The Man Bird and I were kindly invited along to the VIP launch night at the Nottingham venue of Panda Mami recently, and we had a fantastic time.
Like its predecessor, Panda Mami is a buffet-style restaurant that offers a wide variety of cuisines from around the globe. I’ve said before that this type of eating is great in its flexibility and versatility; you can literally go with several generations of your family and there will be something to suit everyone on the menu.
As we walked along the pavement, we could see two huge ‘Pandas’. Clearly, they were people in costumes, but on a chilly night, it was probably quite nice and toasty underneath the furry suit! We headed up the stairs and were shown to our table, just in time to see the Lion Dancers and drummers arrive – I love this tradition, the energy is incredible. With the dance ceremony completed, and the welcome speeches done by Panda Mami’s owners, we were invited to go and sample the food on the array of stations. No need to ask us twice!!
First port of call had to be the Teppanyaki station. I requested Steak and Prawns, His Nibs had Steak and Squid, and both were cooked to juicy perfection! To go with my morsels, I had the Yakisoba sauce and The Man had Chilli sauce. Whilst we’d been at the Teppanyaki bar I’d spied some Tempura nibbles, Sweet Potato and Mixed Vegetables, so I popped some on my plate and munched away whilst Chef cooked my meal.
We went our separate ways then, around the restaurant, but both came back with fully loaded plates! One of my (bad?) habits is to pick at bits on my plate as I’m wandering round the stations, so I’d actually had a BBQ Rib, a Poppadom, one of my beloved Bao Buns and some Sushi by the time I sat back down at the table – ooops. #sorrynotsorry
His Nibs had some Beef in Oyster sauce, Sweet and Sour Chicken (a classic crowd-pleaser) and some super-crispy Spring Rolls on his plate. All the dishes were full of flavour and the vegetables within them were still nicely crunchy; you need a bit of texture in your meal after all. We’d both popped some Thai Pork Balls on our plates in that weird ‘psychic couply’ thing that often happens; though perhaps it was more to do with how scrummy the dish had looked!
Some Paella had found its way into my tummy, and I have to say that there were loads of seafood and meat with the sunny coloured rice – Panda Mami’s Chefs clearly like feeding their guests! Both of us said that the food was certainly still as delicious as it had been with the previous company and, being perfectly honest, there isn’t a vast difference between the two offerings – great news for us diners.
There was a raffle too,; we’d filled in cards with our details on when we’d first sat down, and they acted as raffle tickets. As is usual, we didn’t win, but Panda Mami didn’t let any of their invited guests go home empty handed: we received discount vouchers (we’ll definitely be making use of those bad boys, thankyou) and the sweetest, softest cuddly Panda stuffed toy you could wish for.
You can book a table by ringing 0115 950 7755 or online at www.pandamami-restaurant.com/nottingham/. The website also shows the opening times and pricing, and has details of the 10% discount terms for students, NHS workers and the Emergency and Armed Forces. Children under 140cms height also eat for half price.
