Wandering around Chinatown, our lunch time hunger struck as we saw the glistening roasted ducks hanging behind glass windows, savory char siu and roast park laying side by side, and the many hole-in-the wall Chinese restaurants luring us in with their aromatic whiffs of freshly cooked Chinese delicacies. What did we decide on? Dim sum from Tai Pan Dim Sum Restaurant! It was the bomb!!!! We had the shrimp dumplings, scallop dumplings, pork hash, meat gok, steamed spare ribs w/ black beans, char siu look fun roll, and beef chow fun. The dim sum here are to die for, and they were delicious! Everything was freshly made, piping hot (except the meat gok), and so flavorful! The pork hash was quite large and dense, as it was packed with a lots of ground pork; the spare ribs were very meaty and tender; and the beef chow fun was a good contrast of soft chow fun noodles w/ crunchy bean sprouts, semi-soft round onion slices, tender beef slices, and lots of green onions. The only disappointment was that the meat gok was cold; however, it was still very tasty (I'll be sure to get it hot next time). They tend to overload with their green onions, which I don't mind; however, if you're not a green-onion lover, you probably will need to tell them to leave them out. Each table has a condiment tray. In addition to hot mustard, chili sauce, and shoyu, I found it interesting that they had one of my favorites - sweet soy sauce - which is not normally given out so freely at other Chinese restaurants. If I'm not mistaken, it's the same sauce that is used for the look fun rolls. I love the sweet soy sauce and used it on everything! (Wish other dim sum restaurants would do the same.) Sorry, but no dim sum carts. Heard there were carts a long, long time ago, but the restaurant elected to do away with them due to a more practical business sense, i.e., put in as many tables as you can to accommodate more people to increase your revenues. As a result, tables are packed so closely to each other and with so many people, there's a cacophony of loud and noisy chatter of Cantonese and English among the ethnic Chinese, locals, and tourists. We paid no attention to the noise and buried ourselves with the delicious dim sum. We scored when we walked in, as we were able to snag a table right next to the kitchen and where the dim sum were placed. The cooks in the semi-open kitchen were very busy, as fresh, steaming hot dim sum and other dishes were constantly being brought out from the kitchen. We had first dibs on these as they were quickly being snatched up by waiting diners. Although we initially was assigned a waitress, other waitresses also tended to our requests, as they all congregated near our table due to the closeness of the kitchen and the dim sum area. We did not have any problems with service whatsoever, probably because of where we were sitting. (I observed that those who were sitting in the back of the restaurant did not have the kind of attentive service that we had.) What was also surprising was that normally, there is a communication problem, with the staff having difficulty understanding/speaking English; not so this time, as we could communicate perfectly! Next time, we'll be sure to look for a table near the kitchen and even wait for it if it looks like it will become readily available. As with everything else, the prices of dim sum keep creeping up. Prices are now $3 and up, but are still reasonable considering the superb quality of the dim sum. The next time we wander around Chinatown, we hope to try one of the many delightful and charming places to satisfy our food cravings. Of course, Tai Pan Dim Sum is nearby, and there's nothing wrong with going back there! read more

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In yesteryear, Tai Pan was one of my favorites. It was initially a hole in the wall place at the Chinese (now called Chinatown) Cultural Plaza which had just a handful of seats. The space expanded over the years and now has a reasonably sized dining room. Albeit still on the small end. There are plenty of dim sum places in Chinatown to choose from. After flying back to Hawaii from Japan, I stopped here for some takeout dim sum. There used to be long lines for their takeout, but not on this visit at least. It probably has to do with the pricing here as the dim sum here costs well over $3 for each plate. The few items I picked up were not very enticing. The har gau and shrimp chive dumplings were pretty ho hum. The baked char siu buns were okay, but by the time they reached home they were on the cold side. The item that I really liked from here before were the seaweed shrimp rolls, but they looked rather small and unappetizing to me for the price you pay now. They are also best eaten when they are fresh out of the kitchen. If you are looking for good dim sum dining ambiance, this would not be the place as it still feels cramped. The dim sum here is okay if you are not particular about it, but it does not taste as good as when it opened. There are simply better dim sum places to choose from. read more

