Duddells' London

Modern Chinese dining at a whole new level

Truffle roasted black cod with lily bulb and Nameko mushroom

It has been just over a year since Duddells' London has launched in London Bridge, the art inspired Chinese restaurant is closely associated with design and fashion, hosting regular partnership with local art galleries and fashion shows. The food offering at Duddells is based on traditional Cantonese with some modern western twist in between. You can still see classic flavours such as black bean and dim sum. However, Duddells' version would be an instant upgrade, such as using more premium ingredients and injecting French cooking techniques. for my meal, I opted for a selection of dim sum, as well as some a la carte dishes.

Duddells' London

Gold fish and jade leaf-shaped dumplings of prawn, king crab and scallops & prawns

Shu Mei

Pan-fried chicken dumpling

Scallop dumplings

Sautéed asparagus, wild mushroom in black truffle sauce

The dim sum game at Duddells' was seriously strong. The signature dim sum symphony, containing prawn, king crab, and scallops. The crab version was especially outstanding, really light but yet packed with beautiful shellfish aroma and fresh taste of the seafood. The roasted black cod was sensational, the cod was flaky and buttery, really well cooked. The earthy element of the truffle and Nameko mushroom enhanced the natural sweetness of the fish, it was perfectly balanced. Mock chicken made of gluten was a surprise winner for me, tasted just like chicken with lovely black pepper sauce offered an inviting and punchy flavour to the whole dish. Last but not least was a plate of well-executed egg white fried rice, it had hardly any trace of oil with bags of impactful aroma thanks to both the truffle and scallop. 

Duddell’s Peking duck

Fennel sugar, aged mandarin and kumquat dressings,
white wine bean sauce, pomelo, pineapple, cucumber and spring onion

Sliced duck

Stir-fried duck with truffle sauce

Clay pot tofu with monkfish and prawn in xo sauce

Truffle and scallop egg white fried rice

Black pepper vegetarian chicken

My meal at Duddell's was a very enjoyable experience, it was good to be back to see how the restaurant has progressed after 1 year, the cooking was generally outstanding and I would rate it as good as Hakkasan, if not better. It is also more reasonably priced, you can easily enjoy a casual lunch here with less than £30 per person, or around £70 per person if you go for some of the chef signature dishes from its a la carte menu. To sum it up, Duddells' is a fantastic Chinese restaurant that offers modern Chinese food in an unusual, quirky setting, and I would rate it as one of the top Chinese restaurants in London.



Food 3.5/5


Average cost without drinks and services:
£70

9a St Thomas St, London SE1 9RY

http://duddells.co/london/