Disclaimer – I’m going to be very excited in this post!
Dubai is the place to be for any foodie. As a foodie, it’s easy to fall in love with the city one amazing restaurant at a time. It was almost like a ritual to go to Cheesecake Factory and PF Chang’s every single time I’m in Dubai.
So, naturally, when I heard that PF Chang’s was coming to London I could barely contain my excitement! So, please excuse me if I’m overly enthusiastic in this post..
PF Chang’s is known for a few signature dishes – Dynamite Shrimps and Mongolian Beef as well as everything else on the menu. So I already knew what I was going to have! But, unfortunately, as the restaurant is very new to London and they’re having some teething problems, the beef wasn’t halal but I was informed it would be starting TODAY! Oh did I mention the chicken is halal too! But as always, make sure that you check the restaurant’s halal status for yourself before digging in.
So off I went ordering to my heart’s content. Although the menu is sizeably large and was hard to decide what to eat, the menu is split into small plates, main meals, sides and more. So we went with a few small plates, a few big ones and a few desserts.
First on the menu was Chang’s Chicken Lettuce Wraps. I thought these would be a little like duck pancakes where you DIY your own food, and I loved it. Lettuce pieces with diced chicken and a spicy sauce to go with it. Point to be noted here – this is not date food! It’s a bit messy to eat and not to be eaten when wearing a white top (as my friend found out the hard way). Unlike pancakes, lettuce wraps crack easily so be careful, but this is one of the dishes I would 100% recommend. But as you can see, the lighting isn’t great there and even my trusty camera couldn’t help in this case.
Next, we had Chili Jam Wings. Wings are one of those non-date foods that are so deicious, but so hard to eat in any kind of sophisticated manner. So, my advice would be just go for and it will be so worth it. The chilli jam wasn’t exactly chilli per se but definitely had a kick and were probably one of the best wings I’ve had.
Next on the menu were the infamous Dynamite Shrimps. I think these were the ones I had been dreaming about (no joke) since I first had them in Dubai. Everyone knows when you go to PF you need to get these for the gram but they’re also delicious! They were a definitely a good dish but just not as good as I remember them being in Dubai. Won’t be rushing back for these but at least I got a good shot of them! (Yes I took a photo outside the restaurant and wasn’t ashamed of it at all!)
And finally, my favourite dish by far was the Kung Pao Chicken. THIS DISH WAS AMAZING! We pretty much licked the plate clean. Wok-fried chicken with spicy Sichuan chilli sauce, toasted peanuts, and red chili peppers. According to our watress, every 1 in 10 chili peppers was VERY hot so beware. But generally the dish wasn’t too chilli but has a kick to it for sure. Absolutely beautiful!
And finally dessert…and what a spread it was – Matcha Creme Brulee, Apple Dumpling and Banana Springrolls.
First, Matcha Creme Brulee served with puffed black rice and candied lemon peel. I love anything matcha but unfortunately there was very little taste to this, and wasn’t even as Insta-worthy as I’d thought. (#thestruggleisreal)
Banana Spring rolls – which wasn’t actually even on the menu yet but was probably my favourite dessert. The banana springrolls made for an interesting dessert, fried bananas in a pastry, served with the most beautiful coconut ice cream you’ll ever taste. Definitely worth a try!
And lastly.. Apple Dumplings. I think this dessert had so much potential but the poached apples in cinnamon and vanilla sugar, covered in a filo pastry dumpling wasn’t great in my opinion. Mostly because the apple (which was a full apple) was so hard to cut into, which was so frustrating I was almost tempted to just pick up the whole dumpling and bite into it (almost!) But the saving grace was the pastry which was SO good!
Overall, I feel like it was somewhat of an emotional experience – it was a bit of a rollercoaster ride with my excitement levels going up and down with every dish. Maybe my expectation levels were a bit high but I would go back (with slightly more realistic expectations) and go for some of the dishes that I might not have had in Dubai, because we all know expectations are the killer of all realities. One thing though – the service was exceptional with every waiter/waitress being so friendly, helpful and even helped us move to a better table with decent lighting! SOLD!
Food – 6 out of 10
Service – 8 out of 10
Atmosphere – 6 out of 10
Experience – 6.5 out of 10
Overall, giving PF Chang’s Asian Table a total TLH score of 6.5 out of 10.
Address: 10 Great Newport Street, London WC2H 7JL
Website: https://www.pfchangs.co.uk/
Halal Status: Chicken and Beef is halal, but they do serve alcohol
Closest Station: Leicester Square (Piccadily Line)