Aloha, Dim Sum for Sunday brunch, isn't that what everyone does? This was my first time to Tai Pan in the back of the Chinese Cultural Plaza. A very crowded restaurant full of Chinese & locals, which always impresses me of 1 of 2 things, either it's really good or it's really cheap, in either case it's the best kept secret in town. Tai Pan was both cheap & good. Clean table & floors, non-descript restaurant, no fancy dragon at the front door, just good non-greasy flavors, relatively quick service, lots of conversations I didn't understand & very hot tea. Definitely beats the more expensive Dim Sum places in the front of the same building by a few dollars. I also liked the fact that a lot of the food came freshly made to order out of the kitchen, not from those carts. I'll be back soon. read more

Tai Pan Dim Sum - Dim Sum Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

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Pretty good dim sum place but a tad on the pricey side for it's peers. Service is not so good but expected for a Chinese restaurant. Small plates are $3 and standard orders (beef chow fun, noodles, etc.) run around $8. Beef balls, bean curd, shrimp ball (har gau), pork hash (siu mai), manapua baked and steamed (char siu bao) are standard, if you like these, won't be disappointed. Tip: try to come here before 11AM or there will be a long line. Also, be extremely assertive to flag down someone for an order. read more

Subpar dim sum + bad service = 2 stars, at least in my eyes. Upon the recommendation of my friend, we decided to meet up at Tai Pan for some dim sum. While I personally expect bad service every time that I visit a Chinese restaurant, our waitress was non-existent for most of our meal. Other than bringing us some water and tea, she disappeared after taking our initial order of food. I guess she went on a smoke break and forgot what table we were on even though this place is not that big. As far as the food is concerned, the only thing that I liked about Tai Pan was that everything was fairly cheap. That being said, I guess you get what you pay for since the standard dim sum staples like the shrimp dumplings & siu mai were just okay. read more

Tai Pan Dim Sum - Cheap Dim Sum - Dim Sum Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

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it's so small and crowded in here. i wouldn't mind so much if the food was good , but........ it wasn't !! the skin of the dim sum was very thick and gooey. something was just off. beside that the dumplings were not fully cooked yet either. i could still see some of the raw flour in between the shrimp and veggies.oh well, better go to fook lam next time :) read more

Just okay. Very standard dim sum. Some highlights: the char sui in flaky pastry was delicious. The look fun roll has an option of adding cilantro and green onions. It completely changes the flavor. I would recommend it. Excellent price point. The baked char sui bao has a bland skimpy filling. Go next door to Royal Kitchen for the original and best baked bao. Okay, but would not make an effort to go there. read more

The food here is pretty tasty, but alas I am a little bit of an ambiance whore and it's uncomfortable for me to sit directly next to the person on the next table over. They have remodeled and opened up the place but rather than spacing out the tables, they have just managed to cram even more into the little box. I usually get my dimsum to-go here. They have a cart full of freshly steamed items in the corner and you can pretty much point and pick & choose what you want if you're not a real chinese and can't speak the ugly language. I usually get the Siu Mai, Mochi Rice balls, Har Gau (huge), pan fried Chives dumplings, and a noodle dish. If you're feeling adventurous, do the chicken feet...pretty juicy but you gotta work a little for the meat. Quick Tip: park in the open market lot in the back, get validated and it's free for the first 1/2 hour. Perfect for a take-out order and it's RIGHT THERE! read more

Tai Pan is not a bad place for dim sum if: 1) There are just a few of you, all you need is a small table, and you are not in the mood to deal with the big, noisy crowds at other places. Of course, the bustling ambience is all part of the authentic dim sum experience .... 2) You want to order all at once instead of waiting around for the pushcarts. 3) Want to save a few bucks--$2.35 for most dishes. The Look Fun are $3.50 or so. 4) You are not looking for a large selection. 5) You are content with average quality dim sum. I ordered: Pork dumplings (Shu mai)- The pork was in chunks instead of coarsely chopped so it was a bit tough. Flavor was ok. Steamed spareribs with black bean sauce - Good Flavor. A bit tough - needs to be steamed longer. Fried nori rolls stuffed with shrimp - Excellent! Look fun with bbq pork - It was Ok. The char sui tasted a little old... Pan fried chive dumplings stuffed with shrimp - Nicely done! Chives and shrimp wrapped in mochi then panned fried. Spring rolls - Good. Freshly fried to a golden crisp. Overall, the quality of the food is not bad for local dim sum. Being from Hong Kong, my standard for dim sum is quite high... I would go there for take-out or just want a quick fix, but for a larger selection and a more authentic experience, I would go around the corner to Legends. read more

