London’s best dim sum restaurants

Celeb chef Andrew Wong’s vibrant restaurant at the Bloomberg Arcade doesn’t technically do dim sum, but it does have a snacky small-plates menu worthy of a trip. The trio of soft bao, served DIY-style, is a must-try – fill a pillowy bun with juicy lamb and dip it into the delightful sesame-peanut sauce.

It may be famed for its superlative daytime views and its Beijing duck, but Min Jiang also does a good line in classic dim sum. You won’t find any challenging ducks’ tongues here, but items such as steamed seafood and pumpkin dumplings exceed expectations. High-end stuff with stellar service and prices to match.

A former pop-up offering dim sum-style dining for local hipsters, MNTD’s watchword is definitely not ‘authenticity’. Still, the dumplings themselves are excellent, with handmade pastry and irreproachable fillings – although veggie items such as aubergine and sesame ‘potstickers’ often trump their meaty counterparts. Get stuck into the saké-based cocktail list while you’re killing time. 

Dark and swanky, with a jazzy cocktail bar to boot, Pearl Liang is good for lunchtime dim sum in ‘new Paddington’. There are prawn dumplings laced with wasabi and plates of steamed ox-tripe cut with ginger and spring onion, although our current faves are the fried octopus cakes studded with crunchy water chestnut.   

Decked out in lavish oriental style, Phoenix Palace is a favourite of international businessmen, but its easy-going bustle also suits local families who crowd in for high-quality excellent-value dim sum. Steamed dumplings and other dependables sit alongside ‘briny’ pork croquettes and black egg congee with salty pork – all bursting with fresh tastes and textures.

This first London offshoot of the cult New York dim sum restaurant is in a nice little Covent Garden spot that’s styled like a red-and-white British farmhouse. The wacky creations are just as cute: dumplings are plated up colourfully in a row, while spring rolls are styled into sculptures. Try the super-crispy egg rolls stuffed with layers of pastrami.

A stalwart of London’s dim sum scene, Royal China serves up consistently good Cantonese cooking, from beef balls and lacy-edged taro croquettes to more innovative ideas including steamed crab and spinach dumplings. Enjoy the whole shebang in the gilded splendour of RC’s black-and-gold lacquered Queensway dining room, or find them at branches across the capital including Canary Wharf and Baker Street.

As the exclusive clubby name suggests, this premier link in the Royal China chain has an air of quiet five-star elegance, pointed up by the faint tinkling of a piano. The food is consummate Cantonese stuff, including a line-up of creative dim sum – think sesame prawn rolls with mango or goose web in abalone sauce.

Though it opened an east London branch in 2017, it’s this location, at the Dorsett Hotel in She-Bu, that Shikumen fans still love the best. Food-wise, top marks go to the exquisitely crafted dim sum (from the signature xiao long bao to sophisticated open parcels of scallop siu mai topped with tobiko), while the dining room reflects the classy comfort of its hotel setting.

A street-food stall turned colourful/cute permanent restaurant on Carnaby Street, Ugly Dumpling specialises in, you guessed it: dumplings. The best of the menu, somewhat unexpectedly, is the vegan spinach and tofu number. Filled with fresh spinach and dotted with nutty sesame, expect a juicy little pocket of veg; a warm, umami smack.

The City branch of the upscale Soho spot looks a bit like an extremely glamorous spaceship – one very long room that, as you walk through it, seems to go on forever. All of the dim sum is excellent, but the venison puffs (stuffed with rich, dark meat) or the plump scallop siu mai are a must.