Last Sunday we headed out for dim sum, one of our favourite weekend activities. Sadly we don’t get to go as often these days since Mini Bites arrived so it was a real treat. For dim sum we usually go to Little Chinatown on Nelson Street (here in Bristol) but after having a great evening meal with friends recently, we decided to try Dragon’s Delicacy this time.
Dragon’s Delicacy
Dragon’s Delicacy is a big Chinese restaurant situated above Wai Yee Hong supermarket at the East Gate Centre in Eastville. I like the sense of space and the large round tables which can seat up to 10-12 people at once. There’s always been a restaurant here but Dragon’s Delicacy opened relatively recently, I think within the last year or so. We went last year with friends for an evening meal and the food was excellent so I knew the dim sum would be good. It’s always busy but being such a large open space, it feels airy and light. I enjoy seeing such a mix of people too – from large family gatherings to groups of young friends and couples with young kids. I’m fairly sure they do big functions and weddings too!
Time for Yum Cha
Yum Cha is the traditional Cantonese custom of eating dumplings and small plates alongside tea. The meal itself is called Yum Cha and the food is Dim Sum. Traditionally, items would be pushed on a trolley for diners to select from and this is how we’ve experienced it in Penang, Malaysia, in Singapore and Melbourne, Australia (all places with large Chinese communities). Here in the UK, we tend to choose from a tick list and then dishes are brought out as they’re ready.
The dim sum menu is varied at Dragon’s Delicacy with plenty to choose from. I liked the fact that there as more than just dumplings, although don’t get me wrong, I LOVE dumplings. Their offering includes more traditional Chinese items that you might find at other places nearby including tripe in black pepper sauce, sliced fish congee and glutinous rice with chicken in lotus leaf. It also includes classic favourites like prawn sui mei and steamed bbq pork buns.
We ordered seven dishes between two (six savoury, one sweet) and a big pot of jasmine tea. This left us comfortably full. One of the reasons I love dim sum is the relaxed nature of the experience. It’s a time to chat and catch up over a relaxed informal meal with a big pot of tea to share. The staff were friendly and attentive, although this was almost certainly due to Mini Bites who was waving and smiling at everyone as they passed!
What did we order?
Two staples we always order are the fried dough Cheung fun and siu mai dumplings. Both were delicious, especially the cheung fun with its crispy dough and soft slippery steamed rice noodle rolls. Siu mai are a classic Cantonese dim sum item – dense steamed dumpling, packed with minced pork and prawn. They’re just about big enough to eat in one go too!
We also had the steamed bbq pork buns – fluffy and soft with that signature smoky sweet char siu pork inside. I like to dip these in a little soy although I’m not sure that’s strictly the done thing.
The smacked cucumber salad at Dragon’s Delicacy is my absolute fave thing. I’ve never seen it on a dim sum menu before but it is so good. The garlic dressing and thinly sliced red chillies give it such a punch that I actually used a spoon to finish it once the cucumber had been eaten. This is a must order item (and you’ll be glad to know that this is available in the evenings too).
Dave declared the turnip cake the best he’s had. We liked that they were cubed and slightly fried for a crispy edge in a way we’ve not seen elsewhere. We opted for the version with XO sauce. Surprisingly, it was actually a pretty dry dish (see top picture!) and came with a bean sprouts and chilli garnish. Still, that rich umami punch you’d expect from the XO was definitely there.
We also had chicken claws in black bean xo sauce and mini spare ribs in garlic sauce to complete the meal. I first tried chicken feet in South Korea and really enjoyed the flavour although they can be tricky to eat. These ones were in a very tasty sauce but I felt that the size of them made it hard to eat as there were lots of little bones and not too much else. I probably wouldn’t order again on this menu. The spare ribs were again, quite tricky to eat but worth it for tasty meat in a flavourful sauce. Anything with garlic in the title is always going to win my heart!
Happy tummies
Overall, we really enjoyed our dim sum at Dragon’s Delicacy and I’d definitely recommend a visit to anyone looking to try a wide range of dim sum items. We booked through OpenTable, a great website which allows you to book, review and research restaurants in one place. They have lots of Bristol restaurants listed (plus loads across Bath and the South West) as well as hundreds, probably thousands across the UK. You can also earn points towards free meals too! Happy tummies, happy days.
*I was paid to book and review a restaurant of my choice by Opentable, the restaurant booking and review website. I chose Dragon’s Delicacy myself and this review reflects my own opinions and experience.*
