A couple of weeks ago, myself and a work friend popped out for quick bite at the local dim sum eatery, The Drunken Monkey. Now, i've been in there for drinks before and had a good night, but this time, it was all about the food.
We were left standing at the door while 2 or 3 staff gazed our way, but appeared to be looking straight through us, so I decided to sit at the nearest empty table. (Which was so sticky I couldn't touch it - even after asking one of the waitresses to give it a quick wipe for us) The entrance is lined with bigger tables, that lead to a large bar, which leads onto a more intimate eating area, all of which is very dimly lit with the odd red light thrown in for good measure.
We were only popping in for a snack and a quick work catch up, so I ordered the vegetarian potsticker dumplings, prawn & chive dim sum and some veggie spring rolls. My friend went for a range of the more meaty dim sum.
The food arrived and at a first glance, it looked pretty good. I started off with the vegetarian potstickers and let this be a lesson to anyone who goes there - they are horrendous. The dumpling casing was far too thick and tasted like uncooked greasy batter. It was so bad I couldn't swallow it. I sent these back at once and told them to remove them from the bill. (I'd like to point out that no real concern was shown and no attempt to rectify the situation) I moved on to the prawn dim sum which wasn't the best, but also wasn't the worst i've ever had, but it was so average I can hardly think up the words to describe it. The vegetarian spring rolls weren't fresh and tasted like something you would get from supermarket freezer section. They came with a side of 'dipping sauce' which could only be described as malt vinegar with chunks of ginger and garlic floating about in it!
All in all, a very disappointing experience with not only the food, but the service. The staff I encountered clearly didn't know their menu and have the people skills of a wet sponge.
If you want dim sum on the cheaper end of the money scale, i'd stick to the likes of ping pong. They know their craft and have outstanding service to match.
Drunken Monkey - you would have to be!
Good for - An after work drink and a quick cocktail.
Bad for - Well crafted dim sum / food without any grease! / Decent service.
The Drunken Monkey - http://www.thedrunkenmonkey.co.uk/
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