Yes, Baltimore has a Chinatown--or had one, anyway, along a now rather dowdy strip of Park Avenue between downtown and Mount Vernon. There's been talk of restoring the area to some semblance of its former glory, and Chinatown Café has the effort off to a good start. Taking over the site of the ill-fated Joe's Dim Sum, the café offers a large, inviting dining room and a first-rate kitchen that ranges beyond the (generally well-prepared) standards, particularly on the seafood tip. (Try the braised scallops, or the fried fish with corn sauce--really.) Prices are reasonable and then some (daily lunch specials as low as $3.75). But the best reason to come is the dim sum, sorely missed in these parts since the Grand Palace in Brooklyn Park changed hands last year. Chinatown Café's 30-odd little plates, most costing $2.25 or $2.75, are surprisingly big and usually terrific. We love the shrimp-heavy dumplings, tender curry cuttlefish, hearty, hash-brown-y turnip and taro cakes, and the crunchy/salty vegetable bean-sheet rolls. Any two will make a meal for one, but we prefer to buy in bulk and share.

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