Reviews Ding Tai Fung

You must head to Markham if you're looking for an authentic xiaolongbao experience (this shouldn't be much of a surprise). And Ding Tai Fung delivers. Named #1 Best Dumplings by blogTO, I had to check them out. With no affiliation to Taiwan's famous Din Tai Fung chain, this place is doing xiaolongbao all their own. What are they? Shanghai soup dumplings! Steamed in a bamboo basket (called a xiaolong) these little pockets of soupy deliciousness are incredible when done well.

We visited on a Saturday evening and were met with a busy restaurant and an even busier parking lot. The first thing that you notice upon entering the restaurant is the glorious aroma in the air. Next, my eyes landed on the huge glass window into the kitchen where half a dozen cooks were busy filling and pinching dumplings among towers of bamboo baskets. The feeling of the space is exactly what you would expect; a comfortable, decently nice room with minimal decor. We were seated right away at a big, round family-style table complete with a lazy susan in the middle (so useful!). Each table is adorned with a pot of hot jasmine green tea, a welcoming way to sip while you peruse the menu. The staff was friendly and graciously answered any of our perplexed questions. 

I ordered an Iced Tea with Milk ($3.49) to drink. Served strong and bitter, a small pitcher of sweet liquid simple syrup was included so that I could sweeten the iced tea to taste. Once my drink was a little bit sweeter I really enjoyed this bold and punchy cold tea.

The menu is long and extensive with many different pages and sections. My advice is to begin with the bao (buns) and to expand from there. We were provided with a piece of paper and a pen to mark down our order by checking off our selections. Then we simply handed this sheet of paper to the server and waited for everything to arrive!

Our main item of interest, of course, was the Steamed Soup Dumplings with Crab Meat & Pork Filling ($10.25). These were the xiaolongbao that we were anxiously awaiting to taste. Our server removed the bamboo lid and with a flourish of steam six skillfully handcrafted dumplings came into view. Pinched to perfection, we excitedly dove in. Consuming a xiaolongbao properly involves a few intricacies that are helpful to be aware of. First, lift the dumpling by the top of the pinch with your chopsticks and place it into your spoon. Next, poke a hole into the bottom of the dumping with your chopstick to release the hot broth. Allow the broth to fill your spoon and slurp away! Next, enjoy the rest of the dumpling with ginger and sauce. It's truly a beautiful dining experience.

These xiaolongbao were the best that I've ever had! Each one was bursting full of delicious buttery broth. The savoury filling of crab and pork was beautifully seasoned, seafoody and very flavourful. Each bite was like a comforting warm hug and I loved everything about them. Incredible.

For something non-bao we ordered the Braised Bean Curd with Chinese Mushroom ($12.99). This was nice for something different. The texture of the bean curd (tofu) was very pleasant and deeply saucy. The meaty mushrooms were a perfect compliment in the glaze-like sauce.

Not finished with the steamed dumplings, we made sure to also try the Steamed Shrimp & Pork Siu Mai ($8.99). A slightly different style of bao from a different region, these ones are decidedly more ornamental. Equally soupy on the inside and bursting with flavour, I enjoyed the plump and sweet shrimp that was positioned atop each dumpling. The pork filling was very good. You can't go wrong with any/all dumplings at Ding Tai Fung.

We also couldn't miss a more fluffy style of bao and ordered the Shanghai-Style Pan-Fried Pork Buns ($8.75). My husband's favourite, these buns are larger, softer, and like warm pillows. Sprinkled with sesame seeds, these orbs are so easy to bite into and offer a very satisfying texture. The savoury pork nestled within is like a delicious little treasure.

We couldn't leave without trying one of their interesting-sounding desserts and decided to go as far away from the "familiar" as we could. Sesame-Filled Sweet Dumplings in Soup with Fermented Rice & Egg Drop ($8.25). Our server dished our dessert soup into our bowls and I marveled at the fact that I had not seen anything like this before. This dessert was so unique and I am so glad that I had the opportunity to try it! The sweet broth was warm and almost syrupy, but not so sweet that it became too much. The egg within the soup was exactly like hot egg drop soup, which was so interesting to see in dessert form. The dumplings themselves were deliciously beautiful pockets that contained an amazing black sesame paste. I loved the bit of bite to them. I cannot stress enough how different this dessert was (the closest thing that it reminded me of is Indian gulab jamun) and how wonderfully every unexpected component came together.

I loved the authentic and delicious experience that I had at Ding Tai Fung! The xiaolongbao were the best that I've ever had, even better than any that I tried in Vancouver. I certainly want to return to try more types of their bao and I've also heard that the Shanghai Wonton with Spicy Sauce is very good. A must-do to satisfy your dumpling needs!

