Hakkasan, Fitzrovia, London

Amazing space - very nice withour being too pretentious. I really just loved looking around. (Be prepared for the camouflaged toilets though!)

The food was good, but my verdict at the end of the night was 'Michelin star Chinese food is still just Chinese food’

We had a couple starters, calamari and duck with mango, which were both lovely.

For mains we had pork belly and some sort of chicken. Both were just ok. Definitely not worth the price, but better than your average takeaway place.

(But for as much as you pay here, it better be a hell of a lot better than just your average takeaway place!)

delectable dining, hidden away from the hustle and bustle of w1. dark, delicious interior with fantastic lighting, professional service, sleek design and, most importantly, divine dishes that will raise the bar when it comes to 21st century chinese cuisine.

Taking a sophisticated Chinese friend from Hong Kong for lunch in London is always tricky as the standard of the home city is so unbelievably high, and so it proved on this occasion when she expressed herself impressed with the decor, but found the food not as good as in Hong Hong and the whole place a bit pretentious. In truth, it’s not a place for lunch, though they do a pretty good dim sum, as it’s decorated and lit like a nightclub and the menu prices make no concession to the time of day, unlike other Michelin-starred restaurants such as L’Atelier Joel Robuchon where you can have a prix fixe at lunchtime for £19.

The staff too are somewhat snooty - as has been noted elsewhere, and our waiter was both a touch surly and distinctly unhelpful when we wanted to make more room on the rather too small (for a Chinese meal) table for two. The pretentiousness came out again when he saw me taking a photo of the dim sum and was positively 'British Airways steward’ in trying to suggest that I was in the wrong. I quite understand restaurants don’t want people flashing their cameras at other diners, but discreet no-flash photos of your own food is fine and I refuse to be brow-beaten. As a consequence, I took more than usual of the decor….(also apparently banned).

The crispy squid was good and well seasoned and the seafood soup delicious - it tasted almost as good as the fabled sharks-fin rice that one is sometimes given in private company restaurants in Beijing and which costs an Emperor’s ransom, and the roast chicken and stir-fried lotus root was excellent too. Though not quite good enough for seasoned Hong Kong tastebuds….

We only drank tea (of which there was a fine selection) so we avoided the mark-ups on the wines which have made others wince, but we emerged in to the light with a pretty big hole in our wallet for a lunchtime meal and some tiresome service

A final point; I am now unimpressed with restaurants and pubs which don’t provide free wi-fi - and extremely unimpressed it’s not available in a basement like Hakkasan, as one can’t pick up 3G either.

The food is good, if perhaps a little over-priced. But this is all about the scene. The guys in black suits on the door, the squadrons of pretty waitresses, the ambience inside, and the people-watching. Get a seat facing the room or you’re missing the point.

For really authentic dim sum, go to Royal China or Top of the Town. But those won’t be full of media bunnies in tight suits and short dresses, and you’ll go home alone…

If you can’t get a table, try Yauatcha, which is equally sceney and has arguably better food.

The food really is top quality - bursting with flavour and creativity. Service is really on the ball. I’ve been twice in 2009 and all dishes were good. There’s a big 'but’ unfortunately - the price. With the cheapest wine over £30 and a really nice Duck dish also more than £30, this place is really taking the p*. Fantastic food, ridiculous price - poor value.

You’re not going to find many Michelin starred Chinese food restaurant, and Hakkasan is one of them (in fact, I think Alan Yau’s other creation, Yautcha is the only other Michelin starred Chinese restaurant). And it doesn’t disappoint: A trendy, dark lit setting, with comfortable seating, plus good food and service.

Starting off, we ordered dim sum (prawn har gau anyone?), which was good, but not spectacular. For mains, among the dishes we ordered included the roast chicken in satay sauce (which was good) and the sauteed roast duck (which was brilliant).

The friends I took were non-alcoholic, so we abstained from the strong selection of wines and cocktails (though there were non-alcoholic cocktails). The only obvious downside is the price.

I tried this out on a Friday night. We had pre-booked a table but still had to wait 20mins at the bar until one was ready which was a bit annoying. The food (asian) is fantastic. The duck, which I am not normally a fan of generally, was really tender and tasty and I would definitely recommend it. Best to get dishes to share on the table with your friends so you get to try lots of things. Had heard previously it was riduculously expensive so was surprised when it came to about £40 a head (I thought it would be double). The items on the menu really vary in price - you have some mains for £15 and some for £60 so I guess it depends on what you order.

