Luyu and Yum Yum

Hands up if you're a daytime drinker. Anyone? No?

Well, maybe it's time to take it up. Mainly so you can take advantage of the $2 lunch beers at this Newtown dumpling bar.

That's $2 Tuesday to Thursday, in case you decide to just let your hair down and smash a bunch of Tsing Taos instead of going to work. Hey – we're not saying it's a good idea, just an idea.

Anyway, Luyu and Yum Yum (the name! The name!) is in a little upstairs room on King Street. There's the open kitchen where you can watch the chefs at work folding and steaming dumplings and the big bar where you can get a variety of sweet-sounding cocktails. 

The room is jam-packed on a mid-week visit – it's one of the buzziest places to grab some Asian food in the area.

And while it's not the most exciting Chinese food in town – the offerings have none of the grunt of a good Chinatown pot sticker or the fine, gossamer silkiness of an exceptional har gau – it's probably not a bad shout for a date you're not very sure about, or a pre-gig snack. 

Here's the rub: it's not all that cheap, at around $10.80-$18.80 a serve. That's Spice Temple prices right there. 

But what to eat? The "garlic bread" is a total table-divider. Here, it's mantou – those sweetish northern chinese buns, baked with garlic butter.  

I think they're kind of delicious. My friend thinks they're disgusting. I eat hers too. Squishy, salty and buttery, they're pretty much the epitome of consuming your feelings.

Duck pancakes, pre-rolled and on the tough side, are a little bit function foody, but then the "Mr Yum Yum" pot sticker – a classic mix of ginger, chicken, shallot and chinese cabbage – is probably the best of the lot, with a bit of much-needed smoke and fat.

Strangely, despite all the ingredients listed in each dumpling (a caviar-topped version sees a mix of diced prawn with carrot, coriander and celery in a fairly floury steamed dumpling skin), there's a surprising lack of flavour on show. 

Except for the mochi, which are glutinous rice balls filled with red bean and black sesame paste respectively, served with a sweet lychee and strawberry and lime-rind dipping sauce. Delicious.  

There's some fun to be had here, especially if you're in the area, won't travel beyond the 2024 and are madly Jonesing for dumplings. But walk, don't run.

THE LOW-DOWN
Pro tip Two! Dollar! Lunch! Time! Beers!
Try this Chinese garlic bread – so wrong, it's right
Like this? Go all out and try the yum cha at Spice Temple. 10 Bligh St, Sydney, (02) 8078 1888