Tim Ho Wan’s signature BBQ pork buns are pretty much the pinnacle of dim sum design
Michelin stars are sort of like the Oscars of the restaurant world – extremely prestigious and hard to get. And just like Oscars usually go to Hollywood productions with multi-million dollar budgets, Michelin stars usually go to restaurants that are so expensive you might end up spending a small fortune on just an appetizer.
Occasionally, Oscars go to indie films made by brilliant directors working with just a shoestring budget, But it’s even rarer that a restaurant where you can walk away satisfied for less than Rp 150,000 earns a Michelin star. That restaurant is Tim Ho Wan.
The original Tim Ho Wan was opened in Hong Kong in 2009 by chef/owner Mak Kwai Pui, who was the ex-dim sum chef at the Four Seasons Hotel’s Lung King Heen restaurant (which itself earned three Michelin Stars). The original Tim Ho Wan was a little hole-in-the-wall dim sum joint that did not stand out much from the hundreds of similar restaurants, in its simple appearance or low prices.
But Chef Mak made sure that Tim Ho Wan’s dim sum did stand out in terms of taste, being made to the same impeccable standards as his former high-class kitchen. His dedication to quality quickly earned his restaurant a Michelin Star, making it “the cheapest Michelin-starred restaurant in the world.”
Since the fame of the original TIm Ho Wan spread, Mak and his partners have branched out, opening outlets throughout the region including in Singapore, Australia, the Philippines and Malaysia.
I was overjoyed when I heard that Tim Ho Wan had recently opened up its very first outlet in Jakarta. It’s located in North Jakarta’s happening Pantai Indah Kapuk (PIK) neighborhood and it’s definitely a good fit for the area (for those of you who live further South, take comfort in the fact that another Tim Ho Wan outlet is coming to Grand Indonesia in the next few months).
Don’t let the long lines scare you – it’s worth the wait!
The PIK outlet is quite a bit more spacious than the original Tim Ho Wan, with three floors of seating. Nevertheless, expect to wait in line around 30 minutes or possibly longer during peak times to get a table. The restaurant doesn’t take reservations (except for the private dining rooms which require a minimum spend per person), but don’t let the long lines scare you off. The service is very efficient and tables tend to turnover quickly.
That efficiency can be seen immediately if you order Tim Ho Wan’s most popular dish, the BBQ pork buns (Rp 43.8k). They should come out almost instantly after you order them as the kitchen seems to constantly be preparing new ones. And for good reason. Unlike traditional dim sum buns which can be heavy and dense, Tim Ho Wan’s are light and airy, with a delicate texture and a crunchy sweet glaze that goes oh so well with the tender, moreish pork morsels inside. They are truly a feat of high-end dim sum design.
Unlike many Chinese restaurants in Jakarta with dictionary-thick menus, Tim Ho Wan’s menu fits on one side of a placemat, with pictures of the two dozen or so dishes on offer. But almost all of those dishes are made with the same level of precision and high-quality ingredients as the pork buns. And while the prices are slightly higher than at most dim sum restaurants in Jakarta, the average price of a dish at Tim Ho Wan’s is still less the Rp 40k, so if you go in a small group you can try pretty much everything that looks interesting to you.
Prawn dumplings with wasabi sauce
Other highly recommended dishes I’ve tried during my two visits to the restaurant include the radish cakes (Rp 31.8k) which deliciously and deceptively contain bits of pork, the pork shumai with shrimp (Rp. 38.8k) which are easily some of the best shumai in the city, addictive prawn dumplings with wasabi sauce (Rp 43.8k) and tender pork ribs with black bean sauce (Rp. 29.8k). As you can see from the descriptions, the menu is fairly heavy on pork, especially the signature items, so halal eaters may come away slightly disappointed (though if you love seafood there are still plenty of options – the shrimp they use are excellent).
So how does the Jakarta version of Tim Ho Wan stack up to the original? Sorry, I couldn’t tell you. To be honest, I’ve only been to one of the Singapore outlets and I’d say the PIK one compares favorably. In fact I’d say it was even slightly better than those in Singapore (but that just might be my hometown bias talking).
While it definitely produces some of the very best dim sum in all of Jakarta, if you’re a seasoned yum cha veteran, Tim Ho Wan may not completely blow your mind. Except for those BBQ pork buns, those are pretty much out of this world.
Tim Ho Wan Jakarta
Ruko Crown Golf Blok D No. 8-10, Pantai Indah Kapuk, North Jakarta
T: (021)22510205
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