At the entrance of Hakkasan you are met with two bouncer-esque characters who check your name on the reservation list. I’m not sure what their purpose is because there is a bar down stairs where you can wait for a table to become free when you don’t have a reservation and also, when you reach the bottom of the stairs, you are once again asked for your reservation details anyway.

The impact of Hakkasan is immediate - it is dark, yet shiny, with spot lighting on each of the tables and otherwise “night-club” lighting. The otherwise cavernous room is split into more intimate areas by large wooden poles which may or may not have been bamboo poles painted black. Its supposed to be a very modern take on the Chinese motiff. Unfortunately no photos allowed!

The Hakkasan drinks menu was very impressive and contained a good balance of non-alcoholic and alcoholic cocktails not to mention a staggering wine list. When you check out some of the offerings its no wonder that people can easily spend hundreds, or even thousands, on one dinner here!

The food menu was also fairly impressive, with diverse and sometimes unique offerings, but surprisingly nothing shouted EAT ME which is terribly unusual for me not to mention the fact that the prices were outrageous if not unexpected.

To my surprise there was nothing on the dessert menu that we were interested in, even if we could fit more food into our very full bellies. Instead we opted for a second round of non-alcholic cocktails - very yummy.

Overall Hakkasan is definitely a place to be experienced at least once but my recommendation would be to save it for a special occasion though if you’re minted, well, I guess you could make it an everyday experience!

I respect the quality that Hakkasan consistently provides to all of its diners. The last time that I ate here, it was a bit of a random event with a friend, and they fortunately had enough tables to seat us although they did warn us they needed the table back after a couple of hours.

My friend was also wearing trainers and although the bouncer had to check with the manager, he let us go through anyway though told us about their normal dress code.

Even now that the ownership has been transferred away from Yau, the last experience was just as good as previous ones. Service was prompt without being too in your face. We ordered both a starter and main with some vegetables and all of it was totally delicious. I’d highly recommend the ribs where the meat had been cooked to a point where it literally fell off the bone.

It’s cool inside and a nice dining experience overall.

It’s a tricky one, upsides, the food was wonderful, the service good but for me, the downsides were : the bar was very busy and full of trendy media types who like the sound of their own voices, lots of “beautiful people” wanting to be seen and jostling their way past. Not really my kind of place but can’t fault the food. Expensive (but I didn’t pay)!

The restaurant is tucked away in an alley just off the Tottenham Court Road/Oxford Street junction. One’s name is checked off on a list by a doorman; a back slate-lined stairway leads down to an incensed-perfumed reception hall and the restaurant. The decor is mostly black with backlit blue walls. Laser-beam spots punctuate the gloom, and geometric Chinese screens divide the tables. It manages to reference an art-deco Shanghai opium den while being very modern, luxurious and comfortable.

Waiting for Liz at the bar, I had something called a “Purple Emperor”: a wonderfully smooth, but actually yellow mix (a base of rum and sake). The purple was supplied by a massive orchid the bartender popped on top for decoration

My preconception was that a Michelin-starred trendy restaurant would offer small portions: however the opposite was very much the case, with every dish seemingly sized for two hungry eaters. A starter of Sechuan chili crab was enormous and completely fabulous; my dimsum selection was pretty good too and contained 8 large dimsum. My main of jasmine tea smoked chicken was amazing (but must have contained at least half a chicken). Liz had another massive pile – of ribs this time. Side orders were a very generous plate of pak choi and and a canister of steamed rice. Neither of us actually fancied the rice but our waiter insisted.

He was a funny one – all the staff were charming and friendly except our waiter, who was quite aloof and dismissive and really couldn’t be bothered to answer questions (all the staff are very beautiful – the restaurant could double as a modeling agency).
We got complete fireworks when we asked for a doggy bag for the large quantities of leftovers. “We don’t do takeaway! We don’t do takeaway!” our waiter insisted emotionally, as if the very suggestion was mortally insulting. OK, this is a very smart restaurant and obviously they want to distance themselves from fast-food joints: point taken (and obviously, Hakkasan is a world away from a takeaway). But there were HUGE amounts of leftovers of very delicious food I was loath to leave behind. However, I am completely averse to making a fuss in restaurants. Not so Liz, who made them very aware that on this occasion they would be doing a doggy bag! So, eventually, I climbed the stairs out clutching my precious hamper of leftovers (much admired by an American tourist). Even our waiter seemed to find the funny side at last.

