Eating cheap at Orchard Road can be quite a feat, seeing how even the prices at the food courts are significantly more expensive.

Tucked away on the second level of International Building, Hua Yi Kitchen serves a good selection of Shanghainese cuisine.

In fact, this cosy eatery has been serving authentic xiao long bao for 20 years – even before Din Tai Fung reached our shores!

We started off with the Steam Juicy Minced Pork Dumpling (S$6.80)—a basket of 6 plump and juicy xiao long bao. While the skin was a tad thick and the minced pork was on the rougher side, we liked the burst of flavour from the soup.

However, it was a pity that the little soup dumplings were stuck together and the skin tore when we tried to pick them up.

The Fried Rice with Eggs (S$6.80) was a decent plate of fried rice. Fragrant and full of eggy goodness, we wished it was more evenly seasoned.

Our favourite would have to be the Special Braised Beef Noodle Soup with Beef (S$9.80). The beef broth was hearty and even had a slight mala taste that warmed our bellies. It also came with tender beef chunks that were most likely stewed for hours. However, the dish would have been complete if the noodles were chewier.

360 Orchard Road
#02-11/12 International Building
Singapore 238869
Tel: +65 6235 3156
Daily: 9.30am – 9pm
Nearest Station: Orchard