Currently celebrating its 10th birthday in the heart of London’s trendy Soho is Yauatcha, a Michelin starred Chinese dim sum tea-house. Reaching 10 years as a restaurant in Londons uber-competitive restaurant scene is an achievment in itself and to celebrate Yauatcha have been holding a series of celebrations centred around four of its iconic offerings – the Chinese kitchen; tea-house; patisserie and wine & cocktails. As part of the celebrations Flavour Mag was invited down to see why this has become a London favourite for what is now a decade!
Approaching the restaurant just a 5 minute walk from the swamped Oxford Street pavements Yauatcha is easily identifiable. You will notice it as more times than not it is the building with tourists taking pictures outside of it. Originally puzzled by this I got closer and realised what was captivating those passing by so much; it was Yauatchas patisserie window display. Colourful macaroons and extravagant pastries line the restaurants window inviting those walking past to stop and take a peek. Once inside the restaurant floor has a contemporary Asian feel which immediately catches the eye; large blue fish tanks and art-deco style furniture ensure the room boasts a certain flair.
Once seated we were informed about Yauatchas special occasion and then had some of the restaurants favourite dishes explained to us, along with the perfect wines to match from the sommelier. To start we began by enjoying some crispy duck rolls. Large and served with a generous side of hoisin sauce the rolls were generously filled and possessed the perfect crunch when bitten. The hoisin was typically rich and warming and set the rest of the meal up perfectly. The next item brought to the table was prawn and crispy beancurd cheung fun. Now I absolutely loved these, the rice/noodle dough was complimented with a light crisp and the perfect amount of prawn drizzled in light soy sauce. Finally brought to the table as part of the starter was Chive and Prawn Dumplings which were absolutley delicious.
For main we had two lovely dishes presented before us. Firstly and my favourite was stir-fry rib eye beef in black bean sauce. The beef was tender and tasted amazing with the rich salty black bean sauce. The second main was Kung pao chicken with cashew nut. Although the chicken was tasty I felt the dish comes with too many chillies in comparison to the chicken. Not being a huge chilli fan I was probably unqualified to trial this dish, but I imagine if they are your thing then this fiery chicken concoction is for you. The subtle addition of nut also offered an intriguing dimension to the dish.
To finish the meal we had a plate of Yauatchas famous macaroons complimented with that weeks secret menu item – Eight Butterflies green tea with cranberry, rose petal and chrysanthemum flavours. This tea was a light and perfect way to end our feast and was an excellent palate cleanser; we could of easily sat and relaxed in the then buzzing restaurant floor for another couple of hours whilst drinking this tea