This is our go-to "fancy" Shanghai restaurant. Almost everything's decent, but my favourite is their xiao long bao. I do find their "handmade" noodles (beef noodle soup) to be a bit disappointing. This place is a bit pricier than a lot of smaller, hole-in-the-wall Shanghai restaurants that are on par when it comes to food, but I like the location and the atmosphere of Ding Tai Fung.

We wrapped up Chopstick Walk 2015 with Shanghai-style dim sum at Ding Tai Fung on Highway 7. Located in the busy and huge First Markham Place strip mall, this restaurant is popular for its xiaolongbao (steamed buns prepared in bamboo steaming baskets.)

Stand out dishes are their xiao long bao with pork and crab--perfect when eaten with a shred of vinegar-soaked ginger; snow pea shoots sautéed in garlic, and beef brisket noodle soup with wontons. Their fried rice is just as consistently delicious. Service is brisk and efficient; not unfriendly. Comfortable, clean surroundings and a clear view of the busy prep cooks rolling and stuffing dumplings behind a large glass feature wall enhance this restaurant staple.

The food is pretty good. I ate there many times and the quality have been more or less the same. But the cleanliness of the restaurant turns me off. Sometimes the tables are sticky and there are flies. But either than that the food is enjoyable.

This restaurant had been on my to-go list for Dim Sum for quite a long time! I finally visited the restaurant for an early dinner with the hubs this weekend and I have to say that we were both pleasantly surprised! It was our first time trying Shanghai Dim Sum but it’s certainly not our last…We arrived with no reservation just after 4pm, so the restaurant was relatively not busy but still full of customers. The open kitchen by the back of the restaurant definitely caught our attention, as many chefs were making dumpling after dumpling. The Dim Sum here seems to be served all day (yay!). I found the prices okay – nothing too cheap nor too expensive. There were many items that I had never seen or tried before so I definitely studied the menu for a good 10 minutes trying to figure out what to order.

My favorite restaurant.

GOOD: hot and sour soup, any veggies (especially the stir fried snow pea with garlic), fried rice, pan fried pork dumplings, soup dumplings.

BAD: nothing is wrong with this restaurant.

Last weekend, my sis and I took our parents out for dinner at a restaurant called Ding Tai Fung.  Since they live in suburbia up north, we figured it was the easiest ‘middle ground’ for both parties to meet.

Despite a disorganized reservation system, people crammed at the front of the restaurant waiting for a table, and close seating quarters — it’s clear that people will tolerate all of this for one reason: the food–is tasty.

After 40 minutes of waiting, we struck a bit of luck with a spacious table near the back of the restaurant.  Situated in front of a glass divider, we saw staff huddled around a table making edible art.  Working like a well-oiled machine, one rolled, one filled, and one crafted these oyster shelled beauties.  The pleating and folding was admirable.  All hand-crafted by elderly Asian men.

All the dishes we ordered were simple but delicious.  In particular, the stars of the evening were the dumplings.  Whether soup-filled, steamed, or pan-fried, each plump parcel had a papery, thin shell that contained juicy meats or veggies.

The only negative dishes were the ‘beef burrito’ roll and the pan fried pork buns.  The shell was far to chewy (strange gummy texture) and the beef was dry and lacking in flavour. As for the latter item… it was just a matter of ratios… too much bun to meat filling (although I realize this was probably done by design– like in the old days–where meat had to be rationed and stretched out).

My favourite dishes of the evening would have to be the steamed chive- filled dumplings and the ‘Dan Dan’ noodles.  Arriving in a small circular crate, the pleated edges reminded me of a crimped pie shell.  The chubby pieces were a pleasure to eat, gushing with mild garlic-y chive flavour.  And the noodles? The spiced peanut sauce was fantastic.  Although a bit more liquid-y than I’m accustomed too, the flavours were certainly there– the creaminess and sweetness of the peanut butter, the spices and chili to amp up the heat factor.  The springy, soft noodles were the perfect vehicle for the sauce to latch onto.

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Delicious Shanghai dim sum!. Food is fantastic, and the noodles are so fresh. (this makes a huge difference)
Favorite dishes are: Beef tendon noodle soup, steamed dumplings, pan fried pork dumpling and dam dam meen.
Delicious, a bit pricey.. but overall a place to try out for sure!

Here for the xiao long bao, dumplings and fresh noodles. Other than that... Everything is pretty standard. #1 for their soup dumplings!!!

