A dai pai dong on Wellington Street
Lotus House began as a street-side stall serving congee and youtiao to morning commuters in Central.
Since 1984
Our Story缘起
Lotus House is a family-run Cantonese tea house. We believe the best meals are the ones that refuse to end.
莲
一盅两件
The Beginning
Yum cha taught us how to feed a neighborhood.
In Hong Kong, yum cha is not just brunch — it is a social contract. Families gather, trolleys circle, and the tea pot is refilled until the conversation runs dry. Our founder learned this rhythm from her grandmother, who ran a small stall on Wellington Street in the 1960s.
We opened Lotus House to preserve that rhythm. No timers, no rush. Just bamboo baskets, iron teapots, and the understanding that a meal can last as long as it needs to.
The Room
One room, one menu, one kitchen.
We are not big. The dining room holds forty-eight seats, all arranged around circular tables so the conversation stays at the center. In the open kitchen, dim sum is folded in the morning, the broth is simmered overnight, and the roast ducks hang in the window.
On weekends, the trolley starts at eleven and keeps coming back for three hours. No one rushes you. The teapot is refilled before you ask.
Timeline
Four decades, one kitchen.
The first dining room
We moved indoors, hired our first dim sum chef, and installed the red vinyl booths regulars still ask for.
The second generation
The founder’s daughter took over, keeping the recipes while refining the room for longer, slower lunches.
Still family-run
We still open at six to steam the first baskets by hand. Some things do not need to change.
Our Values
The house rules.
Handmade every morning
手工Our har gow wrappers are rolled by hand, our char siu is glazed in-house, and our broth simmers overnight.
Tea as the anchor
以茶为本Tea is not a beverage choice. It resets the palate, paces the meal, and turns lunch into a ritual.
Seasonal, not trendy
不时不食We follow the Cantonese calendar: grouper in winter, hairy crab in autumn, the best loquats in spring.
“Good dim sum is not about how many baskets you can make. It is about how many regulars come back for the same taste.”
Come sit with us.
Whether it is your first yum cha or your five-hundredth, there is always room at the table.