Crystal Jade La Mian Xiao Long Bao

I don’t get the hype. For xiao long bao, I would recommend more local restaurants. Crystal Jade isn’t bad by any means, but it isn’t worth waiting over 30+ minutes.

The XLBs are the star of the show. The Lian noodles and Chicken and Peanut sauce noodles were also very nice. Be prepared for a wait at lunch unless you go at 11 or after 2pm. The place is busy but all you have to do is flag down a server. Service at this restaurant is nicer than the usual HK haunts as it is in a very Western Malll. Worth a try.

Came here for lunch before heading to the airport. We arrived before it opened but there was already a short queue. We were the fifth or sixth party in line. Seated pretty quickly and we placed our order. Because they just opened they told us the wait for food would be around 20 mins. For two people we ordered:
Shredded pancake Shandong style
Original shanghai steamed pork dumplings
Fried sliced rice flour cake shanghai style
Sautéed green soy bean with bean curd sheets and preserved vegetable
Spicy& sour soup sichuan style — per cup
My husband has been to the location at the airport before but was not impressed. This was my first experience and thought it was very good. He even said this was waaay better than the airport location. He was impressed! The pork dumplings were tasty and juicy. I thought it tasted better than the Din Tai Fung in LA. I really enjoyed the spicy and sour soup. They give you a generous portion where I felt two people can share. The rice flour cake was super delicious! I loved the green soy bean with bean curd sheets and preserved vegetables. The combination worked so well. Can’t find anything like that in LA. I was not a fan of the shredded pancake but my husband loved it. I felt too oily for me.
I highly recommend this place if you are at the ifc mall. Even if you are not this place is so convenient to get to by MTR.
Staff is friendly and kept coming to fill my tea cup.
I will definitely be back next time I am in HK.

Prior to trying the location here in IFC, I did first try the location at hkia and wasn’t overly impressed. It has been a few years since and having a few days during my last trip out East, decided to give them another shot.
Arrived fairly early to find a fairly short line and was seated right on time. Since the hairy crabs were in season, the waitresses kept trying to push for us to order something featuring off that menu.
First to come out was their hot and sour soup. Though good, I think I prefer the one offered at Din Tai Fung as it just tastes richer.
Since having eaten a ton of tonkatsu in Japan, decided to sort of balance things out with a veggie dish which was sautéed and seasoned perfectly. Loved the tofu skin that adds a nice texture to the chopped veggie dish.
The xiao long baos were perfect this time around. Perfectly cooked and filled to the brim with soup. For some reason, the hkia location’s xiao long bao didn’t have as much soup and flavor.
One item that I wasn’t overly impressed with was the shanghai fried rice cake. Perhaps it’s because the rice cake is cut a bit thicker than I’m used to? Definitely not a bad dish but just something that wasn’t too memorable for me. Probably would skip this dish the next time I dine here.
San Tong onion pancake (?), definitely a unique onion pancake as it’s thicker and fried crispier than what I’m used to having back here in the States. I loved this as it’s crispy and flakey at the same time. Should’ve ordered two of these bad boys.
Overall, when comparing xiao long baos (Crystal Jade in HK and Din Tai Fung in TPE) the nod in my opinion goes DTF in TPE. Crystal Jade still offers a solid and I’d definitely return when I’m back in hk but there’s something about DTF.

This place was recommended to us by HK locals and I am glad they did. At first you think how good can a restaurant in a shopping centre be, but you soon find out that it can be bloody awesome.
This place is rammed to the gunnels with locals and a few tourists. You have to wait for a table and then when you get allocated your seat you get handed a menu which thankfully has the options in English. We had noodles, pork buns and of course plenty of dumplings.
They properly fill this place with people, so there ain’t a lot of space, but that was actually just fine as all the locals were really friendly and seemed keen to chat… and laugh. The laughter was mainly at my crap chop stick skills and the fact we had ordered far to much food.
Great restaurant doing tasty food. Check it out and ignore the fact it is in a shopping centre.

Hand made la mian noodles are pretty good here, I especially like it in the clear broth. I had it with fried pork chop and they put it on the side so it isn’t soaked in the broth and can be enjoyed separately.
The xiao long bao dumpling was very good as well, moist and steaming juices oozing after biting a small corner to let it flow out.

