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On rue du Saint-Esprit, a brand-new restaurant recently opened: Chinchin. Here, the focus is on traditional Chinese cuisine in a modern setting, with a range of cocktails on offer too.
Modern decor
When you push open the door of Chinchin, located on the former site of the Annexe restaurant (next to the Saint-Esprit car park), you are far from the decor usually reserved for traditional Chinese restaurants. The interior, in shades of green and wood, is resolutely modern, with welcoming velvet banquettes and dark wood tables along the long window. “I wanted to combine modernity with Chinese cuisine to stand out from the crowd,” explains Nico Zhan, born in Luxembourg and whose mother is of Chinese origin.
Chinchin means ‘kiss-kiss’ in Chinese, but it also refers to the ‘tchin-tchin’ you say when toasting. “I wrote it phonetically to make the name easier to say,” he confides.
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Traditional home cooking
After a month’s opening, the menu is still to be finalized as new dishes will make their appearance. In the kitchen, Chinese chefs are busy preparing the dishes. “Everything is homemade”, says Nico Zhan. “The idea is to merge traditional Chinese cuisine with original creations, such as one of our dumplings that we have combined with truffles,” explains Nico Zhan.
You’ll be able to try different kinds of dumplings, as well as comforting Udon noodle dishes or more traditional dishes (chicken caramel or basil). We tried the ‘Papa Miàn’ pasta, a traditional Chinese dish that is both delicious and hearty, with beef marinated for almost 5 hours to melt in the mouth, accompanied by vegetables and pasta in a broth. Special note for the pasta, hand-stretched by the cooks and therefore comes in different sizes in the bowl, giving a much-appreciated homemade result.
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Dishes to share and cocktails
To break away from the classic image of the Chinese restaurant, a cocktail menu has been devised to encourage customers to come and have a drink while munching on dishes. “In China, it’s customary to share dishes. We put everything on the table and everyone helps themselves, which is what I’d like people to do here,” explains Nico Zhan.
With around twenty small starters (bao, egg rolls, dumplings, prawn tempura or pickled cucumber), sharing is more than recommended, and will give you the chance to sample a wide range of traditional Chinese dishes.
Chinchin
7 rue du Saint-Esprit
L-1475 Ville-Haute Luxembourg
Photos: Chinchin