P F Changs Asian Table, Leicester Square

P F Changs has become a regular spot for me, one I visit when I’m around the Oxford Street area and can’t decide where to eat at. It rarely let’s me down, and even when it does – the Dynamite Shrimp makes me forget about all my worries. Speaking of Oxford Circus, despite having written a whole post on Halal Restaurants around Oxford Street (link), I still struggle with finding somewhere to eat, and I have to put it down to the poor variety of options. Any budding restaurateurs reading this post – get on it!

I first visited P F Changs on the day of its opening when only the Chicken was Halal, but I think within a few weeks of opening they realised how popular they were among Muslim foodies and rightly decided to make their whole menu (other than a few pork dishes) Halal – woo!

Being a big fan of their food from my visits in Dubai and Miami, I had to get here quick to see if it lived up to the hype. So on the day of the grand opening, I was booked in for a table. So… does it live up to expectations?

Well, I’m afraid there’s no short answer… so you’ll have to keep reading.

Firstly, I wasn’t aware that they wouldn’t have the same menus that they have in other countries – the waiter explained that it’s the P F Changs concept and brand, but with food to suit a British taste… not sure what that’s supposed to mean? So for example.. they don’t have their popular Pad Thai!

On my first visit, I went for a selection of (what we thought were) starters and mains, but turns out everything is Tapas style (i.e. food comes out as and when it’s ready, and is all designed for sharing)- so when I complained that my mains have come but my starters still haven’t, the waiter explained that it’s just the way it is here!

We tried (on my first visit):

– Dynamite Shrimp : £12.50
– Changs Chicken: £9.00
– Chicken Lettuce Wraps: £8.50
– Egg noodles with chicken: £7.25
– Banana Spring Rolls: £6.50
– Sticky Toffee Pudding: £6.50

My favourite, without a shadow of doubt, the Dynamite Shrimp 🤤. This is quite possibly one of my favourite dishes in the City, and without fail every time I visit – every single table has at least one portion, so it’s clearly their most popular dish! Now I must say, I’m really not a big fan of prawns, but these are seriously good – perfectly cooked and drenched in sauce.

The chicken lettuce wraps, personally weren’t to my taste. A lump of lettuce arrived at my plate, and another plate with some shreds of chicken. The chicken tasted good, and I ended up eating it by itself, but unless you’re a fan of lettuce wraps – probably not something I’d recommend.

The Changs Chicken was real good! It’s literally just a plate full of chicken, so I’d recommend getting a side of noodles with it.

Desserts here are also pretty good. They have a good selection, out of which I’ve tried the Banana Spring Rolls and the Sticky Toffee Pudding (both £6.50), and both are delicious!

Service-wise: they’re usually quite slow to take your order, and let’s not even talk about getting a seat if you haven’t booked. Especially on a Friday/Saturday night, expect to wait up to 45 mins if you don’t have a reservation. Even after ordering, sometimes they can take quite a while to get your food to you, and on my last visit I had to ask about 3/4 times before I got my drink. However with that being said, the food is good enough to keep me coming back!

Conclusion: If you haven’t been already, then you need to visit! And you’ve gotta try the Dynamite Shrimp! If you’ve visited P F Changs before in another country, then have reasonable expectations as the menu isn’t the same, but I think the restaurant has done a great job at creating a diverse menu which something to appeal to all tastes.