Do you know that Ireland has an unofficial Chinatown? You can find the top dim sum restaurants in Dublin on the eastern side of Parnell Street.
In this article, we’ll be reviewing the best dim sum places to check out in the city. We’ll talk about the menu, the services, the value for money, and even the location.
Without further ado—let’s start!
Estimated Prices in Dim Sum Restaurants in Dublin
These price ranges are estimated costs from various sources. Please note that rates vary depending on the restaurant and might increase depending on the number of pieces:
Top Dim Sum Restaurants in Dublin
We’re about to review the top parking spots in the city through the following factors:
1. M&L Szechuan Chinese
| Menu | ★★★★★ (5/5) |
| Variety and availability | ★★★★☆ (4/5) |
| Taste and quality | ★★★★★ (5/5) |
| Location | ★★★★☆ (4/5) |
| Ambience and vicinity | ★★★★☆ (4/5) |
| Accessibility | ★★★★☆ (4/5) |
| Cleanliness and maintenance | ★★★★☆ (4/5) |
| Customer reviews | ★★★★☆ (4/5) |
| Service | ★★★★☆ (4/5) |
When we asked the regular customers of M&L Szechuan Chinese what made the restaurant special as a dim sum place, they had one answer for us: pork dumplings. So if you’re a fan of this particular type of dim sum, then you’ve come to the right place!
But don’t fret if you’re not—M&L Szechuan serves other types of dim sum. You can also find vegetable spring rolls, chicken cheese rolls, beef dumplings, deep fried won ton, and prawn dumplings in their menu!
Another thing we love about this restaurant is that it also offers alcohol. We like that you can pair your savoury dim sum with a refreshing beer to make the dining experience more worth it!
Good news is that it’s also in a central location so it’s not difficult to spot. The staff are friendly and accommodating as well so they’re always eager to welcome you to the restaurant whatever time you arrive!
And the price—very reasonable, and not just for the dim sum! Since M&L Szechuan is a Chinese restaurant, it also serves other Chinese food—and in huge servings as well!
The only complaint we heard from regular customers was about the small tables. They told us the tables were so small that during busy hours, they had to be careful with the amount of food they ordered because they wouldn’t fit in the table.
Another thing, most of the time, the credit card terminals aren’t working. We advise preparing cash to make sure you won’t be inconvenienced when the bill arrives.
Pros
- Has menu for special diets
- Serves alcohol
- Offers a variety of Chinese food, not just dim sum
- Central location
- Friendly and accommodating staff
- Reasonable pricing
- Huge servings
Cons
- Small tables
- Credit card terminals are not working
Customer Reviews
Huge servings at a reasonable price
Really enjoyed coming here. The pork dumplings are the best I have tried in years. My family agreed the hot and sour soup and the mushroom soup were the best they have had in ages. Sweet and sour chicken has a perfect balance of taste, Peking Duck also amazing as well as the kung pao. To round it off the beers were lovely, the green tea also. Great amount of food at a really good price. You know you have hit gold when there is a queue outside to get in. Thanks to all the staff for a great evening we will be back again soon—Amanda Mcevoy – Fahy, Google Reviews
Varied menu
Our favourite Chinese restaurant in Dublin. We go here probably 6 or 7 times a year and it never disappoints. There is so much variation on the menu but we can never pass the pork dumplings (best dumplings I have ever tasted), the yuk sung (Pork or Chicken), and the Green Beans. We change up the main courses – they are all delicious! Theres no fuss about this restaurant, just amazing food and great value!— Michelle Hyland, Google Reviews
2. Ka Shing Chinese Restaurant
| Menu | ★★★★★ (5/5) |
| Variety and availability | ★★★★★ (5/5) |
| Taste and quality | ★★★★☆ (4/5) |
| Location | ★★★★☆ (4/5) |
| Ambience and vicinity | ★★★★☆ (4/5) |
| Accessibility | ★★★★★ (5/5) |
| Cleanliness and maintenance | ★★★★☆ (4/5) |
| Customer reviews | ★★★★☆ (4/5) |
| Service | ★★★★☆ (4/5) |
If you’re looking for a dim sum place that serves authentic dim sum, we recommend visiting Ka Shing Chinese Restaurant at Wicklow Street. Take it from your first bite—the restaurant really serves freshly made dim sum without a doubt!
In fact, we’re able to talk to some frequent visitors of the dim sum place, and they told us they loved how they could taste the fresh ingredients on the first bite. They’re very flavourful and moist—something you won’t get from frozen dim sum!
Another thing we love is that aside from the large selection of dim sum, Ka Shing also serves other Chinese food. We love that there’s a variety so you won’t get tired of eating the same things all over again.
Other than the food though, we would also like to commend the ambience of the restaurant. It’s clean and has a lovely interior so you’ll feel relaxed while you eat good food.
