Tim Ho Wan

just got the bbq pork buns here to go to eat before the ferry, combo of dinner and dessert, hellla good!

Le guide Michelin pour Hong Kong restera pour moi une énigme quant à l’attribution d’étoiles souvent étranges tenant compte du type d’établissement promus. Je né me réfère pas aux restaurants gastronomiques et luxueux (quoi que certains né méritent pas non plus ces nombreuses étoiles) mais à ce que j’appelle des gargotes mais qui servent tout de même une cuisine de qualité. Des établissements qui né seraient sans aucun doute jamais étoilés sur d’autres continents. Je me rappelais de ma visite chez «Ho Kung Kee» en 2012 avec son étoile très discutable avec ce bouillon et ses wonton.
Aujourd’hui il s’agit de «Tim Ho Wan «qui lui aussi a reçu un macaron, cependant il faut savoir qu’il s’agit d’une chaine d’établissements à Hong Kong et que pas tous ont été nominés, ce qui est un peu difficile à comprendre sachant que la carte né propose qu’une douzaine de plats et principalement que des dim-​sum.
Donc je me rends à l’une des deux succursales étoilée non loin de la station de métro Sham Shui Po un peu au nord de Kowloon. Un quartier plutôt agréable à visiter avec son marché aux puces sur Apliu street et le marché de victuailles sur Pei Ho street. Le MTR vous amenant directement à destination en quelques minutes. Vous né trouverez pas de signe distinctif dans cette rue Fuk Wing street mais né vous en fait pas car la foule devant l’établissement né peut que vous indiquer où cette table se trouve.
Une enseigne traditionnelle en l’air dans la rue mais probablement peu de chance d’identifier qu’il s’agit de «Tim Ho Wan «, celle-​ci étant un sinogramme.
Alors que faire au milieu de cette foule? Eh bien vous enregistrer chez l’hôtesse en précisant combien vous êtes et attendre que l’on vous appelle ce qui prit moins de vingt minutes. Emparez-​vous de cette fiche verte qui est le menu qui par chance mentionne la liste des plats et cochez ce qui vous intéresse. On dirait que tout est fait pour être optimisé et le temps raccourci. On né vient pas chez «Tim Ho Wan «pour passer un moment comme dans un restaurant traditionnel mais simplement… manger… Donc attendez-​vous à y passer plus ou trente à 40 minutes maximum car tout est servi extrêmement rapidement, un peu comme dans une cantine. En réalité cet établissement né cherche pas à se différencier d’une autre mangerie du quartier, vous serez prévenus.
La salle est sans aucun charme particulier, on vous assoira un peu n’importe où en fonction des disponibilités. Par exemple étant seul, je me suis trouvé à une table où se trouvaient trois autres personnes, ce qui n’est pas en problème en soi. Mais sachez comme je viens de le dire précédemment, vous n’être pas loin d’un concept de fast-food…étoilé… D’ailleurs, «Tim Ho Wan «a comme slogan «le 1 étoile moins cher au monde «…Et ceci n’est pas faux car dépenser environs 10 euros est probablement le montant réel.
Les serveuses collectent votre feuille de commande verte et on n’a plus qu’à attendre, tout arrivant sans ordre particulier.
Service de thé gratuit pour accompagner le repas à moins que vous choisissiez une autre boisson, cependant je n’ai pas vraiment vu de personnes boire autre chose que thé ou eau.
Pour une première visite, évidement je choisirai les plats qui sont ceux dont tout le monde parle avec tout d’abord les rouleaux de riz farci au foie de porc. En fait des crêpes réalisées avec de la farine de riz, cuites à la vapeur avec à l’intérieur ce fois qui né devrait pas trop déplaire à tous ceux qui simplement aiment le foie. Le tout est arrosé d’une sauce à base de soja. C’est très bon, parfaitement réalisé et dans son genre né peut être meilleur.
Autre «must «, les dumplings aux crevettes fraiches. La pâte est fine, l’intérieur se trouve être de vraies et grosses crevettes. A nouveau excellent.
Le cake aux œufs à la vapeur est aérien, légèrement spongieux, un peu sucré et un léger goût caramélisé. Un parfait moment de douceur.
Et pour terminer les renommés brioches au four farcis avec du porc en sauce BBQ. L’extérieur est légèrement recouvert d’une fine couche de sucre caramélisé, la farce est très gouteuse avec une saveur aigre-​douce. C’est à nouveau très bon.
Ce que j’ai mangé peut facilement être servi dans un établissement luxueux et fera même souvent de l’ombré à ce qu’il m’a été donné de déguster auparavant localement ou en chine. Maintenant question dim sum en Angleterre se sont avérés être une bien autre expérience gustative. C’est néanmoins une très intéressante expérience et vous ressortirez satisfait de cet endroit pour le contenu de l’assiette même si l’on a l’impression de manger dans un champ de bataille… Maintenant si cela vaut une étoile… il né faudrait tout de même pas exagérer. Maintenant… est-​ce si important? Eh bien pas du tout… Allez faire «le touriste «car tout le monde est au moins allé une fois chez «Tim Ho Wan «.

