If your like me and your used to the usual yum-cha style dumplings, chinese / cantonese food.. and never tried anything beyond it.. I think Din Tai Fung will open your eyes to a new world. I’m going to admit I know nothing about Taiwanese cuisine so don’t shoot me if you think this place isn’t nice because I quite liked it as a foreigner ^_^.

I’m unaware if the food here is authentic Taiwanese.. please let me know as this is all completely new to me. By all means I suggest you give this place a shot. I think the food is fresh, great and worth the money!

One of my work colleagues thinks Din Tai Fung is fairly expensive… she suggested a really good place in Ashfield but once again i’d probably look like a retard asking “Whats this…? what’s that..? what do you recommend..? how do u pronounce this..”. None of my mates are Taiwanese nor speak mandarin so we’re very lost sheep.

Would love to try Taiwanese or Shanghainese food hmm just need to find ppl who know the cuisine :( Damnit! Only way for me to experience this was trying this world known franchise. Gotta start somewhere right?

AFFORDABILITY:
In total I’ve been here at least 4 times and I absolutely think its great. I like it because its reasonably cheap. Read a couple of reviews and people mentioned they found it expensive… to me i don’t think its expensive especially for food in the city ($50 for 2 ppl, 3-4 dishes) I think that’s reasonable considering the quality and the locality of the joint.. I know the dumplings may cost a bit but hey i’m happy to shell out $8 for 6 dumplings!

AMBIANCE
Different kinda vibe to the usual chinese restaurants. When you first enter the restaurant you will notice a strong smell.. i think its from the chinese vinegar (YUM)! Waitresses wear uniforms with ties, skirts and head sets and the dumpling rollers / chefs all seem to wear white masks and hats.

Friday nights tend to be packed with long lines so you may be required to share tables amongst others. If you wish to have a private table you could wait up to… FOREVER for a seat. (I suggest sharing)

Restaurant @ 6:00pm
If you go at 6:00pm the restaurant is fairly empty and you can skip the long lines. If you go beyond 6:15pm your screwed :(

SERVICE
Extremely quick. If there are massive lines you can expect to choose your dishes before you are seated. So when you get your table the food comes rolling out on arrival.

The turn-over rate is fairly high so they tend not to waste any time with people fluffing around after their meals. Definitely not a place to eat if you plan to sit there for a billion years.

The people that make this place work – The Dumpling Rollers OHH YEH!

FOOD
Apparently when you come here you have to have dumplings! So make sure you stock-up on it! Its worth a shot if your a noob like me ^_^

Soy Sauce, Vinegar & Ginger sauce:
Dipping sauce for the dumplings – I’ve learnt from the instructions on the table that mixing these ingredients together is optional. Its worth a shot if your a noob ^_^ I love the vinegar and raw ginger so i knew this would be instant love.

By the way, does anyone know where i can get a lazy susan like this for sauces? I would love to have one of these at home!

Shao Mai – Shrimp and pork
My first impressions were amazing! when you pop one of these in your mouth it literally explodes and the juices from the pork mince take over your taste buds. Keep in mind this is completely different to Yum Cha dumplings. This seems to be more of a flour based dumpling (heavier) in comparison to har gows.

Xiao Long Bao – Steamed Pork Dumplings
Filled with porky goodness mmm

Jiao Ze – Shrimp and pork dumplings
I don’t know what the difference is between this and Shao Mai.. but hey its still is a dumpling of goodness!

Prawn Fried Rice
I love this fried rice.. I don’t know why but its different to the usual ones. The rice seems to be a different type and i’m not sure if its cooked with some sort of tasty broth.

Fried Chicken
Different kinda fried chicken. Can’t think of anywhere that has fried chicken cooked like this. The crunchy bits on the outside are different to the usual ones i’ve ever tasted. Fairly plain but I like it.. it’s not seeping with fat and importantly it feels very lite!

Braised beef soup
My dad makes a soup that tastes exactly like this. The beef is soo tender it melts away in your mouth and the noodles are yummy i could slurp them all day . I cant seem to describe the stock.. You just have to try it. Perfect for the winter! (I’m feeling like one now and i just might ask my dad to make me some)

Shrimp & pork wonton soup
My ultimate favourite! People tend to think it the soup tastes bland.. where as I happen to like it that way. It has taste to it and you can taste the goodness from the Wontons.. at the end of the day your really here for the actual wontons! It’s a definite must order!

Name – Unknown
I don’t know what this dish is called but I loved it! Its some sort of appetizer! I love seaweed and I loved how refreshing it was to eat this. I’d order this again! It doesnt even taste like seaweed. Kind of reminded me of eating jelly fishhhhhh yummmmm!!

Sauteed water spinach with garlic
I’m a huge fan of water cress. My dad makes this in a soup during winter mmm! I love this dish because I love greens! And i think its healthy so definitely one of the dishes i tend to order.

Prawn & Pineapple
I hated this dish. I’m not a fan of mayonnaise especially when its overly drenched on something that should be crispy :( I ended up scraping all the mayonnaise off one of the prawns I was about to pop in my mouth.. made me feel sick.. felt like i was scraping off lard :( I think its presented beautifully ^_^

Taro Bread & Taro Icecream
Didn’t get to try this one. The lady accidentally gave us the wrong dish LOL. I was thinking to myself “WTF? I ordered Red bean not taro” hahah I took a photo if it quickly before the waitress realised she stuffed up LOL. It actually looks quite nice. Too bad i’m not a fan of Taro..

Red Bean Bread
Oh man this tastes soo good especially because its piping hot! It reminds me of prawn toast @ Yum cha (minus the prawn) but subsituted with Red Bean!!!! The first one i ate was mouth watering.. the second one made me drink a shit load of tea ! It got super sweet :(

Black Sesame Icecream
You guessed it! I had to order this. Disappointed though.. i had the usual image of tasting how it should.. but in this case it was different. Didn’t taste like black sesame icecream *sigh* =(

Din Tai Fung
World Square
Level 1, Shop 11.04, 644 George St
Sydney NSW 2000
P: (02) 9264 6010