Restaurants

While an à la carte menu is available on request, the best option at Hunan is the ‘leave it to us feast’: a series of small dishes that can be adjusted to suit dietary requirements or allergies, rather like a Chinese tasting menu. On our visit, the son of owner Mr Peng (who hails from Taiwan) was a charming host and very helpful in deciphering the ten or so little dishes that arrived at our table in swift succession. Highlights included a delicious savoury broth with steamed minced pork and water chestnuts; hot spicy beef flavoured with dried mandarin peel; a meltingly tender cube of red roast pork belly; and sesame crispy octopus with plum jam. Other dishes were less enjoyable, such as an overcooked steamed salmon and snapper roll, but the meal’s variety of taste combinations was interesting and fun, if not always authentically Chinese. We finished with a larger plate: pork shoulder wrapped in lotus leaves, which arrived with sautéed chinese broccoli and stir-fried rice. Hunan’s small interior is charmingly decorated with cream walls, brush paintings and other Chinese works of art. It’s a hospitable place, which has given it a loyal following.

Time Out Eating & Drinking Guide 2008