I can't remember when was my first dim sum in Singapore ; it could have been Red Star in Chinatown. Nevertheless, it kick-starts my everlasting love for this Hongkong style breakfast.
Having quality dim sum in Singapore nowadays can be pricey, and since we do travel to Malaysia quite often, my family would at times visit a popular dim sum restaurant located at Holiday Villa hotel
. 
Known as 茶楼 Cha Lao Dim Sum, which literally means a teahouse in Chinese, the prices might not be the cheapest in Malaysia but quality was said to be better! Do note that it can get very crowded for breakfast and my visit was timed at past lunch hours; at about two plus pm.
Insides of the restaurant; dining area was on level two.
p.s. photos were taken at about 3.00pm.
Table setup. There's an interesting way to order here which I thought was messy; although items were listed on the menu, you can't just order everything through the service staff.
For some of the dim sum items, you had to wait for these metal carts that would travel from table to table. While it was fascinating to see, given that it was the traditional mode in the past, my main objective was to quickly get my food and dig into them.
Another thing to note; the refilling of hot water for your teapot was self-serviced even though service charge was included in the bill. To be frank, I am alright to do it myself as the service staff can be quite busy when there are a lot of customers.
Let's now start with our food review!
Siew Mai - size of each dumpling was quite large and the filling within was meaty, flavorful and enhanced with a nice, satisfying crunch from the prawn hidden inside.
Poached Shrimp Dumpling with Szechuan Chilli Oil - I am so not a fan of dumplings with thick skin but this was remedied by the addictive mala spicy sauce that drenched them!
Mini Paper Wrapped Chicken - for that one-second moment, I was wondering why I was served prata. Turned out it was the paper wrapper for this dim sum dish.
Unraveled the paper to reveal the chicken! The taste was like roast chicken although I felt that the marination could have been stronger, more intense. Texture wise, very juicy! Fried Sweet and Sour Pork - this cost RM 15.00; if not, I would have ordered a few rounds as the gulurou was surprisingly nice with an old school flavor, and a crunchy shell. Guess the yam ring (not a fan of it) resulted in the high pricing!
Steamed Custard Bun with Salted Egg Yolk - Despite the presentation, the dough was too thick and the salted egg yolk custard was semi-solid, instead of being totally liquify.
Deep Fried Beancurd Skin with Shrimp Dumpling - this dim sum in many places always fails to impress me but this one did for two reasons; the beancurd skin wasn't too salty and the prawn filling inside was quite generous.
Steamed Rice Roll with Prawn - smooth down the throat and tasting like a classic chee cheong fun. This was definitely one of the better ones, and it got the thumbs-up from Alex, who is a huge fan of chee cheong fun.
Steamed Shanghai Pork Dumpling - the xiaolongbao was perfect except for one very serious flaw; the meat was mushy! A pity as the skin was thin and the meat juice was delicious! p.s. love having tons of ginger to go with the dumpling.
Steamed Pork Spare Ribs with Black Bean - not bad tasting but I have a problem; it's a chore to separate the meat from the bone! Okay, I am just lazy although I also think it's not worth the effort for so little meat.
Har Gow - looking promising, my expression changed to disappointment when my teeth bit through the prawn dumpling. It was too dry inside and that didn't leave a nice taste on the tip of the tongue.
Char Siew Bun - pillowy soft looking, the dough had the tendency to stick to my teeth, and it's frustrating! Filling was also quite little; tasty though.
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Some hits, some misses but generally, I would likely be back again. However, I am curious about Pin Ming Xuan, another dim sum eatery just about 300 meters away but it always had a long queue! My sister did try and her conclusion was that Cha Lao Dim Sum is still better.
Address
Jalan Dato Sulaiman, Taman Abad,
80250 Johor Bahru, Johor, Malaysia
Map
As above.
Facebook Page
Menu
As above.
Pricing
Total - RM 183.15
(Inclusive of Service Charge and Tax)
