Reviewed
August 2003

Hidden away on Castle Street, Liaison is a smallish, mid-priced Chinese restaurant with a cosy atmosphere and palatable food. The small size and popularity of the restaurant, combined with the relative closeness of the tables, made for a relaxed ambience, more conducive to a romantic dinner than a rugby-team night out. The service was efficient, but not excessively so, and the waiters were both friendly and courteous. My guest and I both had one of the three set menus, priced at £14.50, which included scallops, crispy duck with pancakes, special fried rice and 5 main dishes. For those bold enough to select their own dishes, the menu has a wide choice of à la carte dishes, spanning chicken, beef, pork, fish and vegetarian, all costing around £5/£6.

The food was good, but perhaps not quite as refined as some of the more expensive oriental restaurants in town, such as Chiang Mai or The Peninsula. The scallops lost some of their taste because of an overzealous application of sauce in the kitchen; the crispy duck, which came finely shredded and ready-to-roll on a pancake, was - however - quite exquisite. The main dishes, which included sizzling beef, lemon chicken, lamb with spring onion, and a trio of seafood were all enjoyable, the beef and lamb particularly so. Portions for individual dishes were of average size, but their sheer numbers would satisfy even Gargantuan appetites. The house bottle of white (around £9) which we chose to accompany our meal was fruity but not overbearing, and is recommended by this reviewer. All in all, our meal at Liaison was an enjoyable experience, combining a fine atmosphere with good and reasonably priced food (total cost approx. £38).

Daniel Sokol