Hakkasan, an Alan Yau’s creation. I love it! I love it! I love it! Thats all I can say. The whole experience matches the food and drinks so well. Hoever, one down side is thta it is really expensives and the dishes are quite small portion. Try the duck with caviar and the stir fry venison. They are all great dishes, very tasty indeed. I will try to go more often if I can afford it. I recommend it to everyone. The interior is cool and designer like!

I am a regular at this restaurant and I must say it is for a good reason. The food is absolutely delicious. Although, it can be a little pricey. The service is excellent and the interior decoration is very good. I simply love the setting.

This isn’t usually the kind of place I go to as it’s waaay out of my price range, but I was fortunate enough to win a meal for two here. When I won the prize it said “meal to the value of £200” so I thought I’d have trouble spending that amount, but the reality was that it was all too easy! A reasonable meal for two plus a bottle of wine took us over the £200 in the blink of an eye so this is somewhere to come if you have more money than you know what to do with, or if someone else is paying.

Hakassan is in a maze of alleys behind Tottenham Court Road tube station and screams “trendy” from the Mitchell-brother-like bouncers on the door to the slate walls on the way down the stairs to the underground restaurant.

The food was absolutely wonderful - the dish I enjoyed most was Mongolian stir-fried beef which was truly melt in the mouth. You also get the entertainment of watching the “beautiful people” - it’s like a different world to the one I usually inhabit.

Only downside was that the restaurant seems to limit diners to 2-hour sittings. The couple on the table next to me ordered more drinks after their meal and were cross-examined by the waitress about how long they were likely to take to drink them!

Definitely worth a visit if you’re feeling flush, but only if you can eat quickly!

This is a fabulous place to eat. Gorgeous and atmospheric interior and delicious food. There are definitely lots of people there who are there to be seen but it doesn’t take away from the enjoyment of food beautifully prepared. Only thing is that it can be a tad on the expensive side, so it’s a great place to go as a treat/for something special.

I love this restaurant but it does warrant a special occasion - as other reviews has stated, you can easily get carried away (as the menu is so delicious) and will need to dig deep in your wallet to pay the bill.

First off, it’s difficult to find. Just off Tottenham Court Road, down a back alley, tucked away in the corner, set in an old underground carpark. Keep going towards the end of the street and you’ll eventually find the exclusive entrance.

Plunge into the bowels, down a set of sleek and very dark stairs and suddenly a wonderland will open up to you. This would be the perfect place to bring a first date you’re keen to impress. The tables are discrete, the lighting moody and beautiful people waft around looking cool - although you will find the odd rowdy group of Chinese businessmen.

Incense hangs in the air and you can just about take a sneaky peak into the buzzy kitchen.

The menu is huge and pretty overwhelming. The tea-smoked ribs are a favourite, the jasmine rice served in a dainty bamboo basket. The pepper beef is also delicious.

Service can be a little hit or miss for a restaurant of this caliber. But the food makes up for it.

This is a very impressive restaurant. Begin your evening at the cocktail bar, which is an experience in itself, with a host of unusual martinis.

The food I had was excellent, with probably the best cod I have ever eaten. However, do try to make sure that you don’t get carried away with the ordering - which is very easy to do, as you will end up with too much food and a very hefy bill.

We did have one problem with the wine - once opened and poured, the bottle was taken away from our table and placed in a bucket with several other bottles. Unfortunately, we did not get our bottle back and had to complain.

Overall, this restaurant is a treat with great cocktails and fabulous food.

Ignore Michelin - not cos they’re wrong about this place but becasue Hakkasan isnt that type of place. It merits a Michelin star but that’s not the thing you should focus on. It’s actually fairly unpretentious and certainly not stuffy. the best thing to go for is the Dim Sum at lunch. There’s a way to do it where you can only pay around £15 a head - just steer clear of the mineral water it’s massively expensive. the best dishes to try are the Venison pork puff and all the cheung fun are pretty good. The service is always utterly charming without being OTT. I find the desserts a bit disappointing but overall I would say this is better than Hakkasan.

