"I don't, as a rule, like High Street chains. It's very depressing to find yourself in town after town in Britain, all with identical High Streets. It goes something like this: a New Look, WHsmith, Thomas Cook, Boots, MacDonalds, Greggs, Tesco Express on one side, and on the other: Foxtons, a local estate agents, a couple of banks and another three estate agents. And then another estate agent. It's a depressing formula. The idea of course is that diners in an unfamiliar place will find welcome familiarity in the brands that they know. But when those restaurants' (I use the term loosely) are serving rubbish, it just means that people are accepting mediocre as standard. Which brings me to Wagamama. Wagamama are expanding across the country, bringing an informal dining experience to High Streets everywhere. Surely it's a bad thing? Well, this is where I shuffle uneasily and say, well, no. Bring it on.Wagamama are the proof that when the product is good, the service is good, and the pricing good, you can get away with a ubiquitous presence across the country, and be welcomed. Wagamama Norwich is a case in point. When I went in, I was greeted by a waiter who asked where I'd like to sit. He asked if I had been to a Wagamama before (so he didn't have to repeat what I already knew), he offered some recommendations and left me to choose. I was then served by a friendly waitress, who was genuinally friendly and also efficient. Drinks were served by a third waiter. No one had ownership' of my table if any of the staff saw that I needed to be served, they did it. It's brilliant. They all worked together, and there seemed to be a real camaraderie between theme.Although you can, in theory, order a starter, everything is served when it's ready, so you may find that you are tucking into your main course' first, so just tuck in when your food arrives. Servings are generous, very generous. The food is good. It tastes like real food. You can identify flavours and textures, and you come away having just had a real feel good' experience. I had the Chicken Chilli Men, served in a bowl piled high with chicken, courgettes, red onions, peppers, mangetout and spring onions. It has quite a kick if you're not used to chilli (I'm not but was a very warming, filling dish. I had a side order of gyoza, little steamed dumplings of chicken, each stuffed with Chinese chives and water chestnuts. I also shared the negima yakitori skewers of chicken and spring onion, grilled and coated in yakitori sauce. Yum!I can't recommend Wagamama enough. It's perfect as an intoduction to great value Asian cuisine, service is with a genuine smile, and the food you couldn't ask for better for the price."
Yaki Udon
