Shikumen (Finchley Road) - now closed. See other branches
Finchley Road
Unit 7a, First Floor O2 Centre
Finchley Road London NW3 6LU
Nearest Tube: Finchley Road
4 Yummy Stars
Price ££ £25+ pp (excluding drinks) for dim sum lunch (at time of writing)
Chinese Chive Prawn Dumplings at Shikumen (Finchley Road)
Shikumen, known for its high quality dim sum, has now opened a branch in the busy O2 Finchley Road shopping centre. North Londoners now have more of a choice of a dim sum fix locally (in addition to DuckDuckGoose up the road). It is its 4th restaurant, with others in Ealing, Shepherds Bush and Aldgate (curiously all in hotels). The latest opening represents a departure for the usual big restaurant chains at O2 Centre.
Shikumen means “stone gate” – arched and unique to Shanghai houses. The restaurant sits right by the cinema on the upper floor. The entrance is open and inviting – mmm, potentially to the bunches of teenagers gathered outside in the foyer. The prices are quite steep though and so will appeal more to kids who get/earn decent amount of pocket-money or do not eat much.
The décor looks slick with its red-wooden tables and chairs. Its high ceiling and wide corridor gave it a spacious feel.
We went for Sunday lunch, which normally is a prime time for Chinese families to get together. We tried to book for 1 pm but couldn’t get a table till 1:15 pm. So, we expected it to be jam-packed. However, we were surprised to see that only a few tables were filled. Perhaps word hasn’t got out about its opening or people were still recovering from paying for their holidays. Well, at least there were enough waiters/waitresses to go round who do look at you, rather than look the other way when you most want their attention. They were courteous and efficient.
Given the Shanghai theme, you got to try their thinly-wrapped Xiao Long Bao. Drizzled with the vinegar and the slivers of ginger, I was pretty happy. The Har Gau, dipped in their yummy not-so-spicy chilli sauce, were great. Their venison puff were a bit disappointing though. The pastry was rather dense and not flaky. Their turnip cake was flavoursome with chives, but there were small lumps inside the thick slab of turnip cake. The seafood roll dipped in a little of the strong mango sauce was delicious. Their mini egg custard tarts had just the right amount of sweetness and the egg custard was of a good consistency.
The dim sum menu was quite extensive and appealing particularly to those who do not eat pork or shellfish. There were many offerings like mushroom dumplings (which were encased in translucent wrappers) and other vegetarian dumplings as well as duck pumpkin puffs.
Well located with easy parking and good quality dim sum. Definitely worth a try.
If you are interested in learning more about dim sum, do take a look at my dim sum guide under Yippie Blog.
