Restaurant Review #2 - Yauatcha

Well whaddya know? Finally got my lazy butt into gear and got round to doing another restaurant review! Actually, I’ve been wanting to go to/write about this week’s choice for a while because… well because Dim Sum. As you may know, I currently work in restaurants, which is great because I can devote a fair chunk of my free time to “assessing the competition”. I currently work for a couple of Chinese restaurants so…this was basically research. Yes.

For this particular culinary expedition, I reunited with the gal you might know as Joy Of A Roommate from bon ol’ Dressing up in Paris. Our rendez-vous would probably have been more topical if we had gone somewhere French and had steak tartare, but JOAR is a vegetarian and I was craving Chinese.

Char Siu Bun

Steamed Vegetable Dumpling

Like the last restaurant I reviewed, Yauatcha can also be found in Soho – but if you’re not quite as edgy as I am (lol) you can also find it in the City. Yauatcha was opened in 2004 by Alan Yau – the wonderful genius behind one of my high street favourites, Wagamama. Like its (very fancy) older sister Hakkasan, Yauatcha has a Michelin star and – I would say – well deservedly. It specialises in Dim Sum (small dishes, designed to be eaten with tea around brunchtime) but also does a good line in cocktails and patisserie. So many of my favourite things in one place.

Crystal dumpling wrap with pumpkin and pine nut

The restaurant itself made me feel like an extra in the Fifth Element. It has been described as “minimalist” but I’m not sure what’s minimal about a fish-tank cocktail bar, niches in the wall filled with fake flickering candles, sparkly stairs, blue glass walls, oddly-shaped low tables, and twinkly ceiling lights. Nonetheless, it’s a pretty classy joint. I might have preferred it if it had been a little less loud and a little less dark. Though that may be my inner grandma talking…

Edamame Truffle Dumpling

Venison Pufff

What We Ate (And Drank)

Char Siu Bun - £4.80 

– Everything you want in a steamed pork bun, light but sumptuous in the middle. Nom.

Crystal Dumpling Wrap with Pumpkin and Pine Nut- £5.00

– Slippery and slide-y and tasty. Good crunch in the pine nuts still too.

Edamame Truffle Dumpling - £6.20

 – These tasted decadent and looked beautiful.

Steamed Vegetable Dumpling - £4.20

– Sticky and fragrant. Really blimmin’ good.

Roasted Duck Pumpkin Puff with Pine Nut - £5.80

– This was my favourite. I think I would go back just for this. Possibly also a little heavy but thankfully I ate this before I could to the venison so I wasn’t full yet…

Venison Puff - £5.20

– Delicious but heavy! And not at all what I was suspecting, flaky puff pastry around a very-rich venison filling. This was what finished me off.

Roasted duck pumpkin puff with pine nuts

Cocktails: Cha La Lai: Belvedere vodka, black grapes, oolong tea, apple juice, and Champagne - £11

– This was weird… really weird. Very fragrant and light and delicate. Tasty but… tea and champagne?!

Kumquatcha: Germana cachaça, Campari, kumquats, mandarin juice and lime – £11 

– Citrus-y and a bit like sherbet. I wish I had ordered this one myself…

Kumquatcha

Cha La Lai

Food = **** 

All delicious, all cooked to perfection, the only reason it doesn’t get five stars is that it was a little too heavy so I couldn’t finish it all.

Atmosphere = *** 

Lively, buzzing, but a little too loud and slightly pretentiously dark.

Service = ***** 

First-rate. Our server was lovely, very knowledgeable about the food and was happy to banter with us when he came past. At least I think it was banter. Could barely hear him so he may just have been trying to get us to leave…

Price = ££££

 This is Michelin-starred food so it was fairly pricey, yes. That said, for the quality it was, factoring in drinks, it was not extortionate. I’d say this is the place to go for an out-of-the-ordinary night out but not THE MOST special of occasions. A side not to mention was that, despite its popularity, it was really very simple to book a table on the day. 

Closest Tube Stations = Leicester Square, Tottenham Court Road, Piccadilly Circus, Oxford Circus

http://www.yauatcha.com/soho/