It’s still odd walking into a tiny Chinese restaurant. So often, you open the doors to a good local Chinese to be greeted by a huge room, bustling waiters and the constant hum of customers chatting, and the clang of woks cooking.
Andy’s Yum Cha is the antithesis to this; 30 seats, a small room with pictures of its food offerings on the wall and a few cliched paintings.
The staff can say hello to you from behind the counter on the other side of the room, it’s tiny. Due to its size they charge a minimum of $20 per adult on Friday and Saturday nights, which is a reasonable request, and it’s good to note they are not licensed but are BYO beer and wine only at the very reasonable price of $2 per person.
Hear the words yum cha and you may instantly think of trolleys of steam baskets and plates piled high with dumplings and treats. Of course, size doesn’t allow this at Andy’s. But open the menu and you have a sound selection that’s delivered to your table directly from the kitchen. Fried prawn dumplings (4 for $6.50) are crunchy parcels of tasty prawn meat and bamboo shoots, and there are spring rolls (3 for $5.50) which are uninspired but seem to please the younger diners at the table. Fleshy Siu Mai, which are fried dumplings filled with prawn and pork (3 pieces for $5.50) are delicious.
The menu contains 58 items and there are plenty more dumplings and other dishes, that may be steamed. Mussels in XO sauce ($5.50) are delicately handled, the Chinese Sausage buns (2 for $5.50) are fluffy and light, while also being meaty and sweet. Bigger dishes fall into the realm of noodles. The Singapore Noodles ($13) are very popular as are the soups, including the hot and sour, which is balanced and punchy.
The spicy salt-fried calamari arrives as a jumble of calamari pieces, dusted in chilli and extra salt, and while it’s tender in texture, a beer balances out the almost overpowering saltiness.
Andy’s is a reliable happy place and this is clear in the way the small room fills up quickly on a Saturday night and follows the adage, good things come in small packages.
