Conveniently located at the side of The Americana at Brand, Din Tai Fung is the place to be to warm up hungry stomachs in this cold weather.

The walls of the restaurant are glass, while the interior walls are a light brown color. All the tables and booths are dark brown, almost like black. The tables are set up with small, white square plates, brown chopsticks, brown cloth napkins and brown sauce sets. Customers are given a brown menu book of dishes, a black menu of drinks and a white paper to indicate the order and quantity.

Din Tai Fung, a gourmet Chinese and Taiwanese restaurant, is mostly known for its delicious, juicy dumplings, and their famous mixture of vinegar, soy sauce and ginger for dipping. With eight steamed dumplings to choose from, I ordered the ten-piece shrimp and pork dumplings for $10.

The dumplings were brought to the table in a metal pot, or steaming tray, that is unlidded when served. Before going in for the kill, I was given a small sauce plate with chopped ginger, and had been instructed to fill the plate with both vinegar and soy sauce, with chilli sauce if desirable.

Compared to other dumpling houses I have eaten from, I had never witnessed this type of sauce. After dipping the dumpling into the sauce, I placed the entire delicious bundle of warmth into my mouth, and to my surprise, the dumplings had soup inside. I had never come across a dumpling with soup, ever, and it was perfect for the cold weather outside.

I also ordered a warm bowl of combination wonton soup for $9. The soup was a bit bland; I found myself adding soy sauce to add flavor into the clear soup. I enjoyed adding a little bit of chilli sauce, which gave the soup a warm kick.

Stepping aside from their liquid foods, I ordered a plate of shrimp fried rice for $9. Most fried rice I have eaten is served oily, but Din Tai Fung’s rice was served with hardly any grease or oil. The rice was white, mixed in with green onions, egg and peeled shrimp. It wasn’t too salty or bland, but rather the right taste I was looking for.

I did not try any desserts, but if I had the chance to, I would’ve tasted the sweet taro bun, an Asian plant that is mashed up, sweetened, then stuffed into a soft, white, bland bun.

Din Tai Fung offers tasty food for reasonable prices. The waiters are welcoming, and during our eating experience they always checked to make sure if we needed anything.