I am not an ardent fan of dim sum and such, but since my friends picked out this place as a belated birthday celebration for some of us, I went along. There, social marketing worked its magic and we ended up ordering the much-hyped-about Xiao Long Bao (Steamed Pork Dumplings) and Fried Shrimp Cake, along with a basket of Shrimp Siew Mai and Wanton in Spicy Sauce.

Ok, Xiao Long Bao fans are gonna hate me but i must say, I never really understood all that fanfare over those steamed pork dumplings. I've tried the ones at Crystal Jade and some other places I dont remember (says a lot) and unfortunately, they all taste the same to my undiscerning tastebuds. Or maybe i just haven't eaten enough of them to know the difference. In any case, the Xiao Long Baos here tasted like...just that - Xiao Long Baos. Yummy if you're hungry, but not crave-worthy.Xiao Long Bao (Basket of 10)

My favourite of the lot was probably the Fried Shrimp Cake. It was like crispy prawn paste that had been deep fried till golden brown and chock full of crunchy pieces of shrimp. It works, and is good eaten just as it is. Dipping it in any sauce would just taint it. Word of advice: This goes fast, so if you have more than 4pax, you might want to consider ordering double.Fried Shrimp Cake

Like the shrimp, hate the thick dumpling skin. And don't be fooled, under the shrimp is minced pork.Shrimp Siew Mai

Apologies for the less than appetizing photo below. Chopsticks got to it faster than my lens could. The sauce for this dish was okay, not too spicy if you're not one for spicy food. It does kinda look better than it tastes though. Anyway, by this time, they were all starting to taste the same alr. Which brings me back to the reason why I don't particularly fancy dim sum. They all start to taste the same after a while. Wanton in Spicy Sauce

My friend also ordered a Noodle with Minced Pork in Bean Sauce. I didn't try that so i can't comment much, but he seemed to have enjoyed it well enough.

There had been so much hype about Tip Top's curry puff on the internet, many claiming that it surpasses the well established OCK's, that I had to try it for myself. Biting in, I was rewarded with large, chunky pieces of chicken and a quarter of an egg. While i liked that it was not so spicy, the filling and the pastry very much lacked the aroma of OCK's. And because a good pastry makes all the difference, my allegience remains with the latter.

Bought these home for the family. They have your regular assortment of colourful flavours, though none really stood out for me. My family did like that the dough was soft, light, and not oily. I, on the other hand, prefer more cake-like (than bread-like) donuts, but that's just a personal preference. Also, their flattened spherical donuts are not filled, unlike at other stalls.

The novelty of this place is that it has an electronic menu that you order from with a talking pen. They claim that it is to increase efficiency, but honestly i think that it's just a marketing ploy to pique customers' interest. Afterall, what is the point of having an electronic ordering system if you still need a waitress to guide and help you enter your order because of unclear instructions and a silly system that has trouble registering out inputs. Even the waitresses were struggling with the menu themselves, and the restaurant didn't have the right mind to arm them with a pen and paper as backup. Efficiency you say

That aside, food was average. I had the Mushroom Hot Pot while my friends had Soba and Ramen (can't remember the exact names). We also ordered Fried Chicken among ourselves. Dessert was pretty substandard. The small piece of cake and macaroon that came on top of my Sundae was trash, but I did appreciate the crunchy cornflakes in between.

Place was nice and quiet on a weekday evening.

The first time I visited this place, I had their Vanilla Pistachio and Rum & Raisin. It was pretty disappointing. Vanilla Pistachio was basically Vanilla ice cream with Pistachios mixed inside, and the ice cream was hard and not smooth at all.Then, the other day, I decided to give it another try since I was in the area and craving some homemade ice cream. I had the Chendol and Lychee this time. It turned out to be much more memorable than before. The Lychee had just the right hint of creaminess that I like.I also like that their disposable cup are deep enough to contain two scoops without one threatening to fall over, unlike at some places. The place is quite out of the way for those not staying in the area though, so I wouldn't recommend it unless you happen to be in the vicinity.