Er Mei

Food aside, I feel compelled to stress how indifferent and horrendous the service is. Sad for the chef whose effort is more than off set by the attitudes and manner of the staff in the restaurant. What a shame!

One of the few Sichuan places I’ve been to in London — as in many others are barely even Sichuan food.
If this place were in NYC I might still go which I mean as a huge compliment. However, I think there are a lot of complaints about the service because this is near the theatre district and you have a lot of tourists that do not realize that exceptionally bad service IS London service. Welcome to my life — its ridiculous that they don’t understand the detriment to their business but here we are.
We ordered a few things — one thing I did do was rescind the dan-​dan noodles once I was told they were served in a soup. This is not common, at least not in the Sichuan places in the states (or anywhere in Europe) so I passed. However, the other dishes that we got were really fantastic — cumin lamb hit all the marks as well as the spicy chicken. The ribs were a bit tough to eat but this is pretty common for the style of how Sichuan food is prepared.
This place may not blow you away but if what you are craving is Sichuan food, you should come here — I’ve been to a lot of the others and this has been the best thus far.

Best Sichuan food in London — I think. Not for the faint of heart chili-​wise and peppercorn-​wise.
Get the Sichuan Lobster and spend the next hour in a state of gourmand bliss.

Nice Chinese restaurant that was willing to take a double stroller. Yeah! The staff was very friendly and I do not know enough about Chinese food to write that this was better or worse than any other, but the food was good. I’m not even sure what we ordered because my wife loves Chinese food, with the exception of Peking duck. We ordered a quarter size as a starter and that was not enough. I can write that it was very tasty. The tiny stone well in the front of the restaurant with carp and goldfish was cute. Overall a nice experience.

This place gets one star because of the food– the food that actually made it’s way to our table after 2.5 hours, anyway.
We were in Chinatown looking for a decent place to eat and liked the menu from the outside. Since we didn’t have a reservation, we had to wait for about 5 minutes in the front corridor, but they brought us some drinks and our table was ready shortly after.
We ordered:
Crispy Aromatic Duck (¼)
Hot and Sour Soup
Duck Soup
Kung Pao Chicken
Crispy Beef with Peanut and Chili
Vegetable Chow Mein
I guess I’d had enough wine about 45 minutes in and hadn’t noticed that the place was filling up like crazy and we hadn’t received even a morsel of food. Soup is normally pretty quick. Suddenly, I heard a man at a table of two behind us, yelling that he had been waiting an hour and nothing had arrived. He was furious as he and his companion had show tickets and needed to leave. Leave is what they did. He got right up and marched out with his lady. Without paying for his drinks.
Several other tables around us were complaining as well.
After an hour our Kung Pao chicken arrived. We asked where our duck and soups were and the server assured us that it was coming. Then, our noodles and Beef arrived, but not before the servers tried to raffle them off at other tables because at this point the place was jammed and I’m sure the kitchen lost more than a couple of chits or the servers screwed up half the orders. Some people who had just been seated were getting their food. But those who had been patient enough to wait for an hour and a half sat starving.
Food – Okay… It was really good. Beef was tender and delicious with crunchy peanuts and tons of hot chilies! I was in heaven! Kung Pao was another lesson in Sichuan heat; savory, slightly sweet chicken with cashews and veg. No gloopy sauce, not too greasy. Noodles were nice and crisp but gave way to a less spicy sauce and crisp veggies.
Hot and Sour Soup was decent. My duck soup was awful and bland (or perhaps the infernal symphony of main courses that I had already eaten overshadowed the humble broth).To fix, I added a heap of chilies to my soup and happily slurped it up.
We never saw our duck.
But several waitresses did stop by and try to serve us dishes we didn’t order.
This place was a complete fiasco. They’re lucky that I had enough wine to not care about how abysmal the service was. I teetered between laughing and reminding them of the items we had ordered in case they had forgotten. My boyfriend was simply stupefied at the incompetence (but he only had 2 beers).
It’s a shame, because this dinner really could have been nice.

