November 21, 2022

Halal dim sum makes the cut at Santai Yum Cha

What does yum-cha mean to you? It literally means ‘drink tea’ in Cantonese and usually, it denotes dim sum time. So at @SantaiYumCha, it basically means – relax and drink tea – and you get to enjoy a nice repertoire of dim sum plus a host of noodles and rice dishes as well. The best part is, the restaurant is halal so you get to enjoy Siew Mai, dumplings, steamed ‘char siu’ buns and other popular Cantonese dishes ‘tanpa was-was’.

Personally, I found the prawn beancurd roll, hargao (prawn dumpling) and Prawn Siew Mai quite delectable while the Red Bean and Custard Lava buns should appeal to kids given their cute appearances.

Admittedly, there’s a certain texture and bite which comes with dim sum containing pork which isn’t easy to imitate, and while chicken isn’t quite the same density, Santai has done a commendable job by having a nice balance of chicken and prawn for that springy nature and slightly rough texture to the dumplings and siew mai. The dim sum menu was well-executed and possibly better than the halal dim sum I’ve had at some hotels, though choices may not be as manifold. Prices range between RM10 and RM12.80 per dim sum tray.

Instead, there’s a good range of noodles and rice options which are great as one dish meals.

For this review, the bunch of us liked the Mala Mee Tarik with Beef Slices (RM25.80) – tho a bit on the salty side – and Dry style Mee Tarik with Chicken Chop (RM17.80) the best and the Grilled Chicken Teriyaki with Crushed Egg Rice Bowl (RM22.80) was quite flavoursome too. While the Nasi Lemak Bunga Telang with Fried Chicken (RM25.80) was fragrant, the onion sambal could do with some improvement as it was neither sweet nor spicy, and had a weird gooey consistency.

Grilled teriyaki chicken with crushed egg rice bowl

Santai Yum Cha also has a slew of drinks to choose from, ranging from good ol’ fashioned kopi and cham to sirap bandung and 3 layered tea. Generally, prices are probably consistent with what you would expect from a popular PJ mall and given the current inflation. Next time you’re at 1 Utama, you’ve got another option to try out.