Loved this place. And this is coming from someone who usually don’t eat/​enjoy dim sum much. They had the best shrimp dumplings I’ve ever had. The skin was perfect and not skimpy on the shrimp. Each bite was amazing. Plus the spareribs were awesome. The one that comes with rice comes in a metal bowl that almost looks like a dog bowl LOL foreal… But the sauce was so good! Everything else we ordered was good and the best part was that we didn’t have to wait at all. YAASS. It’s sad but I just can’t do dimsum back home anymore.

Coming from the SF Bay area and having eaten a lot of Dim Sum in LA and Vancouver, I feel like I have been pretty spoiled by good Dim Sum. But when in Hong Kong, I just had to try Tim Ho Wan, the famed cheapest Michelin starred restaurant in the world.
I was living in Admiralty and I knew there was a Tim Ho Wan nearby, but I wanted to go to one that still had a Star, so I took the MTR red line up to Sham Shui Po to go to one of the earlier locations. The restaurant was about 4 blocks from the MTR station and pretty easy to find.
Our group of 5 arrived at around 10:30am and were seated immediately. I would highly suggest going soon after the restaurant opens because the place filled up very quickly and a huge line/​mass of humanity soon formed outside the entrance.
The options were all pretty familiar, most were done well, but it is the baked buns that really stand out. The famous Char Siu Bao is amazing, we went through 4 orders and took 2 to go. Their Molten Egg bun is also a standout, the bread being crispy and light, while the filling warm and oozing. Their Hargao, Shuimai, Horfun, Daikon Cake, and chive dumplings were also on point.
However, there were some dishes that were mediocre to poor. The beef meatballs were good texture, but ruined by the excess amount of worcestershire sauce that was dumped on top. The Steam buns, had a terrible bread to filling ratio, the Lo Mai Gai filling was uninspired, uneven, and not fully cooked so some of the rice was crunchy, and finally, my Phoenix Talons had 2 pieces where the nails were not removed.
Adding in the subpar service, I wasn’t expecting much, but the utter lack of service was surprising, I just couldn’t give 5 stars.
TL: DR: Great classic dim sum, cheap price, about $ 14 USD per person and we over ordered. Gotta try the BBQ Pork Buns.

not as cheap as the beginning.
Miss the days when it is still located at the shabby store in Kwong Wah Street, with the rude staffs.
the Snow Man cha siu bun is still the all time favourite of this dim sum shop.

I don’t know who Tim is or what he looks like, but I’m pretty sure I’d love him forever anyway.
Famous for being the cheapest Michelin star restaurant in the world, score you some seriously AMAZING eats in this low key joint for dirt cheap. Seriously, I got 4 dim sum items (flaky pastry barbecue pork buns, turnip cake, phoenix talon, and shrimp dumplings) for $ 80HKD.
…$ 80 HKD. That’s like, $ 10 USD, guys.
For steamed-​to-​order, high quality, DELICIOUS dim sum. Plump juicy shrimp and lightly caramelized pastry for your barbecue buns? I mean, why aren’t you over there already?
If you come solo (like me), you will get sat quickly, likely sharing a table with someone. Smile and greet them– it’s weird if you stare at them across the table and don’t.
Expect a serious wait on the weekends, and be patient when you order your food! It takes a long time to receive your food, but I promise that it’ll all be worth it!

