Fancy a desi wok in China Town?

There was a time in Mumbai when ldquocheapandbestrdquo Chinese was available at every kiosk and handcart around street corners and gullies with fancy names like Golden Dragon or China Town Slowly but steadily restaurants like Jimmyrsquos Kitchen and Five Spice sprung up catering to the middleclass foodie for Indianised Chinese fare with large portions and generous seasoning stirred in rich sauces Facing east Food good Service attentive Ambiance classyu00a0 The interiors of Facing East These restaurants provide an alternative to the oldschool expensive Chinese restaurants like Lingrsquos Pavilion and China Garden While the food may not be particularly authentic it is tasty and plentiful within a budgetu00a0Somewhere in between these diverse options is Facing East The Juhu eatery now occupying the area that was previously Crepe Station instantly enamours you with its wellplanned interiors Pasty walls display tasteful snapshots of Chinese landscapes and people in folkloric finery Flamboyant plates adorn the walls Facing East has two dining areas an al fresco seating complete with tapering lamps and the second is the airconditioned interior section Given the soft oriental music in the background paintings of kimonos red and black steel chairs and dimly lit funnel lamps hung low from the ceiling mdash the ambiance works like a charm The Virgin Lycheetini was a groovy cocktail PicsSayed Sameer Abedi As soon as the menu arrives you expect items as diverse as the ambiance but might be disappointed here It looks like a fivestar Chinese restaurant but retains a Five Spice kind of soul Note itrsquos not necessarily a bad thingu00a0We begin with the Virgin Lycheetini Rsu00a0195 that is a groovy lychee mocktail with a dash of fizz and sugar Itrsquos the kind of drink that sends a sparkling soda and fruit concoction down your taste buds u00a0 Chilly Basil Chicken worked wonders with its aroma and flavouring The Chilly Basil Chicken Rsu00a0265 was the best gravy dish on our plate mdash a traditional Thai dish was packed with aromatic flavours If you need a quick meal for yourself this stirfried chicken is just the ticket The dish is meshed together in correct proportions of oils mustard soy sauce vinegar and chilli flakes and well seasoned with a dash of salt and bell pepper It leaves a great aftertaste thanks to the garlic sauce and is just as good the next day too after a run in the microwave The fresh basil of course was key and didnrsquot overpower the dish which was great We wish we had been recommended Jasmine Steam Rice with it which we realised as an afterthought would have complemented the salty gravy well The Rawas Soy Chili Wine Rsu00a0375 was a server recommendation but was a downer This is an easy Asianinspired meal that sounds like a surefire hit for seafood lovers But the dish while being healthy and steamed and of the meltinthemouth variety left us with no taste apart from the skin on top The first few bites register the extremely mild soy wine ginger and chilies but inside it was a plain steamed fish with no unique flavour or taste Bland The Spicy Lamb Basil Rice Rs 255 like the name suggests is a toss up of the good ole chicken fried rice with lamb and basil thrown in It worked The Chicken Burnt Chilli Sauce Rsu00a0285 was interesting The dark blackened chilies set the base for this fabulous sauce in this scrumptious fusionstyle chicken recipe that is an interesting take on wok fried chicken in burnt chilli sauce Again this reads desi but does the trick to bring out the flavours Quantities are plentiful which means extra brownie pointsu00a0 At JVPD Scheme next to Naturalrsquos Ice Cream 13th Road near Juhu Gymkhana Juhu Call 26251188 Facing East didnrsquot know we were there The Guide reviews anonymously and pays for mealsu00a0Follow the writer tansworldu00a0