Okay, my previous Dim Sum experience at Fortune City was less-than-impressive. In fact, it was so forgettable, I didn't bother returning for a revisit until now... 4 years later. Well, there was probably another factor... My mother-in-law was present at the last visit and if my memory serves me right, she was being her obnoxious-self. I'm sure nothing tastes good in that case. Since we had to hit up T&T for some weekly groceries, we decided to give it another go.
After a short wait, we were seated and the food came out real fast after submitting our checklist. Of course it had to be the regular appetizer being the Egg Tarts to start. I must really remember to order that separately, so it comes out last! These were decent with a buttery crust that wasn't exactly flaky (a little doughy). Inside, the silky custard was good though being only semi-sweet. Next up was the Fried Taro Dumplings that was easy on the grease. However, the result was dry and mealy taro. Inside, the pork filling was also dry and chewy.
Arriving next was the Bean Curd Skin Rolls that featured a chewy pork filling with shrimp, green onion and carrots. I liked the bean curd skin as they were fried just enough for an appealing chewiness. The pork filling was rather meaty with chunks of fat here and there. I found the flavours to be on the milder side though. Onto some offal, we had the Tendon and Tripe in satay sauce. Cut into varying sizes, the tripe was softer than I would've liked. As for the tendon, the texture was just right being soft without melting away. The dish was well-seasoned with flavours that weren't overly salty.
As much as the kiddies love Ja Leun, this one was so-so as the salty donut was too dense and not crispy at all. However, the rice noodle roll was thin and soft. It wasn't too soft though as it still had some elasticity. We also liked that the green onion on the outside was distributed evenly. All this time, my son was whining about when we would get our order of Garlic Shrimp Spring Rolls. Thankfully it showed up since he was driving us nuts. These were intermittently crispy with large chunks of whole shrimp inside spiked with a good amount of garlic. We found the shrimp to be buttery and lightly crunchy.
The same texture could be found in the Haw Gow (Shrimp Dumplings) as well. Despite being a bit too thick, the dumpling wrapper was nicely chewy with an appealing elasticity. The shrimp filling featured small whole shrimp mixed with some filler. It tasted sweet with a fishy shrimp finish. As much as this could trouble some people, I actually enjoyed the considerable natural shrimp essence. As for the Sui Mai (Pork & Shrimp Dumpling), it featured small whole shrimp mixed with chunks of chewy pork. I thought they could've eased up with the pork fat, otherwise, the dumpling was okay with plenty of natural pork flavour.
Prompting Viv to exclaim, "look at those large balls!", the Beef Meatballs were indeed very big. They featured a mix of hand-chopped beef, green onion and water chestnuts. Since the meat was less-processed, it took on a more natural meatiness rather than the bounce-like texture found in other versions. There was a considerable amount of crunchy water chestnuts which complimented the meaty beef. As usual, we got the Lo Mei Gai (Sticky Rice) which was a bit drier and chewier than usual. I didn't mind it as some versions are too wet. Again, there was a natural porkiness to the filling.
My daughter loved the next dish, Stir-Fried Garlic Pea Shoots, partly because it is her favourite and more importantly it was well-prepared. In a giant heaping mound, the pea shoots were tender while still crunchy. It was a tad on the greasier side while sporting a considerable amount of diced garlic. We liked how it was tasty without too much salt. Lastly, the Steamed Spareribs atop Crystal Noodles was a huge portion. We found the spareribs to be naturally textured rather than the tenderized bouncy version. There wasn't nearly enough sparerib juice/marinade to adequately sauce the chewy noodles (even though there was sweet soy provided). This dish pretty much summed up our meal - well-portioned, but just a smidgen above average.
The Good:
- Large portions
- Relatively decent eats
The Bad:
- Decent, but not without many flaws
- Service can be hit and miss
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