AFTER a month's trial operation, Din Tai Fung, the Taiwanese restaurant which has made a splash in Shenzhen's catering trade for its divine dumplings (xiaolongbao), is officially open for business today.

New developments

The grand opening was marked by new decor in its Zhenhua store. The restaurant has expanded its space to the second floor to ease the pressure at the outlet which has been packed full for the past month.

The remodeled second floor features a VIP seat area and dining rooms for four to 20 people, allowing a second choice for their dining environment while tasting the delicate Din Tai Fung food.

The new bar, which sports a wide selection form beer and gin and tonic to XO brandies and whiskies, will add some Western color to your dinning experience at the Eastern-style dumpling restaurant.

If you live in the busy Luohu District, you can soon savor the Din Tai Fung experience in your neighborhood. Din Tai Fung will soon begin its trial operation at the Dongmen shopping area in Luohu during the National Day holiday.

To celebrate these events, dinners will receive a 10 percent discount on all the dishes in the Zhenhua outlet during the National Day holiday.

Secrets of popularity

Despite its relatively high prices, Din Tai Fung gained fame in the first month of its trial operation. What's the secret? It lies in that fact that the restaurant has developed the art of making xiaolongbao, an already popular food in China, into a culinary art form.

These juicy dumplings are usually arranged in a bamboo rack and steamed. The trick is that the filling must be full of broth, that squirts out when you bite into the dumplings.

At Din Tai Fung, the heritage of making the best xiaolongbao is well preserved. With 30 years of development since its debut in Taipei in 1972, it became an international brand name with scores of outlets in Japan, the United States, Singapore, as well as in Hong Kong, Shanghai and Suzhou.

In 1993, it was rated as "one of the 10 best international restaurants" by the New York Times. The publicity was invaluable and brought many celebrities to the restaurant as well.

Din Tai Fung starts by making dumplings made only from the freshest, highest-quality materials. For example, it uses only meat from live shrimps and crabs to make the shrimp dumpling soup and crab meat and pork dumplings.

The process uses strict quality controls. The restaurant sets the exact weight of the dough, the thickness of the unleavened wrapper, and the number of folds in each dumpling.

The lovely ivory shell is just tough enough not to break during cooking and handling, but not too chewy when eaten. The filling is juicy, tender and nearly mushy.

The crab meat and pork dumplings are highly recommended. The nearly-perfect dining experience is worth every cent.

Other recommended dishes include the chicken noodle soup, the shrimp dumpling soup, the noodles with stewed beef and the steamed vegetable dumplings.

New dishes such as Taiwanese shredded pork rice, chicken stew with basil in herbal sauce and mullet roe will be featured in the new menu. English and Japanese menu are available.

 
Editor: Wings