Sunday 05 / May / 2024
This week we headed to Mamasan restaurant in Ghubra, and what we discovered was some of the best Chinese food, and the most charming East Asian dining, in Muscat. From the steamed and fried dumplings to the jasmine tea and chopsticks, this hidden gem had a lot to offer. We loved it all, but each editor walked away with fierce favourites.
Gautam’s Stir-fried Beef with Oyster Sauce and Black Pepper
Tender strips of succulent beef cooked to perfection and tossed with a happy melange of oyster sauce and ground black peppercorns are blissfully delicious. The dish reminds me of Goldilocks from the “Three Bears” story, in that it is not too hot, not too bland, but juuuuuust right. The red and yellow bell peppers tossed in alongside the savoury beef don’t just add to the aesthetics of the plating, but also provide some much-needed crunch and zing to the dish, as do the slivers of carrots and sharp spring onions. The versatile so-called “fusion dish” went great with both rice and noodles, though I would have happily eaten it with a salad or on its own.
OMR3.900
Salim’s Sweet and Sour Chicken (or Prawns)
A classic Chinese take-away favourite, it wasn’t a surprise to see sweet and sour on the menu. But the execution of the dish was head-turning. The awesome East Asian tang was perfected in the luscious sauce spiked with sugar, rice vinegar, and who-knowns-what else, which coated the crispy pieces of fried chicken (they also make the dish with their tender, perfectly cooked prawns). I loved it.
OMR 4.900/7.500
Swati’s Steamed Hamour with Ginger and Spring Onion
If you are looking for something simple yet flavourful and wholesome, too, then steamed hamour with spring onions and ginger is a dream dish. As the platter arrives on your table you will see hamour filets neatly arranged in a sea of thin soy sauce, topped with plenty of chopped spring onions. The fillets are fresh and full of flavour in a dish that is light, but also very satisfying. True fish lovers said that steamed fish is the best way to eat fish, and when topped with soy sauce, cilantro, fresh ginger, and slivers of spring onion as it was here, I fully agree. For someone whose palate is attuned to having fish fried and then dunk in rich gravy, this milder and lighter version of fish will be a revelatory and welcome change.
OMR 4.900
Shruthi’s Crispy Shredded Shitake Mushrooms
Being a hardcore carnivore, rarely do I ever even consider tasting vegetarian dishes. But this beautiful plate of dry black curls intrigued me. I was first bewitched by the unusual look of the dish, but I was totally smitten with the first bite. I spooned the crispy, black mushrooms into my mouth and was converted (for at least 15-minutes) into a devout vegetarian. Crispy on the outside, juicy on the inside, with an almost meat-like flavour, the shitake mushroom’s rice batter gave it an unbelievably satisfying texture. But what was that taste? I got a hint of soy sauce as I kept chewing, but the savoury dish was also somehow sweet. Upon closer inspection, I discovered fine sugar granules embedded in the crisp batter, but I never did figure out what exactly it was about this vegetarian dish that made it so magically irresistible.
OMR 4.900
Felicia’s Dumplings
I am crazy about Chinese dumplings. I love the chewy texture and the juicy fillings and all the interesting flavours and combinations that I would find in Chinatown in New York. Here in Oman, there are usually vegetable or chicken gyozas, but it can be hard to find much more than that at most of the Asian restaurants around town. I was thrilled when the baskets of steamed dumplings began parading out of the kitchen towards our table at Mamasan, even more so when the lids were removed. A wonderful array of round, expertly seasoned lobster buns; colourful little open packets that turned out to be a brilliant prawn-and-veggie-twist on shao mai; crescent-shaped, steamed chicken, vegetable, and prawn dumpling; as well as an order of crisp-fried seafood dumplings. I devoured the offerings, slathering the savoury snacks with chilli paste. Honestly, I would have been happy to have continued like that all afternoon, receiving steamer basket after steamer basket full of my favourite Chinese snack.
Cantonese Steamed Lobster Buns OMR6.600
Cantonese Shrimp Dumplings OMR 4.500
Shrimp Shao Mai OMR 4.500
Steamed Chicken Dumplings OMR3.500
Pan-fried Seafood Dumplings 4.00
Everyone: Jasmine Tea
We don’t often enjoy tea with our meals here in the Middle East. Perhaps some kahwa beforehand, or a nice, sweet mint tea after, but during dinner? It just isn’t done. So sipping on delicate little cups (about twice the size of a fenjan) filled with floral pours of jasmine tea as we ate our meal was a subtle, but extremely pleasant surprise. It was touches of authenticity like this (and our chopstick mishaps) that made Mamasan one of our most memorable editorial lunches to date.
MAMASAN RESTAURANT
Sahwa Tower, Ghubra
+968 9889 5766, +968 2421 0451
fourseasonsoman.com
