Tipped

A pearl of a place

January 31, 2009

This is a really nice restaurant. It is a bit hard to find since it doesn't show up as a location on Google maps (how is this possible?), but once it is found, it is great.

It is in a very funky location.

I went for dim sum too and I agree with Charles (above) that the yam dumplings are excellent. All of it was excellent and I would like to go again.

The amazing thing was that we had lots and lots of dishes and ended up paying only 10 pounds each.

Keywords: chinese, sheldon, paddington, dim sum

excellent takeaway too

January 25, 2009

I've not eaten here but can say the takeaway was excellent. A good Chinese restaurant is worth its weight in prawn crackers, and a good one that delivers (we live in Maida Vale) is worth its weight in gold. Not cheap but worth it as a good alternative to the usual glossy gelatinous goop you so often often get elsewhere.
Also, they have an online menu which makes life so much easier when you have a Chinese crave-on and only have 20 pizza flyers stuffed in that drawer by the phone.
http://www.pearlliang.co.uk/

Keywords: chinese food

Super Awesome! Super Cheap!

January 19, 2009

Wow! This place is awesome! Seriously Awesome!

I went here with 10 people over the weekend, we booked ahead which was lucky as it was pretty busy.

It's set behind Paddington Station, in fact when I called and asked for directions the lady told me to get onto Platform 8 in the station and walk all the way to the end, go up the stairs and voila!

Anyway the place is nice and spacious and our table was in a little room off the main dining area so it was nice and calm. I've eaten a fair bit of dim sum but I wouldn't say I was an expert however I luckily had been given some tips of what to order. Basically everything we ordered was delicious - I'm not going to list everything as we had over 30 dishes but I particularly enjoyed the Yam Croquettes (what tastes like Yam and Chicken Stew in a little croquette type thing) Pan Fried Turnip Cake, Shanghai dumplings (dumplings with soup in them - watch out when they're hot!), Barbequed Pork Cheung Fun (a bit like Chinese cannelloni) and Barbequed Pork Char Siu (is that the name???) (it looks a bit like a proper poached egg but tastes clouds).

Anyway 10 of us stuffed our faces and drank loads of tea and it came to £12 a head including tip!!!!! I couldn't believe it! If you even slightly think you like Dim Sum you MUST come here. Seriously! Do yourself a favour. Come here.

Keywords: dim sum, cheap

Back in love with Chinese food

May 08, 2008

We recently discovered Pearl Liang through rave reviews and a 'best of chinese' in London and was so suprised that is just down the road from our house at the sterile Paddington basin. No doubt attracting a large work crowd at lunches, we went along on a Saturday and the place was about 80% full by 9pm.

I ate A LOT of chinese food as a teenager. My dad sang every weekend at a Chinese restaurant in Sydney and he always brought back food, so I overdosed on the stuff by 16 and swore never to eat it again. Since living in London I've enjoyed the trendy delights of Yauatcha and Hakkasan but whilst delicious (former) and over-rated (latter) to me these places were not true cantonese style chinese food.

So what a pleasure Pearl Liang is. The food fantastic. We ordered way to much and stuff it all down. Salt and pepper squid and scallops for starters were spicy. Peking duck, pancakes etc were wonderful and served at the table with panache. Char sui pork melted in my mouth and the egg fried rice was the best I had tasted in years (or ever). I think the rice was prepared with beef or chicken stock so be warned vegetarians, but the flavour it provided was fabulous. Prices were reasonable and to me so much better value than earlier mentioned Hakkasan. Most of all the service was delightful - the chinese staff were attentive and the little touches as they delivered the food were lovely.

So whilst the location is a bit strange, its worth the trip. I am sure you will enjoy it. I have to go back and try the dim-sum!

Keywords: chinese

Great Dim Sum

February 17, 2008

Finding Pearl Liang was a bit of a challenge: Sheldon Square is not exactly square but more of a complex of office buildings, and Pearl Liang is nestled in the wall at the base of the public outdoor amphitheatre. It is directly behind Paddington Station, but it takes a few twists and turns to get there - instead we got lost and wandered the canals of Little Venice for a while until we oriented ourselves.

Once you do manage to get there, you're in for some delicious food in a surprisingly stylish and large restaurant. The dim sum is delicious and very reasonably priced - we had a huge Chinese New Year meal with a ridiculous amount of food of all varieties that just kept coming, and it ended up just under £20 per person, very reasonable for the high quality and the amount of food. If you go, be sure to check out the bathrooms - the challenges are 1) finding the unmarked semi-invisible door to the bathrooms, and then 2) deciphering the strange cartoonish figures on the doors that make it completely unclear which bathroom is which. I chose poorly.

Keywords: chinese, dim sum, private parties