What used to be a rumor is now the real deal. The Michelin-starred restaurant from Taiwan, Din Tai Fung is finally in the Philippines.
See my visit at Din Tai Fung in Taipei
Compared to other restaurant franchises brought here, I was extra excited for Din Tai Fung to open in Manila as I have dined in their Taipei 101 branch when I visited Taiwan early this year, and I was impressed with the whole experience - from the queueing, the food and the service.
Like in Taiwan, the queueing system is grouped according to the headcount per table: 1-2, 3-4, 5-6 and 7 and more. Since there are 3 of us, we were given a number of the 3-4 queue. We were also given the order form and menu so we can choose our orders while we wait for our table.
After 25-30 minutes of waiting, we were seated. The food didn't take long to arrive as soon as we got to our table.
Din Tai Fung is best known for their Xiao Long Bao and we wouldn't miss it for the world. We ordered Pork Xiao Long Bao (Php 315 for 10 pcs, Php 160 for 5 pcs). We also had the Deep Fried Chicken and Shrimp Spring Roll (Php 145 for 4 pcs).
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| Pork Xiao Long Bao |
Exactly like the one I had in Taiwan, Din Tai Fung's Xiao Long Bao has this tough translucent skin that keeps the dumpling intact until it reaches your mouth. It is undeniably the most amazing Xiao Long Bao I ever had.
I also enjoyed the Deep Fried Chicken and Spring Roll, which was generously filled with the chicken mixture and served freshly-cooked.
For noodle soup, we shared a bowl of Braised Beef Noodle Soup (Php 295), which you can have all meat, all-tendon or half-beef half-tendon.
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| Braised Beef Noodle Soup |
Though we chose all-meat, we were still served with a some tendon, but it was easy to forgive because the flavor of the soup was soothing to the throat and the beef was quite tender. A serving is good enough to share too.
We decided to skip rice but order these dishes instead: Fried Pork Chop (Php 190), Fried Chicken Cutlet (Php 210) and the Salted Egg Yolk Prawns (Php 375)
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| Fried Pork Chop |
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| Fried Chicken Cutlet |
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| Salted Egg Yolk Prawns |
Taiwan is also known for the fried pork chop and fried chicken cutlet, and DTF versions didn't disappoint. I wished we didn't skip rice for these.
An exclusive dish to DTF Philippines is the Salted Egg Yolk Prawns, a dish with everything I hope and wish for: deshelled prawns coated in salted egg yolk. It was so delicious, the word 'fantastic' isn't even enough to describe it.
For dessert, we had the Chocolate Lava Xiao Long Bao (Php 115 for 3 pcs).
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| Chocolate Lava Xiao Long Bao |
An exclusive dessert for the Philippines, the melted chocolate oozes out of the dimsum skin as I took a bite. Each bite was deliriously amazing that it's no wonder this item runs out quickly. I wish they have a basket of 10 or more of this.
I was really impressed that DTF Philippines was almost exactly like the DTF in Taiwan. However, the PH menu was not as extensive as Taiwan's menu, which I think was wise of them to do as there were items that won't appeal to the local tastebuds. The price points are almost the same as Taiwan and the system and quality of service at par with the original too.
I highly suggest that you try Din Tai Fung for yourself and try the most amazing Xiao Long Baos ever. The queueing system is so efficient you need not wait for more than an hour to be seated.
Can't wait to visit you again, DTF!
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Din Tai Fung Philippines
Ground Floor,
Mega Fashion Hall,
SM Megamall
Ortigas, Mandaluyong City
Twitter: @dintaifungph
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