Home Food Reviews Ming Court Dim Sum, Ipoh

Ming Court Dim Sum, Ipoh

by Bangsar Babe

It isn’t easy to score a table at Ming Court Dim Sum in Ipoh; so much so I’ve given up in the past and settled for a less transcendent version across the road. By luck last weekend, we found ourselves sharing a table with another family.

P1720634

Breakfast crowd at 8.30am

By 8.30am, there were no seats left and you’re given a queue number and asked to wait in line. So I observed. It was only my second time eating at Ming Court Dim Sum – my first being almost a decade ago when a friend who’s an Ipoh local recommended it to me. Ever since, there was a perpetual queue so Jien and I had to eat elsewhere.

Once seated, you’ll spot a team of staff walking around with trays of freshly steamed and fried dim sum. And these tiny morsels disappear within minutes, snapped up by hungry diners like us. But it’s quickly refilled to cater to demand.

P1720590

Tiny morsels

P1720600

P1720598

Steamed beancurd roll

Dim sum is rather small here – bite-sized, literally. It’s been a while since I spotted dim sum this tiny as most dim sum places do their dumplings larger. Smaller dim sum also meant we got to try more, and try we did.

P1720601

Har gao

P1720602

Juicy prawn

P1720591

Siew mai

P1720596

Truly bite-size!

Our group of 4 ordered close to 30 portions of dim sum in different variants to share. The har gau boasted translucent skin, with juicy sweet prawns encased. I liked how the siew mai is made – rustic, ruched edges with tasty minced pork filling.

P1720613

Pan-fried carrot cake

P1720620

Pork ribs

Ming Court’s turnip cake could use a bit more time on the griddle as the sides weren’t as crisp as they could potentially be. It was also slightly cold so that took a bit of joy away. Fish balls were bouncy and flavourful, and those bony nubs of spareribs were deliciously seasoned and tender to the bite. I’m generally not a fan of spareribs in dim sum but this is worth checking out.

P1720626

Char siew bao

P1720632

The char siew bao is as classic as it can get – fluffy white bun generously filled with a dark and savoury minced pork mix. I like how there’s a nice balance of sweet and salty flavours, as most places tend do it too sweet or too dry.

P1720588

Chee cheong fun with prawns

P1720607

Century egg and pork porridge

P1720578

Loh mai kai

Chee cheong fun with prawns were no-frills but tasty enough, though I wished they were served piping hot instead of warm. The century egg and pork porridge is small enough to spare you extra stomach space yet tasty enough to satisfy those cravings. The loh mai kai is good stuff; perfectly cooked glutinous rice redolent of rice wine flavour, studded with tender pieces of chicken on top. Possibly the best of its kind I’ve tasted in a dim sum restaurant.

P1720609

Yam puff

P1720585

Fried stuffed beancurd

I really enjoyed the yam puffs at Ming Court – crisp on the outside with a light and almost fluffy centre. The minced pork filling is adequate and tasty with the yam. Other notable items we ate were fried fish balls, deep fried prawn dumplings, spring rolls and chives dumplings in bite-sized portions.

P1720629

Fried fish ball

P1720610

Stuffed brinjal

P1720589

Prawn dumplings

P1720586

Spring rolls

P1720584

Egg tart

Like most places, Ming Court Dim Sum also has its Achilles heels. The egg tarts. I found them below average for Ipoh’s standards; there was hardly any aroma or buttery texture in the puff pastry, and the egg custard wasn’t as rich or voluptuous as I wanted it to be. I would skip this and head over to the dim sum shop across the road just for their egg tart.

P1720582

P1720580

The steamed fishballs (top left corner) was good stuff!

Overall, Ming Court Dim Sum remains my favourite dim sum spot in Ipoh and one that requires effort and patience to dine at. If you’re an early riser, give this a try. Arrive after 9am and you’ll need to wait between 30-45 minutes for a table.

Bangsar Babe on Facebook  Bangsar Babe on Instagram

Ambiance: 6/10
Price: 6/10
Food: 7/10 (non-halal)
Verdict: Classic dim sum done right. Be prepared to wait during peak hours.

P1720640

Ming Court Dim Sum
36, Jalan Leong Sin Nam,
Kampung Jawa,
30300 Ipoh.
Tel: 05-255 7134
Business hours: 6am till 12.30pm
(closed Thursday)

You may also like

Leave a Comment