some perks of this here blog are just incredible. sometimes i get to wear pretty clothes, sometimes i get to go to glitzy store openings, sometimes i get to visit fun places. other times, i get invited to eat all the dim sum at my favourite dim sum restaurant, and give my completely unbiased opinion on the new dishes. those times are my favourite times. especially when some of ping pong's new dishes include such yummies as honey soy chicken wings and lobster dumplings and espresso martinis. oh my!
ben is as avid a coffee fan as me, but for all accounts, did not enjoy the cardamom espresso martini. i tasted it, and, it was stronnnnng. and quite possibly, not really a cocktail for drinking while you're eating pan asian dim sum. it was ok, but not for starters. it's more of a dessert martini, unlike the forbidden martini that i started off with, which was sweet and sour, and the perfect accompaniment to the sticky chicken and crispy prawn balls we kicked off our dinner with.
you might remember the lychee and rose martini from the summer masterclass laura and i went to, where i made the bold statement that "if i was a cocktail, i would be this cocktail". well, when i saw it hadn't disappeared from the menu for the winter, i had to indulge in it again. i made ben taste the pink drink. his conclusion: "tastes like what you'd taste like if you were a cocktail"... this guy.
the lobster dumpling was delicious, albeit pretty fiddly to eat. the beetroot pastry is totally gluten free, and we all know that gluten is what holds the world together.,. even though the pink and squishy pastry was tasty, it fell apart as soon as you picked it up which meant loads of lobster and shitake innards all over your plate. bigger mouthfuls maybe? we also had the infamous chicken and cashew nut dumplings which are legendary and renowned for not falling apart. they lived up to their reputation, thankfully. ben was a fan. oh wells, more pretty pink lobstery parcels for me!
finally, i made ben try the new winter berry blazer. it has cognac and absinthe in it, and he's obviously a classy bloke so it seemed appropriate. it as supposed to come out ablaze; it did not, and i was disappointed. it basically smelled like alcohol - not anything in particular, kind of like smelling alcohol - i.e. strong. he preferred it to the espresso martini, but i really don't think that kid was enjoying his choices. me on the other hand, well i was two for two!
my last pick was the hibiscus spritz because you can't go wrong with perfection. him: something with wasabi nuts in it. because he doesn't know how to quit while he's ahead, apparently. i mean, i guess we were supposed to eat more of the seasonal food dishes; when given the choice, i will always choose cocktails over food. all in all, i am a massive advocate of ping pong anyway, but the newest dishes to grace their winter menu pretty much get the tick of approval from me - even though the lobster dumpling was kind of messy and annoying to eat, it made up for it by being bloody yum and also because all of the cocktails.
and i do mean it when i say, all of the cocktails.
