When yum cha cravings need sating, Sunshine Coast locals head to Embassy XO. The modern Asian venue has stood the test of time in Sunshine Beach, offering a breezy wine bar for swilling and snacking, and a more formal dining room for indulging in the degustation, yum cha or a la carte menus. Bar snack options include favourites like steamed duck buns and pork belly sandwiches, while the weekend yum cha lunch expands to wantons, noodles and more.

A visit here isn’t complete without sampling the legendary dumplings — a plate of Moreton Bay bug crystal skin parcels, steamed then bathed in a creamy coconut bisque and topped with Yarra Valley caviar offers a divine textural balance to the pan-fried Wagyu beef dumplings sitting atop egg-pastry crisps with XO sauce.

For mains, the aptly titled ‘three stages of wagyu porterhouse’ presents 6+ score wagyu as Korean-style tartare, charcoal-seared slices with Sichuan peppercorn salt, and tender wok-fried chunks with peppers, onion and butter soy. An equally tempting option is a bowl of wok-fried Mooloolaba king prawns crowning a stack of hand-pulled noodles with snake beans, garlic shoots, pea tendrils and XO’s signature sauce. An award-winning wine list benefits from XO Group’s boutique bottle stores and features an impressive line-up of gins, as well as some surprisingly thoughtful non-alcoholic wine and beer options.

Exceptional dish: Moreton Bay bug crystal skin dumplings with coconut bisque and Yarra Valley caviar