London - Imperial China

In Vancouver, British Columbia, there is a restaurant called No.9 in an area called Richmond that is basically open 24 hours, 365 days of the year, and it is almost always busy. The fact that it is a Chinese restaurant should not surprise you. Now why should I mention a restaurant in Vancouver when I’m writing up a review of one in London? Its because anyone that has been to Vancouver knows that it is home to some of the best Asian cuisine outside of Hong Kong and the rest of South East Asia. Now, No.9 is not a fancy restaurant, or even a nice one. The service staff are efficient (in other words rude), the décor is sparse (florescent lighting and wobbly tables), and during busy hours its not unusual to be jammed in so tightly with a neighboring table your chair backs touch. So why, besides the fact its one of the few places open at 5am, do so many people continue to go there? It’s because the food is cheap, it’s tasty, and it’s consistent. There is nothing special about this place, it is just another one of the hundreds of Chinese restaurants in Vancouver, and like so many others a little cracked vinyl, chipped teapots, spots on the white tablecloth, all are easily ignored because…well…the food tastes good. Now, lets get back to London.

In London, there are some good Chinese restaurants. I’m not saying they don’t exist, just that they are few and far between. I find that it is also fairly safe to say that when it comes to Chinese food in London you do get what you pay for, and often a great Chinese meal will set you back more than just a few pounds. More common are the Anglo-Chinese restaurants where Sweet & Sour Pork, Lemon Chicken, and House Special Fried Rice reign supreme. So to say my expectations going into Imperial China were low would be an understatement of the grossest sort. Even as I crossed the little wooden bridge leading to the entrance of the restaurant surrounded by a pretty oriental style garden with its own mini waterfall and fish pond– a reminder, this is still in central London – I was already bracing myself for a meal of various glowing neon colours.

Inside the crowd was a fairly equal mix of Asians and Europeans, an encouraging sight. The restaurant was very dimly lit. It’s possible they were aiming a romantic vibe, mood lighting for first dates, but I found the overall effect a little closer to someone trying to shave a few pounds off their electric bill. The waiters were all dressed in black Mao suits with red piping, and while I’m not sure if it convinced me that the place was any more authentic, I did find myself wanting a set to lounge around the house in.

For dinner we went with tried and true Ma Po Tofu, a recommended Taiwanese Style Chicken, Yin-Yang Rice, and some Bak Choy with Oyster Sauce. Our waiter was quick to try and recommend some of the pricier items on the menu, perhaps we should have taken his advice, but we were pretty set in our choices and just wanted a no-fuss Chinese meal. The food came out fairly quickly and, contrary to the most common complaint of luke-warm dishes in many diner reviews, they were nice and hot out of the kitchen. First to arrive were the Ma Po Tofu and Yin-Yang Rice. The tofu was surprisingly very good, exceptionally silky and smooth, not too salty and with a nice amount of heat to it. Unfortunately, the rest of the dishes fell short of positive praise. Yin-yang rice was a murky orange ketchup sauce with a counterpart white sauce that possessed almost no flavour at all, the Bak Choy was somewhat overcooked, a little stringy, and much too salty, whereas the Taiwanese Style Chicken, served in a clay pot, was ruined by the overwhelming amount of star anise in the cooking process.

While I can’t say that it was a bad meal, I’d be hard pressed to say that it was a good meal. At this present time I think I’ll leave it with a neutral opinion, there are enough good reviews of the place floating around out there to convince me of a second venture before passing any solid judgments. The service was good, the décor ambitious, and the food while not exactly authentic or life changing, still managed to satisfy our Chinese cravings and we left not entirely disappointed. For less than £10/person I think it was a good value, and if for not other reason than that, deserving of a second chance. Don’t we all?

Imperial China
25a Lisle Street
London, WC2H 7BA
Tel 020 7734 3388
Fax 020 7734 3833
Tube Station : Leicester Square