Tim Ho Wan

When I first ate in this resto, the rice meal is full of meat. But now, they keep reducing the meat in their rice meal and the amount of food per serving are getting smaller. Hay #thw, you are getting greedy.

I’ve eaten at a lot of yum cha spots in Sydney and Hong Kong and this is definitely my favourite. Not a huge menu but we had 12 dishes from the menu and all but one was a winner. That one was the famed buns I didn’t like — I found them too sweet. The other dishes were standard yum cha fare, but better done. The soft textures were softer, the crispy ones crispier.
I also liked the position right above Chatswood station, literally above the train! It’s part of an Asian food court so you can try lots of different eating places in the one visit. We will be back.

Here’s another Sydney review. I had a few written out on the plane trip back but forgot about it until now! We decided to have yumcha at least once in Syd and it pretty much came down to Tim Ho Wan vs Din Tai Fung– Hong Kong vs Taiwan (both Michelin Star Worthy too). For some reason I thought it would be a sprawling complex like the ones in China and Hong Kong, but in stead it was a small spot in Chatswood shopping centre. No problem with that, I was still eager and hungry.
We tried a few yumcha staples. The har gow was very very nice. The outer layer was like al dente and a bit chewy, but soft at the same time. They kept it simple with the filling– just prawn and no fillers like bamboo shoots and other stuff. As a result it was very clean tasting. It’s an exercise in simplicity and good to see the attention to detail that went into each one. It’s one small bite but done well.
Next was the siu mai which is chopped pork belly wrapped in a yellow wonton wrapper thing. Once again, one tiny bite but it was good! The meat used was leaner than usual so it wasn’t as fatty as the average siu mai. It was seasoned just right which sometimes is hit and miss at yumcha. The other dishes included steamed beancurd wrapped around a pork and vegetable filling, and steamed chicken feet in a thick abalone sauce. The latter was alright but didn’t blow me away (I prefer the other style of chicken feet). I can’t remember the net few dishes after the ones already mentioned.
For a place like this you pay for the experience and we definitely did! Having missed breakfast that morning I was starving and although the bill was around $ 50 – 60 for three people I was still starving at the end of the meal, it barely qualified as a snack. Though I have to say, a few of the dim-​sum were done really well, I could see why it’s a Michelin rated eatery. The thing is that even the less renowned yumcha spots of Australia put out some really well made dim sum and charge ½ the price (even then, average Aus yum-​cha is still expensive). The service also leaves a bit to be desired.

The baked buns with BBQ pork are delicious. The outside of the bun is a lot like the taste and texture of pineapple bun’s crust. The inner BBQ filling was sweet and tasty.
The pan-​fried radish cake was a bit too soft for me and I thought the flavor needed to be stronger but it was decent.
The pork dumpling with shrimp was flavorful and good.
The mango pomelo sago had a medium consistency with some pomelo pulp and sago. It was a cooling dessert.
I think the best bets here are the baked bun with BBQ pork and the dim sums.
(Btw, this place is not much on service. They tend to plunk the food down in front of you.)

Went to try my luck at this much talked about place!
Tried seven of the dishes on this delectable menu!
Century egg congee was delicious! As was the pork buns! Spent $ 60 for 2 of us which I thought was great value!
Awarded another Michelin star for the 7^th year in a row! Can see why!
Definitely my new yum char hang, considering the quality of food, the value for money and fast service! Couldn’t fault it!

Thee ABSOLUTE BEST bbq pork buns!!! TO DIE FOR. Michelin rating well deserved. The outer is delicate and flaky. The filling is just enough sweet and savory. I WISH they had this restaurant everywhere. All I had time for was to try these buns. Wish I could sit down to a complete meal. I can only imagine what else this restaurant has to offer.

The food is ok but he service is below par. First, the food: I expect dim sum to be full of flavor, to the point where you wish they would hold back on the salt. But here, I found the opposite problem. Too many dishes were bland! The radish cake and the fried noodles especially were really disappointing. Had I jot put any chili sauce and soy sauce on it, I felt like it would have been flavorless. Even my kid, who usually loves dim sum, gave me an «ugh» look and gingerly picked the radish cake from his tongue.
The service was unimpressive and also a bit thoughtless. At one point, we all heard a terrified scream and a waitress spilled an entire bowl of congee on a little boy. They seemed to have no idea how to react and left it to mainly the other tables to help out. In fact, the first cold water to reach the poor kid came from my kid’s sippy cup.
About 5 min later, the wait staff placed a steaming hot basket of dumplings in front of my 11 month old. My entire table just kind of stared at the waitress and she stared back blankly as we explained why that was a bad idea.
Even without the burnt child incident, the food was a bit disappointing. But combined with the terrible wait staff, I doubt I will ever go here again.

