BiBo Dani García Madrid

International flavours in Madrid 

Cesar salad

Dani Garcia is now such a well-known chef in Spain, with more than 20 restaurants in Spain, and he launched a limited edition burger with Mcdonald's, he appears to be the Gordan Ramsay of Spain. Bibo is his 'international' concept, where he combined world flavours and injected them with local Spanish ingredients. Dani actually launched Bibo back in London and I have dined there before, but judging from the menu, it is hardly the same as there isn't hardly any overlap on the menu. The Madrid site has much wider choices, as well as a much more impressive dining room.

Restaurante El Senador Madrid

 Classic asador house

Peas and ham

When in Madrid, one of the must-try foodie experiences without a doubt is the suckling pig. There are many traditional grill houses across Madrid that offer such dishes, but Restaurante El Senadors stood out as the go-to place for the legendary dish from Segovia. It is a very traditional restaurant serving all kinds of classic dishes that are well-known from around the region. From bean stew, and garlic prawns to another infamous dish, the milk-fed baby suckling lamb, cooked in an open fire wood-oven.

China Tang London

The perfect Cantonese BBQ

Grilled suckling Sevgovian pig in Cantonese style

I have been in and out of China Tang London for the last 7 years as I am a fan of its really traditional Cantonese cooking, done in such an authentic yet classy way. The restaurant doesn't try to be clever or fusion with western concepts, it just does classic things really well using great ingredients. For a special birthday celebration, I pre-ordered a whole suckling pig, which required ordering in advance, and for good reason, as the restaurant would order a whole Spanish Iberico piglet imported from Spain especially to be roasted in the classic Cantonese BBQ style.

Park Chinois

 Classy Chinese done just right

Red prawns 2 ways with Chinese broccoli

It is hard to believe I have been to park Chinois over 20 times. The fine dining restaurant in Mayfair does bold flavours of Chinese cuisine, mostly around Cantonese style to a really refined level, with a hint of creativity. Most of the dishes are based on traditional dishes and flavours profiles that you would find familiar if you are a fan of Chinese food, somehow Park Chinois finds a way to take it to a whole new level, leveraging top-level ingredients sourced from around the world. Below is my highlight from the recent 2 visits (21st and 22nd times).

Noble Palace

Poon choi special

Crab, seabass and xo prawn dim sum

The no-menu concept of Noble Palace is a great Chinese restaurant for me whenever I am seeking Chinese dishes that can be rare in London. China itself is a massive nation so there are plenty of regional cuisines to explore beyond the famous Cantonese dishes that UK is now familiar with. When you pay a visit to Noble Palace, the way to go is to create your own menu and then reach out to the restaurant to ask them if is that something they can execute, as they can cater to most requests. For my recent visit, I went for a Hong Kong new year special, 'poon choi', and a whole steamed fish.