KIN

KIN is definitely recommended for a healthier choice for wanting some oriental food. All the dishes we ordered that evening were greaseless including their Chicken Green Curry and homemade wor tip. Portions were quite small but it meant you can venture out with some sides or salad to start. Some dishes worked, some didn't.

To begin it is a very trendy well lit place, somewhere to eat out casually with the bright coloured decor and so it hold a less romantic environment, especially when using recycled tissue napkins and disposable chopsticks too. But still I liked the decor a lot. It was just a shame that the place was completely empty for a Monday evening when we headed in.

The waitress who served us was very welcoming and friendly even though the manager ignored us completely. She was very efficient in recommending dishes to us and describing them which was handy and nice. As we knew beforehand that the portions were going to be small we ordered quite a lot to start which was fine knowing we had the 50% off.

The papaya salad arrived first with small plates to share. It was a very light dish, very refreshing and crunchy with the perfectly sliced vegetables with an added depth of crunch from the peanuts and a good kick from the fresh chillis. However it was extremely odd to have raw green beans in it which did not work well and not authentic either. Hopefully from customer reviews they will remove it from the dish eventually.

I honestly say that the wor-tip were homemade as the pastry tasted fresh, perfectly pan fried to crisp to start and into a more springy and bouncy pastry unlike the frozen ones you get. However the filling was very disappointing as it was just a lump of pork. It definitely needed another texture in the filling whether it be carrots, dried fungus, spring onions or water chestnuts to also add flavour. Still it was one of the better ones I had.

We also ended up sharing their main dishes, the grilled Pork Bun which came generously of fresh sliced up raw vegetables, grilled pork, a small duck spring roll and nuoc mam. It was such a shame this dish didn't work out as the pork was one of the best I've tasted. It was grilled perfectly, still moist and very well marinated and flavoursome with a slight sweetness to it. However the quality of the noodles were poor, stiff and lacked smoothness. It may have not been cooked long enough too. The nuoc mam was seasoned perfectly to drink on its own but when mixed in with the Bun itself it was just a little too bland and needed more fish sauce for that extra depth and flavour. The spring roll was also disappointing, just piece of flavourless duck in there which also needed another ingredient in there to add texture and flavour.

However luckily the last two mains put our end on a wonderful note. The Green Chicken Curry was one of the most creamiest ones I've had in the perfect consistency to stick to each piece of the fluffy rice provided. It was rich with fresh vegetables such as bamboo shoots that still had its crunch and all very well flavoured and seasoned. There no sight of oil on the top layer and tasted heavenly with the rice. Chicken could have been more tender but saved with the creaminess of the sauce.

The Malaysian fried rice was definitely another winner with the fried egg that still had it's yolk running inside. It had all that wok energy needed to give it depth and flavour of all the ingredients in there and seasoned perfectly. It was flavoured very well, savoury and with that runny yolk it was amazing. But on its own it would have been a very small portion so I would advise a starter before it.

KIN definitely has its highlights, especially with the cooked mains. A little more attention and detail to the quality of noodles and fillings I can imagine it to be one of the best casual chinese dining places I know. Service is all there, friendly and knowledgable and restaurant well kept too. Wish it had a better atmosphere though, maybe a little music playing in the background?
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Lamchowder - View all reviews by this user
9 Overall rating
Food 7 | Service 9 | Atmosphere 9 | Value for money 9
Wednesday, March 14, 2012

I went here to buy the £5 takeaway lunch box. It is a small bucket, 3/4 full of rice with a ladle of chicken, pepper slices and sauce on top. The sauce is creamy and picante, but there wasn't enough of it and far too much rice. A simple way to cover overheads i guess, but I won't be visiting again.
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JPN
6 Overall rating
Food 6 | Service 6 | Atmosphere 6 | Value for money 4
Tuesday, January 31, 2012

I popped in after work for a quick meal and was impressed by both the food and the friendly service. As a veggie, I particularly appreciated the fact that they could tell me which dishes contained shrimp paste or fish sauce and which didn't; a rare thing with Thai-style restaurants! The dishes that I tried were straightforward but had an excellent depth of flavour; definitely a cut above the average chain noodle restaurants, but with comparably good-value prices.

The only downside is that much of Leather Lane closes down after the business day is over, meaning that they're currently not pulling in the evening trade they deserve, although lunchtimes seem to be busier. Hopefully word of mouth will change things, because the quality of the food deserves a wider audience.
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Jill P - View all reviews by this user
8 Overall rating
Food 8 | Service 8 | Atmosphere 6 | Value for money 8
Saturday, January 14, 2012