Horrible service!!!
Went there on a Sunday evening at 6pm and had to leave by 7.30pm to go to a show. The lamb skewers turned up cold and the majority of our food order didn’t show up by 7.15pm (over an hour after ordering!) so we asked for the bill and to cancel the outstanding dishes. However, the staff couldn’t give us the bill after asking for it over 5 times and finally brought one of the dishes just when we were about to leave. Worst and more incompetent service ever! I thought Chinese restaurants are supposed to be efficient?! Will never return…

One of the nicer looking restaurants in Chinatown section of London. We were 3 of us. Pulled pork and the Kung Pao Chicken and Vegetable Lo Mein shouldn’t definitely be tried! The portions are big so for 3 of us, we left some over. Everything is ala carte (meaning the rice) so remember that when ordering and if you are New Yorkers who love your rice with Chinese Food. Perfect meal for before theatre!

It’s definitely one of the fancier restaurants in Chinatown but not necessary the better places. For Szechuan food, I would much prefer Barshu. The mapo tofu tasted like something you get some those instant mixes and do it yourself at home dishes. The chicken dish I ordered was a little on the salty side and not much chicken in it. Lastly, pumpkin pancakes were nothing exciting.

I went here for Chinese New Years, looking for that Chinese fix… with a kick!
Décor: It’s kind of a try-​to-​be trendy, but yet a bit authentic sort of feel. Definitely more modern and it’s dark inside. This place is also HUGE! It also got a bit warm when we were there (might have been the spiciness, lol, but still.)
Service: The waitresses were nice. Our table was kind of in an awkward spot so we had to call some waitresses over a few times to get our waters refilled, but otherwise it wasn’t too bad.
Food: Quite good, if I may say! I haven’t experience Sichuan food before so I can’t comment on its authenticity, but it was definitely enjoyable! My friends and I got a variety of things and sadly I only remember two of their names (though pictures are up!)
— Ma Po Tofu– DELICIOUS. my friend is taiwanese and he reallyreally liked it. Be sure to get rice with these dishes, btw (costs more, sadly)
— Dan Dan Noodles: I LOVE these types of noodles and Empress makes it quite well! They say it’s ‘small’, but I really think one person can eat it and maybe some other things and be full.
— Shaoxing WIne: This was served in a very interesting way. They gave each person a ltitle cup with. I think a dried prune/​plum in it? And you pour it in yourselves. Very tasty :)
The quantities are a bit smaller than expected for the price, but because we had 5 people and ordered about 5 – 6 dishes, we were all way more than full.
Bottom Line: Great dinner choice for Chinese New Years! Give it a try if you want a spicy chinese meal :)

On Sunday, my boyfriend and I ended up outside the door of the Empress of Sichaun, and quickly decided we wanted in. They had chilli peppercorn squid that was enough for us.
I was on menu choosing duty so, a bottle of red (a Rioja), and some cold starters. I went for Bang Bang Chicken (which was like a cold chicken satay a LOT nicer than it sounds) and thinly sliced pork in garlic and chilli sauce. Both were excellent I could smell the garlic before it even arrived at the table. My only criticism was that there were some bits of gristle in the chicken, which were a bit gross. Nevermind.
Our waitress asked if we wanted a short break before commencing mains, and I chose to take her up on that. We had ordered quite a few dishes.
I went for the chilli peppercorn squid (of course! Always a winner), as well as double cooked pork belly slices in garlic and chilli (garlic much? Oh well cleans the blood and all that). We also had some broccoli steamed with garlic (seriously) and some steamed rice.
All dishes involved were amazing the squid, as always, stole the show. I want to know how to cook squid like that it’s so MEATY. The pork belly slices were like the starter, in that they were cut incredibly thin, giving a bacon-​like mouthfeel. No bad thing. Tonnes of garlic on the broccoli, and everything was the right level of spicy. Very clean flavours, beautifully presented, generous portion sizes. We ate everything, except a couple of broccoli florets and a handful of rice (there is always too much rice).
Then, straining from our full bellies, we were presented with some deep-​fried pumpkin cakes, arranged in a stack, with a candle on top. After a rousing round of Happy Birthday (it makes more sense if you know that it was my birthday), we managed one of the scotch-​pancake sized treats each, and took the other three home.
I popped a hefty tip on the bill — the service was polite and charming, and they made sure we were happy and comfortable throughout. The Empress of Sichaun comes with huge recommendations. Get ye to Chinatown.
Two courses, with wine and followed by Chinese tea (and we certainly didn’t go hungry), about £40 a head
You can see a few photos —

