First of all let’s talk about DTF. It is a global chain but cannot be knocked for that simply because of its remarkable accomplishment in standardization, efficiency and consistency. Founded in 1972 by a husband and wife team, it burst onto the global scene in the early ’90s when it caught the attention of Japanese department store Takashimaya, which helped it apply standardization practices and expand across Japan. But it was really put on the map by famed chef and godfather of Chinese food Ken Hom when he lauded DTF in an article for the New York Times that named it one of the "Top 10 restaurants in the world,” hype they have managed to ride until today. Later, with the development of an enormous central kitchen in Taiwan and a standardized menu, DTF was able to expand even quicker to more than four dozen restaurants in China, Japan, Hong Kong, Singapore, Korea, Indonesia, Malaysia, Australia and the United States.

If you live outside of Shanghai, this is probably your best bet to taste a truly good xiaolongbao. The skin is thin, and each bao has at least 18 pleats every time. You can get original pork flavor, pork with crab roe, shrimp, etc. The combination of complete standardization and a rigorous training program for staff ensures the same delicious bite every single time.

See the blog post: http://tinyurl.com/oyjnw6g