Gouqi | Refined Chinese Cuisine By Award-Winning Chef
When Tong Chee Hwee opened Hakkasan as head chef back in 2001, he won a Michelin Star within a year – the first Chinese restaurant in the UK to win the award. After that, he opened Yauatcha, and won a Michelin Star there too (noticing a pattern here?). Then he unveiled HKK, and yet another Star. All told, his career with the Hakkasan group has now seen him win seven of the prestigious awards.
And now he has his own place.
It’s called Gouqi (named after the goji berry), and you’ll find it on the shoulder of Trafalgar Square between Pall Mall and the Admiralty Arch. Here, it fits neatly in with its esteemed surroundings with a commensurately distinguished & elegant space. It’s awash with glossy marble, gleaming brass, and buttery soft banquette seating. At the back, there are some curtained off semi-private diners, but if you want to throw a party, there are some actually private rooms for you to do that in, too.
The menu sticks to chef Tong Chee Hwee’s strengths – refined Chinese food. And it’s quite an extensive menu. You can expect the classics of course, including a basket of colourful dim sum parcels ranging from silver cod dumplings, to XO king crab, to wild mushroom with black truffle. And the starters are delicate little prizes (botan ebi shrimp tartare, oysters with rice wine, etc.) Then, there’s a parade of signatures, ranging from their Legendary Peking Duck with Oscietra caviar, to huge bowls of Monk Jumps Over The Wall soup, to succulent slices of Honey-Glazed Iberico char siu with salted egg yolk.
The cocktail menu provides a breakdown of the year, with fresh spring numbers (the Teng involves green tea, lime, and champagne), floral summer concoctions (the Zhuque blends tequila & kumquat), warming autumnal drinks (the Mogwai brings together whisky, sloe berry and blackcurrant), and full-bodied winter mixtures, including the Linggui, with its double rye, plum wine, and five spice…
…but they’re all very well seasoned.
NOTE: Gouqi is open now, seven days a week. You can make a booking, and find out more at the website right here.
Gouqi | 25 Cockspur Ct, St. James’s, SW1A 2TS
Looking for the ultimate fine dining experience? Book a table at one of these Michelin-Star restaurants in London…
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