Mei Mei, Liverpool

For a dim sum lunch in Liverpool there are only really two restaurants I would consider, Mei Mei on Berry Street by the bombed out church (St Lukes for the out of towners) and Tai Pan further out from the centre on Great Howard Street.

The beauty of dim sum is that it is a sharing affair and is best enjoyed in large groups which allows for more dishes to be ordered. Portions of dumplings usually come with four pieces, although more upscale Chinese restaurants may serve in portions of three or even allow you to order each piece individually as in the case of A Wong.

Siu mai – prawn and pork dumplings

Har gau – prawn dumplings in a translucent case

Shanghai dumplings, not on the level of those I've tried at Din Tai Fung in Hong Kong but decent

Whelks in satay sauce - a childhood favourite

Churn fan – silky smooth rice rolls which come in a range of fillings, fried dough, char siu and beef are generally our picks

Fried churn fun and turnip cakes coated in XO sauce (made with dried scallops)

Blackbean and chilli steam spare ribs

Chicken feet, braised and steamed with blackbean and chilli

Bean curd wraps – filled with pork and spring onion, deep fried beancurd spring rolls and yee mein noodles with mushroom

Deep fried cuttlefish cakes and mixed roast meat ho fun

A Wong, London

For innovative accessible Chinese food A Wong is in my view one of the leaders in the country. Since trying the mindblowingly good Peking duck feast last year I was intrigued with the dim sum and regular dinner menu and it was only until recently that I could return to sample both. The attractive aspect of the dim sum menu is being able to order per individual piece rather than a portion, ideal for lone diners and couples; it may mean it costs more but the quality more than makes up for it.

During a leisurely lunch we tried the following starting with Shanghai steamed dumplings with ginger infused vinegar.

Pork and prawn dumpling, pork crackling, the restaurants take on the classic siu mai.

Clear shrimp dumpling, sweet chilli sauce, citrus foam – har gau, my all time favourite dim sum.  

Quail egg croquette puff

Baked roasted pork buns with a sugared coating

Sesame buttered smoked chicken

Yunnan mushroom, pork and truffle dumpling

Crab, seafood and beancurd cannelloni, pickled cockles – packed with crab with a nice crunch the fried beancurd adding texture.

Foie gras sticky sesame dumpling

Scallop puff with XO sauce

Deep fried prawn ball with abalone and chilli vinaigrette

63 degree ‘tea egg’ with shredded filo – mopping up the oozing yolk with the shredded filo was addictive. 

Smoked duck and jellyfish and pork crackling salad

A week before my dim sum visit I returned for the dinner menu. The dishes we tried were all based on classic Chinese dishes but with Chef Andrew Wongs own twist. They had a homely flavour feel yet retained the restaurant grace in terms of presentation.

Sweet and sour rib with toasted sesame

Dry braised salt and pepper tiger prawn

Crispy duck: Mrs. Chow’s  pancakes and plum sauce

Dong Po slow braised Blythburgh pork belly

Dry fried French beans with minced pork

Scotch beef rump with salsify, preserved plum powder and oyster sauce

Chef Cheng’s prawn stuffed chicken wings with black bean sauce

Crispy chilli, caramelised beef, pickled carrots

Razor clam with braised sea cucumber, pickled cucumber, wind dried sausage

Theres something very comforting about mopping up white rice infused with the sauce from the dishes above. In short, A Wong is a must try.

Yauatcha, London

A long anticipated visit to 1 Michelin starred Yauatcha in Soho London was finally fulfilled last month. We were all looking forward to sample the dim sum dishes, desserts and drinks that we had seen plenty of pictures online. As a party of 3 that evening, we ordered a selection of cocktails and mocktails.

Hakka cocktail is one of Yauatcha’s signature cocktails containing sake and vodka, it was strong but still fruity with the addition of lychee, lime, coconut and passion fruit.

Nara iced tea, refreshing lovely with a dose of cinnamon.

Strawberry and vanilla iced tea, there were strawberry bits and aromatic vanilla flavouring, what's not to like!

The venison puffs were first to arrive and were probably Mr Nom’s favourite dim sum. The meat was flavoursome, I reckon we could have all eaten a full portion to ourselves. A dish you don’t want to share with others and we highly recommend them!

Roasted duck pumpkin puff was a pretty looking dish. Pumpkin shaped puffs and pumpkin was incorporated in the dough as well. Additionally, inside there were cubes of pumpkin and shredded duck along with coriander for added flavour.

Lobster dumpling with tobiko caviar, quite a mild flavour, was not as special as we imagined it to taste.

The truffle and mushroom spring rolls were simple and nothing special.

Chicken shiu mai, presented in a mini sized steamer and garnished with a mushroom. Lovely bite sized pieces.

Striploin beef with enoki mushroom cheung fun, this was a tasty dish, the beef was delicious and the use of onions was fragrant alongside my favourite enoki mushroom which has some bite to it.

Jasmine tea smoked ribs was delicious, slightly smoked with a hint of jasmine. They were a winner on the table too.

Classic sweet and sour pork, the sweet and sour sauce was more tangy than sweet. I have tasted better sweet and sour sauce but nevertheless I would of liked a bit more sauce to mix with the rice.

We ordered a side of egg white fried rice with dried scallops and asparagus to accompany our mains; we were surprised how small the portion was. The rice was not oily which you might sometimes find with egg fried rice but this lacked some seasoning.

As you guys should know by now, I am a huge fan of desserts; I couldn’t possibly leave Yauatcha without ordering something. Mr Nom settled for the raspberry delice and I chose the apricot mille feuille. They were presented beautifully. The raspberry delice looked like it was almost inedible; I did not even want to stab my fork into it and the ice cream was lovely.

The apricot mille feuille looked amazing. I expected the layers of puff pastry to be crisp but in fact it was a little soggy. The flavours were subtle but it was a great contrast to the raspberry delice which was on the sweeter side. The apricot sorbet was really zingy, a refreshing accompaniment to the mille feuille.

Yauatcha also have freshly baked cakes available to take away, along with macaroons and chocolates. Looking at the display was enough as the desserts were so filling, when I’m next back in London I want to sample them all!