Restaurant Review | Mr Choy: Dimsums and More

Tucked away in one corner of the middle lane in Khan Market, Mr Choy claims to offer cuisine inspired from Hong Kong. Although Hong Kong has a staggering variety of restaurants and cuisines, what you will find in this tiny restaurant is a choice of dim sums, small plates, bento boxes and a few types of noodles.

For those who are familiar with the area, this all-day dining has opened where The Kitchen used to be. While there have been no structural changes in the space, the current restaurant wears a bright, young look and the food is served in an equally fun way. The various dips and sauces come in test tubes, noodles are served in jars and finally one has to dig deep into a tin box for the cheque. While the serving ‘apparatus’ is not entirely user-friendly it does add to the quirky feel of the place.

Coming back to the food, there’s a limited albeit interesting range of vegetarian and non-vegetarian dimsums with most baskets offering four pieces each. If you prefer an assortment there’s even a Dimsum Snack Box with six pieces of dimsums of your choice. We start with the Cha Siu Bao,
 Xo Scallop and Prawn Dumpling
 and Chicken Cheung Fun. While I am generally not a fan of baos I quite like this one since it’s not too doughy and like one of my friends would put it: the ratio of bao to pork is good! The scallop and prawn dumpling comes with a flavourful filling of the prawn with xo sauce, topped with a thin slice of scallop that is further topped with dried shrimp. And the cheung fun is as good as any I’ve had.

Clockwise from Top Left: Chicken Cheung Fun; Cha Siu Bao; Hargow Prawn Dimsum;
XO Scallop and Prawn Dumpling.

Then we go for the Peking Duck Rolls with hoisin vinaigrette and the Non Vegetarian Bento Box. Although a friend who had been here before recommends the duck rolls, they don’t quite live up to my expectation. The wrap is chewy and I can’t really taste the Peking duck amidst the medley of vegetables. The Bento box is quite good. It includes bekti with black bean sauce, butterfly crumb prawn and steamed pork belly with honey sauce. The prawns are spot on, in that they are perfectly crisp and non-greasy. I particularly like the spicy mayo that’s drizzled on top. The fish and the pork belly are both ok – not spectacular but nothing wrong with them either. All three come on a bed of thin crisps made of cabbage/onion/potato that add an interesting texture.

Left: Non-Veg Bento Box; Right Top: Peking Duck Rolls;
Right Bottom: Mr. Choy Special Noodles.

Among the meals in a bowl there’s a choice of Filipino and Chinese style noodles, Indo-Malaysian flat noodles and the Japanese style soup noodles or Ramen. We go for Mr. Choy Special or the Filipino & Chinese style rice and flour noodles with black bean sauce. The thin noodles are flavourful and a fitting end to our meal.

Desserts include Sesame Balls, Chilled Mango Pudding and Custard Bao. While I am tempted to try the custard bao I already have my heart set on one of my favourite dessert places nearby. They don't have a liquor licence yet but there's a choice of refreshing mocktails, tea and coffee.

So would I go back to Mr. Choy? Yes, definitely. Ideal for a quick Asian meal the menu offers enough choice to make repeat visits interesting and delectable.

Details:

Mr. Choy, 75, Middle Lane, Khan Market, New Delhi.

Ph: 011 43760030/31

Timings: 11am to 11pm.

Prices: Dimsums Rs 195 onwards; Small Plates Rs 265 onwards; Noodles Rs 245 onwards; Desserts Rs 195 each.