This is apparently the only Chinese restaurant to be awarded with a michelin star. It is often rated as the best Chinese restaurant in London and maybe deservedly so. This is not your average Chinese eaterie. This is Chinese fine dining style. The food was good, though I can’t really remember what we ate which is usually a sign that it wasn’t that memorable. The decor is dark and fancy (apparently you can’t take pictures here as the owner doesn’t want unauthorised pictures of his restaurant circulating around - didn’t test this rumour). Our party of four was sat on one of the tables around the sides. Apparently the main tables in the middle were fully booked, but actually it didn’t look to me like it would be that nice sat at the tables in the middle. To sum up - good food, dark fancy decor, high prices. Would recommend it just for the experience.

trendy chinese restaurant, great food, great decor, great cocktails at the bar, quite pricey though, 200 pounds for dinner for tow must be the norm, the food is beautifully presented on the plate and melts into your mouth

Been to Hakkasan only twice in my life. The first time (mid-2004) was shocking, mediocre food, poor service…really did not intend to go back. Having revisited the restaurant during late August 2008, I’m in a totally different space. What a place! I’ve eaten in a host on Michelin* places in Europe and the US…and this meal was excellent. Sesame prawn toasts, crispy duck salad, hot & sour soup, duck spring rolls, topped off with a couple of bottles of Cloudy Bay Pinot Noir. Excellent. We’ll be back.

I’ve never actually eaten in Hakkasan, that’s because I’m a top international male model and food never passes my lips…never.

Actually that’s a lie. I had a mate who lived directly opposite this place, literally five feet away from the entrance, so we got to know the bar staff pretty well and would pop info for a drink because it was easy.

They do awesome awesome cocktails in here and the bar area is very nice when it’s not 'peak time’ i.e. any evening past 7 o clock.

If I were you I’d go for lunch and then sit around in the bar until closing. Maybe extend your overdraft first though!

Hakkasan makes Chinese food fashionable. With its sexy black decor and amazing food and cocktails this is a place to take people to impress or be impressed. The food is genuinely very good, I would go so far to say the best Chinese in London. The atmosphere is buzzy and lots of fun as well for a group night out. It doesn’t come cheaply, but hey you are in London

The poshest Chinese in London? I think so…not sure it does take away though, which is a shame as the food is really excellent.

There is a great variety on the menu for both food and drink and both are really very good and its worth going along just to try out the cocktails. You certainly used to be able to go and just bar fly which was a (relatively) cheap way to check out the venue and have a very nice drink. Not sure if you still can as I haven’t been in a few months.

Great atmosphere in the darkened basement with some very subtle lighting and some great understated but cool decor, and although it’s big the lighting and set up means it holds onto a feeling of intimacy for either a date or a business meeting where you don’t want the information to be available to all and sundry. The low lighting gives it a bit of a feeling of a new york restaurant for me.

Anyway it’s well worth a visit and its open late as well for all those night owls amongst us. Be warned though - I’ve only been phoned about possibly fraudulent spending on my credit card twice…once was in Tokyo after buying two things in 5 minutes in a shop….and the other was after going out for dinner here. Cheap it is not.

I went here with some people for work, and was really looking forward to it because of all the hype…and it certainly lived up to it! The food is so delicious and there i such a varied choice on offer. The interior is a bit strange, and slightly claustrophic, but all in all it was a great experience.

Trendy Chinese restaurant. Situated in the basement-level but in a setting worthy of a Jet Li film. The food is great here despite the large size and number of tables in the venue. Especially after matches this is better than pasta!

This is a very fashon restaurant, is a meeting place for celebrities and it boasts of a superb design, inviting cocktails and a very sophisticated Chinese food. The dishes are well decorated and food is exquisited. The restaurant has soffused lights that create a night atmosphere, I find it very romantic! Maybe the atmosphere is too formal and staff are great! I go there once a month and always experiance a good service!

I went to Hakkasan once with my friend and her boss together with their clients. It is overall a great place with tasteful (but just a little too commercial for my liking) interior. Lighting was particularly bad on the table; we could not even read our menu properly.

The food is great but not superb considering the amount that we paid. The roast duck with caviar was £150! The total bill came to about £1000 for eight of us. The service was fantastic but I can’t help but wonder if it was because we were spending so much. I heard from friends that they were really stringent with the 2 hour slot that you get when you book the tables. However, we booked the table for 8.30pm and we stayed for the entire evening till about 12 midnight!

On the whole, I would say that this is a restaurant with good food and designer interior. However, it is not a place that warrants all the talking and all the hype.

This is a top place, at a price. The food is excellent and portions are bigger than you might expect, so order small and add if you need it.
Arguably a little dark and claustrophobic, but you could say that’s the atmoshere. They like to serve you quickly, to keep the tables turning over.

Love this restaurant, one of my favourites, and not even for the food! The atmosphere grows as the night does… so what starts out as lounge type music, builds the vibe as it gets later. It is expensive, but the place is classy and sophisticated. Its obscure entrance, makes it even more exclusive… from a ladies point of view, the toilets are extremely grand… Drinks selection goes on for days. Always had great service when we come here too.