Dai Cha Dim @ Pavilion

While looking through Pavilion's directory for a place to eat, I came upon a new eatery, Dai Cha Dim @ Pavilion, that was opened in mid-November 2018.

Noting that they were located on the sixth floor, we took the lift and it's situated just round the corner from the lift, next to Putien and Din Tai Fung, if that makes it easier for you to locate.

From the menu, this dai cha dim (loosely translated as big tea shop) seems to offer cha chan teng delights such as BBQ meats, noodles, steamed & plated rice, a small selection of dim sum & porridge, double-boiled soups and individual dishes to pair with rice.

Noodles with BBQ meats of char siu, siu yuk, chicken, duck and wonton and steamed & plated rice with Hakka-style char yoke (braised pork belly), luncheon meat, black vinegar pork trotters, sweet & sour pork, minced pork & salted fish and more...all screams comfort food! ;)

Since it was in-between breakfast and lunch, I wanted something light and went with the Shrimp Roe & Wonton Noodles @ RM15.30.  First impression when it arrived was that it looked exactly like Mak's Chee prawn roe noodles except this one had a tad less shrimp roe and the noodles were served cut in half (have no idea why it's served like that).  The texture of the noodles was da bomb...thin, springy and wonderfully firm, just like Mak's Chee, only a bit less fragrant because of a lesser quantity of shrimp roe.

But the one thing I did like that Mak's Chee prawn roe noodles didn't have was the inclusion of pork lard in the noodles...and they were super crispy and extremely delicious.  This was one of the freshest pork lard I've ever eaten...so, so pleasurable! ^o^

The soup wontons had a thicker skin and the prawn filling wasn't as plump if compared to Mak's Chee which were definitely better.  I don't see whole prawns in the filling but minced prawns (and perhaps some minced pork in the mix?).

The soup base of this one was certainly one up on Mak's Chee in terms of flavour.  I like this soup as it tastes much closer to our local tastebuds.

The Char Siu & Wonton Noodles Soup @ RM15.30 comes with thick cut char siu slices with wontons and greens in the same soup base.

The char siew was very commendable too with a nicely charred skin, a good ratio of fat to lean cut and fall-apart tender meat.

Typical of any cha chan teng, you're bound to find milk tea on the menu like this Dai Cha Dim Ice Bath Bottled Milk Tea @ RM7.80.  This one was pretty decent though you might want to skip the Ipoh White Coffee (Cold) @ RM6.50.

As usual with these places, orders are made through an order chit.  There are plenty of condiments on the table like a dried sambal, pickled green chillies, chilli sauce and both dark and light soy to amp up the taste of your noodles and rice dishes if you need it.  The condiments available reveal that it's more suited to our local tastebuds.

Check out a more recent post on the place here.

My Personal Opinion

Although the place seems to offer cha chan teng cuisine with its obvious Hong Kong-style noodles but yet there also seems to be a mix of our local Chinese cuisine in the likes of char siu, Hakka char yoke, black vinegar pork trotters and others.

I think if you like a bit of both, you can find it here but be prepared to spend more than what you'd pay at our local roasted meat stalls as prices are along the lines of say Din Tai Fung, Mak's Chee and the now closed, Starz Kitchen in Pavilion.

I know I've only tried two of their noodle dishes but I enjoyed them tremendously, so I know for sure that I'll be back to try more, perhaps some of their rice dishes on my next visit.

Dai Cha Dim
Lot 6.01.03 Level 6
Pavilion Kuala Lumpur
168 Jalan Bukit Bintang
55100 Kuala Lumpur
Tel: 03-2148 8108

Chinese New Year is just round the corner, so let me be the first
to wish you abundant wealth and good health in the coming year!