Yum Cha at Darjoh's - their first one

After all the early morning excitement of the first Hobart Farmers Market yesterday, it seemed a bit of an anticlimax to be heading off at 11.00 am to Darjoh’s in Bellerive to check out their first foray into the world of Yum Cha – but I had booked it so off I went for part 2 of the day.

I had arranged to Yum Cha with two friends – Deena, a close Thai girlfriend whose thoughts on Darjoh’s Yum Cha were important to me, and Dan, with whom I have family connections from way back – and both of whom, coincidentally, had just returned last week from separate holidays in Thailand, so were full of the joys of eating in, and travelling round, Thailand.

These would be two hard people to please I thought, with their tastebuds still retaining the recent flavours of beautiful Asian food!

We arrived and were given a menu with photos, descriptions and prices of all the food available on the Yum Cha menu. There were 14 items, and, as they all sounded great, I made the instantaneous decision that we should have one of every plate listed, with 3 pieces on each plate – so we could get to sample everything. The others didn’t get much of a say there, I’m ashamed to say, but Rita was a woman on a mission!

And so it transpired – we had a taste of everything available – and, boy, was it fantastic! Deena, head critic, was impressed with the fact that it was quite obvious they had made each menu item there on the premises, instead of wimping out and buying in all the pre-prepared Yum Cha items that I know with certainty you can get from companies like PFD, Statewide etc.

We sampled:
Won Ton Prawn, Won Ton Crab, Vegetarian Dumplings, Leek Dumplings, Chive Dumplings, Jade Scallop Dumplings, Prawn Dumplings, Savoury Glutinous Rice, Sticky Rice Parcel, Crab Dim Sims, Prawn Dim Sims, Nori wrapped prawn rolls, Bean Curd rolls, BBQ pork buns.

All up, it cost each of us round $45 – excellent value I reckon, especially if you’ve ever taken the time to make any of those items. They would have to be one of the most time-consuming and fiddly things to prepare.

Unfortunately there were only two other tables present, but Darjoh’s will persist with their Yum Cha, and I for one will be one of their regulars.

At the end of the meal, we tried to decide which was our favourite dish. Dan’s was the Jade Scallop Dumplings, and mine was the Won Ton Prawn which came out in the form of a clear chicken soup with two dumplings floating in it – one prawn and one pork. It was sensational.

Look – I know we’re a backwater. I know we’re always reluctant to try new things. I know we still have a global economic crisis happening which means we should all be keeping a check on our spending. But please give the Darjoh’s Yum Cha a trial, with an open mind.

It’s the best opportunity, on a relaxed Sunday morning, to catch up with old friends and family. To be able to spend an extended amount of quality time eating, chatting and bonding. It’s what cements relationships!

How about I meet you there next Sunday?