On 10 April 2013, the Hong Kong dim sum restaurant Tim Ho Wan opened its first outlet outside Hong Kong, in the new atrium wing of Plaza Singapura. Within days, Singapore had a full-blown dim sum frenzy on its hands.
Diners queued before the doors opened. One blogger counted 30 to 40 people lined up shortly before 10am, and waited 1 hour 15 minutes for a table. The queue was said to stretch to three hours at its worst. VnExpress later noted that the restaurant attracted queues of up to three hours when it debuted.
Why people queued
Tim Ho Wan had been billed as the cheapest one-Michelin-star restaurant in the world. It began in March 2009 as a 20-seat eatery in Hong Kong that served premium dim sum at modest prices. Chef Mak Kwai Pui, the name behind the brand, brought it to Singapore.
The star of the menu was the baked bun with barbecue pork. It has a crisp, glazed pastry top, rather like a bo lo bao, with a char siew filling. The kitchen limited how many orders each diner could have.
The other signatures also drew attention. In April 2013, steamed pork dumplings with shrimp, topped with a wolfberry, cost S$5 for four pieces. Steamed prawn dumplings were S$5.50 for four, and the steamed egg cake was S$3.80. One more unusual dish was the vermicelli roll with pig’s liver, at S$5.50.
How the restaurant handled the crowds
The Plaza Singapura outlet had a dine-in area seating about 100 and a takeaway counter for those who wanted to skip the wait. It took no reservations, and seating was first come, first served. A queue number and SMS system let diners wander off and return when a table was ready.
The official launch followed on 28 April 2013. Tim Ho Wan marked it with a “Buy-a-Bao for Charity” event, donating the day’s proceeds from its barbecue pork buns to The Straits Times School Pocket Money Fund.
Reviewers were divided. Some thought the food was well made but not worth more than an hour in line, while others were glad to be able to eat the Hong Kong dim sum without taking a flight.
After the frenzy
As the brand grew, the pressure eased. By 2014, Malay Mail noted that in Singapore, the queues died down after more outlets were opened. The restaurant later opened in Kuala Lumpur and Manila too, following earlier branches in Taiwan.
In 2026, the original Singapore outlet came to an end. The chain said on social media that the Plaza Singapura restaurant would serve its last customers on 12 July, after 13 years. It said the closure was part of the mall’s redevelopment. The Straits Times had reported in April that the landlord, CapitaLand Integrated Commercial Trust, scheduled a revamp for the last two quarters of 2026.
In its farewell message, the chain said that this is where our journey began. The restaurant had become a regular spot for office workers and students nearby, and for families at weekends, AsiaOne reported.