I miss good dim sum a lot. Yet the Hong Kong air travel bubble is really behaving like a bubble – always floating away when we were about to catch it. At the same time, I thought most dim sum in Singapore is overpriced.
Until I was introduced to TungLok Teahouse in Square 2 off Novena MRT station.
TungLok Teahouse is a budget version of its more glamourous sibling, yet its offerings of dim sum wouldn’t hurt your wallet as much. I had a good meal of those Cantonese goodies (and some more) and I must say I was more than satisfied!
The Regulars
Following the Big Mac principle, I try to order the regular items, so that I can judge the quality of food across restaurants based on the same items. For dim sum, they are the usual suspects: Har Kow （虾饺, Prawn Dumplings）, Siew Mai（烧卖, Meat Dumplings）, Hong Kong style Fried Carrot Cake（港式萝卜糕） and Custard Bun（流沙包）.
Many people would argue that there are cheaper dim sum in Singapore. However, they’re not guaranteed to be good.
For example, the budget Har Kow usually has super thick skin and hollow fillings. Their Siew Mai would also consist of fillers (usually flour) instead of good quality meat.
Not the ones found in TungLok Teahouse. They don’t use thick skin to make their Har Kow look big. And the prawns filled up every space within to give a fuller texture.
The same could be said for the Siew Mai, which tasted richer because they used more meat.
The Fried Carrot Cake looked disappointing on arrival. Unlike in pictures, where the radish cakes would be gleaming with pan seared crusts, my Fried Carrot Cake came pale. While the dish itself still carried the umami taste of radish, it lost the fragrance of pan seared goodness.
TungLok Teahouse’s Custard Bun was unlike the crusty ones at Tim Ho Wan, but it was oozing with creamy, savoury silkiness as expected. Remember to eat the custard buns upside down, so the filling won’t drip all over your hands!
“Wu Xiang” Meat Roll（手卷五香肉, Pork Roll with Five Spices）
I didn’t expect to find a Hokkien dish in a Cantonese dim sum place, so I was curious what kind of twist they gave to the classic dish.
Their “Wu Xiang” Meat Roll looked too pale for your typical Ngor Hiang. Additionally, they added parsely, which was not typical for Ngor Hiangs. If they removed the parsely, the dish would have been a good twist of the traditional dish!
Fried Beancurd Roll（炸腐皮卷）
The Fried Beancurd Roll was my personal favourite, because it was light and crispy without losing the tender and juiciness inside. It was the kind of comfort food that I wouldn’t mind returning for!
Fried Shrimp Rice（叁虾炒饭）
Their Fried Shrimp Rice hit the right spots in all aspects. The rice was not soggy yet was soft in every bite. The deep fried shrimps and french beans gave varying degrees of crunchiness. That’s not to mention the prawns were fresh and succulent!
Though I must admit by just looking at the ingredients, the dish is a little bit high in cholesterol, so it’s one of those sinful indulgences that we can only enjoy once in a while.
Wanton in Chilli Sauce（红油抄手）
I typically enjoyed the Wantons in Chilli Sauce （红油抄手）every other restaurants. But not the one in TungLok Teahouse.
They modified the dish by replacing the chilli with fagar – the one used in mala hotpot – something that I detest a lot.
I doubt mala lovers would love it, since this dish was not authentically mala – they just added the fagar that made each bite oddly sour and spicy. Yet it wasn’t as spicy as your typical mala hotpot. Still, good to try and make your own judgement.
Parting Words
TungLok Teahouse offers a standard variety of dim sum, with some variation like the sinfully satisfying Seafood Fried Rice or Wantons in Chilli Sauce with a mala twist.
They also offer pre-cooked frozen food like Herbal Chicken and Braised Pork for those who wanted to bring the TungLok experience home.
However, what made me feel like I would return was its right price point. Please don’t let them know that dim sum of the same quality costs more elsewhere!
In the meantime, do enjoy TungLok Teahouse’s dim sum while it’s still fair valued.
TungLok Teahouse is situated in Square 2. After exiting from Novena MRT station, take the entrance of Square 2 that is opposite Don Don Donki, then take the escalator up to Level 1. TungLok Teahouse is right behind you after you alight the escalator.
If you enjoyed my entry, please Like and Share my article! Subscribe to my blog for more foodporn in the future! If you can’t wait, you can also read about my slurp report of Wonderful Bap Sang 원더풀밥상 that serves orgasmic Korean food in Suntec City, or find out about the Akimitsu chain that serves Tendons that are equally comforting across its outlets!
Till then, eat happy!
TungLok Teahouse
Square 2
10 Sinaran Drive
#01-73
Singapore 307506
https://www.tunglokteahouse.com/
+65 6893 1123
All the photos and videos in this blog post were taken on my Google Pixel 4a; I edit my photos, where necessary, to provide a better viewing experience for my readers.