HKG: One Dim Sum (一點心)

One Michelin Star: wonderful har gow!

Today's review is gonna be a long one. The rival of another 2012 One Michelin Star dim sum eatery which I've reviewed: Tim Ho Wan, One Dim Sum offers a wider variety of items. Well, after I completed my exchange programme in HK, I said to myself, "So much for dim sum, for now." However, as I looked through the pictures last night to prepare for this review, my stomach kept grumbling. "FEED ME!" :P

I bet you can recall the story I told you when I went to Tim Ho Wan for lunch. Nothing like that will happen in One Dim Sum, for they always follow the queue numbering system faithfully. Also, they have proper queue slips. Pika's advice 1: Again, don't walk away when you've got the queue number. Just wait for your turn to come. The person will call a number thrice. He/she will call the next number afterwards, and I assure you, you won't have to wait for hours! In any case, whenever there is a vacant table, the staff will start from the lowest available queue number all over again.

Steamed Rice Noodle with Shrimps and Leek Sprouts HK$20.00 (~S$3.30)

Taste: 8.5/10

In my opinion, the chee cheong fun had the right degree of thickness. The succulent shrimps were well-contrasted in texture by the crunchy leek sprouts. Well, it was the first dish to arrive on the table, and I apologise for forgetting to cut open the rice noodle roll!

Steamed Chicken Paws with Chili HK$13.00 (~S$2.15)

Taste: 9/10

As expected, the dish was kinda oily, but that didn't deter me from relishing in it. The chicken paws were really plump and had absorbed the hot sauce, so that they were bursting with flavours. Finger-licking good!

Steamed Rib Bone with Chili HK$15.00 (~S$2.50)

Taste: 8/10

The steamed pork ribs weren't as oily. They weren't fall-off-the-bone tender, but pretty juicy and flavourful. There were only a few black beans thrown in though, not that enough to give a kick. 

Steamed Sliced Chicken with Mushroom HK$20.00 (~S$3.30)

Taste: 6/10

The steamed sliced chicken was the weakest dish that I ordered. There was only a piece of mushroom, although I have to admit that it was pretty juicy. In addition, there were only two chicken chunks which were pretty tender, but not entirely juicy. As you can see, the dish was full of white-colured stuff of unknown origin which didn't really have a particular taste.

Steamed Curry Cuttlefish HK$16.00 (~S$2.65)

Taste: 7/10

It was good that the cuttlefish wasn't overly chewy. However, I wasn't entirely impressed with the curry sauce which was a bit thick and not that spicy, although it was somewhat fragrant.

Steamed Prawn Dumplings HK$20.00 (~S$3.30)

Taste: 9.5/10

I really miss the har gow! The light, translucent skin was a bit elastic, a bit sticky, just like how I like it. Inside each dumpling was a plump and succulent prawn which indeed made me beg for more.

Steamed Pork Dumplings HK$16.00 (~S$2.65)

Taste: 9/10

Siu mai, anyone? They looked beautiful and tasted awesome as well. The skin was pretty chewy, and the pork inside was really juicy and savoury.

Deep-Fried Dumplings in Sweet and Sour Sauce HK$13.00 (~S$2.15)

Taste: 8.5/10

The dumpling skin was lightly salty and crispy, and the pork inside was pretty juicy, although I wished I could have more pork. The sauce was pretty good with a nice balance of flavour, but well, nothing beats the sweet and sour sauce for the pangsit goreng (lit. fried wantons) at Bakmi GM in Jakarta, Indonesia.

Glutinous Rice Dumpling HK$20.00 (~S$3.30)

Taste: 7.5/10

Finding a yummy lo mai gai is an uphill task. The one served in One Dim Sum was okay, but there was nothing to shout about. It was adequately sticky and somewhat flavourful, but the chicken filling was just not enough.

Barbecued Pork Buns HK$13.00 (~S$2.15)

Taste: 8/10

The barbecued pork buns were soft and fluffy, and the filling of small pork cubes which blended well with the sticky dark sauce was adequately sweet and salty.

Egg Custard Buns HK$13.00 (~S$2.15)

Taste: 8/10

The egg custard buns, although different in shape from the barbecued pork ones, were equally fluffy. The filling was pretty creamy and not too sweet.

Pork Meat Congee with Preserved Egg HK$15.00 (~S$2.50)

Taste: 8.5/10

I enjoyed the consistency of the congee which was neither too thick nor watery. The century eggs were lightly piquant, and the pork was tender.

Rice with Fried Egg and Beef HK$20.00 (~S$3.30)

Taste: 8.5/10

On top of the fluffy rice sat a beef patty which was juicy and pretty aromatic due to the presence of chopped herbs. The soy sauce wasn't overpowering, and it was slightly sweet. Well, there was nothing special about the fried egg, but it was a more than welcomed addition for the rice!

Deep-Fried Sesame Balls HK$13.00 (~S$2.15)

Taste: 8.5/10

The skin of the deep-fried sesame balls were nicely chewy and crunchy. Guess what's inside? Answer: sweet and savoury black sesame paste. It'd be better if the paste could be less runny though (and yes, this is exactly the reason why I didn't cut open one of them to show you the filling). Pika's advice 2: Be very careful when eating these as the inside is very hot! I almost burned my tongue.

 

Fried Egg Sticks with Honey HK$13.00 (~S$2.15)

Taste: 7/10

The egg sticks were light, airy and crunchy. However, the honey was very sweet and sticky. Towards the end, I had no choice but to scrape away some of it.

Steamed Cake with Water Chestnut HK$14.00 (~S$2.30)

Taste: 7.5/10

The steamed cake wasn't overly sweet, but it'd be better if it could be chewier. It was a delight to bite into the embedded juicy water chestnuts.

Melon's Rating

Taste: 8/10

Ambience: 4/10

Service: 7.5/10

Overall: 6.5/10

It's a small eatery, so you have to bear with the crammed environment. Hmm, I found that service was more efficient in One Dim Sum. Anyway, just in case you're wondering, I'm not a trash can who can eat all of the above items in one seating haha... I first dined at the eatery at the end of January this year, and to try the stuff I didn't have room for the first time, I dropped by the second time just a few days before I flew back to Singapore.

One Dim Sum

15 Playing Field Road

Mong Kok

Hong Kong

(Mon-Fri: 11.00am - 00.30am; Sat-Sun: 10.00am - 00.30am)

*Prices quoted are nett prices.

Have a nice meal,

Cliff(y)