It’s easy to locate as well because it’s in a prime location. Other than that, it has a large neon sign that won’t make you miss it!
There are only a couple of things we aren’t pleased about, one of which is the long waiting time for orders. While we understand it might take a while most especially if it’s busy hours, customers would want their dim sum served quick and fresh.
Another thing—be careful about extra charges. Most Chinese restaurants serve complimentary tea, but Ka Shing charges customers for it, which is okay but a bit unusual if you’re used to the free tea.
Pros
- Lovely interior
- Nice ambience
- Clean restaurant
- Easy to locate
- Large selection of Chinese food
- Vegetarian-friendly
- Authentic dim sum
- Walking distance from some conveniences
Cons
- Long waiting time for orders
- Charges for tea
Customer Reviews
Fresh dim sum
Still the best Chinese in Dublin. Superb dim sum, freshest of meat and superb staff. So happy to be back after the lockdown. Everyone must go here and get the dim sum.
If you’re looking for just chicken balls and chips I’d recommend to somewhere else as this place only serves quality— Boatftrm, Trip Advisor
Endless choices for dim sum
This was a real treat for lunch. We wanted dim sum and had endless choices, with each dish full of flavour. The menu had clear descriptions of ingredients, pictures and dim sum selections grouped in easy to understand options. We were able to mix vegetarian and other dietary choices to suit. Everything was easy to share, so our party of 6 could taste without missing out. Such a great dining experience, particularly as our party included friends who were visiting and therefore, we wanted some safe food options.— Nina B, Trip Advisor
3. Ming Court
| Menu | ★★★★★ (5/5) |
| Variety and availability | ★★★★☆ (4/5) |
| Taste and quality | ★★★★★ (5/5) |
| Location | ★★★☆☆ (3/5) |
| Ambience and vicinity | ★★★☆☆ (3/5) |
| Accessibility | ★★★★☆ (4/5) |
| Cleanliness and maintenance | ★★★☆☆ (3/5) |
| Customer reviews | ★★★★☆ (4/5) |
| Service | ★★★★☆ (4/5) |
If you’re looking for a restaurant that offers a wide variety of dim sum, try visiting Ming Court. It has a secret dim sum menu that offers all dim sum imaginable that you’ll find yourself confused because there are too many to choose from!
And they’re freshly made too! In fact, that’s the reason why despite some not-so-good reviews about the maintenance of the restaurant, locals and foreigners alike still flock towards it.
Ming Court offers authentic dim sum. The restaurant is known to use high-quality and fresh ingredients for their dim sum menu and serves them fresh and hot.
We also think it’s good value for money because of the large servings. According to some regular customers, just three plates of dim sum and you’ll feel full already!
Another thing we love about Ming Court is how accessible it is. It’s located beside a mall and has a lot of parking space available if you’re bringing a car—pretty convenient huh!
We think the staff is worth praising as well. We love that they’re attentive to the customers and are also very helpful if you find yourself undecided which among the items on the menu you’ll order.
Just a little top from us—reserve a table in advance. Ming Court can get pretty busy, and you might find yourself waiting for a table for a long time if you don’t book.
Pros
- Serves really authentic dim sum
- Near a mall
- Has lots of parking available
- Food served fresh and hot
- Lovely staff
- Can cater to large groups
- Large servings
- Has a secret dim sum menu
- Reasonable pricing
Cons
- Needs reservations
- Needs improvement in maintenance
Customer Reviews
Authentic dim sum and Chinese food
Really authentic, tasty dim sums, high quality real Chinese food!
Guys, if you ever tried proper Chinese food (none of that greasy sweet stuff, but real quality fresh veg/meat/seafood) – look for no other place to go. You just can’t beat their dim sums, vegetable dishes, prawn dishes, slowly roasted duck and so so much more…I highly recommend it!— flyaway78, Trip Advisor
Ask for the dim sum menu for a bigger list
You know you’ve hit the jackpot when you come in and it’s run by immigrants to Ireland. The food is fantastic, and they do some of the best dim sum in Dublin. Make sure you ask for the dim sum menu and/or the menu in Chinese. You’ll get a better (bigger) list and you won’t regret it. Dim sum starts at 4.50 euro a dish and at 3 dishes you’re easily full up. There’s also a lunch menu with 2 courses for 12 euros or 3 for 15. Again a good value for the money (you’ll be taking some home for later).—phoenixesrose, Trip Advisor
4. Lucky Tortoise Temple Bar
| Menu | ★★★★★ (5/5) |
| Variety and availability | ★★★★☆ (4/5) |
| Taste and quality | ★★★★★ (5/5) |
| Location | ★★★★☆ (4/5) |
| Ambience and vicinity | ★★★★☆ (4/5) |
| Accessibility | ★★★★☆ (4/5) |
| Cleanliness and maintenance | ★★★★☆ (4/5) |
| Customer reviews | ★★★★☆ (4/5) |
| Service | ★★★★☆ (4/5) |
We know it might not sound like a dim sum restaurant, but Lucky Tortoise Temple Bar actually serves some of the best modern dim sum food in the city. It’s just that in addition to dim sum, it also serves other Asian food that you might want to try!
