Ping Pong

[Izabel_blue]

Hullo...

I went off to PingPong with 'the girls' on Monday night and we had a pleasant enough time, though we all decided that it did indeed pale in comparison to the mighty Yauatcha...

Good things were the fact that it was a bit cheaper than Yauatcha (we ate a ton of Dim Sum and had two cocktails each-- and it came out at £20 each) and that the staff was really friendly and let us linger for quite a while-- no trying to kick us out after 90 mins!

I also liked that they provided a chinatown style tally sheet for ordering and that when the dishes came they were clearly marked...it seemed they were making a concerted effort to explain everything clearly to use westerners.

The food was pretty good in a standard kind of way with a few outstanding bits (chinese chive dumplings, spinach prawn wrap, spicy vegetable dumpling) and a few misfires. Cocktails were very very good and reasonably priced... and I finished the night with some of their flowering Jasmine tea, which blossomed before our eyes. However, I was sad to see that there was no cheung fun on the menu (the prawn and beancurd cheung fun at Yauatcha is probably my favourite dish in London) and the menu also suffered from not having any noodle or rice dishes to temper the dim sum with.

I'd go back with a large group of people or something, and I'll probably check out the one in Westbourne Grove (closer to home) but I got home on Monday night longing to go back to Yauatcha, I'm afraid! If only I hadn't seen such riches before....

[origamicrane]

a second branch already?

is ping pong really making that much money?

or are they going franchise?

McDimSum here we come

[cachan]

Kurt Zdesar saw a new market in serving dim sum to non-Chinese and was capable of servicing this market by opening Ping Pong. The only people who feel entirely at home ordering dim sum in a Chinese restaurant are the Chinese customers or more specifically the Cantonese Chinese customers. Some non-Chinese manage to steer the course by eventually becoming familiar with the dishes but everyone else who attempts to discover dim sum finds the experience an intimidating obstacle course due to the language barrier and the unfortunate quality of the service. The vast majority of the British population do not know about dim sum at all although they may have come across a dumpling or two in the supermarket frozen cabinets. I myself have avoided ordering dim sum at Chinese restaurants for years because of the above reasons and I am pleased that Ping Pong has come along and that a second site on Westbourne Grove is due to be opened in October.

Ping Pong has addressed this vast untapped market in the majority of the London population by presenting dim sum in a relaxed and approachable manner with friendly and helpful service and no language obstacle at a reasonable price and this is why this place is gaining regular customers and will be able to open more branches. It's true that some items are not served such as the fluffy taro chicken croquette and the cheung fun. I found that Yauatcha has good service as well but it is slightly pricier than Ping Pong and so will target a smaller potential market.

May more branches of Ping Pong be opened over the next few years and more Britons experience the hitherto hidden cuisine of dim sum !

[origamicrane]

and more Britons experience the hitherto hidden cuisine of dim sum !

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I'll agree with that, more people should try dim sum and i hope ping pong become popular.

As hopefully this will reduce the queing time for Royal China in Bayswater and Bakerstreet and maybe even mean Yauatcha will give you more then 90 minutes.

edited to add:

the penny just dropped!

Ping Pong is the dim sum equivalent of the local chinese takeaway.

Edited August 8, 2005 by origamicrane (log)

[RickBehl]

I hope they have better luck than the previous businesses on Westbourne Grove in that site. I've seen a number of establishments open and close within a year there. Eat and 2 Veg, Cafe Pasta, All Bar One, to name but the last three...

You know what they say, some sites are just jinxed :-(

Rick

[magnolia]

Or some restaurants just stink, and they all happen to be able to afford the high rent on the same spot...

I hope they have better luck than the previous businesses on Westbourne Grove in that site. I've seen a number of establishments open and close within a year there. Eat and 2 Veg, Cafe Pasta, All Bar One, to name but the last three...

You know what they say, some sites are just jinxed :-(

Rick

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[camp_dick]

Mr Rayner gave Ping Pong short shrift.

Disappointing absence of puns on the word 'pong', though.

Edited August 23, 2005 by camp_dick (log)

[fisherman]

Mr Rayner gave Ping Pong short shrift.

Disappointing absence of puns on the word 'pong', though.

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thankfully jay leaves to puns to idiots like VLS and whoever it was who did the guardian review this week, that's why jay is good to read........

ping pong didn't come out of that review very well though did it, i certainly won't be going

[camp_dick]

thankfully jay leaves to puns to idiots like VLS

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I guess you're right, that kind of thing is beneath him. Or he leaves it to the subs ('a dim view': way-hey!) It's not in the same class as magnolia (above) though

[origamicrane]

the company behind Ping Pong plan to open 25 of them across London over the next five years. Look out suburbia: lacklustre dim sum is coming your way.

as i said early McDimSum here we come

the food at this place sucks like a dyson.

Its serving poor quality dim sum masquerading as the genuine article at 30% higher prices then the genuine article.

If they really do open 25 branches around london

I dread to think what it will do to the quality of the real chinese dim sum places in london.

Yauatcha and hakkasan raised the bar of dim sum in london

Ping Pong on the other hand are trying to drag it back down.

[Winot]

The chilli squid cakes were greasy and rubbery and a defamation of that noble crustacean

As much a defamation as calling it a crustacean?

[origamicrane]

The chilli squid cakes were greasy and rubbery and a defamation of that noble crustacean

As much a defamation as calling it a crustacean?

