We were craving for the Xiaolóngbao we previously had at Din Tai Fung, which was unavailable in Thailand, so we ended up at Crystal Jade La Mian Xiaolóngbao which is situated at the Grand Hyatt Erawan Mall’s urban kitchen section. The waiters were quite energetic and helpful but it was probably because it was quiet when we arrived. After trying the Xiaolóngbao at Crystal Jade, I still preferred the Xiaolóngbao I had at Din Tai Fung. The Xiaolóngbao was a little bit too meaty at Crystal Jade, and being a relatively larger size we were filled up rather quickly. The minced pork was slightly on the sweet side which was, I suspect, to the liking of the local taste buds.

Din Tai Fung is famous for their Xiaolóngbao. The Din Tai Fung story started when Mr Yang fled to Taiwan during the Chinese Civil war in 1948. Mr Yang started off as a delivery boy for cooking oil, and soon saved up enough to start a small restaurant selling Xiaolóngbao. This restaurant was called Din Tai Fung. His restaurant became famous for its Xiaolóngbao, the recipe being formulated and developed by Mr Yang himself. To date, there are 40 franchises of Din Tai Fung in 10 countries. They were recently voted top 10 restaurants in the world, by the New York Times.