Taste of Jiang Nan Review: Din Tai Fung-Style Rice And Xiao Long Bao At Maxwell

Taste of Jiang Nan serves Chinese food in Maxwell Food Centre

If you work in the CBD, you may have come across Taste of Jiang Nan, otherwise known as Jiang Nan Wei Dao, a popular Chinese stall at Maxwell Food Centre. Previously known for their Din Tai Fung-style fried rice with pork chop, the hawker stall reopened in 2023 with a new menu specialising in sheng jian bao, AKA pan-fried buns.

To our dismay, they recently stopped selling the sheng jian bao, reverting to their old menu instead. However, we’ve heard too many good things about this stall, so we simply couldn’t resist going down to try the other items on their menu!

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Food at Taste of Jiang Nan

We started our tasting with their Xiao Long Bao, which the stall is really popular for. These are priced at $5 for six pieces, which practically makes it makes it around $0.80 per piece.

The Xiao Long Bao had a familiar taste, reminiscent of those you’d find at most Chinese restaurants. The skin was perfectly thin, and the filling was flavourful, with a nice amount of broth oozing out.

However, if you prefer your dumplings to be bursting with soup, you might find these a bit underwhelming. Overall though, it’s still a solid choice for anyone looking to enjoy a good xiao long bao!

Next, we tried their Pork Wanton in Chilli Oil with Noodles ($5.50) AKA hong you chao shou mian. If you’re a gym bro who’s trying to cut down on carbs, you can go for the same dish without the noodles at the same price, which gets you eight plump and juicy pork dumplings tossed in the same fragrant, savoury chilli oil sauce.

The noodles had a subtle hint of that signature mala-numbing sensation, adding a nice layer of spice to the dish. However, I wished the sauce was more oily, saucy, and indulgently flavourful—I felt that something was lacking as it wasn’t rich enough. The wonton, too, lacked the sauciness needed to make each bite truly satisfying. Overall, this dish wasn’t bad, but it didn’t quite hit that indulgent mark.

Finally, we tried the Din Tai Fung-style Pork Chop Egg Fried Rice ($6.50). It was a bit oilier than the one at Din Tai Fung, but also a tad more flavourful. The dish had just the right amount of savouriness, complemented by the chilli crisp on the side, which added just the right amount of kick. 

Next up, the most important part: the pork chop. The meat was incredibly tender, juicy, and packed with flavour—exactly like the one from Din Tai Fung! 

Ambience at Taste of Jiang Nan

Taste of Jiang Nan is located in Maxwell Food Centre, which is right beside Maxwell MRT Station. The famous food centre gets crowded really quickly during lunch and dinner hours, so go early if you can.

The verdict

Taste of Jiang Nan offers some pretty good Chinese food at great prices, especially in the CBD. So do check the stall out if you are in the area.

While you’re there, check out Dan Lao, another popular stall in the same hawker centre that sells creamy scrambled eggs on rice. If you’re up for more handmade dim sum and noodles, head to the nearby Shang Hai Fried Xiao Long Bao at Chinatown Complex Market & Food Centre.

Address: 1 Kadayanallur Street, #01-62, Maxwell Food Centre, Singapore 069184
Opening hours: Sun-Fri 11:30am to 8:30pm
Tel: 8342 9898
Website
Taste of Jiang Nan is not a halal-certified eatery

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Photos taken by Paula Formantes.
This was an independent review by Eatbook.sg.