Hey Guys,
Last week, I was invited down to sample the Pan-Asian delights of Toomai Square. Set just a stone's throw away from the beautiful Greenwich town centre in South East London, Toomai Square is the local delight that has quickly become a favourite of mine.
This newly founded restaurant is surrounded by floor to ceiling windows, with the seating being elegant and open-plan. I loved the modern bar, with it's art deco feel and had no problem finding a drink I liked on the bar menu...
The Lassi Pina Colada was undoubtedly one of the best Pina Colada's I have ever had! I loved the unique lassi spin on the traditional PC and it was super creamy and delicious, like a dessert! My date, Grace, went for a Flowering Jasmine Tea, which tasted great and looked even greater! How cool is that flower!
Thirst sufficiently quenched, it was time for some starters! I LOVE starters. When a restaurant has a great selection of starters, I have been known to order soley from that section! Toomai has an incredible selection, which meant we settled on three:
Tempura prawn - Batter fried prawns served with soya dip
Toomai dim sum - Delicious hand made steamed dumpling of choice (veg ,chicken , prawn ) served with herbs sauce
Thai Calamari - Calamari toasted in garlic & coriander sauce
My favourite of the three has to be the calamari. Calamari is a staple starter in my book. I will almost always go for it when it is on offer! The difference being the stunning ginger sauce that Toomai prepare their's in. It really set it apart and quicjly became my new favourite! The tempura was a close second - extremely fresh, with a crunchy shell and soft, juicy prawn. These starters not only taste incredible, but they are extremely well priced (between £4.55-£5.99)
After such wonderful starters, we couldn't wait to get our hands on the main courses. I didn't think the first few dishes could be topped - boy was I wrong! We ordered the Lamb shank massaman from the "Chef's Specials" portion of the extensive menu alongside the Prawn Pad Thai from the "Noodles". We also ordered a side of Egg Fried Rice to go with the lamb.
Lamb shank massaman - Coconut milk braised lamb in a mild home made curry with potatoes & nuts , garnished with almond flacks and pickled onions
Pad Thai - The famous stir fried rice noodle with egg, beans sprouts, tamarind sauce served with grained peanut on the side.
Egg fried rice
The lamb... the lamb... how can I describe the lamb...
INCREDIBLE!!
I love coconut-based curries, but this one topped all of my experiences so far! Not only did the large, tender piece of lamb fall off the bone, but it sat in a pool of flavoursome curry with potatoes and spices. I would highly recommend going for this dish!
The Pad Thai was a great contrast to the hearty curry. It was fresh and tasty, cooked to perfection. I also feel that Toomai undersell their egg fried rice on the menu. It is not an ordinary plain egg fried rice that you would come to expect. It is packed full of flavour and herbs, standing superior to all the take-aways I've had so far!
Finally, as if we hadn't eaten enough, we couldn't say no to a cheeky dessert! I must say, in comparison to the starters and main courses, the dessert selection fell a little short. But this was probably due the expectations set by previous courses.
We went for a selection of coconut ice-cream (served in a coconut shell) vanilla ice-cream and strawberry. All flavours were extremely creamy and made a sweet ending to a perfect meal.
I hope you're not too hungry after reading this! I am sat here, typing away at 9pm, wishing I had eaten my dinner before starting to write. My mouth is salivating just thinking about eating this meal again!
If you do make a trip to Toomai square, make sure you tag them in your social media posts and let me know what you ordered and if you liked it!
Eb x