Came to HK mid april after a week in Korea. Been wanting to return to HK after having been since 2006. Tim Ho Wan was known to be a popular place due to it being a michelin star but affordable dim sum restaurant. Came here on a Monday morning expecting a wait of a sort. We were almost immediately sat at a table. Only delay was the waitress was not at the podium.
Me being a stubborn head, i refused to ask for an english menu. Lol so i forced as much chinese character reading out of myself and referred to Unilocal for a picture Lol xD
Everything is made to order. Which has its pros and cons. Pros is that its extremely fresh made and hot. Cons is usually its a limited menu and you dont get to see and over order XD
Steamed fresh shrimp dumpling (Ha Gao) — Transparent skin with multiple shrimps inside. Fresh amazingly seasoned shrimp.
Steamed pork dumplings with shrimp (Siu Mai) — In the states, this particular dumpling is majority pork. If not all pork. So usually kind of stiff in texture. This one was like half pork and a whole shrimp on the bottom. What a surprise ! I, myself, dont mind seafood and it was a nice surprise for me. One of my friends don’t particularly like seafood, so he had a weird surprise. He didn’t particularly not like it but didn’t like it either.
Glutinous rice dumpling (Loh Mai Gai) — In the states, one order comes with usually 2, maybe 3. At THW, it is 1. Big one. Shared among the three. Good flavor. Good size. One of my favorite dim sum items usually.
Steamed chicken feet with black bean sauce (Fong Jiao) — Not many people like to eat this but i like it. So i decided to get it, even though one of my friends dont particularly like it, but will still eat it, and the other wont even dream of touching it. Nicely flavored. Not overcooked. The skin isnt mushy and kept its firmness and form. More popular with the older generation and some of the newer gen. acquired taste. not for the white-​washed XD
BBQ Rice Noodle —
Baked bun with BBQ Pork (Cha Siu Bao) — Out of all the items, this is definitely one of my top favs. Different bun style than what im used to in the states. Usually a baked style with a thin honey glaze on top. Here its a bun where its borderline flakey but not flakey. And has a nice «craquelin» top similar to pineapple bun. Color of the bun is borderline white. Very surprising and yummy. Filling was flavorful and not overly sweet or salty.
Deep fried dumpling filled with pork (Ham Sui Gok) — Super fresh. Hot out of the fryer. Totally almost burned my mouth eating this. Not your typical fried item if you haven’t had dim sum. The outside shell is more like deep fried mochi texture where it has a thin layer of crisp on the outside but its chewy too. Filling inside is not sweet, but savory. Pork and other ingredients. Popular item to order within my family.
Vermicelli roll stuffed with BBQ Pork — Standard rice roll with stuffed ingredients. The noodle itself was nicely prepared. thick enough to hold but thin enough to be not too much.
price overall was amazing. believe it was less than $ 20 USD. especially on the HKD to USD conversion. Rates are overall very stable for HKD from USD at on average 7.75 for the past many years. good place to try if you in town !

Best damn dimsum I’ve ever had. In my entire life. Seriously, I came back to the states and had dimsum and felt seriously disappointed/​sad. It just won’t ever be the same again. The shrimp dumplings here were the star for my table. We got 4 orders. Just writing those words are making me crave more right now. The pork buns are also AMAZING. They are like a pineapple bun with pork filling inside. PERFECT. One of my other favorite items– the short ribs. The sauce for the ribs is like the best I’ve ever had. We definitely overate here but we literally had to try everything on the menu. We did two rounds, after thinking one round would be enough. For being a Michelin Star restaurant, it’s extremely affordable.
I can’t wait to go back.
PS– going on a weekday (tuesday) we experienced no wait. This is probably quite unusual for this place. A local did recommend we go but told us to expect a wait, probably at least an hour.

