Din Tai Fung

Reviews 3

WA

Walter Macalma

The original DTF. Before Fullerton was popping and Jersey shore was on TV, people from all over socal came to “dim sum and you lose some” as I like to say. I’ve never been to Shanghai or even China so honestly I can’t speak to the authenticity, but compared to the dozens of dim sum places I’ve had outside of here like in SF, NY, SD I can say this is as top knotch in flavor, consistency and reputation that’s made them an international sensation. Apparently the US and socal locations althought have been around for years are mere infants in the DTF family. Because I’m not Chinese and don’t speak Chinese I tend to use a lot of abbreviations so for this review XLB sill stand for Xiao Long Bao or the famed soup dumpling. The truly unique dumpling in that it’s filled and not submersed in a western chicken and dumpling kind. I’ve not had any dumping with soup in it besides this so I can’t even say it’s a soup kind, but just the 1 and only soup dumpling. The proper way to eat is to add your seasoning and sauce to the spoon, then add slivered ginger, place dumping on spoon and bite, taking part dumpling and part seasoning, not the usual “one bite” mentality many are used to. These are snacks, these are a la cart items, they don’t come with rice, don’t come with sides. These are sides in terms of portions too. I generally eat 3 items by myself as it’s very “izakaya” in that regard. Without going into too much comparison between the LA location and this. It’s been highly anticipated for all my SD and OC friends who would trek up there. This place was highly anticipated and did not disappoint. It’s still extremely popular and not likely to die down, even months later and a half dozen visits. The best way to skirt the lines is come near close, weekday evenings, by yourself. Any group basically is a 30 minute wait with an upper limit of 2 hours on weekends. All your party must be there, so put your cell # down and shop or get a drink nearby. Chicken curry is crispy, but the curry is only ok. Subpar compared to Japanese versions specialized in LA. The Spicy sauce is preferred in the Shrimp, pork & shrimp or pork XLB. Truffle Dumplings are good, but to me don’t connotate the same “truffle” memories I get from fresh shaved. Obviously it’s mimic’d. Chicken soup is wonderfully flavorful. You’ll wonder how so much flavor is in a pretty clear-ish broth. Sitting at the bar also has a line which unfortunately can be almost as long a wait as dining room. Décor is nice, very nice, very large and accommodating, but this is not a place where you should expect to be waited on. There is this unwritten rule of know what you want and be ready, there are people waiting. It’s not so much a hurry up and shoo you out sort of treatment, but you’ll likely not be asked about drinks, cocktails, refills and that’s ok for DTF, but for so many unaccustomed to the Arcadia treatment or other locations this may be intimidating. They do keep things old school. They draw all likes. Some people are here to eat and people here to socialize because it’s popular. Don’t be the later. Come for the food and enjoy. It’s worth a shot, but maybe not worth the wait. Solo I can get in and out quickly, but any more than that you’re stuck with everyone else. I actually made it to Arcadia and ate faster than eating here. #picturesofasianstakingpicturesofotherasianstakingpictureoffood

RO

Rodney S

Im freaky-naughty, because I just got XXX with 10 XLBs............and that was just for starters. Seeing a show at the Segerstrom, pre-show dinner was automatically decided upon Din Tai Fung. Ive been dying to go, experiencing their world renowned Xiao long bao for the first time. Reported long wait times and not being local to me factor in as to why I havent been. Till now! Around 5:30pm, and a concurrent Lunar New Year Celebration event the same day at 6pm, no wait at all! We were seated in the rear dining area, with the al fresco seating behind the windows to our periphery. When there is a line, DTF will take down your mobile number & text when seating is available. Proceed to the text message line, in front of the walk-in line. If alone, sit at the bar to skip all the ruckus. Chicken fried noodles- Long noodles for long life! Cant celebrate Lunar New Year w/o a plate of noodles, now can you? The chewy noodles had the perfect bite to them. Not a lot, but sufficient enough. Clean & not heavy. Pork XLB- What put Din Tai Fung on the map, the XLBs were little sacks of happiness. Confused & stressed on how to eat them correctly? Have no fear! A little placard showing customers the proper way of eating XLB guides you through the process. Be careful, though, the soup is hot! Tip - ask for extra ginger. In my opinion, the XLB arent overwhelming in flavor unto themselves. The mix of soy sauce, vinegar & ginger (along with chili oil, for those that like spicy) is what enhance the flavor profile. So, pile on that ginger! Pork & shrimp wontons (spicy sauce on the side)- Now this, this was the highlight for me! Stuffed wontons with succulent pork & juicy shrimp. As a guy who frequently consumes the frozen kind at home, these were far & away superior. Filled just to the right amount, I savored each bite of these bad boys. Order the spicy sauce on the side, if youre with someone that doesnt enjoy heat. But, really? Who doesnt like heat? Anyone who cant appreciate heat are probably missing their meds ;p The sauce is more sweet than spice, and a little lather (or a lot) on the wontons creates one of the worlds great joys. Service was excellent! Our attendant was bright, friendly & quick to check in on us, whether it was for drink refills or utensils. Seating is surprisingly ample, inside & al fresco, but a bit cramped. I noticed the food servers maneuvering in between the seats, which would drive me crazy if I had to that. Parking is at the South Coast Plaza. Din Tai Fung is in front of Sears, so park near Bristol. DTF? Cause Im DTF anytime, baby! While a tad pricey, I do realize its in the hoity toity South Coast Plaza, deep in the heart of the Orange Curtain. Great food, no wait for me & hospitable service, I look forward to having another go at Din Tai Fung & explore the rest of the menu. I cant wait! Highly recommend! NOMNOMNOMNOMNOMNOMNOMNOMNOMNOM

WE

WeonJun Lee

Din Tai Fung means big rich caldron. It was started as cooking oil retail shop at Taipei, Taiwan in 1958 and then it was changed to a restaurant for Dumpling soup and Noodles in 1972. Currently, there are 106 branches in 11 countries. ( 9 in Taiwan, 24 in China, 6 in S. Korea, 6 in USA etc.) We went to branch at South Coast Plaza at 2nd floor near Sears entrance. There were a lot of people who were waiting for sitting. We left our name with cellular phone#, so that they can text to us. We waited almost 1 and 15min. This was normal to sit for eating at Din Tai Fung. You need to expect long waiting. We ate Pork Xio Long Bao, Pork & Crab Xio Long Bao, Fried Noodles with chicken, Pork & Shrimp Pot Sticker, and Cucumber Salad. Especially, Pork Xio Long Bao and Fried Noodles with Chicken were very delicious. Xio Long Bao means Chineses style dumplings which are steamed in small bamboo steamer. The best way to eat Xio Long Bao: 1. Make your Sauce: Mix Chili Oil with Soy Sauce & Vinegar 2. Put some your sauce on your Xio Long Bao 3. Put Xio Long Bao on your spoon and then tear it a little bit to see gravy. 4. After that, add some slices of ginger on your Xio Long Bao. 5. And then put Xio Long Bao into your mouth. 6. Enjoy it.