A. Wong

13 January 2019

The open kitchen, with Andrew Wong at the pass calmly checking every single plate, was just about the quietest place in the restaurant, something we’ve remarked on before in popular restaurants in London. While the dining room had the feel of a typical, traditional Chinese restaurant, the food was anything but, as we discovered on valiantly, and successfully, making our way through what amounted to a 15-course Taste of China experience, a memorable culinary trip round the country with surprises galore and the sequence of dishes properly balanced and served at the perfect pace for our appetites. Cured scallop and stuffed crab with wasabi in a sort of “scotch egg” was the first of a pairing along with honey barbecued pork, grated foie gras adding to the many different taste explosions. A dim sum duo from the restaurant’s specialities, both with a slight chilli kick preceded a “street food” dish, the chilli sauce and Szechuan pepper matching the coriander tofu and backed up with peanuts and preserved vegetables. Brilliant steamed pork dumplings with pickled tapioca, ginger vinegar and spring onion were followed by a delicious Peking duck wrap enhanced with caviar and hints of foie gras which led us into fermented wild sea bass with super crunchy skin perched on a smoked duck and fried kale “birds nest” with cod’s roe. A sort of mid-menu palate cleanser of Chinese broccoli discs, braised abalone, and shiitake mushrooms introduced the meat dishes, the first of which came in the form of a pulled lamb burger (bao bun) with a pomegranate salad providing a striking burst of freshness, and the next, genuine Japanese seared wagyu with lardy, “magic” (oyster) mushrooms, crispy ultrafine noodles, mint and lemongrass gave us an amazing demonstration of chef’s skill. And it didn’t end there - we had soy chicken in a caviar wrap and made to a millennial soy recipe with ginger oil exhibiting an almost sweet side and a second chicken dish with an intriguing mild, sweet and spicy sauce. Coconut water ice with black fruit and creamy yogurt was the ideal palate cleanser before the two desserts, a poached meringue looking like an egg with a passion fruit yolk and pomelo and a sugar crisp, and the finale of mandarin sorbet with ginger, raspberry, and white and plain chocolate. Altogether an excellent evening with first-class cuisine, although we did ask ourselves whether bowls rather than plates would have made our inexpert handling of chopsticks any more successful, but we generally managed, at a rather slower tempo than some of the other diners, and came away unscathed. The service was absolutely top-class and it was a pity that the ambient noise level made it virtually impossible, on occasion, to understand everything in the very detailed explanations of the dishes.

12 February 2018

My mother, in town from the south of France for my birthday, wanted to treat us to good cuisine so I chose A. Wong and it was my first time there. My mother is used to 2-3 Michelin stars in France but I decided to still run a risk (no risk no return) and take the three of us there. We went there on 7th Feb and when we entered the place I was a bit apprehensive because of the settings and decoration of the ground floor but was relieved when they brought us downstairs to our basement table. I have read they will open another restaurant in the new Bloomberg building complex so will look forward to this. The staff accommodated that although we had a table for a short slot, we still wanted the tasting menu and we are so grateful for this. Both the quantity and quality were impressive. The abalones were perfectly cooked (still soft) and so were the meat and fish. From the beginning to the end the courses were a feast of flavours. I cannot remember the number of dishes as there were so many. Our expectations for the deserts were low as one usually is with Asian continent restaurants but A. Wong delivered a big "wow" factor even on deserts which not only could very well have been created by a French chef but also the flavours were relevant to the Chinese cuisine; some chocolate yes but also non-European flavours. One minor "but" in the shape of fried noodles which none of us liked as they were just greasy without anything special. I would suggest to just take them off the menu (enough food already) or revisit the dish. Our Uzbek waitress clearly knows her job at the Michelin level. Although she was in charge of quite a few tables, she seemed to be always with us topping up our tea cups and teapots (yes without us having to ask, checking we were fine, introducing each course, etc. I don't know what she runs on but I'll have the same please. At this level of quality of food and service, you usually don't get this much quantity. Thus, I definitely recommend you to go to A. Wong before prices go up because at this restaurant quality level, prices are usually higher. Yes, they also gave me a little bday cake that I could barely finish because we were already so satiated on all levels :)

