The Times
Charlotte Ivers was thrilled by the tongue-tingling Sichuan pepper she encountered at this new backstreet spot on the edge of the City with “the sort of low neon lighting and casual-chaotic vibe that makes you think, ‘Yes. I’m young and relevant. This is what being part of a global city feels like’.”
The latest addition to the “expanding empire of Wenjun Xiang, who aged only 27 has been flogging dumplings since she was a teenager working at the Bang Bang Oriental Food Court”, it is inspired by the cuisine of the city where Wenjun spent her first 12 years, Dalian in northeast China.
The standout dish was wasabi prawn balls, billed as ‘Gourmet’s top choice’ – “juicy king prawns fried in a light tempura, glazed with a sweet wasabi mayo and dusted with sesame seeds. They are massive, plentiful, not much to look at. They are also an utter joy.”
Despite her overall favourable view, Charlotte was firm on what not to order: the heavily hyped house speciality soup dumpling, that comes with an “Instagram-friendly little red straw” to suck out the broth but which is “a nightmare to eat, collapsing and disintegrating”; and the cocktails, of which the lychee gimlet reminded her of Parma Violets while the peppercorn tonic “tasted the way festival portable loos smell at the start of the day”. Enough said, Charlotte – as you suggest, we’ll stick to beer.
Charlotte Ivers - 2024-09-08
