Optima Magazine

27-29 High Road • Bushey Heath • WD23 1EE • 020 8950 4886

Reviewed by Jill Glenn

I’m not the greatest fan of the All You Can Eat concept, so I was rather disappointed to find that ChiKa Yan, on Bushey Heath, had nothing else on offer – and even more disappointed to discover, from their website, that there is in fact a conventional à la carte menu available. Certainly there was no sight of it at any of the tables last Friday evening, and it wasn’t suggested to us.

It shouldn’t make such a difference – the food is coming out of the same kitchen, after all – but the All You Can Eat experience has something of the conveyor belt about it, and can be an excuse for both poor service and poor food.

In ChiKa Yan’s defence, the service was friendly and efficient, although it lacked finesse. Food arrived quickly – too quickly, even, reinforcing the idea of vast vats in the kitchen simply waiting to be dished out – and the plates were delivered to the table with no real attention to style or presentation.

The starters were actually very tasty. The Chiu Yim Prawns (dry-fried with salt, pepper, ginger, garlic and green chilli) were excellent, as good as any I’ve eaten, and the Sesame Prawn on Toast – always a good test of a Chinese restaurant kitchen – matched all the criteria: crunchy without being dry, moist without being soggy, and full of flavour. I was even tempted to order more (as All You Can Eat allows) but was persuaded by my companion to sample the intermediate course of Crispy Aromatic Duck. Again, this arrived at the table almost before the order had left my lips, and was, sadly, rather tepid. The flavour was very pleasing, though, and the basket of pancakes was generously full. Despite grumbling about the temperature we did manage to polish it all off…

…which may be why we couldn’t finish any of the main courses. This is the point at which the menu took a downward turn, in my opinion. Instead of offering specific dishes, there’s a list of different meats, fish and vegetables, and a further list of sauces: ie. mix and match. This was curiosuly challenging and even rather depressing. How were we to know the best combinations? We should have stuck with starters.

The Vegetarian SIngapore Noodle was pleasant enough, but we found it hard to summon up much enthusiasm for the Chicken in Black Bean Sauce, or the Prawns with Ginger and Spring Onion. Maybe it was just us…

Certainly there was a buzz about the place. Indeed, it was surprisingly full when we arrived at 7.30, with several tables already well into their meal. A group of young Chinese women were celebrating a birthday with enthusiasm, and evidently enjoying the food. That has to be a good recommendation. If you don’t mind a casual low-key approach, then the ChiKa Yan All You Can Eat menu clearly offers great value for money, and, if you choose wisely, some great-tasting food, too.

All You Can Eat:
Sunday-Friday: £13.80
Saturday: £15.80
House Wine: £12.50