Amazing Tea-Time Treats At Top Chinese Restaurant Din Tai Fung

Din Tai Fung is a really well known Chinese Restaurant touted as The New York Times World’s Top 10 Restaurant and proudly the only Asian restaurant to make the list.  It is also named Top Chinese Restaurant in Kuala Lumpur by TripAdvisor. I had the privilege to dine at the One Utama branch to review the newly launched dishes and the Tea-Time Dessert Sets available daily 3pm-6pm weekdays (except public holidays).

Din Tai Fung is famous for their specially created array of ‘bao’ 包 and today I will be reviewing some of them delicious cute steamed buns and many other amazing dishes.

Before that, let me touch on the interiors of this place. It is warm once you step in with nice lighting and deco and wide seating areas, great for family tea time or for couples.

For corporate gatherings, there is a separated area for this that accommodates two large round tables.

Chinese people are afraid to get hungry, so there is a appetizer served at every table before the actual meal is served. These two are the Din Tai Fung special appetizers and yes they really whet up your appetite for the main dishes.

Din Tai Fung is absolutely famous for the Xiao Long Bao 小籠包, each delicately hand pleated with 18 folds. If you stand outside any Din Tai Fung, you can watch their chefs pleating this Xiao Long Bao amongst the hot steaming bamboo trays, just watch them will make you want to enter the outlet to try it out. The skin is super thin yet it holds the soup and ingredients together well. We eat this with 1 part soy sauce and 3 parts vinegar provided and a couple of thinly sliced ginger. Swallow it whole and let the soup burst in your mouth. This is the literal meaning of mouth wateringly good. By the way, Xiao Long is the steaming baskets used to steam these dish, thus how it go its name. This dish is not to be missed if you visit Din Tai Fung.

This is the Steamed Dumpling but it is very closely similar to the above. We tried the Steamed Shrimp and Pork Dumpling, but there are many other types like Steamed Vegetable and Pork, Steamed Vegetarian Mushroom, Steamed Fish and Steamed Shrimp and Pork Shaomai. Juicy and tender once you put in your mouth.

As mentioned there are so many types of bao here. I tried the Steamed Minced Pork Bun, Steamed Vegetable and Pork Bun and the Steamed Vegetable Bun. They are not too big so you can really more than one while savouring your other dishes. When judging a bun’s goodess, the skin or the flour used is of utmost importance. Din Tai Fung’s chef managed to make the buns not too thick and the skin soft and chewy, while the contents are not too salty and just nice. If you love bao then give this a try. If this is still too big, then go for the mini buns!

The mini buns are cute and meant to be eaten in just one mouth, okay maybe two if you have a tiny mouth. If you do not know, bao in chinese restaurants are differentiated by colour coding, that’s why they are so colourful.

I love this Steamed Red Bean Paste Buns 豆沙包 where the red bean is just smooth and also not too sweet.

The Steamed Yam Paste Buns 芋泥包 is one of my favs too as I just love anything with yam in it.

I was very surprised by the taste of the Steamed Sesame Paste Buns 芝麻包 as I was never a fan of black sesame, but this one really tasted good. I really have to recommend it, there’s some secret ingredient used in it I am sure. (^o*)V

Mini Golden Custard Egg Bun迷你奶黄流沙包  is my favourite above all the bao! Let me show you why…

If you do order this, don’t ever simply bite into it else it will just burst all over your face to your embarassment (true story told by my colleague). Bite into it slowly as inside is gooey egg york custard, perfectly steamed without totally cooking it. It tasted like butter mixed into, I tell you the truth, it will send you to the moon and back. I gobbled a couple of this, or was it three? I don’t remember, but it was snatched up fast as everyone loved it so much.

Even famous food blogger Sidney Kan cannot resist this irresistible custard Egg Bun.

No worries if bao is not your thing, as Din Tai Fung have so many other dishes. This Noodle with Fresh Mushrooms and Tofu 鲜菇蛋豆腐干拌面 RM15.50 is one of their new dishes, and I seriously love how smooth and silky this goes down. I always love mushrooms so I will definitely always order this next round.

This dish is for the carb eaters Vegetables and diced beancurd fried rice 菜香豆干素炒饭 RM17.50. If you need to carbo load, ok then get some fried rice. This fried rice is ok for me, plain, if you like plain then you will like this.

Stir-fried Cloud Ear Mushroom with Garlic蒜炒云耳 RM22.80 was really nice, I love this a lot, I know that Ear Mushrooms is great for our joints, so must eat more of this every time. It’s like a snack, crunchy and savoury.

Sometimes we just don’t eat enough greens and vegetables. If it is one of those days, then please try this Stir-fried garlic shoot with minced pork香爆肉碎蒜芯 RM25.10 to get some greens into your system. Lovely and crunchy, delight in every bite.

For desserts, have some Sesame Rice Ball with Peanut or…

Sesame Rice Ball in Red Bean Soup, this adds some warmth to the body and sweetness to the soul.

If the earlier Xiao Long Bao was not enough, try this for a change for dessert, Chocolate Red Bean Xiao Long Bao. You know, girls love chocolates, so when this dish came out, all the girls literally screamed. It looks like just red bean inside, but bite through it and you will taste the dark chocolate filling that just excites your heart. What can I say, I love chocolate to the core.

For those that prefer subtle tastes and less sweetness, get the Steamed Thousand Layer Cake, this is purely a Chinese dessert, I remember eating this growing up at any celebrations in the family.

How does Din Tai Fung know that my favourite cold dessert is mango pudding?? Served cold, this Chilled Mango pudding is full of mango taste, milky and not soft, maybe the texture is more towards nata de coco jelly type? Anyways, I cannot say anything bad about it as I just love mango in anything.

Din Tai Fung offers some interesting cold and hot drinks. I tried the Roselle Drink 洛神花冰 which is healthy and great weightloss and lowering blood pressure amongst a host of other benefits. The taste reminded me of ribena but with a tinge of sourishness.

My second drink was Lemongrass Juice香茅汁 which was really refreshing. This is great to help digestion after a heavy meal, and lemongrass has great healing properties too.

For those who prefer a warm and hot drink instead, can always opt for the Ginseng Tea with Red Dates. This is super healthy and great for the blood.

Or try the Boiled papaya with snow fungus which is also great for our body in so many ways.

Are you a coffee addict like me? You cannot live without coffee but you don’t think it’s available in a place like Din Tai Fung? Well, think again. Din Tai Fung now offers not just any coffee, but the very premium Illy Coffee! That would be the perfect end to a very perfect meal, be it with friends, loved ones, colleagues or family.

For more information, promotion updates and restaurant locations, please visit twww.dintaifung.com.my