Ding Tai Fung - 鼎泰豐 (Taipei 101 branch)

Address: B1F., No.45, Shifu Rd., Xinyi Dist. 台北市市府路45號B1(台北101購物中心)

Telephone: (02) 8101-7799

Hrs: Sun-Thurs: 11:00-21:30, Fri/Sat: 11:00-22:00

There was no if about when this post would be written, it was just a matter of time before I got around to this inevitability. From humble beginnings, Ding Tai Fung has become the xiao long bao (small soup/steamed dumplings) masters of the universe. With dozens of stores in numerous countries, they have carved out a name that is really synonymous with excellence and can be considered as an definite point of pride for anyone who calls themselves Taiwanese.

Came here on a friday night and was prepared for the customary wait that goes hand in hand with any of the Ding Tai Fung restaurants that dot the landscape of Taipei. My friends were visiting and this would be their first excursion into Taiwan, and I felt it was appropriate that we made this stop our first food experience. It is my opinion that this is both a good and bad thing when talking about the niche in society that Ding Tai Fung inhabits and what it has both done to its perceived quality and its actual quality.

The Basics.. out of the corner of your eye you can see our attempt at being healthy.

There is a need to tout something until it gets to the point where it becomes so wide spread that its mere name somehow simultaneously creates feelings of admiration and scorn. We see this in many walks of life, and I think Ding Tai Fung is such a institution. It has reached the point where it is now cooler to say that its not that good... and where you follow that statement by stating that so and so restaurant can clearly beat the bejeezus out of Ding Tai Fung in a food fight. This is probably most prevalent among the citizens of Taiwan itself, but i'm here to state that I've been eating at Ding Tai Fung since I was a wee lad and the food is still awesome, and the consistency that it is able to exhibit through their chain of restaurants is nothing if not admirable.

Shrimp and Vegetable.

Sticky Rice and Pork Shu Mai

Curious mouth shaped portion missing.

If there are better xiao long bao places out there (and by just simple statistics.. there probably are), they just haven't been able to make a name for themselves like Ding Tai Fung, and no matter what side of the fence you are about the level of their food... that fact can not be denied and credit needs to be given.

Some spicy wontons.

Hot and Sour Soup

That's not to say that the place isn't without its issues. It is indeed a bit of a tourist trap, the prices, although not exorbitant, can be classified as a little bit on the pricey side by Taiwanese standards. Some of the food was of pedestrian quality.. things like the buns and the spicy wontons were just simple okay. But if these are the largest gripes.. then I think we're really just grasping at straws at this point.

The place is impeccably run, the service is of top notch quality, and being a man who appreciates a short skirt and the girls who wear them.... I applaud their use of a female dominated wait staff.

Are you eating your xiao long bao wrong? You just might be.

Busy Busy worker bees.

As I have tried to hammer home, Ding Tai Fung is worthy of its spot as king in this area. You have to dig deep to find the imperfections and the xiao long baos are in a word.. YUMMMMY. If that makes me uncool to like something that so many people seem to flock to when they come to Taiwan, then so be it... my taste buds will get by. The Taipei 101 branch is supposedly the largest Ding Tai Fung to date and the fact that you can get 10 dumplings per order instead of 6 like some other branches is a nice little plus.

Overall Ding Tai Fung as an entity as a whole and this specific branch receives: