Chinatown Brasserie

Wow…it’s been a really busy month at work. I can’t believe this is only post number 2 for January! Yikes.  I have been eating though…sort of.  Well before the month got crazy, Ms. O and I made plans to dine at Chinatown Brasserie during Restaurant Week, which is extra long this year.  I hustled out of work to make it for our 7:30 reservation, as I was walking south on Lafayette, I got a call from work and stood outside for 10 minutes on the phone. ::sigh:: Thankfully that didn’t throw off our reservation too much. We were seated pretty quickly at a cozy half moon booth in the back.  Ms. O raves about this restaurant so I was super excited to try it.  The Restaurant Week menu was very generous, so we decided to stick to it, for the most part.  I selected Dim Sum Assortment A.

Looks yummy right?!  Clockwise from bottom left: lobster dumpling, crunchy vegetable & peanut dumpling, shrimp & snow pea leaf dumpling, and shrimp dumpling.  I tried to take at least two bites of each dumpling so I could truly savor the flavors.  One bite was sans sauce and the other I dipped in one of the many sauces that arrived on our table. 

After eating the sampler, I realized I definitely need to make my way to a dim sum restaurant stat! Ms. O ordered Assortment B.

Clockwise from bottom left: spicy lamb dumpling, chicken & shrimp lollipop, pork potsticker, and vegetable spring roll.  Being the glutton that I am, I was thrilled when Ms. O suggested we add another dim sum.

The Spicy Duck & Flowering Chive Wontons were phenomenal! Crispy crunchy goodness on the outside and tender flavorful duck on the inside.  The best part was that it wasn’t greasy!  The Restaurant Week menu had several great main course options, but after being deprived at Petite Abeille, we definitely were not turning away the Lobster.

The Wok-Sautéed Lobster was served with asparagus. The sauce was sweet and a little spicy.  Every bit of the lobster was enhanced by the sauce. 

The lobster was also easy to eat because they had done most of the cracking for us! I must say it was one of my favorite lobsters.  Once our plates were filled with nothing but shells, it was time to move on to dessert. Ms. O ordered the Custard Bao.

These little steamed balls of custard were surprisingly flavorful. They were airy and had a smooth texture.  I was more interested in my Chocolate Mousse.

I lit up when the cake arrived, because I was definitely not expecting it.  The cake was excellent. The chocolate trio combination was perfect and the cookie crust was just the right touch.

Chinatown Brasserie was amazing and I definitely see why Ms. O is a fan.  Even though I had to return to the office after dinner, I had a smile on my face thanks to that fantastic meal.  I can’t wait to go back!

Hungry yet?