Tipped

I always go to The Peninsula Restaurant in North Greenwich - bit random that it's in a Holiday Inn but I like it; it's near home, it's super cheap and it's really relaxed. You can't book a table though.

Favourite dishes: Siu Mai, Har Gao are the obvious and most classic ones, along with char siu bao (pork buns). But king prawn cheung fun (a flat rice noodle), steamed squid in curry sauce, tripe steamed with ginger and spring onion are also good, as is jellyfish (served cold with a sesame dressing). Potsticker (war tip) dumplings are also a favourite. And I love the taro croquettes. Xiao Long Bao are also great (soup dumplings) but not many places do them well.

I also like Crispy Duck on Gerrard Street for a more central dim sum.

Hmmm...torn between China Garden in Putney and Royal Dragon in Gerrard Street. Both very good indeed!

Another great dumpling is the Nepalese momo. A pilgramage to Munal in Putney will save you the cost of a flight to Kathmandu.

I too love Dim Sum .. but I've only been to a few Dim Sum joints .. places like Ping pong, and a few places (that I can't remember) in China Town.

Ping pong is ok, and a good choice for people who aren't super into the authentic experience. Their Sunday all you can eat is always good fun.

Interested to see where this thread goes, and I'm definitely gonna visit Pearl Liang.

Helen's blog (http://www.worldfoodieguide.com) is a definite awesome source of info, including the etiquette for eating Dim sum which reaffirmed that I was doing things ok. http://www.worldfoodieguide.com/index.php/how-to-eat-dim-sum-by-helen-yuet-ling-pang/

@steve - Ahh I should check out China Garden then as its just down the road.

I went to Yauatcha again yesterday to hit up some dim sum and I have to say that I was not disappointed. Despite the big prices, it is some good ass dim sum. The only drawback is ordering off of a menu because you have to think a little bit too much about what you are getting. Try the prawn and mushroom cheung fun. So awesome.

@Stephanie - how much is Yauatcha a head? I think the fact that Pearl Liang was £12 for loads of food means that I'll be going there a shit load in the future.

I didn't like Yauatcha much, I don't think they're worthy of the Michelin star - waiting staff are slow and moody, and you don't get the pleasure of stuffing your face without having heart palpitations of the bill!

I have been to Yauatcha several times. Thoroughly enjoyed it. Staff were at hand and very helpful. Then again I do get a little stern with staff if they don't get me what I want. You don't need that much. We usually just pick half a dozen dishes and share it.

I too liked Yauatcha, thought it compared favourably to places in San Francisco and Seattle, though much more expensive. Of course at the time I worked for a big, rich company so didn’t think about the cost. Also I understand they do a proper Chinese tea ‘ceremony’ upstairs, which, if anything like in China, is a pretty great way to spend a couple of hours.

This has made me realise I probably haven't really experienced much, and that just makes me more hungry.

Ping Pong and Dim T are imposters. Golden Palace (Harrow), Phoenix Palace (Baker Street Station) and Harbour City (Chinatown) all offer decent and traditional non fusion standards. New World purely for direct visual excitement(food that is). Drink tea peeps, it washes away the oiliness and leave the booze till later...elsewhere.

Yeah I had sooooo much tea when we went to Pearl Liang but I felt so much better for it than if I'd drank booze - no booze = more room for delicious dumplings!

I never really had excellent dim sum when I was in London... but I usually go often in the states. For me personally, the shadiest places are usually the most moderately priced, and in the words of my bf, they feel "the most authentic." Some of my personal tips are:

- Order items that are obviously hand made. Some bad places just order pre-made stuff and steam it.
- Ordering items with fish and shrimp unsure that when steamed they will cook fastest and be fully cooked.
- And if it's a really shady Chinatown place... always drink the tea rather than tap water.
- Desserts also come steamed. Peach and mung bean buns are my favorite!

Thanks guys for linking to my dim sum posts! A recent one I wrote is What's Your Favourite Dim Sum, which might be useful if you want to try some differnt types of dim sum - http://www.worldfoodieguide.com/index.php/whats-your-favourite-dim-sum. I went to Yum Cha on Chalk Farm Road recently, which I've added to my dim sum restaurant recommendations. The pan-fried turnip cake is out of this world, along with the xiao long bao, among the best I've had in London. My other favourites are Pearl Liang and Yauatcha.

Ooh, I missed out on a good conversation. I agree with Pork K. on the Phoenix Palace.
Not a big fan of the dim sum at dim t, but I do like their spicy rice. I think ping pong is passable.
Also definitely agree that Yauatcha is uber-over priced (like Hakkasan). The whole point of dim sum is that it's fast and cheap! However, the cocktails are amazing
Just thought I'd weigh in with my two cents ;)

Old China Hand in Clerkenwell (Tysoe St) is pretty good but the portions are a bit small. Lovely place, good vibe, interesting drinks on the bar and nice staff though and during the day they do lunch deals, think it's 3 for 2 or something at the mo