Dim Sum Done Right

On the top of my to-do list in Hong Kong? Get dim sum. ASAP. Crowned one of the top 10 best restaurants of the world by the New York Times and awarded one Michelin star by the Hong Kong & Macau edition of the Michelin guide, this internationally acclaimed restaurant has put all of my other dim sum experiences to shame. Who knew that Ding Tai Fung had its start  with a broke husband and wife originally selling tinned cooking oil? After some quick googling, I've also just discovered that there is a branch in Arcadia, CA...where the heck is Arcadia? Can they please open a branch in NYC already?

Ding Tai Fung - HK branch. An army of cooks in the glassed window kitchen churning out steamed juicy buns for our delectable enjoyment :)

Even now, I'm still marveling at the absolute deliciosuness of those succulent steamed juicy buns. We opted for the traditional option of pork as well as a set filled with crab roe. Our favorite? Hands down the crab roe. Who knows how they get all of that soup into each mini bun but all I need to know is how to eat them :) These is one of those dishes you leave to the pros and order as much as you can whenever you have the chance to.

Steamed goodness! The steamed juicy buns were out of this world. Even my eating companion who doesn't like Chinese food was astounded by their goodness. The veggie bun option and dumplings were both well made but nothing compared to the DTF's specialty. 

We also opted for some other favorites - all of which were absolutely delicious but appeared almost sub-par compared to the juicy buns. Funnily enough all of these dishes are almost mirror images of some of my favorite dishes at Han Dynasty. You can check out the extra extra long blog post here.  

Wontons in chili oil, cold peanut noodles, and Chinese broccoli. All oddly reminiscent of Han Dynasty haha. 

A snowy day here in Philadelphia. What better way than to spend it at home with a mug of tea and watching the marvelous Daniel Craig portray James Bond? Oh yes and eating lots of hot pot in honor of the Chinese New Year's? Cheers to the year of the dragon!