My Dad has always been a huge dim sum fan, so when I was invited along to michelin-starred Yauatcha to review their special menu in celebration of their 10th birthday, I knew exactly who I was taking with me. He met me in Soho after work, and we went inside the informal restaurant to be greeted by beaming faces. After being shown to our seats, we browsed the menu and told the waiter what kind of foods we liked. I requested lobster, scallops, and duck. And oh man did they deliver.
We started with Lobster dumpling with tobiko caviar with ginger and shallot. This was my joint favourite dish of the evening. It was quite tricky to eat with chopsticks as it kept getting stuck to the leaf on the bottom and the sides, but once I'd eventually shoveled it into my mouth it was so worth that extra effort. The different textures of the steamed dumpling with the chunky lobster and caviar all combined was to die for.
Next up was the secret 'off-menu' items. For their 10th anniversary month, Yauatcha are offering a new secret item each week for the month of September, centered around their specialties. We went on the 'Chinese Kitchen' dim sum week, but they're also having a macaron, tea, and champagne week.
The secret items were all delicious, especially the lamb and fig dumpling below (the green one), however the scallop and lychee puff (in the pic directly below this paragraph) wasn't my favourite. The lychee was far too strong for the scallop, so much so that I couldn't even taste the scallop. The puff was perfectly light though, and was definitely the best part about this dim sum (I do love carbs more than fruit, after all).
Following on from the secret menu items was the baked venison puff, which I had at Hakkasan a couple of months ago. I love this one, the outside is crispy and buttery while the inside is rich and succulent. Dad however, wasn't a fan, he found it that little bit too rich and filling.
Next up was my other joint-favourite along with the lobster dumplings. The prawn and beancurd cheung fun. This was one of those 'melt-in-your-mouth-omg' dishes. I just love dim sum that has a combination of different textures; just like the lobster and caviar, the sticky dumpling outer and the crispy fried inner combined with the prawns saw me polish off most of these before Dad had a chance to try them.
The waiter cleared our table and told us our duck was on its way. While I poured myself another glass of Sake (Dad wasn't drinking any, before anyone points out my terrible Chinese etiquette skills ;) Also I'm totally obsessed with Sake after my Sake class at Sake no Hana last year!) Dad exclaimed how full he was and I said 'Haha, well we've still got the main course and dessert to come yet!'. He looked at me and in all seriousness said 'what? No, that was the dim sum, he just said dessert was on its way...' I looked at him before bursting into laughter and breaking the news to him that he had misheard in his old age.
Shortly after the duck arrived, and my Dad looked at me in shock and utter horror at the thought of eating any more food. However he soon forgot about being full and dug in to the crispy duck.
The duck was tender and delicious, however it was just like any other crispy duck. It wasn't awe-inspiring nor innovative, and definitely not as 'wow-factor' as the dim sum. So if I were you I'd stick to just ordering loads of dim sum!
The real wow-factor though was the desserts. I wanted something light after such a huge meal, while Dad went all out and had chocolate. Both of the desserts were perfection. Dad's Jasmine Honey was a thick chocolate mousse with a creamy inside and honey ice-cream.
I, however, went for the lighter option of Coconut Mousse with a passionfruit sorbet. It was just what I wanted; light and fruity with that perfect hint of creamy sweetness and tang of citrusy exotic fruits.
After tasting Yauatcha's offerings I'm now not sure whether I prefer Hakkasan or Yauatcha. Gahh! Ok. So I'm gonna put it this way, Hakkasan is most definitely the sexier sultry and ever so sophisticated older sister, while Yauatcha is the playful younger brother. Their food is very similar, but Yauatcha is more suitable for an informal bite to eat with friends, while Hakkasan is the ideal date-den and special occasion restaurant. Both have excellent food and service, and after eating in both of them, I'm still drooling over the very impressive dishes the chefs have created.
Dad and I left feeling full and satisfied, aside from the duck, and scallop and lychee puff, the rest of the meal was perfect in every way and I couldn't recommend a visit enough. Thank you for such a lovely evening team Hakkasan Group!
We started with Lobster dumpling with tobiko caviar with ginger and shallot. This was my joint favourite dish of the evening. It was quite tricky to eat with chopsticks as it kept getting stuck to the leaf on the bottom and the sides, but once I'd eventually shoveled it into my mouth it was so worth that extra effort. The different textures of the steamed dumpling with the chunky lobster and caviar all combined was to die for.
The secret items were all delicious, especially the lamb and fig dumpling below (the green one), however the scallop and lychee puff (in the pic directly below this paragraph) wasn't my favourite. The lychee was far too strong for the scallop, so much so that I couldn't even taste the scallop. The puff was perfectly light though, and was definitely the best part about this dim sum (I do love carbs more than fruit, after all).
Next up was my other joint-favourite along with the lobster dumplings. The prawn and beancurd cheung fun. This was one of those 'melt-in-your-mouth-omg' dishes. I just love dim sum that has a combination of different textures; just like the lobster and caviar, the sticky dumpling outer and the crispy fried inner combined with the prawns saw me polish off most of these before Dad had a chance to try them.
The waiter cleared our table and told us our duck was on its way. While I poured myself another glass of Sake (Dad wasn't drinking any, before anyone points out my terrible Chinese etiquette skills ;) Also I'm totally obsessed with Sake after my Sake class at Sake no Hana last year!) Dad exclaimed how full he was and I said 'Haha, well we've still got the main course and dessert to come yet!'. He looked at me and in all seriousness said 'what? No, that was the dim sum, he just said dessert was on its way...' I looked at him before bursting into laughter and breaking the news to him that he had misheard in his old age.
Shortly after the duck arrived, and my Dad looked at me in shock and utter horror at the thought of eating any more food. However he soon forgot about being full and dug in to the crispy duck.
The real wow-factor though was the desserts. I wanted something light after such a huge meal, while Dad went all out and had chocolate. Both of the desserts were perfection. Dad's Jasmine Honey was a thick chocolate mousse with a creamy inside and honey ice-cream.
After tasting Yauatcha's offerings I'm now not sure whether I prefer Hakkasan or Yauatcha. Gahh! Ok. So I'm gonna put it this way, Hakkasan is most definitely the sexier sultry and ever so sophisticated older sister, while Yauatcha is the playful younger brother. Their food is very similar, but Yauatcha is more suitable for an informal bite to eat with friends, while Hakkasan is the ideal date-den and special occasion restaurant. Both have excellent food and service, and after eating in both of them, I'm still drooling over the very impressive dishes the chefs have created.
Dad and I left feeling full and satisfied, aside from the duck, and scallop and lychee puff, the rest of the meal was perfect in every way and I couldn't recommend a visit enough. Thank you for such a lovely evening team Hakkasan Group!
Find me: Twitter | Email | Facebook | Bloglovin | Pinterest | Google+ | Instagram
*Dad and I were invited along to Yauatcha as guests, and received our meal complimentary. However my views remain my own as always.