Amazing place. We came here w 6 ppl.
Ordered a lot, maybe more than 10 dishes. Cost only $ 7 per person

Pork buns, ha gaw, xiu Mai, Chiu chow dumpling
We tried the must try pork buns and it was crispy and thin on the bun part
The red pork inside was chopped small
It comes in 3 so be aware when you order! We got 2 plates of it for 2 people so we each ate 3 pieces (not complaining)
Michelin awarded buns for sure. Cheap too
The rest of the dim sum was actually pretty good
It all came out super fresh and hot
Served with tea
Shared seating

The famous one Michelin star dim sum restaurant that everyone told me I must go… I wasn’t planning on it initially because I don’t like waiting in line for hours, but my SIL said I shouldn’t miss it. So our group went to line up at 8:20am on a Sunday (they open at 9:00am) and imagine my surprise when we were the first group there! Although the restaurant wasn’t open yet, they let us sit in the waiting area and we had our dim sum sheets all marked up. By the time it was 8:40am or so there was a huge crowd, overhearing some people saying they come every week. I simply couldn’t wait!
While the variety is not as big as other dim sum restaurants, they do dishes very well here. Everything we ordered was tasty and we even had second… and third rounds. Delicious food with a very reasonable price tag, what more can you ask for? Our group of eight stuffed our bellies full for a mere $ 510HKD. That’s pretty darn good.

This place is known for being one of the most affordable Michelin star restaurants in the world. I was on my way to HK and watched an episode of Anthony Bourdain’s Layover on Netflix… so I just had to check this place out. Standard dim sum fare, super affordable, authentic with an added layer of authenticity because you’re literally in HK and not your local Chinatown joint that you thought was authentic before, and if you leave here without eating at least 3 pork buns, then you. have. missed. out.

Michelin 1 star restaurant for half the price of the Michelin star restaurant price. We came here for Dim Sum. I mean that is basically what they only serve. So we ordered a few things like the xiu mai, sticky rice, some dumplings and bean curb wrapped in pork. So I have to say the food was really good. I am amazed.
Décor of the restaurant is not like number 1. But its ok.
I think they are famous for the BBQ pork bun. We failed and didn’t order that. I see every table ordering it.
Well overall dim sum is fresh. Service is good and fair. There are quite a lot of servers working here.

When figuring out which restaurants to eat at, my friend mentioned that I absolutely had to try Tim Ho Wan — the cheapest Michelin star restaurant with a number of locations across Hong Kong. My parents, already having tried it once before, didn’t think it was worth another visit, but seeing as how I really wanted to go, decided to put it onto our list of restaurants to try in Hong Kong.
This particular location is on Fuk Wing Street. There isn’t much of a waiting area, so a ton of people just crowd around the entrance waiting for their number to be called. We arrived on a really rainy day and were pretty dismayed to see all the people waiting. Luckily they were all large parties and we waited only about 10 minutes or so. Because the restaurant is so busy and the tables are really cramped, you’re not really taking in the ambience or décor — you just want a taste of what all they hype is about.
The menu is in Chinese, but if you ask you can get an English version. I was pretty dismayed to find out that a lot of the popular items that people were raving about were not offered at this location of Tim Ho Wan. I really wanted to try their shrimp wrapped in bean curd, but apparently they didn’t have it here. We decided to just try a few popular items and then eat elsewhere if we were still hungry.
We ended up ordering the normal dishes that are typically ordered during dim sum:
Steamed Pork Dumplings (Siu Mai)
Shrimp Dumplings
Shrimp Rice Roll
Radish Cake
There was nothing special about ^ those three dishes. Very typical dim sum quality that you’d expect to find in SGV.
The two items that were really good had to be the beef rice roll and the bbq pork buns. The beef was cooked extremely and had good flavor. Rice roll itself was super smooth and silky, making the entire bite really delicious.
And the popular bbq pork buns — they are definitely as good as people say. Normally I am not a fan of the buns topped with a pineapple crust, but the crust definitely added to the overall flavor of the bun, going incredibly well with the bbq pork inside. The meat inside had a good sweet flavor to it and didn’t taste dry nor cheaply put together. This was seriously the best bbq pork bun I’ve ever had and I was sad that it was so small!
tl;dr — Definitely a restaurant worth visiting just so you can say you’ve eaten at a Michelin star restaurant. As for the food — it’s not bad, but I think I expected to have my mindblown after hearing so many good things about it. The bbq pork buns were definitely amazing, but everything else was just decent. Seeing as there are so many dim sum restaurants in SGV, you’re not missing too much if you don’t get the chance to go to HK.

