Noble Palace

 Hidden palace

Drunken chicken, jelly fish, smoked fish

When is the last time I encountered a high-end restaurant that has no website, no menu, and lack any info online? The high-end Chinese fine dining Noble Palace is just that. The no-menu concept venue in St James Park, which has opened recently fits my need perfectly. You can tell the restaurant what you would like to have, and they will try to come up with a menu for you. They are able to do most of the iconic Chinese dishes. For my recent visit, I pre-ordered a crab dish and a lobster dish, and allow the kitchen the freedom to create something special for me.

Toban prawn on pancake

Lobster cooked in ham stock and udon

The menu kicked off with some classic Jing-style cold items, I especially enjoyed the drunken chicken, it was sweet with a lovely rice aroma, and the meat was super tender. The lobster poached in a Parma ham and chicken stock was sensational, the stock was slow cooked for 6 hours with the lobster highly poached along with udon, it was rich with a clean fresh umami taste, really enjoyable. The stir fry Cornish crab cooked with garlic and Thai basil delivered a bold delightful taste, the crab was cooked perfectly and the brown crab meat mixed so well with the spices, it was as good as Chinese style crab dish you can get.

Stir fry Cornish crab in Thai basil and spring onions

Iberico pork char siu and tofu

Unlike western restaurants, Chinese restaurants in London don't follow the season and cooking according to the prime ingredients. Instead, it has the same menu throughout the year with classics that will never leave the menu. Things like roasted duck, black pepper beef, and egg fried rice, you will pretty much encounter these dishes no matter whether you are visiting a budget or a high-end restaurant. And I am getting bored as I am seeking new Chinese flavours, things that might be easy to come by in China but hardly any place does it in the UK, so Noble Palace is a great solution for me!

Food 4/5


What I paid: 
£138 per head, with a glass of wine

Average cost without drinks and services:
£98


Caxton St, London SW1H 0PY