According to their website, their aim is "Bringing the bustling nightlife and entertainment scene from 1970s Hong Kong to life". They certainly have achieved this!
Bustling it certainly was. Honestly, it was pretty loud for our liking, as my partner and I had to almost yell across to each other to hear one another.
There was a rowdy group of more than 20 people celebrating a birthday, which is fine, of course. However, they were extremely loud. (Not the venue's fault, however, I would have appreciated a friendly nudge from waitstaff to lower their vocals slightly or to consider that other patrons are at the venue too).
The atmosphere is crazily chaotic. We have been to many bars before, however, this one was beyond loud, from the rowdy massive group to the live DJ pumping out beats next to us. This was quite off-putting, however, others might enjoy the loud atmosphere. (Maybe, we are just getting prematurely old?)
The décor was quirky and fun. It was enjoyable looking around and admiring all the chic décor.
The menu can be found online. There is a QR Code on each table. Scan the QR Code, which goes directly to the menu and where you can place and pay for your order.
Service:
I believe food/drinks and service go hand-in-hand. However, the only service we received was the usher taking us to our tables.
The Salmon Tartare with hot spicy chips - a small plate dish - was eye-catching and exciting.
The salmon tartare was slightly under-seasoned, however, it was fresh and smooth. The hot and spicy chips scooped up with the salmon added an excellent texture combination and lifted the salmon with the hints of spice from the chips.
The chips were crunchy and hot and spicy, true to their name. Overall, the dish was enjoyable.
The next small plate dish was the Prawn Wonton (6 per serving), with spicy Sichuan dressing. Again, it was appealing like the salmon dish, and a mouth-watering aroma hit you.
The dumplings were cooked perfectly and there was the right amount of prawn mixture. The mixture was seasoned nicely and was not overcooked and the flavours worked well together.
The Ni Hao Bao-Pork katsu with XO mayo and pickled onion. This was the highlight of the evening's meal. The bun was fresh, soft and fluffy, and the fillings were packed with flavours and textures.
The pork katsu was cooked perfectly and had the right amount of crunch, accompanied by the XO mayo and pickled onion with the soft, fluffy, and slightly sweetened bun, the starter cannot be faulted! All the elements worked so well together, from textures and flavours to seasoning.
Broccolini with sesame, furikake- The broccolini was cooked perfectly. The slight crunch combined with the sesame and furikake (a Japanese seasoning made with toasted sesame seeds, nori, salt and sugar) took this humble vegetable to a whole new level.
The furikake added a wonderful texture and flavour and worked well with the perfectly cooked broccolini.
Spanner Crab Noodle-XO Pork crumbs. The dish had some great elements, including the al dente noodles and flavourings on the noodles. However, there was almost a tablespoon worth of crab, and unfortunately, the crab was slightly overcooked and left a mushy-like texture on the palate. For that price tag, we expected something more exquisite and substantial.
Overall, it felt like the dish needed more oomph, maybe more crab meat, and possible vegetable additions for texture?
We were given the Jackie Chan and Wo Ai Ni Cocktails. The Jackie Chan ($20) included tequila, kaffir lime, lemongrass, galangal, passionfruit and chilli agave.
The exotic and aromatic flavours from the kaffir lime, lemongrass, galangal and chilli agave awakened the senses and caused a magical dance to the palate. The combination of tequila, fruity passionfruit and Asian aromatics was action-packed, just like the name!
Both cocktails were outstanding, packed a punch with exotic flavours and were the saving grace for our dining experience.
Overall, the food is quite pricy for the food portions and items received - in saying that, some dishes were delicious, cooked perfectly and enjoyable.
The drinks were amazing and the flavours were incredible, making it worth coming back to Ni Hao Bar for just their cocktails.
