Mangos Restaurant

Upon entering Mangos Restaurant we were left under no illusion that the food we were about to eat would be authentic, and from the smiles on all the customers' faces it was clear that we were in for a real treat.

The restaurant is light and modern, the round tables laid with bright white table cloths and, of course, chopsticks. Not the most dextrous of chopstick users, I quietly asked the waitress for a knife and fork, which were brought to our table in an instant, as were two little white cups of green tea.

The menu is extensive to say the least, with banquets for up to six people and numerous tempting options when it comes to starters and main courses. There are also over 50 types of dim sum to choose from. Dim sum in Cantonese means 'to touch the heart'; in other words, it is a light dish and should only be treated as a snack, 'touching the heart' rather than laying heavily on the stomach. We chose a selection of these tasty little dishes, and vowing to be adventurous settled upon the chicken feet in black bean sauce, the cuttlefish dumplings and steamed octopus in satay sauce. We devoured every last morsel, and though a little nervous about trying the chicken feet, I was pleasantly surprised - they were moist and tender, and the sauce was delicious and full flavoured. Still feeling a little peckish, we ordered more tea and an assortment of sweet dim sum - egg custard tarts, Chinese cane sugar cake and deep-fried custard filled buns.

Chinese New Year may have fallen in January, three months before our visit, but finding such a wonderful restaurant still made us feel like celebrating. As we left, we were already making plans to return, and I promised myself I would learn how to use chopsticks for the occasion.