Din Tai Fung

Din Tai Fung Restaurant Review:

Angelenos have long trekked to Arcadia for the legendary xiao long bao (soup dumplings) of Din Tai Fung, a global franchise with a Taipei flagship that has spawned numerous restaurants on three continents. But now the juicy little beauties are also found at Glendale’s The Americana at Brand mall. The eatery is big and airy, elegantly decorated and offers its own unique (and pricey) delicacy, the truffle dumpling, alongside festive Asian-inspired cocktails. The same pictorial menu spanning spicy braised beef soup, Shanghai rice cake with pork, chicken fried noodles --- and a line out the door. (You can be notified by text that a table is ready as you shop.) But when steaming pots of juicy pork dumplings arrive, all of that is forgotten. The truffle dumplings’ earthiness contrasts nicely with the ocean tang of the pork and crab version, or the green melon and shrimp variety. Delicate, pink sweet taro dumplings punctuate the savory for a nice finish.