![“[Building nerf blasters] became this outlet of creativity for me that hasn't been matched by anything else. The process [of] making a build complete to your desire is such a painstakingly difficult process, but I've had to learn from [the skills needed from] soldering to proper painting. There's so many different options for everything, if you think about it, it exists. The best part is [that] if it doesn't exist, you can build it yourself," Ishaan Parate said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/DSC_8149-900x604.jpg)
![“When I came into high school, I was ready to be a follower. But DECA was a game changer for me. It helped me overcome my fear of public speaking, and it's played such a major role in who I've become today. To be able to successfully lead a chapter of 150 students, an officer team and be one of the upperclassmen I once really admired is something I'm [really] proud of,” Anvitha Tummala ('21) said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/Screen-Shot-2021-07-25-at-9.50.05-AM-900x594.png)
![“I think getting up in the morning and having a sense of purpose [is exciting]. I think without a certain amount of drive, life is kind of obsolete and mundane, and I think having that every single day is what makes each day unique and kind of makes life exciting,” Neymika Jain (12) said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/Screen-Shot-2017-06-03-at-4.54.16-PM.png)
![“My slogan is ‘slow feet, don’t eat, and I’m hungry.’ You need to run fast to get where you are–you aren't going to get those championships if you aren't fast,” Angel Cervantes (12) said. “I want to do well in school on my tests and in track and win championships for my team. I live by that, [and] I can do that anywhere: in the classroom or on the field.”](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/DSC5146-900x601.jpg)
![“[Volleyball has] taught me how to fall correctly, and another thing it taught is that you don’t have to be the best at something to be good at it. If you just hit the ball in a smart way, then it still scores points and you’re good at it. You could be a background player and still make a much bigger impact on the team than you would think,” Anya Gert (’20) said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/AnnaGert_JinTuan_HoHPhotoEdited-600x900.jpeg)
![“I'm not nearly there yet, but [my confidence has] definitely been getting better since I was pretty shy and timid coming into Harker my freshman year. I know that there's a lot of people that are really confident in what they do, and I really admire them. Everyone's so driven and that has really pushed me to kind of try to find my own place in high school and be more confident,” Alyssa Huang (’20) said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/AlyssaHuang_EmilyChen_HoHPhoto-900x749.jpeg)
Koi Palace: Harmony of dim sum and seafood
Five Guys XLB is a dish with soup dumplings of five different flavors: natural flour skin juicy pork, beets skin fresh beets, squid ink skin black truffle, spinach skin kale and turmeric skin crab roe. Five Guys XLB is one of Koi Palace’s most famous dishes.
March 14, 2018
Hastily weaving between tables, uniformly-dressed waiters and waitresses bustle from one group to another to serve the numerous customers that dine at Koi Palace. Laughter among friends and family and the endless babbling of babies merge into an indistinguishable patter of voices.
Right past the entrance, dozens of circular tables pack the room, with a mini-bar stationed in the left corner and the kitchen on the right. In celebration of Chinese New Year, bright red paper lanterns with gold accents and vibrant yellow tassels hang down from the ceiling lights while matching bundles of firecrackers line the entrance of Koi Palace. Traditional Chinese calligraphy is engraved into one of the walls, which oppositely faces a mural portraying the busy, hectic life in ancient China.
Families and friends come together to enjoy the dim sum and seafood at Koi Palace. The restaurant is decorated with paper lanterns and firecrackers in celebration of Chinese New Year.
Every action in Koi Palace is fast-paced and efficient, with servers and cooks darting from one place to accommodate all guests. As a result, the interactions between the staff and guests are brief and limited.
The popular restaurant is known best for its seafood and dim sum, small food items served in steamer baskets. People of all ages enjoy Koi Palace’s wide array of dim sum, spanning from spring rolls to Hakka style fish bladder. The prices for each dim sum platter range from 3.25 dollars to 22 dollars.
After biting into Koi Palace’s shrimp, pork and mushroom dumplings (shui mai), a rich, savory taste pervades the mouth. The shui mai costs 4.60 dollars.
Colorful picture-filled menus, written in both Chinese and English, depict the restaurant’s 929 dishes for dinner and dim sum. Customers can indulge in Koi Palace’s sweeter treats, such as its silky egg custard tarts and crispy sesame balls, or they can feast on more savory dishes, like its famous assorted soup dumplings (xiao long bao).
Overall, the restaurant’s vast amount of food offers variety, and its more unique dishes, such as its dry shrimp foie gras fried rice, stand out from the other dim sum places in the area. With endless chatter and continuous movement, the lively atmosphere of Koi Palace embraces its customers, compelling them to smile and relax.
