A stroke of Good Fortune

This conversation sound familiar (possibly without the Honey Badger as one’s interlocutor)? Lunch Without Bread: it’s a constant conundrum in Amsterdam (unless of course you happen to be cooking from Vicky Hampton’s Working Lunch – which you’re probably not, since it’s not technically for sale yet) and one that I generally solve with Asian food. We were on our way back from the airport, so we decided to stroll down the Zeedijk instead of heading home. Only it was Easter Monday, so almost everywhere was closed (the story of our lives – but that’s one for another day).

It was by sheer good fortune, then, that we stumbled upon the aptly named restaurant Good Fortune. It had the magic words “dim sum” and “open” on the window, and we decided to try our luck.

In the mood for dumplings of all persuasions, we ordered the wonton soup, gyoza, cha siu, ha kau and some crispy duck (not in dumpling form) for good measure. Now, I’m no expert, but that was some of the nicest soup I’ve ever tasted for under a fiver: the broth was absolutely clear but packed with porky fragrance, and the dumplings themselves were freshly made and silky. The gyoza were stuffed with cabbage and chicken and lightly fried, while the ha kau were perfect prawn-filled parcels. My least favourite were the cha siu – barbecue pork buns whose dough seemed to have split in the steamer. The duck was also a treat, with crunchy fat and a meaty broth cut with Chinese greens.

The whole lot, plus a couple of beers, set us back €35 for two and set our bellies right for the rest of the day. Admittedly, we didn’t try a fraction of what was on the menu, but if the dim sum is anything to go by, I’ll be back to venture into main dish territory. And when I do, I hope fortune is on my side again…