Imperial China — Restaurant in Mumbai

Location: Ground floor, Hilton Hotel, Near Mumbai International Airport

Recommendations: Chef’s Special Clear Soup Crispy Black Pepper Vegetables Vegetarian Hakka Noodles Vegetarian Garlic Basil Fried Rice Ice Cream Rolls

Hilton Hotel is a renowned property all over the world and the one located near Mumbai International Airport is the only one in Mumbai.

The entrance is grandeur with elegant and mesmerizing chandeliers. The vintage feel around is just very peaceful which makes you want to never leave the place! The cherry on the cake is the Piano player which plays some really soothing music which is comforting to ears.

The Imperial China is a restaurant of Hilton located at ground floor serving various Asian Cuisines. The restaurant hosts different festivals. We were here for the on-going Singaporean Food Festival. The restaurant is operational for DINNERs ONLY.

NOTE: The festival will be held till 30th of November, 2017.

They have a separate menu for the festival consisting of a Soup, Various Appetizers, Mains, Noodles and Rice. Most of the dishes are Non Vegetarian but you can ask them to make Vegetarian Versions and the Chef would happily make for you!

We started off with the Chef’s Special Clear Soup. The soup consisted of pieces of boiled Chicken, mushroom, lemongrass, carrot, cabbage, curry leaves and vermicelli. Loved the consistency of the soup which was a mini meal in itself. The dominating curry leaves flavour is what I loved the most about it!

Vegetable Spring Rolls are my all time favourite Asian appetizers and I am bound to order it whenever I visit an Asian restaurant. The Rolls were perfectly made with a crispy and thin exterior stuffed with mixed vegetables tossed in Soy sauce. The most highlighting part was the Honey Chilli Sauce. The consistency was amazing and the balance between sweetness, sourness and spiciness completely blew my mind! Don’t forget to gorge onto the pickled Chinese Cabbage those were the BEST I have ever had!

Crispy Black Pepper Vegetables consisted of deep fried assorted vegetables tossed in lip smacking Black Pepper Sauce.

Lemongrass Prawns were my absolute favourite appetizers here! Juicy prawns cooked in a delicious mildly spicy sauce had an amazingly distinct lemongrass flavour.

Tun Tong Wontons were fried wontons having a stuffing of assorted vegetables cooked in soy sauce. The wontons were sprinkled with gun powder. I liked the taste however they were too oily for consumption.

I loved the smell and flavour of basil in my food and I ordered the Garlic Basil Fried Rice! It had a salivating fresh basil aroma, perfectly cooked rice along with assorted vegetables. However again this was too oily as well.

The simple Hakka Noodles never disappoint and the one serve here didn't too.

We ended our meal with their Signature Deep Fried Ice Cream and Ice Cream Rolls.

The Fried Ice Cream had a bread coated vanilla ice cream deep fried and served along with fruits garnished with chocolate sauce. I loved the way they have made use of breadcrumbs instead of battering the Ice Cream before frying.

The Ice Cream Rolls were my favourite dessert which consisted of dough cigars stuffed with Vanilla Ice Cream and drizzled with strawberry compote. Loved the way the sweetness of Ice Cream was balanced by the acidity from the compote! DO NOT MISS IT.

Coconut Pancakes had triangular shaped crispy wraps stuffed with roasted dried coconut. I would have loved it if it has fresh grated coconut! It tasted good too.

Food: (4.5/5) Ambiance: (10/5) It deserves it! Staff & Service:...

After successfully completing a centennial, Imperial China still stands as strong as ever. It has an elegant decor with a touch of contemporary vibes. A classic and regal setup with the ambient music of live piano trailing you to the lands of nostalgia while you sit your significant other , or even by yourself, is exactly how we envision our perfect evening to be. Imperial China at Hilton provides you exactly that. They are coming up with a new menu as they shift the reins of their kitchen to Chef Thomas Lai, who is a second generation Chinese himself.

We were glad to be a part of their exclusive Chef's table and we were bowled over by their hospitality. Starting off with the Amuse Bouche, we knew we were in for a culinary treat. After appetising our palates to the flavors of Sichuan sauce and tofu, we moved onto our starters.

The Cottage cheese Tshing Hai was a delicious and soft blend of smooth cottage cheese in a spicy and flavorful gravy. It was integrated very well with the cottage cheese and was a total delight with the essence of spring onions and gravy.

The Spinach and Cabbage Dimsums were put out in a steamy bamboo casserole and were quite moist at the start. They were slightly bland and dry, but tasted really fresh. The flavors could have been sharper but it was quite decent.

