Classic Cantonese cuisine
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| Peking Duck |
For Chinese New Year, there is nothing better than a group of friend and family all gather together for a big Chinese feast. Just round the corner from Baker Street, Phoenix Palace is a traditional Cantonese restaurant that has gained a reputation as one of the top Chinese restaurants in London, it has delighted many local Chinese, as well as celebrities and even politicians for many years. It has an old fashioned Chinese restaurant decor with dragon and phoenix artwork, you will always feel like walking into China when you stepped inside Phoenix Palace. Like most Chinese restaurants in London, it has a large menu, with over 100 dishes from its a la carte menu.
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| diced seafood tofu |
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| sweet and sour chicken |
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| five spices pork belly |
The classic Peking duck had a great marinade with plenty of oriental spices and dark soy sauce. The skin had a lovely shine and crispy texture, tasted exceptionally on its own or with the given pancake and fresh cucumber. A less mainstream dish on the night was the pan fried venison with lemon grass, the meat was tender with just a tiny tone of earthiness, it had a mouthwatering aroma of the spices and vegetables. Aubergine and pork casserole was another bold, powerful, full flavour dish. The chills worked wonders with the soft aubergine, the sauce was perfect to go with a bowl of plain white rice. Five spices pork belly was a rich and filling dish, the braised pork was very moist and sweet but perhaps too fatty for my liking.
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| suckling pig, BBQ pork, roast pork, duck and beef loin |
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| steamed seabass |
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| roasted chicken |
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| venison with lemon grass |
The bill came to £28 each for ten of us, with a member card discount of 10% off. Phoenix Palace is one of the few Chinese restaurants in London that delivers top quality Cantonese cuisine, no gimmick, no creativity, just old school Chinese food done properly. The service was also outstanding, very caring and well mannered, which is totally the opposite to most of the Chinese restaurants in China Town. It is a very popular restaurant so booking in advance is highly recommended. If you are a fan of traditional Chinese food without wanting to fly across to the other side of the palate, Phoenix Palace would be a great alternative.
Food 3.5/5
What I paid:
£28 per head
Average cost without drinks and services:
£30
5 Glentworth St, London NW1 5PG
http://www.phoenixpalace.co.uk/
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