A recent visit to Asia Asia food Hall was a real treat and one that I was looking forward to after their bloggers banquet which I attended earlier in the year.
Asia Asia is a new concept of restaurant for Birmingham. Holding several different authentic restaurants from all over Asia, promoting their best dishes. Asia Asia brings the amazing traditional dishes of these places to Birmingham for everyone to enjoy. The food is prepared, created and dished up in full view so that you can see the creativity of the chefs.
The Food Hall is open all week from 11am to 21:30pm. The system for payment is simple and easy to use. Rather than accept card or cash at each eatery, diners pay an amount they wish to spend onto an Asia Asia card. There is a two pound deposit which is returned along with your balance when you leave at the front desk. Or, you can leave the balance on your card for your next visit. There is a no-fee cash machine inside too. The top-up counter is on floor one and you must get a top-up card before you dine.
First glance is a reassuring one, as all of the diners here on this occasion are Asian, which only goes to reinforce the authenticity of this food hall. Families, couples, friends and lone diners.
After a scout around both levels, I decided to try two different food stalls, why not eh?!
To begin I opted for some Grilled Cold Noodles with sausage from Teppanyaki. It was fascinating to watch this being prepared and the noodles were not as you would expect, rather than thin strings of noodle, they are in fact, flat and folded with a delicious spicy filling. The flavours were rich and noodles soft and delicate, I savoured the flavours and was in no rush to finish.
Next up was a visit to Korean Food. A browse through the menu and my eyes lingered on Korean Style Spicy Honey Chicken, it was an easy choice. After just a few minutes, my buzzer rang to alert me to my dish being ready.
This large portion of chicken was the highlight of my entire day. Covered in a sticky sweet and spicy sauce, the delicious light crispy outer with succulent chicken inside was absolutely spot on. Fresh salad accompanied the chicken pieces and it is fair to say I really enjoyed every mouthful of this Korean delight. I am 100% returning for this exact same dish.
Once I had polished off the chicken pieces, there was ample sticky sweet sauce to soak up the rice with, a simple yet filling meal and I am now inspired to try the Korean Style Soy Sauce Chicken too.
As I sat with my premium Chinese beer, cool tunes playing in the background, I could not help but imagine I was actually sat in Bangkok or Tokyo, or Shanghai – an all round great experience and would fully recommend you try it too!
Review by Nick Byng for Grapevine Birmingham.