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Now that I've moved away from Hawaii, when I do come back, it's absolutely top priority that I DO NOT WASTE a meal opportunity on anything less than great, and this is definitely why TAI PAN DIM SUM is a must for me. My father is a huge Jook junkie and this is one of his favorite places for it too so it just makes perfect sense that we do breakfast here at least a couple times when I get a week to come home. I rarely deviate from my norm and order the Char Siu Bao along with Pork Shumai and maybe some oyster sauce Choi Sum. Why mess with perfection? Seating can be a bit tight, but it's adequate and an acceptable compromise for the quality of the food. It's crazy, but just looking at the pics right now and typing this is making me drool and crave it. I would highly recommend TPDS as one of the best offerings for DIM SUM in the Honolulu Area. Keep up the wonderful food Tai Pan! :) read more

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Yum yum dim sum! Whenever my family and I go to Chinatown, we love to eat dim sum. We've been to many dim sum places but we like Tai Pan the best. I think it's because they are a little smaller than the other places so it doesn't seem overwhelming to us. We got a table shortly after entering and sat down to review the menu. We usually order the same thing every time. Fried Taro Mochi Rice Char siu bao Beef bittermelon Turnip cake Shrimp dumpling Look fun We clear the food steamers just ask quickly as they are placed on our table. You can always order more as you go through your meal but we usually order everything and we are good. They do have a restroom key that you can borrow. They also validate parking for the Chinese Cultural Plaza. Be prepared to sit with strangers if you are seated at the larger round tables. Bring your hydroflasks too. They will serve water upon request only. read more

Tai Pan Dim Sum - Look fun, bitter melon and turnip cake - Dim Sum Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

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It's is with great sadness that I need to leave this review, I have patronized this business 2-3 times a month ever since they opened and even during Covid I wanted them to remain In business so I would pick up take out once a week. I would recommend this place and host many friends here over the years. Today was the last time for awhile or perhaps forever. We sat down at 11 am ordered 3 baskets that were ready and ordered the steamed shrimp rice rolls. I know these take about 15 min. Or so. We finished eating the 3 baskets and I watched our waitress deliver the dish we were waiting for to a two some that sat down near the front door after we ordered. I watched and waited another 10 min. went by and nothing came. The waitress (neither of them)'came by to ask if we wanted to order more or to check on us. It was about 89* today so we also asked for 2 glasses of ice water, tall rude waitress delivered 2 cups of tap Water and just barked "no ice today, broken"! I watched the two top near the door they got the same treatment and response. The AC wasn't functioning properly, I did notice additional fans circulating the hot air. The restaurant was about 2/3 full and supported mainly by Asian people. At 11:45 am I didn't think we were going to get the missing shrimp rolls so I went to pay the bill and tell them we did not get or order of shrimp rolls it was delivered to the table near the door. I showed the other waitress the calligraphy on the back showing that I did order it. She spoke to the tall rude Waitress and she DENIED it! Unfortunately for her I UNDERSTOOD what she was saying! I was a regular customer and usually leave at least a 25% tip and always wished them success. Unfortunately the female co owner wasn't on duty today, the ex husband is is something else! While looking at the AC units I noticed the facility was overdue for a renovation and clean up too. I understand it is hard to remain open in these trying times and I want them to be successful, but these two waitresses have been working here for years and they recognize me and should know better how to treat customers. If they're not happy doing what they're doing they should LEAVE! Doubtful if this review will get back to owners and other customers since most of them don't pay attention to social media. So disappointed with such a terrible experience. read more

Service could be more friendly... They rush the orders, but it wasn't that bad. Haha i guess i'm just slower. Plump dim sum and good - the flavor is there and you can taste it fresh and steaming hot She thought the chive dumplings were like the soft, pillowy, chewy version of the pan fried chive cakes. both really good and satisfying - there was a garlicky taste the chive cakes were crisp and reminded me of a grilled mochi (hard outside, soft and moist inside) - Subtle and not overpowering with the garlic or anything. We also tried the shrimp and scallop look fun roll- sheer, soft goodness. It usually comes with parsley and ours didn't come with any so we asked and received(; (The shrimp had more taste then the scallop roll) We also ordered the choy sum - OYSTER SAUCE IS ON THE SIDE (i am really happy about this 'cause i don't have to fuss over how much sauce is just doused over my choy sum or any other vegetable) I tried the sesame seed ball for the first time because i've been craving red bean curd or "anko" in japanese... WHOA. Chewy, light - Not dense. Not a lot of the azuki or bean curd inside. The filling didn't have a "holy moly so much sweetness" but a "ahh i am just slightly sweetening your taste buds so u know i'm there" --Which i prefer and It is oiler than what I like... but just use napkins to wipe your hands and the ball Good. eats. I enjoyed the tea too. We went through three pots haha nice and piping hot. read more

