Food Mood: Tim Tai

I was invited to be a part of a food bloggers meet at Tim Tai to try out their new menu. I’ve visited the restaurant three times in the last year and have always gone away happy. Hence, I was eager to see what the folks had put together to tantalize our taste buds. The evening started with an assortment of dimsums. These included Spicy Soya and Basil, Vegetable Cristil, Chicken and Shrimp. I ensured that I did not have more than one of each despite their freshness lest I get full and miss out on the main course.

Veg Cristil Dimsums

Chicken Dimsum
For the starters, we began with a helping of Banana Leaf Wrapped Fish. This was one fine dish as the natural taste of the leaf blended very well with the spices which were very Thai in nature with the chilli and peanut taste coming through. The meat itself was cooked perfectly. A definite must have for someone who likes the Thai-styled fish.  There was also a Fish in Chilli Pepper which was average in preparation compared to the Banana Leaf Wrapped Fish. We were also offered Stuffed Chicken Wings with Glass Noodles which were a very unique preparation. The dish retained none of the usual traits of chicken wings; the messy spicy sauces that go all over your hand and make you behave uncivilized in public. This was a very different-tasting more civilized dish. I’m on the fence on this one because while the taste was nice and spicy, the lack of messiness didn’t give me the satisfaction of wings. Among the vegetarian dishes, I enjoyed the Crispy Baby Corn with the Roasted Chilli Paste. While the baby corn was nothing new, the chilli paste was really nice and spicy. 

Banana Leaf Wrapped Fish

Stuffed Chicken Wings

Roasted Baby Corn
For the main course, we had a variety of dishes. The first one was the Mushroom and Spinach in Soya Chilli. This dish was definitely a highlight of the meal. The sauce was excellent with the right amount of spice and was just a tad stronger than the taste of the mushrooms and spinach. This is one of my recommendations for any of the vegetarians going here. We were also served the Malaysian Family Style Chicken which had one of the usual pan Asian tastes that one gets. The same goes for the Sri Lankan Fish Curry. While the tastes were not bad, I was expecting a lot more from these dishes and was disappointed. 

Mushroom and Spinach in Soya Chilli Sauce

Malaysian Family Style Chicken

All that went away with the Vietnamese Spicy Prawns with Lemongrass. Besides being a delight to look at, this dish was superb. The lemongrass and spice blended perfectly and infused with the prawn to give it a very fresh taste. The spice levels were set just right to tickle your taste buds but not so high as to force you to drink a lot of water. The prawns were fresh and crunchy. Overall, from the main course, this dish was my favourite. My recommendation for sea food lovers.  I also had a helping of the veg Jungle Red Curry with rice. This was a no-frills classic thai red curry and rice combination that performed exactly as it was supposed to.

Vietnamese Spicy Prawns with Lemongrass

Jungle Red Curry
We tried a variety of noodles and rice including the Ginger Capsicum Fried Rice, the Garlic and Broccoli Fried rice and the Hakka Noodles. The noodles were quite dry for my taste and were not as rich in taste as I was expecting them to be. This required copious amount of gravy to have them. Feedback was promptly given to the chef, so I’m expecting a lot more the next time. Among these, the Tim Tai Special Chilli Coriander Noodles stood out for having the most flavour and the ability for us to have the same without resorting to the addition of a sauce.


In the final leg, the desserts, we tried the Water Chestnut Rubies with Coconut Milk. I didn’t have this because I’m not too fond of Water Chestnuts. I did however really enjoy the various flavours of ice creams including chilli chocolate, lemongrass, green tea and more. My favourite dessert, something which I had tried during their Christmas special lunch was Apple Fritters with Blue Berry Compot and Ice Cream. I loved this dessert the first time and was happy to fall in love all over again.

Apple Fritters with Blueberry Compot and Ice Cream

Ice Creams

Summing the evening,  some of the newer side dishes blew my mind. Especially the Vietnamese Spicy Prawns with Lemongrass and the Mushroom and Spinach in Soya Chilli. The Banana Leaf Wrapped Fish was very memorable too. Just as was the Apple Fritter dessert. I wasn’t too pleased with the rice and noodles and was expecting a lot more flavour. Otherwise a really enjoyable evening and I’m looking forward to going back in a few months’ time.

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