Scorcher reviews: Red Door Yum Cha — Burnso’s big call
RED DOOR YUM CHA SNAPSHOT
- Its best feature is: the eclectic Chinese décor and tucked away location (very Melbourne).
- Make sure you try: signature Shanghai chicken soup dumplings and teapot cocktails.
- Come here for: cheap eats, yum cha feasts, date night and early dinners with the whole family.
- We’re eating: lobster, prawn and scallop dumplings; BBQ pork steamed buns; beef and lemongrass jiaozi with chilli and vinegar; and pulled pork with spiced honey and Asian slaw.
- If you like this: you’ll like Shark Fin Inn in the CBD and David’s in Prahran.
- It’ll set you back: starters $6-$9.50; dumplings $7-$9.50, steamed buns $4; mains $14-$24; beers $8, wine $8 a glass, cocktails $15.
Red Door might just be one of the best-kept secrets in Windsor.
Behind a bright red door (of course) in a quiet lane off Chapel Street, you’ll discover a yum cha joint that more resembles a curiosity shop of Chinese bric-a-brac than a restaurant.
But the eclectic décor works and feels fun and inviting.
Red Door is the kind of place that will impress the missus on date night but is also an appropriate option for large family gatherings with the kids and grandparents in tow.
It was Burnso who tipped me off to Red Door.
After dining out on dumplings one lunchtime, he bounded into the work the next day, shook me by the shoulders and shouted: “I’ve been to the best yum cha joint! Red Door in Windsor, you have to check it out Scorcher!”
That’s some serious praise coming from Burnso, our resident connoisseur of Chinese food.
The menu reads like an explosion in a dumplings factory but there are some bigger, shareable dishes on offer as well, such as braised pork belly cooked in sweet soy, and slow cooked chilli and lime leaf chicken.
Our yum cha feast with a couple of wines set us back $50 a head.