After all the hype, one word describes this place, overrated… finally went to see what it was all about, and really its just about the BBQ pork buns. though each dish was small, they all tasted nice but for that kind of price i would prefer to go some place else.
Feel like Tim Ho Wan is the type of restaurant where once you have tried all the items on their small menu, you wouldnt bother coming again unless you were in the area.

Every day for the last few months I’ve run through a line of people waiting for some sweet sweet Tim Ho Wan action on my way to the gym next door, and every day I cursed myself for not being one of those people.
This place couldn’t have been more hyped if Fatman Scoop had flown in and grabbed a mike and started yelling that Kanye was inside and he was giving away money. When I finally did get to try it out I did it in style — with a bunch of Unilocalers in the private back room. When they slide that door shut it cuts off all the sound from the restaurant, for a moment it feels like you’re floating in space and then the food starts arriving. The winner for me was the fish maw with prawn, which had fplump, juicy prawns glued together with an odd, slightly sweet, froth, I guess you’d call it. What it lacked in looks it more than made up for in personality, I’d happily eat 50 dishes of this and call it a night. The crystalline cubes of chrysanthemum dessert jelly were good too, a little nutty, and not at all what I expected.
I really love their chilli sauce, too. I like all chilli sauces, but not all are created equal, and this one I slathered on everything like the nectar of some delicious prehistoric flower.

It’s a Sunday afternoon and I’m at Chatswood for my first Elite show up at Tim Ho Wan to try out some Chinese. I’m assuming it’s Cantonese since Tim Ho Wan started at Hong Kong.
Access is superb as it’s located at Chatswood station. If you head in by train as I did, up the stairs and a u-​turn left up the next stairs into an eating area. First on the right as you enter is a tidy and presentable Tim Ho Wan.
This was my first experience of such a restaurant and I have no idea was «Michelin» style means. I do like there being a mix of foods so you can pick and choose what you want to eat, and I took a little of each to get a good variety.
The service gets a high rating from me. Excellent service really. Efficient and friendly.
The food was very nice but at the same time, nothing fantastic. Actually, I found the flavour a little bland at first for a town with a high Asian population but I did enjoy some more than others such as the bun and some fish dish.
Yes, I would go back but I wouldn’t travel all the way to Chatswood from Penrith just to eat there. I would have to already be there to consider revisiting.
The company was fantastic. Very enjoyable. I’m glad I got to attend my first Unilocal Elite show up.

«Well that was good… well I wouldn’t rush back… yeah not as good as I was expecting… in fact I wouldn’t recommend it… ok that was subpar» That was the conversation immediately following dinner at Tim Ho Wan.
I suppose with a Michelin star comes great responsibility, or at least great expectations. Don’t get me wrong, it wasn’t bad, I just don’t really see what the big deal is. I feel like I have missed a joke. I’m just going to laugh along and hope no one notices.
Being with fellow Unilocalers we got to try pretty much everything so I don’t feel like I have to go back. The fabled Pork Bun was a stand out and getting to try some adventurous (for me) dishes like chicken feet and fish maw (apparently it’s the swim bladder? Thanks Albert and Khoi you weird food Sherpas) was, well, an adventure.
The best thing about this meal was the company and Tim Ho Wan can’t really take credit for that.
At 4.30pm on a Sunday there wasn’t a line. At 6.30pm when we left there also wasn’t a line. I wonder if the novelty is wearing off?

