Located on an often overlooked stretch of the South Bank between Lambeth and Vauxhall Bridges, Chino Latino has been offering its fusion of Pan-Asian and Peruvian food for over 10 years. Summer 2023 sees it launching a new menu, offering Dim Sum, Sushi, Taquitos and skewers as well as its signature favourites.
Occupying the first floor of the Park Plaza Riverside, the large, glass-fronted dining room has a spacious bar area and fresh sushi bar, all offering fine views over the river to the Palace of Westminster, Millbank and even the BT Tower. Our evening began enjoying the vista with a Pink Dragon, one of Chino Latino’s signature cocktails, mixing tequila with peach puree, lychee liquor and dragon fruit to provide an ideal aperitif.
Once seated in the window of the dining room, we selected the Rengin’ Chino tasting menu which offered a wide range of the restaurant’s dishes. To begin, the duck salad, freshened with watermelon and a touch of mustard and given some additional crunch with pomegranate seeds, cleansed the palate nicely for the courses to follow. First port of call was Japan. The prawn and crab tiger maki rolls, dressed with beetroot yoghurt, were full flavoured, dense and crunchy but the star of this particular show was the delicious blowtorched salmon nigiri.
The main courses showcased the kitchen’s ability to offer more traditional entrees, albeit with a pan-Asian twist. The stand-out dish of the whole evening for me was the black cod. Sweetened with a honey glaze, this was perfectly cooked, the flesh deliciously moist and almost falling apart on the fork and with a spicy miso sauce. For the meat course was a Casterbridge sirloin steak, augmented by garlic and soy and accompanied by a lovely sticky rice.
To wrap things up, the desert platter offered a selection of puddings to suit all palates of which the sweet miso cheesecake was my highlight, with a sea buckthorn and pear compote and a caramel Chantilly although I also enjoyed the originality of the pistachio rock in the Zen Garden.
We drank a fresh and vibrant Verdejo from Embrujo del Campo, which worked perfectly with the range of flavours in the early courses, before switching to a more powerful Tempranillo from the same producer to enjoy with the steak. A live band played throughout the evening to provide entertainment to complement the food, with some brave souls even indulging in some dancing.
The new menu offers a range of dishes that will entice anyone who wants to enjoy a broad range of Asian-influenced food. The tasting menu we sampled showed the range of Chino Latino’s offering (and a cheaper Taste of Chino menu can also be had Monday to Friday for £48 for two people). However, you could make the trip just to try the Sushi or Dim Sum, or just enjoy a sunset cocktail watching the river go by.
Related: Gaucho is handing out free Breakfast Empanadas to anyone willing to dine in their PJs
