HK: Some Dim Sum Please

One of the best things about Hong Kong is the dim sum. The food here is really cheap and delicious. It’s my fourth week in Hong Kong and I’ve already been to several dim sum places. In my opinion, there are three locations that you should try if you ever visit.

The first place is One Dim Sum which is near Prince Edward Station and previously received a Michelin Star. This is personally my favorite. They serve classic dim sum such as har gow, shumai and shrimp noodle rolls which I highly recommend. If you’re unfamiliar with what’s served for dim sum typically, their menu is in English and has pictures and English. The place itself is also really small so you might have to wait a bit.

The second place is Tim Ho Wan and they’re famous for their innovative take on char siu bao also known as pork buns. The one I went to was near Shek Kip Mei Station but there’s many other locations. Unlike One Dim Sum, they have actually retained their Michelin Star since 2010. However, the dim sum here is somewhat bland. Besides the pork buns, I would recommend the congee. Everything else here was so-so.

Yum Cha is the most expensive of the three but also the most aesthetically pleasing. Whereas One Dim Sum and Tim Ho Wan came to be about $1o USD per  person, the total for Yum Cha was $26 USD. To get here, we took the MTR to Tsim Sha Tsui. This place was super hard to find though since it was on the third floor of some building. I found out about this place a few years a go when videos of their buns became viral.

Several tips on how to order dim sum:

TIP #1: The restaurants will give you a sheet of paper with a list of all the dishes. You’re supposed to write down the number of each order you want next to the dish.

TIP #2: Har gow is also known as shrimp dumpling and is similar to a shrimp meatball in a thin translucent wrapper. Shumai typically contain pork and shrimp and has a yellow wrapper. If you want to know more, just Google them and the other dishes I mentioned.

TIP #3: Some restaurants won’t accept small change like 10 or 20 cents. They also charge for tea and sometimes napkins so if you’re messy like me, bring a pack of tissues with you.

TIP #4: Don’t order dim sum from Homey Kitchen if you’re going to study abroad at City University of Hong Kong. Actually, don’t eat at Homey Kitchen in general.