This recent trip to Crystal Jade La Mian Xiao Long Bao at Great World City marks my second visit to this particular outlet. my previous experience there left me with a long lasting good impression – great food coupled with excellent service. So naturally I was happy to pop by once again for more dim sum goodies.
In a bid to increase returning customers, the restaurant introduces new dishes to their menu from time to time. They now have a pan fried version of their popular Shanghai pork dumpling. It even comes on a hot plate.
S$4.80++
Rating:
At $4.80 for four dumplings, it’s also a fraction more expensive than the original Shanghai pork dumpling that costs $3.60 for four. Taste-wise I couldn’t really pinpoint any difference between the two; they were both equally bland. It’s just the usual xiao long bao sans the soup. Other than the fact that it came with egg on a hot plate, there wasn’t any sign of this being a pan fried dish.
S$4.50++
Rating:
Obviously I’m not a huge fan of their Shanghai pork dumpling. As with previously, I very much prefer the Beijing pork dumpling. It had so much more flavour to its pork filling. It begs me to wonder whether the Crystal Jade chefs use any secret ingredient for their marinade. Oh those juicy dumplings. I love the way the yummy soup fills my mouth when I bite into one.
S$7.50++
Rating:
Ah… The best dish of the night had to be the la mian (hand-pulled noodles) – and I don’t even like noodles! The noodles were nice and chewy but it was the spicy and sour sauce that made the dish. It was spicy with a touch of tang, yet not too hot at the same time. So people who don’t take much chilli can eat this comfortably as well. The ample portion served ensured that we were kept full and satisfied.
S$7++
Rating:
The Sichuan steamed chicken was served… Cold. I didn’t notice this oddity until now. Did they steam it before cooling it? Or did they simply serve us the wrong dish? Come to think of it, the dish looked quite different from what was pictured on the menu. Nonetheless, I liked the tasty black sauce. It was very spicy and rich in flavour. But overall, this dish was hardly worth the seven bucks as the chicken portion was so small, with most of it being bone!
S$3++
Rating:
For drinks I highly recommend their home-made longan drink which is supremely refreshing and healthful. It also makes a good palate cleanser.
This marks yet another pleasant trip to Crystal Jade. One reason why I’ll keep returning is that the food is consistently good (this does not include C-Jade Express, which sucks). The service is excellent. What I hate most about any dining establishment is having to wait a long time to be served. When I step into a Crystal Jade restaurant I am assured of a pleasant experience with ever willing waitstaff. And good food of course.
– Ngee Ann City #04-27, Tel: 6238 1661
– Jurong Point #03-18, Tel: 6790 2212
– Great World City #02-43, Tel: 6738 5595
– Suntec City Mall #B1-028, Tel: 6337 6678
– 241/241A Holland Avenue, Tel: 6463 0968
– 470 Toa Payoh Lorong 6 #01-70, Tel: 6397 2383
– Bugis Junction #B1-04A, Tel: 6339 6902 Fax: 6339 6903
Website
Operating hours: 11am – 10pm daily
Aug 10, 2006
The service at the Crystal Jade Xiao Long Bao in Holland Village can be terrible on a Saturday night (was there two Sats ago)…
The queue was very long, they started giving out numbers only halfway through our wait, *almost* cutting out those who had been queueing, and the waitstaff we encountered could hardly be called “ever willing”. The food, however, was very good. We tried that crazy expensive $16.80 (iirc) chicken with preserved egg plus other stuff… huge dish! Was it worth it, though? Hmm… depends if you like cold dishes or not. I think the one you ordered is the ‘normal’ sized version, but the sauce used was still very unique and tasty.
Aug 10, 2006
3472
Whoa the long queue sounds pretty bad. That’s why I always make a reservation in advance before I head down to such popular places.
I’m okay with cold dishes so long as they are good! The sauce was like what you said, unique and tasty. But they were quite stingy with their food portion and that’s a real shame.
Sep 24, 2007
1
Very nice blog!
I think Din Tai Fung still better at xiaolongbao.
Jun 8, 2008
1
Crystal JADE service is very poor. I don’t like their service. but food is nice
Dec 7, 2010
2
fei chui service is not good. once, i had to order my tea, twice (since they don’t serve plain water). to make things worse, it never came, and to make things even worst, i was even charged for it in the final bill!!!!! i didn’t bother to strike it out as it was only a few dollars.