Patrons eagerly waiting in line an hour before opening for a taste of Tim Ho Wan
Everyone seems to know Tim Ho Wan. The famed dim sum restaurant started out as a hole-in-the-wall eatery in Hong Kong and earned its bragging rights after being awarded its first Michelin star in 2009.
Earlier today, the restaurant opened the doors of its Plaza Singapura outlet to the public at 10am sharp. Looking at the snaking queue (which started around 9am), it was obvious that many locals were eager to get a taste of some real dim sum by well-known kitchen extraordinaire, Chef Mak Kwai Pui.
Décor & interior – clean, simple, and even a little ‘posh’
The lively ambience is completely fitting for a dim sum joint
Compared to the Hong Kong outlets (think old-school style, nothing fancy with square white tiles lining the wall), Singapore’s Tim Ho Wan is definitely more ‘posh’. It’s also a lot more spacious; in Hong Kong it’s so crammed that you’d almost always have to share the table with strangers.
The interior’s pretty simple and clean, but the rows and rows of dim sum baskets on the upper part of the walls do stand out. Cute!
Dining concept – dining in vs take-away
The take-away counter is a godsend for those who hate the idea of queueing
The central dining spot sits up to 100 customers but for those who just want to indulge in Tim Ho Wan’s signature Baked Bun with BBQ Pork (more on this later), you’ll be delighted to know that you can skip the queue and head straight for the take-away counter just beside the main dining area of the restaurant. The wait isn’t long at all for these $1.80 buns and you can grab a seat at the take-away dining area adjacent to the counter.
For now, aside from simple beverages, only the baked buns are available at the take-away counter. The signs above the counter indicate that you can expect two other items (the Steamed Egg Cake and Glutinous Rice Dumpling) to be added to the menu soon so wait for it!
Ordering and queueing – it’s fuss-free
Order a little bit of everything – seven items for two pax is nowhere near filling
Taking of orders is the same as any other dim sum place. While waiting in line, the staff will pass you a little menu-form to fill out and you simply state your desired quantity. When seated, all you have to do is pass this menu-form to one of the staff – there’s no need to bring it to the counter to make payment because that’s done only after you’ve finished your meal.
Note that like its predecessors, seating is on a first-come first-served basis so they don’t take reservations. If the waiting time is way too long (say, more than two hours), the restaurant will use a queue number and SMS system to inform patrons that their table is ready – which is really great.
Food – our verdict
The “Big 4 Heavenly Kings” – Baked Bun with BBQ Pork, Vermicelli Roll with Pig’s Liver, Steamed Egg Cake and Pan Fried Carrot Cake (clockwise from top left)
Admittedly, with only 28 food items on the menu, there isn’t a lot to choose from at Tim Ho Wan. However, we noticed that everyone seemed to want a piece of the “Big 4 Heavenly Kings” – especially the iconic Baked Bun with BBQ Pork – which appeared to be the hot-selling item of the day as we saw endless amounts of baked buns streaming out from the bustling open concept kitchen.
Filled with sweet-salty barbecued pork, the Baked Bun with BBQ Pork ($4.50 for three pieces) was crumbly and fluffy on the outside and moist and warm on the inside. Our verdict of this one “Heavenly King”? You wouldn’t believe how amazing the pastry is, but they could’ve been more generous with the filling. One layer of BBQ pork is more than a little sad.
The remaining three dishes, Vermicelli Roll with Pig’s Liver ($5.50), Steamed Egg Cake ($3.80 for one piece) and Pan Fried Carrot Cake ($4.50 for three pieces) weren’t that memorable, with the skin of the Vermicelli Roll being too thick, the Steamed Egg Cake coming off as just average, and the Carrot Cake – a little too oily.
The siew mai is a must-try, we’ve never tasted such fresh prawns!
Other dishes we ordered include Pork Dumpling with Shrimp aka siew mai ($5 for four pieces), Prawn Dumpling aka har gow ($5.50 for four pieces) as well as Pork Rib with Black Bean Sauce ($4.20).
Stuffed with incredibly fresh prawns, the siew mai was absolutely phenomenal. We say it’s a must-try! The har gow was rather pedestrian (again, the skin was too thick), whereas the Pork Rib was quite tasty and full of flavour. Unfortunately though, this variation doesn’t quite match up to the one in Hong Kong.
Of course, when it comes to dim sum, we strongly suggest you do one thing: eat while it’s warm, otherwise it might taste different. You don’t have to gobble your food down though – unlike Tim Ho Wan in Hong Kong you don’t have to finish your food by a certain time for the sake of those queueing outside. Be warned though – if it’s too crowded and you want to order another round of items, be prepared to wait for up to an hour for that second helping.
So is it as good as Hong Kong’s?
Straight up, the answer is no. Not to say the food isn’t decent – it is – but perhaps it has something to do with the quality of the ingredients, or the mad scramble of opening day.
According to a fellow foodie who also had the privilege of dining at one of the Hong Kong outlets, “You can most definitely tell the difference if you had the chance to try the dim sum in both countries. Personally, I feel the har gow and the Vermicelli Roll were both letdowns. Hong Kong does it better for some reason, thinner skin, tastier ingredients… it’s just different here. Plus, it’s so much cheaper in Hong Kong!”
Turn to Page 2 for more photos of Tim Ho Wan!
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