Alongside heavyweights such as Dynasty Palace, Zui Le Xuan, Chooi Yue, Lok Hin, Sun Kim Aik and Sun Kok Kee, Restoran Dim Sum BFB pales terribly in comparison, regardless of how proudly they inserted the words “Hong Kong” into their restaurant name.
With factors such as pricing, portion, taste, quality and distance from Ipoh centre taken into consideration, it was just not worth the effort.
Not to me at least, since I have 6 better options as listed above.
That said, BFB has its fans; for even on a Monday morning, it enjoys brisk business, but mostly locals (read: old folks).
I’m guessing that BFB is the neighbourhood kopitiam-style dim sum outlet that caters for the surrounding areas.
The outlet started out slow at 7 – 8am, but picked up pace from 8.30am onwards.
I left about 10:30am and the crowd was thinning out by then.
Although I may not sample the exact same items at each outlet, I will always order 5 – 8 dim sum per outlet.
For BFB I’ve tried a total of 7 items and there were just more misses than hits so I didn’t bother to order more.
For a start I was appalled at the siew mai. It looked though like it was yesterday’s leftovers and re-steamed for today.
Thankfully it tasted better than it looked, though undoubtably overcooked.
RM4.10 for 3 pcs.
In the absence of a good pork dumpling, I added an order of ‘pei dan quin’ (fried century egg roll) (RM4.30) just to be sure.
This turned out to be satisfactory; meaty and not overly greasy. I like the taste of salted egg yolk with the pork. MY gripe? The rubbery pieces of century egg.
The fishballs (RM4.10) passed muster, so did the egg tarts (RM1.90 each), finally a wobbly yet not diabetically sweet version.
Their “recommended” smoked bacon pork rolls were not available when I wanted to order it, but I was informed later when it became available.
I gave it a miss though, since my meal was overall so-so.
Foursquare tips mentioned the char siew bao as a ‘must-order‘. I have high expectations of char siew bao in general so I’ve skipped ordering it entirely in dim sum restaurants. More often than not, the fillings are overly sweet and there are more sauce than meat.
True enough, I regretted my decision the moment I bit into mine. This one of the sweetest char siew bao (RM2.10) I’ve ever had!
The lao sar bao (RM4.80 for 3) was not bad though.
The first batch failed the molten lava test, but they reheated it for me, it flowed like the beautiful golden elixir it was supposed to be.
Perhaps the baos were not heated properly the first time, or I’ve left it longer than I should. Whatever it was, I was glad for these salted egg yolk buns!
First batch.
After reheating.
BFB dim sum aren’t the sort that leaves you craving for more or lingers on your mind long after your meal.
It won’t urge you to impatiently plan your next visit.
It is simply, an acceptable dim sum option in Ipoh.
Will I return?
Yes I would.
Like I said, my experience wasn’t terribly bad. It just that I have better options in Ipoh, but should there be anyone else willing to accompany me for a 2nd visit, I’m all up for it.
Oh yes, service is good and both the young (2 guys) and old servers (old ladies) were helpful and friendly. The iced coffee (RM2.10) truly kick ass too!
The overall bill came up to RM24.10 inclusive of GST with each item between RM2.10 to RM4.80.
This meal could have fed 3 pax easily.
UPDATE: Revisit – August 2018
Fast forward 2 years later, BFB Dim Sum remains popular (judging from the crowd) and food remained consistent. The steamed items are fresh and were a good size. Prices changed (higher of course) but reasonably so.
There are some new items on the menu and one of them was this smoked duck sandwich. It was tasty and as you can see, they threw in a thin omelette and cucumbers as well, all folded in a fluffy steamed bun.
Fried items were hot and crispy. The only item we didn’t quite like was the chee cheong fun but all in all it was a satisfactory dim sum breakfast before continuing our journey to Penang.
Restoran Hong Kong Dim Sum BFB
61, Persiaran Bandar Baru Tambun 16,
Taman Ipoh Impian, 31400 Ipoh.
Tel: + 6 010-2203812
Business Hours: 6.30 am – 1.30 pm.
Close: Tues and Wed.