Din Tai Fung 鼎泰豐 — Restaurant in Tukwila

August 2025 update: Stopped by around 12noon on a Tuesday and were seated within 5 mins after our arrival. Asked for a table in an area with less noise but unfortunately, this is a very noisy restaurant, no matter where you sit. Service was excellent – our server knew the menu very well and did a great job answering our questions and making sure we had what we needed. Be sure to ask for a fork if you are not skilled with chop-sticks. Both still and sparkling water served at the table both had a chlorine after-taste so we asked for bottled water instead. Food is delivered promptly to the table as soon as it is ready to ensure it is still hot when eaten. The only problem here is that the food is not delivered by our server who knows who ordered what so each order is simply placed on the table leaving the guests to figure out who ordered it. The person delivering the food knows what it is but we don't necessarily remember and find it difficult to pronounce and to understand what is said because of the high noise level in the restaurant. Green string beans with garlic was well-prepared but would have been better with a bit less garlic. Of course we had to order their Xiao Long Bao (soup dumpling) and tried the chicken which was very good. Also order the Shrimp & Pork dumplings which were also very tasty. Our favorite dish was the Shrimip and Pork Spicy Wontons. A close second was the Noodles with Diced Beef and Szechuan Peppers which was very tasty and not too spicy hot. Overall, although pricey, we found the food to be quite tasty and well-prepared, served hot with excellent service. We will be back!

August 2024 update: Returned again to bring family who live in Kentucky with us and they were impressed and quite pleased with how well prepared and tasty each menu items was. Prices are still high but each dish was served hot and was quite tasty and delicious. I found the best dipping sauce is using black vinegar with the ginger shoots ( no soy sauce), and a little spoonful of chili sauce. I again ordered Shrimp & Kurobuta Pork Wontons with Spicy Sauce which were again very good and tasty. Also again ordered Sauteed String Beans with Garlic which were quite tasty but were even better after adding in a little hot chili sauce. Expect to pay high prices for well prepared and delicious dishes. Service was excellent and helpful

The biggest negative was the very high noise level that we were fortunately spared from by being placed in a separate walled off room in the back with only one other table.

Original review: After several years since we last had lunch here, we stopped by on a Tuesday afternoon. Even on a Tuesday afternoon, be sure to make an on-line reservation because there is always several people outside waiting for a table to open up. Food was very good but over-priced having spent more than $50/person without alcoholic drinks. The only reason the food was not rated as excellent was that none of the four dishes we ordered was served hot but each dish was only served warm:

Sauteed String Beans with Garlic were quite tasty but were even better after adding in a little hot chili sauce.

Crab & Kurobuta Pork Xiao Long Bao was quite tasty but even better after dipped in the soy, vinegar and ginger sauce and a little hot chili sauce added.

Shrimp & Kurobuta Pork Wontons with Spicy Sauce were also very good and tasty.

Wagyu Beef Black Pepper Tenderloin was very tender and delicious - probably my favorite dish.

Two things that Din Tai Fung needs to do to get five (5) stars: (1) Be sure to serve hot dishes to your customers (2) Bring back cooked green pea shoots - they were so tasty and delicious!

Be prepared to pay high prices for these...

TLDR: Delicious & authentic cuisine, exceptional service, stylish decor, relatively small portions.

We (party of three) arrived around 5:10pm on a Monday carrying a reservation for 5:30pm. There were two parties waiting outside for seating. Though we were early we were able to snag a table after a minutes wait. The policy at the front says all of the party must be present for seating, probably to limit spending too much time occupying a table; we, however, did not encounter this problem and were told our third guest could join us after seating. The hostess who guided us to our table, Alina, was very friendly and made small talk. She sat us, recommended a few dishes, and walked off with a smile. A few seconds later our waiter, Brad, approached with water and introduced himself. He, like Alina, asked if we had been before, and upon receiving a “no,” recommended a few dishes. He also gave us a rundown of the chain’s long history. Menus were provided, as well as an order sheet, and a QR code to view pictures in case we wanted to. Throughout our meal Brad was attentive, polite yet friendly, and pleasing. Much props to him…get him a raise!

The space, though big, was filled with people as early as we arrived. There were plenty of waitstaff scurrying around and ready to help anyone who needed. I loved the black palette and the steamers on the ceiling, but I would’ve appreciated some red accents as homage to Din’s logo.

