Tai Pan Bakery debuts in South Land Park with handmade dim sum sellout
From open to close on its first day in business, Tai Pan Bakery & Dim Sum was packed with a line stretching out the door.
The brand new dim sum shop at 4400 Freeport Blvd., Suite 160, sold out of every bun, dumpling, ball and cake in its display cases on Monday, according to owner Jenny Chiu.
The Chiu family spent 13 months building out their restaurant, while daughter Britney captured the process on her Instagram page.
“I know the power of social media, just because I’ve been on it so much,” she said. “I’ve been trying to (explain to) our older staff that this is really important to do ... I was like, ‘You have to be prepared, this is gonna be big.’”
Big it was. The Chius and their team of 10 cooks worked nonstop to serve chewy seafood dumplings, crispy egg rolls and more to a line of customers that never seemed to end. By Tuesday morning, the WeChat group Jenny created for the restaurant had grown to more than 200 members.
Jenny and her husband, Steve, are seasoned restaurant owners. Steve has more than 40 years of food industry experience in his native Hong Kong and in the Bay Area, where the couple lived and owned various eateries for two decades. The family has now lived in Elk Grove for the last five years.
Two years ago, Jenny decided to retire from owning restaurants and shut down the family’s eateries. However, her retirement days didn’t last long, as the idea of owning a dim sum restaurant blossomed less than a year later. Partnering with an experienced dim sum restaurateur, Jenny found the Freeport Boulevard restaurant unit and was off to the races developing Tai Pan.
The bakery and dim sum eatery opened Monday after months of construction and permit-related setbacks, but the family was undeterred.
Tai Pan’s kitchen and front counter were in constant motion throughout the day, with chefs regularly bringing fresh trays of freshly steamed buns, crispy fried dumplings and hand-wrapped shu mai. Jenny said all of the food is prepared by hand, without machines helping produce the delicate dishes en masse.
“It’s not that I don’t believe in machines,” Jenny said. “(The food) just needs that hand touch to make it taste better.”
The care taken in preparing the food is evident. BBQ pork buns and red bean steamed buns (one for $2.50 each) had fluffy, lightly sweetened bread enveloping warm fillings, balancing on the knife’s edge of being moist without becoming uncomfortably sticky. Hai gow (one for $1.85) and shrimp and chive dumplings (three for $6.95) feature chewy, sweet shrimp that have a satisfying soft snap when bitten into, held in a glossy steamed wrapper.
Egg rolls (three for $5.95) are a triumph in having perfectly crispy fried wrapping, avoiding the dripping oiliness often seen in the popular dish. Its juicy pork filling is supplemented by lightly sweet vermicelli noodles and crunchy carrot shreds.
The Chiu children, Britney and Jordan, grew up working in their parents’ Bay Area restaurants. Now all grown up and playing tennis professionally, they helped their parents launch Tai Pan while both recovering from sports injuries. Britney said having the restaurant to fill her time and keep her active was a welcome distraction at first, though it became a bit overwhelming as opening day approached and as her injury continued healing.
Nevertheless, Britney said she’s happy to see the launch of her parents’ restaurant.
“I’m really lucky to have ... a good daughter (who is) really capable of doing what she could to help me to promote this business,” Jenny said, visibly emotional. “I’m very thankful.”
In Tai Pan’s early days, it is scheduled to operate seven days per week, from 6 a.m. to 5 p.m., though Jenny said the hours may change as the family members settle into their routines.
What I’m Eating
The Sacramento area’s hottest gyro spot is a food truck parked in a Shell gas station on Florin Road. Seriously, it’s worth a stop.
The Gyro Corner truck puts a Californian spin on one of Greece’s top comfort foods, marrying marinated gyro meats with French fries to create a halal Mediterranean version of classic carne asada fries. In January, Social Magazine named the truck’s loaded fries as the best in town, and it’s easy to see why.
A heaping tray of lamb loaded fries goes for $14.99, topped with a standard set of gyro fixings, including cucumber, tomato, red onion and pepperoncini, all doused in tzatziki sauce and a prickly acidic hot sauce. It’s a solid balance of core flavors, with hot sauce and peppers bringing heat and acid, fries adding a touch of salt and comforting starch, and marinated lamb elevating the dish to another level with rich fattiness.
Combo dishes ($12.99 for gyro) come with seasoned lamb and fresh grilled chicken, which has a smokier profile than the savory lamb.
If fries aren’t your jam, all four meat options — chicken, lamb, steak and falafel — are available as a standard gyro wrapped in a pita bread or as a platter with rice. All of the meat is prepared fresh, which comes with a bit of a wait, but the outcome is worth it. There’s even a risk-free trial opportunity — the chef offers to remake the dish if it isn’t up to standard.
Gyro Corner
Address: 5500 Florin Road, Sacramento
Hours: 11 a.m.-8 p.m. Monday-Saturday or as otherwise specified on Instagram
Phone: 916-217-8400
Instagram: @gyrocorner_
Drinks: Bottled water, canned soda
Vegetarian options: Falafel platter, gyro, fries; plain fries
Noise level: Loud
Outdoor seating: No
Openings & Closings
• Yager Lodge and Rare, a log cabin-themed bar and restaurant, held its grand opening on Friday. The Historic Folsom restaurant, at 727 Traders Lane, has an upscale take on the great outdoors, with an expansive food menu covering meat, seafood and vegetarian options. Its sleek cocktail menu is divided into “past,” “present,” and “future” inspired drinks that touch on the bar’s campground theming and Northern Californian history.
• East Sacramento wine bar Joneck’s is preparing for its final weekend at 5619 H St. Earlier this year, co-owner Renee Jones announced plans to move her bar to 2231 J St. in the fall, citing racist interactions with customers who live in the neighborhood, The Bee previously reported. The current location held its final day Thursday, with the new midtown bar slated to open in October.
This story was originally published September 12, 2025 at 5:00 AM.
