Tai Pan

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

I have been to Taipan numerous times since I read that first review and it is consistenlty excellent. There is so little sushi available in Birmingham but they serve up consistently fresh and delicious delicacies. And if you don't like sushi, try the hot pot where you get to cook your own food (fish meat vegetables), fondu style in a spciy broth - delicious and fantastic value. I highly recommend this place and the staff are lovely
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Susan Dunn
Friday, October 13, 2006

My husband and I were visiting Birmingham for the day, and stumbled across this restaurant. As we have visited Japan, we wanted an authentic experience, and this place provided the best Japanese items that we have so far discovered in the UK. We had bento boxes, and for £8 and £8.50 respectively, served miso soup,steamed vegetables, meat and rice, accompanied by the Japanese pickles which are essential. We only wish we had the equivalent in our nearest city - Liverpool.
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Patricia
Tuesday, January 31, 2006

I've been to this restaurant/ cafe on several occasions in the past couple of months, taking different friends who have all said that it was pretty amazing and made them want to come back for some more.

Food:

We had bento boxes - ranging from £8.50 to £11 each which offers the best value for money and was delicious. This consists of rice, cooked vegetables, a cooked main e.g. eel or prawn etc, sashimi (raw slices of fish) and also included miso soup. We love the eel bento box as it is the only Japanese restaurant we've been to in Birmingham that has the authentic cooked eel that we've been trying to find since our visit to Japan.

We also had the sushi set menu with fish that tasted so fresh.

Atmosphere:

The sad thing about it is that it seems relatively quiet especially on a Friday night, but I'm hoping that this will change as the food is too good to pass up.

Service:

Waiters were efficient and attentive.

In general:

Why people don't come here instead of Yo sushi further down the road is beyond me, as the food at Tai Pan is much tastier, authentic and the fish much fresher!

The future....

We're hoping to try the shabu shabu next - this is supposed to be a broth in which we cook various fish, meat and veg in ourselves, with all you can eat sushi thrown in - sounds a bargain at £12.50 a head.
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C Lee
Tuesday, January 03, 2006