Restaurant review: Top Asian eatery that won’t leave you destitute
The day before I visited ChimChim, I was still racking my brain for a new place to try out. You see, while Limassol isn’t short of dining options, I’ve become increasingly leery when a new restaurant pops up. Because until proven otherwise, I expect to leave either hungry or destitute.
So, when a friend casually suggested “that new Asian spot down in old town”, I was intrigued. Moreover, they backed both the food and the pricing. Expectations were duly raised. Pleasingly, I’m here to tell you that they were right on both accounts.
ChimChim is on one of the many side roads leading into Limassol’s historic Ayiou Andreou street, the erstwhile retail hub of the city, and not too far from the medieval castle. If you’re parked anywhere from Anexartisias street to the Old Port area, you’re close enough to walk there. It’s a relatively small place and somewhat easy to miss.
There is a dining area just as you enter the restaurant, which looks completely renovated from whatever it has replaced. There is also another dining area at the back. The staff were friendly and politely greeted us when we walked in.
At a relatively early, at least for Cyprus, dining time of 7.15pm on a weekday, we had most of the place to ourselves. It started to get considerably busier around 8:30pm, so perhaps it’s best to book a table, especially if you’re visiting on what I imagine would be a more in-demand Friday or Saturday night.
We started with two small plates, the chicken bao buns and the vegetable spring rolls. The latter was just crispy enough on the outside without being excessively greasy, as is the case with many mainstream variants. The cabbage, carrots and noodles were well-cooked, soft and retained their respective flavours. The portion contains four rolls, perfect for two people to share. It also comes with a somewhat spicy, tangy dipping sauce, if you want to heat things up a bit.
The bao buns were one of the standout items of the evening. They were delightful. Soft, tender chicken, breaded and fried for just the right amount of time, dressed with fresh cucumber slices, which added a coolness to the mix. They were dressed with spicy mayonnaise and fresh cream. These were quite substantial for a starter and, depending on your appetite, could fill you up if you ate both of them.
For mains, we ordered the red curry tofu and the Japanese BBQ chicken. The creamy red curry features well-cooked green beans, carrots and mushrooms in a prominently coconut base that offers a bit of a spicy kick, at least for the average Cypriot palette. The tofu pieces are crisp on the outside but very soft once you bite into them, providing a very good textural contrast to the rich sauce.
The chicken was made using incredibly tender chicken thigh, prepared in a flavourful Japanese BBQ style that balances sweetness with a more savoury taste. This delicious dish was complemented by a fresh side salad topped with a vibrant minty sauce. Another dish I can heartily recommend.
A quick note on the one side we ordered, steamed rice. Nothing exciting to report aside from it being well-executed. That said, it’s probably only enough for one person, so if there’s two of you, order a second bowl.
In terms of dessert, they offer fried ice cream, but we were quite full and decided on trying that next time. With drinks, including a fragrant, aromatic jasmine tea served in a lovely cast iron pot, it came to around €25 per person, but could easily fall to €15-20 depending on your choices. All in all, everything was on point and I’ll be definitely returning.
VITAL STATISTICS
SPECIALTY Asian cuisine
WHERE ChimChim, Ellados 12, Limassol
WHEN Monday to Friday 5-11pm, Saturday-Sunday 12pm-11pm
CONTACT 96 739775
HOW MUCH €6-7 for starters, €12-18 for mains