Dim Sum at Chuai Heng Restaurant

Chuai Heng Restaurant, a venerable establishment with a rich history, was our choice for a dim sum lunch. The restaurant is located within on the first floor of Chuai Heng Banquet Hall building. When we arrived there was a wedding in session but we just walked past the reception and headed up to the restaurant above.

Established many years ago, Chuai Heng Restaurant has become a beloved institution known for its Cantonese cuisine and dim sum. They are no longer at their original premises but are still within the Imbi area so old time patrons should not have trouble finding it.

On to the dim sum itself. It was a mix of hits and misses. The egg tart with its rich velvety custard filling which was not overly sweet. The puff pastry may have been somewhat lacking in its flakiness and puffiness but the custard filling really shone through.

The Siew Mai also garnered praise, with its well-seasoned pork topped with a juicy shrimp and succulent texture giving it good marks.

The Loh Mai Kai, a classic dim sum favourite, was a pleasing dish. It featured soft textured glutinous rice and high-quality ingredients, including a piece of abalone that elevated the dish.

The Char Siew Bao was had a sweet savoury BBQ filling which thought the bun could have been better with a bouncier texture.

However, the true star of the meal was the roast pork. The skin was impeccably crispy, providing a satisfying crunch with each bite. The meat underneath remained firm and incredibly flavourful, with a good balance of fat and lean meat. At RM32 a serving it was not cheap at all but it was certainly not disappointing.

On the flip side, the Har Gow was one of the few misses of our dim sum experience. While the prawns were undeniably fresh, the skin was disappointingly thick and dry, detracting from what could have been a stellar dish. The Cheong Fun suffered too from an overly thick skin, though the taste was not lacking.

At RM200 for 3 pax, this is not a cheap place to have dim sum. But it's a place of nostalgia for some patrons. And I would go back for the roast pork.