“We chose the combination hand-made dumplings, which come boiled, fried or steamed. They look so pretty in the steamer – golden dumplings, green and orange,” writes dining reviewer WENDY JOHNSON. 

I LOVE, love, love a good dumpling and every so often get a massive craving for them. Such was the case recently which led a friend and I to pop by the Chinese Kitchen Dumpling House, Corinna Street, Woden. 

The extensive menu features hand-made dumplings, Chinese barbecue items and authentic Chinese dishes, covering all bases you’d expect, with some house specialties included. 

From the outside of the restaurant, you can watch the kitchen in action through large windows. You’ll see stacks of bamboo steamers, rows of cooked ducks hanging (more on this in a tick) and a large team of kitchen staff whipping up dumplings with precision and at lightning speed (how do they do it?).

We hadn’t booked but kept our fingers crossed that if we rocked up soon after the doors opened for dinner that we’d be in luck. We were, but staff kindly asked if we could leave by a certain time, presumably so they could handle reservations or flip the tables often. 

Knowing service would be swift, we had no problem with that. It’s only fair to respect restaurants these days, as they struggle to keep afloat during these crazy covid times. 

Zeroing in on the specials, we chose the combination hand-made dumplings (15 pieces for $15.80), which come boiled, fried or steamed. It was steamed for us and the chicken, beef and vegetable dumplings did, indeed, arrive swiftly. They looked so pretty in the steamer – golden dumplings, green and orange. We got stuck in, dipping the dumplings in chilli and soy.

We hadn’t intended to order mains but seeing the duck through the front window, and smelling the duck as we entered, gave us no choice. The barbecue roast duck ($21.80) was sensational – succulent, slightly sweet and so moist. It glistened on the outside. We’ll be back again to try the Peking duck.

For our hit of greens, we opted for the Chinese broccoli with ginger shallot (also comes with garlic, $15.80), which was super crunchy and beautiful with the delicate ginger.

Other special dumpling options include pork and chives, beans, onion and celery, chicken and sweet corn, beef with mixed veggies in soup and steamed prawn (prices range from $12.80 to $13.80).

The front doors of the Chinese Kitchen Dumpling House are ornate and the wood accents inside add warmth to the décor. Black and red accents form part of the interior and there’s a lovely cluster of red lanterns in the middle of the restaurant and a large, gorgeous, painted mural at the back.

We lost count of the number of people landing at the Chinese Kitchen Dumpling House for takeaway. Good to see the place so busy.

The Chinese Kitchen Dumpling House is BYO, but there’s a bottle shop just a few doors down.