Alice’s Dumpling Bar was a huge hit when it opened with a large venue on the Manly Beachfront a few years ago, only to close due to an end of lease and pop up in a much smaller, less ‘yum-cha’ space after much delay in 2025. The new space has not seemed as popular. But there’s a glimmer of hope for those reminiscing the original venue, with a second Alice offering on the very same strip – recently taking over the space which Little Pearl occupied since 2022.
Long-time local resident, grandfather and eternal food lover Steve Benton has been sending Manly Observer news tips on restaurants and great food feedback just as an ‘fyi’ for a while now, so we thought we best give him a spot on our page to share his findings. Here is his take on the new Little Alice…..
‘Little Alice Yum Cha -Manly’ is located in space previously occupied by ‘Little Pearl’ within the Peppers Sebel Hotel at 8-13 South Steyne, Manly (opposite the Manly Surf Club). The owners, Henry Cai and wife, Catherine, named this new opening after their little 17-month-old Alice.
It’s a swim on the beach, then over the road for an early dinner. The elevated view lets you take in the spectacular Manly Beach, and the breeze drifts in while you enjoy a meal.
Of the over 100 dishes offered, there are at least 24 different dumplings and buns, including my favourite, the Xiao Long Bao full of delicious soup.
What sets this new fully licensed eatery apart is its emphasis on a separate fresh seafood menu with oysters done au naturel, steamed with garlic and vermicelli or deep-fried, live pipis, mud crab and lobster: all done with either ginger and shallots, garlic butter, salt and pepper, XO sauce or Singapore Chilli style. Whole barramundi, coral grouper, salmon, and tuna are also available and prepared in numerous ways.
We sat down to a great lunch of our favourite soup dumplings, then tried the sashimi seafood platter and a 1kg mud crab in Singapore Chilli sauce.
The food was great, authentic Chinese at its best, the wait staff were efficient, helpful and great with the kids. We will be back soon.
The reviewer paid for his own meal.
