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A Diamond Meal at the Emerald
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Recommendation added: 02/10/2006 01:36
By: dewberry (YSUK rating +649)dewberry has been thanked 10 times for this contribution
"Today we decided to go out for Sunday lunch, but left it too late to get a table at any of the local carveries. I fancied something a bit different so we went to a Cantonese restaurant on the other side of Birmingham; I'd heard good things about the place so thought it was worth the drive.
And it was. As well as an extensive Cantonese menu the restaurant offers a full time buffet which, as soon as I saw was 'all you can eat', I immediately chose. My partner had the same and my fussy Mother in Law ate Roast Chicken & Chips from the English menu.
The choice of foods in the buffet area is amazing. You basically inform one of the staff that you want the buffet and they tell you to go ahead and orders for menu meals are taken at your table. All the different plates and cutlery are stacked within the buffet area so you can help yourself. The foods are served from the kind of warming counter you see keeping the pies hot in the chippy, but with a gap so you can serve yourself. It's all very hygienic with each serving dish having its own spoon/fork contraption, when new dishes are added the old dish is removed and a new one put in its place rather than just pouring the contents into a dirty dish – unlike Pizza Hut who use the same serving dish all day, just topping up the contents for their buffet.
One large serving area holds all the starters and nibbles, while another contains all the rice and main courses. Next to this is a chiller where you can choose from prawns, salad or fruit with a small choice of gateaux and desserts. The plates and cutlery are housed on conveniently placed tables along with urns containing soup.
I love the layout of the buffet area as it's easy to work out what you're putting on your plate thanks to the well placed labels, it's kept scrupulously clean and I can go up AS MANY TIMES AS I LIKE! The area itself is on a low level and there is plenty of room between the serveries, which is important to me as (although they weren't with me today) my children would love the idea of serving themselves to whatever Chinese food they like and this would make the visit more special for them.
The first time I went up I piled my plate with a selection from the starters section. The banana fritters were delicious; crispy batter with a soft and fluffy centre which were absolutely wonderful drizzled with syrup. Chicken seems to be the word of the day here; battered chicken balls, shredded crispy chicken, Chinese chicken skewers, chicken goujons. I tried most of it and was surprised at how authentic it was; as it was a buffet I wasn't convinced the food was going to be as good as my fantastic local Chinese restaurant. It was.
There's an absolutely brilliant choice of dishes and the Emerald have thought of everything you could need to have a delicious feast. All of the food was fabulously cooked and tasted fresh which, again, surprised me as it had been kept warm rather than served immediately after cooking. All the popular Cantonese dishes are available, along with a selection of rice, noodles and vegetables. I was happy to see Cantonese Chicken in Sweet & Sour Sauce as it's my all time favourite dish – this was perfect, moist tender chicken cooked as only the Cantonese can with a rich sweet & sour sauce. Huge chunks of pineapple and red pepper gave a delicious substance to the sauce, as did the pile of noodles I'd hidden underneath this red sticky sauce. Yummy. While I was piling my plate a member of staff advised me to top this with a sprinkling of shredded pork and this was so tasty, try it!
The Chicken & Cashew Nut dish is worth a mention too, but then so is everything on the menu – I can't describe everything available as the review would be twenty pages long! Just take my word that everything I tried today was delicious; I actually ate until I felt queasy! The Emerald have thought of everything; there's a stack of pancakes and Hoisin Sauce for you to make your own Shredded Duck Pancakes, syrup for the fritters, cream for the gateau and (of course) several varieties of soy sauce. The Crabmeat & Sweetcorn Soup is to die for and proper Chinese bowls and ladles are available should you feel the need to go for the true oriental eating experience. A nice touch.
My Mother in Law's chicken and chips from the menu was amazing value. For £9 she got the biggest dinner plate I've ever seen literally piled with food. No stingy chicken quarter here a'la the average Chinese takeaway, she *did* get a quarter but it was from possibly the biggest chicken in the country! I watched how the meat crumbled as she cut into it and she commented on how moist and tasty it was. There was a mountain of fresh, tasty chips which I assume are home made as they were so tasty. Peas, salad and mushrooms made this an absolutely massive dinner – which she managed to put away, as Mother in Laws do!
To add the finishing touch to your meal, the Emerald is fully licensed and serves a good selection of lagers and spirits at reasonable prices. An extensive wine menu is available, but as I was driving I didn't look at it and the wines aren't displayed behind the bar so I can't comment of the quality of wine available. The spirits were all top brand and J20 is sold, along with liqueur coffees and fresh juice.
Service in the Emerald is fantastic. Staff are constantly at hand to take orders, answer queries and even give advice on dishes. Before I went up the second time I asked as I couldn't have stood the embarrassment of getting more food to discover I'd only paid for one visit! The 'waiter' (for want of a better word) was friendly and polite as he assured me I could quite literally eat as much as I wanted, all staff speak excellent English so communication isn't a problem as it is in some takeaways.
The layout is good for a restaurant which caters for everyone; doorways are wide, tables well spaced and lots of room to manoeuvre meaning wheelchair users and pushchairs can get around easily. A gentleman in a wheelchair was dining at the same time as us and a member of staff promptly found the most suitable table for him and removed a chair so he could move around easily. Brilliant customer satisfaction. The restaurant is beautifully decorated with some gorgeous Chinese themed water features, this makes the Emerald a relaxing place to spend a couple of hours and eat wonderful food.
A buffet lunch on a Sunday costs just £6.50 per person, and this is amazing value. If I'd ordered what I'd eaten from a typical menu it would have cost me upwards of £15 so the savings for greedy people (ie. me!) is excellent. During the week and on a Saturday prices depend on the time and day you plan to eat, with prices for the buffet peaking at £10.50. I fancied a treat today so price wasn't really an issue, but if you want to know roughly how much you'll be spending I'd suggest phoning first to check for the times you'll get the best value for money. The meal is worth easily a tenner anyway so fill your boots!
The Emerald used to be quite a famous pub called The George and is located on Bristol Road South, near the old Rover plant in Longbridge. Finding it is easy, simply get onto the A38 Bristol Road in Birmingham City Centre (or anywhere in the Midlands) and drive in a straight line until you see the large gold dragons heralding your arrival at the Emerald. It's that simple.
The Emerald Cantonese Restaurant
Bristol Road South
Northfield
Birmingham
B31 2SP
Tel: 0121 4759991"
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