Yum cha time means dim sum

Malaysians must really kick the habit of eating anytime they like. But I suspect the owners of the eateries and cafeterias in Petaling Jaya will protest most vehemently if most people stick to specific eating times.

There was a time in PJ SS2 when good food was everywhere. It is no longer true. Better hawker stalls and quality food can now be found in the newer housing estates, stretching from Puchong to Cheras.

Wherever there are Chinese, food will soon follow. In fact, both have a tendency to appear at the same time. About a year ago, the Yuan Garden Dim Sum House opened for business.

It took over the corner shop which used to be the Sri Siam Restaurant. As with most PJ residents, many of the middle-aged folks will try anything new, at least once.

When it comes to dim sum, well, more than once is the norm. I passed by Yuan Garden Dim Sum House on many mornings when I head towards the Rothmans roundabout on the other side of SS2.

Each time, I remind myself that this place “needs to be tested”. The morning crowd is not as large as in some other dim sum restaurants. But I have a hunch that perhaps this restaurant is fairly new, so early risers, that include morning tai-chi and qigong practitioners, are slightly wary of its reputation.

So it came to pass recently, at about 3pm, I showed up at Yuan Garden. Keeping in mind the late hour, business had slowed to a standstill. Actually there was no customer. We were the only two. Luckily, the dim sum house was still open for business.

Perhaps the supply of dim sum items had been consumed by the morning and lunch customers, so after we placed our orders, service was surprisingly slow.

First bite

My guess is the kitchen workers were probably firing up the stove to heat up our dim sum items. I could be wrong but the first bite of the siew mai seemed to reveal that it wasn’t that succulent.

Perhaps the dim sum should have stayed on the “steam tray” a few more precious minutes.

Devotees of dim sum can tell whether an item is as fresh as the morning dew in the first mouthful. Considering my gastronomical experience with dim sum from various countries, the ones I had at Yuan Garden that late afternoon should have been better.

But I am willing to give the establishment another chance at a later date. The porridge with century egg and yew char kueh was pretty decent.

Porridge always sits well with me because it is not too heavy and it doesn’t cause instant sleepiness like mamak food.

The next item was steamed flour roll with Chinese cruller (yew char kueh) – it brought back memories of a restaurant in Kowloon, Hong Kong, except there was no comparison.

This item scored poorly on my rating scale. Not great but it wasn’t a “disaster”. I was a bit hungry, so it could have affected my judgment.

Minimalist décor

Because there were only two of us, four dim sum items were more than enough. The limited number of items wasn’t sufficient to give Yuan Garden a fair assessment. I believe it would have earned higher marks early in the morning when freshness was the order of the day.

The décor of the restaurant was minimalist. It agrees with my preference for simplicity. Even the ambience was inviting. I suspect the feng shui at the corner of the row of shops would please any geomancer.

No doubt the owner of Yuan Garden Dim Sum had consulted a feng shui master before opening the doors for business.

The address, if you really need to go, is No. 58, Jalan SS2/24. Yuan Garden opens from 7am to 11pm. The telephone number is 03-7873-5655 , in case you are bringing a party of 10 people.

Right now, it is not the greatest dim sum shop in the whole of PJ, but its location is excellent because of the ample parking space in and around the area.

To some extent, dim sum is subjective. Some people will criticise your favourite outlets but it really depends on what you like and who are the chefs responsible for the “yum cha” delights.