My friend Derrick messaged me immediately upon seeing my photos stream on to Instagram and Facebook, and he asked me if it was worth the wait to get into Tim Ho Wan. I suppose this post is to answer his question more comprehensively. It came as a surprise to most that I had not tried Tim Ho Wan although it has opened its doors in Singapore for close to a year already. Tim Ho Wan's philosophy is to provide Michelin-star level food available for the masses, and hence I was having high expectations already. Furthermore, the average waiting time that I gathered from friends was around an hour. By this time, the crowds had died down a little and I managed to get my table in about 30 minutes. You can get one person to queue first, but in the end the whole party must be present before your seats will be allocated. Thankfully I got my seat at a less crowded part of the restaurant. Otherwise, it can get a little uncomfortable when you have to fight for your own personal space. Don't expect the ambiance you would find in other Dimsum places such as Crystal Jade and Canton Paradise, for you find that you would not want to sit and chat with friends here for a long period. Seriously, just eat and find some place else after that. I attribute this opinion to the level of noise, the length of the queue outside and the overall personal space that one gets while eating here.
Just a heads up, the 4 Heavenly Kings (aiya, just say must try la) are the Baked Bun with BBQ Pork, Vermicelli Roll with Pig's Liver, Steamed Egg Cake and Pan Fried Carrot Cake.
Photos below are taken from my Instagram account. (choccroissant)
Baked bun with BBQ Pork. (3pcs for $4.50).
Just looks so pretty in a 3x3 doesn't it. Well they're certainly tastier than they look.
Here we can have a look inside the bun. As you can see, the Char Siew filling is moist with a little bit of fatty meat. Overall the flavour is fantastic, although some people find the filling to be a bit too sweet. For me, it was just at the right level, and the buns are best eaten hot. They certainly trump those served at Crystal Jade. However, they can be rather filling. I would recommend for a serving of 2 buns per person, in order to try out the other dishes on the menu.
Congee with Lean pork, Salted egg and Century Egg ($4.20).
I would say this congee is one of the smoother congees that I've tasted, although I find it similar to the one served at Canton Paradise. However, the dish does not disappoint as there are a lot of ingredients to go with the congee. The bowl is of a medium size, so I would say it's a little on the heavy side for light eaters, and hence I would recommend that a bowl be ordered if you eat a fair bit, and ideally 3 people could share 2 bowls to make room for later.
Glutinous Rice Dumpling ($5)
I was initially relucant to order the dumpling, but since I saw almost every other table ordering it, I caved in under pressure. This is definitely a dish to be shared, and I found it quite heavy. Refer to the next picture!
Yup so here we have a close up on what's inside the dumpling. I would say that the lotus leaf makes the dish extremely fragrant. The dish overall was not really outstanding, given the fact that the rice and the meat tasted rather normal. Still, I would order this on a repeat visit.
Pan Fried Carrot Cake (3 pcs for $4.50)
So we move on to the next of the 4 Heavenly Kings. I love the cantonese version of carrot cake, and hence this dish was a real treat. The cake was well fried, with just the right amount of charring. The carrot cake was extremely soft and melted in your mouth. However, I would have preferred it to be a little saltier as it tasted a little flat. However, this problem can be solved by pairing this dish with the Chilli Bean sauce available at the table. (Incidentally, the chilli sauce tastes almost exactly the same as the one at Canton Paradise, wonder if it's commercial.)
Steamed Prawn Dumpling (4pcs for $5.50)
What was outstanding about this dish was the distinct quality of its shrimp. It was extremely fresh and you could taste this in every bite. The skin was also of the right thickness, which pleased me because I get annoyed with dumplings that have skin that is too thick. This dish goes well with the above-mentioned Chilli bean sauce.
Vermicelli Roll with Pig's Liver ($5.50)
The 3rd of the Big 4 Heavenly Kings. The texture of the Vermicelli Roll, or chee cheong fun was great, as it was smooth and melted in your mouth. The skin was thinner than that of the Prawn Dumpling mentioned above, and hence it was super satisfying. However, this dish was let down by the Pig's Liver. Although I am not a huge fan of pig's liver, the liver was obviously overcooked and hence it had a rubbery taste in addition to having the strong smell that I am not particularly fond of. The redeeming factor was the sauce, which made it much more bearable. Hence, I would recommend this dish only to those who like Pig's Liver. Otherwise, you should stick to the Vermicelli Rolls with either BBQ Pork or Prawns (all $5.50).
Steamed Pork Dumpling with Shrimp (4 for $5)
SIEW MAI <3. The wolfberries on the top of the pork dumplings add a nice touch to the dumplings that already taste great. I am rather particular about the thickness of the skin as mentioned above, and hence Tim Ho Wan managed to deliver in terms of consistently ensuring that the skin was not too thick. That being said, I tasted more pork filling than shrimp, but it was satisfying nonetheless.
Steamed Beancurd Skin Roll with Pork and Shrimp (3pcs for $4)
This was just another one of those dishes that I ordered for the sake of trying. Unlike the Siew Mai mentioned above, I was able to taste the shrimp properly in this dish. The beancurd skin was pleasantly sweet, and the sauce made this dish even tastier. I would say that this is better than average, but not exceptional.
Steamed Beef Ball with Beancurd Skin (3pcs for $4.20)
As you can see in the picture below, there is barely any beancurd skin to speak of. Not sure if this is supposed to be the case but oh well. A strong beef taste will linger in your mouth so only order this if you do like beef. I did not enjoy this dish as much as I had expected, and the inside of the ball tasted a bit raw. Again, whether this is intentional I do not know.
Steamed Egg Cake ($3.80)
This has to be the highlight of the trip to Tim Ho Wan. Whilst the BBQ Pork Bun earlier was way better than average, I would have to say that the steamed egg cake, or malay cake sets the new standard for such cakes here. It's definitely one of the more pricey items on the menu, but hey, with every single bite comes pure bliss. The taste of the cake was reminiscent of Gula Melaka, or palm sugar, but it was not too sweet. This is another dish best eaten hot but will probably do well cooled down as well.
Tim Ho Wan has recently opened its 3rd outlet in Westgate, in addition to its existing outlets at Plaza Singapura and Toa Payoh. So effectively everywhere except the east has a Tim Ho Wan restaurant already. Hence there is no excuse not to give it a try, with the Big 4 Heavenly Kings definitely being the ones to go for. However, like I found out, there were a couple other dishes that would undoubtedly satisfy the palate.
Expect to pay: $25 for a good meal
#01-92A
Plaza Singapura
68 Orchard Road
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