Tai Pan Dim Sum - Chive Dumplings with Shrimp inside ($3) - Dim Sum Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

There's a couple dim sum places in Cultural Plaza, but Tai Pan doesn't rank any where near the top for me. The servers are quick, but I feel the food isn't that nice! The skin on the har gao and dumplings were too thick and not translucent enough, making it hard to chew. I did enjoy the baos, since it was soft- but they would've been better if it wasn't served at room temperature. I also like the fact that there's a giant English menu poster! Overall, it's pretty mediocre. read more

Tai Pan Dim Sum - Chinese donut with look fun - Dim Sum Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

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I have been going here for so long that they basically watched me go through middle school to graduating college! Let me start off with the service here! They always greet me with a hug when I walk into the door. The lady with the spiked hair and glasses loves my mom and I and we LOVE her too! She always takes her time to talk to us and makes us feel like home when we're here. She is such an extraordinary person! You know at most Chinese restaurants they're kind of short and want to get the waiting part of their job over with, but here it's never like this with me! If I ever had a question about the menu they would take their time and explain what's inside for me. Dim sum is so fun, fresh, and tasty! I love how you can get a little bit of everything especially if you go with a large group! The things I love to order here are: the siu mai, mochi rice, black bean spareribs, steamed char siu buns, deep fried seaweed rolls, look fun, choi sum in oyster sauce, and the thousand year egg rice soup. I've tried a lot of dishes here, but I usually get a combination of those dishes I listed above! If you're feeling adventurous they do have chicken and pig feet dishes as well! I'm okay on those things though! Haha! They're always busy, so if you don't mind being in a crowded place than you'll be fine! It wouldn't be Chinatown without the hustle and bustle. I hope everyone gets the same experience that I receive when I go here. Hands down the best dim sum place you can find in Chinatown. Nothing beats the food and the service for me! :) read more

Tai Pan Dim Sum - Mochi rice, Siu Mai, and fried seaweed rolls (basically a shrimp tempura on steroids haha). - Dim Sum Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

This was the first time I'd ever been to Honolulu's Chinatown and my first time ever eating dim sim in Hawaii.My expectations were kid of low seeing how disappointing the dim sum is back in Southern California, but my father said he'd been here a few times and it was quite good....so I kept an open mind. Tucked in the corner of some hidden Chinese courtyard mall, this is an obscure location where I'd think only locals knew about. It's a very typical looking old and nothing fancy medium sized restaurant.....the place was full, but there were still one or two tables open when we got there at 12pm. I had a pretty heavy breakfast back at the hotel earlier so figured we probably wouldn't be able to order much...so we went ahead and ordered a few little items for a relatively light lunch. My father ordered a chicken herbal soup.....which he had tried before and you likely wouldn't catch it on the regular menu. OMG......I had no idea the chicken they'd be serving were chicken's feet!!! I hate those unsightly alien body parts!...and quickly scooped them all into my father's bowl. I then proceeded to try the soup.....and whadaya know!?.....it actually tasted delicious!.....it was light yet full of herbal flavor from the ginseng...and other herbs that I won't even begin to name....tasted very nourishing! For dim sum, we ordered the fried yam puffs, pan fried chive cakes, egg tarts, and the pan fried radish cake. The taro puff came out first and they were pretty disappointing......they were cold and tasted like they had been sitting out since yesterday. Oh oh I thought to myself.....is this the kind of dim sum we have coming.....yikes! Then came the rest and, hmmm, the egg tarts (yea, I know it's meant to be for dessert) were quite good....I always love the flaky shell and this was it.....and the egg custard was just right, not too sweet. The chive cakes were the largest I'd ever seen in any dim sum restaurant, and they were perfectly crisp on the bottom and the filling quite yummy. The radish cake was also pretty good....nice soft inside with a nice light crisp on the outside. Everything had a pretty mild flavor to it so you may want to dip them in some mustard or chilli sauce. My only complaint about the pan fried items would be that they were swimming in a plate of oil......yikes! So drink up that hot tea to wash it all away! Can't say too much about the service.....didn't seem too friendly, typical of Chinese restaurants. And you have to go up to the cashier to pay your check when you're done. I guess this place is good for a quick dim sum fix, but I wouldn't say it's the best dim sum experience I've had. read more

