Review: Charlie Dumplings

Small modern dumpling store on High Street, just next door to Hanoi Hannah. Most people would overlook it on their way to Chapel St, but Charlie Dumpling is a beautifully furbished restaurant, perfect for a more formal dining setting. Serving sizes are small and prices dearer, but great for a special event or dinner. I wish they had a bigger non-alcoholic drink selection, some classic coconut juice, ice tea or mocktails would've been great.

Charlies' Fried Chicken Ribs - $14
The pieces of chicken are quite big.
Loved the sweet glaze and spices, but the batter was a bit too
thick and oily. The mayo also lacked flavour, could've done
with some spice, lemon or wasabi to give it a hit.

Prawn, Chive & Water Chestnut Dumplings - $13.50
The shiso dressing tasted so nice, but was a bit too salty.
The dumplings themselves were cooked perfectly, the shell
was aldente. The prawns inside were cooked well and I liked
the addition of water chestnut for texture, although they don't
hold much flavour.

Peking Duck Dumplings - $12.50
The waiter offered to eat it with rice to soak up the soup, but
that felt too carb heavy. This dish was a great combination
of curry and dumplings. The yellow lychee curry was subtly
sweet and spicy with strong coconut and herbs coming through,
I couldn't really taste the duck that much in the dish as the curry
overpowered it, but it was still really well cooked dumplings using
glutinous rice pastry