The food at this spot was ridiculously delicious. I was really apprehensive at first and thought it might’ve been all hype, but after starting my order with the shrimp dumplings followed by the barbecue pork buns, I was hooked. Based on the dim sum found in New York, which is quite good, this place blows them out the water. I would definitely recommend getting the barbecue pork buns and if you want to skip the line just come late afternoon since they serve their items all day.

If I could visit HK again, this is definitely a place I would come back. Why? It’s the baked BBQ pork buns. I don’t know why, but I’m currently salivating for those tasty, flaky, crisp buns that are generously filled up with sweet /​BBQ flavored pork. I haven’t had buns like these before in the States and to me, that alone is worth the trip here.
Tim Ho Wan is a highly popular dim sum place (with multiple locations) and reservations are suggested to avoid the long queue. Came here with a few friends during my HK visit and thankfully, we were able to get a reservation in during the off hours /​non peak eating times.
When seated, do note that there is some type of ritual/​process in washing your cups and utensils. Another neat thing about this place is that most of the dim sum items are included in the visual menu that is conveniently placed onto the table itself. For ordering, you just list what you want to eat on the order sheet, and your food will be brought to you.
Overall, dim sum here is yummy. Portion sizes are decent and quality is fresh and hot. Like most dim sum places, you’ll see the usual options offered but the one thing that stood out the most to me was definitely the pork buns. Service is quick and if you really need something, simply wave your arms about and someone will attend to you shortly. Prices are decent (especially if you’re in a group) so bring cash with you to help split the bill easier!

Best dim sum ever. Dishes were swarming with flavor. Favorites: pork bun, malow bread, pork spare ribs, guai flower jello, shumai. Still on a flavor high two hours after finishing our meal.
Tip: they give you tea and an empty bowl before you meal so you can wash your own dishes before you use them. Tissues provided at the table for napkins so you don’t need to bring your own.

Get there early since there is usually a wait, especially on the weekend. Also pay attention to the number calling as you can completely lose your place in line.
Loved all the dim sum but the must order is the bbq buns. Best bargain for a Michelin star restaurant

Char Sui Pineapple Buns. Omg they’re so fluffy and soft! With the sweet barbecue pork inside. it’s like a taste of heaven! They usually come out hot, so you have to be careful biting into them. But even if you get your tongue burnt, it’s totally worth it.
Besides the Buns though, everything else is good but nothing special. The rest of the menu isn’t that extensive nor creative, so you can get the basic rice noodles with shrimp, shrimp dumplings, shu mai, etc.
Good thing about Tim Ho Wan is that they have their menus in English, and you can mark what you want and hand it in. Easy without needing much communication!

Over rated. of course I had to try this place and to start it was a pain to find walking through mall after mall searching for like 20−30mins. we ordered a few dishes and nothing wowed me. they don’t speak English but you get a menu u and check off what you want and hand it in. that’s not a uncommon way to order in parts of Asia. they were very busy food was average but not worth going out of way to go there. was not fancy more like dinner style if you are from USA you know what I mean. oh and pork buns were as good as u can get in any bakery in hong kong not worth a special trip. Go if you must but keep your expectations low.
food _​average
Service — Average
atmosphere– Below average
would be 3 stars it loses a star for being over rated and bar set high and it didn’t measure up and me wasting 2 hours of my day to get there and back
on a side note I do not get Michelin stars they make tires for cars that makes them a food expert ?? haha I am just saying

A GAJILLION STARS for this Michelin Dim Sum place in Hong Kong. Definitely worth the long wait!
I pretty much go for dim sum once a week since I was born cause my dad loves it so much. Well now a lot less, maybe like once every two to three weeks after learning how unhealthy it is. It’s kind of the same dim sum over and over again here and there and I’m no longer a huge fan of dim sum anymore. BUT, NI HAO TIM HO WAN.
This is probably the best dim sum I have ever had; it’s innovative, yet delicious. The dim sum you order are served on cute little plates. My favourite is probably their baked bun with BBQ pork on the inside. The flakey, soft, slightly crisp shell on top of the bun, nice and hot center with that oh so good BBQ pork on the inside. First bite, SCRUMPTIOUS. CAN I HAVE TEN MORE PLEASE?!
For a Michelin restaurant, this place is affordable. And the menu?! It’s nice and clear with Chinese and English — friendly for tourists!

