Tung Lok Restaurant
On 7 November 2007, after having been to cinema, D and I went to Tung Lok Chinese restaurant in Chinatown for dinner. This is my second visit (for the fist visit see here).
We were served by a new waitress who did not seem te be very familiar with the menu, but we managed to communicate.
First to appear was this soup. We did not order it, but on asking we were told it is a complementary offer. It contained some pieces of beef, carrot, cabbage, onion etc., and tasted actually better than the one I had last time.
This is lamb and bean curd sheets hot pot. I expected it to come in a terracotta pot, but it actually came in a shizzling hot metal pot. I guess that the pot itself was heated separately for the shizzling effect.
The part of the lamb used in this stew was extremely fatty, too much to my taste. But if you like the slow cooked fat, you probably enjoy, as D did.
This is mixed seafood chow mein. There was a choice of yellow thin noodles, thin rice noodles (so-called Chinese vermicelli), or ho fun (flat, broad rice noodles). This is vermicelli one.
The vermicelli noodles were first pan-fried in wok, then the seafood and vegetable with thick gravy was poured onto them.
I had yellow noodle version last time. This time vegetable was different, and I did not sense the smell of sesami oil, which was evident in the one I had before.
The most exciting new discovery this time was this small dish acompanying the lamb hot pot.
It looks like mustard with chili oil, but it tastes sweet & hot, with a hint of chrysanthemum flower. I asked a waitress (not the new one, but the one looks to be an owners' daughter) what was it, and she said it was a bean sauce, i.e. fermented bean paste. I doubt, however, it was a soy bean paste.
While we were there, we did not see any other customer, except for two girls who left soon after we entered, but there were occasional telephone calles for take-away orders. They do also delivery if above £10.
We had also a portion of plain rice, and complementary tea. The total bill came to £14.80 and we paid £17, which is reasonable. The service is friendly and helpful. This is not a special restaurant with brilliand food, but it is a nice place go if you are after a unpretentious relaxing meal.
Tung Lok Restaurant
Unit 1, China Court Building, Bath Passage, Ladywell Walk, Birmingham, B5 4SZ
Tel. 0121-6223086
Opening Hours: 12:00AM-11:00PM
