Lifestyle: Restaurant Review – Chung Ying Central, Birmingham

I FIRST reviewed Chung Ying Central in Birmingham’s Colmore Row back in February, not long after it opened, and I reflected then on the value – and great taste – of its lunchtime express menu.

I also reflected on how difficult it is to break into what is a conservative lunchtime market – attracting Birmingham’s business diners – even when a new restaurant is in the heart of the business quarter, has received excellent reviews and offers extremely good value for money.

Seven months on I decided to revisit Chung Ying Central, having heard that while the express lunchtime offer is still available, the eatery is now pushing its dim sum menu (for the uninitiated dim sum are small bite-sized or individual portions of food traditionally served in small steamer baskets or on small plates).

My partner and I are big dim sum fans and were aware that the Chung Ying group’s more established restaurants in Birmingham’s Chinatown have a fine reputation for the quality of their ‘Chinese tapas’.

In short we were looking forward to getting stuck in.

We selected six dim sum dishes (priced at £4 each) and the table was soon groaning under our choices.

A couple of them were favourites we had enjoyed before at Chung Ying – meaty and succulent cuttlefish cake and extremely moreish deep fried shredded squid – but we took advice from the staff and tried something different in the shape of king prawn and chive dumplings and Vietnamese pork spring rolls.

Both were delicious with the dumplings being a standout dish. The unusual but delicious combination of chives and fish in a thin, translucent casing had us both fighting over the last one (she won as usual).

We also ordered char siu buns and another deep fried king prawn dish.

I’ve never been totally sold on char siu buns. I think it’s a cultural thing – in my mind I’m always expecting the ‘bun’ to be harder and its soft, squishy texture in Chinese restaurants always takes a bit of getting used to.

I liked it more on this occasion than I have previously, however.

The six dishes we chose only scratched the surface of Chung Ying’s wide and varied dim sum menu and was just about the right amount for two people with fairly large appetites.

At £12 a head, food of this quality represents extremely good value.

Incidentally, Chung Ying Garden is also gaining a reputation for its fine Asian ingredient-influenced cocktail menu and my partner was more than happy to give its Shanghai Rose cocktail (£6.95) a road test.

This constitutes vodka, lychee liqueur, lychee and lime and I think it was a success because she was soon ordering a second.

Owner James Wong came over for a chat and told us that business is picking up nicely. He said Saturday nights, especially, were becoming quite busy.

He also seems to be putting on lots of functions. That evening he was expecting the Chinese national football team, the Lord Mayor and assorted local media and business types.

My view is that he’s too good an entrepreneur not to make a success of Chung Ying’s first eatery in the business district.

But I’m sure he’d like to see a few more suits crossing Colmore Row and heading for Chung Ying Central in their lunch hour.

With food as good as this it can only be the traffic that’s stopping them!

Highly recommended.

Chung Ying Central is at 126, Colmore Row, Birmingham.
Tel:  0121 4000 888
Website

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