Next, we pounced upon the Vegetable Spring Roll. These were a total delight. Deliciously steamed vegetables with a juicy flavor were rolled up and served with a side of sweet chilli sauce. The sweet chilli complimented the freshness of the rolls and they were easily the best spring rolls we have ever had.

We tried their Tom Kha Soup next. Now, this one was based on a coconut broth and loaded with broccoli, mushrooms and spring onions. It was hearty and soothing. The flavors were adequate and it had a great fulfilling base. The broccoli gave it a bite which made it taste even better.

For the mains, we tried the Okra Chilli and Basil Fry, the Tofu Claypot and Hot Basil rice. The three dishes complemented each other with the Okra giving it a crispy element, the Claypot being saucy and the rice providing the spicy base.

The Okra was sauteed to perfection with just the right amount of crisp and a spicy flavor of chilli and hints of basil here and there. It had a crunch as well as a flavor. The Tofu Claypot was a wholesome dish which was quite filled with an essence of soulfulness. It was quite warm and soupy. The Tofu was soft and the gravy tasted brilliant with the hot basil rice served alongside. It was a brilliant combination. We loved it totally.

Our meal ended with a dunk in the coconut land as we gorged the Coconut Pudding with Butterscotch sauce and Banana Toffee. The coconut pudding was soft and jiggly with a creamy flavor of coconut which was paired brilliantly with the butterscotch flavor. It was thick and had a smooth texture to it. The banana toffee was a brilliant addition. It gave a crunch with a soft gooey centre of banana. It was succulent and paired extremely well. It was a brilliant assembly of various deconstructed elements which gave a holistic end to our delicious meal.

Lastly, we cracked our Fortune cookies and thanked our stars for the wonderful evening that had ensued. It was a grand experience with some delicious picks and if the tasting was this great, we can't wait for the entire menu to unfold.

Ambience: 5/5 Food:...

My second visit here and totally loved the food once again. I tried their new Chinese New Year Menu and it transported me to China.

Loved everything right from soup to desserts.

A simple clear soup with udon, broccoli and bokchoy.. really flavorful and perfect for the cold weather.

Crispy sweet and spicy fried eggplant.. So so good. My husband said, "why don't you make this at home?"

Crispy chilli potatoes.. crisp potato chips tossed with chilli and coriander.. quite good.

Cottage cheese and edamame tossed in chilli and peppers.. quite flavorful. Loved it. My son enjoyed it.

Vegetable fried rice went well with the beautiful delicious, garlicky and mild Tofu Spinach Gravy and a mild soy chilli Broccoli and Bokchoy Gravy. Loved them. Again a comment from my husband, "after ages I've had authentic chinese like how we had back in China" that's a compliment indeed.

The chilli noodles were to die for. Loved them. Needed no accompaniment. I could finish the bowl if I hadn't eaten the appetizers. So so good. My husband who usually dislikes noodles loved it too.

I was too full and hence did not try the desserts buy I'm sure they were equally good.

Definitely a fantastic place for chinese food lovers.

Chinese/Asian food is love. It's close to my heart. Always on a hunt for good authentic Chinese food.

I visited Imperial China yesterday to try the chefs special curated menu.

The restaurant is beautiful and well designed.

Coming to food, I really enjoyed it!

We started with a tom kha soup which was quite flavorful. Well balanced and delicious.

The vegetable spring rolls were delicious. Crisp wrapper and a perfect filling of vegetables inside. Yummy.

Cottage cheese in a spicy sauce. These were delicious. Cottage cheese tossed in a spicy garlicy sauce. Totally lip snacking.

Spinach and Cabbage Dimsums. These were decent. The outer skin could have been softer and thinner.

Coming to the mains,

Tofu claypot, a delicious black bean gravy with tofu cubes. Flavorful and not very spicy. Perfect accompaniment with the spicy basil fried rice.

The basil fried rice was delicious. Spicy and flavorful.

Okra chilli basil fry.. these were delicious. Crispy and spicy okras, So so good, couldn't stop eating them. It was a dry preparation. Can be eaten as an appetizer.

Wok tossed baby aubergines.. small eggplants tossed with garlic, spring onions and jalapenos. They were good. Again a dry preparation. A little gravy would have been lovely. But still a good dish.

Coconut pudding with a toffee sauce.. perfect, balanced dessert to end the perfect meal.

Overall a fantastic meal.

1teaspoonlove recommends

Food -4.75/5 Ambiance -4.5/5 Service -4/5 Vfm...