Restaurant Review: Wonderful Patisserie (Colindale)

Possessing somewhat of an uncreative name, what Wonderful Patisserie lacks in terms of elegant names, it more than makes up for in the quality of the food it serves. Serving food that is predominantly Chinese-themed, there are also a few pages of Malaysian creations, of which I tried the beef ho fun. Truth be told, I couldn’t detect the difference between it and previous Chinese ho fun dishes I’ve had, but of ho fun dishes I’ve had, it was definitely one of the most delicious. A big problem I’ve encountered in previous ho fun dishes is that other restaurants have either excelled at one element (usually the ho fun), and under-performed on cooking the beef, thus overall rendering the meal a bit of a bust (as undercooked meat is and always will be). But both the ho fun and the meat here were excellently prepared, and the amount of flavour added to it, whilst surely doing my cholesterol level no favours whatsoever, was heavenly to taste. There were a few extra condiments on our tables should we need them and I didn’t add anything else to my main apart from a little bit extra spice.

For starters, me and the girls shared breaded chicken wings, which were amazing; the outside was particularly salty and as a connoisseur of salty things I adored them, as well as shredded beef in sweet and sour sauce, which was incredibly moreish. Then for our mains, we also shared a plate of veg between us, for the obligatory fibre. The veg was this type of Chinese cabbage that tastes very nice indeed when seasoned, and fitted in just fine with my ho fun.

The only possibly negative thing there is to say about Wonderful Patisserie is that it wasn’t the most glamorous place. Set out more like a café than a restaurant in part of London that could be politely described as “industrial”, this place was never going to rival The Savoy in terms of shining chandeliers; indeed, even the glasses we drank from could have been polished a little better. In terms of value for money and taste of the meal you’re offering though, this has got to be one of the best in North London. The portions are mega – and you’ll end up spending almost exactly the amount you’d spend at Nando’s for a meal that has more flavour, interest, nutritional content and variety. In the corner there is a dessert section where you can buy some sweet stuff to bring home with you, including a very cute Hello Kitty cake! Go there.


Grade: A-