Restaurants

Dim sum at Phoenix Palace is classic and dependable: har gau were perfectly steamed and prawn and chinese chive dumplings were full of flavour. Hot and sour soup was impressively spicy and packed with prawns, bamboo, chilli and mushroom. Some dishes were faultless: a perfectly simple and flavourful chinese broccoli with ginger, for example. However, a few à la carte offerings promised more than they delivered. A chef’s special of whole chicken cooked in Shaoxing wine was bland, as if the seasoning had been overlooked; we had to add soy sauce to coax out any taste at all. In contrast, a bitter melon omelette injected a jolt of flavour into proceedings with a truly bitter tang. Regional dishes were sad imitations of the real thing; mapo tofu (beancurd in a minced beef sauce) was gloopy and timidly flavoured. The large multi-level dining room is all mirrors, wood and jigsaw frames, giving a sort of 1980s stylised Chinatown feel. Rudely named shooters on the drinks list – Phoenix Pussy, Blowjob, and Slippery Nipple – suggest that someone here has an odd sense of humour.

Time Out Eating & Drinking Guide 2009