I thought this Shanghainese spot was really very good. Being a non-​Chinese person, I have difficulty assessing specifics on food, other than it was all pretty great. From veggies to noodles, all hot, high quality, tasty and delicious.
This spot to me is more like a «coffee shop» feel restaurant, with booths and tables. Seems to do high volume of business being located at IFC, so the softgoods of the establishment are a bit worn due to traffic. But no big deal really, this place is just more basic in design/​décor than I would have thought.
We arrived at 6:30PM on a Thursday and it was busy, but no difficulty in getting a seat. We chose this spot to meet some out of town friends (with a 2 year old!) who were staying at the Four Seasons. It was super easy for them to find.
Limited liquor, some beer and some wine, but nothing expansive or noteworthy.
Prices are also reasonable (ish)…not the least expensive we have ever had and not the upper end either.

Food is good here, quality noodles and dumplings. The dishes are also pretty good. I normally come for noodles.
Today I ordered Dan Dan noodles, first time in this place. There are three different spiciness. I went for the spiciest level, but it was not that spicy for me. The noodles were a bit too liquidy for my liking. I think that diluted the fragrances of the base.
Service on the brusque side, as in most occasion.

This place is a must to visit. One of my favorite places for Dim Sum. Basically their whole dim sum section of the menu is amazing.
Great menu, very delicious food. Although the service could be a little slow sometimes. But that is mainly because they are always busy. Be prepared to wait a little while for a table.

I love their la mien here! Always try coming before 12:00 lunch or else there will be a queue outside the place! Homemade noodles are always the best here.
My must haves are:
Shredded pancake: ERRMAHGOD! It’s so crispy on the outside and soft chewy on the inside!
Xiao long bao: the pork inside is savory and yummy! But I think the dumplings could be a lot juicier.
Spicy beef la mien: just the right amount of spicy! Plus the spicy is pretty spicy. My mouth was burning 20 minutes after we were done eating! The noodles were pulled to perfection!
I always recommend their cold dishes here too.

Inhale of breath … I have given my first 5 star review. I’m a bit shocked too. I’ve eaten here numerous times and always love their spicy dumplings (they alone get 5 stars). Tonight was a different story, I was dining with a pal who goes veggie one day a week, and today was that day.
I said I’d go «veggie» so we could share and this opened up new items to me. We had the plain pulled noodles that came in the lightest delicious sauce topped with crunchy scallions (drool). We followed this up by a plate of the fluffiest sautéed cabbage and a crispy yet fluffy (yep, used that word again) spring onion and chive pancake. Double drool.
For $ 162 combined in IFC it’s such a steal!

Dumplings made fresh and only made upon order… well worth the wait.
You can definitely taste this as well.
I didn’t know that they don’t have Dumplings with Shrimp here. The waiter told me that Shanghainese food doesn’t have Shrimp Dumplings… HA! How silly of me.
We also ordered a dish of cold noodles served with a side of chicken. I can’t remember the name of the dish. I do know that they had «two chilli» next to the description which would indicate how spicy it is. I think I have a high tolerance for spiciness, but this dish was getting pretty hot. I can’t even imagine what the 3 or 4 chilli dishes would taste like!
This place closes late: 11:00 p.m. (last call is at 10:30) So, it’s a great place to get your dumplings on to satisfy your late night cravings.

Among the Xiao Long Bao’s I’ve had in Hong Kong, this place is only second to Ding Tai Fung. Generally very good Shanghainese & you easily order & eat too much. They’ve increase prices 10−15% recently which if it continues, would have downward pressure on the rating.

I used to appreciate Crystal Jade for its standardization. They have been able to keep up their standard while maintaining a consistent quality and look and feel of their dining experience across different branches. Its been a while I haven’t been here and is a bit disappointed by the dropping standard. From the picture taken you can see the noodles are of different thickness, and the lumps at the head and tail are not taken away… also the pork chop was a bit too salty…

I first discovered this place 2 years ago when I was looking for food in Shanghai where that particular branch had a good rating. Also found out the there are several branches in Hong Kong. So then I decided to also compare the difference.
I love the texture of the hand made noodles in this place. My personally favorites are the sichuan dan dan noodles and also the xiao long bao dumplings.
This particular location is also the best location in Hong Kong. It’s right above Hong Kong Station which connects to Central Station. So you can get to and from most places from here without a bus or MTR line transfer (including the Airport for those who are here on a layover)

