Tim Ho Wan — Restaurant in Tokyo

QUOTES FROM TIM HO WAN HIBIYA WEBSITE:

“Tim Ho Wan is created by Chef Mr. Mak Kwai Pui who was once a chef at Lung King Heen, three star Michelin award winner, of Four Seasons Hotel Hong Kong and his partner, Chef Leung Fai Keung in 2009 to offer the “authentic taste” at a reasonable price. In 2010, Tim Ho Wan was awarded a Michelin star for the authentic tastes and affordability, became worldly well recognized. Our dim sum are all prepared in the kitchen with care and strictly follows Tim Ho Wan’s original recipes.“

here we go, the “supposed corporate” Michelin STAR restaurant winner (Tim Ho Wan Hibiya - Tokyo) and the actual duo chef Michelin winners. BEWARE, this restaurant IS NOT A MICHELIN STAR, not even on the Michelin recommended list.

these days, business owners would do anything to sell more and profit more, including this Tim Ho Wan. michelin word is mention twice, in one paragraph. The purpose? to get more innocent and gulliable customers to come to the restaurant, imagining the “care and strictly follows original recipe” from the duo masters themselves.

well, the whole truth is, first, michelin rating IS NOT a CORPORATE thing. just because one restaurant, the head chef with team earn it, does not translate to ALL branches ratings.(though the same restaurant can lose the rating in the following year). each site are inspected individually, annually by an anoymous michelin inspector. second, how good is the “copy”? black & white fax copy good? colour jet printing good? or mobile phone capture screen good? if yes, can they sustain it for at least 360 out of 365 days?

anyway, lets get down to the review, and because the owner want to give that impression, it is a michelin star worth restaurant, i will grade accordingly.

i never visited the 3 star michelin restaurants, but i have been to a few 1 star ones, and what Tim Ho Wan display, what they do, what they put on the table including the food are nothing look alike.

Reception & hospitality - FAILED all the 1 star michelin restaurants, their staff TREAT ME like a king and queen. Here? to enter, they make you wait in line, like slaves waiting for free food. half an hour at the hottest time of the day. outside, they do not provide chairs to sit, or better shelter management to cool yourself. second, they make you order food like a fast food chain restaurants, from QR reading and you have to do it from your personal phone. third, not only they ignore you, they do not even make the effort to provide "Leng zai" (靚仔) and "leng lui" (靚女) staff, similar to きれい (kirei) – Pretty かわいい (kawaii) – Cute or かっこいい (kakkoii). this goes physical wise and dress wise. fourth, they force you to pay the bill at the counter, while charging you 10% SERVICE FEE. what service??? really???after the extended waiting in line, self ordering, no kakkoii no kawaii, cramped seat & table and non michelin dim sum? ouchhh… 😢

Presentation of food plates, table, utensils and space - FAILED nothing stands out, in fact, poorly design interior, low ceiling that the air conditioning is reasonably close to the dining area, and the table settings are cramped, like the typical fast food chinese restaurant kind, typical chopsticks, and typical dimsum basket.

Food quality - FAILED if you want to “mislead” or “misrepresent” or “assume” you are bringing 3 star michelin copy of your duo master chef, then hundreds of restaurants in the world can claim the copy too. with good recommendation from local guides, this is the typical yum cha dim sum quality you can find in Guang Zhou, Hong Kong, Singapore, LA, KL, Sydney, etc EASILY. and THEY DO NOT BRAG about michelin. in fact, i say, the porridge is red flag. very watery, not in a good way. the free black tea is sub standard, too dark, and not worthy to be served for a Michelin star restaurant.

overall, unless you are homesick and miss yumcha so much, do not mind to be treated like non michelin guest BUT must pay like Michelin one, and would want to save the trip to go back home, then please do visit.

or else? NOT...

This restaurant offered a wide range of Dim Sum dishes with impressive variety and presentation. The overall experience was enjoyable and full of interesting flavors, even if some dishes were a little unexpected in taste and texture.

The baked BBQ pork buns, number 1 on the menu, were the highlight. They had a slightly sweet and crispy outer layer with a warm, savory filling that created a wonderful contrast. The combination of soft, buttery dough and rich pork was exceptional. Number 2 had a soft, almost slippery texture that was unusual at first but turned out to be flavorful and satisfying. The spring rolls, number 6, were another standout dish — crisp, golden and perfectly fried. They had a clean, balanced flavor that left a very good impression. Number 8 also tasted great, offering a satisfying depth of flavor, while number 11 was surprisingly good and had a distinct, pleasant taste.

Numbers 13, 14 and 15 — the dumplings — were well prepared, with good fillings and soft wrappers, though they were a bit different from what I had expected. They leaned toward a slightly sweeter note, which may not appeal to everyone but showed the chef’s signature style. Number 18 was also enjoyable and well seasoned.

What stood out most about this restaurant was how well it managed to combine sweetness with savory notes. The dishes had a gentle sweetness that paired with meaty fillings in an unusual but intriguing way. It might not be to everyone’s liking, but it is certainly worth trying for the experience.

The atmosphere was lively and energetic, giving the restaurant a vibrant charm. The staff were attentive and friendly, and the service was quick and well organized. Overall, it is a good restaurant that delivers solid quality and an interesting culinary approach. I would rate it 3.5 out of 5 stars — definitely worth a visit for those who want to try something new...

So the signature BBQ Pork Bun exists here as well and is extremely popular. In fact, if you order it, it will literally be served to you in 30 seconds, and in order to cut down on the lines outside you can buy it to-go. However, I feel as if they Japanified the bun as what was already sweet is already sweeter, and the bun is now super fluffy on the inside. Totally inauthentic and just tastes like sugar for a regular Chinese person like me.

Now, for the rest of the menu, we basically ordered half the menu with one of each. It wasn't bad, but it wasn't great by any standards. I should've realized the signs for when I tried to reserve in Cantonese, they responded to me in Mandarin, when asked for "Oyu" I got ice water, and the fact that they didn't have chilli oil or dark vinegar.

All-in-all, this isn't the same Michelin star in Hong Kong. This is a fake and bastardized version of it. Like, the chicken feet is the Brown sauce instead of the red sauce and literally the best thing on the menu was the century egg congee that didn't have...