It was my parent's 30th anniversary the other day, which is a bloody long time, especially by today's standards, so we were in need of a celebration. We had intended to get a Chinese takeaway, but our favourite joint was shut for a holiday, so in the end we had to go out. What a chore!
Our minds set on a Chinese, we went to the best Chinese restaurant in the general vicinity of our house and ended up in the Magic Wok in Surbiton.
I've been to this restaurant a couple of times before, and it's renowned locally as a bit of a posh place. The waiters are kitted out in waist coats and long aprons and are very polite which falls in line with its reputation. Despite this, last time I went I managed to drink a certain quantity of sake and fall over on the way out of the building. Ah well, we can't be dignified all the time, can we?
The place is a little on the twee side, with a lot of black lacquer, cream table cloths, and Chinese New Year decorations. And it feels a bit empty. There are three tables including ours, which, I suppose, isn't too bad for a Tuesday night. But there's as many waiters as diners, which can't be good.
We're starving, and keen to order, but it took the five or so waiters a while to get their act together. But there is a constant flow prawn crackers, served with a fiery chilli dipping sauce, so we're happy.
We all plumped for soups to start. I had crabmeat and sweetcorn (as per usual), and it was just the thing. Usually you can expect a glutinous, slimy mess when you order Chinese soups, but this was full of chunky crab (of the stick variety, but I would have been disappointed with anything else). The hot and sour soup, had by both my parents, could have been a little bit hotter, but was plenty sour. And my sister's won ton soup wasn't too watery.
Our hunger had lessened by a degree now, so the blood sugar was up, and it was a pleasant wait for the main course.
Our tabled was filled plates including Sechuan king prawns, sticky chilli beef, crispy lamb with lemon and honey, Singapore noodles, chicken hot pot and rice.
The prawns could have been a little spicier, but the sauce was packed full of flavour, although the garlic was a touch on the burnt side. The Singapore noodles were a little oily but good. There was praise for most of the dishes, but the stand out was the hot pot. It came on a wooden plate, and was sizzling as it was placed on the table. It took a good few minutes before you could even serve it. It was a pleasing spectacle. The only dish to let us down was the lamb. It had a nice flavour, but was a bit fatty.
We polished off every last morsel, which is testament to our amazing ordering skills, as usually there's far too much. The whole lot, with two soft drinks and a bottle of wine and service, came to £70. Not bad.
It's a good place for a decent Chinese. Better than your average but a little on the pricey side.
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