Restaurant review: The menu at Hang Dai Chinese will get you through the January blues
Once you go through the curtain you will find a mash-up of Tokyo subway car, Blade Runner diner and Chinatown anywhere dive bar with lots of neon and possibly a DJ spinning vinyl (depending on the time of week).
I love a good music discovery but somehow I didn’t expect to hear a banging Arabic folk-disco song in a Chinese-Irish restaurant in Dublin.
The song, if you are curious, was Badala Zamana, released in 1977 by French-Algerian singer Zorah and was one of a number of afrobeat infused 70’s disco songs that were the soundtrack to our meal (thanks Spotify).
This is what I love about Hang Dai, its unpredictable joyous mix of retro, futuristic and creativity that's in the decor, the food and the music.
The front entrance to Hang Dai on Camden Street looks exactly like every Irish-Chinese takeaway you have ever seen with faux marble counters, a multicoloured plastic strip curtain and a maneki-neko waving cat to greet you.
Once you go through the curtain you will find a mash-up of Tokyo subway car, Blade Runner diner and Chinatown anywhere dive bar with lots of neon and possibly a DJ spinning vinyl (depending on the time of week).
Hang Dai will be ten years old this year and while the menu has changed over the years it has remained creative and fun. The name is from Mr. Wu’s catchphrase in Deadwood, meaning ‘brothers in arms’, by the way. Last summer, they opened Hawker, a sister takeaway in Rathmines and it too has fun cocktails and a creative menu.
In the bleak winter months and with the splurge of meat and potatoes that is Christmas, I always crave food from the great cuisines of Asia, so a visit to Hang Dai felt almost compulsory. Even eating early on a bleak Monday there was a buzz when we entered and we felt entirely transported.
We began with cocktails because you kinda have to in Hang Dai, it's that kind of joint. Electric Barbarella (€12) was fruity, sour and refreshing with hibiscus-infused vodka, Lillet and lychee juice, while a Filthy Gorgeous (€14.50) had salty Dúlaman seaweed-infused gin, vermouth, sushi vinegar and an olive oil brine.
Both woke up our palates admirably. For wine, I opted for a fruity, crisp Emrich Schönleher Riesling Trocken which we got at the bargain price of €38, the same price as the out-of-stock Riesling I requested.
Hang Dai’s menu is a mix of small and larger plates, with everything designed for sharing, and there is also the option of a ‘family style’ tasting menu for €60 per person. The latter would have worked out better value as inevitably we got greedy and ordered half the menu, a not inconsiderable portion of which got boxed up to take home.
Barbecued oysters (€4.50 each) were another wake-up for our palates, spicy and lightly sour thanks to tom yum sauce and tom yum-infused crispy breadcrumbs that managed not to overwhelm the briny goodness of the oysters. Next, some double-fried crispy aubergine (€12) in a crisp batter, meaty sweet-savoury pork dumplings (€12), and of course some luscious cheeseburger spring rolls (€10).
I loved the gooey, cheesy meaty spring rolls which come with a lip-tingling Sichuan ketchup but my guest demurred a little, insisting that (rival restaurant) Big Fan Bao’s cheeseburger jiaozi dumplings were the better chipper-Chinese mash-up. I hope to return to this theme later in the year as Big Fan Bao had their fifth birthday recently.
The showcase dish in Hang Dai is the roast Skeaghanore duck, ideally booked in advance but we were in luck as there was one portion left. It really is a spectacular dish and beautifully presented with the entire duck spread out on the plate, including finely sliced tender breast, complex confit legs, the head, a mound of shredded duck, duck broth, and of course pancakes, cucumber and hoisin sauce. On the advice of our waiter, I did scoop out some earthy, gamey duck brain from the shiny head but I think I’ll skip it next time.
This take on Peking/Beijing duck isn't fully traditional but would likely satisfy the emperors that were first served this dish in around 500 AD; we certainly relished it.
We made less headway with the salty spicy fried tofu chunks (€18) and dry fried green beans with minced pork (€13), as we really did order too much food. The beans could have had a little more crispness I felt, but the pork added nutty richness and overall it was a solid contrast to the duck.
To finish, a shared Hang Dai sundae (€14) seemed in order; lush coconut ice cream, coconut flakes, candied crispy peanuts, sweet coconut caramel flavours and whipped cream, a gorgeous mix of the sweet, nutty and creamy. One of those desserts you finish no matter how full you are.
So, long may Hang Dai shine like the crazy fun diamond that it is. I’m not sure there is a better way to cheer up January.
- Dinner for two plus cocktails and wine cost €197.50
- www.hangdaichinese.com/