For one, Lucky Tortoise also serves Japanese, Korean, and other Asian dishes. In fact, some of the customers recommend trying the okonomiyaki and the kimchi.
We actually love the variety! As much as we love dim sum, we also want to try eating other Asian foods just to make sure our palates don’t get tired of eating the same food.
We recommend ordering two servings of the dishes though. The small portions might not be enough for hungry customers.
Speaking of dim sum, some of the customers’ favourite dim sum are the pork shumai and pork belly bao buns. According to them, these two are very flavourful and you can’t help but order another set after finishing the first one!
Another thing we love about Lucky Tortoise is the atmosphere. The staff are very friendly and accommodating so if you have a special dietary request, just let them know and they’ll inform the cook.
Just a little warning though—Lucky Tortoise can get really busy at times so walk-ins might not be accommodated on a busy day. This also causes delays in serving your food, which can get a little bothersome most especially to hungry customers.
Pros
- Accommodates customers’ dietary needs
- Nice ambience
- Serves a variety Asian food
- Affordable
- Variety of side dishes
- Friendly and welcoming staff
Cons
- Slow service
- Small servings
- Might not be able to accommodate walk-ins on a busy day
Customer Reviews
Flavourful food
We are so lucky we saw this restaurant. Just as we’re walking along the street looking for a nice place at the last minute. We were not hungry enough for the all-in meal so ordered dumplings, pot stickers, rice, and mushroom and pork belly bao buns. Absolutely delicious. Great flavour, talented kitchen and great staff. Highly recommended.— Andrew and Sam, Trip Advisor
Best dumplings and bao buns
Amazing spot for dumplings and must get the Baos get 4 you will regret getting only two!!!! Honestly can’t go wrong with anything you get here, all the food was amazing! Would recommend making a reservation ahead of time on the weekend but if you stop by at the right time they can take walkins! The service here is above and beyond great experience!— Carrie Chappell, Google Reviews
5. Little Dumpling
| Menu | ★★★★★ (5/5) |
| Variety and availability | ★★★★☆ (4/5) |
| Taste and quality | ★★★★★ (5/5) |
| Location | ★★★★☆ (4/5) |
| Ambience and vicinity | ★★★★☆ (4/5) |
| Accessibility | ★★★★☆ (4/5) |
| Cleanliness and maintenance | ★★★★☆ (4/5) |
| Customer reviews | ★★★★☆ (4/5) |
| Service | ★★★★☆ (4/5) |
If there’s one thing you have to know about Little Dumpling, it’s this—it serves unusual but absolutely yummy dim sum. What we love about the restaurant is that it gives twists to traditional favourites, making the dishes more interesting and flavourful!
We’re able to ask some customers about some of their favourite dim sum just to give you an idea about what you could try. They recommend ordering chicken dumplings, duck dumplings, pork dumplings, and Nutella dumplings!
If you want to try other food, you’re still in luck because Little Dumpling also serves other food. You can eat fried noodles, kimchi, barbecue, and other Asian food.
Just in case you have dietary restrictions, the restaurant also has vegetarian options. If you have other requests, you can inform the servers and they’ll let the cook know so he or she can adjust the seasoning to your food.
In addition to this, we also love that the food is served quickly and piping hot, which is how we always want our food to be served. The staff also rarely mix up orders, which is a good thing!
We think the price is reasonable as well. In terms of the serving (decent-sized food portion), the ambience, and the quality of the food, the costs of the dishes just fit.
We recommend booking a table in advance though. You’ll be surprised that despite being quite difficult to find, the place is always brimming with customers; and if you don’t reserve a table, you might not be accommodated.
Pros
- Food arrives quickly
- Laid-back atmosphere
- Unusual dumplings
- Decent-sized portions
- Has vegetarian options
- Wide variety of food items on the menu
- Cosy atmosphere
Cons
- Always busy
- Difficult to find
Customer Reviews
Great value for food
Amazing value and a lovely team! We landed as a table of 3, looking for some grazing food on our own mini food tour of Dublin. This spot was a highlight. We ordered a range of dumplings, potstickers and a portion of Yuk Sung and carafe of White Wine. For €63 it was great value for 20 dumplings. The pork and chinese cabbage dumplings were winner is a very tight competition!—Pam, Trip Advisor
Quality dumplings
Really good quality food. Very laid back atmosphere. We got chicken dumplings which were delicious!! I got the duck spring rolls which were also very tasty and came with a sweet dipping sauce (yum). I had the pork belly and it came out a bit like a stir fry with vegetables. The pork belly was so tender and flavoursome…— Niahm, Trip Advisor