Kai; fine dining Chinese in London
Kai ended up being an ad hoc restaurant we visited. Despite it earning one Michelin star and often rated as one of the best Chinese restaurants in London (I genuinely wasn't aware of these accolades when I booked it. *Insert laughing with tears coming out emoticon*). It was never really high on my list of places to try (in all fairness, there are no priorities on my restaurant list). But it seemed lovely enough and is situated in a gorgeous part of London. Also, as our first date night post-baby I wanted to dress up and go somewhere special.
Unfortunately my view on Kai isn't a glowing one. But nor was it bad. It was a nice experience but I'm sad to say a forgettable one.
Even though the menu came across really impressively, I found the food itself to be very underwhelming. However, I must say the dishes were made with excellent quality ingredients; from the meat to the vegetables (and it's all halal except the duck). Just the flavours weren't anything exceptional.
The term 'spicy' needs to be eradicated from their menu because absolutely nothing was. I know I'm Pakistani, but my husband isn't inclined to eating spicy foods at all and yet, even he found all the alleged spicy elements completely bland.
On the flip side, the restaurant might be small and quaint, but it was gorgeous, very intimate yet still had a light buzz to it. It was subtle fine dining at its best which I really loved.
I liked the small attention to details, such as…
The sweet table top decor upon arrival….
Being given a table to place your bag on (not a lot of restaurants do this).
The dining table itself was actually a soft padded one (as opposed to the standard hard tables you get) which I have not seen anywhere before.
They had non-alcoholic rosé, specifically for those who eat halal (no we did not try this) and a mocktails section.
I always say you can judge a bar on whether they can whip up tasty drinks without alcohol. They do exist. (The London jazz bars Oriole and Night Jar are fantastic and serve delicious mocktails). I ordered a spicy mango mocktail and it literally just tasted like Rubicon mango juice. Not sure what happened to the spice, or the lychee which the menu claimed it would have. As the meal kicked off disappointingly, I was holding my breath it will get better…
Wasabi prawns
With mild wasabi mayonnaise, mango and basil seeds.
Pre-Covid we went to Mr Chow’s in Knightsbridge where the wasabi prawns were amazing, so we ordered these with high hopes. The prawns were lovely but there was no wasabi in the palette, you could just taste the Mayonnaise - a bit too mild. (On a side note, the restaurant opposite Mr Chow, Mari Vanna, was terrible. It's actually the worst meal I have ever had. It looked so beautiful, rustic and authentic but the food just did not deliver.)
Soft shell crab
With chilli and shallots, spiced batter and green mango.
Don't laugh, but I didn't end up trying this because I was too scared of how it looked. When I think of soft shell crab, I think of sushi (which is really yum) but I couldn't get over how this fried crab visually came across (a tarantula on a plate?) According to my husband it tasted nice enough.
Soy and honey marinated roast lamb
With red chillies, shallots, garlic and coriander, root vegetable ‘chip’, Nanyang cucumber & carrot ‘achar’ pickle.
I never order red meat when I’m out as it wasn’t too long ago I barely used to eat it. That, and I’m sensitive to meat and fish not being fresh or of good quality. Over the years I've started to eat lamb (have not yet taken a liking to beef. It's more psychological than anything). And this was the first time I opted for red meat at a restaurant as it sounded quite appetising. I didn't regret it. As mentioned above, the meat was of excellent quality and cooked well (though I'll be lying if I didn't admit I flinched a little every time I went to cut it and the pinky flesh squeezed out a little bit of red liquid. Note to self, always order everything 'well done').
The chops were a bit too sweet for my liking, but objectively fab.
Taiwanese ‘Purple Charm’ Aubergines
With red & green chillies and black bean sauce.
These were lovely and unusual. But again, were borderline bland. And by that I mean there’s a teasing of flavour upon the first bite, but that also eventually deteriorates into nothingness.
Pandan crème brûlée with Stolen Milo Powder
Caramelised coconut blossom nectar, coffee ice cream, chocolate powder and tuile.
Like with Amazonico, the dessert was the best part. They managed to make a seemingly boring dish, taste so delicious. It was the best crème brûlée I've had; no remnant of an eggy aftertaste (which can often happen with egg based desserts) and even the custard didn’t taste like, well, custard.
Finding worthwhile private dining rooms in London can be a tad challenging. Kai's is truly stunning.
I wore my baby shower dress from Shrimps, can’t say it was flattering post-baby, made me look larger than I am. But, I still find the dress to be so beautiful (I’ll need to get it tailored).
I can't recall where I’ve had fine dining Chinese food in London which I absolutely loved. Park Chinois a few years back was a fantastic experience (I wish there were more dinner & dances, and experiential dining) but I also thought the food was just typically 'nice'. (Also the most expensive bill we've ever had, excluding the meals in Florence.)
I don’t know if I’m having a bad run with food at the moment (we went to The Montague for brunch last week, and though that wasn't bad, byt certainly not worth the price).Or if it's because I'm going through a bit of a jaded rut. Either way I don’t regret going to Kai, but I was disappointed. However, their The Chinese Whispers afternoon tea looks magical, and will encompass both things I thought Kai did well - tea and dessert. I will be putting that on my ‘food to try’ list.
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