic kitchen," with a fully automated robot handling the stir-fry station ... while cooks prepare the dumplings and other appetizers by hand. (Staff declined requests for any robot pics.)

The new East Village location also features two spacious dining rooms for those eating in. (FYI: No alcohol. Drinks include soda and various fruit and milk teas. 

Find the menu here. 

Hours: 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Monday through Saturday, with a noon start on Sunday.

The previous tenant here was Taverna East Village, which went dark in December 2024.

Signage alert: Dim Sum Bloom (and officially farewell to Taverna East Village)

Top photo by Stacie Joy

Signage arrived for Dim Sum Bloom on Monday at 228 First Ave. between 13th Street and 14th Street. (Thanks to the EVG readers who shared photos!) 

The brand first launched on the Upper West Side in 2023 (an interesting backstory) and has since expanded to Queens and elsewhere. 

Dim Sum Bloom takes a high-tech approach to its kitchen, including "a fully automated robot that powers its stir-fry station," per QNS.com. (Humans make the dumplings and other appetizers, however.)  Elsewhere, Dim Sum Bloom is billed as "NYC's only robotic kitchen."

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Anyway, with Dim Sum Bloom's arrival, we can officially close the book on Taverna East Village...

The Greek restaurant went dark in December 2024. According to a patron at the time, Taverna EV closed without any notice to the public until a sign later arrived, noting the closure due to a "required Con Edison" inspection. 

Meanwhile, the restaurant's website stated: "We are currently closed due to a Kitchen Renovation project. We are working very hard to reopen as soon as possible." The message stayed online and was there at the last look.

The outpost of Astoria's favorite Taverna Kyclades opened in the fall of 2013. However, ownership changed hands, and the name change to Taverna East Village was made public in June 2024.