This restaurant is a nice twist of Chinese cuisine with innovative creation, where new ideas are unleashed to blend in harmony with typical menu.
Even the atmosphere feels different, with a warm welcome so noticeable that makes you really feel at home. Staff are very attentive without being overly intrusive. There is a high presence of hospitality where you never feel watched, only looked after. They rely on visuals and a quiet presence to ensure everything is progressing perfectly. Tea pots are swiftly being refilled. A variety of different size rectangular tables, as opposed to the typical round tables, to accommodate large groups.
Getting back to the dishes:
- We started with crispy shrimp balls with the filling being bouncy with a savoury paste made from minced shrimp. The outside is deep-fried rice sticks (?) puffed up to become incredibly airy and shatteringly crisp, creating that "nest" look.
- Meat balls enrobed with white rice, where the meat is so deliciously seasoned.
- The next dish is a Szechuan style fish soup with pickled cabbage buried at the bottom. This is a relatively thick broth with a luxurious mouthfeel and I can tell that fish head and bones were fried and simmered intensely to create this creamy white base. The soup is finished by pouring smoking hot oil over the dried chilies. So delicious, but if I had to re-order it, I would ask the chef to go easy on the salt.
- Beijing roast duck. This is quite a large plate as it looks like the entire duck was carved. This is served with pancakes, cucumber sticks and the sweet salty sauce. If you are looking for the imperial taste of Běijīng kǎoyā, then this is not the place, but nevertheless very acceptable.
- Mince pork and beans. I occasionally cook with these ingredients, but the taste is truly unique and well worth a try.
- Sweet and sour chicken. This is the typical dish in balancing sweet and sour flavours, accompanied by large chunks of green onions and red bell peppers. The glistening, reddish-brown glaze is probably made with sweet bean sauce.
- Fried rice. Not the typical Cantonese fried rice I am used to, as the taste and even the rice is different. It is well seasoned, savoury and aromatic. But so different.
Thanks to the host family who invited us to this truly unique restaurant which is a place I would greatly recommend. read more