Duddell's; Restaurant Review

Duddells is a restaurant that was recommended by a friend. It is a restaurant that originates from Hong Kong, where it has achieved the one Michelin Star status. The branch in London was opened in 2017 and though it hasn’t quite achieved the same recognition as it’s bigger brother, any restaurant that has acclaimed Chinese food, I’m there!!

The most noteworthy fact to mention is that the restaurant’s setting used to be St. Thomas Church in London Bridge. The exterior looks the same as a church, but the interior is where the majority of changes have occurred, whilst still maintaining some of the church’s original features. It is a modern and chic design, and they pride themselves on the art exhibition they hold all year round. We were told that we had just missed the “Oh…My Toy” exhibition by Michael Lau.

The Starter

Duddell’s Peking Duck (served with 8 types of condiments) - £78 (whole duck)

Duddell’s signature dish is the duck, and since we love duck, it was a no-brainer to choose this dish. We’ve eaten duck in some of the finest restaurants; both acclaimed and local so trust me when I say, I know my duck, from my duck.

Since there were four of us, we ordered the whole duck and as you can see from the picture above, it was presented to us in a whole state (minus the head, thank God). The duck was skilfully cut up at the nearby table and presented alongside accompanying condiments. With duck, you would normally expect the following: steamed pancakes, slices of cucumber and spring onion, and hoisin sauce. At Duddell’s, they clearly wanted to be ‘radical’ and decided to add slices of pineapple and pomelo, along with additional condiments of fennel sugar, mandarin and kumquat dressing, and white wine bean sauce.

My opinion? The duck was tender, but flavourless and to be honest, the condiments did nothing to add flavour to the overall dish. The condiments, although jazzy, did nothing to add value to the dish. It felt like decorations and the whole dish lacked a ‘wow factor’. We’ve enjoyed better duck at Chai Wu, Kai, Hutong and of course, China Town.

There was to be a second course of duck served during the main courses, where we had three options and having chosen the truffle sauce, we prayed it would be better.

Cantonese Dim Sum Symphony - £19

Thank God we ordered the dim sum, because it actually had flavour and lots of it! I believe they make the dim sum freshly on their premises and I imagine there to be a specific dim sum chef. It was truly a delicious seafood symphony and even without the sauces, each individual dim sum just melted in our mouths. I would go back for this dim sum! It is obviously expensive with just 6 pieces for £19 but for the experience, I would highly recommend it.

The Main

Duddell’s Supreme Lobster Noodles - £54 (Chef’s Recommendation)

I love lobster and what is there not to love? It is a very traditional Chinese dish and often served at weddings as the standout meal. I had such high expectations for this dish but it just faltered. Though the lobster and noodles were cooked well, there was a lack of flavour to the dish and a strange aftertaste which I couldn’t put my finger on. Would I recommend this dish? For £54, I don’t think it’s worth it unless they up their flavour game.

The Peking Duck with Truffle Sauce (second course) - Price inclusive of the whole duck

Where the first course failed to impress us, the second course was more on point! It was cooked to perfect, with a delicious truffle sauce. I love the taste of truffle which isn’t really an Asian flavour but somehow they managed to marry all the flavours together, so that you got to taste enough of the truffle sauce, whilst still maintaining it’s Asian heritage.

Wok-Fried Monkfish Fillet in Black Bean Sauce - £28

This dish was the standout dish for me. The monkfish was bloody delicious and the sauce just complemented the whole thing. Again, I would go back just for the monkfish which was plump, fresh and tasty! There’s not a lot to say except, if you love seafood and fish particularly, you would be crazy to miss out on this meal!

The Side Dish

Sautéed Asparagus, Wild Mushroom in Black Truffle Sauce - £14

This dish was a bit ‘meh’…. I normally love asparagus, mushrooms and truffles therefore this should have been a winner but it was just boring.

Stir-Fried Baby Pak Choi in Garlic - £10

For £4 less, this was more worthy as a side dish than it’s asparagus peer. The pak choi was cooked well and slathered in a delicious sauce that made it ‘moreish’ and kept me going back for more.

Egg Fried Rice with Spring Onion - £8

Bland and boring. It had a weird yellow tone to it as if it had been coloured with yellow food dye. The texture was odd and the flavour, well…was lacking. This was disappointing because I expected a fluffy egg fried rice with real bits of egg and fresh spring onions, slightly salted to complement the main dishes.

The Dessert

Chilled Mango Cream, Shaved Ice, Sago, Pink Grapefruit and Mango Sorbet - £12

Yuzu Pot, Sesame Sable, Yuzu Ice-cream, Black Sesame Crisps - £9

Strawberry and Elderflower Panna Cotta, Lime Confit, Strawberry Jus - £9

Smoked Pecan Tart, Guanaja 70% Ganache, Cocoa Nib Ice-cream, Smoked Pecan Brittle - £9

Although the desserts were nice, that’s just it, it was ‘nice’. They looked and were presented beautifully but none of them made any of us feel wowed. I guess the sorbets would be great palette cleansers but that’s all.

Drinks

The whiskey sour was very disappointing and not made as a whiskey sour should be. Take note from Gilbert Scott. As for the gin & tonics, they’re hard to get wrong as long as you have good quality gin, and tonic and fresh slices of cucumber. After my disappointing whiskey sour, I switched to whiskey on the rocks and chose Nikka, as I love Japanese whiskey.

Overall Impressions

Staff were very accommodating and friendly. Duddell’s have really nailed it on the head with customer service with all staff knowledgeable, attentive and approachable.

Even though we went on a Saturday night, it wasn’t busy and even at full capacity, I feel like you would have enough room without feeling like you’re sitting on the lap of your neighbouring tables. I can also imagine that this restaurant is busier on weekday nights due to all the surrounding offices.

Would I recommend this restaurant? Yes but with caution. If you’re someone who really knows about Asian flavours, avoid the dishes which disappointed us. This restaurant was a real mixed bag of flavours; on one end some dishes were fantastic and on the other, bland and boring. I would like to go again, just to re-try the dishes which impressed us.

If you would like to book, you can do so through their website:

https://www.duddells.co/london/

Until next time Xo

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All pictures on this post are my own, with the exception of the thumbnail image. Source: credit - lonelyplanet.com