Bamboo Dumpling Bar

Friendly staff at a small cosy bar in Surry Hill. The decoration and ambience is great. Great for groups or couples. I really like the birdcages that they hang around the ceiling.
My partner and I ordered various dishes at the restaurant including the dumpling platter and the traditional pork dumpling. The dumplings dough was thick and mushy. It sad to say this but it did taste like something out of the freezer from a supermarket. If you’re looking for good dumplings I believe you’ll have a better encounter visiting the local Chinatown stores.

Wwweeeeooowww what’s with all the good reviews?! As a Chinese in her 30s, I think I can properly attest to quality of the food here– TERRIBLE. Hands down THE WORST dumplings or dim sums I’ve had in my entire life. Worse than the ones I random purchase from the frozen aisle at a supermarket. My partner and I both tried our utmost best to force ourselves to down those awful dumplings, but still were not able to finish them. They were lukewarm, mushy, and bland.
The atmosphere wasn’t impressive, especially being an extension to a dodgy looking pub.
The only thing that was pleasant about this place was the lovely waiter who served both the cashier and the tables. He was very hospitable and polite, even though he did end up overcharging us at the end by mistake (?)

Total disappointment — Soup Dumplings had broken skin and soup was all over the plate!!! What’s the point? Won’t be back.

Lovely food, lovely surrounds and a great social eating outing. Prices do add up but well worth it.
Daily specials are great value if they match your tastes on any given day.

This is strangely attached to the Royal Albert Hotel. Upside is you can order food from here and have it delivered while you’re having a beer.
The dumplings are great, don’t get me wrong… but let’s be honest, the taste is not too different from the ones you can get in Chinatown hole in the walls for a fraction of the price. But the difference is (and personally, this difference is worth paying for on some occasions, at least for me) is that instead of being squashed into a tiny spot rubbing elbows with the stranger in the next table, you get a nice large room with great décor and enough breathing room. And the staff are friendly, really friendly, and they won’t stand over your shoulder when you’re finishing your meal in an attempt to hurry you along so they can give your table to someone else.
The only reason I’m rating this an okay-​ish 3 stars is that I got some takeaway lunch here. I ordered dumplings (yum) as well as their Spicy Szechuan Pork Noodles (hey, I was hungry, OK?) There was a large serving of noodles, good enough for 2 people, but unfortunately they overcooked the noodles and it came out mushy. :(
Other than that, great place, and I’m likely to be back seeing as it’s right across our office and we have after work drinks sometimes at the attached pub.

Another one of my new favourites, Bamboo is great: food, service and variety all really good. This surprised me a great deal being Asian food served at an Aussie pub, The quality of dumplings is top notch. They also have a fantastic array of drinks thanks to that whole pub being attached to it, but they keep the pub and restaurant separate too, so that it doesn’t feel like you’re surrounded by drunks or drinkers while dining. The menu has a wide range of gluten free if that’s something you need to consider.

I had the sampler which was one of each of some spring rolls, dumplings and the duck pancake and bbq bun. All of which were solid and enjoyable. Nothing stood out as a clear winner, though the pancake came close. There is a price to value ratio that’s a bit skewed towards the cost end of the equation.
That said, if you’re looking for good dim sum in Sydney, this is a good place. And the communal tables and decorations on an uncrowded Sunday night had a good vibe.

I was feeling a little worse for wear last Sunday, and when a friend suggested we go out for dumplings, I was dubious as to whether it would make me feel better or worse… She assured me that the place we were going was amazing, and so I decided to give it a go. I’m so glad that I did! Bamboo Dumplings are among the best I’ve ever tasted — I might even go so far to say they’re better than the ones in Ashfield.
Fabulously plump, soft, velvety parcels that burst with flavour and are so easily demolished. Bamboo offers a wide variety of interesting flavours — edamame was my favourite, its soft texture and delicate flavour made it almost like tortellini. I could have eaten hundreds. They also had a wonderful soup dumpling that bursts in your mouth. The menu can be daunting when you first look through — so many dumplings and other delicious things to choose from. What I recommend is ordering the set menu — this is what we did and it worked so well. The set menu included all the dishes that we would’ve chose anyway, and this way you didn’t need to worry or fuss — the food is brought out to you in waves of deliciousness — duck pancakes first, then spring rolls, pork buns and finally five different types of dumpling. The only problem is when you find your favourites, there are no seconds (unless you order more). The set menu is very reasonably priced, too, at $ 24.50 per person. I honestly think it’s one of the best meals I’ve had since I’ve lived in Sydney. Each day they also offer a ‘special’. On Sunday it was roast suckling pig — a glorious basket filled with diced pork, baby bok choi, steamed rice and hoisin sauce. It was delicious, and great for those who want a meat fix. I, however, didn’t think it was as good as the dumplings.
We couldn’t resist ordering the chocolate dumpling (for research sake, obviously). It was OK, but not a patch on the main course. The dumpling case was too thick and a bit rubbery, and the filling was similar to the cheap chocolate innards of a chocolate croissant. I’m glad I tried it, but next time I’ll just order another edamame dumpling. And there’ll definitely be a next time — it was absolutely wonderful.

It’s a bit strange, having a dumpling bar attached to a standard corner pub. But in a strange way, it works.
Bamboo is an unassuming little place with timber bench seating, a bamboo covered ceiling and a bright green feature wall with contemporary Asian-​inspired artwork. I’d been meaning to come here for a long time with a friend who lives down the road, and we finally made it in on a Thursday night. Their daily special of a $ 10 dumpling plate was the ideal option to share between two, including two pieces each of the pork and prawn, pork and chive and prawn gow gee varieties. They were so good, we ordered a second plate, followed by their dessert dumplings — little balls of ice cream enveloped in a sugary, soft dough.
And once your meal is done, you can exit the funky dining room and saunter straight into the Royal Albert Hotel to sit back with a draught beer and watch the footy from their sofas. Nope, not strange at all.