Tim Ho Wan started as a modest twenty-seat dim restaurant in Mongkok. A year later they earned a Michelin star. Other branches followed, each earning a star. Tim Ho Wan was able to claim to be the most affordable Michelin-starred restaurant in the world.

PROFILE
Mak Kwai Pui had previously been chef at the Michelin three-star rated Lung King Heen, in Hong Kong’s Four Seasons Hotel, when in 2009 he joined forces with Chef Leung Fai Keung to open Tim Ho Wan, a modest twenty-seat dim restaurant in Mongkok. A year later they earned a Michelin star. Other branches followed, each earning a star. Tim Ho Wan was able to claim, no doubt with justification, that it was the most affordable Michelin-starred restaurant in the world. Together, the two chefs opened the chain’s first international outlet in Singapore in 2013, replicating the recipes and, perhaps inevitably, the crowded, frenetic atmosphere of the original.

MUST TRY: Big 4 Heavenly Kings

AMBIENCE
A modest yet smart frontage in the mall that somewhat transcends the image of a noisy, hole-in-the-wall Hong Kong dim sum restaurant. The décor itself tends towards the minimal, the crowd of diners and the food itself forming the ambience. The queue outside during peak times should act as a reminder not to wait until you are desperately hungry before your visit.

SERVICE
Service is prompt and friendly, with very little ceremony, as per Hong Kong tradition. Precision is the rule of thumb for all chefs in the kitchen, down to details like the specific size of each morsel, the folds in the dumplings, and service delivery.

FOOD
The food adheres closely to the recipes of the original outlets, and is essentially traditional, wallet-friendly dim sum. The signature serving is Big 4 Heavenly Kings, which consists of fluffy, crumbly buns of barbecued pork, along with steamed egg cake, bean-curd skin with pork and shrimp, and pan-fried carrot cake. Other mainstays include the steamed chicken feet with black bean sauce, and steamed pork dumpling with shrimp. Only fresh ingredients are used, and nothing is pre-steamed or reheated, everything being made to order so as to retain its intended flavour and texture.

PRICING
S$16 to S$30

SUMMARY
This is about as close to a Hong Kong dim sum experience that it is possible to achieve, and its spread overseas shows just how appealing is dim sum to all tastes.