Tim Ho Wan’s saving grace is their BBQ pork buns. Oh yeah, and their Michelin star.
People in HK love Michelin stars! It’s amazing. You give a Michelin star to a place and suddenly bam, everyone throws out 5-​star Unilocal reviews like it’s nobody’s business.
Seriously though, the BBQ pork buns are damn tasty. Sweet, salty, meaty and with a nice crisp crust; this thing is no joke.
What is a joke though, is that this place received a star. Much better dim sum can be had elsewhere.
Drop by, grab some BBQ pork buns and humble brag to your friends that you’re hella fancy.

I went here and actually had a wedding dinner here with 4 tables worth of people. Service was good, but food was less than mediocre. For a course dinner I expected to be full. Instead I was so hungry after and the food wasn’t even great. I would say this was the worst chinese course dinner I have ever had and I have had a good number of them. Dim sum I can’t say but from reviews it looks like it is good.
The view is amazing but if we’re going specifically on dinner course food, it wasn’t great.

This is THE BEST dim sum I have had in my life.
I can also now say I have dined at a Michelin starred restaurant!
It would be helpful to speak Chinese, as the waitress here did not speak English. But the menu has pictures, so you can quickly figure out what you want. The BBQ buns were amazing and those should be the first thing on your order!

HUGE FAN!
We were in Hong Kong for a few days and my cousin wanted to go here because it is recommended by the travel channel. Glad that we did! Their dim sum is freshly made and tastes amazing.
Upon walking in, we were seated immediately and given menus to mark. Their menu is very easy to understand and they do list their choices in English with pictures.
We ordered a variety of things included your typical shu mai, ha gow, chicken feet, and fried turnip cake but the main dish that really stood out was their BBQ pork bun. The bun is baked and has a little sweetness to it and when opened, you get a good amount of pork, DELICIOUS! The meal came with tea and although we did have to wait a little bit for our food, it was well worth it!
If ever you are in town and looking for authentic dim sum, I highly recommend Tim Ho Wan.

This is a must in Hong Kong, it was probably the best dim sum I had in my life.
I went to this location because the one in Hong Kong island train station was closed. It is not that far so I recommend anyone who does not want to do a long wait to get a table to go to this one. We were seated in about 5 minutes.
Once you are seated you have to fill up a piece of paper with your order. Go overboard and try to order as much as you can to try them all. It is also very cheap. My favorites were the shrimp and pork dumpling and the beef/​seaweed balls. A lot of people seem to like the pork buns but I thought they were too sweet with little pork.
Make sure you wash your dishes before eating with the vase they give you. We realized halfway through the order.

Très bon restaurant de dim sum et peu cher.
Vous évitez ici de payer un pourcentage de service, ce qui n’est pas négligeable.
Les dim sum sont délicieux surtout les bun au porc et le riz gluant cuit dans la feuille de lotus.
Le the est compris dans l’addition, il faut compter 3hkd par personne, ce qui n’est pas exorbitant.
L’accueil est correct, en général évitez les heures de pointes, allez déjeuner par exemple au alentour de 13h30−14h, ainsi il y aura moins de monde et ça sera moins bruyant.
La déco est banale et simple, on vient vraiment dans ce restaurant pour déguster les divers plats proposés.
Conclusion: Si vous êtes de passage à Hong Kong, n’hésitez pas à venir. Il existe des feuilles de commande en anglais pour ceux qui né lise pas le chinois. En tout cas, j’espère y retourner un jour!

This was in every way worth the hype. Casual atmosphere, efficient service, and incredible food.
The knockouts for me were the bbq pork buns and the shrimp dumplings. The buns were soft on the inside with a lightly sweet and crisp outside. The meat was flavourful and delicious. The shrimp dumplings had no filler — just perfectly cooked shrimp inside a thin dumpling. The fried coconut ice cream was also a nice end to the meal.
If you come to this location don’t be turned off by the neighbourhood or the queue outside. The place was clean, orderly and served piping hot dim sum in no time at all. Loved.

