Last week I went to test out the new Chinese New Year menu at Yauatcha in the City (the things I do for you guys ;)). Last year I tested out the Hakkasan Chinese New Year menu, so this year I wanted to mix things up a little bit. It was a really delicious meal, however we did miss one of the mains (more on that later in the post…), but the thing that really made it awesome? Gin macarons, and a Gin cocktail pairing flight. Yes. You read that right.
I reviewed Yauatcha in Soho back in 2014, and the City version of the restaurant is very similar – much more relaxed and informal compared to Hakkasan, but still an incredible standard of food. Yauatcha is the place to go to with friends or colleagues, while Hakkasan should be saved for dates, special occasions, and client lunches.
After eventually finding the entrance (it’s quite confusing if you don’t know Broadgate Circle well – we tried numerous doors trying to get in before we eventually found the entrance), we got settled and started with a Saffron G&T and the dim sum. I really do love dim sum, and the fois gras roast duck puff was the perfect way to start the meal. My favourite though was without a doubt the Caviar taro dumpling!
For the main course we started with the Sean conch Chinese yam soup, which was a wonderful brothy soup ideal for these cold months!
We then shared the Yauatcha scallop yusheng, which was a raw salad of radish, Japanese seaweed, grapefruit, pomegranate, pumpkin and mushroom. It was fresh and delicious and a great healthy option. On the side we had Dried oyster fried sticky rice, while enjoying a second gin cocktail – the Pomelo Fortune, which contained Monkey 47 gin, velvet falernum liqueur, pomelo, grapefruit, cranberry and orange, mandarin bitters. This was our favourite cocktail from the night, as we loved the fruitiness of the cranberry and orange!
Unfortunately we didn’t get to try the Hakka fortune pot as the staff never brought it to us…we did think it was weird not having a hot main dish, but weren’t sure if the menu at the City branch was just different to the Soho branch. Turns out after looking at the menu the next day and reading other reviews, they did actually forget it and you are supposed to have this at the City branch as well. If we were paying customers this would have been disappointing to say the least (aka, I would have been fuming), but as guests of the restaurant it wasn’t too big an issue and saved us a few calories!
For dessert we enjoyed a selection of macarons, but again the staff were being stingy and we were given four out of the six macarons that you’re supposed to get (something we said?!). The camomile was the one I didn’t particularly want to eat as I really don’t like camomile tea, however after gingerly tasting some, I wolfed it down and it ended up being my favourite! It was really tasty and tasted nothing like the tea, thank goodness!
With our macarons we were presented with our third and final Gin cocktail; the Pink Kumquat Monkey 47 sloe gin, Diplomatico Reserva rum, Domaine de Cantone ginger liqueur, cranberries, and rice syrup.
The food was brilliant and of the standard you expect from a Hakkasan group restaurant, and aside from the staff forgetting to give us dishes, we had a really lovely meal! Though maybe if you want to experience Yauatcha’s Chinese New Year menu, head to the Soho branch – I know from Lauren that you’re guaranteed to get the full menu there! 😉
Find me: Twitter | Youtube | Facebook | Bloglovin | Pinterest | Google+ | Instagram
Catherine Lux is a veteran travel blogger by night and the Head of Content Marketing at Amazon by day. Originally from Surrey, she spent four years living in Australia (2007-2009, and 2016-2018), and now lives in London. An ex-party girl sometimes prone to relapses, she loves nothing more than sharing her fine dining and luxury travel experiences with her loyal readers.
Shame about the hot pot but I think a dinner of dim sim and macarons sounds divine 😉 I love Yauatcha.
Lots of love,
Angie
SilverSpoon London
Mmmmm dim sum & macaron all day long…
I completely agree Angie – as I said it saved me the calories haha! 😉
C x
Such a shame that they never brought the main dish!! Agreed with you – Broadgate circle ain't easy to navigate! Glad you had a lovely evening though 🙂
Lauren xx | The Lifestyle Diaries
I would be so disappointed about the missing dish (and the missing macarons as well!) But all the dishes do look really fun!
x Kenzie
Kenzieblogslife.blogspot.com
I looooove Yauatcha (and so much more than Hakkasan). Shame about the hot pot BUT as you said, you weren't paying so never mind 🙂 I NEED that oyster sticky fried rice in my life! Lots of love, Andrea xxx
Andrea's Passions
I'm a big fan of this place, in particular the desserts. It's interesting to see that you had completely different dishes to ours, so there really is a lot of choice
I visited for the Chinese Year of the Monkey menu too. I liked the cocktails and the macaroons. I will also be going back at some point.
Here's my review from a week ago when I went: http://jenikya.com/blog/2016/02/celebrating-year-of-the-monkey.html
The food here looks really impressive. I love these designed macaroons, a really nice touch.
A great review and lovely photos Catherine!
Laura xo
http://www.shehearts.net