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Terrific dim sum. Locally owned business that deserves our support. Their specialty is the lion's head fish ball on greens. Why lion's head? It is a humongous juicy fish ball shaped like a lion's mane with savory sauce served on a perfectly crisp bed of greens. Healthy and delicious. You need to try this. They also have some of the best dan tat or egg tarts around. The owners a friendly and make you feel like one of the family. Also tried any of their stir fried dishes especially noodles. They have super high BTU woks in the back that literally look like a dragon breathing fire. Anyone who knows good Chinese food knows this is critical to properly prepared stir fry dishes. read more

I'm definitely not a morning person... but I WILL wake up for Tai Pan Dim Sum! I love how it's all made to order, and so tasty! Favorites are their taro gok, charsiu bao, bean curd roll, pork hash, fried turnip cake, and soup dumplings! Be sure to save room for dessert! Their egg tarts, egg custard filled bun things, and (ADORABLE) crispy carrot-shaped mochi with custard is soooo yummy! I usually come here around 9am, but there's a good crowd even at that hour. Service is a little inconsistent, but the food won't disappoint! read more

Tai Pan Dim Sum - Dim Sum Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

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The best way to describe their dim sum is: pedestrian. It wasn't bad dim sum, but it wasn't delicious dim sum. My friend and I had a hankerin' for dim sum, but the "usual" restaurant was not open yet. So I remembered that someone told me about "the place across the Plaza is good". Service was good, actually better than expected; dim sum was cheap, not enough filling in a couple of dim sum; the taste was okay, but not enough to return...Maybe to try the won ton mein or other noodles that it seemed everyone was eating and enjoying. That should have been a clue... read more

Tai Pan Dim Sum - Won bok, pak choy... - Dim Sum Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

4 dollars for 3 shrimp Dumplings. Price is high compare to what you get. Not going to return again. read more

Delicious dim sum. My favorite is the fat noodle roll with stuff inside, topped with whatever juice they put on it. Yum

Food was ok. I've had better. Service was ok but to fair we went there during the busy lunch rush. My main pet peeve was that I ordered two dishes n waited nearly 40 minutes to inquire if it was ready. I was told one will be ready soon but no order was placed for the other dish. The wait staff forgot to write it down. Very disappointed. The price was a bit pricier then other places n the table given to us was in front of the register n cashier. The cashier was most likely the manager or boss by the way he kept frowning n watching everyone. However, that look (it could be just me) made feel as if he thought I might steal or run off without paying. It made me feel very uncomfortable. I will not be visiting this place again. read more

Tai Pan Dim Sum - Menu - Dim Sum Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

Solid dim sum joint. Very authentic chinese restaurant atmosphere (read: aunties running around, customer service nonexistent, but all in a good way). Good congee, also their carrot shaped sweet rice dessert is a must try. read more

Haven't been here for a long while, so I was very impressed with its 5-star, tasty dishes (see uploaded photos); most of its dishes are prepared after they are ordered to ensure freshness. Only complaint I have is its poor services due to inadequate servers. That deducted one star from this review. read more

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I've been reading 2015 recent posts of tai pan. what cracks me up is that a lot of people that are down grading their rating of this restaurant because they claim that you will need to bring along a chinese interpreter. what a shame! it looks like these rating down grader people don't know how to communicate with people that speak little english. if there is a communication barrier between you and your waitress... ask for the PICTURE menu with english descriptions! if that doesn't help, smile and treat them nice! NEWS FLASH! they know how to speak english... enough to take your order :D pork hash, shrimp roll, and the coconut gin dui are still my top 3! read more

My mouth is watering just thinking about it. I've tried other places in Hawaii and Tai Pan is still my favorite place to eat dim sum. They have a large variety of dim sum. Har gau, chong funn, siu mai, char siu bao, funn go, and many many more. All fresh and hot. And dont forget the deep fried nori shrimp roll. If that's not your favorite dim sum yet, it will be. I would recommend Tai Pan for anyone's first time dim sum adventure. Weekends are usually a wait, probably around 30 minutes wait if you come with a large group. They expanded their menu a little bit to include noodle and rice dishes. Never tried them, yet. I come for dim sum. Service: There will be waits. You will need to ask for water multiple times. It's busy during lunch time. Dim sum is still the best. read more

