Food - Dim Sim Cafe, Northbridge

My husband is a bit of an East Coast fan and is having a bit of trouble settling into his new westward locale and I am keen to find him as many of his favourite types of places in Perth as I can to help him out. Last week he told me about his absolute craving for steamed dumplings and I set about trying to track down an authentic dumpling experience for him.

Based on the recommendations of a co-worker I knew where we needed to start our search - William Street north of Newcastle Street where there is a profusion of asian restaurants which I am assured are much better than those actually in Northbridge proper.



Mr Westwards perusees the menu



We decided on a Sunday lunch outing because our local intel advised us that the only really good dumplings on offer must be had as part of a dim sum experience. Acting on the theory that people are prepared to queue for good food, we did a walk by of all the establishments that were offering dim sum and joined the longest queue. This happened to be at the Dim Sim Café. Having obtained our ticket and registered for a table for two, we did some desultory window shopping to kill the fifteen minutes wait time. As a flurry of diners exited the café we heard our number called and eagerly took possession of a small table. The inside of the café was warm and inviting and a heady perfume of cooking smells assailed us – making our already hungry bellies growl and our mouths water.

Steamed Shanghai Juicy Pork Dumplings

In the urgent way of dim sum diners we pounced on the first trolley that passed by our table and stocked up on some Steamed Shanghai Juicy Pork Dumplings and some Pork and Prawn Dumplings. The steamers were deposited unceremoniously on our table my husband (Mr Westwards) fell upon them with enthusiasm. Mr Westwards pronounced the dumplings to be soft and springy and altogether as good as dumplings he has had in Sydney (PHEW!!). The Juicy Pork filling in particular was singled out for praise.

I am of course a vegetarian (who doesn’t eat seafood) and in the normal course of events significantly under-catered for in the dim sum stakes. Unfortunately the Dim Sim Café was no exception to this rule and I duly ordered my stir fried mixed greens with garlic. When they arrived all glossy and green, speckled liberally with finely chopped garlic I was not disappointed. I did however have a definite craving for some actual dumplings having been spoiled by my experiences of Din Tai Fung at World Square in Sydney (seriously good vegie dumplings!). The closest thing on the menu was a steamed custard bun so I ordered a serve of those and was pleasantly surprised. The bun dough was light and airy and the filling was generous and creamy.  Although I would have preferred something savoury I still enjoyed them.



Steamed Custard Buns



Mr Westwards pronounced the dish of the day to be a sweet pork filling encased in a short sausage roll style pastry (which we cant remember the name of!) and it was as well that there were only three per serve!

The wait staff attentively kept our Chinese tea topped up and we had our plates swapped and new delights passed by frequently enough for us to feel, upon rolling out of the shop front, well fed and contented. The price was also a pleasant surprise – one of our best value meals yet in WA!!

Out and about - Broome

Well, one of the best things about the westwards move is deifntiely the chance to explore and visit all the beautiful places that WA has to offer. Having lived away for such a long time also means that I can legitimately play 'tourist' in my home state.

My husband and I were lucky enough to travel to Broome last weekend and I have to confess that the last time I was in Broome was probably 1985 so I had been expecting a lot to have changed. We stayed at the absolutely divine Pinctada Resort which is owned and operated by the Paspaley pearling family.

As Broome's only five star resort we had pretty high expectations and they were not disappointed. From the first moment of our arrival we felt enveloped in a haze of tropical luxury and cool perfection. A dip in the clear aqua waters of the pool and a laze on the loungers on our deck were all it took for us to feel recovered from our SkyWest flight.

I have to admit the flight was my first real chance to see the impact and scale of the current resources boom. I would have to guess that more than half of the passengers (clearly identified by their bright orange protective gear and uniforms) were FIFO (fly in fly out) workers on their way to remote sites in the Kimberley. It was quite strange to stand waiting to board in the midst of a sea of fluorescent safety gear!!

Our first afternoon in Broome was taken up with a Town Tour which gave us an insight into the sad history of Broome's pearling past and included a visit to the Japanese cemetery where so many of the early pearl divers lay buried, so far from their homeland. The tour dropped us back at our hotel just in time for us to adjourn to the deck of the Sunset Bar for a well earned drink while watching the sun set over Cable Beach.

A quick dash into town for an early dinner and then we were staking a possie on the other side of the penninsular to view the mystical spectacular that is Stairway to the Moon.

This natural phenomena occurs when the rising of the moon conincides with low tide and creates the magical effect of a golden pathway from the beach to the moon.  We happily passed nearly an hour marvelling and enjoying the sight. I have to report that we were truly moved and awed.

(My photography skills were definitely not up to the challenge of capturing the beauty and wonder of this event so I have borrowed a pic from the www.broomewa.com/cam/StaircasetotheMoon.htm website.)

Being a bit of a foodie, I didnt mean to gloss so prematurely over our dinner! We dined, based on a local's recommendation, at the Azuki Japanese fusion restaurant. I am a vegetarian with pretty high standards and I must admit my expectations were exceeded with the chef's interpretation of the classic dish - agedashi tofu. The piquant broth and perfectly crisp tofu squares were an absolute delight!

The next day we headed out to the Willie Creek Pearl Farm for a tour of the operation including a scenic helicopter flight over the coast. We conquered our fear of heights in a very small helicopter without doors and by the end of the flight we had substantially loosened our death grips on the edge of our seats and I at least was almost leaning out of the cockpit to score the best shots!

That afternoon we capped off our visit with a much more sedate form of transport - a leisurely camel ride along Cable Beach.

All in all a most enjoyable mini-break in the North-West which has given us both a taste for more exploring above the 26th parallel.

The beginning

Well, after ten years living eastwards, the time has finally come to head back 'home'. For me that means heading in a due westerly direction, hence the name for my blog.

For me, westwards means many things but in a purely geographic sense, westwards means my home state of Western Australia.

There are so many incredible things about Western Australia - one of the most isolated capital cities in the world. The vastness of the landscape and the scale of the geography truly need to be seen to be understood. I don't think you can truly understand the truth of Australia by only living in a city. You need to get out of the cities and hit the highways to really 'get' this amazing country of ours.

It is not without a little trepidation that I face the prospect of returning to the 'wild west'. So much has changed and really, so have I. It will be interesting to see if we have both changed in the same direction to be still compatible.

The other thing I am really keen to check out is the dining, shopping and entertainment scenes. While I have inevitably been spoiled by the the choice and quality offered by life in Sydney, I am hopeful of discovering some fabulous foodie experiences and of course I will share my finds here.