Very good dim sum!. After reading about Ding Tai Fung in the local newspaper, we tried it this morning with my wife and her parents. And, we were rewarded with excellent dim sum. The menu is a la carte, so everything arrived piping hot and fresh. The deep fried squid tentacles were amazing, perfectly salty & crunchy. Siu Mai was also good, done a little differently with brown rice on top. The green onion pancakes were flavourful, and not too oily. Xiao Long Bao were heavenly, with moist flavourful pork on the inside and perfectly done wrapping. We also ordered steamed vegetable buns, spring rolls, and a sticky rice bun called "si fan" with salty, crispy pork rolled into the inside.

The decor is nice, and restaurant seemed very clean overall.

Bill was $58 fo 4 adults including tip.

I understand this restaurant is a knock-off of a more famous one in Taiwan, however this doesn't matter to me - still some of the best dim sum in the GTA, and we've eaten extensively from Markham to Scarborough to downtown Chinatown. My parents in law who are from Taiwan and China were also impressed. We'll definitely return!

Great Food!. Went there for dimsum, and it was amazing! Slow service though.

The Fake Authentic Hong Kong-Shanghainese Dim Sum Restaurant. E: The dim sum here is good enough to warrant line-ups on many nights and weekends. There are ten Chinese restaurants to the left and ten Chinese restaurants to the right, not to mention the mall's food court, and Ding Tai Fung still shows off a huddle of people waiting at the door.
The menu, where one has to mark his orders by pen, is entirely in Mandarin. See my photograph. Enjoy.
The restaurant's flagship Xiaolongbao (soup dumplings) get Sisyphus' seal of approval every time (yes, this was a return visit). The Xiaolongbaos were so pale they looked raw, but in fact they were consistent and well done. The dumplings were hot and savoury, but not burning to the tongue. The Green Onion Pancake was tasty and zesty, but happily not oily. It felt light and fluffy compared to its cousins at other restaurants. Next I had the Shiu Mai, but not any shiu mai. For fun, I had the sticky rice shiu mai which featured sticky brown rice on top. Good choice, but not as good as the original. Lastly, we had the stewed beef wraps, which were just dry and sweet enough to be right. I had expected these to be larger than they were.
The meal was $25, which is not the cheapest in the grand Chinese scheme of things, yet inexpensive for the quality and overall.
On a separate trip I had the Jelly Fish With Turnips and found the fish to be unexciting. Not at all sure if this goes with convention, but adding soy sauce was a great asset to this dish. The minced beef dumplings were also quite tasty. Its wrapping tasted doughy and was good.
Incidentally, they have a full offering of desserts, but their noodle menu is restricted to noodles in broth ('soup'). This is Shanghainese cuisine.
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A: Ding Tai Fung's main design feature is the large window to the kitchen where the chefs are rolling, shaping, making and moulding dim sum from scratch. It is clean, organized and busy.
There are several tables for two, many tables for four and half a dozen group tables with lazy susans. Today, these tables were occupied by several groups of young people whose males were dressed in suit and tie and the females were dressed in their Sunday best (and mind you they were a day early). All I could think of was 'Chinese Mormon Missionaries’ or 'Chinese Jehovah's Witnesses who are Witnesses or Pioneers' (not that sexes would mix in those groups for the motto always has been 'Thou Shalt Not Have Fun') or 'Chinese equivalent.' Just kidding.
The restaurant is large, but not as large as the banquet hall several doors up, namely Diamond. High ceilings and space absorb the clang and latter, but watch out for the waitresses throwing dirty dishes into their trays to clean up the tables. The lack of broken dishes, plates and cups must be a testament to the quality of the fine 'china' used. Ahem.
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T: Prepare to wait up to an hour for Sunday lunch during the peak hours. We were given a 20-minute wait time and were seated some 20 minutes later as well.
The parking for First Markham Place is as busy as a slow Tim Horton's drive through at 8:00 am, which is to say finding parking nearer to the restaurants is difficult. I witnessed a driver roll his SUV unto the curb to park (or was that his, yes his, driving skills?), while cars cruise and prowl for departing cars everywhere.
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S: The lady at the door was efficient and effective keeping track of who is who. We were No. 43 and were seated in order. The waitress was friendly and smiling (what a concept!), but when looking for a water refill or the bill she was nowhere to be found. Then again, the water was not forgotten, the food arrived on time and she was happy. Nonetheless, I had to make my way to the cash station to pay. I am glad I did. The name of the girl at the cash was Icy. Totally cool name. Really.
Finally, people are under the impression that Ding Tai Fung is a Branch of the known Michelin One-Star Taipei, Taiwan-based chain Din Tai Fung. This might sound like one of those 'spot the difference' games, but did anyone notice the missing 'g' in the name? If not, take a look at the alleged mothership's website at http://www.dintaifung.com.tw/en/area_a_list.asp?AreaCountryNO=1. The Markham knock-off restaurant is the best Shanghai dim sum served by Hong Kong expatriates ever. Of course, naming restaurants after famous and popular establishments in mother countries is nothing new. The favourite standby Shanghai 369 in Markham is named after Hong Kong's 3, 6, 9. Ding Tai Fung just takes the concept one step further.
Speaking of Shanghai 369 off Kennedy, think of it as a more personal and cosy address for Shangahi dim sum and xiaolongbaos. Over a year ago I took a friend to Ding Tai Fung. Later she could not even remember the place despite its size and how soup dumplings have, in the interim since I introduced them to her in 2009 at Richmond's now-closed Northern Dynasty, become her favourite dim sums. Later she could not recall the dumplings, the food or the place. Context? Ding Tai Fung might not be as remarkable to you either.

