Name: Great Eastern Dining Room
Address: 54 Great Eastern Street, London, The City, EC2A 3QR, UK
Telephone: +44 (0) 20 7613 4545

Right at the heart of lively, trendy Shoreditch and bang opposite a handy car park that stays open to 11pm, is this busy, warm and friendly restaurant – complete with bar and downstairs “club” – serving some exquisite and surprising Asian fusion food.

The environment and atmosphere

We arrived at 730pm on a Saturday evening and were given a genuinely warm welcome. The bar in the adjacent area buzzed and the restaurant looked like it was full already. The warmth and easiness of the place shone through. There was an even split between couples and small groups. Most appeared to be relatively wealthy folk in their late 20s/early 30s but there were some obviously older people there and everyone appeared to fit in just fine.

It is a good sized restaurant – appearing even larger than it is through the clever use of large wall mirrors reflecting the light from ultra modern candelabra type lights and with dimming daylight through the window screens which nod to a Japanese influence. The walls are very dark wood which matches many of the chairs and the leather banquette seats in the raft of large booths to the side. Through the end wall – with a strange brown flower wallpaper (the only doubtful element of an otherwise clean and attractive contemporary interior) you can see the kitchen staff beavering away - cheerfully.

The plain white linen napkins looked a little incongruous against the paper tablecloths and the way that the cutlery and chopsticks were standing up in a small cup-like holder supports the informal “sharing” philosophy of the place. Whilst we looked through the considerable cocktail, wine and food lists we were left to enjoy a plate of edamame beans (baby soy beans) which had been marinated in some delicious stuff and covered in crunchy sea salt. The waiting staff showed nothing but delight in explaining what these were and how they should be eaten (sucked out of their shells). It was a bit like eating warm, wet peanuts – but yummy. And very moreish.

The food and wine

Although you can select starter and main course dishes, you are encouraged to order a variety of things that take your fancy which are served to your table when they are ready for you to eat in any order you fancy.

The wine list was quite long and eclectic and I was a bit surprised at the selection – whilst there were a number of “expect to be founds” there were a few rather pedestrian choices. But the good news was that it started at a reasonable rate (£17.50) and there were a good few for around £20-£30 as well as a few more expensive wines (from £50) and even a couple at the high end. We choose a bottle of Malbec La Flor at £27 – and it was very drinkable.

We selected three “starter” dishes – relying on the recommendations of the waiting staff who were very enthusiastic about the food and obviously each committed to their own favourites.

First up was the wasabi prawns (£6.50). Now I adore the fire of a good wasabi on my cold sushi so I was surprised that the large, plump prawns were warm. They were really tasty – albeit with a significant kick – and there was something crunchy in the amazing mix which was decorated with a few juicy salmon roe pearls. Pure delight and I would have been happy to eat these all evening.

Next came the tempura soft shelled crab (£8.75). Tempura is one of my favourites and so is crab so I was delighted to see this presented on a small wooden block with a dish of very pretty dipping chive/chilli flavoured oil. I can’t describe how stunning the perfect little circles of orange and green oil on this sauce looked. The crab’s delicate flavour was lost in the perfect tempura. The side oil was incredible – really powerful and utterly memorable – but way too overpowering for the crab. But it is not a dish I will forget easily. Supreme presentation and a feast for the eye even if the combination of flavours wasn’t quite balanced.

Next came the dish that defined this restaurant for me. It was truly magnificent. Duck, watermelon and cashew salad (£11.25). It is hard for a salad to be memorable but it was sublime. Fresh coriander and mint with a few other leaves, a very generous portion of duck chunks – cooked to perfection – plenty of crisp cashews and the occasional surprise from a bite sized piece of firm, cool watermelon. The flavour is reminiscent of those Peking Duck pancakes you make up – hoisin sauce, duck, spring onions – but in this incredible salad that you just have to keep on eating. And eating.

The waitress had explained that the black cod with sweet miso was one of the most popular dishes in the chain – and one that was particularly favoured by business lunch guests. I must admit that it looked pretty. Presented on a dark green leaf the cod was beautifully blackened (but not in any way like the Cajun version you sometimes see in some dishes) with two delicate thin straw leaves across it. Alongside were enlarging circles of a miso paste. Now, the legacy of my time in Japan is a gut wrenching aversion to miso but the sauce tasted good enough. The fish, for me, was way too soft and watery but maybe this is how the dish is meant to be. My companion ate most of it and he said that it was nice enough. But frankly I don’t know what the fuss is about. Possibly the least attractive dish of the meal. But then maybe it is the strength and boldness of the other dishes that made this one a little disappointing.

I had ordered the chicken phad thai (£10.50) as I was interested to see what spin the restaurant put on such a staple. I started by tasting the various elements as they were presented on the plate in separate piles – dried chillies, raw beansprouts, chunks of chicken, tofu pieces and an underlying pile of noodles. But this dish really grew on me when I mixed it all up.

All of the dishes we ate came across as rather salty, so I was glad that the steamed jasmine rice (£2.50) was so light. And we managed to get through two bottles of water so maybe tap water would be a more sensible choice in future.

The staff

There were a lot of staff and they were all kept on their toes. And it would be easy to understand if they got a bit tense when things got really busy – which they did when we were there - but they remained polite, charming and outright friendly – even when reminding you that your reservation was for just the two hours. Presumably a place like this gets through a couple of sittings in an evening, so check when you book if you plan to stick around for a while.

Conclusion

With a bill for three starter dishes and two main course dishes, two bottles of water and a bottle of wine coming to £96.20 without service it wasn’t cheap. But the friendliness of the staff, the lovely interior and warm atmosphere and the fantastically bold flavoured and beautifully presented food made it worth it.

All Ricker Restaurants focus on private rooms and event spaces (for example, there is the adjoining bar next to the Great Eastern Dining Room restaurant – where you can obtain a considerable variety of bar foods that appear on the main menu - and Below 54 which has sound systems and relaxing areas) – and it would appear that they are an ideal choice for any social, business or work event that you were arranging.

At the end of the menu there is a helpful glossary to help you navigate your way through the menu – so if you were ever intrigued to know the meaning of dim sum, gyoza, mirin or penang then your curiosity would be satisfied.

Another notable element is that you can buy a copy of the E&O cookbook by the owner Will Ricker (an Australian) and therefore see for yourself how many of the dishes served in the restaurant can be made at home. Mind you, I was a little disappointed that I couldn’t find my personal favourite – those amazing washabi prawns in there. But the fabulous duck salad was in there – albeit with some no doubt difficult to track down ingredients (I had to look up galangal when I got home – apparently it is a Vietnamese root vegetable!)

Great Eastern Dining Room

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