Legendary Hong Kong Opens In Tampines With Over 200 Items—Dim Sum, Roast Meats And More

Here’s a piece of good news for Easties: Legendary Hong Kong has officially opened at Tampines Mall!

The popular Hong Kong cafe currently has two outlets in the West, Rochester Commons and Jurong Point, making this new Tampines restaurant its first East-side opening. For the uninitiated, Legendary Hong Kong is a popular cha chaan teng that was founded in 2014 due to a lack of authentic Hong Kong fare in Singapore.

The owners brought in eight chefs from Hong Kong to curate the menu for their restaurants. Regulars love their French Toast HK Style ($5.50++): thick slabs of crispy and eggy toast served with a slab of butter and syrup.

Other renditions include peanut butter, egg custard, and ham and cheese. Of course, you’ll find a wide range of dim sum classics here. Highlights include Steamed Shrimp Dumplings ($7.50++) AKA har gow, and Steamed Pork Dumplings ($6.80++) AKA siew mai.

The menu is super extensive, boasting more than 200 items that range from all-day dim sum classics to new and exclusive dishes. Start with the Lychee Prawn Balls ($7.80++), featuring three deep-fried, lychee-shaped rounds encasing fresh prawns.

If you’re feeling adventurous, consider the new and exclusive Pandan Rice Rolls with Crispy Prawn Rolls ($10.80++). This unique snack features freshly steamed chee cheong fun made with real pandan extract, rolled with fried Vietnamese rice paper and shrimps in the middle.

I appreciated the medley of textures in each bite—the crispy coating, bouncy prawns, and soft rice rolls—but found the almost-sweet pandan flavour a tad jarring. The Golden Crispy Prawn ($20.80++) is another outlet-exclusive dish.

Here, prawns are simply seasoned with salt and pepper, then dipped in an egg batter, covered in breadcrumbs, and deep-fried till golden. I enjoyed the crispy breadcrumb coating, but felt that the prawns were somewhat lacking in flavour. Pair your prawns with some Fried Rice with Chicken and Yam ($14.80++), great for sharing among the table.

While the fried rice was a tad plain on its own, I thought the yam chunks elevated the dish with its natural sweetness and earthiness. The Stir-Fried Tender Beef Slice in Black Bean Sauce ($18.80++) was a highlight of my visit.

The beef tenderloin slices were uber tender, and when coated in the umami-packed sauce, made for the perfect accompaniment to the aforementioned fried rice dish. The restaurant also offers a selection of HK-style noodles, such as the HK Style Curry Fish Balll Noodles ($11.80++). The curry was aromatic and slightly spicy, pairing well with the savoury fried fishballs, Unfortunately, I found the egg noodles too alkaline-tasting for my liking.

No cha chaan teng experience is complete without a side of roast meats, and Legendary Hong Kong does theirs well. The BBQ Platter 4 in 1 ($28.80++) gets you three meats of your choice; I went for the classic Roasted Duck, BBQ Pork, Crispy Pork Belly, and Soy Chicken.

The siew yoke was excellent with its crispy skin, meltingly tender fat layer, and flavourful meat. The char siew was equally delicious, though on the leaner side. When I was there on a weekday for dinner, the restaurant was fully packed with a snaking queue, so I would recommend visiting during off-peak hours to avoid the wait.

For more cha chaan teng recommenations, read our guide to the best Hong Kong cafes in Singapore. We also have our guide to the best dim sum spots in JB if you’re crossing the Causeway soon!

Address: 4 Tampines Central 5, #B1-11, Tampines Mall, Singapore 529510 Opening hours: Mon-Fri 11am to 10pm, Sat-Sun 10am to 10pm

Website

Legendary Hong Kong is not a halal-certified eatery. Photos taken by Anthia Chng and edited by Nabila Malek.

This was a media tasting at Legendary Hong Kong Tampines.

Featured image adapted from Legendary Hong Kong

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