Yum Cha At Yellowtail, Terrigal

Yellowtail in Terrigal on the Central Coast offers yum cha from Friday to Sunday at lunchtimes. There's also outdoor seating and within the yum cha menu there's an optional set menu for $49 per person which pretty much gives you every dish except for one type of oyster and sashimi.

It was a craving for yum cha that never got satisfied and when planning for our Central Coast holiday Laura noticed that Yellowtail had a yum cha menu on weekends it took all of 5 seconds of my fingers to type "YESS!!!".

Normally the menu at Yellowtail is Modern Australian but yum cha leans in to a more Asian influenced menu. Service is friendly and they explain the yum cha menu. While we normally go for a la carte, we order the set menu. Although it says 5 courses, 8 dishes come out in 5 waves. We have Teddy with us so we have booked an outdoor table and Tiny Teddy says hello to everyone walking past.

Our first courses hit the table and everything is well paced. While I'm not a fan of cooked oysters, these change my mind. They are Sydney rock oysters roasted with pepperberry and are so delicious I'd happily eat a dozen of these.

The sashimi is divine-fresh from the finger lime but balanced with creaminess from coconut. The finger lime pearls also add texture along with the tapioca crackers.

I adore the pork belly bun with chilli jam and mayonnaise. The steamed foldover bao is soft, the pork belly is sticky and tender while the chilli jam and mayonnaise give it saucy appeal.

The mushroom and water chestnut dumpling has deep fried enoki mushrooms on top and a chilli soy sauce and these are also tasty.

The next course is dumplings. There's the prawn hargow crystal dumpling. This is good although I like my prawns a bit more whole as this affects the "bite" of the dumpling. The other dumpling is tasty and filled with pork and duck.

One of my favourite courses is the 5 spice duck leg brought to the table to share. The duck is crispy and perfectly seasoned and we pry the skin and meat off and add some cucumber pickles to the thin pancakes along with the barbecue plum and pickled ginger sauce. I'd happily eat this in place of Peking duck any day.

The duck is paired with the Brussels sprouts. These are fantastic, with a sesame dressing, sesame seeds and house furikake. I want to eat the entire thing and love it so much that I want to try and recreate a version at home.

Dessert is also designed to share. It's a creamy yogurt topped with sticks of poached rhubarb and rose with a gorgeously thin and crisp, buttery pistachio filo pastry.

So tell me Dear Reader, how often do you go for yum cha? And do you like cooked oysters?

This meal was independently paid for.

Yellowtail

Shop 3/1 Campbell Cres, Terrigal NSW 2260
Monday to Thursday 5:30–10pm
Friday to Sunday 12–2pm, 5:30–10pm
yellowtailrestaurant.com.au
Phone: (02) 4384 6656