Monday, October 15, 2012

Pan Chai

Pan Chai opened in April this year to one of the world's retail meccas: Harrod's in Knightsbridge. The latest in the Mango Tree restaurant group, its menu bears similar characteristics to predecessors Awana and Mango Tree itself. We perch on booths in the famous Harrod's food hall underneath a wavy green "awning" and dive into the dishes.




The Korean inspired Sun Du Bu soup was such a welcoming sight after legging it through the rain before. A mixed seafood soup, the deliciously spicy broth held prawns, mixed vegetables & tofu and some meaty clams. It was impressive that all seafood was just cooked right, as it should be.



Everyone loves a little bit of drama at the table and rolling clouds of dried ice over the mixed sashimi platter garnered us a couple of oohs from passers by. Admittedly the only highlight of this platter was the yellow tail sashimi with the yuzu mayonaise.



There was nothing not to like about the foie gras & scallop siu mai, and the Shanghai Xiao Long Bao was juicy with that signature burst of juice inside. My only niggle would be the skin was rather chewy, chewy to the point of getting stuck to my teeth!


Just when I thought I couldn't fit anymore in, I yielded to the Plum miso marinated Chilean Sea Bass which delivered on every part of its name. Thick, gelatinous and proud like Agent 007's swagger it was one fine piece of meat. Yes meat, not fish, as that was how it tasted.

Hungry Female was a guest of Pan Chai's and is curious to see how this Asian empire expands into one of London's famous shopping institutions. Perhaps this is another move in making the large influx of Asian (namely Chinese) customers feel comfortable? Definitely one for when the bank balance is feeling healthy, though if you find yourself shopping the aisles at Harrods that's a given.

1 comment:

Sean said...

wow, food with a dramatic flair! i've always imagined serving sashimi with dried ice, but i've never actually seen it done before! :D