pasyalan, chibogan, kodakan, atbp.: Food::Xmas Day Dinner @ Din Tai Fung

Saturday, December 29, 2012

Food::Xmas Day Dinner @ Din Tai Fung

After spending most of the day at Manong Clark's house on Xmas day, we went back to Holiday Inn Express hotel in Van Nuys. We planned on going to Redondo Beach and have lunch at one of the seafood restaurants there but since it was already late we decided to just have dinner that night at Din Tai Fung, which was a good 30-minute drive from our hotel. When we got there, I noticed a lot of groups of people outside the place. At last, I will be able to try the best XLB (Xiao Long Bao) on this planet, I told myself.

It was hard to find parking but we eventually found one. Dinah and the kids first waited in the car while I tried to see how long the wait will be. The receiving area was small with 2 short benches on each side. The Chinese lady at the reception told me that the wait time was around 45 minutes to an hour which was just around their closing time. I asked for a table for 4 and she asked me my cell number so she could send me a text as soon as a table was available. I called Dinah and told her about the wait time and she said ok. I told the lady that I'll just wait for my number to be called. When I noticed that they were calling numbers close to mine, I called Dinah and the kids to come over.

While waiting, we filled out the order slip that they handed out. It was basically a list of the menu items they offer. You indicate the quantity per menu item that you want to order.

I wanted to try Din Tai Fung for a long time now because of their legendary XLB.

Xiao Long Bao

There were 10 pieces in a single order. Their XLBs were the prettiest ones I've seen so far and not a single one of them punctured. Too bad they forgot to add the finely chopped ginger in the dark vinegar dip. As usual, Dylan ate most of them. I believe I just tried a single piece but they were undeniably good. Was it the best? Indeed!