[FOOD REVIEW] 8 Dragons, Lidcombe

Rainy days are always a bit depressing but it's always these days that make hot food all the better!

Located at Dooleys in Lidcombe is this new small and comfy restaurant called 8 Dragons. Not only is it really close to the station, there is also a bunch of options inside Dooleys for dinner, dessert and drinks. I've always loved how free this place is and I'm really happy that there's finally a Chinese restaurant here with Shanghai dishes!! So obviously, I had to try the typical buns that everyone (well, me!) loves!

If you're at a Shanghai restaurant, there is no way you cannot order the Steamed Shanghai Xiao Long Bao ($8.80) which are steamed pork mini buns with delicious meat juice flowing out the moment you bite into it! I always love how this tastes wherever I go and this one gives me the same feeling! It's soft, droolworthy, not over-steamed and wonderful for cold days. I could definitely fit more of these in my stomach on any kind of day actually haha!

Next on the list is another of my favourites! Ever since my sister introduced me to the deliciousness of these, whenever I go to a Shanghai restaurant, I always order Pan Fried Pork Buns ($8.80). They make look a little plain but these are the best! I have to say, I was surprised at how good these tasted! Although they were a bit small, the taste was marvellous! The top part of the bun was super soft and the bottom was lightly crisp and just made the perfect combination with the delicious pork. This was my favourite dish for the meal! Definitely worth the effort to come here and try this!!

I've always been a fan of satay so ordering Satay Beef ($15.80) made me love my experience here even more. I really like my satay to have a tinge of spiciness to it but this one overwhelmed the taste of the satay a bit. However, it was still good, I liked it enough to eat the onions! (I usually hate onions!)

Last one on the list! This was my least favourite of the bunch. We got the 8 Dragons Fried Rice ($12.80) that we thought looked really nice in the photo but unexpectedly, this dish was very plain. It was very lightly salted and the prawns had no taste to it. It was actually quite tasteless, Now I'm wondering if they forgot to put salt in haha.. But I guess this matched the strong taste of the satay beef and made it a nice combination.

I would definitely recommend this place. It's close, convenient and has really great buns! Good to have a nice long chat with fast and efficient service. Our food came really fast and I stuffed my stomach in record time! I'd definitely want to visit again in the future to try the wonton as well and have another dose of the pan fried pork buns! I can't stop thinking about them!