Empress of China, Eros Hotel, Delhi: Ducks Galore

Empress of China, the Chinese restaurant at Eros Hotel is running a Delectable Duck festival from 27 August to 7 September 2014, with 14 dishes created for this week. The ducks have been especially imported all the way from Brazil for this festival. All of this was enough of an enticement when I got an invited by Vaishali Dar, the marketing communications manager of the hotel to taste the food here.

I am greeted by Suprabhat Roy, Executive Chef of the hotel who accompanies me to the restaurant. The Peking Duck is one of the most famous dishes here, and that is the starting point of him and Chef Manoj Rawat of the restaurant to work out a duck based spread after many days of research.

We start the tasting session with the appetizers which are all delicious. Steamed Aromatic Duck Pancakes with crisp salad and Hoisin spread (Rs 895) have the perfect bite – a treat for all senses. The duck is soft and succulent, the salad is crispy, and Hoisin sauce adds the sweet, sour and spicy touch. Duck Spring Rolls with house made sweet chilli dip (Rs 895) is perfectly fried and pairs beautifully with the dip. Five Spiced Duck Salad with pickled vegetables and salad greens (Rs 895) is a wonderfully light and aromatic salad, with perfectly cooked duck meat. A treat indeed!

Peking Duck Wonton Soup (Rs 595) simmered with vegetables and superior stock is a bit flat especially compared to the other starters, since the broth does not have the required intensity so needed in a good wanton soup.

It is time for the main course. Double Cooked Duck Breast with aromats, wok tossed scallops & asparagus (Rs 1545) is the highlight of the afternoon. The perfectly cooked breast and the aromats used that include star anise and schezwan pepper, lifting the dish to a new level. Crispy Shredded Duck with ginger, scallions and oyster sauce (Rs 1545) is also an enjoyable dish, but Duck Mapo Tofu (Rs 1545) that has minced duck mince cooked in spicy chilli bean sauce with bean curd does not work as well, because the duck meat is too light, thereby depriving the dish of any creaminess.

The dishes at the duck festival impress. Cooking duck is a pretty difficult task, and the chefs at Empress of China showcase their cooking prowess with aplomb. It’s been an enjoyable experience indeed.

Disclaimer: This review was done on an invitation from the restaurant. Due judgment and care has been applied by the author to remain objective and unbiased in the review, but readers need to consider this review keeping this fact in mind.

Ratings (Out of 5)

Food: 4.0 | Ambience: 4.0 | Service: 4.0 | Overall: 4.0

Meal for two: Rs.4000 (Without alcohol) | Alcohol: Yes | Credit Card: Yes | Wheel chair friendly: Yes

Address: Eros Hotel, American Plaza, Nehru Place, New Delhi | Tel: 011 41331650