After a busy Sunday, we were just looking for a quick bite for dinner, nothing too fancy but not your general take-away and that is how we ended up at “That Dumpling Place” in the Nicholas Street Precinct. We have passed by many a time and have seen a constant stream of customers inside, so we decided to give them a call and book, just in case.
Not surprisingly, the specialty of the restaurant is dumplings, cooked in a variety of ways, however, there are also a few other dishes to try such as braised pork belly, crispy curry chicken and sea salted endamame. So, if you are not a dumpling fan, never fear, there is something for you too.
This restaurant is a great place to put everything in the middle and share with friends and I kind of wish we had taken some others along, because there were a few things that I would have liked to sample which would have been waaaaay too much for just the two of us.
So, what did we try?
ENTREES
Spiced Chicken Skewers (4) $13.80
Shallot Pancakes (3) $11.00
The dish that stood out for me the most was the chicken skewers. By comparison to the dumplings, which had subtle flavours, these were in your face flavours, really good, punchy and enjoyable. I found the pancakes to be more like a Roti from an Indian restaurant and feel they would probably be better paired with one of the main dishes on the menu rather than dumplings.
MAINS
Prawn, Pork & Garlic Chives (7) - Poached $13.80
Prawn Har Gow (7) – Steamed $14.80
Fish Dumpling (7) - Pan Fried $13.80
Of course we had to try the three different cooking methods for comparison, but I can’t say that any of them stood out especially as being far better than the others. I was a little surprised to find that the fried dumplings were pan fried, not deep fried as I expected (maybe, I should have paid a little more attention to the menu which clearly stated Pan fried), but these had a nice char on one side which added to the taste.
I personally don’t have much of a history with dumplings, so this was mostly a new experience for me. Whilst I was there, I formed the opinion that this would be an ideal venue for business people who have that long day full of meetings and just need a lunch time respite. Even for a sit down meal, you can be in and out of there quite quickly.
A couple of tips from the big guy –
· The dumplings are very juicy, so remember to lean forward.
· With very little time between cooking, serving and eating I would suggest that you don’t go gung-ho and jam one of these tasty little parcels straight into your mouth on arrival at the table or you might find yourself unprepared for the amount of heat the insides can have. Pace yourself and treat the dumplings with the respect they deserve.
· It is very easy to over order, particularly if you find yourself in unfamiliar territory. They’re only little, right, they couldn’t possibly be that filling? Wrong!
We probably didn’t need to try three trays of dumplings for the two of us, but hey – that’s what we do here at The 2 Hour Circle, we love to try new things.
All in all, a pleasant and short evening out which was just what we were after.
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