After reading some yummy experiences at Empress of Sichuan, I made a mental note to go there when the next opportunity arrives. I was also intrigued when I realised that it was also own by the same GL that seems to have a stronghold in Chinatown.
At the next opportunity, I came with a group of friends ready for some Szechuan food. Bring on the heat!
I enjoyed it so much that I came back again soon after. Here are some of what we ate.
Marinated Jellyfish with Chicken and Cucumber in Hot & Sour Sauce £8
The jellyfish was slippery and chewy. A refreshing dish with a kick coming from the hot and sour sauce.
steamed pork ribs with rice paste in bamboo tube £11.80
This I wasn’t too fond of. The rice paste was quite wet and it formed a sticky paste with the pork ribs. The flavour was good but the texture wasn’t for me.
fragrant chicken with dried chilli and pepper £13
One of my favourite. Twice I’ve been back to Empress of Sichuan and twice I’ve ordered this. Chicken that has been sliced into bite sized pieces so that every surface is coated with the chillies and pepper.
It was addictively delicious. The second time we had it, the chef spiced it up 5 folds and it was almost too much that my tummy ached. Almost!
bitter melon stir fried with green and red chilli £9.50
It was great to have this as it was bitter and cooling which helped to qualm the spiciness from the other dishes. Actually, it was the only non-​spicy dish so you bet it was very popular with the group even if bitter melon might not be up their alley.
Ma Po Do Fu, spicy diced tofu with minced pork £8
A decent version. The «heat» was there but the «mala”/numbing spiciness/​was merely a weak presence.
Dan Dan noodles Sichuan style
I like the texture of the noodles. Soft with a slight spring which was happily eaten. However, one of the members of the dining party did not.
Farmers Baked Fish with onion, cumin and black beans £23
Another favourite at the table. The balance of salty and spicy, with touches of sweetness was amazing. The White fish was fresh and being baked only accentuated its freshness. We couldn’t get enough of it. Deliciously complex sauce that was just begging to be mopped up with rice.
Deep fried pumpkin cake Sichuan style £4
The staff were really great, ever helpful and attentive. One of them even brought us a dessert for free which was the pumpkin cake. Cut into circular shapes with a thickness of half an inch, it was dense in texture yet slightly chewy or QQ. We all loved it.
Sticky rice balls with sesame in sweet soup £4
I could never resist anything glutinous whenever I see it. I should have realised from the Chinese description. Sweet soup it definitely wasn’t, think plain bland slightly starchy water. I noticed during my china travels that they serve this dessert mainly in two ways, either in plain water or thick rice wine water.
black glutinous rice with coconut ice cream £4
When it first arrived we were all wondering, Why in a martini glass? Presentation faux pas aside, it was a pleasant surprise. This was GOOD!
The glutinous black rice was sticky and gummy with the rice adding a nice contrast to the texture. It went really well with the coconut ice cream which added an extra dimension in terms of aroma… sweet dairy creamy coconut!

There’s really not much I can add about this place other than:
1. The food is seriously spicy here. It’s right proper Sichuan food, it is.
2. When your tongue’s burning, it doesn’t matter what you’re eating as you can’t tell the difference.
The tang yuan (sesame dumpling dessert) I came here especially to eat weren’t great. Just average.

For more information and pictures:

