Taste of Shanghai, Ashfield

The number of dumpling houses available in Ashfield seem to be endless and choosing where to eat can be quite a process! In the end, we choose Taste of Shanghai as we've never been there before...it's as good a system as any.

For some reason I had it in my head that Taste of Shanghai was a "fancy place". I'm pleased to report that it's NOT. It's your standard "casual" Ashfield dumpling joint and I really like it! Service is fast, efficient and polite(ish). We arrive at noon, just before the rush hits. But 12.30pm the place is packed!  The tables are a notch up from the usual laminex tables...and the clientele are a mix of locals, families, oldies, couples. The majority of the patrons are Asian which Aussies like us always take as a great sign of how good, and authentic, a place is. If a Chinese restaurant is full of Aussies I suggest you RUN away (unless you're in a country town like the ones I grew up in of course)!

Lunch kicks off with a pot of hot FREE tea! Imagine the uproar if places like this ever start charging for their tea!

Although we're here for the dumplings we also have to order a side of Lebanese Cucumber ($7.80) that is doused with a heafy splosh of garlic and vinaigrette. I love cucumber prepared in this way, so simple, so tasty and so refreshing when you're about to inhale a tonne of meaty dumplings! It's also a pretty simple dish to make at home and it's become a staple in our house.

I also just have to order another of my favourite dishes - stir fried green beans with pork mince ($15.80). This is a another dish that I've learned to master at home (thanks to a recipe emailed to me by Shez)...it's quite simple to make and super tasty. Whilst this restaurant version is a bit more oily than my homemade attempt, I think the flavour of this version is slightly better than mine - is it salt, MSG? I have no idea but it's delish.

Dumpling time! Taste of Shanghai isn't purely a dumpling joint so you'll find LOTS of other stuff on the menu. It's hard for us to stay focused but we pull through in the end and order a serve of pan-fried pork dumplings ($9.80 for 8 pcs). These dumplings are excellent - just look how crispy that pan-fried bottom is. They were very tasty too - sometimes I'm not in love with the strong flavour of pork dumplings, but this was lovely and mild, and well seasoned.

And last but not least a serve of pork and chive dumplings ($8.80 for 12 pieces). These steamed dumplings never look as tempting as their crispy-bottomed brothers, but they are lovely in their own way..and we feel quite virtuous and healthy eating these.

Taste of Shanghai is at 264 Liverpool Road, Ashfield.

New Shanghai, Ashfield

Miss Piggy + The Boy dined as guests of New Shanghai  Ashfield and Wasamedia

The Boy and I pay a visit to Sydney’s “little Shanghai” to try out the offerings at new kid on the block, New Shanghai. When I call Ashfield “little Shanghai” it really is! Every second restaurant has Shanghai in the name and is crammed filled with dumpling addicts like us. If you didn’t know you were in Sydney...well you’d think you were somewhere else...like Shanghai perhaps?

The following post will give you a good indication as to why I’ve called this blog “The Adventures of Miss Piggy”. It’s nothing to do with a Muppet – it’s to do with a girl whose eyes are bigger than her VERY big stomach. Miss Piggy. That’s me (although I also blame our over-ordering on our very nice waitress who wanted us to try everything...she kept suggesting things and we kept saying yes)!

Dinner begins with a pot of hot Jasmine Tea – like it does in most Chinese Restaurants. It gives us a change to peruse the HUGE menu and check out the dumpling ladies at work in their glass fronted booth.  They kindly pose for a few photos – masks up of course so that they remain incognito!

We kick things off with a small serve (!) of New Shanghai Xiao Long Bao (steamed mini pork buns $6.80 for a small serve) and a serve of Steamed Vegetarian Dumplings ($7.00). Both were really great – the vegie dumplings had a lovely filling of fresh Chinese leafy greens.  Silly us though as we let the XLB sit a little too long – they should be eaten whilst piping hot so the soup is still hot and warming in the belly.

The deep fried pastry filled with white radish and ham ($8.80) comes coated in sesame seeds and looks as pretty as a picture. The pastry looks like it has been scored and this adds to the flakiness. I had one of these cold the following day for breakfast (we took MANY doggy bags home) and I have to say it was even better the next day!  Seeing as we were indulging in pastry covered goodies, the shallot pancake ($4.80) could not be passed up. This is easily the best shallot pancake I've had - often they are oily and not very appetising, but the offering at New Shanghai was PERFECTION! The pastry was flaky, not oily and the filling was delish!

Because we're feeling adventurous and are egged on by our lovely waitress we order some items that normally wouldn't appear on our table...ever! Extreme dining (Miss Piggy style).