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good spot

cephalopod

shoots ink and leaves

[Jon Tseng]

shoots ink and leaves

Cephalopods shoot leaves?

[jayrayner]

The chilli squid cakes were greasy and rubbery and a defamation of that noble crustacean

As much a defamation as calling it a crustacean?

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fuck.

I remember thinking to myself. Must check that. And then I didn't. V crap of me.

[origamicrane]

shoots ink and leaves

Cephalopods shoot leaves?

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Bear- eats shoots and leaves

Squid - eats fish, shoots ink and leaves

[cachan]

The food here is not luxurious but neither are the prices. The achievement of this place is that it introduces dim sum to the 99% of Britons who are not Chinese.

There are indeed shortcomings in the food and there are limitations in what can be provided for this price bracket. The roast pork buns may be a bit un-generous on the filling but if you select a variety from all the sections then the feeling that all the steamed dumplings are samey can be avoided. I have found the food to be quite good. I do like the crispy hoi sin duck rolls and the chive dumplings. The price for a meal is very reasonable.

Having said all this, I have started going to Yauatcha instead because I am prepared to pay a bit more for a better food product. The prices are higher but the portions are clearly bigger and richer. The sticky rice in lotus leaf is larger and full of filling and the char siu buns are likewise larger and better. There are also certain dishes such as the chicken taro croquette and the various cheung fun.

A market for the Ping Pong concept seems to exist and maybe as people become familiar to dim sum they will try Yauatcha. Ping Pong is a cheaper and more friendly place to start. And since Jay Rayner has commented on the name, maybe the restaurant could have been called by some other name which included the words 'dim sum' such as 'eat dim sum' or 'dim sum place'.

[John Whiting]

... maybe the restaurant could have been called by some other name which included the words 'dim sum' such as 'eat dim sum' or 'dim sum place'.

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Winsome Dim Sum?

[origamicrane]

ping pong is the turkey twizzlers of dim sum.

[camp_dick]

... maybe the restaurant could have been called by some other name which included the words 'dim sum' such as 'eat dim sum' or 'dim sum place'.

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Winsome Dim Sum?

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I suggest: Sum Dim Guy

The best Chinese restaurant names (this is not my personal theory) have three syllables.

A simple rule that this name generator doesn't take into account.

Who remembers Ho Lee Fook, in the Kings Road, ?

[John Whiting]

Who remembers Ho Lee Fook, in the Kings Road, ?

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Lee Ho Fook in Chinatown is still going. The offshoot on Macclesfield Street just off Gerrard St, signed only in Chinese, continues to serve the cheapest and best very fast food in central London. (Those who read Chinese may know of a rival. )

[origamicrane]

a while back I wrote the following on the london-eating website

I can best describe ping pong as

the dim sum equivalent of your local chinese takeaway.

ie: is not for chinese people.

The place is nice the service is friendly but the food is crap its only one step above supermarket ready meal dim sum.

If you love chinese takeaway food you will love ping pong. If you are chinese don't even bother this one for the gwai low.

anyway ping pong sent me an email via the london-eating website.

In the email they said they were naturally dissappointed about my negative impression of the food and that they believed their food was good and that they had a lot to offer to chinese people and they backed this up with a photo of a large party of good looking chinese eating in ping pong.

I responded by saying that they obviously spent a lot of money on the place but that they had to improve their food if they wanted to attract chinese customers. I added that many chinese would go and try them out just out of curiosity.

But unless their food improved dramatically they would not recieve many returning chinese customers.

I told them to do a customer count for the motnh and then see what percentage of their customers were indeed chinese.

I also said that if they were confident that their food was good

that as a member of the chinatown chinese chamber of commerce I'd be happy to arrange a blind tasting competition between them and a few of the restaurants in chinatown.

I'm waiting with bated breath for their response.

does ping pong have the courage of their convictions?

[cachan]

Three weeks ago on a Thursday, I went at about 18:30 and by 20:00 the place was full and there was a lengthening queue outside the door. So, does it really matter if there are only a few Chinese coming here ?

Maybe the food is prepared in Woolwich by Chinese chefs anyway.

[origamicrane]

So, does it really matter if there are only a few Chinese coming here ?

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nope! not to me!

but evidently it does to the people running ping pong

that they felt the need to write to me and try to convince me otherwise.

The thing thats really annoying about ping pong is that they evidently got the finances in place to invest in the design and locations so why! oh why! can't they invest some of that money into the F-ing food!!!!

Their food I tried there wasn't awful but it just wasn't very good!

they got so much potential to really bring good dim sum to the masses and yet they are happy to churn out the kinda crap thats just insulting to the cuisine.

Its like owning a ferrari putting in normal unleaded and driving at 10mph in the slow lane!!!!

what do they think they are doing!!!

step it up!!

you got the money too !!!

so why aren't you !!!

sorry if i'm getting a little passionate about this

but i am Chinese and nothing I hate more then wasted potential!!

Edited October 11, 2005 by origamicrane (log)

[cachan]

Origamicrane,

I'm wondering, have you been to Ping Pong a number of times ?

[origamicrane]

Origamicrane,

I'm wondering, have you been to Ping Pong a number of times ?

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been once and heard numerous reviews from friends that have also visited.

now if you are saying they have improved i be willing to give it another go.

but next time i be going with my camera and the dim sum menus from royal china, golden palace and golden dragon to come pare like for like and quality and quantity