HERE'S a little known fact, I'm actually the Dragon Lady.
Yup, I was born under the Chinese Horoscope of the Dragon, and I'm a lady, so yeah, it makes sense to you all now, right? Anyway...
I LOVE Asian cuisine and slurped my way through the bowls of ramen in Chatswood, inhaled pork buns at Tim Ho Wan, eaten my weight in Korean bbq and had litres of pho in Marrickville. Our family has set the record in devouring plates at various Sushi Trains around Sydney, and nothing beats great Pad Thai from our local favourite.
Dragon Lady doesn't quite fit any specific country of regional cuisine. It's a little bit Malaysian, a little Chinese with a sprinkling of Japanese.
Nevertheless, we were excited to have an 'Asian inspired' dinner - and I was a little relieved that there would hopefully be something for everyone in my family.
First Impression
Absolutely blown away by the decor. It was beautiful - but much like the menu, a little confused. There was a Balinese-style statue at the entry, Japanese inspired artworks of, I'm guessing, the actual Dragon Lady, complete with sword. The room was decorated with screens, orchids, a huge gong.
The tables were beautifully set with bamboo mats, chopsticks and tasteful bowl. The blue theme was nuanced with the lighting, furnishings and menus.
Also, it was very quiet and subdued. A hushed ambiance. If the aim was to create an atmosphere of relaxation, it was achieved. As always, the staff was attentive, courteous and extremely helpful.
The Menu
We were presented with a folded menu, that once opened, presented four different options. It gave the impression that you were going to have an 'experience' rather than a meal.
To start we were offered veggie chips (which the kids thought were potpourri) and a little ginger shooter. The kids didn't like the amuse–bouche so I threw back four of them. The lovely waitress then explained we could order 2 - 3 items from each section (basically entree and main) to share and a dessert each.
Entree: The standout for me were the rice paper rolls. Very fragrant and full of crunchy goodness. Bowls of edamame were soon gobbled and Miss 8 wolfed down the salmon sushi. The pan-fried dumplings were nice, but far from the best I've had.
Mains: Beef cheeks were Miss 10's favourite - probably because they were so succulent and easy to eat. I found them too oily. I did try the soft shell crab, but again, very oily and I personally can't stomach eating this crustaceans. I suppose they are an acquired dish. Satay stick were very tender, but lacked the peanut factor - maybe they were cooked in a recipe my palate isn't use to, but I love getting that big nutty flavour whenever I eat a satay. The vegetarian stirfry was delicious and aromatic.
Desserts: Very rarely would I enjoy a dessert after an Asian meal, but when in Eden...
I suppose the main reason is due to the bad memory of deep-fried ice cream as a child and then as an adult, not really moved by Asian desserts. I don't mean to stereotype as I know there are many different styles of Asian desserts - just my opinion. You'll find that the dessert menu, isn't quite Asian-inspired - unless you count the mango pudding as it has tapioca as its base, a common ingredient in south-east Asian sweets. Having said that, the pudding IS very nice, but quite filling so easily one to share between two. The chocolate option was the most dense and chocolatey thing I've ever eaten. Eden, Miss 10, is the world's biggest chocaholic and she barely made a dent in it! Milkshakes in Mason jars were frothy, sweet and again, very filling.
My general overview of Dragon Lady is that the concept is great, but definitely needs refinement.
For me, it's too confused. I understand that the cruise wants to appeal to a large cross section of people and introduce a pan-Asian inspired menu, but I think having a little more clarity and order would improve the eatery. Trying to please everyone with everything is never a success. That's what the Pantry is for.
It's hard to give just one score, so I'll break it down:
Decor - 10
Staff and Service - 10
Food - 6
One more thing, the servings are VERY generous so please be specific or clarify how much you're getting when you order. When we went the second time, the staff brought us TWO of everything. The two plates of sushi, edamame and veggies were very welcome, but we could not get through the mains and I felt absolutely terrible having to waste the food.
A BIG shout out to Gay who was the most amazing waitress at Dragon Lady - my kids and I loved her to bits!
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