majestic bay seafood restaurant, gardens by the bay

really rather good dimsum in this quite stunning restaurant set in the idyllic compounds of the gardens by the bay (one of my favorite places).

I had rather a far-too-much spree of dimsum a couple years ago, and so I very gingerly tread my way into dimsum restaurants these days, because of the very one-ness of their characteristics – they really only differ in quality. but at least this one was pretty much worth the calories (and repetition of flavors), and that view out the window is nothing to laugh about.

mouth restaurant, chinatown

a much-lauded chinese restaurant especially known for their molten salted yolk pineapple buns (or liu sha bao, in short), this place is crowded to the rafters on a sunday afternoon – probably at least in part due to the at least average dimsum and pretty decent cooking.

victor’s kitchen, bugis

I rather wonder if my method of skipping hyped restaurants at the peak of their popularity is leading to a systematic, and now rather expected, disappointment at how unimpressive the food is.

that’s a leading statement if there ever was one, and no – I don’t really understand all the praise and rave about this place. it’s not bad, and actually, the food is just as you’d expect it to be considering the style of the eatery – just that my expectations were raised what with so many people citing this as some sort of powerhouse.

but at least it didn’t cost too much, eh, so we take the small things where they come.

golden peony, city hall

I want to write a scathing post about this place, just based on how unhappy I was at the end of this meal – but I can’t bring myself to verbose hostility this morning, and so you have to imagine how bad it was. suffice to say that I was disappointed, not just because this was supposed to be an institution, a stalwart of fine chinese dining in singapore – and what we got, at incredibly high prices and pretty lacking service, was dimsum not even at the standards of the midrange chinese restaurants like yumcha.

this may have been one occasion, the first after many years of good food followed by a long gap of nearly five years, but it was enough to discourage from further visits – and almost definitely not for dimsum.

bosses restaurant, harbourfront (take 2)

decent chinese food at this slightly-ova’-da-top chinese restaurant in vivocity. it’s not new (witness the old post here) but it remains popular for its dimsum and flowing custard buns.

I try not to do too many second takes, but it is worth letting you know that they also have yam and sesame flowing buns – the yam was a slightly-sweet, beautifully pastel purple flow of smooth yam paste out a equally lovely pale-lavender bun; the sesame was less flowy (but it did sit very long, neglected amidst the torrent of dishes that arrived), but I loved the flavor. black sesame has this addictive, nutty profile that just hits every button on this console.

I’m less impressed with the more popular salted yolk custard buns – I know some of you guys out there are fans – but to my estimation, the paradise group or crystal jade ones seem to taste better (but to each your own!).

the rest of the food is pretty decent lunch eating – but don’t forget their house specialty beancurd! it’s fried blocks of spinach-bottomed eggy tofu strewn with a savoury mushroom sauce atop blanched greens. delicious.

crystal jade dining in, harbourfront

really good family-style dimsum at vivocity – I mean family-style in the best possible way: I think yumcha is best for large noisy family meals. I’ve been to my fair share of posher establishments where the dining is more european-quiet and your dimsum arrives in dainty dishes – but there’s nothing quite like sitting down to a meal in a restaurant where everyone is just as loud, and over-eating as you are.

well-executed dimsum classics in this mainstay singaporean chain – with reasonable prices and a great view overlooking sentosa, this place is a favorite.

summer pavilion, town

fantastic meal – great ambience, good food – at this classic chinese institution at the ritz-carlton. this was a treat for the mum on her birthday – and we had a great time; I love sitting down in an old-school, luxurious place eating dainty little bits of fatty dim sum.

the food here strikes me as being classic but-not-really, very exquisite and rather well made – and very much in line with what I expect from a chinese restaurant inside a hotel: good service, food that’s interesting but still familiar, and a peaceful ambience.

yum cha restaurant, serangoon

decent dimsum at the serangoon country club. the weekend is almost here! – and if, like me, you’re planning gluttony to an unconscionable degree, dimsum is a great way to go. I’ve done a short post on this place before, but I managed to lug the camera along and disrupt everyone’s eating this time – so I thought it’s well worth sharing.

this place is gratifyingly near me, and so a good option for a lazy weekend brunch. it’s decent-to-above-average food at reasonable prices, and a great place for large family meals.

yi dian xin hong kong dim sum, kovan

better than standard coffee-shop offerings, but not worth the hype dimsum at the kovan area – good if you live here, but don’t bother if you don’t. it’s almost certain that anything with liushabao (or, salted egg custard bun – you must know this by now) will catch the attention of my rather overattentive stomach – and so I was pretty intrigued by this place when I read a blog post on it. the food is pretty alright, but I highly doubt I’ll be returning on purpose for the dimsum.

the cathay restaurant, town

pretty good cantonese dimsum at the cathay, and a good choice for fine-chinese-dining where there aren’t many options in this category. I’ve been here twice now, so it’s definitely good enough to warrant a return visit, but I must say that the paradise chain does it much better for me (and with varying price points to suit your different moods as well, such a good thing) – the food here is pretty decent, though service can be very harried – they never really seem to have enough staff, though when they are tending to you they do a pretty good job. it’s more of a bring-the-parents sort of place, rather than one for manic-scoffing-down-of-liu-sha-bao, as I’m prone to crave.