HAN SHI FU is a modern Chinese restaurant that brings authentic Asian classics to the table in the form of art and it’s not just limited to Asia as you can also find other cuisines from the heart of cities such as Taipei, Hong Kong, Shanghai, New York, and Los Angeles. The restaurant brings a unique dining experience by fusion of flavours and elevating the dining experience to the next level by it’s decor and craftsmanship. Food is picturesque at HAN SHI FU and is definitely worth some instagram stories. All that food that came to our table definitely had a story to tell and surely they require some skill to have them taste and look this way.
This gem of a restaurant is actually located at the newly inaugurated Aloft hotel at Deira City Centre. You can also reach the restaurant directly from Deira City Center. The interior is beautiful and has elegance of it’s own. A beautiful restaurant that has a nice space and it’s high ceiling makes the restaurant feel more airy. The large window makes the dining space well lit where needed. Love their circular dining tables that have the center rotating so diners around the table can simply spin the center to get their portion. There’s a wide open glass for diners to witness behind the scenes of your food in the making. This is where you’ll witness the making of Baos, Pancakes and Dimsums. There is definitely lot of effort in making their signature Dim Sums and Baos and is interesting to see as they make them. They also have a dedicated drinks section in the restaurant and they make good looking mocktails.
There is one drink you shouldn’t be missing which is the BOBA Milk Tea. This is their signature drink and a must try. Nice and thick and lots of those tapioca pearls. Probably one of the best Boba Milk tea you can find in Dubai. The lemon grass juice was light on taste and had the right balance of sweetness. Interestingly I was much more satisfied with the cheaper priced BOBA Milk Tea. I guess it reminded of a milk shake. The butter pop corns came as complimentary. It was just like any butter pop corn, nothing really different about them.
The color dumplings are a star attraction. It was just obvious that we had to try it. Each of them had it’s unique taste and presence due it’s special color. It’s interesting to note they were all natural and no color preservative was used. All that color you see in those dumplings where all natural. Let me just quickly tell you some about them:
- Blue is Butterfly Pea flower – Shrimp and Zuchinni
- Yellow is Turmeric Powder – Curry Crab Roe
- Green is Spinach – Lamb
- Black is Bamboo Charcoal – Truffle Mushroom
- White is Flour – Chicken
The Dumplings, Dim Sums & Baos are some items that you want to order at HAN SHI FU. Simply because you wouldn’t be able to find such cute BAOs ever. When they first came into our table we weren’t’ sure if we had to eat it or just stare at it. It’s not just a Bao, it is a ‘wow’ bao. It was a clear indication to us that their food meant more than just cooking, it required creativity in the kitchen. We must really appreciate the effort put in to create these beautiful looking Baos and Dimsums. Each person gets their own little bowl of chilli sauce and soya sauce to add some zest to those steamed starters.
The Beef noodle soup had lots of noodle in it. The warm beef broth was lovely and it came with nicely sized beef shanks which was super tender and juicy. The tendon is not my favourite piece but it surely is healthy and is like a chewing gum if you try to chew it. But it was well cooked so if you enjoy eating tendons or for the benefit of it, you should be fine with it.
The Chili Hill Chicken was one of the hot favourites on the table. Loved those chickens for it’s crispness and the tantalizing spice rubbed on it. The portion size was also pretty good for the price. The Wasabi prawns was very different from the famous Dynamite shrimps. Although it had the same appearance as Dynamite Shrimp, it tasted very different and was simply luscious. Especially those walnuts on them which was also smothered in their deadly wasabi mayo sauce. Surely, this is an exciting item.
It is very obvious to me that any Indian will call the above image as a paratha but in reality this is supposed to be pancakes. Apparently these are called Chinese pancakes. They looked very similar to the Indian Paratha but they are different for it’s rigid texture. They are thin, crisp and completely opposite of soft and they taste so delicious. You don’t need to have any curry or dipper for this one, they are good by themselves.
YAKITORI – Premium Skewers
There were 6 exciting skewers from the Grill platter. It was a collection of Chicken, Prawn, Lamb, Beef, Mushroom, Oyster.
- BBQ Beef with peanuts
- Chicken breast with wasabi mayo
- King Oyster mushroom
- Chicken inner thigh with sesame sauce
- Shrimp skewers with mayo
- Spicy Lamb.
Each of them were unique for it’s marination, spice & dressing. My favourites would the first three from the left. Honestly, looking at the pictures in the menu I thought the spicy lamb would be succulent but unfortunately it felt a bit dry and the other meats such as the chicken breast, BBQ Beef were much more juicy and tender. Nevertheless, the platter was attractive and palatable.
We then ended our lunch with their signature dessert. A spicy chocolate cake at the bottom and on top was their homemade ice cream. The dessert comes enclosed in a ceramic egg shell. You can taste the ice cream and say it is home made and the chocolate cake on the bottom had that hint of spice which went very well along with the cold sweet vanilla ice cream. Usually it comes with milk tea ice cream but there out of stock so we had it replaced with a vanilla flavour which I thought was a good combination. I only wished the cake inside came warm and should have had molten chocolate in it which would have made this dessert even better.
The hot Jasmine tea felt good after a hearty meal at HAN SHI FU. I personally was fascinated by the pottery in which the tea was served. I guess it’s their traditional style. Click here to visit their official website. Click pictures below to see them in full screen view:
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