Watermark West Quay opened its doors before December much to the delight of foodies everywhere. The new development showcases the best in new restaurants, diners and pop ups including Dumpling Dumpling, the go to place for Jiaozi or more commonly known, Chinese dumplings. After spending just over two years teaching English in China, Dan & Nat came back to the Isle of Wight and after struggling to get their dumpling fix, Dumpling Dumping was born.
Last week, four of us made our way to Dumpling Dumpling to try exactly what was on offer and it was the perfect way to spend a lunchtime with the girls. Welcomed by Nat and shown to our table, she began to tell us their story, Dumpling Dumpling are on a mission to create a unique street food experience based on Chinese dumplings, but with a global fusion twist. They create and serve up hot crescent-shaped dumplings aka Flavour Bombs.
I'm a huge fan of dumplings and it's the first thing I order in Wagamama or Itsu so I was ready to fill up on allllll the food. First of all, we were able to make dumplings ourselves. Nat had already set up the fillings and everything else we would need to use to make our very own Teriyaki Tofu dumplings and after a quick demonstration, we got to work while Nat started preparing each of the flavours we were about to try for lunch.
We tried all four of the savoury flavour bombs (which were available at the time), all of which were brought out in bamboo bowls and perfect for a quick Instagram shot. Each of the flavours were -
- The Xmas Factor - turkey, stuffing, roast potato, bacon and cranberries
- The Hulk Smash - butternut squash, garlic, pine nuts and spinach
- Teriyaki Tofu - carrots, tofu, broccoli, Chinese leaf and spring onions
- Chicken Kiev - chicken and garlic.
The Xmas Factor and The Hulk Smash were my favourite and I haven't stopped thinking about them, I'm being deadly serious, I've been dreaming of dumplings for days. Arran didn't get to go with us as he was working so I'm going to head back in with him to try the new flavours as the Chicken & Chorizo is calling my name.
After finishing up our delicious dumplings, Nat came over to tell us all about The Indulgent, a sweet dumpling with the most incredible filling to ever tickle your tastebuds. The Indulgent dumpling is made with smooth chocolate praline, peanut butter and strawberry jam in a cocoa wrap finished with whipped cream and smarties. It really is as good as it sounds.
We had such a fun time and I can't wait to go back. Anyone can go in and make dumplings too, just drop them a tweet or a phone call to book in! Dumpling Dumpling are in Watermark until the end of March but I'm hoping they will be there a lot longer!
