Dec 2000 Volume 81 Number 12 "serving the protectors"
Authentic: Chinese
By Jason Squire

Chinese food is often given short shrift amid today’s many choices of cuisine. The traditional “western” Chinese food is often boring and swimming in sickly sauces which swamp the dishes, making them taste very ho-hum.

After the dining revolution of the past few years, diners are today looking for authenticity in their food. Australian palates have matured to the point where diners are not afraid to experiment with tastes, and look for restaurants that provide them. The Imperial Peking Restaurant fits into this category.

The restaurant - which one could easily miss - is tucked away in a group of shops on Payneham Road, St Peters. It has the standard Chinese restaurant decor with paintings of carp and tranquil Chinese village settings.

My partner and I were promptly seated and had a good look over the menu. The staff were ever-present and quickly attended to our thirst. The menu has the traditional “western” Chinese dishes, such as sweet and sour pork, crispy skin chicken and braised king prawns. To my delight, the menu also had other points of interest, like de-boned duck’s feet, Szechuan dishes and mermaid’s tresses, which were described to me as crispy fried seaweed with dry salted pork. Right up my alley.

My partner settled on the spring rolls for entrée while I had the mermaid’s tresses. The duck’s feet sounded delicious - perhaps next time. The spring rolls were nice and the seaweed was quite different; it dissolved immediately it hit my tongue and was replaced by the saltiness of the pork, which surprisingly gave the dish a sweet finish. I liked it and, to my surprise, so did my partner.

Our main courses we let the owner select for us. The owner was very helpful and only too willing to tell us the history of the restaurant and the more alternative dishes available. The owners come from the Chinese-Russian border area and we were delighted to have a traditional dish from this region recommended to us.

The dish was called Xing Jang barbecue lamb with pancake. When it arrived the aroma filled the restaurant. The main spices used are cumin and chilli. The pancakes were the same used during a Peking duck banquet. They are light and complemented the lamb well. We also ordered braised prawns, which were equally delicious. The sizes of the meals saw us struggling to finish and thankfully “doggy bags” were available.

The Imperial Peking Chinese Restaurant is a good spot for a Chinese meal. We dined on a Monday night and the place was reasonably busy, which is testament to its popularity. The staff and the owners provided excellent service and we were made to feel welcome from the moment we entered the restaurant. It has banquets ranging from $20.80 to $33.80 per person and they all contain a huge amount of food. In another great deal, the restaurant will pay the GST on the take-away menu items for those who pay cash.

Where:	Imperial Peking Restaurant, 103 Payneham Road, St Peters.. Ph 8362 6490.
Entrées:	$3 - $9.
Main courses:	$9 - $33.
Dessert:	$5 - $9.
Fully licensed.

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