Leong's Legend II

Going to Leong's Legend II  to sample their Xiao Long Bao (Shanghainese steamed dumplings filled with pork and soup) has been on my list for a while since I read some positive reviews about them. Apparently they are not the best in the world but they are the best in London. Since we were in the viscinity of Chinatown last Saturday 16th April 2011, my hubby and I decided to have lunch at Leong's Legends II in order to sample their Xiao Long Bao.
Upon arrival, the waitress gave us the menu as well as an order sheet for us to tick dishes that we wanted to order.

This is what the order sheet looks like:

We ordered the Pork & Crab Xiao Long Bao, Taiwanese Mini Kebab with Pork, Taiwanese Style Spicy Beef Noodle Soup, Taiwanese Style Pork Chop Noodle Soup. For drinks, we ordered two Ice Pearl Milk Tea (with Tapioca).

The Iced Pearl Milk Tea arrived first. It was very nice and refreshing with just enough amount of condensed milk to make the tea slightly sweet.
The Xiao Long Bao was the first dish to arrive. Annoyingly, our noodle soups arrived shortly after the Xiao Long Bao so we had to hurry to eat the dumplings so that the noodle soup didn't get cold! Different sections of the kitchen are in charged of preparing different dishes. So there is no coordination as such, the dishes are ready when they are ready!
The Xiao Long Bao were very yummy...too bad we had to hurry to eat them in order to eat our noodle soup. My Taiwainese Style Spicy Beef Noodle Soup was just OK, the noodles were well overcooked so they were mushy! However the beef & broth were not too bad.
As for the Taiwanese Style Pork Chop Noodle Soup, it came in two bits: the noodle soup in a bowl and the pork was served separately on a plate. The pork was basically very similar to a pork steak deep fried in breadcrumbs like the Japanese version. My husband quite enjoyed his noodle soup.
The Taiwanese Mini Kebab with Pork came last. They were quite good but I think we ordered quite a lot of food for the two of us! One portion would have been enough!
I wasn't tempted by any dessert as I was very full!

Here are the pictures of the dishes that we ordered:

Ice Pearl Milk Tea (with Tapioca) (£3.20)



The Pork & Crab Xiao Long Bao (£6.50)

Taiwanese Style Spicy Beef Noodle Soup (£5.20)

Taiwanese Style Pork Chop Noodle Soup (£6.50)

The Taiwanese Mini Kebab with Pork (£2.80)

The service was OK: no smile but efficient enough. We didn't expect great service in Chinatown anyway. The bill came to £33.22 including service charge. Not too bad for a good meal for two people.

We would definitely go back there if we are in Chinatown especially for the Xiao Long Bao.

Leong's Legend II
26 Lisle Street
London WC2

Tel: 020 7734 3380

http://www.restaurantprivilege.com/leongs-legend/home.html