06 October 2017

For as long as I’ve lived in London, Victoria is a place from which to catch trains and little else. Most of the time, the area resembles (as it does today) a building site. In other words, not somewhere one would consider coming for lunch. Things are admittedly changing, and for the better, but it was not to one of the newer places in the district to which I recently ventured, but instead to A Wong, a superb find worth seeking out. Blink and you might miss it: go five minutes south of the station and there the restaurant stands, opposite a branch of Sainsbury’s supermarket. Had it not been for the recommendation of the friend with whom I dined, I would never have set foot in the place. The eponymous Mr. Wong cooks with a passion and self-consciously draws his menu from all regions of China. The emphasis is both on variety and presentation. While the dining room itself could be described as somewhat functional, guests can see the chefs in action and the place certainly did not lack atmosphere on our lunchtime visit. We opted for dim sum and asked the waiter to bring us a selection of dishes. This was a great way in which to see the kitchen at its best. From the ten we tried, not one was a disappointment. The dishes ranged from the conventional (honey-baked pork buns, for example) through to the genuinely innovative. The latter is perhaps best epitomised by the ‘rabbit and carrot glutinous puff.’ Here, minced rabbit meat comes served in a piece of lurid orange rice-paper, shaped like a carrot and topped with green herbs to enhance the visual effect. Among the other highlights was the won ton with garlic, chilli oil and crispy bean curd dish – so good, we ordered a second round. Service was efficient and helpful and with a bill of only £27/head (with tea to drink), we came away not only pleased with the food, but also the value for money. Next time you need to catch a train from Victoria, build in some time to eat here first.

13 February 2015

Some of the best Chinese food I have ever experienced in London. The restaurant is fairly small, but has a nice atmosphere to it. It's a shame that you could not select some dim sum from the lunch menu for dinner, so the options were slightly limited. After having finished our starter, we had to wait over 30 minutes for our main course. When I spoke to the manager to see where our food was, he said it was our fault because we took too long to order! They did not apologise or offer us anything to compensate for the wait. Appalling. Luckily the food made up for it... I had the chili beef as a main, which was full of so much flavour and had a beautiful sweet tang to it. Accompanied with some egg fried rice the portion size was perfect. The dessert is the best dessert I think I've ever experienced. The Tea smoked banana, nut crumble, chocolate, soy caramel is not one to be missed. The caramel and melted chocolate mixed so well with the ice cream hidden within and the nut crumble mix. I'm still dreaming about it! I can't wait to go back, but hopefully this time the service will be better!

28 February 2013

The feng shui inside might be stunning but it's difficult to imagine many less auspicious locations in zone 1. A Wong sits like a slightly out of place squat granite and glass monolith among the mediocre lunchtime options and sandwich chains of Wilton Road. Laid back decor inside, a clean mix of Scandinavian woodwork and soft straight stone lines. There are three menus, a lighter dim sum focussed lunch menu, a more substantial evening list and a tasting menu spanning the both. They all dip in and out of a range of regional specialisms, so Sichuan standards like Gong Bao chicken and dry fried beans rub noses with braised lettuce, Imperial dishes and Yangzhou fried rice. Prices are reasonable across the board, though at £1.50 a piece the dim sum will mount up pretty quickly. It isn't the place for a weekend blow out, but then you're unlikely to see many people round here during the weekend other than the confused tourists disembarking from Victoria station. Of particular note is the express menu, with two courses, a drink (and two lovely salted caramel petits fours) for a very reasonable £12.95. A trio of dim sum wouldn't usually come close to satisfying me, even as a starter, but these are monsters. That classic shrimp har gau, here at least half again as big as the tiddlers I'm used to in Chinatown, came with an innovative twist, a protective bubble coat of sharp citrus and yuzu foam. That other stalwart pork and prawn siu mai came with its own welcome innovation, a tiny sliver of puffed pork crackling, texturally complimenting the freshly steamed and freshly made parcel. A grease free and delightfully crispy pork wonton completed the set, as delightful a dim sum experience as I've had in this country. Of the four or so mains offered with the express menu, I went for Sichuanese speciality dan dan mian, or peddler's noodles, named after the distinctive cooking pots they were served from by wandering street sellers. Whenever I've had it before, the soft minced beef, seasoned with those numbing Sichuan peppercorns, mixed with chunks of chilli, veggies and noodles has come in a spicy broth made of noodle water, Shaoshing rice wine and stock. Here it comes, with a few beansprouts and a single vegetable, in a thick meaty gravy, dumped over pedestrian noodles. Not unpleasant per se, but unexpectedly dry, overly rich and not much to my taste. I'll be back, if not for the tasting menu, certainly for a more detailed examination of the evening menu and some more of that super sized dim sum. The sun was out, and the open plan airy space will be gorgeous come the summer. Let's hope that the locals can tear themselves away from Nando's and the infinitely inferior Dim T just up the road and support the new kid on the block.