Weekday Dim Sum Buffet: Hai Tien Lo at Pan Pacific Singapore 039595, 7 Raffles Blvd

Did I tell you guys how dim sum is one of my absolute favorite cuisines in the world? Only because its one of those that allow you to try so much variety in little portions, all the while being so exquisite. That is why I was really excited when Pan Pacific Hotel Singapore invited me to try their new weekday dim sum buffet menu with 20 new delightful updates to classic dim sum dishes, created by Chef Lee Siaw Cheen. That makes 35 dishes in total! Luckily we only got a sample menu to taste, or we would probably need to take the rest of the work day off just to digest all the food! The buffet is affordably priced at $48++, available from Mon-Fri from 11.30am to 2.30pm. It is great for work lunches really.

This plate of 4 dim sum specialty was really a joy to go through, except the birds' nest egg tart wi\hich was rather tasteless. The char siew bun is really amazing though -- super fluffy with just the right amount of honeyed pork inside that is not too sweet. If there is one item you need to try, it's the char siew bun.

However, the lobster and shredded abalone soup was so fantastic, it was like swimming in a pond with fishes. When one goes to a Cantonese restaurant, one must order their soups. I think that's a Confuscius Proverb.

We also tried the deep-fried soft shell crab, that goes well with the chili. This dish wasn't really my thing though! Rather plain.

I rather drink another soup! This time it is homemade bean curd with crab meat and aubergine in supreme stock, which nobody could really guess its ingredients for the yellow broth. I'll keep it a secret too, you should go and try it first and let me know. The crab meat was super generous, as you can see in the photo. I am one lucky gal that day!

Now moving on to the dim sum dishes! Of course we had to try a meat bun, but this time there's a surprise hidden inside. An abalone! So it is a 'bao4' in a 'bao1'. Hur. I thought it was innovative, but I would have preferred a smaller bao with your traditional egg inside. I'm classical that way.

Next, brioche with tuna filling! No really, that's exactly how it tastes like. It would have been a perfect thing to bring for breakfast in the morning, just two and I'll be satisfied. I quite liked this because I do like the breakfast mayo tuna type of filling, which some people might not.

We also had some spinach dumplings, which was my dining companion's favorite because it comes with a generous filling of prawns inside when you would expect spinach or chives. Juicy, springy prawns in a thin, wok-seared and greenish dumpling skin never tasted so good before.

We also had these assortment of dim sums, the names of which is probably too complicated for me to repeat. Just know that these are just some of the selection from the 35 items from the dim sum lunch menu. They are all crispy, delicious and worth the calories.

Special mention to the dessert. We have a choice between the mango sago and the osmanthus tea with pear and white fungus and almost everyone chose the former. I'm glad I did too, because it is one of the best mango sago I had in recent times -- now I would expect mango sago from Pan Pac wedding dinners to come with the same standard! The mango soup was rather diluted and it could do with more mango bits, but what made up for that was the fact that it wasn't too sweet, but fragrant with the essence of the mango instead. Definitely a highlight for me that day too!

If you are looking for a place to eat all the dim sum you crave without worrying about low quality or high prices, go to Hai Tien Lo and satisfy the urge during week days for exactly SGD$56.50 (after GST and service charge). Take a 3-hour lunch and savour the goodies slowly. It's worth it.


Hai Tien Lo
#03-00, Pan Pacific Hotel, 7 Raffles Boulevard, Singapore
+65 68268240
Daily: 11.30am to 2.30pm, 6.30pm - 10.30pm