Charlie Chan, Cambridge

"My palate has been stunted from all this Trinity stodge." 

Having eaten in hall once too often this week, Pope JP decides that we (Dr C and myself) should go out for dinner tonight. Given his recent cravings for Chinese food, we decide to head to Seven Days on Regent St, which serves pretty authentic dishes and seems to be especially popular amongst the local Asian contingent. True to form however, the restaurant is completely full when we arrive at 7:15 pm.

Given the queue growing in front of the counter, the decision is made to adopt plan B and try out the other Chinese restaurant just down the road - Charlie Chan.

Try as I might, I can't help but associate the name Charlie Chan with a really dodgy bottle shop in Sydney CBD. So it is with trepidation that I enter the restaurant, not helped by the slightly cringeworthy musak and neon lights which adorn the foyer. While the Pope and Dr C aren't bothered at all, I am a little relieved when we head upstairs to be greeted by a more comfortable dining area.

The three of us decide to order one dish each to share, although The Pope and Dr C both want aubergine with ginger and garlic. Always the gentleman, The Pope changes his mind and goes for beef with chinese mushrooms in oyster sauce, whilst I go for the barbecued belly pork with yam in clay pot.

Beef with Chinese Mushroom in Oyster Sauce (£8.50)

First to arrive is the beef, which as expected is pretty standard fare. The beef is tender and there are mushrooms enough to satisfy The Pope's chinese mushroom cravings.

Barbecued Belly Pork with Yam in Clay Pot (£12.50)

Next is the pork, which for some reason I thought would be this, turns out to be a rather generous serving of this (I should have read the word "barbecued'). Nonetheless, the streaky slices of pork belly match quite well with the yam, and the whole cloves of garlic are actually surprisingly tasty!

Aubergine with Garlic and Ginger (£8.00)

However the aubergine is unanimously the favourite dish of the three - you can taste the heat (temperature) retained in the eggplant from the braising (literally 'red cooked' in Chinese i think...), plus we all lap up the sauce in all its oily goodness.

The overall consensus? Perhaps not the most original or ground-breaking Chinese food, but at the end of the night we are three very definitely satisfied stomachs.

Charlie Chan
14 Regent Street, Cambridge, CB2 1DB
Tel: +44 (0) 1223 359336


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