Hutong

 Dim sum in the sky

Sweet eel dumplings

Hutong at The Shard has to be one of the most specular dining experiences London has to offer, the elegant ancient royal Chinese-themed decor, along with a stunning view of the city with high-end Chinese food is what Hutong is all about. I first encountered Hutong 4 years ago and I found the cooking was pretty standard, but it was from a set lunch which I am fully aware a restaurant's set lunch vs its main offering can have a great contrast in quality. Therefore, I headed to Hutong one more time to go for a full-on dim sum experience.

Wagyu puff and lobster bao

Seafood dumpling platter

Hutong got some interesting and unusual dim sum offerings, and I especially enjoyed the lobster bao, the filling contained an all-time classic spring onion and ginger lobster taste, great depth of umami taste and the bao itself was finely seared. Wagyu beef puff was another outstanding dish, very buttery with the moist beef melted in a lovely peppery sauce. The less impressive dish was the lamb ribs, I got to say the texture was really special, almost like the lamb version of the Cantonese roasted pork belly, but it really lacked seasoning, it had little flavour on both the skin and the meat, badly missing the salt and five spices, and the garnish of garlic paste didn't help either. 

Xiao long bao

Five spices roasted lamb ribs

This is a much-improved meal vs my first visit. I can see the kitchen has refined its offering, especially with its dim sum, which is now much more elegant and well crafted, both visually and taste is a step up. It is far from perfect however given the price, we are looking at around £18 per dim sum dish. Even other high-end places don't charge such premiums, like China Tang and Imperial Treasure. Dining in these kinds of venues means you will always be paying a bit more for the lovely view (= the restaurant's rent). Therefore, this is a great place for tourist, but there are other places in London with better value if food is the only thing that matter to you.

Food 3/5


Average cost without drinks and services:
£80

33 St Thomas St, London SE1 9RY

https://www.hutong.co.uk/