There is just something about Sichuan cuisine that I love. I don’t know if it is the chili, the numbing spiciness of the Sichuan peppers, the liberal use of garlic and oil or the combination of all of these with other ingredients I can’t pinpoint. Feeding my addiction, there is an increasing number of good Sichuan restaurants in London, such as Chili Cool, Ba Shan and Empress of Sichuan. The latter is located in the heart of Chinatown and for Chinatown standards its interior is rather posh. I have been wanting to go there forever, and after I read Catty’s mouthwatering review on it, there was no holding me back. I followed some of her recommendations, which turned out to be delicious.
We felt like something fresh and healthy for a starter so we chose the Marinated Cucumber in Garlic and Sesame Oil (4.50) (no that are not nuts, that’s garlic!). So simple but so tasty, it was worth the aftermath of smelling like a garlic plantation for the next 2 days. I don’t know about the ‘healthy’ aspect as it was drenched in oil, but I really did not care and neither should you :) .
Ma po tofu (7.50), (also taken from Catty’s recommendations) was rich and tasty. The soft and clean tofu was the perfect vehicle for the bean based sauce with chilli and the minced pork mixed in gave it some additional depth. I could not stop eating.
I should have gone with Catty until the vert end, as the Fragrant Chicken with Dried Chili and Pepper (12) was really not very nice at all. Swimming in oil (but not nice oil, grease!) the chicken died a second death being fried to hard little pieces. I am not sure about the Chinese approach to not remove bones and cartilage I don’t think they have anything to do in a dish that costs 12 pounds. So I was disappointed, especially as I expected it to be something like the beef with dried chili I had at Chili Cool and still dream about.
Thank god the Empress managed to convince me about her grandness with a very simple vegetable dish Spicy Green Beans with Minced Pork (8.50). This is one of the Sichuan dishes I always order and it was perfect also this time. This is the best way to eat green beans spicy, salty and fresh I would happily eat this every day.
So this was (mostly) good food and I am already looking forward to returning and sampling more dishes of the extensive menu. I really want to try the Dan Dan Noodles.
A word of warning for the spice haters among you. I thought the spice even in the ‘2 chili’ dishes was pleasant (but that’s me, I love spice) but if you are not into hot food, stay away as even the dishes indicated as ‘not spicy’ had a clear kick to them.
The food is actually not cheap, particularly if you compare it to Chili Cool and I don’t think it is necessarily better than its budget competitor. However, Chili Cool is slightly out of the way (I am just never near King’s Cross by accident) and for Sichuan cuisine in central location, the Empress is the perfect place. Regarding the bill I had a small issue I want to share with you service charge is included (indicated as SC on the bill) but if you pay by card the machine will ask you if you want to give a tip. Be careful not to tip twice the service is not that great and it smells a bit of rip off

The BBC boyfriend of mine didn’t know enough about Sichuan food, so I ordered a Sichuan feast to show him what Sichuan food is all about! I have to say ‘Empress of Sichuan’ delivered on all expectations.

For a meal fit for a monach, the Empress of Sichuan’s mouth-​numbingly spicy dishes (try the sea bass) are well worth a visit to Chinatown’s Lisle Street. This restaurant recently eclipsed Bar Shu as my fave upscale-​ish Sichuan chow wagon in London.
The décor’s more 80s Chinese restaurant meh than the antique oriental splendour that is the gorgeous Bar Shu, but it actually makes for a lot more comfortable place to eat. The food’s as good (if not slightly better) and the prices are more affordable to boot.
If you like your food fiery and have an adventurous palate (who’s up for spicy pig’s ear slices?) then make a date to dine with the Empress.

As a fan of Sichuan food I was curious about this place. A medium priced Sichuan restaurant in Chinatown? Sounded good and it was. As other reviewers have said it will not make you sweat like a polar bear in a sauna, so if that’s what you’re after one of the other Sichuan restaurants in London might suit you better. If you are after tasty, well cooked food in a nice, calm (especially considering it is located in Chinatown) restaurant then it is a good place to try.
After ordering the lamb skewer starter, a dan dan noodle, pak choi, a pork main and a beef main I expected to be completely and utterly stuffed but the portion size is not that big.
The lamb skewer had a cumin flavour and a bit of heat from chilli combined with the numbing sensation of the Sichuan peppers, very tasty. The Gold Hook pak choi with shrimp was succulent and a good accompaniment to the meat dishes (this was from the list of special dishes that are £2 each if you order two mains). The pork main, the Bear’s Paw tofu and pork, was tender and tasty with silky smooth pork slices. The beef slices main was a bit spicy (hence the «extremely spicy» name of the dish I suppose) but still not as spicy as you would expect, very good though. The dan dan noodle was the disappointment of the meal, it wasn’t spicy at all, the taste was wrong and the noodles were not cooked properly.
I will definitely come back here to try the other dishes.

