“If you are happy and you know it, clap your hands!” goes the popular children’s song. And so I am! Ask me why? Well, one of the well known brands in Chinese cuisine – Wang’s Kitchen -- has finally set foot in Madurai.
Notorious that I am for my Chinese craving, I was thrilled to see the erstwhile Bata showroom in Bibikulam giving way to another red-and-white coloured board. Less than a fortnight ago, Wangs Kitchen opened its doors and I couldn’t wait to check out its décor, ambience, crockery, cutlery and of course, the menu. Run by Oriental Cuisines Private Limited, Wangs Kitchen is the country’s and Chennai’s largest Chinese restaurant chain. It follows a template across three States. Having started with one outlet each in Chennai and Bangalore in the early 90s, the Wangs Kitchen today has 34 outlets in Chennai alone, a dozen in Bangalore, two in Pondicherry. The last two in Coimbatore (started in January) and Madurai (on 22 March) aptly welcomed the Year of the Goat.
Having eaten at Wangs in Chennai, I remember how much the taste of what we ate and the money we paid made the experience worth it. So here I did what is best done – went to Wangs on an empty stomach and with an open mind, but made the mistake of choosing a weekend night. All the 13 tables were gone and the dining hall was brimming with happy faces. And then there were those waiting for their turn or for the takeaway parcel outside.
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Deep within I knew the wait would be worth it! Only I didn’t like the seat that I could not choose. I would have preferred to tuck myself in a cosy corner and order and eat at my pace but my table was by the see-through French window right at the entrance. Well it did give me a view of the world outside but that I would have enjoyed if inside it was quieter. I could also see the groups of people waiting outside as much as they could watch my speed of eating. I sensed I would have to gobble the food though Wangs Kitchen chooses to position itself as a joint for casual dining – something between quick service and fine dining.
My first course was Lung Fung soup and much as I expected it arrived soon and tasted yummy. The consistency was exact with liberal dose of chopped vegetables for the vegetarians and minced chicken and mushroom for the non-vegetarians. It was a perfect start to what was to follow. First the chicken lollipop, fish in butter pepper and vegetarian momos as starters and then a plate of Hakka noodles and Wangs Special Fried rice in the main course with Kung pao vegetables and ginger prawns as side dish, all delicately flavoured with different types of sauces.
The menu at Wangs is not quite off the ordinary. It is a typical menu of any Chinese eatery and includes Szechwan rice or Cantonese fried noodles, dragon chicken or Phuket fish, vegetable spring roll or chicken momos in sweet or spicy flavours and are fried or grilled. But the successive bites that you dig into make you shut up and relish the food. The flavours are not over-powering, the main ingredients retain their original taste and the presentation is not overdone. After all you are here to eat to your stomach’s content and the chef knows how to tantalise your taste buds. So even if the over-worked steward forgot to bring you that extra fork and knife you asked for, the taste of the food more than made up for the lapse. And yes, I did end up gobbling the food not so much out of guilt for the people in waiting but for the delectable taste of the dishes I ordered.
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I wrapped up my meal with what else but the fried ice cream because I simply could not resist it even though my stomach was protesting. With Wangs Kitchen in Madurai, I fear my noodle consumption is going to rise drastically now. I am sure whenever my Chinese craving surfaces, I am going to make a beeline for this place, notwithstanding the queues and the waiting time.
Weekdays – and especially the lunch hours -- are usually lean, the branch manager Mohamed Jalaludeen threw a hint when I was leaving, though happy he is the way the outlet has picked up instantly. The operations manager, Rathish Nayar, says that the quality of the food served and the value for money automatically draws customers and is confident that it will continue to do so even in the Temple Town where people are believed to be diehard lovers of traditional and spicy food.
If you are a Chinese food lover, eating at Wangs Kitchen is well worth the visit and if you aren’t just check it out for fun. And do find out about the various pocket-friendly offers and special combos available at the outlet before you launch yourself on the eating sojourn. For details and also free home delivery call 3925392.