IT WAS one of those days when you crave soup for lunch.

Bright and sunny, but at the fag-end of winter, the wind cut you in two and folk on the Leederville cafe strip were still wearing heavy jackets.

There was only one place on my mind – My House Dumpling on Oxford Street.

I had been there ages ago for some excellent steamed dumplings, but now I wanted to see if their soups were any good.

My House Dumpling is one of those new-fangled places where you are given a tablet at your table to place an order.

Some might find this impersonal, but it has certain advantages – you don’t need to queue at the counter or talk to a teenage waiter whose sole goal in life is to buy a bigger bong.

The menu had a fantastic range of steamed dumplings, fried treats, noodles dishes and a handful of soups, including hot and sour.

I went for the prawn and pork freshly made – and the minced pork and prawn filling was high quality and had quite a delicate texture.

But what about the all important broth?

It was a dormant beast that came to life when the fish flakes, seaweed and chillies combined, creating a complex burst of flavour and gentle heat.

The broth was clean and not greasy – I’ve had some oiler than a Teddy Boy’s hair  – and it wasn’t too salty either.

The bok choi refreshed my palate in-between mouthfuls of the wontons. This was a very good wonton soup and at $16.90 was amazing value with so many dumplings in there.

If having an order-yourself system keeps their costs down and the savings are passed onto the customer, then it gets the thumbs up from me. Especially in these times of staff shortages.

The waiter was soon back with my giant steamed pork buns (There’s a Carry On joke in there, but it’s 2022 and I would get fired).

I don’t normally go for the steamed buns as I find the casing a bit sticky and dry, affixing to the roof of my mouth, but these were spot on and had a pleasant texture.

The filling had a lovely mix of fragrant spices and high quality pork, and I wasn’t sure I could manage them after the soup, but I happily limped over the culinary finish line with a full belly.

Because My House Dumpling is bigger than your “authentic” dumpling joints, isn’t in Northbridge and is order-yourself, I always expect it to be mediocre, but it keeps surpassing my expectations with really well priced, high quality dishes.

Plus, let’s face it, the service in some dim sum trolley places can be up there with Fawlty Towers.

I really enjoyed my return to My House Dumpling and it definitely banished those late winter blues.

My House Dumpling
140 Oxford St, Leederville
myhousedumpling.com.au