Tim Ho Wan, Burwood

I deliberately waited some time to pass before I checked out Tim Ho Wan. There was mixed results from the reviews that I've read but I wanted to judge for myself.

Tim Ho Wan has stores in Chatswood, Burwood and the city. I check out the Burwood chain for lunch on the weekend. I walk right in without waiting to my surprise. I have heard of hours and hours of waiting at the Chatswood chain when it first opened.

I look at the menu and start ordering some dishes and I am sure to order their famous BBQ Pork buns. The menu is a little bit pricey than other yum cha eateries.

The $7.80 BBQ Pork Buns (3) had a slightly crunchy but soft at the same crust which encases the sweet BBQ pork was really nice. I can see why there's all the rage around this dish.

The $7.50 pork flat wide rice noodle was not bad. The noodles were soft and there was a lot of sauce. The filling was enjoyable to eat. 

The wasabi prawn dish ($7.80) was a bit dense in the fried shell. If you like a thick fried wonton skin then this dish is for you. I was wishing I had ordered the steamed har gou instead for something a bit lighter.

I did not enjoy the radish cake and would NEVER order the dish again. It just wasn't to my palette. I did see this dish being ordered by many other tables so perhaps it's just my personal preference.

The spinach and prawn dumpling ($7.80 for 3) was encased in a silky thin skin. The spinach is thick with chunks of prawns. I just thought the price was not as for value for the 3 portions but I enjoyed eating the dumplings.

The Springs Rolls were not bad. The spring rolls are crunchy but not worth $6.

The singaporean noodles ($9.90) were enjoyable to eat. The noodles were not oily and there were small shreaded parts of vegetables throughout the noodles. It's a smaller portion though and I rarely order the noodles at yum cha but I make an exception this time. 

For dessert, I try the mango sago which was sweet, textured with little balls and was a touch thicker than water. They also had a fried lychee dessert (below) which I did not enjoy. The batter on the lychees took away the natural taste of the lychees.

Highlights: I'm going to have to agree with the bloggers out there on this one. There are some great dishes and the highlight was definitely the BBQ Pork Buns. They completely live up to the hype and expectations. However ...

Suggested Improvements: The price point was a bit high on some dishes so I rather go to other yum cha eateries. Some of the other dishes did not go well with my palette. 

Price: $30-40 per person

Location: 173-175/100 Burwood Rd, Burwood

Opening Hours: 10am to 9pm weekdays, 9am to 9pm weekends.

Summary: Lisa's Rating: Check it out if you love BBQ pork buns.

Food: 6/10 for casual dining 

Customer Service: 7/10

Atmosphere: 7/10
Value: 6/10