Beijing Restaurant

Location: One row behind the Madinat Zayed Gold Center next to the Shoe Mart
Telephone: 02-6210708

My wife and I like Chinese food. Not "Chamerican" food - General So-and-so chicken, random fruit (lemon, orange, etc.) beef. Real Chinese food - whether it is soup dumplings from Shanghai or numb-inducing spicy shrimp from Sichuan or cumin dusted lamb burger from Xian. Probably the two NYC neighborhoods I culinarily enjoy the most are Chinatown in Manhattan and Flushing in Queens. So, when we heard there was good Chinese food behind the Madinat Zayed, we were intrigued. Some walking around yielded three restaurants of interest, with Beijing Restaurant earning the first place we tried since when we walked by it was full of Chinese people - always a good sign.

So, how was the food? Beijing Restaurant has an extensive menu, over 100 items, the vast majority sounding fairly authentic. We got two main courses: the Braised Lamb in Clay Pot (#86 on the restaurant menu and #88 on the Take-out menu - 48 AED) and Sizzling Prawn with Chili, Garlic, and Fish Sauce (#99 on both - 48 AED on both), and one vegetable: Wok-Fried Kangkung (Watercress, #138 on both - 18 AED). The portions were very reasonable, we were quite full and brought back some leftovers. Both main dishes were very tasty - the prawns were sweet, not overcooked, and in the thick gravy you could distinctly taste chili, garlic, and fish sauce. The braised lamb pieces were bony, so you essentially had to eat them with your hands, but the meat was tasty and came off fairly easily. The sauce was delicious, soy sauce based with large pieces of garlic and ginger with a good amount of heat. The wok-friend kangkung was very refreshing - crunchy, with a slight bitterness and strong garlic flavor, a nice counterpoint to the spiceness of the other two dishes. Finally, clean interior and bathroom.

All in all, a very satisfying meal. Not the cheapest place around, but very tasty and well worth it. Definitely interested in going back to try more items on their menu.