Zi Char - Yum Cha Restaurant

Zi Char - Yum Cha Restaurant
20 Trengganu Street #02-01

22 Kensington Park Road
Serangoon Garden Country Club


6 Changi Business Park Avenue 1
#01-33 UE BizHub East


http://www.yumcha.com.sg/


Good Dim Sum But Expensive Zi Char

(Ratings: On a scale of 1 to 10, with 1 = Worst and 10 = Best)
Overall: 7
Ambience & Setting: 7
Food & Beverage: 9
Service: 8
Value for Money: 6
Spent about SGD $55 per person.


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Yum Cha Restaurant is a Chinese fine dining Dim Sum / Zi Char franchise chain, known for their use of high quality ingredients, masterfully prepared and beautifully presented dishes, and justifiably high prices. Yum Cha Restaurant also provides a catering delivery service, that is best utilized by large groups.

Ambience at Yum Cha Restaurant is typical of a premium fine dining restaurant, which touches of Imperial elegance and splendor. Chinese decor and plants adorn the room, as do images of Koi fish in the Yin Yang formation. Fine cutlery and tableware is used, and the large floor space has spacious room for many guests.

Service befits a fine dining establishment as well. Yum Cha Restaurant staff are observant and attentive, topping up drinks without request and making sure your dining experience goes well. They are polite and efficient, with food being prepared and served relatively quickly. They also accede to certain change requests. Very good.

Food at Yum Cha Restaurant revolves around either Dim Sum or Zi Char. Their Zi Char dishes look and taste great, but portions are quite small, and prices are high per dish, even for simple ones with low cost ingredients. Their set menus are slightly more value for money, but the price listed is nowhere near the ballpark amount you'll pay.

The Dim Sum at Yum Cha Restaurant is the star though, and the best time to dine at Yum Cha Restaurant is when their buffets are available.


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High ceilings, bright lightings, spacious interiors and Imperial elegance make this a grand, rather splendid place for dining.

Yum Cha Restaurant Decor


Yum Cha Restaurant Interior


Tea



The complimentary Braised Peanuts were undercooked, and slightly hard. Would be better off if it were braised longer till soft. Also, the sauce is underwhelming.

Braised Peanuts



The taste of the Fish Maw In Thick Seafood Soup was excellent. Thick and savoury with a pleasing yellow colour and a seafood / crustacean taste, the portion of ingredients within is decent.

Fish Maw In Thick Seafood Soup 01


Fish Maw In Thick Seafood Soup 02



The Stir Fried Scallop Suillus With Asparagus was slightly oily at the base, but the spice combined well with the fresh, crunchy, and large asparagus. The scallops were medium sized, plump, and perfectly cooked. Portion was just nice for 4 people.

Stir Fried Scallop Suillus With Asparagus 01


Stir Fried Scallop Suillus With Asparagus 02



The Steamed Snapper Fish Fillet With Garlic And Black Fungus was extremely tasty with the garlic and soy sauce, Hong Kong style. Loved that the black fungus was fresh, in large pieces, and slightly crunchy. And while the fish was fresh, I felt it was sliced a little thin, and bigger portions would be welcome.

Steamed Snapper Fish Fillet With Garlic And Black Fungus 01


Steamed Snapper Fish Fillet With Garlic And Black Fungus 02



The tasty Fried Crispy Chicken finished too fast! The chicken was cooked through but still moist, and the skin was crisp, savoury and salty. Shortly after I took the photo, there were only 5 pieces left... even before I ate it!

Fried Crispy Chicken 01


Fried Crispy Chicken 02



I thought the Beancurd With Shimeji Mushrooms And Vegetables was the weakest dish here. Neither very tasty or spectacular. And the sauce tasted and looked similar to the prior soup course. The ingredients were fresh though.

Beancurd With Shimeji Mushrooms And Vegetables 01


Beancurd With Shimeji Mushrooms And Vegetables 02



An excellent Fried Rice With Assorted Seafood, with perfectly stir fried rice, good ratio of ingredients to rice, and fresh seafood. We got an additional order of this to go!

Fried Rice With Assorted Seafood 01


Fried Rice With Assorted Seafood 02



The Herbal Jelly With Honey didn't quite float my boat, but this is more a personal dislike rather than an issue with the actual dish.

Herbal Jelly With Honey




Reserve a table now @ Yum Cha Restaurant - Chinatown






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