Today I had a bit of time on my hands at lunch and a quick look in the newish Empress Sichuan window showed me a lunch menu I’d not noticed before. With lots of things sub £5 it looked perfect for a quick bite. Being well versed in the art of solo Chinatown lunches I headed in and the first thing that hit me was how far removed from my usual Chinatown lunch this was. No angry Wong Kei waiters and wipe clean tables here — mood lighting, racks of wine, tablecloths and, for some reason, rock and roll music and Rock n Roll memorabilia. A cheerful waitress showed me to my booth but I declined the menu, having made my mind up the instant I saw the list outside. There are few things in the world tastier than pig stomach (and when eating Sichuan it has to be offal) so ‘noodles with pig stomach in a spicy sauce’ was requested. Wanting to test the kitchens with something I’d eaten in Chengdu, and made myself from Fuchsia, zhong dumplings with chili completed the order.
The noodles arrived, flat wheat noodles (no egg in the Sichuan style) bathed in a deep red glossy broth and speckled with the lumps of intestine. Sichuan food is very hot and should make you sweat and the colour of this red liquor suggested it would do what it should. The first mouthful let me know there wasn’t going to be any sweating today though. There was chili, sure, but in no great quantity, not something I would expect from any Sichuan food really, let alone something described as spicy. Over my shoulder I heard another lone diner ask for chili sauce. There really should be no need for that when eating this cuisine, the gf frequently cites not being able to eat for a week when we were in Chengdu and here folk were asking for extra chili. Don’t get me wrong, this was a gorgeous bowl of noodles — the noodles had just the right chew, the soup was rich and meaty with the smoky hint of sesame oil lingery on the palate, the pig intestine was flavoursome and cooked beautifully, melting in the mouth which such rubbery organs are not want to do. It just didn’t have much chili, I wasn’t warm let alone sweating.
Next up were the zhong dumplings. I’d had these a few times in Chengdu and each time you had the wonderful balance of fiery oil and almost bland pork filling. Whilst these had more heat these were not the hottest zhong dumplings I’ve ever had, in fact they’ve not the hottest zhong dumplings I’ve had this week, the honour of that goes to a bowl I had in Cha Cha Moon at the weekend. Heat or not though these blew the Cha Cha Moon portion away which, whilst flavoursome and chili hot, suffered from a heavy handed sauce, more reminsient of bang bang/​strange flavoured sauce with far too much oil and the overwhelming flavour of sesame paste shining through. This is before you’ve got on to the fact that they serve this sauce over won ton, crisp with water chestnut instead of the soft bite of a zhong dumpling. Add to this Cha Cha Moon charge over £4 for 4 and here I got about 10 for £3.80 and there’s no comparison. Back to the sauce though and here it was delicious, oily too — as it should be — but balanced at the same time, hints of sesame oil and chili not overpowering the lightly flavoured pork filling, the whole thing lifted with the familiar citrus numbing of Sichuan pepper. My lips tingled and I scoffed the lot down in record time but I still hadn’t managed anything near a sweat.
So first impressions of this place are mixed. The food is very tasty and the dining room a cut above most Chinatown restaurants. I think most folk would go here and absolutely love it, in fact based upon this it’s a Sichuan place I could easily take the gf too, assuming she’s not still too haunted by Chengdu to step into anywhere bearing the region’s name. I’ll be back myself too for lunch as it makes a lovely change from the Cantonese on offer everywhere else. As a hardened Sichuan cuisine eater though I would liked to have seen a lot more chili, leaving wet around the collar and flushed of cheek, and I will return of an evening to see whether the main courses will let me achieve that goal, and maybe earn a 4^th star in the process.
If you want to see some photos of the food they’re on my blog here:
For photos see:

For Photos See:

