Tim Ho Wan, which means “Add Good Luck”, was started by chef Mak Pui Gor, who used to work at the Four Seasons Hotel in their three starred restaurant. He branched out on his own to serve his exquisite dim sum at bargain prices. In 2010, Tim Ho Wan was awarded a Michelin Star.

 

Chef Mak came to Singapore not long ago and I had the chance to try his dim sum dishes at Feng Shui Inn, Resort World Sentosa. Then I told myself, I would definitely make a visit to his dim sum restaurant when I visit Hong Kong. And here I am!

 

If there is one thing you must try in Hong Kong, it will definitely be Tim Ho Wan. But if you want to eat here, be prepared to take a number and stand in line for a very long time.

 

We were actually planning to wake up at 6am to queue at Tim Ho Wan main. Thankfully, we were smart enough to call the restaurant the day before and realized they were only opened at 10am. By the time we reached there, it was already very crowded. The receptionist told us to wait for 2 hours. Alternatively, we can take a taxi to their new branch at Sham Shui Po. We took the second option.

Photos taken with Sony NEX 5 and Canon 450D.

Crispy Char Siew Bun（酥皮焗叉燒包，HKD 14 for 3) is Tim Ho Wan’s specialty. It can sell up to 750pcs per day. The sweet crust, pillowy soft bun with a savoury char sew filling is definitely “worth dying for”!

The prawns used for Siew Mai（鲜虾烧卖皇，HKD 20）is succulent and crunchy.

In Singapore, the Har Gao (prawn dumplings) we tasted has only one shrimp in each. But here, their Har Gao（晶莹鲜虾饺，HKD 20）has 3 fresh shrimps wrapped in each. Mind you, not one, not two, but THREE succulent and fat prawns.

I love the crispy and chewy glutinous skin of Fried Savoury Fritters（家乡咸水角，HKD 12). The delicious mushroom and pork filling gives it an extra oomph!

Tim Ho Wan offers four different varieties of rice rolls (HKD 15 each) — BBQ pork, shrimp, beef, and the pig liver. Their vermicelli roll is made on the spot, hence it is very soft and packed full of flavour. Swished around in soy sauce gave it that kick that made this dish a winner.

Pan Fried Turnip Cake（腊味萝卜糕，HKD 10）was tasty but too soft for my liking. I would prefer less water in it, or the solid turnip cubes would be drowned.

Steamed Chiu Chow dumplings（潮州蒸粉果，HKD 10）is filled with chopped peanuts, garlic chives, ground pork, dried shrimp, dried radish and shiitake mushrooms, very crunchy!

The Steamed Beef Balls with beancurd skin（陈皮蒸牛肉球，HKD 12）were very memorable, too. I can actually smell the orange zest and herbs coming through the bamboo slats. The beef is very tender, succulent, bouncy and soft.

Fried prawn dumpling（鮮蝦腐皮卷，HKD 19）, a perfect blend of shrimp and crispy beancurd skin. Where’s my mayonnaise?

It was a killer to order Glutinuous Rice with Chicken（古法糯米鸡，HKD 20）. The portion is so generous that the four of us struggled to finish it. If we didn’t order this, we would have tried more of other dim sum.

Chicken Feet in Black Bean Sauce（豉汁蒸凤爪，HKD 14）was soft and slightly saggy, the chicken feet was well braised.

This is probably the most hyped restaurant in Hong Kong. My suggestion to you is, don’t waste time to queue for hours at their main outlet (which only has 20 seats). Go straight to their branch, it has a seating capacity of 80. I think the quality difference in both is minimal.