you win some, you dim sum

I have an aversion to restaurant chains , there is something quite corporate and sterile about them. the only good thing is that you can always rely on the menu knowing that wherever you are you can always have yourself a katsu curry or that medium spiced chicken and chips you love. When faced by the mysteries of an unknown place or town having one on every corner does not seem quite like a bad thing.

They always prove helpful on social occasions, where drink is mostly required but food is very much needed. This is where the restaurant chain becomes like a reliable buddy, always reasonably priced and bound to have one of your old favourites on the menu.

My friend was passing through London and with only a couple of hours to spare before he had to jump on the train, the only reliable place near Victoria I was willing to jump into quickly for drinks and nibbles was Dim T http://www.dimt.co.uk/index.php. The decor is nice, and it always has a friendly atmosphere. Our waitress was the superwoman of the catering world, manning over 10 tables on her own. For a moment I felt like I was in a real life game of Diner Dash!!

My cocktail was an amazing thirst quencher and the prawn crackers and chilli sauce was the perfect compliment to the fragrant sour tones of my lychee and lemongrass beauty that I was sipping.

I love Dim Sum, they are in fact my perfect type of food, small finger foods full of flavour leaving you with the amazement of how did anyone even manage thinking up that complex flavour combination, and fit it all into one perfectly sized little dumpling.

Whomever that person was they are a genius in my eyes! However Dim T’s dim sum menu is somewhat limited, but sufficient for the event at hand. With 16 dim sum choices to choose from I felt the selection, especially for the vegetarian option, was rather small in comparison to places I have been to previously and considering that the restaurant’s name pushes itself in the dim sum realm, it is a little disappointing that the majority of the menu is focused on noodle and rice dishes.

I was happy with what I ate at Dim T, but if you are a lover of dim sum I suggest you go somewhere like yum cha silk and spice on chalk farm road http://www.yumchasilksandspice.co.uk which has an incredibly vast menu of dim sum and every time I dine there it just seems to taste better and better, but make sure you book a table as it can get very busy especially on the days where it is 50% off all dim sum.

All in all Dim T is a great place for a cocktail, nibble and a social catch up. If you have never had dim sum before than going to Dim T is like a great introduction course. I suggest if you do go to Dim T try something from their noodle and rice part of the menu. It has much more variety and actually sounds quite nice. If I ever happen to dine in Dim T again I think I might just go for the Malaysian butternut squash curry.

Happy dining xx

Yo Ho Ho and a bottle of Rum!!

I took a little trip to The Rum Kitchen on Carnaby Street, which I discovered while having a little shop in town. I instantly had an urge to walk in and try it. Not only is it inviting and makes you feel like you have walked into a Rum Shack by the sea, but the fact that it has the word Rum in the title makes it a place one needs to experience.

The Menu as expected is exactly what you would want from a Rum Kitchen. I had the Jerk Chicken wings, Sticky BBQ Ribs and Saltfish Fritters for starters. I was there with other people I obviously did not consume this elaborate starter on my own. Although challenge accepted it is very possible I would be able to do it.

The Saltfish Fritters are something I would sell my nearest and dearest for, they are amazing and I could quite happily consume them all day and everyday, and the salad with spicy tomato sauce that accompanies it adds the perfect amount of kick and compliments these tiny balls of heaven perfectly. The Jerk chicken wings are the best wings I have ever eaten in a long time. They literally fall off the bone and the Jerk seasoning is a mind blowing taste sensation that everyone should have the pleasure of experiencing. The BBQ ribs where good, I just wish that they were cooked for a little longer, but thats just personal taste as I love meat to fall off the bone, but the BBQ sauce totally made up for it, as that was fantastic and I will hunt high and low to get a recipe so I can reproduce that at home.

For my main meal I had the soft shell crab burger. Words cannot describe how good it was!! The crab was cooked absolutely perfectly, it was softly placed on a squiggly brioche bun bed and kindly covered with a crispy piece of lettuce and smothered in spicy tamarind sauce, ginger aioli and guava-lime relish and generous slices of avocado. Every bit created a new taste sensation and one which I wanted to repeat again and again and again. A huge wave of disappointment surpassed over me when I looked down at my hands and every last morsel of my burger had disappeared into my tummy. It was lucky I had ordered some sides because at this point I was quite ready to order another burger!!

The sweet potato fries where cooked to perfection and had the right amount of crunch yet soft and tasty in the middle and dipped in some scotch bonnet mayo really made me want more. The pineapple chilli slaw and the home made slaw where the perfect cool me downs in an oh so spicy meal.

But you can’t go to the Rum Kitchen and not have one of their incredible cocktails, I highly recommend the Lesser of two Weevils which is Red Stripe and Jamaican ginger beer shandy, spiked with Mount Gay Rum and a dash of lime bitters. Very refreshing and a great thirst quencher and does not taste like your average shandy. If you want a cocktail to blow your mind, I would totally recommend the Zombie it has a lot of alcohol in it but perfectly balanced that you do not feel like you are sticking your straw into a bottle of rum.

I am now making it my personal mission to go back to the Rum Kitchen and try everything on the menu. If you like Caribbean food, a spicy taste explosion and something that makes every taste bud tingle, then this is the place for you. Perfect atmosphere for a friends get together or a party. The service is great and efficient and both waitresses were attentive and friendly and they really complement the atmosphere. My only little bit of niggle would be that the music was a little too loud, but that could come down to my old age.

If you are not in town they also have a place in Notting Hill and if Carnaby street is anything to go by then I would be there in a shot. Check out the website http://therumkitchen.com go eat be merry and make sure you wear elasticated trousers as you will need them.

xx