Dim Sum afternoon tea at Le Chinois, Knightsbridge

Happy Chinese New Year everyone! 2015 marks the year of the goat and to celebrate I was invited for a rather lovely Chinese afternoon tea at Le Chinois, Millennium Hotel Knightsbridge. Now as you know I love both afternoon tea and dim sum so this East meets West fusion was literally my idea of foodie heaven:

Champagne to start

How the afternoon tea is usually served up. 

Because there were so many of us ours came on individual 

plates along with some tasty extra extras too. 

Crispy chicken - Thin strips coated in a spicy 

savoury batter, these were so moreish! 

Siu Mai - A dim sum classic, juicy pork and prawns all 

wrapped up in soft pastry and gently steamed. 

King prawns with crispy filo and pineapple - A treat for 

the eyes and mouth. The freshness of the fruit was a lovely contast to 

the crispness of the prawn and cut through the richness perfectly. 

BBQ pork (Char Sui) bun - Another dim sum classic.

 Sweet marinated pieces of pork enclosed in a light fluffy bun. 

These ones always go down a treat whenever we go for dim sum. 

Crispy scallop rolls - Unfortunately I didn't get to try

 this one but it certainly looked interesting! 

Duck spring rolls - Crispy and filling, these were delicious with 

the hoisin sauce. Le Chinois afternoon tea comes with a serving of 

traditional Peking duck pancakes too (not pictured). 

Finally mochi and mango to end - Sweet yet chewy these were the 

perfect end to our afternoon tea. After so many fried dishes it was 

great to have some fresh fruit to nibble on too. 

As someone who eats dim sum regularly (and therefore like to think of myself as a bit of a connoisseur) I had very high expectations and I'm pleased to say that Le Chinois did not disappoint. The restaurant is run by authentically trained head chef Anthony Kong and although some of the dishes aren't what you'd traditionally associate with dim sum the flavours were absolutely spot on and each dish more delicious than the last. I still love my cheap and cheerful restaurants but for a special occasion (such as Chinese New Year) this would be a great alternative to the traditional afternoon tea and I would love to return for my birthday later this year. 

Le Chinois dim sum afternoon tea, £25 per person (12-5pm daily).

Have you ever tried dim sum? What are your favourite special occasion restaurants?