The best dim sum in Hong Kong

One legend has it that dim sum was invented as a snack to help tea houses sell more tea; another credits Southern Song dynasty villagers who thanked soldiers for defending their home with food as “dim dim sum yee” – a little gift from the heart. Either way, these small plates have become an undisputed symbol of Hong Kong dining. 

In Cantonese, yum cha, which means “to drink tea”, describes the act of going to eat dim sum, a popular pastime among locals and visitors alike. From boisterous pushcart palaces to elegant, contemporary restaurants, these are the best places to gather for dim sum in Hong Kong, serving bamboo steamer baskets of har gow (shrimp dumplings) and much more. 

Classic dim sum 

Lin Heung Lau

This historic two-storey tea house is known for its old-school charm and classic Cantonese cuisine. After a two-year closure in the midst of the pandemic, Lin Heung Lau opened its doors once more in April 2024, with a new takeaway counter on the ground floor for orders of hand-shaken tea. Inside the restaurant, you’ll find waiters pushing loaded carts of fan favourites such as steamed chicken buns and pork liver siu mai – the way Lin Heung Lau has served dim sum for decades.  

160 Wellington Street, Central, 2116 0670 

Seventh Son 

Opened by the seventh son of a renowned restaurant family, Seventh Son  is known for Cantonese dishes – from dim sum to banquet dishes like roast suckling pig – done the traditional way. In fact, many local gourmands consider the restaurant to be the standard bearer of Hong Kong Cantonese cuisine as we know it today. The dim sum menu here excels at the classics: the har gow, siu mai and lor mai gai (glutinous rice and chicken steamed in lotus leaf) are some of the best versions of these dishes you’ll find in Hong Kong. 

3/F, Wharney Hotel, 57-73 Lockhart Road, Wan Chai, 2892 2888 

City Hall Maxim’s Palace 

This giant dim sum hall  offers the best of both worlds – nostalgic pushcarts in a relatively modern environment set against a stunning view of Victoria Harbour. The range of plates is as vast as the restaurant itself, with anything from turnip cake pan-fried to order in its own special hot-plate cart, to vegetarian steamed rice paper rolls and dainty egg tarts. The restaurant is incredibly popular, so try to arrive early for lunch to beat the rush, or you could find yourself in a queue. 

2/F, Low Block, City Hall, Central, 2521 1303 

Luk Yu Tea House

If walls could talk, the antique wainscotting here could start a podcast about Hong Kong’s who’s who. This 1930s tea house  – filled with ornate furniture and staff in mandarin-collared shirts – has been a favourite among the city’s bigwigs for decades. Join them for breakfast early in the morning; lunchtime dim sum is for tourists. If you do end up here for lunch, order from the main menu, on which one highlight is the sweet and sour pork, made the traditional way with hawthorn juice rather than ketchup.

24-26 Stanley Street, Central; +852 2523 5464

Contemporary dim sum 

Social Place 

This brightly lit establishment  attracts crowds of all ages with its playful take on Cantonese cuisine. In addition to classic dishes like roasted pigeon and prawn toast, you’ll find plenty of eye-catching dim sum, including a mushroom-shaped truffle shiitake bun and a glutinous lobster puff that looks like a mangosteen. For an extra dose of fun, the restaurant has a ping pong table so you can play a game or two while you wait for your food.  

2/F, The L Place, 139 Queen’s Road Central, Central, 3568 9666 

Yum Cha 

While simply named, Yum Cha  isn’t your standard Chinese restaurant. The interior looks like a hip bistro, with its sleek, marble-topped tables and banquettes, and attracts a crowd to match. You can bet that most diners are posting photos of their emoji steamed custard buns on Instagram (#letsyumcha) or taking a break from their pig-faced barbecued pork buns and rainbow-hued dumplings to check how many likes they’ve got for their Reels. But it’s not just gimmicks; the dim sum at Yum Cha’s two locations in Central and Tsim Sha Tsui taste as good as they look. 

2/F, Nan Fung Place, 173 Des Voeux Road Central, Central, 3541 9710 

Duddell’s 

This elegant, Ilse Crawford-designed, bi-level space is full of green tones and Art Deco details set against marble, copper and a rotating art display. The dim sum is equally refined. Soup dumplings are filled with fish maw (swim bladder) and cordyceps fungi – a combination that would meet the approval of a gracefully coiffed Chinese grandmother – and barbecued pork buns feature Ibérico pork. The one-Michelin-starred restaurant also does a popular weekend dim sum brunch with free-flow champagne. In balmy weather, book a table out on the terrace, a little oasis of tropical style in the middle of the pulsating metropolis. 

3/F, 1 Duddell Street, Central, 2525 9191 

Casual dim sum 

Tim Ho Wan 

Famously the world’s cheapest Michelin-starred restaurant, Tim Ho Wan  is perfect if you’re after dim sum in Hong Kong that’s made with precision and served in a flash. The baked barbecued pork bun – crunchy on the outside, with a moreish mélange of sweet and savoury barbecued pork within – is often imitated but rarely equalled, especially not at this price. There are several branches of Tim Ho Wan around town, including a handy one above Hong Kong Station, which is on the Airport Express line, but the Sham Shui Po branch is the oldest. 

9-11 Fuk Wing Street, Sham Shui Po, 2788 1226 

Dim Sum Square 

At larger Cantonese restaurants, dim sum is usually served only at breakfast or lunch, but in the past decade or so small, independent dim sum-only eateries like Dim Sum Square have emerged, serving these small plates for dinner too. Each dish is made to order, so you can be sure they’re fresh. One of the most popular is rice paper rolls, filled with either prawns, beef or barbecued pork. If you’re in the mood for something more substantial, Dim Sum Square also serves steamed rice bowls with various toppings, such as spare ribs with black bean sauce. 

LG/F, Tern Centre Tower 2, 78 Jervois Street, Sheung Wan, 2851 8088 

Sun Hing 

Craving dim sum after a night out on the tiles, or jetlagged and hungry? Look no further than Sun Hing, a down-home neighbourhood spot that’s open 3am to 4pm daily. It’s completely self-service, so help yourself to a pot of tea and have some fun navigating the mountain of baskets on the steam table until you find your favourites, whether it’s a classic like pork and shrimp siu mai, curried honeycomb tripe or desserts such as steamed custard bun or ma lai go (brown sugar cake). 

8 Smithfield Road, Kennedy Town, 2816 0616 

This story was originally published in March 2020 and updated in September 2024.