For drinks, we went with water (which was kept in a glass pitcher on our table), hot water (which was also kept in an insulated pitcher, a nice gesture I thought), and the Din Tai Fung Lager draft. The latter was light and fresh. As for food, we ordered a Cucumber Salad, Garlic String Beans, Crab & Pork Xiao Long Bao, Shrimp and Pork Spicy Wontons, and Noodles w/ Diced Beef & Szechuan Peppers to start off. We later added a Pork XLB and a Shrimp and Pork Wonton as we were not entirely full. For desert we got a Chocolate & Mochi XLB.

The first three items arrived within five minutes of ordering. The cucumber pieces in the salad were smaller than I expected, and I’m not sure if we got our money’s worth or if the bigger pieces are pricier at other restaurants. Weird. It was still good, and the sauce was lightly salty and sweet. The beans were delicious. The garlic flavor was somewhat lacking, but they were still salty, crunchy, and cooked thoroughly. The crab and pork XLB was decent. The filling was flavorful, but there was barely any soup inside and I would’ve liked a softer wrapping. After finishing, the next two dishes came quickly. The wontons were delicious; big pieces of shrimp and minced pork wrapped inside delicate wrappers and smothered in the most delectable chili sauce. It wasn’t spicy at all. The noodles were also good; savory, rich, and covered in diced beef and tomatoes (the latter of which I didn’t really taste).

For our later orders: The pork XLB was good and had more soup than its crab variation, but I still wished the wrapping was softer. I also noted that each individual XLB served throughout the night were smaller than I’m accustomed to at a restaurant, about half the size. You do get 10 of them though. The wonton soup was underwhelming. The wontons were the same as those in the chili oil, but the broth lacked flavor. The chocolate XLB were delicious. The chocolate was melted, gooey, and rich, and the dish made for a perfect closer to a good meal.

Overall, I’d say it was an excellent experience, and there is certainly room for improvement, but I would recommend and return to this Din. Given it was my first time, maybe other locations do things differently/better. For that I’ll just...

Din Tai Fung has be come the latest craze in Southcenter Mall, for being a unique restaurant amongst other eatery already in the mall. I am (I am sure a lot of other people are) grateful for the diversity this restaurant brings to the mall. Here are your pros and cons.

Pros: Attentive Waiters/Waitress Great atmosphere/Modern Design Bar area Large menu Large space for many people

Cons: Overpriced food (sadly it's true) Wait time for large groups (if over 21 you can sit in the bar, what we did) Food, is okay. (Not the best in its category) Wait time for your food, especially dumplings

First of all lets start with the good stuff. The people that work here are awesome! They introduce themselves and walked me through the menu. The atmosphere is great. It almost like any other modern restaurant. Clean and very nice. The bar area has 4 TVs and would be great during any sporting events. The menu is large and there is a wide selection of dumplings you can choose from. The place is very big so you can expect to see over 8+ people in one table.

The food: Shrimp & Pork Pot Sticker (Gyoza) - came last for us. Actually we waited an addition 15 minute until we could receive it. We had finished our two other entrees before we got them on the table.

I honestly had better gyoza before in my life (I lived in Japan). And this was nothing special. Sure there's a nice little crunch at the bottom of it, but it doesn't make it any more than mediocre because the insides were just plain bland.

Braised Beef Noodle Soup - was actually my favorite dish. The beef comes right off and is very VERY tender. It tasted delicious, BUT there was only 5 pieces (tiny piece if I may add)... why not just call it Noodle SOUP, because it was mainly soup barely noodles.

Shanghai Rice Cake with Pork - was actually pretty good. I never actually liked rice cakes, and the way these are made, makes them much more appetizing. However, the pork was not the strongest suit. It seem that they have limited amount of pork to add to the dish.

Overall, the food is overpriced. They are holding back on the protein to cut the overall dish cost. We get it... Your new restaurant is super fancy and super expensive, but you guys are going short on your food. There is so much potential IF the food quality were to increase. There are great people working here and great atmosphere but the food is just a miss.

I wont be back soon as I have no intention of throwing my money away, BUT I do hope that they change things up so that they are here to stay. All it is right now is hype, if they don't take advantage of it now, who know what other store will be open here in the...