Worth the Wait!!. Funny but a friend from NYC told us about this place, we have been going there for a number of times. It's usually packed out so expect a wait, (longest was 1.5 hours). While waiting, there is the shopping mall and other restaurants, but it is worth the wait.

The juice filled dumplings are like eating soup, be careful or they spill on to your shirts. Best to add a little bit of the finely sliced ginger and red vinegar. The best dish has to be the pea shoots with garlic sauce. I have dreams of that.

The food is worth the wait every time!

Recommended items:. Over the years there have been many Shanghai-nese restaurants that have come and gone but I always revert back to Ding Tai Fong for some reliable Shanghai-nese food. My recommended picks are: (1) regular Siu Long Baus (the steamed pork dumplings) ...get the pork ones and not the fancy crab or seafood ones, (2) drunken chicken [this place debones it for you which is unlike any other] and (3) beef wrap is pretty good.

I've been here numerous times and it has always been consistently good. My favorite? The crab dumplings, just thinking about them makes me hungry. Try going on off hours if you don't like to wait for a table.

Ordered the crab and minced pork xiao long pao. Barely tasted the crab, the pork over powered the taste. Next time I come here, might as well get the cheaper versions.

Ordered the Siu Mai. Tastes good only comment I have is they did not clean the shrimp as in cut the back so the black part is removed.

Ordered the sweet and sour pork. Though they named it exotically fried pork chop in sweet vinegar, though I kind of knew it was going to be sweet and sour. Just right mix, though it has bones, but no need for rice to buffer the flavor. Though I ate it with my favorite dish...

Meat pancake #27. Still the catch all default for this restaurant. Still yummy after all this time.

The best siew loong bow in the GTA. Fresh and lots of variety. A bit on the pricey side when compared to similar restaurants.

This past Sunday my bf and I had visited Ding Tai Fung for lunch after reading great reviews for their soup dumplings. To my understanding, this restaurant isn't the real Din Tai Fung franchise but since people had given great reviews we thought we'd try it out. Pork Soup Dumplings.  We ordered two orders of the Pork Soup Dumplings because we knew one order wouldn't be enough! They came out super hot & fresh, and wow, they were very succulent and delicious!

All of them were quite delicious and surprisingly reminiscent of the ones that I had at the real Din Tai Fung in Taiwan and Shanghai. The world-renown restaurant consistently serves dumplings/xiao long baos with the thinnest dumpling skin with the hot soup contained in the dumpling. It is not an easy feat to do! Ding Tai Fung Shanghai Dim Sum was able to replicate this really hard to do skill! Props to them.

If you have never tried Shanghai cuisine, Ding Tai Fung is definitely the right place to start and worth the drive and the line! Don't confuse this as traditional dim sum because it is completely different!

The menu items are a bit on the pricey side so even with a few dishes, each person may end up spending around $15-20 dollars for lunch.

Also, Ding Tai Fung is a nicely renovated clean restaurant (my boyfriend who usually doesn’t like Chinese restaurants really liked the upscale ambiance here, including washroom). We spent $41, without tips. Yes we are going back for more soup dumplings!

In every trip to Toronto, a meal at Ding Tai Fung is a must. I highly regarded as the number one for Siao Long Bao. Things may have changed a bit because, although food was still good, the siao long bao weren’t as impressive as I remembered them to be. It could be because Montreal’s dumplings simply improved dramatically recently. But overall, I still enjoyed my meal. Next time, I will forego Ding Tai Fung and  I shall visit other dumpling house in Toronto.   Zuuchini

Always listen to your elders, stick to dumplings and simple dishes at Ding Tai Fung and you will leave happy with fully belly.

