RFK Cuisine · Dim Sum · Singapore
Best Dim Sum Restaurants in Singapore 2026
Cantonese dim sum · Singapore · 6 rooms ranked · Updated June 2026
Compiled by the Restaurants for Kings editorial team · Published June 20, 2026 · Updated June 20, 2026
Singapore judges a Cantonese kitchen on its har gow before anything else — the crystal prawn dumpling, with its pleated, near-translucent skin and a single snap of fresh prawn inside, is the test every chef here knows they will be marked on. Two of the rooms on this list hold a Michelin star and serve dim sum at lunch that matches their à la carte; the rest are five-star-hotel Cantonese kitchens turning out yum cha — the ritual of tea and small plates — at a level most cities never reach. This is hotel dim sum, refined and reservation-led rather than trolley-and-clatter, but the standard at the top is as high as anywhere outside Hong Kong. These are the six best dim sum rooms in Singapore for 2026, ranked on the cooking, the room and the bill, with the dish to order and how to book each.
1.Summer Pavilion
The most consistent Michelin-starred Cantonese in the city; book Summer Pavilion's garden room for a refined weekday dim sum lunch.
Summer Pavilion, chef Cheung Siu Kong's room set inside a modern Chinese garden at the Ritz-Carlton, Millenia, has held one Michelin star for nine straight years, and its dim sum lunch is the most polished in Singapore. Cheung is a Hong Kong veteran of more than three decades, and the precision shows in the har gow, the double-boiled soups and the baked barbecue pork pastry. The garden setting — koi pond, full-height windows, generous spacing — makes it the calmest of the starred rooms. Dim sum runs at lunch only; a spread for two lands around S$80 to S$120 a head. For starred Cantonese in a quiet garden room, book it through the hotel a few days ahead. See it on the full Singapore dining guide.
Reserve through the Ritz-Carlton; the har gow, the baked char siew pastry, and a double-boiled soup.
2.Summer Palace
A starred Orchard Cantonese stalwart; go to Summer Palace for traditional dim sum executed with old-school exactness.
Summer Palace, on the third floor of the Conrad Singapore Orchard, has held a Michelin star since 2019 under executive chef Liu Ching Hai, with dim sum chef Leong Kwok Sing running the steamers. The kitchen is the traditionalist's choice — no theatrics, just textbook har gow, siew mai and char siew bao, plus the kind of double-boiled tonics and roast meats that reward an order beyond the dumplings. The room is plush and old-Cantonese formal, popular with families for weekend yum cha. It is the most classical dim sum on this list, and the better for it. For traditional dim sum done to the letter near Orchard Road, book a weekend lunch in advance.
Reserve via the Conrad; the har gow, the siew mai, and the baked custard buns.
3.Imperial Treasure Fine Chinese Cuisine
The widest, most reliable dim sum spread in town; go to Imperial Treasure for roast meats and dumplings in one sitting.
Imperial Treasure's Fine Chinese Cuisine room at Great World runs the deepest dim sum range in Singapore, made by a kitchen of Hong Kong-trained chefs who treat the steamers and the roasting oven with equal seriousness. The crispy roast pork and char siew are among the best in the city, the har gow and carrot cake are textbook, and the breadth means a table can graze for an hour without repeating itself. It is a polished mall-anchored room rather than a hotel one, which keeps it a notch more accessible than the starred kitchens. For an extensive dim sum lunch with roast meats on the same table, book ahead for weekends.
Reserve direct; the har gow, the crispy roast pork, and the pan-fried carrot cake.
4.Li Bai
The Scotts Road grande dame for classic yum cha; go to Li Bai for refined dim sum in a hushed, old-money room.
Li Bai, the long-running Cantonese restaurant at the Sheraton Towers on Scotts Road, is the city's grande-dame hotel dining room, and its weekend dim sum is a Singapore institution. The kitchen leans elegant and restrained — fine-skinned har gow, prawn-and-chive dumplings, baked barbecue pork buns and a strong line in double-boiled soups — served in a quiet, formally appointed room that has hosted business lunches for decades. It is dim sum for an unhurried, grown-up table rather than a noisy one. For classic yum cha in a hushed setting off Orchard Road, reserve a few days out for weekend lunch.
Reserve via the Sheraton; the har gow, the baked char siew bao, and a double-boiled soup.
5.Peach Blossoms
The most photogenic, forward-looking dim sum in the city; go to Peach Blossoms for Edward Chong's modern Cantonese twist.
Peach Blossoms, chef Edward Chong's room at the Parkroyal Collection Marina Bay, is the contemporary entry — traditional Cantonese technique pushed toward modern presentation, with dim sum that arrives looking like jewellery and still tastes of the classics underneath. The signature shaped dumplings and the truffle-laced siew mai are Instagram bait done well, and the lush, plant-filled atrium room is among the prettiest dining spaces in Singapore. It is the dim sum lunch to bring someone you want to impress. For modern Cantonese with serious technique under the styling, book a weekend lunch ahead.
