It was barely 9 am and, already, the dining area at Dim Sum Haus was fast filling up. Granted that it was a long weekend, but clearly many people are already clued in to the quality of dim sum being served at Dim Sum Haus.
Dim Sum Haus has three locations. One at Jalan Besar, another close to Upper Weld Road and a third and more swanky one at Marina Bay Link Mall in the city.
We had found ourselves at the Upper Weld Road branch, located within a shophouse facing out towards Sim Lim Tower.
First Impressions of Dim Sum Haus
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The decor at Dim Sum Haus felt rather old school with a couple of charming touches. Strung out on one of the walls were pictures of happy customers. We wondered what it would take to find a place on the wall, or if they were even still refreshing it.
The servers were really friendly and helpful. Because the dining room was packed when we first arrived, we were originally seated at a small table in a corner beside a fire hose. However, after some of the earlier parties had left, they suggested that we move over to a larger table where we would be more comfortable.
This was just as well as the large table was better able to accommodate dim sum that we ordered.
Ordering of food at Dim Sum Haus is done by scanning a QR code to access the digital menu and submitting the order.
READ: 40 of the Best Places for Dim Sum in Singapore
Dim Sum Haus Food & Menu
The Dim Sum Haus at Upper Weld Road not only has the usual baskets of dim sum but has other Hong Kong style dishes as well.
However, we were there for dim sum and so we focused on those. After selecting what we wanted to eat, we placed the order and waited for the food to arrive.
One of the classic dim sum dishes is, of course, siew mai. At Dim Sum Haus, there is a choice of either regular siew mai or truffle siew mai. Since truffle siew mai is a speciality at Dim Sum Haus, we chose that.
We were not disappointed when the truffle siew mai arrived. Topped off with black roe, the truffle siew mai had the divine smell of truffle when we lifted it up to the nose. Best of all, it was extremely plump and soft when we bit into it. It was a satisfying 4.2 out of 5 for us.
Next, we had to try the steamed shrimp dumpling or har kow. At many other restaurants, we had found the har kow skill to be too hard or the filling not quite as satisfying. Happily, the har kow at Dim Sum Haus was neither. It arrived freshly steamed and we appreciated the soft of the skin and overall bite with the shrimp inside. The Dim Sum Haus har kow gets a 4 out of 5 from us.
Another dim sum staple that we ordered was the char siew bao. At Dim Sum Haus, it is known as the Honey BBQ Pork Bun. The buns were soft and fluffy with tender pieces of barbequed pork in a slight sweet sauce inside. Overall, the bun was deliciously light and did not feel too heavy on the stomach. The char siew bao was a scrumptious 4 out of 5 for us as well.
When it comes to dim sum, it is not just the steamed baskets that count. There are plenty of fried dishes to whet the appetite as well.
We wanted to order the fried carrot cake (or more correctly radish cake). There were two options available: the regular fried carrot cake or their signature Fresh Shrimp Fried Carrot Cake with XO Sauce. Of course we had to go for the latter.
Dim Sum Haus’ Fresh Shrimp Fried Carrot Cake with XO Sauce comes served on a plate with the carrot cake cut up and fried into a tempting-looking heap. Steaming hot, the dish was tempting to dig into and did not disappoint. It is no wonder that it is a signature dish at the restaurant. We found ourselves wanting more and more. It definitely deserves the thumbs up it gets on the menu.
There is also Crispy Mee Sua Kueh with Chinese Sausage. This was an unusual dish with the interesting texture of strands of mee sua once we had bitten in. Not bad.
We also ordered the Steamed Crispy Rice Roll with Shrimp. The soft rice roll contrasted nicely with the crispiness of the fried dough sticks.
We departed from the usual dim sum items by ordering the Crispy Shrimp & Mango Roll. This dim sum paired the sweetness of mango with the firm bite of the prawns. This was wrapped up n a deep-fried crust that had a nice crunch.
So far, Dim Sum Haus had certainly impressed us.
One of the menu items that had caught our attention was the Black Sesame Lava Buns. With cute cartoon prints on the top of the bun, we had to give it a try. Unfortunately, we didn’t quite enjoy the bun.
The filling was not “lava-ish” and, even though we did not know what to expect, it did not meet our expectations.
Later on, we did have the chance to try the Salted Egg Yolk Bun though. While most dim sum spots in Singapore have their Salted Egg Yolk Buns with steamed buns, the version at Dim Sum Haus comes in a baked bun, similar to polo buns. The Salted Egg Yolk Bun was nice variation to the usual steamed salted egg yolk bun and we enjoyed that pair of the filling with the crunch of the crust.
Dim Sum Haus Review and Overall Thoughts
On the whole, dining at Dim Sum Haus was a very nice experience. It is no wonder that the dining room fills up quickly.
The quality of the dim sum at Dim Sum Haus is excellent, especially for a casual dim sum restaurant. There is good attention paid to the food. We also enjoyed the friendly service.
We certainly appreciated the dim sum that we tried and there were many others that we did not have the space in our stomachs to try during our visit. This would no doubt warrant another visit to Dim Sum Haus in the near future.
Where:
57 Jln Besar, Singapore 208809
19 Upper Weld Rd, Singapore 207376
Marina Bay Link Mall, 8A Marina Blvd, #B2-16,17, Singapore 018984
If you enjoyed this story, we think that you will also enjoy this other story about 40 of the best places to get dim sum in Singapore.
