Lan Ting: Cantonese Cuisine With Cool Dim Sum and Delicious Peking Duck
Lan Ting is a Cantonese restaurant offering both dim sum and ala carte dishes. The 88-seater restaurant focuses on regional ingredients and taste in their food with traditional cooking techniques. The restaurant also eludes a contemporary and modern deco with mahogany tables and low-back chairs with a shiny hue. Even as night falls, the lighting cast a gentle glow over the interior.
Lan Ting offers dim sum and ala carte on their menu. They have two departments where chefs handled the dim sum and the ala carte section. As for now, dim sum is available from 8am to 5pm.
As to the face behind the dim sum making, Chef Sam Hee is a Gold Medallist Awardee for the Dim Sum Category in the World Golden Chef Competition. The dim sum dishes are prepared daily by him and his team to ensure the freshness.
There are over 30 items to choose from, comprising of steamed, baked and fried food to comforting bowl of congee, noodles and sweet desserts. The dim sum list is a comprehensive one that will not leave you hungry after your meal.
Volcanic Lava Mushroom Bun (3 for $5.80)
The first item that caught our eyes is the custard lava buns realistically shaped like a mushroom because of the dusted cocoa powder on it. As we pulled apart the cheeks of the bun, it was met with ‘oooo’ and ‘aaaah’ as the custard inside started oozing out temptingly.
The dish best eaten when hot, so that you get the full heart-warming experience of the deliciously warm custard. These ‘mushrooms’ are definitely worth ordering.
Taro Puff with Diced Chicken (3 for $4.90)
My second favourite goes to the Taro puff that is crispy and not too oily. What I have thought to be just a whole load of yam paste inside, turns out to be a layer of smooth yam that wraps around tender chicken chunks. The texture is soft. almost-mushy and held together by the crispy coating.
Steamed âSiew Long Pauâ (3 for $4.80)
Xiao Long Bao is not an easy food to make and it takes years of experience to master the foldings of the skin and the broth, but Lan Ting has it nailed with these wonderful darlings. The skin remains firm to the touch and explodes as you pop it in your mouth.
Chilli Crab Puff (3 for $6.80)
This a rendition of our local favourite, the chilli crab with fried man tou. Creatively, Chef Hee stuffs the chilli crab sauce inside a puff-liked bun in which diners can devour in a few bites. We have some split opinions on these puffs, perhaps the sauce can be less starchy and gooey. But we did enjoyed the spiciness from the chilli, thankfully not those unauthentic sweet tomato-y sauce.
Lan Ting Abalone Dumpling (3 for $9.80)
These abalone dumpling is one of Lan Ting’s signature. They are stuffed full of ingredients such as chopped chestnut and prawns mixed together into a crunchy and chewy dumpling.
Whole Peking Duck ($60 full, $38 half)
The sure-winner of the day is the Peking Duck. Led by Chef Teo and his team, they handled the roast meats and cooked dishes. Expect mouthwatering Shanghai Drunken Chicken and Double Boiled Soups to warm your bellies if you do make your order for those dishes.
As for the Peking duck, the skin is sliced before our eyes, delicately and skilfully by the chef. The skin is super crispy with a thin layer of melt-in-the-mouth fats beneath. It is too addictive to stop.
The rest of the duck can be prepared in other cooking methods at an additional $10 for half duck or $15 on full ducks.
Home-made Bean Curd with Assorted Mushroom ($15)
The bean curd is deep fried to create a contrasting texture to the soft and silky tofu. The crispiness could have been more pronounced, perhaps due to the saucethat has seeped though the bean curd skin.
Wok-Fried Seafood Udon in Oba Leaf ($18)
This dish reminds me warmly of the local char kway teow, but cooked with udon noodles. The wok-hei is milder. There is also an abundance of scallops and prawns, as well as sprinkles of sesame on top.
Lan Ting Special Fried Rice ($18)
The fried rice is enjoyable with bacon bits, eggs and succulent prawns. What’s so special about this dish is the use of masala powder that creates the colour of the rice. I can taste faint hints of the spices which is amusingly a good combination.
Snowy Mochi (3 for $5.80)
While the mochi may look unassuming, I would recommend having these as desserts. The mochi skin is thin and soft with mango inside. As I sink my teeth into it, the fillings fills your entire mouth and reminded me strongly of mango sago.
Overall, Lan Ting serves pretty decent dim sum and ala carte dishes. While there are some hits and misses, there is still potential for growth. Some highlights are the volcanic lava mushroom bun, taro puff and peking duck. Perhaps after some tweaks to their dishes, we would jolly well be on our way for our next meal at Lan Ting.
Expected Damage: $30 – $40 per pax
Lan Ting: 907 East Coast Road, 01-02 Springvale, Singapore 459107 | Opening Hours: Tue to Sun: 0800 – 2230; Closed on Mon | Tel: +65 6444 0888 | Website
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