I’ve yet to meet anyone who doesn’t like xiaolongbao (once
they’ve mastered eating them, at least) but have you ever wished they
were a little bit more photogenic? Well, the people behind the new Kerry
Centre restaurant Paradise Dynasty clearly have, because their eight-colored xiaolongbao is designed with cameras as well as stomachs in mind.
Taking over the space formerly occupied by Bellagio, Paradise Dynasty is
part of Singapore-based Paradise Group, which operates a number of
different brands all across Asia. Despite being underground, the
restaurant still manages to feel light and airy thanks to a distinctly
Millenial pink and rose gold color scheme.
If you're dining at Paradise Dynasty, you're ordering the eight-color soup dumplings
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Paradise Dynasty serves a sort of pan-Chinese cuisine that takes in
everything from Cantonese dim sum to spicy Sichuan dishes. However,
their signature (and certainly the dish you’ll find yourself
Instagramming) is xiaolongbao, which includes both the classic
variety (RMB 58/8) and the creative new colored versions (RMB 69/8) they
have come up with. Each of the eight colors has a different filling,
with wrappers colored with all-natural ingredients such as spinach,
wolfberries, or cuttlefish ink. The foie gras and black truffle flavored xiaolongbao (light
brown and black, respectively) were very tasty, but to be honest, we
would stick with the classic version, which was well seasoned and
brimming with plenty of porky soup.
The poached fish in chili oil looks spicy but is actually very well balanced
Soup dumplings aside, the other star of the menu is the pork and prawn
dumplings in hot chili vinaigrette (RMB 48/6), really more like wontons,
and among the best we've had in Beijing for a while, with at least one
juicy prawn in every dumpling. In fact, all of the Sichuan-style dishes
were well-executed, just spicy enough to get your nose running but not
so spicy as to overwhelm the ingredients. You can even choose the spice
level of some of the dishes, such as the poached sliced fish in Sichuan
chili oil (RMB 115), which is first cooked in pork bone broth to make it
lighter and then finished with chili oil.
Finish your meal with the sweet and sticky charcoal custard buns
You may ask if it's really necessary to add different colors to xiaolongbao
and you’d probably be right, but we nonetheless felt a little spark of
joy when these beauties hit the table, and in 2020 that really does
count for something.
Paradise Dynasty
Daily 11am-9.30pm. B24, B1/F, Beijing Kerry Centre Shopping Mall, 1 Guanghua Lu, Chaoyang District (8595 9268)
乐忻皇朝汇：朝阳区光华路1号北京嘉里中心地下一层B24
READ: EAT: Pebbles Pop-Up at Moka Bros The Place, Q Mex Xmas Specials, Xmas Dinners Galore
Images: courtesy of Paradise Dynasty, Dazhong Dianping, Robynne Tindall
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