Halal Dim Sum at China Treasures, Sime Darby Convention Centre KL

Edited March 2015 to include a picture of the Halal certification. 

Hubby and I both enjoy Dim Sum immensely. But it is so hard to find great halal dim sum. And i'm not referring to merely pork-free. I'm talking about actual JAKIM approved halal certificate and all that shebang. 

I did a fair bit of googling, and other than Maju Palace in Maju Junction (which I have yet to try out) - this restaurant I am about to review came highly recommended. There were also a few reviews about how this place gets full especially without a reservation. So I decided to be the anal me and booked ahead for the family to have a dim sum lunch last weekend at China Treasures at the Sime Darby Convention Centre.

China Treasures, Sime Darby Convention Centre Kuala Lumpur

Anyway, before we delve into pictures, let me tell you how much I love the look and the ambiance of the restaurant. For a start, parking was free and Hubby was able to drop us off at the main lobby before he left to find parking. Since I was dropped off at the entrance, instead of having to wait for Hubby to help me scale the stairs, there was a ramp to the lobby so I could single-handedly push Ian effortlessly in his stroller with Aiden at tow as well. We took the elevator up to the restaurant and got ourselves settled in whilst waiting for Hubby to join us after parking the car.

The look of the restaurant was at par as a coffee house of a hotel, impeccably clean, stylish deco and bright lighting. The waiter/waitresses were dressed in smart shirts and vests. The restaurant was spacious as I had ample space to park Ian's stroller beside our table (but despite the spaciousness I could still eavesdrop on a neighbouring table, they were obviously having a family argument - but that's a totally separate story).

We made sure we refrained from having breakfast so that we could arrive famished to take advantage of the buffet. The more we could eat, the better the value right? *sucker for good deals*

Munched on peanuts whilst we waited for our orders to arrive.

Absolutely famished.

Aiden and his muka baru bangun tido.

Only this boy arrived all bright bushy eyed.

With a big cheeky smile too!

The order form. 

You simply put the quantity that you want into the order and pass it to any of the servers. Then wait patiently for your order to arrive. Don't be ashamed to ask for more order forms for your second, third or even fourth helping of dim sums! (We only managed three rounds.)

As Aiden doesn't really enjoy dim sum, we ordered fried rice for him ala carte. And I made sure that they did not charge Aiden for the buffet. I think kids above 4 years old will be charged the child price. However, if your child is like mine - state clearly that your child will not be having the buffet and order something else ala carte. To be fair, Aiden did sample the egg tarts, but they were kind enough to close one eye.

We kicked off the buffet with the famous China Treasures Mini Egg Tart and everything fried!

Clockwise from the top: China Treasures Mini Egg Tart, Deep Fried Beancurd Skin Roll with Mushroom, Deep Fried Mermaid Fish in Thai Sauce and Deep Fried Prawn wrapped with Crispy Dragon Beard.

Oh wow, the egg tart was silky and flavourful and the pastry was light and fluffy. Hubby and I both agreed, if we were to ever come back, it would definitely be for the egg tarts. We even ordered a second helping of the egg tarts - it was that good!

As for the fried dim sums, they were okay but nothing to shout about. I love anything fried so we wiped the plates clean. As for the mermaid fish? It was some sort of special ikan bilis lah! Or rather deep fried ikan bilis with sos cili Thai. Definitely not ordering that again, but since that was part of our first order and we were feeling so ravenous that we gobbled it all up.

Clockwise from the top left: Steamed Pandan Paste Bun, Steamed Rice Roll and Aiden's fried rice! The fried rice was quite a big helping - Aiden managed probably half of it then Hubby and I had to struggle to finish it up.

Steamed Crystal Dumplings with Fish Roe.

Clockwise from the top left: Steamed BBQ Honey Chicken Bun, Steamed Buttered & Salted Egg Yolk Bamboo Charcoal Bun, Deep Fried Shrimp Patties with Sliced Almonds and Deep Fried Sui Kow.

The Steamed Buttered & Salted Egg Yolk Bamboo Charcoal Bun deserves a special mention. It was our first time eating a black bun, let alone one with with a salted egg filling. But it was darn good. The flavour of the salted egg was intense, and when you pried the bun open, the filling was rich and thick. Absolutely fantastic.

Steamed BBQ Honey Chicken Bun, Steamed Siew Mai, Steamed Beef Balls and Beancurd Skin in Superior Broth and Steamed Dried Scallop & Cilantro Dumplings.

Steamed Dried Scallop & Cilantro Dumplings. Scallop and cilantro, in a dumpling! Need I say more? *drool*

Family selfie. Happy faces after the huge meal.

Aiden wanted to give it a thumbs up sign. *fail*

What's with that smile, Aiden?

We walked out of the restaurant full and satisfied. Upon our way out, I finally saw the coveted Halal certificate by JAKIM in a cabinet by the restaurant entrance. But for some reason I totally forgot to snap a picture of it. But trust me, it is there. *grin*

Edited March 2015: Here's a picture of their Halal certification.

Smile Ian, smile!

Training Ian for selfies!

OOTD. Matched my maroon Prada with my favourite Ferragamo heels.

So, if you're salivating for some good halal dim sum, China Treasures would be a good bet. Just don't forget that reservation!

China Treasures

Sime Darby Convention Centre Kuala Lumpur

1A, Jalan Bukit Kiara 1, 60000 Kuala Lumpur

T: +603 2089 3788

E: chinatreasures.sdcc@simedarby.com
W: http://www.simedarbyconvention.com/

Dim Sum buffet hours: 1130am - 230pm (come early and stuff yourself silly!)

Price: RM50++ for adult, RM27++ for child

After the huge lunch, we decided we needed to burn off the calories. Here's a picture of us that afternoon. Hubby jogged, Aiden on his bicycle, Ian (relaxed) in his stroller and yours truly brisk walked while pushing the stroller around the neighbourhood.