Hunan
51 Pimlico Road
Belgravia
London SW1W 8NE
Nearest Tube: Sloane Square
4.2 Yummy Stars
Set price £££ £45.80 pp for lunch and £67.80 pp for supper (excluding drinks and service)
Signature Pork Soup at Hunan
Buzz Factor 4.4/5 stars
Food 4.2/5 stars
Value for money 3.9/5 stars
Hunan has been around since 1982 but appears to have been off the radar of many people. It is quite a food gem on Pimlico Road with a humble façade and simple decor. The tables are cramped into a tiny space but the place was heaving on a Saturday evening. Everything including the kitchen has been arranged according to Feng Shui so as to bring good health and good fortune.
You put your faith in the chef – Chef Peng – as there is no menu. You just tell the waiter what you don’t eat and the level spiciness and you leave the rest to the chef. Father and son still work alongside each other. Dish after dish arrived, totaling about 18 of them, tapas-sized, letting you taste just a morsel or 2 of each dish and leaving you wanting more. I was brave enough to go with some fussy eaters and surprisingly, they enjoyed every dish.
Service was generally efficient and at times a bit chaotic as there were so many dishes to serve and clear away in the confines of the little space between tables. Just breathe in when you need to get out. The diners seemed happy and some tables had more than one sitting.
Don’t be deceived by the name of the restaurant. The name does not denote the type of Chinese cuisine served here but refers to the birthplace of Chef Peng’s mentor. His food has a heavy Taiwanese influence with a mélange of Cantonese, Shanghainese, Hunanese and Sichuan dishes etc etc.
We had some of their signature dishes – a soup with minced pork, Chinese mushroom and ginger served in a cute little wooden container - so soothing and delicious, as well as their green beans coated in the lightest of batter, fried in chilli and garlic. Such simple and humble green beans magically turned into a true delight. Later came their spinach tofu roll topped with a sweet and spicy sauce and their spicy squid sitting on a bed of aubergine were a success too. The true stunner for me was the steamed sea bass with ginger and spring onion – cooked, flavoured (and filleted) to perfection. Bear in mind that these are sharing dishes and so, if someone at your table does not eat, say, seafood, you won’t normally be served that either.
The meal did not come cheap but you do get a lot of food. It is well worth a visit particularly for a special occasion. Be bold, venture forth and go hungry.
