The Place I was disappointed when Lin Heung Tea House, a 100-years institution shut its doors on Wellington Street last year. Thankfully, there is still Lin Heung Kui (蓮香居), its sibling restaurant located in Sheung Wan, Hong Kong, which offers a rustic, old-school dim sum dining experience in Hong Kong where there are still push carts.

This is a great spot for a local breakfast, especially after my morning visit to the Victoria Peak where you can always pre-book your Victoria Peak Tram and skip the queues on Klook. It has been a few years since I last visited Hong Kong and one of the most convenient ways to get from Hong Kong International Airport to the city is via the Hong Kong Airport Express Train which I purchased via Klook for ease of convenience and to save time at the airport upon arrival.

Opened since 2009, Lin Heung Kui is located on level three of the building, and it spots a casual dining ambience. It is not common to spot dim sum trolleys, and this is one of the best dim sum restaurants to check out for an authentic Hong Kong experience. 

Quite a couple of interesting elements to expect from a meal here – Dim Sum push carts, sharing of tables with other strangers especially for small groups, and lastly, people watching. Expect to see patrons (generally the older folks) who pick up a copy of the newspaper and ‘yum cha’ (sip tea) while catching up on their news (or gossip). 

The Food I visited Lin Heung Kui for breakfast and the format is that you will be handed an order form once the staff has settled you down to your table. You then pass the order slip to the respective staff in charge of their dim sum trolleys or stations, where they will stamp it with your orders. Pass this form to the cashier when you are ready to bill and leave. 

Once you are seated, you will be served a pot of hot water and your tea where you can then sanitise your tableware with the hot water. If in doubt, just watch how the locals do it! 

For me, the fun part of dining here is the anticipation of the food which is about to go round your table. Most diners will stand around the trolley or even lift the basket off to peer at what is beneath, which is all part of the dining experience. 

Or if you are impatient which I am guilty of sometimes, I simply walked to the push cart and it does pay to be proactive as the popular items like Siew Mai get grabbed very quickly, and there is no telling when the next batch will surface again. 

The Siew Mai and Har Gow I had were quite decent. Not the most delicious ones I have had, but good enough for the price point where each item averages around HKD30-40.    

There is a dim sum station which dishes out fried rice roll. Yes, imagine Chee Cheong Fun in a fried-style. I had a plate of the Fried Rice Roll which reminds me a little on our local Singaporean Fried Carrot Cake. This comes with sesame sauce as well which goes well with the rice roll. 

I also tried the Char Siew Chee Cheong Fun where the rice roll texture is soft and fresh. The soy sauce dries up quite quickly, so do ask for more sauce if you could. 

Rants The authentic experience includes a no-frills, blunt Cantonese speaking from the staff in general. Also, cash only.   

Will I Return Again? That said, I do recommend Lin Heung Kui which I feel offers one of the best glimpses into the dim sum culture in Hong Kong. Most patrons are elderly folks and tourists, so I could imagine that such establishments are slowly (but surely) getting out of fashion with the younger crowd. Just be thick skinned and open minded, and you would survive even if you do not speak much Cantonese like me.      

TheRantingPanda says:
Taste bud: 3.5/5
Hole in the pocket: 3.5/5
Ambience: 4/5
Overall Experience: 4/5

Lin Heung Kui 
40-50 Des Voeux Road W, Sheung Wan, Hong Kong 

Opening Hours 

Monday to Sunday: 6am to 4pm; 6pm to 10pm