The emperor may be wearing no clothes, but the Empress of Sichuan knows how to dress up a plate.
Based on the fringes of Chinatown, near the Prince Charles cinema, the Empress Of Sichuan looks a little prissy on the inside compared to some of her neighbours. Normally elegance is not an advantage in my book of tracking down no frills, gutsy but good Chinese fare. There are wine bottles on formal display and enough room between tables to make it near impossible to surreptitiously eye off the meals on neighbouring plates — almost. There are even linen napkins.
However, service immediately puts the heart at ease — it is friendly, non stiff and helpful (despite the occasional language barrier). Waitresses have a little more time to talk through your options than they do on Gerrard St, where they’re often shrieking out «fried pork, crispy duck!» before they’ve even completed the 180 degree turn from your table.
Wines by the glass are as cheap as chips. I enjoyed a couple of glasses of the Hazy Bay Chenin Blanc (Sth Africa 2008) while TPG chose a zingy Gerwurtztraminer Verdelho from Opal Ridge. Both were around £4 — £4.50 per glass and got our night off to a happy start.
Our bowl of sliced, spicy chicken (pictured above) — so full and juicy — came first, wallowing in a bowl of flame coloured chili oil, with a hefty smattering of sesame seeds and coriander. At £6, this was good value and 100% more enjoyable than the version I’ve had at Soho’s trendy Bar Shu in the past. It was swimming in oil, but somehow this seemed nourishing rather than greasy.
Our whole steamed seabass was gorgeous. Hunks of delicate, moist fish balanced beautifully with the subtle flavours of the ginger and spring onion. It would be hard not to choose this again next time. At around £20, it could easily feed 3 people. Or us.
Our bears paw tofu was delicious, although being thinly sliced and quite dry, I’m not sure I prefer it over chunkier cut styles which retain a softer texture. Braised with scrumptious slithers of pork and big, slippery cloud ear mushrooms, this was another fiery delight with contrasting textures.
The Empress of Sichuan is all substance over style, especially when compared to some of the trendier looking Sichuanese players which have answered the call for this fiery cuisine nearby. She’s playful, but chef Kang Dong (who hails from Chengdu) keeps her on track, focused on what we’re really there for: delicious, comforting, flavourful food in an ambience that doesn’t steal anything away from the plate.
She’s not the cheapest option in Chinatown but, in just one bite, you’ll understand why.
Our bill came to around £60 for 2, with wine, steamed rice and service. And I’ll be back. Oh-​ho yeees [rubs hands gleefully]…

Joining me for this meal was fellow blogger, Luiz aka the London Foodie and his partner in crime, Dr G. We were going to go for a burger but Luiz twisted my arm to come here instead. And you know what, I’m so glad he did because any fears that Empress of Sichuan might not be up to scratch were soon dispelled when our order arrived:
Beef slices in extremely spicy soup aka water-​boiled beef or shui zhu niu rou (£12.50)
Fragrant chicken with dried chilli pepper aka la zi ji (£13.00)
Farmers Fish baked fish with spring onion, cumin & black bean (£21.50)
Spicy green beans with minced pork & preserved veg aka siji dou (£8.50)
Dan dan noodles (£4.80)
The classic beef and chicken dishes did not disappoint — they were both gutsy with the chilli and Sichuan peppercorn taking centre stage. The beef was very tender and the ‘spicy soup’ seemed more refined than I was used to, well as refined as a giant vat of chilli oil can be. La zi ji chicken bits tossed with dried chilli and Sichuan peppercorns is probably my favourite Sichuan dish and it was as good as I’ve eaten inside or outside of China. This superior version of the dish was the real deal with the chicken served on the bone.
So far so good but things got better with the star dish of the night, Farmers Fish which was the one dish that was new to us all. I’d love to take credit for ordering this but actually this was the one dish that I didn’t order. In an attempt to shake off my control freak tendency, I let my dining companions choose a seafood dish and Dr G certainly came up trumps with this choice.
The fish was perfectly baked with the flesh flaking off under a coating of spring onion, cumin and black bean. Whilst this combo sounds full on and potentially overwhelming, the three ingredients combined well and extra rice was ordered to mop up this moreish coating.
Spicy green beans are a staple order at Sichuan restaurants and they were beautifully cooked here. There was also more minced pork than other versions of this dish and you could also pick out the distinct taste of preserved vegetable too. We also enjoyed the dan dan noodles more soupy than I’m used to as it had a good flavour with the trademark Sichuan kick.
Service was excellent, probably because there were surprisingly few diners on this Thursday night. We were bought some tea after the meal and had a chat with the friendly head waitress. She explained that the head chef was from Chengdu as was most of the kitchen crew and that there was a 20% discount for the month of January. This discount will continue in February until St Valentine’s Day (weekends excepted). Together with steamed rice and a couple of rounds of beer, the bill clocked in at £81 for three including service and the 20% discount. Even without this discount I would have happily paid my share of the £100 or so bill.
So how does this newcomer compare to other Sichuan restaurants in the capital? As Empress of Sichuan is an elegant upmarket restaurant, I think comparisons with Chilli Cool are facile as the latter serves up a rustic, almost home-​cooked food in humble surroundings. Its main rival is therefore Bar Shu but I can’t really make a comparison, as I haven’t eaten there in years. That said it’d have to be pretty special to best Empress of Sichuan.