Dim Sim Cafe

Past experiences have taught me that more often than not, unimaginative restaurant names = unimaginative food. I’ve passed Dim Sim Café many times but always snubbed it for its dimwitted, Dim Sim name.
I was at the William St festival last Sunday and couldn’t ignore the piping hot bamboo baskets that were being cracked open out the front of Dim Sim Café, to reveal fat, fluffy pork buns, signaling me with their chubby faces.
And so my ignorance ended.
The steamed pork buns ticked all the required boxes; fresh, sweet, salty and fluffy.
The squid tentacles were good too. They made the last squid I had of this variety seem comparatively chewy. Why did I ever stand for this chewiness?
I can’t comment on actual dine-​in service because I got my buns to take-​away, but for the food alone — Ill be back to pass judgment on that soon.

The quality of the dim sum has dropped. I will recommend Dragon or Xin Tian Ti for a better quality dim sum.

Here’s a tip: Don’t ever go to dim sum with a vegetarian friend. Options are limited. At least they were for us at Dim Sim Café, which I have since returned to with meat-​eating pals and enjoyed myself thoroughly. But yeah, that first time was disappointing (vegetarian spring rolls, bok choy in black bean sauce, did I mention vegetarian spring rolls? I think I just fell asleep). The food trolleys here seem to be constantly updated which is always important for the dim sum experience, and the shanghai dumplings are tops. I believe I was nursing a hangover on both visits, and the second time especially I left feeling a whole lot better. It’s funny hour deep fried treats can have that effect.