Review: Far-Eastern favourites shine for Tampopo’s new menu

The folks at Tampopo have launched a brand-new menu, a whopping 70% of which features fresh and evolved dishes.

Now a stalwart in Manchester, the team boasts three locations across the city, plus a takeaway kiosk. The latest menu refresh follows 12 months of research and development, including a fruitful, jealously-inducing trip to Hong Kong.

During our meal, an affair which lasted over several delightful hours, we sampled a seemingly endless conveyor of beautifully finished small plates, big-hitting large dishes and innovative breakfast offerings, all of which fell somewhere beneath the ‘pan-Asian fusion’ umbrella.

First, we sampled the star players from Tampopo’s fresh new take on brunch. The Thai-style Omelette, featuring a spicy pork belly marinade, chilli and soy sauce sat atop a mound of fluffy rice became an instant table favourite, while the bubble waffle with honey, chicken, bacon and fried egg ticked both the bang-for-your-buck and hangover cure boxes quite brilliantly.

If you’re after something on the healthier side, Tampopo’s Bali Brunch Bowl is the way to go — light and bright it combines smashed avo, poached egg, mango pomegranate and sweet potato, making it a perfect pick-me-up.

Onto the big-hitting large plates. The Thai Fried Whole Sea Bream, which is lightly fried and combined with fresh mango, Thai basil, spring onion, shallots, red chilli and oyster sauce, is a big standout. Likewise, the Yamato Fillet Steak — seared medium rare before being slowly simmered with fresh garlic, black pepper, butter and sake — is another excellent crowd-pleaser.

For grazing, new small plates like the Szechuan Pork Belly and the vegan-friendly Korean Kimchi and Cucumber Salad hit the mark alongside old favourites like Tampopo’s Pork Gyozas and Chicken Satay Skewers.

Speaking about the inspirations for the new menu, David Fox, Tampopo Co-Founder said: “The new Tampopo menu has been over 12 months in the making. It allows guests to interact with the menu in a way that is new and unique for us.

“Our small and large plate options make it easier to graze, share, taste more, stay longer. This is how many people like to eat in the East – food is at the heart of every interaction. We’ve taken inspiration from restaurants in some of the most exciting global cities in the world like Hong Kong and Bangkok.

“There’s an expression in Thailand ‘same same but different’ which is what this menu is – we’ve kept all the things everyone loves, it’s the same Tampopo but you can also experience us in a completely different way with this menu.

Tampopo’s new menu is available now. You can book your table using the button below.