Go for the cocktails: “Date Night” at Oolong

Please note that since writing this blog post, Oolong has closed down

You know you’re heading inexorably towards middle age when you catch yourself staying in Monday through Thursday, and realize that most evenings at home with your partner involve eating dinner on the couch while watching the tele. I’m not saying there’s anything wrong with this – it’s just not a normality that I feel ready to embrace quite yet. So, last Wednesday evening, I initiated “Date Night”. The idea was that we’d meet out in the centre, go somewhere different, and have ourselves the kind of spontaneous evening that seems to be harder to come by these days. We met in de Pijp at new(ish) dim sum and cocktail bar Oolong. The Honey Badger had arrived before me and, knowing his audience, had already ordered us a round of cocktails. One was the heavenly Oolong’s Tail, which was smooth from the Bourbon, spicy from the so-called “Oolong Mix Spices Liqueur”, tangy from the lime, and punchy with that old-fashioned hit at the end from the bitters. We tried other, fruitier drinks (the lychee-rich Li Na, for instance, and the berry-fresh Light of Wisdom) but none were nearly as appealing as the Oolong’s Tail. Save yourself a 10-minute decision-making process (it’s a long cocktail menu) and order it!

When we sat down for dinner, the dim sum menu was equally long, so we both opted for the €18 fixed dim sum selection so we could try a bit of everything the chef recommended without having to choose. The first offering was nothing too special: assorted deep-fried cigar-shaped rolls that looked like kaastengels and vlammetjes, containing various mixtures of prawns, cabbage and shiitake mushrooms. So far, so borrelhapjes.

Next came the steamed dim sum, which definitely got my preference. Ha gau and siu mai to kick off, followed by scallop dumplings, chicken dumplings and various others I lost track of. It’s worth noting at this point that when we first ordered the dim sum menu, the waiter told us that for some people it was enough food while for others not, and that if we wanted to supplement the menu we could order extra duck pancakes and garlic scallops, for example. Being the Amsterdam Foodie, I suspected that the menu was not going to be sufficient but I remember saying something along the lines of: “We’ll probably order extra but let’s see how we get on first”.

So it was with some confusion, then, that a plate of duck pancakes arrived, followed by two garlic scallops… Both delicious, but were they part of the menu or were we paying extra? We waited for the bill to find out, and discovered that we’d been charged an additional €17 for two dishes we’d never agreed to order. We probably would’ve got the duck pancakes anyway, but knowing we had dessert to come, we were full at that point and would not have ordered the garlic scallops too.

Dinner – with all the extras plus two cocktails and a glass of wine apiece – came to around €110, which wasn’t outrageous given what we had, but probably shouldn’t become a Wednesday-night habit. Next time, however, I’d like to be asked before being “upsold”. All this being said, there will be a next time – if only for that Oolong’s Tail…