This place is soooo good!
Pros: great lunch spot! The dumplings are freaking delicious! Everything is so fresh! My lunch was amazing.
Cons: the service was not that friendly

I read about how this restaurant specialized in hand-​pulled noodles and xiao long bao (it’s also the restaurant’s namesake) so naturally it peaked my taste-bud’s and stomach’s interest. Being recommended by the Michelin Guide for Hong Kong didn’t hurt the chances that I’d check it out either. Located inside the massive Harbour City shopping mall in TST, it would be prudent to locate a directory inside the mall first before walking around aimlessly to find it, unless you have the time to do so.
The hand-​pulled noodles (la mian) in the spicy soup broth was quite good. The menu item (#71) identified that it was a very spicy dish, but it really wasn’t spicy where it would have you gasping for a glass of water. Overall, the noodle soup was good, but nothing really very special in my opinion. The star of the meal were the xiao long bao. Excellent! Likely the very best xiao long bao I’ve ever had and I’d likely recommend it over Din Tai Fung which is also famous for their xiao long bao. Every part of the xiao long bao from here was absolutely perfect from the soft, meticulously prepared paper-​thin dumpling shell to the juicy broth and tender meat.
Also love the menu descriptions. Hilarious from a Westerner’s perspective.

This was our second trip to Crystal Jade. We enjoyed the meal at the other location enough that we went back to the IFC location for more!
The dumplings are just OK. I know that’s «they’re thing» but i wasn’t wowed.
The soup however wow’ed me. I got something that had mild kick, with dried shrimp and peanut sauce. That’s what brought us back a second time. This soup. It was amazing.
This place is popular, especially this location.
The staff spoke enough english to enough to get by. Thankfully the menu had lots of pictures, and large type so pointing at things worked well also.

With Crystal Jade just opening its doors in San Francisco last week, it sparked me to write about my first Crystal Jade experience in Hong Kong. Sadly, the SF location does not compare to the delicious locations in HK.
Crystal Jade is by far, one of the most popular Shanghainese restaurants in HK and they have every reason to be. Their Xiao Long Bao (XLBs) are delicious, plump and juicy… with the right amount of filling to skin ratio. It’s the perfect size to pop in your mouth and let all the meat juice ooze down your throat. The best part… the skin does not break, causing the juice to leak out, when you pick them up from the tray, that’s def. a hard trick to master.
XLBs aside, they have some great noodle dishes too, both soup noodles and chow mein style. Soup broth is always flavorful and one of my all-​time favorite noodle dish is their peanut/​sesame cold noodles… just the right amount of sauce, shredded chicken and cucumber + the texture of their noodle is always on point.
There are several Crystal Jade locations all around HK, but some are definitely more popular than others. This location for example, inside the IFC mall, is usually filled with not only the mall crowd, but the working class around this area. Expect some sort of wait at this location but put your name down and browse around the nearby stores, it will speed up the wait time.

I can’t even count how many times I’ve eaten here. Weekday lunchtimes have a wait, but it is well-​worth it.
Food:
The Shanghai Dumplings are good, the skin usually doesn’t break when picking them up and they are soupy and flavorful.
The shredded chicken with cucumber and peanut sauce over bean thread noodles are one of the items I always get. It’s the perfect appetizer sauce and the peanut sauce isn’t the best I’ve had but I like that they are consistent.
Service:
During busy times, it may take a little effort to flag a waiter down or food takes a little longer, but considering all the people there, I find it acceptable. At peak times, they also warn you if you need to give up your table in an hour and make sure to check with you if it’s okay. I have also had them let me know I may have to give up the table I was waiting for if I didn’t get seated, but I like that they inform you and are nice about it.

Located at the IFC mall, one of the biggest malls in HK is Crystal Jade. My friend recommended this place for his XLB and she was right. We ordered 3 orders of them because they were that good. Thank you Connie for the recommendation! My standard for XLB was Din Ti Fung, but this place tops them in terms of flavor and texture. We also ordered the beef noodle soup which was hella good and a bunch of other random dishes that I cannot remember. The restaurant was very clean, modern and the service to match it as well. Come here early otherwise you’ll be waiting to get a table.