I have to confess one thing. This is our favorite restaurant. I've seen some reviews regarding Paradise Dynasty which aren't so good but I just disagree. Everytime we have guests, we bring them here.
Why is this our favorite? Simple, excellent value, excellent food, relatively good service. I'd have to say though that if there will be one complaint about this place, it's the queue during peak hours (Friday nights can get bad. Just recently we waited I think for 2 hours... I'm still sorry Kathy :). There is also no reservation so first come first serve.).
Our Orders
Fried Shanghai Pork Buns ($4.50)
Think xiao long bao stuffed inside a nice soft Chinese bun. Then pan fry. If that doesn't stir your appetite then our wavelengths don't match. But this is not the star of the show.
La Mian with Beef Brisket (Spicy) - $12.80
In the XX times that we have gone to Paradise Dynasty, I don't really remember a time where we didn't order this. For us, this is a must have. There was a time that we tried the Shanghai Fried Rice and I still ordered this.
The La Mian is just perfect. Combined with a top grade beef brisket that almost melts in your mouth (ok I may be exaggerating a bit) and freshly pulled La Mian noodles (you can see this through the show kitchen in the entrance) I just can't think of any better place. The bowl above is good for 2 to 3 depending on the order. Last night we just ordered 1 and there was 3 of us.
The spiciness is also just right for me but you may also order a non-spicy version. Eat this hot for the best experience.
Scallion Pastry - ($3.60)
This is one of wifey's favorite as well. The puff pastry is just cooked right and even though it is deep fried, the pastry is not too greasy.
Paradise Dynasty Signature Xiao Long Bao (XLB) - ($14.80)
This is Paradise Dynasty's Signature Mix Xiao Long Bao. Is it the best XLB to order? My recommendation is to try once, remember what you like, then just order that in the future. The flavors are: Garlic (Gray), Ginseng (Green), Truffle (Black), Cheese (Yellow), Szechuan (Red), Foie Gras (Brown), Crab Roe (Orange), and Original (White). We do normally order this for our guests to experience the colorful dish.
I'm not a big fan of the sampler. In fact we've only ordered this once for ourselves. The rest of the time we only either order Original or Garlic which is our favorite flavored XLB.
Garlic Flavored Xiao Long Bao - ($9.80)
This is our favorite flavored XLB. Just pick up one of these, make a small bite, put the soup in the spoon, slurp the garlic flavored soup, and munch on the remaining XLB..... YUM! Yup this is a must have. Eat it hot as well (that goes for all XLB anywhere).
The other flavors like Truffles and Foie Gras are also available on order but much more pricier at around $18.00 - $20.00 per basket.
Fungus and Pork Stir Fried Noodles - ($10.80)
The stir-fried noodle is also very good. Though the presentation isn't top notch its still a very good dish. It has this almost burnt taste that adds quite a good character to this dish. I find it unique and satisfying at the same time. The noodle is cooked just right though you may ask... where is the pork?
Poached Chicken in Spicy Sauce - ($8.80)
Don't let the presentation fool you, this is actually a cold chicken appetizer. Its not actually spicy and the addition of the peanuts is a nice combination to add some crunch to the dish. I'll put this on my optional list.
Radish Pastry - ($3.90)
We don't always order this (about 50% of the time) but this place knows how to deep fry. The puff pastry is crunchy outside and the inside is nice and soft. Again surprisingly it is not greasy.
My best suggestion here is try to eat the food while its hot. You will get the best experience if you do this to most of the food. Not in the picture which is a must try is the Chilled Assorted Egg Loaf in Yang Zhou Style. You won't regret ordering this.
Updated... We visited again on May 25... It is our favorite restaurant....
Pickeled Cucumber and Black Fungus Mushroom Appetizer
Though these two dishes are simple, I enjoyed the refreshing feeling of eating cucumber this way. lets see if I can copy this at home. I'm not sure if the mushroom was pickled as well but it was nicely seasoned and had a slight vinegar taste.
Braised Egg
This is a good interpretation of "Adobo" / "Tea" egg. It had a nice balance of saltiness and eggyness. It was very good that we ordered it again. Sharing it wasn't enough.
La Mian with Wanton in Chili Oil.
We decided not to order La Mian with Spicy Beef Brisket and opted for this. This was just so so. Maybe I got used to the fact that La Mian here is served with soup and this dish was missing something hot and warm. Imperial Treasure Noodle Place serves this with a side of Pork Bone soup, which they should do as well. (We have asked for it, but they said they don't provide) The dumplings was tasty and the "spicy" isn't over powering.
La Mian with Vegetable Wanton
This had a nice surprising taste to it. I hope that this is purely vegetarian so that if I have a vegetarian friend who'll eat here I can easily recommend this.
La Mian with Double Boiled Chicken Soup
The soup was seasoned very well and didn't have any "medicine" taste to it. Comparing this to the Beef Brisket, i'd say that this is a way way healthier choice.
Yangchow Lion Head with Vegetables Soup
We really wanted to have some soup with our La Mian with Wanton in Chili Oil so we decided to order this soup. The meatball was nice and soft but not mushy. The soup was also nice but nothing special.
Pancake with red bean paste
I was looking for more red bean paste and texture. I'm afraid this is actually disappointing. Jing Hua in Neil Road trumps Paradise Dynasty with this dish.
Price and Value
All-in-all the bill amounted to around $89. So that rounds it about to $30 per person. We were full and actually had some take home as well.
A lot of people may compare this to Din Tai Fung (which has 2 branches in HK with a one Michelin Star). My opinion, Paradise Dynasty is better.
A lot of people may compare this to Din Tai Fung (which has 2 branches in HK with a one Michelin Star). My opinion, Paradise Dynasty is better.
Rating:
Food - 4.5
Ambiance - 4
Value - 4.5
Service - 4
Overall 4.5 of 5
Repeat Factor (No!! No! Yes Yes! Yes!!):
Yes!!
Restaurant details: http://www.paradisegroup.com.sg/?page_id=358&mn=pd
Address: 2 Orchard Turn, #04-12A ION Orchard, Singapore, 238801
Fax: +65 6509 9117
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