Now that I’ve finally shared our first Din Tai Fung experience in Taipei, it’s time to share our recent lunch at Din Tai Fung Alabang Town Center.
I knew that Din Tai Fung had several branches in the Philippines, but I had no idea that they already had a branch here in the South. I only found out when I stumbled upon the FEATR YouTube video featuring “The World’s Most Famous Dumplings” with Erwan Heussaff.
That's when I searched for their branches and found out they opened their Alabang Town Center branch on October 15, 2024. Matagal na rin pala! It just so happened that we don’t usually go to Alabang Town Center. I can’t even remember our last visit there, so I was really surprised to see Din Tai Fung. California Pizza Kitchen pa kasi yun during my last visit!
Anyway, if you’ve been reading my blog, you probably know that we usually eat at Ippon Yari after grocery shopping. But this time, since I was craving xiaolongbao, I told my husband na sa Din Tai Fung naman kami.
I also wanted to try some of their other dishes since our last Din Tai Fung experience in Taipei was more focused on dumplings.
Ordering at Din Tai Fung
Upon arrival, the staff asked, “First time niyo po dito?” We said yes. She then asked if we had already tried Din Tai Fung at another branch, and we said yes. She ushered us to our table and gave us the order form.
Since it was my first time ordering from their menu, it took me a while to browse through the pages and decide what to get. In the end, I ordered:
10 pcs. Xiaolongbao — PHP 385
Pork Chop Fried Rice — PHP 395
Sweet and Sour Pork — PHP 335
3 pcs. Chocolate Lava Xiaolongbao — PHP 185
My husband has also tried Din Tai Fung branches in Singapore and the Philippines, so I let him order for himself. He added:
Salted Fish Rice — PHP 255
Golden Prawn Cake — PHP 285 + Service Charge
By the way, one thing I noticed when we sat down was the glasses of water already on the table. I got confused at first and thought, bakit may tubig na dito? May uminom na ba?
I then checked the other tables and noticed that the empty tables also already had glasses of water. I’m not particularly fond of this setup because I don’t know how long the glasses of water have been sitting on the table.
In Taipei, they serve complimentary hot tea, while here in the Philippines, they provide complimentary service water instead.
Our Food
Our first order arrived after around 10 minutes.
And finally, the xiaolongbao! Namiss ko talaga yung xiaolongbao ng Taipei. Feeling ko nga kaya kong ubusin agad yung 10 pieces. Hehehe!
But of course, I need space for my rice meal. After trying the other dishes, I realized that the food was good, but they weren’t dishes that I would specifically go out of my way to have again, especially since this branch is quite far from us.
But if we’re talking about xiaolongbao, that’s a different story. I would definitely come back for their xiaolongbao because I really like it. Both the regular Pork Xiaolongbao and the Chocolate Lava Xiaolongbao were enjoyable.
So far, our experience with the service was also good. The staff was attentive, and our orders arrived pretty quickly.
Final Thoughts
Overall, our Din Tai Fung Alabang experience was good, especially because I finally got to satisfy my xiaolongbao craving without having to fly back to Taipei.
For me, the xiaolongbao remains the highlight of the meal, particularly the pork and chocolate lava versions. And now that I know there’s a Din Tai Fung branch in Alabang, at least I have another option whenever that xiaolongbao craving hits.
