Siam Thai and Teppanyaki Restaurant

City Road, Chester

01244 403222

www.siam-teppanyaki.co.uk

The Siam Thai and Teppanyaki Restaurant in Chester is more than a dining out experience - you get your entertainment thrown in too.

The teppanyaki experience is like 'an audience with the chefs' as they entertain diners with their culinary skills, tricks and 'flaming' surprises - all as they cook your delicious food in front of you.

At the Siam you can of course choose between the Japanese Teppan-yaki restaurant on the ground floor or the Thai restaurant and bar upstairs.

We were keen to take in the 'theatre' of teppanyaki and took our spot beside the teppan grill.

The menu is quite extensive, so between the two of us, we went for quite a mixture.

I chose a starter of steamed gyoza - steamed pork dumplings served in a vinegar and soy sauce dressing (£7.25) while my friend opted for the chilli squid (£7.25).

The Leader: Steamed gyozaSteamed gyoza

We were both impressed with the size of the portions and as for the chilli squid, the coating had just the right kick of chilli which went well with the garlic dip. My friend said it was simply gorgeous and she could quite easily have eaten a bucketful!

The steamed gyoza meanwhile, a firm favourite, was delicious, moist and tasty - perfect!

We couldn't help but look at the starters of the diners next to us at the station too - as the sushi looked wonderful.

The Leader: Chilli squidChilli squid

Next came the entertainment from our lively chefs as they set about engaging their audience, flipping cooked potato slices into diners' mouths, some catching them successfully, while some of us, not so successfully, but all good fun.

It was lovely to see the younger diners at our station totally enthralled by the skills on show as they watched the chefs in awe.

Next up for the main course - I opted for the duck breast steak with barbecue sauce (£17.95). There's always that concern for me that duck will be too fatty - but far from it, this was delicious and cooked exactly how I liked it with a generous coating of the sweet and tangy barbecue sauce.

The Leader: Duck breast with barbecue sauceDuck breast with barbecue sauce

The chicken with Teriyaki sauce (£15.50) was also a hit for my friend who said it was all about the sauce - sweet and sticky with a little kick.

We both agreed the medley of rice, potatoes and vegetables was a great accompaniment.

After each course we both had simply the same thing to say - 'that was so good' - and feeling pleasantly full and entertainment over we left having thoroughly enjoyed a well rounded evening.

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