Tim Ho Wan? Tim Ho Hum!
Alighting from Chatswood interchange, on a gloomy Wednesday at 11−30am, we were greeted with an eerily queueless entrance to Tim Ho Wan’s.
After ascending the escalator onto the wide landing we were accosted by two sets of 10-​foot tall doors which were shut — barring entry to heaven. The way is shut. It was made by those who are Dead, and the Dead keep it, until the time comes. The way is shut.
The time had come…
I surged ahead of my companions, right arm raised like a mithrandir casting an incantation, and uttered the magic words «looks like it’s closed». As if in response to my irresistible spell the doors swung inward of their own volition. I couldn’t resist glancing over my shoulder, my hoodie cowl partially covering my face and with eyebrows raised and a knowing glare… I simply bid «Welcome!»
Upon entering we immediately realised we were actually in a food court; NOT Tim Ho Wan’s, that’s the small place off to the right that looks like a fast food restaurant — and that’s when the glamour falls.
There’s a crowd-​control bandolier that runs at a right-​angle around the side of the restaurant. We glanced, and it was empty, and we made our way to the front of the non-​queue queue.
We were seated promptly by the attentive maître d’; We quickly perused and picked a range of dishes; our menu was collected; and within minutes the entire order was on our table. The. Entire. Order. Smashing through it rather quickly we ordered 2 more items. 1 came quickly, the other took about 15 minutes (hat tip to Baz, that’s the HK service right there — tick!)
Now, I get that in HK this is a Michelin star experience. However, something is clearly lost in translation. In the vastness that is Yum Cha-​tswood, Tim Ho Wan sits somewhere in the mediocre middle.
Bottomless chinese tea is a staple in Yum Cha-​tswood, but at Tim’s you’ll pay $ 2.50 for an oversized thimble of the liquid. This is perhaps the biggest miss at Tim’s, however there are also some dishes that I’d skip in future visits, and the signature dish wasn’t considered all that great at our table.
Here’s what we had:
— (H1) BBQ Pork Buns (baked): [the signature dish] I think the key to these that makes them different is the bun is baked. Super sugary, tastes like a pork filled cinnamon donut. If you can eat more than two you are better at this than me. Wanted to love them, and they were good, but I prefer the steamed pork buns that have sweet and sour complexity and aren’t 300% sugar. 3.5÷5
— (S10) Sui Mai: Top shelf, faultless dim sims. You know how when you get dim sims usually, after that first bite they taste like all the left-​over bits have been minced up and wrapped up, so you drown them in red sauce? Well these don’t, they taste fantastic. ⁵⁄₅.
— (D17) Spring Rolls with egg white: These were quite good, but most spring rolls are, aren’t they? One person at the table wasn’t interested in them at all. ³⁄₅
— (S13) Bean Curd Skin Roll with Pork and Shrimp: These were really good, the beancurd skin is actually quite tasty, even though it’s an unusual texture. The sauce is exquisite. If I came back again I’d get two serves of these (they were the last dish we got served). 4.5÷5
— (R23) Glutenous rice in lotus leaf: Worst dish on the table, and probably one of the worst dishes I’ve ever had at Yum Cha. Also one of the most expensive. ¹⁄₅
— (V5) Vermicelli Roll with BBQ Pork: Not memorable. The gelatinous roll dominated the dish and overpowered the lack of filling, which is interesting because the roll tastes almost of nothing. ²⁄₅
— (D18) Wasabi Salad Prawn Dumpling. These were so good we got a second round of them. Crimped at one end, deep fried, covered in wasabi mayo and roe, and chock full of prawns. Super tasty. 4.5÷5
Overall I’d give Tim Ho Wan a ³⁄₅ (I’m docking them .5 of a star for hype — don’t believe it!)

Hmmmm does food taste better when you’re on vacation? I’ve frequented Tim Ho Wan in Hong Kong each time I’ve visited (sometimes multiple times) and I have nothing but praise for the food. My last visit to HK was only last month so the taste of THW is still fresh in my mind. So when I got the opportunity to eat in the Chatswood branch with some friends for brunch I was expecting the same level of greatness but I have been sorely disappointed.
The picture menu and ordering form are different and seem to be missing a few dishes and have gained a few as well. This didn’t bode well for authenticity to start. Someone has already mentioned here that the Chinese characters used were different as well? Secondly you don’t automatically get tea — who eats dim sum without tea?
Now for the food and this is where I am questioning my taste buds — maybe their senses are heightened whenever I’m overseas. The baked pork bun was okay and comparable and I would surely hope so as it is their signature dish. The other steamed dim sum like har gau were rather ordinary and comparable to other Sydney dim sum houses. The steamed dumplings in HK were more fragrant and the clear dough had a better texture. Even the chicken feet in abalone sauce didn’t seem as well flavoured as I recalled.
The sticky rice in lotus seed was pretty good though but it’s definitely not something you should order unless you’re with a big group — it’s way too filling and heavy on carbs.
The biggest kicker for me are the prices and rams home how expensive living in Sydney can be. Anyone used to HK prices and even compared to standard Sydney dim sum is in for a rude awakening.

