Four Seasons Chinese Restaurant - London

When traveling abroad, especially long trips to countries where Chinese are the minority, I will definitely hunger for Chinese food at some point of time. For this simple reason, I will strategically include some good Chinese food options as part of my itinerary. Based on my research before the trip, Four Seasons Chinese Restaurant certainly fits the bill, as it has been lauded by Financial Times for the best Roasted Duck in the world. Best in the world? I sometimes feel that the word "best:" has been used too loosely by many. What is the criteria to determine a certain food is the best? Who has experience and authority to say a certain food is the best. Well, it may not be the best in the world at the end, but I believe it must be good enough for someone to give such a title. Let's give it a try!

Four Seasons started at Baywater, London in 1990 and since then, it has opened two more branches in London Chinatown and one at Bangkok Siam Paragon. We arrived at the branch at Gerrard Street in Chinatown 15min before it opened for lunch and did not have to wait long before being ushered to our table.

Ordered the Roasted Peking duck, which came with the pancakes. The way this was being served here was different from Singapore. The whole duck was sliced with bones removed, but both the skin and the meat were being served together. The skin was very crispy and fragrant, while the meat was tender and has adequate moist level. Wrapped in pancake together with spring onions and hoisin sauce, this is delicious!

The three combination BBQ meats (Soya Chicken, Char Siu and Crispy Belly Pork) were nice, but I will say that I had better ones elsewhere. We also ordered the vegetables, toufu and noodles, and they were of pretty normal standard.

Wait, where is the Roasted Duck? I realized I have mistaken the Roasted Peking duck as the famous Roasted Duck that everyone is talking about, after I got back to Singapore. I cannot believe this. I already have this penned down and will definitely try the CORRECT Roast duck one of these days. Probably at the Bangkok Siam Paragon branch first. Having said this, I did enjoyed the Roasted Peking duck then.

No doubt this is a very popular restaurant, which I believe is just for the duck. By the time we were done, there was a long queue of people waiting eagerly for their turn.

Budget : $ $

Rating : 7.5 / 10 (To be reviewed again after I try the roast duck)