If you like dim sum, Tai Pan is a must! I would say I've been to and tried my fare share of dim sum places, especially living in Hong Kong while growing up! This is hands down my go to restaurant when I have a craving or someone wants dim sum. My Fave - the Seafood Wrap (and no, it's not a sandwich) It's really inexpensive and food is really good. If you want to treat someone for a good meal, quick lunch or brunch and not spend a whole lot, I never walk out of there with more than a $30 check for 3-4 people. The place is pretty small and on weekends it can get packed, you'll have to wait outside for a few minutes. Once you sit down though, the food comes out quick. The only thing that annoys me sometimes is that the place gets so busy with the dine-ins and take outs, if you want to add to your order it's hard to catch (yours or others) waitresses. There's no carts so you just have to wait for them to become free. Note: You have to pay at the cashier, located in front of the kitchen area and they only do cash or their own gift cards. And for those not dim sum savvy, go with 3 or more people so you can try different things. read more

Tai Pan Dim Sum - Front of restaurant - Dim Sum Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

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If you eat here with a Chinese-speaking person, you will definitely get better service than without. If not, be prepared for near hostility from the cashier, who will yell at you if you don't bring back the bathroom key, and can't remember that you paid him 5 minutes ago, and eye you suspiciously when you tell him so. The food is good, but for less price and with better service I will go to Fook Lam in the same building. read more

Open for dine-ins! We went there in the morning to avoid the crowd. We even had a free sesame balls for take out. We'll definitely go back! read more

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I LOVE Tai Pan and it's one of my fav dim sum spots.. but I just wish they had better customer service. Seriously, do I have to wave my hands to ask for my water to be refilled and then have them forget only to wave my hand again to remind them. Very annoying. I've seen lots of other customers complain and get upset over other things. Despite their bad service.. I do love their dim sum. I always order the same thing... fried shrimp w/mayo (sorry don't know the chinese term), half moon (my fav!), mochi rice, chives dumplings and of course shumai. I've tried other things like the taro cake which was pretty good. And I like their custard buns.. yum! If you want good dim sum, I'd say go here... but don't expect good service!!! Unless you catch them on a good day :) read more

I've been eating here for years..and never got to write a review for it. I guess dim sum to me isn't any different compare to other dim sum restaurant. The only way to tell if I like it or not is based on their: quality, size, amount, price, and taste. I dislike dim sum when it gets too salty. The taste here was alright, and decent pricing and such. I really like the 3 color cake: taro flavor, this sweet flavor, and another one I don't know what it's made out of. It's fried and soft. Pretty good. The service...yes they get kind of rude sometimes. That's why sometimes I don't like to eat at Chinese restaurants. read more

Consistently good dim sum but limited choices when going late. Guess that can't be helped since who'd want day old dim sum

Price was pretty good. I must be used to that mainland Rowland Heights, CA flavor that can develop by eating at the same place. So you say what's the difference? I think the flavor comes off a little bland for my liking, however my Hawaii comrades tell me that my taste buds are out of whack because I eat mainland dimsum. Don't eat the all seafood siu mai because It is just fishball reformed. Lots of the food seemed to be rushed too. Pork spare ribs and beef tripe were rushed and slightly undercooked. I'd eat there again. read more

A nice little dum sum place tucked inside the Chinese Cultural Plaza. While there are other options (Won Kee and Legends, etc), I would rank it second to Legends which I prefer for consistently excellent dim sum. Prices are reasonable and cheaper than Legends. It is a good option if the wait at Legends is too long. Tai Pan has its own charm. It's the smallest of the dim sum restaurants inside the square of the Plaza and I've noticed that it's usually fuller than Won Kee. Tai Pan has all the regular dim sum items and they were tasty -- ha gau, spare ribs, chicken feet, etc. The place is sort of a tight fit and it was kind of a hassle to manuever around people to get to the display case with the dry fried items. I can see how this would be a plus for people who can't wait for the fried cart to come around and they could just waltz up to the display case and get what they want. Like other dim sum places, it really helps if you know Cantonese, they really do treat you better and get items to you faster. I would count this as a plus because I know Cantonese :) read more