We’ve heard the hype and I won’t be drawn in to it. I will tell you, however, what I liked about my experience at Tim Ho Wan recently.
Firstly, I went around 11am on a crappy, rainy Friday. This meant absolutely no queue. Major win.
I found the service to be more than just adequate, but not fabulous. Certainly everything came out quickly and the empties were whisked away just as quickly. Wasn’t too fond of having to pay $ 2.50 for a cup of weak Chinese tea. What did Andrew O call it? Rusty seawater? Something like that. He’s right.
The signature pork buns, ok, so they are different, but so sugary. Not quite to my liking. But then again, I’m not known to order them. My mate Phil, ‘the pork bun aficionado’, well, he’s a different story. He would LOVE these!
I really liked the fact that all of the food was a degree of separation from what you get in similar venues. The glistening sheen of the translucent wrapping on the prawn and spinach dumplings; the silky texture of the turnip cake; the thin and moist wrapping around the prawn and pork dumplings and the fact that everything looked hand made, not perfectly uniform.
It’s good, but is it worth queuing for? Not in my opinion. But then, I don’t line up for much as it is. I think part of the queue is because the restaurant space seems quite small. Unless they have another floor? I didn’t check.
Three and a half for Tim Ho Wan. My other fave place nearby will still remain my number one.

From Hong Kong, to Taipei, to Singapore, and a few other places I haven’t been to for Tim Ho Wan this is FINALLY in Sydney as of March 28^th 2015!
Even though I’m in HK a lot, I came here just for the lulz and of course to «legitimize» my review.
Here’s my findings about what’s good and what’s not.
PLUSES
— BBQ pork buns (aka «the 好 in 添好運») is the best in Australia. (almost the world, but it’s not as good as the real thing in HK)
— They chose Sydney for the first city (Take that Melbourne!)
— If you got 10 – 12 people spending $ 30 each (min spend $ 300) you can book a private room and skip the queue.
— The place accepts cards unlike the ones in HK (But then again this place is more expensive)
— Consistently bad or no service because that’s how it works in Hong Kong. I swear it’s not a minus. All part of the authenticity or just go to a 鬼佬 place just to be «safe» and boring =P. The authentic culture is you just pay for food and everything else is just a bonus. (The good thing about it is the customer doesn’t need to tip and the server doesn’t expect to receive one)
— It’s probably cheaper to get here than to HK .
Now for the MINUSES
— The menu uses simplified chinese (symbol of communism) instead of traditional chinese (democracy). Big fail for authenticity.
— $ 300 for private room is quite a lot of pork buns consumed ;)
— It’s not considered cheap anymore for a Michelin star dim sum place (I think Din Tai Fung is cheaper and I don’t consider Din Tai Fung cheap).
— No substitute for BBQ pork buns in the Hong Kong branches.
— If you don’t order the BBQ pork buns you’re wasting your time even coming here when there’s other dim sum places which you could just go to which probably don’t have an hour wait and better value for money.
— I was first to review but not first to review anymore
CONCLUSION
— Come when its raining and on a weekday between 2pm and 5pm.
— Order the BBQ pork buns.

I live in chatswood, I walk pass this place every day and thinking, really ! People can be bothered to wait for that long for food and from the menu it looks like just yum cha food …
Finally made my day there today. Oh I was disappointed … The veggies was served cold. The BBQ poke bun was really good, if u like pineapple bun, just imagine pineapple bun with bbq pork instead of that fat layer of butter .
Service was good but had to say from the way food was presented and how a lot of them was served cold …. Not impressed .
Overall if u want to go there because u r curious. Then go and wait in line for roughly half an hr. If u really think they serve the food u never had before than don’t bother …
Service was good tho :)

So much anticipation… so many people in line… is it worth it?
Luckily a friend booked ahead so we got a private dining room for 12 people. The first few dishes were brought our very quickly (as expected at yum cha) however there were huge lags following that, and they totally forgot about several of our dishes so we ended up cancelling them because our 2 hour time limit was about to be up.
First, they told us they ran out of the spinach dumplings (at noon — seriously!?) and the vermicelli machine was broken so no vermicelli dishes for us. Those are some of the highlights at yum cha so it was disappointing for me.
Highlights for me were the baked bbq pork bun (nice and crispy on the outside with deliiiicious filling) and the spare ribs in black bean sauce. SUPERB! The other dishes were good but nothing better than other yum cha places in Sydney. The menu was a bit smaller than I would have expected and there are quite a few dishes I’m surprised they didn’t serve here.
Final verdict — Good food but not worth the wait. You can find great yum cha at other places in Sydney!

