Victoria is a notoriously difficult part of London to find a good restaurant in. A number of tourist traps neighbour the theatres that house Wicked and Billy Elliot, attracting unsuspecting theatregoers to pay over the odds for an average meal. But a new addition to the area is seeking to solve this problem, offering authentic Cantonese fine dining, at a reasonable price. Housed within the iconic Grosvenor Hotel, Grand Imperial is very much its own venue, attracting a mix of tourists, locals and the capital’s Chinese residents.
The restaurant is an impressive space, with draped curtains and twinkling chandeliers, and is tastefully decorated with oriental patterns and designs. Feng shui has dictated the design of the room: a large decorative screen stands in the centre, preventing guests being able to look from the front entrance to the back entrance of the restaurant. This allows the ‘chi’ to enter the room without immediately leaving through the other side. It is the first Grand Imperial – Malaysia’s leading restaurant group – to open outside of Kuala Lumpur and head chef Rand Cheung used to cook for the group’s owner.
Thanks to its value for money dim sum and pre-theatre menus (starting at £15 per person) Grand Imperial has a lively atmosphere at lunch and early evening. Sundays are particularly busy, when dim sum is the order of the day for London’s Chinese expats.
The menu is extensive but fairly easy to navigate and signature dishes are highlighted for guests who aren’t sure what they want. The staff are particularly skilled when it comes to pairing wines with the food, which is impressive considering the range of distinctive flavours used in the kitchen.
Peking duck is one of the main draws, arriving in its entirety at the table. A waiter carves up half of the duck in front of you to eat with pancakes, while the other half is taken back into the kitchen, diced, mixed with pine nuts and herbs and heaped atop crunchy iceberg lettuce leaves.
There is also a huge selection of dim sum to try, from the beautifully presented char sui bau – crisp layers of pastry surrounding a sweet, tender pork filling – to the intense flavours of the steamed prawn dumpling with XO chilli sauce.
Unusually for a Chinese restaurant, the dessert menu at Grand Imperial is exceptional. Deep-fried coconut ice cream sounds more like a Heston Blumenthal creation than authentic Cantonese cuisine but it really works. A selection of chocolate dim sum, made using Divine chocolate, is great for sharing, especially if you’ve not much of a sweet tooth.
The Boba cocktails served at the restaurant’s bar also deserve a mention. Each cocktail is designed by the mixologist and decorated with sago balls from Taiwan, which burst with different flavours when popped. A contemporary and trendy bar, it might not be the perfect complement to the fine dining atmosphere of the restaurant but it is great to go to for a drink before or after dinner.
Grand Imperial is ideal for a special evening or pre-theatre meal. While it can feel a little quiet in the later part of the evening, this is sure to change once word gets out about the standard of service and the cuisine on offer. Call one of our lifestyle managers to book a table or for more information about the restaurant.
Address
Grand Imperial Restaurant
101 Buckingham Palace Road, London SW1W 0SJ
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