Tai Pan

I am a regular at this place and cannot believe the value for money this place offers. Their evening buffet is £12 per head and includes some delicious dishes that you might individually pay the price of the buffet for. The service is lukewarm but not unkind and the atmosphere is pleasant in keeping with the nice decor of authentic Chinese dolls/statues and hanging red lamps. The music is an amusing mix of instrumentals ranging from karaoke backing tracks of George Michael's Careless Whisper to Chariots Of Fire. Their lunchtime menu is excellent also, £6 per head for a nice selection of starters and main courses. I thoroughly recommend this place for anyone looking for delicious Chinese cuisine at a fraction of the price. My favourites are the satay beef skewers and Beef with ginger and spring onion. Mmmmm....
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Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 7 | Atmosphere 8 | Value for money 10
Tuesday, December 30, 2008

Oh my what happened to this place. Last time I went it served sushi and even though some of the management friendliness was much to be desired at least the food was good.

I was looking forward to a nice meal on Saturday night (19-Apr-2008). Not clocking that the sushi conveyor had gone when I walked through the door. I did noticed that the sign now said chinese food instead of japanese - oh dear this is not a good start.

Anyway looking at the menu, we decided we wanted some sushi? We were responded with we don't serve sushi. Why have it on the menu? How poor is that?

So we decided to go for something else instead. First of all the serving cooker didn't work kept going off. The fresh food was erm, frozen. The staff seemed to be indifferent to this? Surely thats night right? Ok maybe you can get away with that in a kitchen but not out on the tables thats ridicolous.

The vegatables especially the sweetcorn was moldy. My companions choices were equally inadequate. Items which should have been cooked was still frozen. I was so gutted, because I had been to this place several times before and always enjoyed the food. Please if you are thinking of going to this place do not bother - you will only be disappointed.
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Adam Hicks
Monday, April 21, 2008

My friend and I regularly eat at Tai Pan, the food is excellent, the music tends to be an amusing mix CD of pan pipe classics, and the toilets are as clean as a whistle!

I recommend the king prawn bento box, or the hot pot! Very nice.
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Monday, December 17, 2007

I visited in early December 2007 on a Saturday afternoon. I'm afraid this is most definitely not a Japanese restaurant and I'm dismayed that reviewers elsewhere have suggested it is. In fact, it is the far more common Chinese-pretending-to-be-Japanese variety. As a consequence the fish is not the best and the sushi rice was what you might get in Marks & Spencer - not disastrous, but why bother? However, the game is up even before you see a plate of food. One of the pleasures of going to a Japanese restaurant is the friendly service. That certainly wasn't the case here. Not exactly rude, but at best off-hand. Is this really the best Japanese restaurant in Birmingham? If so, it's a great shame as the authentic Japanese dining experience (whether grilled chicken, noodles, steak, raw fish, or whatever) is unforgettable. If you do get the chance to experience the real thing, you'll never look at food the same way again. Unfortunately, anyone who goes to 'Tai Pan' in the belief it is authentic Japanese will just think 'so what?'
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Matt
Thursday, December 13, 2007

Thank God for this place!! As a native San Franciscan living in the UK, I have been dying to find a proper sushi place. Now, finally, I have. Not only is all the food (from the teppanyaki to the sashimi) delicious and authentically prepared, but the service and atmosphere are great. My husband and I were expecting to pay through the nose for good sushi, but we were pleasantly surprised that it cost little more than one's average balti (and is much better for you). This was a wonderful piece of home for a home-sick Californian.
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Katie Vasanth
Wednesday, April 18, 2007