Stop reading this and just go. This place is awesome. Where else are you going to go to a Michelin star restaurant, have incredible food, and leave absolutely stuffed after only ~USD$ 20 of damage. Right.
You’re still reading? Fine.
While it’s a little out of the way, it’s really easy to get here on the MTR from the Sham Shui Po station and then it’s a short 5 – 10 minute walk through an interesting district full of diverse shops. You won’t run into many other tourists out here, which should be a breath of fresh air after having just come from Central or Kowloon mall or wherever you’re shopping that day.
When you’re seated, they give you a piece of paper upon which you’re supposed to write your order, and you’ll notice that everything is extremely inexpensive, so go nuts. And if you don’t order enough on the first go ’round, they’ll happily give you another piece of paper. The BBQ pork buns are the clear standout items that you can’t miss, but the egg cake and pork dumplings are also outstanding.
You’re still reading? Fine, I’ll stop writing so you have to go.
Food: ⁵⁄₅
Value: ⁵⁄₅
Service: ⁴⁄₅
Atmosphere: ³⁄₅

Really solid dim sum — especially on their famous bbq pork buns which are delicious!
Came here for a Saturday night dim sum dinner upon arriving in Hong Kong and we had a group of 3. We were able to be seated immediately but if you’re here at a busier time, you better give yourself room to wait.
The other reviews have all the major gists of the food so I’ll keep this one short and sweet, but this particular location is a little cramped and busy but has some pretty solid food.

BBQ pork bun — to die for!!!
The food itself is probably as good as it get, as reflected by its perpetual long queues (but don’t fret, I think they manage it quite well). Only downside is that you cannot be seated unless you have everyone there upon entry. While waiting, you tick off the menu what you want ordered, which also saves time. Also, as it is very packed they will seat you next to strangers on the bigger tables to fit people as tightly as possible (common in casual restaurants, but might be a deal breaker for some people!)
The menu is very limited, but it’s really all you need. It’s only in Chinese, but I see Westerners and other non-​Chinese asians eating there as well. I’d say, close your eyes and tick your picks — you can’t go wrong with anything here :)

Many Hong Kong locals question whether Tim Ho Wan deserves its one star Michelin award. In my opinion, it is a solid restaurant of its kind that’s worth a stop when in the area, but does not warrant a detour. All the dim sum is steamed fresh and assembled in the morning to the same high standards as what is found in Vancouver and Toronto. There were a couple of over-​the-​top items which were very well executed. However, everything else on the menu was quite ordinary/​nothing special. There wasn’t enough culinary innovation or the use of premium ingredients that would elevate Tim Ho Wan beyond its borderline Michelin-​rated level.
Although this is a world famous restaurant that attracts many tourists, the order menu does not include photos, and many of the English descriptions are too vague for foreigners to understand. Fortunately, the placemat illustrates the top-​12 dim sum items, including the «4 Big Sky King» original signatures, so it’s easy for tourists to select from the restaurant’s best sellers. We sampled several items in 2014, most were from the top-​12 menu, and mainly steamed items.
Exceptional:
Baked Bun with BBQ Pork (酥皮焗叉燒包)
Steamed Rice Roll With Shrimp (鮮蝦燒腸)
Exceeded expectations:
Steamed Dumpling Chiu Chow Style (潮州蒸粉果)
Ordinary:
Steamed Pork Dumpling with Shrimp (鮮蝦蒸燒賣)
Steamed Meatball in Beancurd Sauce (陳皮牛肉球)
Fried Egg on Minced Beef Rice (煎蛋牛肉飯)
Do Not Order:
Glue Rice Dumpling (糯米雞)
Out of all the items we ordered, the baked BBQ buns were the most memorable. They were probably the best of its kind in the world. Tim Ho Wan replaced the sticky glazed casing of «old-​school style» baked BBQ buns with a pineapple-​shaped crispy crust. One bite into the bun revealed that a lot of dough was used, but it’s airy and maintained a fluffy texture that was melt-​in-​mouth soft. The crust was somewhat elastic and did not crumble into pieces too easily. This bun was stuffed with BBQ pork marinated in a rich caramelized sauce. The BBQ pork tasted far from the cheap type diced into very tiny pieces or those shredded into the texture of pulled pork, they came in firm chunks of substantial size.
Besides the noteworthy BBQ buns, I thought that the steamed rice rolls deserved praise. Many modern restaurants incorporate «contemporary fusion» fillings such as bittermelon, fish filet, or conpoy/​scallop inside the rice rolls. Meanwhile, Tim Ho Wan sticks with the traditional fillings such as shrimp, BBQ pork, liver, and beef, instead focusing producing a higher quality rice noodle sheet, which are hand-​rolled. The sheets came out silky and soft after being steamed. The skin was thinner than typical, so it allowed quicker access to the jumbo succulent shrimp that «bounced» in my mouth. This was a well-​executed «common» dish. There was nothing more that could have been done to improve it.
Tim Ho Wan gets the thumbs up for serving high quality dim sum in a casual setting. It was not close to being the «best of the best» in Hong Kong, but the price was reasonable, I had a chance to say «been there, done that», and their baked BBQ buns and rice rolls were simply extraordinary.

