There’s something special about Tony Young’s dumplings

Every Tuesday, Friday and Saturday morning, Tony Young serves up a quick breakfast to cab drivers, market vendors and anyone who happens to hit the streets of Christiana in Manchester from as early as 6 o'clock.

He has been providing the tasty service since 2013. He started out with only his scrumptious fried dumplings and various hot beverages, but he added crisp, fried chunks of salt fish about two years ago.

"I learnt to cook by watching my mother," Young told THE STAR last Saturday morning when we visited his simple set-up of two tables and a two-pot coal stove.

Young, who has a valid food handler's certificate, leaves his home that is located in nearby Jones Lane at 5 a.m., and finishes by 7:45 a.m. - just before Juici Patties opens up for day.

It is not unusual to see customers waiting patiently, as one of the regulars remarked: "Something eena dem dumpling ya. Me can't stop buy them."

One taxi driver shouts: "Soon forward," and Young shouts back: "Cool, me bredrin."

Young insists that the secret to his delicious dumplings is in the baking powder.

"If the baking powder nuh right, it don't taste good," he said.

He has things well organised, and that means kneading the dough before he leaves home. When he gets to his location, he just shapes each dumpling and places them in the Dutch pot with steaming hot oil to be fried as customers wait.

He also serves all the local hot beverage favourites, including Milo, coffee, ginger mint, green tea and peppermint. Some customers place their orders then go to do their business, and return and collect their small environmentally friendly brown paper bag with dumplings and salt fish.

At $30 each, the dumplings sell very fast, and it is not unusual to see some disappointment on the faces of those who arrive too late to make a purchase.

Young will also have to invest in a bigger kettle soon because he often runs out of hot water before the dumplings are finished.

Young, who worked in the construction industry before switching to cooking, said: "Me get tired to work and not get paid," adding that now in his free time, he works as a maintenance man at a cold storage facility and does a little farming for his home use.