Shang Hai Dimsum House: Chinese food in Burnaby

Shanghai Dimsum House is a food court stall located inside Crystal Mall in Burnaby. They are known for their soup dumplings and pan-fried pork buns so we came to check them out for a nice cheap dinner with some friends.

Crystal Mall food court

The stall is very yellow and it’s usually quite busy so you can’t miss it. The food court is located on the second floor above the supermarket in Crystal Mall. You order at the booth and can sit at any table in the food court to eat. Note that they only accept cash only.

Food

Shanghai pan-fried pork buns ($8)

For $8, you can get 5 big pan-fried pork buns. These are crispy on the outside and filled with hot soup on the inside! I love how big they are and how much soup is inside – be careful when you eat it because the soup can be quite hot and can scorch your tongue. I recommend poking a hole with your chopstick to let it air out a bit before you take a big bite.

The pork buns are delicious and a great deal because they are really big. Very authentic and lots of pork filling inside as well.

Combo A ($10)

We also ordered their Combo A, which includes Shang Hai styled steamed mini pork buns and a tofu puff in vermicelli soup. I was pretty happy to see they serve the steamed mini pork buns in an actual dimsum steamer.

As you can see from the photo, you get 5 steamed pork buns but looking at the size, they are not mini at all! Similar to the pan-fried pork buns, these steamed buns also have a lot of soupy goodness inside and the wrapping is thin so it is like an explosion in your mouth.

The tofu puff in vermicelli soup is kinda just like a little bonus. It’s not as exceptional as the pan-fried or steamed pork buns, but it’s a nice little side. You actually get very little vermicelli inside the little cup.

If I were to come here for lunch alone, I think a Combo A would suffice quite nicely for the amount of food. And for only $10!

Other food court mentions

Our 2 friends ordered other stuff from the Crystal Mall food court. I don’t know the name of the stalls or the price, but here are some pics for alternative options as well:

First we have a Hainanese Chicken rice, which was quite yummy. They serve it with authentic oil rice and the chicken is very tender. Curry fish balls were also yummy.

I thought the beef noodle soup looked a little plain but it’s nice if you want a homey meal and something that was a little healthier.

Final thoughts

Loewe’s rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

We had a delicious dinner at Crystal Mall food court. I love how it is fast, cheap and casual. Also there are so many choices to food but definitely we came here for the Shang Hai Dimsum House and it did not disappoint! Must-orders are the pan-fried pork buns and the steamed mini pork buns (even if you don’t get the combo).

The only annoying thing is that they are cash only (the entire food court/Crystal Mall is kinda cash only) so that can be inconvenient if you never have cash like me.

Sincerely, Loewe