Mmmm: London's tastiest dim sum
We've put together a list of the best places to get your Dim Sum fix
Dim Sum Noun: A Chinese dish of small steamed or fried savory dumplings containing various fillings, served as a snack or main course.
Now, the dictionary definition doesn't exactly make you want to reach for your coat and get down to your nearest Dim Sum restaurant does it? Don't be put off by those fools at the Oxford English Dictionary though, this is a taste sensation that needs to be experienced only once before you're hooked.
We've put together a list of the best places to get your Dim Sum fix in central London... enjoy.
Is there any better combination than excellent dim sum and reasonable prices? No, of course there’s not. And with all the dishes to choose from at the Royal China Club – most of them exceptional – it’s a good thing that they come off as relatively inexpensive compared to the likes of Hakkasan. Worth a trip for the lobster alone but beware – it’s always busy.
Hong Kong is a killer place to eat up dim sum and some of the best places you’ll find are sat - rather strangely – in shopping malls. Think vast round tables, thick carpet and trolleys of dumplings wheeled to your table. The New World may not be plonked in a Westfield (thank God) but it’s still the place to find the appeal of traditional HK dim sum in London and an experience worth paying for. The soft red décor is dotted with gold detailing and there’s a level of service that beats most China Town establishments. Chicken feet dumplings are an interesting choice.
With a strong celebrity following to go with its one Michelin star, Hakkasan is the A-list of dim sum. The smart, chic and sexy way to enjoy some of the best dim sum you’ll ever taste.
Shanghai
41 Kingsland High Street E8 2JS
Phew. Now we’ve got the traditional out the way we can move into the realms of the more peculiar. Shanghai in Dalston doesn’t just produce excellent dim sum but hosts its own karaoke rooms so that you can enjoy a medley of shark fin dumplings and Mustang Sally. The Char Siu Bao are particularly good and now dim sum can be ordered in the evening too!
Opened by Alan Yau and the sister to Hakkasan, Yautcha is the chic way to indulge in dim sum. Crazy expensive? Yes, but not for the experience on offer. The restaurant prides itself on the quality of its ingredients and contemporary updates are evident in some of its dishes. Don’t leave without sampling the venison puff.
This Shoreditch fusion enterprise is a strange mix of urban cafe and authentic Hong Kong dim sum. Prices are inexpensive and lunchtime deals are plenty, all in all an unexpected winner in an area you’d least expect to find it.
Lido
41 Gerrard Street W1D 5QF
Chinese
Opening Times
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Lido is the home of consistently consistent dim sum. Service comes with a smile and the atmosphere is just about soothing enough to feel like you’re allowed to relax. The steamed baskets of dumplings appeal for their freshness, which is all too often a problem in China Town. Solid dishes every time makes Lido a top recommendation.
You just have to take a look at Pearl Liang’s website to see that what awaits you is an altogether more classy affair than simple service and basic Chinese food. Resplendent with fuscia pink chairs and an on site cocktail bar it’s Paddington’s answer to Ping Pong – only with a little independent finesse. Traditional dim sum is paired with exciting admissions to their menu that include the amazing wasabi prawn dumplings. Chinese eating doesn’t get a whole better.
It may be the big bad chain to have stormed into the dim sum world but Ping Pong deserves its kudos. Having raised awareness of the attraction of quality dim sum, the stylish outfits of Ping Pong are always comfortable and refined at the very least.
