A glossy new Cantonese restaurant called Dim Sum Library opens in Covent Garden next week, from the Hong Kong-based Aqua group, the people behind Aqua Shard and Hutong.
Dim Sum Library has taken over the Long Acre address of the group’s former Italian restaurant Luci. Browsers will be able to watch the chefs in action near the entrance as they create dim sum, along with signature dishes such as black truffle crispy skin chicken, king crab spring rolls and beef fried rice with foie gras.
Afternoon tea comprising savoury and sweet dim sum paired with Chinese teas is billed as a major attraction, while the cocktail list features a selection of mixes based around tea, such as the Smoky Sichuan using mezcal and Sichuan pepper, and the Pu-erh Mandarin comprises whisky, tangerine and salted pu-erh tea.
And for lucky diners who can make it to Long Acre for the opening night celebrations next Tuesday 8 December, 888 dim sum will be given away free from 6pm – making the most of a number regarded as auspicious throughout East Asia.