Yum cha with my Italian class
Italian - yum cha? Yes really. And actually in some ways it's quite appropriate. The Italians are one big immigrant group and the Chinese another. Not that any of us are Italian of course - that's why we are learning Italian after all - but we do have the Italian in common. And the Chinese? Well we live around Doncaster and Box Hill down the road from Doncaster - two of Melbourne's biggest Chinese areas. And two of our members are ethnically Chinese. So to celebrate the coming beginning of our new Italian term one of our group - yes she is Chinese - organised a yum cha lunch. Apparently they do it often. She knows the owners and, of course, what to order, so it is all left up to her.
Melbourne's suburbs have lots of these places - they tend to be large, but always busy for yum cha. And today was a Thursday not a Sunday which is really big. It's not really my thing, and I haven't been to one for some time, so the chopsticks were a bit tricky - especially for the crispy things. (I resorted to fingers with them in the end.) Chinese is not really my favourite cuisine either - too many weird and wonderful things - eels were on offer today for example, though declined by our hostess. And chicken feet - I think we may have had them. And also I actually find Chinese food all a bit bland - says she who comes from the home of boiled cabbage. But I am always ready to socialise and also it is all very interesting.
The venue was the Golden Dragon Palace in Templestowe (next door to Doncaster) and I found that Terry Durack listed it as one of his top four or five yum cha places in Melbourne, so there you go. I wouldn't really know because I don't really have anything to compare it with. The photographs above are of the interior. We sat on a very similar table to the one shown at the top of the page. Big lazy susan in the middle. Teapots and hot water pots constantly topped up and imbibed from. Now I don't really like tea, but there's something about tea and Chinese food. They go so well together. I drank lots - I think it was Jasmine tea. And in fact that's what yum cha means - 'drink tea'. Dim sum means 'little snacks that tug at the heart' - well that's what one newspaper article said. It certainly refers to the food component anyway and in America apparently what we call yum cha is called dim sum.
I thought it must be ancient and totally Chinese. But no. Nineteenth century and the Cantonese area of China in the south - that includes Hong Kong - and that is where the proliferation of yum cha restaurants in Australia comes from. For a very large number of our Chinese immigrants come from Hong Kong. The tradition grew up when there was increasing trade along the silk route (though isn't that in the north?), and people needed to have something to eat with their tea that they drank in the tea houses along the way. So today it has spread a little into northern China and can be found in any Western country with a large Chinese community. Here in Australia they became popular in the 80s and are now a kind of tradition, especially on Sundays and not just for the Chinese. Every suburb probably has at least one restaurant that does it.
To my mind it's the Chinese version of tapas, mezze, antipasti and hors d'ouevre. Little plates of things - well little bamboo steamers (and plates) eaten from a bowl with chopsticks. Mind you one article rather snootily said it wasn't at all like tapas because it was food that was unique to the yum cha meals, and not just small versions of larger dishes. I suppose that's sort of true but then I think of tapas as being specifically tapas not small versions of something else. Ditto for mezze, antipasti and hors d'oeuvre.
The method of serving is a bit unique though. Ladies wheel trolleys around and offer you their wares. If chosen they are crossed off on a paper list on the table and eventually it's all added up. Very easy to lose track of what you are ordering I guess. And also - which I hadn't thought of - a big potential for wastage in the kitchen - which I guess is why some of the waitresses are a bit forceful in offering their wares. We had plenty of food and it really wasn't expensive.
Mostly it's dumplings. Steamed or deep fried in some form or another. To my mind the steamed ones are often stodgy with not a lot of taste. The fried ones are better - we do love fried things don't we? But fried is not good for you. I really do not know what we had - but as well as the yum cha kind of food we did have a chicken dish - some sort of braise I think, and a beef dish and a dish of stir fried greens. Very difficult to eat those with chopsticks. The stand out dish for me was the whitebait. I love whitebait (not good for you - fried in batter) - and these had a scattering of spicy stuff with it. I'm really not quite sure how Chinese this is though - Italian?
The restaurant was full - and there were lots of big family groups with tiny children sitting in high chairs and tucking in. Very impressive after our grandson's little tantrum the other day over roast chicken. Maybe we should offer him dim sums instead.
I am glad I went but in spite of tea supposedly being a good digestive I have to say I feel mildly dyspeptic if that's the word for a very mild stomach ache and very mild indigestion. Let's say I wasn't converted and won't be rushing to do it again, although I will if asked.
And it's Chinese New Year soon. Looks like the year of the dog. They eat them too don't they (not here - in China)?