The Boy had his heart set on the intriguing sounding thousand layer pigs ear ($6.80) - pigs ear set in a almost aniseed flavour hard jelly - which was a really nice dish. The flavour of the jelly was wonderful and the textural element of the crunchy pigs egg worked well with the melt in the mouth jelly. The Shanghai-style deep fried fish soaked in herb, spice and dark soy sauce ($8.80) had quite a strong fishy flavour and although served cold it still had quite a crunch to it - this was another BIG hit with The Boy.  I would have to say that deep fried tofu coated with salted egg yolk ($13.80) is definitely an acquired taste. The duck egg was came as a foam over the tofu and was quite grainy in texture. I know people who LOVE salted duck eggs but I found the flavour of this quite overpowering and the smell quite pungent. I wouldn't mind trying salted duck egg again however - in its "egg" form.

Are you full yet?  Too bad as we still have FIVE main dishes to go.  After talking with our waitress we thought the dishes would come out in smaller portion sizes (likea tasting menu) hence the slight over-ordering.

I am fan of anything "salt + pepper" so I of course LOVED the salt and pepper prawns ($18.80).  I really like the dried shallot/chilli topping and the crunch noodles that salt + pepper dishes come on.  The Boy was smitten with the Beijing style pork ribs ($13.80) - the sauce tasting almost like a sweet + sour sauce (these were a hit cold the next day too).

We couldn't resit ordering the Drunken Chicken ($8.80) - chicken soaked in Chinese wine with various "secret" herbs and spices.  This is another dish that is served cold and it has such fresh and refreshing flavours - I felt very healthy eating this.  We also tried the Garlic Eggplant ($10.80) - another great dish. The eggplant was tender, flavoursome (but not overpowered by garlic flavours) and not at all oily as some eggplant dishes can be (eggplant is just like a big sponge after all). I like this so much in fact that I've already consulted Mr Google for a recipe on how to make this at home.  And no Chinese meal that involves dumplings or shallot pancakes is complete without chopped cucumber tossed with fresh garlic ($7.80) - I'm pleased to report the version of this I make at home tastes really similar.

Although we are both very full we active our dessert stomachs as the temptation of deep-fried ice cream ($5.60) is too much to resist. The Boy + I both agree that this was the BEST deep-fried ice cream we've ever had. EVER! The batter was so thick and almost tasted like a doughnut and the ice cream was super creamy. I'll be back just for this (oh, and the shallot pancake too of course)!

New Shanghai is at 273 Liverpool Road, Ashfield. Call them on 9797 7284.

Shanghai Night, Ashfield

On a stinking hot Saturday I accompany The Boy to Ashfield pool where he is refereeing waterpolo. As I bob around in the human soup waiting for him to finish, my thoughts aren't really at the crowded pool, but on the dumplings we're going to eat after the water polo game finishes.

After doing a bit of research on the Internet I decided on Shanghai Night for our dumpling-fest. I'd heard good things about it and reading a few positive reviews is all I need for it to be added to my hit list.

The restaurant is little shabby looking with the requisite laminate tables, faded menu and hand written specials on the wall.  But like so many great Chinese eateries the more simple the decor, the better the food often is!  Plus China Shanghai is gloriously air-conditioned.  We'd eat of the floor in this weather and not care as long as the a/c was switched on.

To start with we order a cold Garlic Cucumber ($8.80) dish.  Neither The Boy and I have had this dish before but we quickly fall in love with the refreshing flavours.  The cucumber is so fresh it snaps when we bite into it.  There is a lot of garlic and it's very very strong but seeing as we're both eating it there is no risk of offending anyone in the car on the way home with our bad breathe.

Next up dumplings...which is really what we're here for.

Our first choice is the Steamed Shanghai Style Mini Pork Bun ($6.50). These are the dumplings that (I think) are popularly referred to as Xiao Long Bao by those in the know...or as The Boy and I call them "those soupy dumplings".

The man working at China Shanghai Night proudly tells us that the this restaurant was the first in Sydney to make Xiao Long Bao...and don't let anyone else tell you otherwise!

Breaking through the dumpling wrapper reveals a dumpling filled with soup and dumpling meat. These taste perfect served with a mix of soy sauce and vinegar.  Be careful when you eat them though as the soup is often piping hot and has a tendency to spurt everywhere!

We order a small serve of Pork with Chives Garlic in Dumpling ($5.50). These steamed dumplings are incredible value as we get a plate of 12 dumplings. I wonder how many dumplings are in a large serve?

To end the dumpling-love fest our final choice is a serve of Steamed Lamb and Onion Dumplings ($6.80). This is another generous serve of dumplings...which is good as they are pretty tasty.  The dumpling skin is not too thick, and not too thin and the onion really lifts the flavour of the lamb filing.

Shanghai Night is at 275 Liverpool Rd, Ashfield.