This place is tucked in the back corner of the Chinese Cultural Center. Call me a dim sum snob from NYC, but I had low expectations when a local friend invited us here for lunch. I was pleasantly surprised by the quality and freshness of all the dishes. This is because everything is made to order and not rolling around a steamer cart. The seafood shui mai was excellent and doesn't exist in any NYC restaurants. The look fun (called cheong fun back east) could have been better because the rice noodle was too stiff. With a smoother texture, it should just roll down your throat. We tried all the choices of look fun filling (shrimp, beef, char siu, breadstick) and all were good. Service could be better because they forgot/lost a few dishes, but I'm used to cold/disdainful dim sum service. We also tried Legend and Fook Lam (all in the same area) and this is the best of the three. read more

We came here for dim sum brunch today. You can order dim sum from a picture menu which made it easier to order. They also serve Cantonese style dishes here too. We ordered few dim sum like deep fried taro, Mochi rice wrapped in lotus leaves, Shanghai Soup dumplings and Chinese donuts. They also have a mini bakery inside of this restaurant. Service is ok here and parking is only $1 for the first hr when you validate your parking ticket. read more

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First time eating here since we moved closer to this location. We used to go to Panda Cuisine on Keeaumoku, but the food here is much more flavorful and better selection. Like most dim sum places, Tai Pan has your sticky buns, steamed buns, and other dumplings. We ordered the following for a change that would definitely please our taste buds and bellies: * Beef Brisket w/ thin chow mein egg noodles in beef broth and gailan ("mustard orchid" or green vegetable) - the broth was savory, noodles nostalgic, and meat was plentiful and fatty for such a small bowl. * Pan Fried Shrimp Dumplings - texture of the mochi was crispy on the outside and not too thick so that you could enjoy all the shrimp and chive filling inside. When the mochi is too thick, you chew more than actually swallowing. The shrimp tasted fresh and not of yesterday's leftovers. * Mochi Ball w/ Chicken - usually filled with taro or red beans, ours was filled with a pleasing mixture of chicken and crushed peanuts in a brown savory sauce. The combination of sweet and salty with crispy and chewy was unusual but satisfying. * Look Fun noodles w/ beef and garnished with green onions and cilantro - when ordering, our waitress asked us if we'd like green onions on top. I immediately exclaimed, "Yes please!" Panda Cuisine doesn't offer that. Again, another dish won my heart (which is in my belly). Loved the soy sauce on the bottom of dish since it wasn't too salty. This is our new favorite dim sum spot. They're quick to see you enter the front door and clean the tables before you get seated. If parking and their tables weren't so packed, I'd give it five stars. However, we were seated right away and arrived around 10:30am on a Sunday, if that helps give you a better idea when to go. Enjoy and eat with an open mind and mouth! read more

Tai Pan Dim Sum - Dim Sum on a Sunday morning:p - Dim Sum Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

Really good dim sum just don't look around too much or you'll see the "particulars," Just know, the dim sum is onolicious and served piping hot and fresh! Due to the size of the restaurant, no carts here, can't fit. Choose from the dim sum picture menu and check out the specials on the board. I like the Singapore Noodles. It's a NO GRAVY, skinny noodles with shrimp and small scallops. Very good. Their look fun or "rolled wide noodle," for you San Fran folks, is very light accompanied by a light sauce. We had it with Shrimp. If you like dim sum, go where the locals go (Chinese locals) and sit among the foreign language chaos and enjoy this piece of what makes Hawai'i the best place to live. read more

Located in the Cultural Plaza ground floor. There's a parking lot for the Cultural Plaza which is nice since street parking downtown can be "nuts". I don't know if the shrimp is mushy like Anita said because I don't eat shrimp, but all of the non-seafood stuff I had was great! It was kind of fun to go get dim sum with co-workers. The wait was kind of long to get in on a weekday at lunch time. It was pretty crazy in there. Don't eat here if you're looking for a stress-free lunch break. read more

Legit china/hong kong - more hongkong dim sum. Dont go on weekend 10am - 12pm. You'll probably wait a while till you get seated. Few of my favorites: Shrimp or scallop look fun- must try Seafood roll Seafood siu Mai (they have pork siu Mai and seafood siu Mai - 2 diff things) beef tripe - if you eat tripe, your tongue is in for treat! :) fishball with cabbage fried shrimp balls **tip: egg tart - they have a egg white tart - a healthier (?) choice for your sweets. read more

Tai Pan Dim Sum - har gau - shrimp dumpling - Dim Sum Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

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