The Ultimate Xiao Long Bao in Din Tai Fung (Taipei 101 Branch)

Din Tai Fung (Taipei 101 branch)
Address: B1, No. 45, Shifu Rd., Taipei City (Taipei 101 Mall)
Telephone: +886-2-8101-7799
Website: http://www.dintaifung.com.tw/en/index.asp


Din Tai Fung is known world wide for its quality food, exceptional services, and of course, the Xiao Long Bao (steamed dumplings). It has come a long way since 1958 and has branched out in Japan, Korea, Hong Kong, USA, and many other countries. Since it's originally from Taiwan, Din Tai Fung was definitely a must for me, especially since I absolutely love dim sum.

Maxim's: One of My All Time Favorites for Hong Kong Cuisine

Maxim's Chinese Restaurant in Hong Kong International Airport

Departures Check-in Hall Mezzanine

Non-restricted Area

Operating Hours: 06:30 - 23:30

Telephone: 2186 6068

 http://www.hongkongairport.com/eng/shopping/dining/all/chine/maxc.html

It was finally time to bid farewell to Hong Kong. We arrived at the airport way too early and decided to have lunch after checking in. We originally planned to just eat a sandwich but then my dad saw the Maxim's on the 2nd floor of the airport (Tip: Before entering immigration area) and it was perfect because we weren't able to eat at Maxim's in Hong Kong this time around. I was not even aware that the HK airport had a fine dining Maxim's Chinese Restaurant but I'm so glad we stumbled upon it because it's one of my all time favorites.

Sweet Dynasty Hong Kong: A SWEET Treat for Foodies

The Sweet Dynasty 糖朝
Address: Canton Road, Tsim Sha Tsui, Kowloon 尖沙咀廣東道100號
Telephone: 21997788 / 21997799


Sweet Dynasty has come a looooooong way since my first visit there. It used to be extremely small but has grown into a very big restaurant (2 floors) and has even opened branches in other countries. And despite the expansion, it's still jam packed during the peak hours. It's centrally located in one of Hong Kong's busiest areas, Tsim Sha Tsui and just a few minutes away from the famous Harbor City. Many have come to know that Sweet Dynasty offers some of the best Chinese dessert, but it also serves a good variety of dim sum, congee, noodles, and other Cantonese dishes. I always make it a point to visit Sweet Dynasty when I travel to Hong Kong because of the total package: yummy dim sum, lots of Cantonese dishes, the sweet desserts, and the ambiance.

Front of the restaurant located along Hong Kong's famous Canton Rd.

TIM HO WAN: Hong Kong's Very Cheap Michelin-Starred Dim Sum Restaurant

Tim Ho Wan in Chinese: 添好運點心專門店

Address: 9-11 Fuk Wing St, Sham Shui Po, Hong Kong

                   深水埗福榮街9-11號地下

Telephone: 27881266

Whenever I set foot in Hong Kong, eating Dim Sum is always a MUST DO because Hong Kong is known to have the best dim sum in the whole world. The restaurant on the top of my "Places to Eat List" in HK is Tim Ho Wan.  There are actually 2 branches. The first branch that opened is located in Mongkok. Because of it's popularity among locals and tourists, waiting time can take as long as 2 hours. Since we were already famished and pressed for time, we opted to try the other branch located in Sham Shui Po.We arrived at 11:30am and got the last free table.

Front of Tim Ho Wan in Sham Shui Po

Cyrstal Jade La Mian Xiao Long Bao is Here in Manila!

I love anything and everything that reminds me of Hong Kong so imagine my delight when I saw that Crystal Jade is finally here. We did not waste any time and dined there on the opening week (actually, this blog is way overdue...sorry about that). It was quite the wait though, an hour and a half to be exact. However, we didn't mind since it's located in Greenhills and we kept ourselves occupied by window shopping. Since Crystal Jade has been opened for several months now, the hype has died down and waiting is no longer an issue.

Steamed Soupy Pork Dumpling :Xiao Long Bao": PHP158.00 - This is one of their signature dishes. It's very juicy, succulent and full of flavorful meat inside. It's no wonder they named their restaurant after this.

The Best Dim Sum only @ Gloria Maris

Our family absolutely loves Chinese food and waking up this lazy Sunday morning and having dim sum in Gloria Maris is always the best way to start the day for us. As you can see in the picture above, a lot of people had the same thing in mind. In fact, we even had to wait for our table and considering that it was only 10am, it just goes to show how popular Gloria Maris is. This restaurant is always packed, especially during weekends, and I strongly urge you to go early if you decide to dine here whether it be the fine dining area, the dim sum area, or the shabu-shabu area. Because if you do not go early, expect to wait for around an hour or so for your table. You can, however, reserve for your table if you decide to eat in the fine dining area. If it's the shabu-shabu area or the dim sum section, you can go early and put your name in the list.

I absolutely love dim sum. In fact, I crave for it and eat dim sum at least every 2 weeks. So it should come to no surprise that I have tried almost all the restaurants here in Manila that serve dim sum and Gloria Maris (take note, it MUST be the main branch in Greenhills), is, by far, the ABSOLUTE BEST. So good, in fact, that it actually comes close to the dim sum in Hong Kong. Their dim sum is always made of fresh ingredients and when you bite into the dim sum, you can see whole pieces of prawn and pork, depending on what you order. Their branches in Alabang and Greenbelt and even Shang mall don't serve the same kind of quality. As for the other restaurants such as Maxims, Ling Nam, David's Tea House, Hap Chan, Won Ton, Zong, and the like, do not even come close. Other restaurants worth mentioning are Tin Hau in Mandarin and Choi (located in Annapolis).

This morning, we ordered the following:



The family favorite - Hakaw PHP125.00 (The serving size comes with 4 pcs but my daughter devoured one of the pieces before I could take a pic)



Fried Radish Cake PHP100.00 (comes with 3 pcs)



Shrimp Wanton Noodle Soup - PHP150.000



Nori Pork Siomai - PHP100.00



Taro Puff - PHP108.00 (another of my favorites)



Rice Roll with Shrimp - PHP150.00 This dish always reminds me of Hong Kong and only a number of Chinese restaurants offer rice roll in their menu.



Shark's Fin Siomai - PHP120.00



Chicken Feet - PHP108.00 I, personally, do not eat this dish. I just can't fathom the idea of eating it but for those who are more adventurous with food, my husband claims that it's really good.

So if you want to indulge yourself and eat dim sum, try the main branch of Gloria Maris in Greenhills Shopping Center, Ortigas Ave, San Juan.

For reservations: (02) 721-3504, (02) 722-5508 to 10, (02) 722-5760