Shangri-La Hotel, Singapore welcomes new dim sum chef Li Shou Tao, who will lead Shang Palace’s dim sum culinary team. A native Chinese, Chef Li has been perfecting his skills for 23 years at hotels across China and renowned restaurant groups in Singapore prior to joining the Shangri-La family.

Chef Li developed an interest in the art of dim sum making almost instantaneously when he started his career at 17 years old. Well-versed in making traditional dim sums, he presents dim sum with a modern twist at Shang Palace. We began our lunch with delicate steamed lobster dumplings and bittergourd served in dim sum basket.

Shang Palace dim sum combination includes steamed boletus aereus dumpling, baked crispy BBQ pork bun and deep fried shredded turnip pastry with foie gras. I love eating the flaky, savory turnip pastry, the addition of foie gras makes the dish more tasty.

Turnip cake is a popular dim sum dish as well as a common appetizer. Instead of pan frying it, chef creates the steamed version with addition of egg white and conpoy, hence making it soft and light with good amount of turnip. Maybe it’s just me, but I find it a little blend. Perhaps the addition of some chinese sausage will work? Pan-Fried Chilli Crab Meat Bun is an interesting dish. Instead of the usual pan-fried pork buns (sheng jian Bao), chef replaced it with our local chilli crab meat. Shredded crab meat and sweet chilli sauce are wrapped up in the dough. It is a savoury gravy-filled treat with a touch of heat. Other dim sum classics include steamed siew mai with fish roe, prawn and mushroom; and steamed rice roll, BBQ pork & parsley.

In October and November, Master Chef Steven Ng will also be serving six-course hairy crab tasting menu featuring succulent hairy crab with rich golden roe. These small delicacies will either be steamed or braised to present its rich, yet delicate flavours. The six-course set menu is priced at S$138++ per person and features steamed hairy crab and hairy crab served with crispy noodles.

We had the braised tofu with hairy crab meat and roe, and braised hairy crab with shiso leaves and glass noodles. The noodles absorbed all the flavours from the flavourful hairy crab. Look at that beautiful orange roe! The a la carte selection starts at S$22++ and features nourishing Steamed Bird’s Nest with Hairy Crab Meat and Roe. To cool it off, we ended the meal with steamed layer cake, coconut combination with ginger tea and glutinous rice ball.

Shang Palace

Address: Shangri-La Hotel, 22 Orange Grove Road, Singapore 258350
Tel: 6213 4138 (book online)
Opening Hours: Mon-Fri: 12pm – 230pm; 6pm – 1030pm. Sat, Sun & PH: 1030am – 230pm; 6pm – 1030pm