Golden Dragon, Chinatown, London

It's a grey Monday morning at work after the most horrible & rainy weekend but at least I have some tea & a pain au chocolat to cheer me up! Well that and Kirsty, who has just returned from a trip to Oslo. Note to all: it's dark and expensive.

So on Saturday - hellishly rainy day that it was - I met my friend Michaela for dinner. We were supposedly going to eat at hers but one thing leads to another and before we knew it, we were headed towards China Town near Leicester Square.

Now a word about China Town: it's a new concept to me. There isn't one in Leicester or Plymouth and apart from very good (and expensive) Chineses or all-you-can-eat buffets, I've never been exposed to good, cheap eats. You still have to be careful where you go to, of course, but on the whole it's a safe bet that no matter what you eat, it will be edible.

We went to the Golden Dragon on Gerrard Street which always seems to get mixed reviews. The reason we chose it was that it was busy (we only had to wait for 10 mins for a table on a Saturday night however) and there was plenty of choice on the menu. Once at the table the staff were very kind and although it was a bit rushed at times, they were generally nice people.

The decor/inside is what you'd expect of most Chineses. A bar, round tables, Chinese panelling/wallpaper, some portraits. It's not upscale or posh but it has a good atmosphere and is buzzy and chatty. The menu is quite varied and although some of the dishes were basic, they had a good selection of shellfish/seafood dishes and plenty of variation on the noodles, rice and beancurd.

So the food we had. For starter, we had 1/4 crispy duck & pancakes, vegetable spring rolls (tasted a bit fishy!) & a deep fried crab claw. For main course, we had beef satay, chicken with ginger & spring onion & egg-fried rice. We also had a couple of glasses of wine and a few soft drinks which pushed the bill up to £50. The chicken tasted more like garlic chicken, the vegetable spring rolls did taste of shellfish (I'm allergic so that wasn't a good thing!) and it wasn't the cheapest food in the world but it was good and I'd probably go back again but stick to the crispy duck which was ace.

China Town is a great place to wander around if you're hungry and fancy a nice bite to eat. You can eat in a lot of the restaurants for about £10 and there's a few gems hidden down Gerrard Street and in the surrounding area.

Vitals
Golden Dragon
28-29 Gerrard Street, London, W1D 6JW
Tel: 020 7734 2763

Nearest tube: Leicester Square