Request from the US - Madame D Review
- Ramez
- Mar 25, 2018
- 6 min read
My girlfriend’s friend was in town from New York and requested "something different" or "Asian Fusion" for her last night in London. Being the foodie, I was assigned the task of finding somewhere that met her criteria and was also a worthy spot to showcase the London food scene.
The Gunpowder group seemed an ideal match. The group focuses on south Asian food done really well, with Gunpowder often touted as one of the best Indian restaurants in London. Made up of Gunpowder, Madame D and the more recent Gul and Sepoy, they're all found around the Aldgate/Spitalfields area. Madame D is the group’s venture into a twist on Indian food, showcasing the influence of Chinese-Tibetan immigrants in India and the cuisine. It definitely ticked the box of "something different" and "Asian Fusion", versus the more traditional Indian food that’s on offer at Gunpowder. Since Gunpowder is no reservations and we didn’t want to risk getting turned away on her last night, Madame D was the venue of choice (they also take bookings on OpenTable). The Location Madame D has a small spot on Commercial Street and is actually across the road from its sister restaurant, Gunpowder. It’s pretty easy to get to, just a 5 minute walk from Liverpool Street or Shoreditch High Street station, so makes it easily accessible by train or tube. It's right by Spitalfields Market as well, which makes it a great place to stop in if you’ve been shopping or are looking for post work drinks and dinner. The Space The lower ground floor is the bar, with a few tables at the back for dining, and upstairs are the rest of the tables.
There’s a short list of cocktails with an Asian twist applied, so since our table wasn’t available yet, we started off with a few. We opted for a Ginseng Margarita (£10) and Bramble Martinis (£10).
The Ginseng Margarita (above) was slightly heavy on the tequila but the Bramble Martini (below) was a great choice, the perfect balance of sweetness.
Soon after, our table was ready, so we made our way upstairs to the second dining room.
The lighting in Madame D is low, with candles on each of the tables, so it could be a good choice as a date location. You’ve also got Spitalfields Market close by if you’re looking for pre-dinner entertainment and New Street Wine is close by for a pre/post dinner glass of red. The Food The menu is split into two sections and is pretty straightforward; Sharing Plates and Dessert. Personally, I love sharing plate style menus; it’s the perfect excuse to try as much of the menu as you dare and you’re not limited to one or two dishes for the whole meal.
Since there were three of us, we basically picked everything that jumped out at us. We went for: Naga beef puff, Seafood momos, Tibetan pan fried duck leg, Hakka chilli paneer, Himalayan fried chicken, Masala beef ribs and Tiffin masala lamb noodles and fried egg.
The Naga chilli beef puffs, at £3.5 each, were two small puff balls, filled with spicy minced beef. Naga is one of the hotter chillis, but the filling wasn’t too spicy that you couldn’t taste anything after... it added a more of a warming sensation. The pastry was also crispy making them a great start to the meal, but there could have been slightly more filling to get the full flavour.
Next, the Seafood momos (£6.5). Served as three dumplings in a spicy broth, they’re similar to Japanese gyoza in the type of pastry used. The filling had good flavour to it, though making out what was inside was more difficult to pinpoint. Dipped in the spicy broth, it made a very tasty mouthful, but if you’re not a fan of spice, avoid trying the broth on its own! As they’re a staple Tibetan dish, any of the three momo dishes are worth ordering if you’ve never tried them before.
A flurry of dishes were then served; the Himalayan fried chicken, Tibetan duck leg and Masala lamb noodles. The fried chicken (£10), served in a pile with a dipping sauce made up of soya sauce and vinegar, brought to mind McDonalds chicken selects (not a bad thing!) but in a restaurant style and so much tastier. The coating was crispy and light with Himalayan herbs mixed in (coriander), whilst the dipping sauce added a sweet sour touch. Could eat these over and over again.
The Tibetan duck leg (£12) was one of my favourite dishes. Served as a mound of shredded meat with a fiery red colour, it’s slow braised for six hours then fried and served with a coating of sweet chilli and ginger sauce and crispy duck skin on top. It’s a sweet dish from the duck meat and the sauce, so it’s worth having alongside other dishes, as it may get too sweet if eaten on its own. The crispy duck skin was a great touch as well, adding some texture to the plate. For the price, it’s a good sized portion, so much so I took home leftovers along with the noodles.
The Tiffin masala lamb noodles with fried egg (£14.5) was another favourite of the night amongst the three of us. The lamb was spiced with masala and a good touch of garlic, alongside chilli and ginger. Combined with the fried egg yolk, it made a delicious dish to share. Unlike other noodle dishes you may get elsewhere, it wasn’t overly oily, so you weren’t left feeling greasy and unhealthy. As the most expensive dish on the menu, it’s surprisingly filling so leftovers are a good option to fall back on!
The last two dishes arrived. The Hakka chilli paneer (£11) and Masala beef ribs with Szechuan sour cream (£12). We were really excited about the paneer, but unfortunately it didn’t live up to expectations. There wasn’t much chilli coming through and it had an almost burnt garlic taste, which if you’ve experienced it before, isn’t something you can shake quickly. The paneer also didn't seem as creamy as I've had in other restaurants, which again was disappointing. It may have been a one off, but we weren’t fans.
The beef rib also didn’t quite impress as much as it could have done. The Szechuan sour cream added a good balance to the strong flavour of the ribs, as did the coriander drizzle and pine nuts, but the meat wasn’t quite fall off the bone as you’d want it to be. Add in some tougher bits of meat made it less of a winner. Close to good, but not quite.
To end on a sweet note, we couldn’t resist ordering the Anise seed sticky toffee pudding and stem ginger ice cream (£7.5). We weren’t disappointed.
The stem ginger had a good kick to it, balanced out with the creamy sweetness of the ice cream. Paired with the sticky toffee pudding and caramel sauce, it was delicious and we quickly finished it off. There was a slight hint of the anise seed (liquoricey flavour), but not a lot. Ideal since I’m not a fan of liquorice! The cake was also moist and not too heavy, wrapping up a perfect dessert. I’d order that stem ginger ice cream on its own any day! The Verdict Cost: ££ (out of ££££) We asked for Asian fusion, and Madame D definitely delivered (for the most part). There was an interesting mix of dishes to choose from, with the fried chicken, duck leg and lamb noodles standing out amongst the rest. The vibe was also very chilled, making it a good spot to catch up with friends or a quiet date night. Cocktails were also great, though they can quickly rack up the bill. Downsides, some dishes failed to wow, notably the paneer and beef rib, but I’d be willing to give it another try to see if it was a one off. The spice levels of some of the dishes could be a bit much for some people as well, so just have a jug of water to hand! Altogether, we left Madame D full and happy, so another win for the Gunpowder team. Definitely one to try if you’re looking for something different! Madame D 76 Commercial St London E1 6LY
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