Reserve direct; the signature shaped dumplings, the truffle siew mai, and the custard buns.
6.Jade
Dim sum inside the colonial Fullerton; go to Jade for classic Cantonese small plates in Singapore's grandest old building.
Jade sits inside the Fullerton Hotel, the restored 1928 General Post Office building on the river, and serves a tidy, classical dim sum lunch in one of the city's most handsome rooms. The kitchen keeps to the canon — har gow, siew mai, char siew so, custard buns — and does it cleanly rather than chasing novelty, with a set dim sum lunch that makes it the most straightforward booking on this list. The heritage architecture and the riverside location make it a natural stop on a Marina Bay walk. For classic dim sum in a landmark building, book ahead or take the weekday set lunch.
Reserve via the Fullerton; the har gow, the char siew so pastry, and the set dim sum lunch.
How Singapore eats dim sum
Dim sum in Singapore is overwhelmingly a hotel and fine-Cantonese affair rather than the trolley-and-clatter teahouse tradition — the city's best steamers are inside five-star hotels and polished mall rooms, served à la carte by the basket rather than wheeled past on carts. It is a lunch ritual: most kitchens serve dim sum only at midday and switch to the full Cantonese menu at dinner, and weekend yum cha at the grand rooms (Li Bai, Summer Palace, Jade) books out, so reserve a few days ahead. Weekday dim sum lunches are quieter and easier to walk into.
Order to test the kitchen first — har gow, siew mai and char siew bao reveal the skin work and the seasoning instantly — then branch into the house specialities, which at this level means roast meats, baked barbecue pork pastries and custard buns. Prices run roughly S$60 to S$120 a head at the starred and hotel rooms, with a tea charge plus ten percent service and GST added. For the wider Cantonese picture beyond dim sum, see our best Chinese restaurants in Singapore, and for the city by neighbourhood use the full Singapore dining guide.
Where not to look for it
Skip these for a serious dim sum lunch
The all-you-can-eat dim sum buffets, for the cooking. The mall and casual chains selling unlimited dim sum trade volume for finesse, and the har gow skins and prawn quality show it. For dumplings worth the calories, book Summer Palace or Imperial Treasure instead.
Turning up at dinner for dim sum. Most of these kitchens serve dim sum at lunch only and switch to the full Cantonese carte in the evening. If you want a spread of dumplings, come at midday; for a dinner of roast meats and seafood, that is a different meal — see the wider Chinese in Singapore guide.
Frequently asked
What is the best dim sum in Singapore?
Summer Pavilion at the Ritz-Carlton, Millenia and Summer Palace at the Conrad Singapore Orchard are the two Michelin-starred Cantonese rooms in the city, and both serve dim sum at lunch that is as refined as their à la carte. Summer Pavilion edges it for the garden setting and the consistency of nine straight starred years. For an extensive trolley-style spread, Imperial Treasure's dim sum range is the deepest in town.
Where can you get Michelin-starred dim sum in Singapore?
Two hotel Cantonese restaurants hold one Michelin star each and serve dim sum at lunch: Summer Pavilion at the Ritz-Carlton, Millenia, which has held its star since the Singapore guide began, and Summer Palace at the Conrad Singapore Orchard, starred consistently since 2019. Both require booking ahead for weekend lunch. The rest of this list — Imperial Treasure, Li Bai, Peach Blossoms and Jade — are unstarred but cook at a serious level.
How much does dim sum cost in Singapore?
Dim sum in Singapore's hotel Cantonese rooms is mostly à la carte by the basket, and a proper lunch for two with a spread of dumplings, roast meats, buns and a pot of tea lands around S$60 to S$120 a head at the starred and five-star-hotel rooms. Set dim sum lunches and weekend yum cha menus bring that down. Tea charge and ten percent service plus GST are added to the bill.
When is the best time to eat dim sum in Singapore?
Lunch, and ideally weekend lunch, when the full dim sum range is on and the kitchens are at full tilt — though Singapore's hotel rooms run dim sum at weekday lunch too, which is quieter and easier to book. Weekend yum cha at Summer Palace, Li Bai and Jade fills up, so reserve a few days ahead. Most kitchens serve dim sum only at lunch and switch to the full Cantonese menu at dinner.
What dim sum dishes should you order in Singapore?
Start with the benchmarks — har gow (crystal prawn dumpling), siew mai and char siew bao (barbecue pork bun) — which tell you instantly how good the kitchen is. Then order the house specialities: the baked barbecue pork pastries and custard buns are where the hotel rooms show off. Imperial Treasure's roast meats and Summer Pavilion's double-boiled soups are worth adding even at a dim sum lunch.
More Singapore, more Cantonese
More from RFK
Browse the full Singapore dining guide, compare the global field on the best dim sum worldwide, read the verdict on starred Summer Palace, plan a business lunch, find a family celebration table, or open the full RFK cuisine index.
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