Our Man in Milliways - Tangs, Edinburgh
Created | Updated Jun 16, 2010
Tangs – Candlemaker Row, Edinburgh
Ahh, Tang. A fine, fine name. The mere sound of it summons up an image of foreboding Highland Peaks, steaming Scotch broth and the charms of haggis and a wee dram o' the uisge-beatha for supper.
What? Tangs is the Japanese Restaurant, just down from the statue of Greyfriar's Bobby1? Oh. Right you are then.
Food
As you'd expect, Tangs Japanese Restaurant serves a selection of oriental food, especially Thai, Japanese and Korean. Having never eaten Japanese or Korean food before, L and I decided to share the Tang Platter (£8.50) to start, washed down with some sake. Unfortunately, the waiter didn't speak any English and brought us some Asahi – a bland, uninspiring Japanese lager. Luckily, the platter was great. Consisting of pork gyoza (a rather tasty dumpling), prawn toast (my all-time favourite starter), prawn tempura – light, fresh and very tasty, chicken satay (well flavoured), Thai vegetable roll (a non-descript spring roll type affair) and a Scottish fish cake (a random, yet nice addition), the platter served as a great introduction to this sort of cuisine. It was served with three rather tasty dipping sauces (soy, sweet chilli and satay*), so working out what best complimented what was fun.
Onto the mains. I picked out the Ojingeo Bokkeum (£5.50) – a Korean squid dish, while L played it slightly safer with a Chicken Karaage (£4.50). I also took a bowl of Thai sticky rice, mainly because I'm awful with chopsticks and needed the help, with L taking the more adventurous coconut rice (both £2.50). We then washed this down with a bottle of hot, strong, borderline dangerous sake, which I highly recommend to anyone who likes being drunk. Anyway, the food. For once, I regretted ordering the squid. I mean, I like it, and I eat a lot of it, but there's only two types of squid. Good and inedible. So as I tucked into my well-cooked, tender strips of cephalopod, I couldn't help but wish I'd ordered something that at least worked with this fantastic spicy sauce, as opposed just to sitting in it forlornly. L took great relish in proclaiming that her Karaage was delicious, although she did manage to ruin her rice by tipping half a bottle of soy sauce into it. Should you have the opportunity, make sure to try coconut rice, but please, please, leave the condiments alone.
Polishing off the last of the sake, we ordered some desserts. L picked a traditional Japanese Crème Brûlée, while I went for the Mocchi – a dumpling made from a strange, springy rice dough and filled with sweetened mashed beans. It was interesting, to say the least, but quite enjoyable in a strange sort of way. Just as enjoyable was the bill. The meal, plus drinks, tipped the scales at a meagre £57. That's right, full bellies and a stagger in the step for under sixty notes, in a European capital. Fantastic.
Atmosphere
Unfortunately, the food was let down somewhat by the atmosphere. With downstairs full, we were led upstairs. Eating a meal when you're the only two people on that floor, on a table with a plastic tablecloth isn't brilliant. It did perk up when a table of Thai students came in and were seated behind us though, but was it not for them (and the sake), it'd have been a nearly silent eating experience.
Service
Again, underwhelming. The food was delivered quickly and the staff were attentive, but only one of the front of house staff could communicate with us. One waiter couldn't take our drinks order correctly, bringing us two beers we didn't want, but were too polite to refuse, and one waitress was unable to direct me to the toilet when I asked. Friendly, charming, but sadly inept.
Overall
I loved the food. L loved the food. We'd definitely go again, and we're looking at visiting a Japanese restaurant in Manchester sometime soon. Problem is (if our experience was anything to go by), the service is quite haphazard. So definitely visit if you're in town, but make sure you make it clear what you're ordering. 8.5/10
10: The highest possible score 9/8: The next one down 7/6: Sort of in the middle 5/4: Getting lower 3/2: Nearly the lowest 1: The score out of 10 I give myself for this keyThis column is open to contributions from all members of the h2g2 community. All submissions are accepted on the basis that they are honest and unbiased, and all opinions expressed are those of the reviewers, who may not be professional restaurant critics. Send your reviews to the usual submissions address.
