If you’re looking for a traditional English Christmas dinner, turn back now.
I’ll let you in on a little secret though… this is better.
The Mango Tree have launched the most incredible Christmas menu. It’s luxurious, dream worthy and delectable. I should work as an ambassador for the restaurant because every time I go in, I’m blown away by the experience. The food, the service, the decor. It continues to wow me time and time again.
However, this wasn’t any ordinary menu, this visit would entail putting their Christmas menu to the test. There are actually two Christmas menus available, Meat and Vegetarian. Obviously we opted to try their Meat selection, but I always love when places offer a fully comprehensive menu for veggies. As someone who was vegetarian for about 6 years of my life, I really appreciate it.
Before any food, it’s important to start with cocktails and wine. I’m the pickiest when it comes to cocktails. I normally find them too sweet to drink, so Joe is my official taste tester. In the spirit of Christmas, he ordered an Amaretto sour to start while I stayed firmly on an oaky glass of Chardonnay. My wine was perfect, the recommendations from their exquisite bar was spot on. I could drink this every day, it was gorgeous. Joe’s Amaretto was also delicious, sweet but not too sweet, with definite notes of holiday spirit.
To mix things up a bit, he then went upon the recommendations of the Mango Tree staff and ordered what I want to say was the Caribbean Kiss. We told the staff to surprise us with a drink, and therefore I really can’t remember what it was called. Am I a terrible journalist/blogger? Probably. I also suffered a camera malfunction for about 5 minutes and this is the only ‘before’ photo I could pull together. The Mango Tree has an excellent cocktail list though, so you can’t go wrong with any pick.
While the cocktails and drinks offering is undoubtedly excellent, let’s see if the Christmas menu was about to match, shall we?
Appetisers come out all together on a platter:
Por Pia Gai Nguang, smoked turkey breast wrapped with mixed vegetables in a spring roll sheet. These were my favourites of the starters. I could even eat them again right now, incredible!
See Krong Gae Yang Nam Peung, slow-cooked lamb marinated in thai spicy honey sauce
Goong tod samunprai, deep-fried sweet prawn tossed with garlic, chilli and spring onions
Hoy shell ob noey-kratiem, grilled king scallop served with a butter and garlic sauce. This dish was a very close second, absolutely melt in your mouth good.
It’s definitely a new way to celebrate your Christmas meal, and we loved it.
For Mains? Well, everything came out at once. The dishes are made to share, even though I guarantee that you’ll fight over a few…
Christmas Mains at The Mango Tree
Panang Neur, smoked beef brisket topped with rich panang curry sauce, pea aubergine, and sweet basil. This was such an interesting dish. The flavours were incredible. The chef came out after our meal and we chatted to him about the dishes in a little more detail and
Gai nguang pad nor-mai farang, turkey breast stir-friend with asparagus, sprouts and parsnip in garlic sauce. I’m going to admit something right now, this might be the best turkey I’ve ever had. I’ve never had stir-fried turkey before and it was in every way imaginable, the most delicious thing. Order this all day long, it’s spectacular.
Pla salmon hor bai tong, baked salmon steak marinated with fresh kachai, garlic, coriander and thai herbs wrapped in banana leaf. This was Joe’s least favourite of the bunch, but I quite liked the taste. It was very fresh.
Pad ka pow ped, duck breast stir-fried in chilli basil sauce. Joe ate most of this one. The flavours were lovely.
Pad thai jay, thai rice noodles stir-fried with Chinese chives, crushed peanuts, bean curd and beansprouts in a homemade sauce. Lastly, another dish I could have eaten all night. I never order Pad Thai, so I’d forgotten how much I enjoy it.
The food was excellent and I was surprised at how well we managed to pace ourselves. It’s not our strength to be honest. After our dinner, their head chef came over to chat with us about the meal and their Christmas menu concept. I was impressed, he was incredibly personable, explaining the decisions on their dishes and giving us a little more insight into how they put together the meal. Again, I raved about the turkey to such a degree to him. So. Good.
Next up? Dessert. While the kitchen said they’d make us anything else that we’d like, we wanted to stick to the set menu. I’m so glad that we did. The dessert was like the best sort of ‘Oreo mud’ pudding that you’ve ever tasted. With a Mango pudding twist and chocolate crumbs that undoubtedly are not Oreos, but you get the idea. We both finished our desserts.
Of course, at The Mango Tree they treat you like family, so they brought out two glasses of sweet wine and a last cocktail to try for the evening.
The Christmas menu at The Mango Tree is decadent and delicious, the perfect way to kickstart (and continue to celebrate) the holiday season. If you can’t tell, I can’t recommend it enough. PS. After sending some photos to my mom from our dinner, she has already suggested that we plan a visit there when she comes back over to London.
Happy holidays and thanks again to The Mango Tree for another fantastic evening!
Kelly xoxo
Mango Tree
46 Grosvenor Place, London SW1X 7EQ
0207 823 1888
I was a guest at The Mango Tree, but as always my undying love for them/opinions continue to be my own.