Hakkasan

Address:	8 Hanway Place W1T 1HD
Tel	020 7927 7000
Price: £67.00	Wine: £25.00	Champagne: £55.00
Opening Hours:	Mon-Sun 12N-3pm (Sat-Sun -5pm) Mon-Sat 6pm-12M (Sun -11pm)

Square Meal review of Hakkasan:

Hakkasan retains its title as London’s chicest Chinese restaurant by some distance. The sultry basement, lit in shades of purple & filled with beautiful fretwork, oozes sex appeal & attracts a good-looking crowd. But it’s not a case of style over substance. Being one of only two Michelin-starred Chinese restaurants in the capital (the other is sibling & dim sum specialist Yauatcha), the food hits many a high note: from perfectly formed dim sum (the prawn har gau & venison puffs come in for particular praise) to more traditional salt & pepper squid, & less conventional stir-fried rib-eye beef with Merlot sauce. Of course, all this glitz & glamour comes at a price, & it’s one of the many issues that divides opinion down the middle. Some think Hakkasan is ‘gorgeous’, others find it ‘dated & dark’. Service is either ‘charming’ or ‘unfriendly & pretentious’. And, as for the atmosphere, some love its ‘great ambience’ while others are irritated by the ‘loud boom-box music’. One thing that all readers agree on, however, is that the two-hour limit on tables is irritating & rarely handled with grace.

Wine List: Hakkasan’s wine buyer Christine Parkinson continues to expand what remains one of London’s best global lists. It’s laid out under thoughtful headings that challenge the way we think about wine, such as ‘Terroir’, ‘Biodynamics’ & ‘Curious Vines’. All the wines have been chosen to complement a range of Chinese dishes, & there’s plenty by the glass. Best Buy White 2006 Santorini Hatzidakis, Santorini, Greece, £26. Best Buy Red 2004 Egidio Shiraz, Linda Domas, McLaren Vale, South Australia, £42.

Hakkasan Location: