If you’re looking for your next dumpling adventure, head straight to Crystal Dragon at City of Dreams Manila. This July, be the first to sample twenty innovative dim sums you can feast on with your eyes and taste buds. No less than Dim Sum Chef de Cuisine, She Chong Ngooi, will serve you with his latest culinary creations.

With Executive Chef for Chinese Cuisine Danny Khoo Teng Jin and Chef de Cuisine Chan Choo Kean on his team, Chef Chong brings his creativity and mastery to table classic dishes infused with vitality through innovative techniques.

Backed by 17 years of expertise in dim sum making, Chef Chong focuses on traditional dim sum techniques coupled with constant creative experimentation to suit contemporary palates. “I pay special attention to the taste, focusing on the combined flavors of ingredients and innovative techniques to give traditional dim sum new vitality by incorporating some local ingredients and enhancing traditional recipes to suit contemporary taste preferences.”

“I also place importance on the plating and presentation to make each dim sum both pleasing to the eye and the palate,” adds Chef Chong. He encourages diners to pay attention and appreciate the dim sum’s handiwork that can be seen in the number of pleats and other elements of the dish. “A well-executed shrimp dumpling (har gow), for example, is defined by its crisp, clear, and translucent wrapper, perfectly capturing the delicate flavor of the shrimp filling. The shrimp should be succulent and sweet, and the sauce should complement the dish, enhancing rather than masking the taste.”

A dim sum feast always starts with a good appetizer. Chef Chong’s all-new dim sum menu starts with a dainty amuse-bouche, the Jade Puff Pear with Seafood Filling. Contained in a glass dome cover, this appetizer is almost too pretty to eat with its green wrapping, yellow bedding, and a single red flower on the side. Beyond its appearance, the texture and flavors are there to prepare you for the rest of the menu items.

The first course comes in a steamed basket with four dim sum nuggets, each one standing out with their unique flavor profiles. As suggested by Chef Chong, you must savor the Goldfish Dumpling Filled with Shrimp and Diced Pumpkin first. Inside, “water chestnuts were added for more texture, and for the goldfish orange color, carrot extract was used,” reveals Chef Chong. The Chilean Cod with Lemon Zest, which incorporates fresh lemon peels for freshness, comes next. Its colored-green wrapping was achieved by using spinach extract. “Instead of food coloring, we use vegetable extracts,” said Chef Chong, proving that everything that goes on the plate was made from scratch. For the third bite, the Imperial Crabmeat Crystal Dumpling comes with a touch of dry scallop and a bit of shrimp paste. The dumpling’s orange hue comes from the Chinese wolfberry extract. Rounding up the fabulous four is the Steamed Preserved Turnip & Chicken in Bean Curd Bag, which has flavors that marry well with chicken.

For the next course, the Dragon King Dumpling Soup is served warm, with chewy dumplings stuffed with Chinese dry seafood such as abalone, scallop, and sea cucumber swimming in a light broth.

The chef’s selection of meaty dim sum includes the Deep-fried Hoisin Sauce Roasted Duck Meat Puff that is crunchy and savory, the mouth-watering Deep-fried Shrimp (also called the prosperity roll) and Duo Egg Roll, and the spicy hot Pan-seared Black Pepper Wagyu Beef Bun.

The Poached Homemade Spinach Noodle in Aromatic Szechuan Seafood Broth and Tiger Prawn Stuffed with Prawn Mousse is a special menu item that you have to make a request for so you can have a taste of the soft but firm noodles, thick flavorful broth, and the double-punch of prawn flavor.

The sweet dim sum pieces were enticing to the eyes and taste buds as well. Served on a deck plate, you may indulge in a quartet of desserts composed of the Golden Swan Puff with Red Bean, Cranberry Red Wine Snow Skin, the stringed pastry of Kataifi Avocado Lava, and the jello-like Mango Pudding shaped like a mythical lion.