When the opening date for Tim Ho Wan was released, I quickly made a booking with their private dining room because I didn’t want to wait in line like a pleb.
To note, I booked this on March 2^nd, Tim Ho Wan opened March 28^th, and our booking was made April 12 because it was all booked out the other weekends already. You can book for 10 – 12 people in this room with a minimum spend of $ 300 for a 2 hour limit. Don’t worry, you’ll hit that easily… and with 12 people we sure did, and still managed to spend only $ 30 per person.
You’ll feel like a rockstar walking by the massive queue of people waiting and walking straight into the private room with an automatic door… seriously, this room is THE BUSINESS.
We ordered pretty much everything off the menu, but unfortunately when we arrived their vermicelli machine was broken so we didn’t get to try any of those dishes… but it looks like it was fixed as I saw some of the vermicelli dishes rolling out of the kitchen as we were leaving… what a bummer as they looked delicious.
In terms of food, most of the items were 4/​5, with the obvious ⁵⁄₅ being the BBQ pork bun. HOREE SHIET this is GOOOOOOOOOOOOOD. There’s definitely some sugar crystals sprinkled on the outside, but it might as well be crack cause it is freaking addicting.
Can’t say I enjoyed the Steamed Egg Cake all too much but it wasn’t bad, but the Wasabi Salad Prawn Dumpling was a hit as were the Pork Ribs.
For whatever reason, a handful of our dishes didn’t come out… so Tim Ho wan definitely loses marks for that. It’s like they completely forgot to bring them out, and by that time we were all full so we cancelled the orders. To their credit, they had no problems sorting that out for us and apologised. I guess you can attribute it to teething issues as they’ve been open less than a month.
Food: 4.5÷5
Service: 3.5÷5
Would I wait in line for over an hour? No, but 30 minutes is fine.
Will I come back? I’ll wait until their CBD store opens up later this year as Chatswood is a bit of a trek… but that BBQ Pork Bun might have me crawling back for more.

Were these the best dumplings ever? In a word, yes!
The baked bun with BBQ pork was a stand out. I’m not into ordering buns at yum cha since they fill you up too quickly but these ones were outstanding. The outside of the bun is crispy with a complex texture. I think it is pork floss that is baked on the outside. The inside is tasty and a bit sweet but I added some of the chili sauce and it was perfect. 4 of us had two orders and then had to have another at the end of the meal. They really were that good. If you don’t want to wait in the line up then take away buns are the way to go. I can see why those buns were probably the reason the Hong Kong Tim Ho Wan received a Michelin star.
The line up wasn’t too bad — only an hour to get up the stairs to the food court above the Chatswood train station. AN HOUR and he is not complaining? I had had people say they waited 3 hours so it is all about expectations. The ambiance is not why you go to Tin Ho Wan, it is only the food. The service was nice but they are still getting their act together so we had a very long wait for the Ha Gow prawn dumplings. Actually we had had dessert and had cancelled the Ha Gow since they hadn’t come in over an hour. I do understand it is a new business and things are made fresh and they were so good when they did arrive (after being cancelled) that we ate them anyway.
So what to order? We were going to order one of everything but instead skipped the chicken feet and the pan fried cakes. If I had to rank everything I would say pork buns #1 then the next group was all tied for #2: deep fried wasabi prawn dumpling, pork dumpling with shrimp, spring roll, sticky rice, spinach dumpling with shrimp. YES — everything was great.
Not tied for #2 are the vermicelli rolls. I thought they were very good but the others were standouts. Some people go crazy over pig’s liver vermicelli rolls and I thought they were good but maybe I would have been more into them if they came earlier. Could that be the key? Have the buns last? There is no way to structure the timing of your order unless you make several orders and I suspect if the vermicelli had earlier it would have made it into the #2 pool as well.
There are only two desserts (no, the carrot cake is not a dessert!). The mango and pomelo soup is excellent — great flavours and they have some of those little glutinous balls that are in bubble tea. The other dessert is called a tonic medlar and osmanthus cake. It is really jello with little goji berries. Interesting flavour and nice at the end of the meal. I am usually not into desserts after yum cha but totally enjoyed these ones.
Overall, I would go back in a second. I would try to time the crazy line ups but it is definitely worth it.

We waited approximately 2 hours to be seated, and although I would not do that again for a while — It was worth it, just for that one time.
I have always heard of the famous Tim Ho Wan in Hong Kong, and was skeptical about how good a pork bun could really get. If there is one thing to try here, it’s that — And the mango sago. The pork bun had a crispy and buttery outer layer that crumbled beautifully in your mouth. As for the sago, it had the perfect balance of sweet and fresh. I would go again just for those two menu items.
You can tell the other dishes were made with extra care. However, in terms of flavor and texture, you can find similar quality in other yumcha joints without the insane queues.
I was very impressed with the efficiency in THW’s operation. Within 5 minutes of being seated, all our dishes came out in a steady fashion. This is a feat for a table of 7 that ordered $ 315 worth of food, along with the chaos that surrounded us. In conclusion — Well done, I’ll be back for more!