It’s been the talk of the town for a while. I’ve been meaning to pay a visit to Dumpling shack at School Yard near Broadway market. Each time I’ve tried John Li sold out or wasn’t around. John is a mutual friend of mine, and at social gatherings, I overheard his passion over the years to start a street food stall. He never quite knew what but he eventually got there with dumplings.
[blockquote author=”” pull=”normal”]Soup bursting out as soon as you bite them.[/blockquote]
John and his team roll out dumpling skins and fold them cooked to order. A spoon of minced meat and a spoon of gelatine soup is added to dumpling skin then folded up neatly ready to be cooked. Everything is handmade the dumpling skins, fillings and jelly soup.
It’s then pan fried then steamed until it’s been cooked. You are then handed a plate of four dumplings and you can add sauce and chilli to your liking. I love dunking mine in Chekiang black vinegar. The traditional stuff you have for xia long bao.
Dumpling Shacks ones are slightly different xia long bao, shengjianbao is less known and harder to find in London.
Results? Soup bursting out as soon as you bite them. Although it’s a shame I love mine more piping hot. The soup is a tad too sweet for my liking. Meat content is decent and flavoured. The bottom has a crispy fried base, the portion of 4 does seem a little steep for £7.50 but they are quite big. Although I found the soup inside too sweet and skin too thick, the dumplings is still worth a try. Dumpling shack is worth a visit if your thirsty order some freshly made soya milk.
In Broadway market one of my favourite stalls is a Cà Phê VN, it’s a Saigon street style vendor serving one of London’s best Vietnamese coffees. They source and grow their own coffee directly from Vietnam. Owner Rob Atthill is super friendly and got to know him chatting via Twitter over the years. The little cart sells banh mi, different styles of Vietnamese coffees and teas and street food. I love ordering one of their Vietnamese iced coffees and laying on the deck chairs listening to live music that’s usually around the stall and people watching. Their coffee is dark and strong, lovely roasted aromas, I urge you to buy the packets to take home along with a drip coffee filter for £5.
