Introduce your little ones to a taste of Chinatown
Learning about Chinese New Year has become an annual feature in many a school curriculum. So when Yang Sing announced that they were about to launch their new children’s menu – and invited us in to road test it, regular guest blogger Eve was up for the challenge.
Eager to introduce her fussy eaters to a different style of cuisine, Seth (6) and Louisa (4) were a tough audience to crack*. However a glimpse of the menu beforehand, some hands on dim sum action, chop stick drum sticks and delicious noodles saw Eve giving the new children’s menu at Yang Sing the thumbs up!
*The kids are a bit younger in the photo below.
My children are fussy eaters. It is the biggest test of parenting skills.
I have allowed food to be a battle sometimes and it is something I am trying to rectify.
Seth, my eldest is just about turning a corner and is becoming inquisitive about food. Just as he is about the world around him, he has realised that trying new food is fun. It is just wonderful for me to watch him keen to try new foods.
I am wondering if this will rub off on his little sister.
I am not holding out much hope. She is a fierce little girl and knows her own mind. Nothing much can change it. She doesn’t do bribes. She is not into material things. If she is not going to do something, then she is absolutely not going to do it. Getting her to try Chinese was going to be a challenge!
We’ve never been to a Chinese restaurant before
Taking all of this into account, going to a Chinese restaurant is not something we have ever done. We go out to eat a lot and the children love it, so we were really excited to be given the chance to go and try out the new children’s menu at Yang Sing (£6.50 per child).
Dim Sum
Make your own spring rolls
Complete dim sum making set with miniature chopsticks
Your spring roll set comes with pastry and filling
Simply fill and fold your spring rolls, then hand them back to us
.
Select a little main for
your little person
Stir fried chicken with beansprouts,
sliced onions and soft noodles
(vegetarian alternative available)
or
The classic chicken fried rice
(vegetarian alternative available)
or
Honey roasted char sui pork with
steamed jasmine rice & sweet soy
.
Dessert
Free ice cream with all children’s meals
Choose from: vanilla, strawberry and chocolate
The menu comes with instructions for how to fold a spring roll!
A trip to Chinatown
Seth has learnt about Chinese New Year for three years running and it is one of his favourite topics, so taking him to ‘Chinese’ as he calls Chinatown was a new adventure for him. Louisa doesn’t look so keen does she!
We arrived and the children loved the chopsticks. So much so, they were using them as drumsticks on their plates…thankfully there was no-one else near us.
The menus look really fun and the guys made a bee-line for them as they usually do when we eat out. Louisa being the colouring in connoisseur that she is, and keen to throughly road test her Chinatown experience, asked for crayons to colour and draw. I think kids expect them these days when they see a paper menu so we fed back that a stack of colouring in implements would be a good investment when they launch the new kids menu.
Make your own dim sum
The make your own dim sum for the children came really quickly.
Always a bonus with hungry children mithering you when their food is coming. Louisa was a bit concerned when she saw the ingredients, but Seth was interested in it and had a go at rolling his spring roll.
The waiter showed us how to do it and was so helpful.
I was useless at them, there is definitely a knack to it. Again Louisa was reluctant to get involved, but Seth took to it like a (crispy) duck to water.
They were taken back to the kitchen and arrived back with us in super-quick time. Again, a bonus. They were absolutely delicious and I was blown away when Seth ate and loved them. He would never have tried them at home.
Try your hand at chopsticks
Next up was the noodles. Seth really wanted to know how to use his chopsticks and the waiting staff were so lovely showing him and us how to use them.
Seth was definitely better than us. He woofed down his noodles using his chopsticks, again this was a sight to behold for us.
They were absolutely gorgeous and the portion sizes were not too overwhelming, just right for little people.
Ice Cream
The kids loved the ice-cream. Make sure you tell the staff your chosen flavour. We had vanilla which Seth said was delicious.
All in all, I was really impressed with the service and the menu and wouldn’t hesitate in recommending it to other families. Seth loved it, Louisa was more cautious, but all in all a thumbs up. My advice is to show your children the menu beforehand and be prepared to encourage them to try something a bit different.
Eve, Seth and Louisa x
Photographs: Eve Bell
Articles by Eve:
Saving us from boring baby stuff
Making jewellery with children
Baba+Boo’s gorgeous new Woodland Collection
The things they don’t tell you at ante natal class