So, how did they taste? Amazing. They had a nice thin skin and contained a generous amount of the minced pork filling.

This was no regular Chinese dim sum place. It was a Shanghai dim sum restaurant.

Our favourite Shanghai restaurant, Oriental Delight, closed down, so we went a little further to First Markham Place to eat at Ding Tai Fong. I'm not sure if I've ever been here before. You can see the kitchen through a large window and watch people make

To my understanding, this restaurant isn't the real Din Tai Fung franchise but since people had given great reviews we thought we'd try it out. We got two orders of the Pork Soup Dumplings because we knew one order wouldn't be enough. They came out fresh and they were very succulent and delicious! The Steamed Shrimps and Pork Siu Mai were also incredible, probably one of the best siu mai we've tasted in Toronto. We wanted a meat, rice and vegetable dish so we ordered the Sweet & Sour Pork; Shrimp, Ham & Egg fried rice; and Garlic Baby bok choy. Just like any other Chinese restaurant, they all tasted great. This dim sum restaurant turned out to be much better than we expected. We will definitely come back to this restaurant for their soup dumplings and pork siu mai!

Atmosphere: The restaurant was busy with a considerable crowd waiting at the entrance. Luckily we had reservations, which were honoured and allowed us to get a seat quickly. I liked how a portion of the kitchen was fitted with a glass window. This allowed diners to watch the chefs as they prepared dumplings and other baos to be steamed. I’m always a fan of watching how dishes are prepared.

Service: Service ranged from unmemorable to sub-par and generally seemed unorganized. At one point a girl tried to clear our steamer trays with “xiao long bao” still left! I understand being efficient but really? Other than that, dishes arrived uneventfully.

Food: We started with two cold dishes, sliced pork belly with chilli sauce and marinated beef tripe. For me, the tripe needed just a touch of salt that would have enhanced the other flavours in the sauce. The pork belly was good, sliced thin and evenly. This isn’t my favourite way to eat the cut of meat though. I prefer it charred or grilled, which caramelizes the fat.

The xiao long bao was freshly steamed and each bao was filled with a spoonful of sauce. We had a tray each of the crab and the pork fillings. With the crab, you could taste the seafood but it was light and not overwhelming. I would rank Ding Tai Fung among the top choices for xiao long bao in Toronto, just behind Shanghai Dim Sum. Sadly, the shengjian bao was not what I was looking for. Again, they were more steamed bao and not fried nearly enough, even the bottoms weren’t that crispy. The search for an authentic shengjian bao in Toronto continues.

My favourite dish of the night was the scrambled egg whites with fish. The yolk is served raw in the centre of the scrambled egg whites, which mimics crab meat, all over a bed of rice. Each bite was savoury, rich and a great combination of textures. This is a dish that I would definitely order again especially as it’s difficult to replicate at home.

When we crave food, we`ll travel far to satisfy our cravings and Shanghai food is no exception. Ding Tai Fung serves authentic Shanghai cuisine and we are willing to drive 45 minutes from Mississauga to get it!


On a typical weekend, you can except a long wait during lunch time and except to drive around aimlessly looking for a parking spot. You might want to split up and wait in line while trying to find a spot so you can enjoy the food sooner!



Xiao Long Bao 小籠包 is a must order when you are there. There are plain ones or crab but we just ordered the plain ones. At first sight they just look like normal dumplings but these pork dumplings are filled with soup. Word of caution though, be careful when you are biting into them as they are very hot and the soup will come out! Make sure you eat these hot as they don`t taste as good when they cool down.

The Green Onion Pancake is a great appetizer and it`s usually pan fried so it`s not too oily. These pancakes are full of green onion and have the right amount of salt in them. They are crispy on the outside but soft on the inside with the green onion.

The Shanghai pork buns are quite filling and a lot of Shanghai dishes are carb heavy. Each person will probably only manage to eat one or two so this is definitely a dish for sharing with others. The meat inside the dumpling is the same as the dumplings. However, this bun is different as it`s pan fried so the bottom is crispy and the bun soaks in the juice and becomes very soft on the inside! It`s worth trying as the texture is coming different from the dumplings.

The Stewed Beef Pancake Wrap is completely different from the green onion pancake. The stewed beef is wrapped in the pancake and the juice from the beef seeps into the pancake. The texture of the pancake is on the dry side so the juice from the meat really complements the pancake well.

If you have never tried Shanghai cuisine, Ding Tai Fung is definitely the right place to start and worth the drive and the line! Don't confuse this as traditional dim sum because it is completely different!

The menu items are a bit on the pricey side so even with a few dishes, each person may end up spending around $15-20 dollars for lunch.