Review: P.F. Chang's at Dubai Mall, Not As Good As Advertised

Mongolian Beef

It's Thursday night, we finally tried P.F. Chang's in Dubai Mall after so much buzz about it.  It was full house - that suggested higher expectations. Unfortunately, it didn't meet the expectations.  Or maybe, we just haven't tried their best and the other specialties.

Shrimp Dumplings

We had Shrimp Dumplings and Salt & Pepper Calamari for starters. Mongolian Beef and P.F. Chang's Fried Rice (shrimp) for main.

The fried dumplings were bigger than the traditional bite size parcels. It wasn't deep-fried, just the bottom. Since we preferred 'fried,' we're expecting something crunchy, but no. Wasn't too bad though, not too good either.  Just the herbs were more flavorful than the prawns. The Salt & Pepper Calamari was good. The strips were tender and flavored right. Love it.

Salt & Pepper Calamari

The signature P.F. Chang's Fried Rice was a big disappointment. It was sticky and full of big grated carrots.  It lacks spice - doesn't have that 'garlicky' flavor of a fried rice.  The "guest favorite" Mongolian Beef was bland. Meat wasn't as crisp as a "Mongolian" beef/barbecue normally is.  It has no wow factor.

P.F. Chang's Fried Rice

There's more hype than satisfaction - talk about setting high expectations. Wifey did not enjoy at all. She was suggesting to actually go to Ping Pong but I insisted to go beyond dim sums this time.

We're always fans of Asian cuisine and we've been to a lot of Asian restaurants in Dubai that satisfies our cravings.  Noodle Bowl in Al Diyafa Road, Noodle House in Burjuman, even Mini Chinese have better recipes. Overall, it was like dining in a fast-food. When you're in a fine dining, you'd want more than this. It's sooo pricey too. Service was good yes. I wouldn't close my door though, I'm still curious about their seafood mains.