Tim Ho Wan is a decent dim sum restaurant. I do believe it is way over-​hyped.
We had the standard dishes such as feng zhao, siu mai, har gow, lo mai gai. Overall, I was expecting these dishes to be superior to the ones in America. However, most tasted normal despite its Michelin status. The menu is also bare bones, so I didn’t see any bolo baos or options to get different teas.
That said, I did enjoy the freshly made char siu bao. That was amazing and hands down the main attraction by the locals and tourists such as myself. The food was cheap and I guess I can’t complain as our total bill came to roughly $ 20 USD for a party of 2.

First of all, I am Cantonese. Second of all, I grow up eating dim sum. Third, I have plenty of choices on dim sum restaurants in Hong Kong. So, I really have a hard time justifying spending over an hour in queue and elbowing strangers (mostly tourists) the whole time to eat what I considered as mediocre dim sum, even if it is cheap and Michelin starred. I am sure many locals share the same sentiments.
Their BBQ pork buns and the rice rolls are among the better dim sums served. The rest, taste like they were from a dim sum factory. (i.e., they taste the same compared to other lesser known restaurants.) (Did you know many restaurants these days do not make their dim sum in house anymore?)
This is the kind of place I would go only under the request of my out-​of-​town friends. Otherwise, why waste your precious lunch quota? Seriously, Hong Kong has so much more to offer.

I think this is the cheapest michelin star restaurant in the world, and the best dim sum I have ever eaten.
The place is small and crowded. Come early and expect a wait. And be prepared to share a table with strangers (a common practice in smaller HK restaurants). Don’t worry, you don’t share your food with strangers. You eat what you order.
Must orders are the rice rolls (cheung fun) and the bbq pork bun. The rice wrappers are thin enough to be translucent to see the filling, and silky smooth. And the bbq pork bun is slightly crispy on the outside, and light and fluffy on the inside. They also have the old-​school vintage shau mai made with pork liver. Of course, they have the normal version for the less adventurous as well. They also have other dim sum dishes, such as shrimp dumpling (har gow) and chicken feet, and several rice dishes.
One thing about this place is that they still use traditional bamboo steamers, as oppose to plastic or metal steamers. Bamboo steamers make a big difference as it keeps the temperature and moisture consistent.
For dessert, don’t forget to get the osmanthus gogi berry jello. The osmanthus is so refreshing with a slight sweetness for the gogi berry. A great end to a delicious meal.
Once you’re done, you bring your check up to the counter by the door to pay. A 10% service charge is already included (a standard in HK).

The original store in the oldest neighbourhood in Hong Kong. If you want the fancy décor go to their other branches. I enjoyed the local flavor.
We went to this restaurant twice, both early morning. 8:30 and 9am respectively.
There were plenty of tables at 8:30am but at 9am, we waited for about 10 minutes.
We ordered:
Baked BBQ Pork Bun 焗菠蘿义燒包
Shrimp Har Gow 蝦餃
Steamed Sponge Cake馬拉糕
Steam Hot Pot Rice仔飯
Spring Roll with Crab and Egg White春卷
Fresh Hand Roll Rice Noodles with Shrimp蝦腸粉
Lotus Leave Wrapped Sticky Rice糯米雞
Both hot pot rice we tried were really good.
All the dim sum were excellent.
The Baked BBQ Pork Buns were worth the wait, it was perfectly warmed with a light crunch when you bite down and the meat inside was perfectly seasoned. Excellent bun to meat ratio for my taste.
There seems to be a lot of Michelin Starred restaurants in Hong Kong but this place deserves it.
The servers were quick and polite and the restaurant is very clean.