When they bring wet wipes to the table with the first dish, you know you’re in for a good night!
We got stuck right into Ping Pong’s new Chinese New Year menu the other day, getting covered in all manners of sticky sauces and chill flakes. The honey glazed spareribs were the main culprit here. Chopsticks kept us clean for most of what followed.
Alongside the usual char siu buns (which never disappoint), they’ve made an equally banging duck hoi sin bun for Chinese New Year. It’s just as sticky and tasty as the char siu but with a noticeably different duck filling.
But we hope the seitan and vegetable dumplings become a main fixture once we’re well into the year of the rat. You know you’re at a good dim sum spot when their vegetable dumplings are on point.
Unlike others, you can actually taste the vegetables here. The earthy flavours come through and are cut by a good burst of chilli. Absolute winners!
Then go nuts with the rest of the menu. Order as much as you think you can handle, and then add one more for good measure. This is dim sum after all. The table should be overflowing with bamboo baskets and dipping sauces.
Grab yourselves a bunch of dumplings (not missing out on the cod and okra combo), the classic Cantonese har gau dumplings, a few spring rolls and the much-loved and very on trend bao buns. A chilli chicken rice pot won’t hurt either.
They’ve also got a fun little cocktail just for Chinese New Year. The wish upon a cherry cocktail is a floral concoction of Finlandia vodka shaken with sake maraschino cherry liquor and cherry blossom syrup, served with a hibiscus sugar rim and maraschino cherries on top and wishing label. Thankfully, it isn’t anywhere near as sweet as we expected.
And with each wish upon a cherry martini, guests also get a label on which you can write your wish for the year ahead and hang on their small “Wishing Tree”. One very fortunate wish will be granted to the value of £500 so drink as many as you can.
It is so refreshing to find unpretentious food in the Square Mile. Some restaurants try to make everything modern, quirky and Instagrammable but this kind of Chinese cooking is simple and honest. They do things well but don’t fuss over presentation and fanfare.
Unit 7-9 Bow Bells House, 1 Bread Street EC4M 9BE
