Tyepyedong, Exeter

If I had to choose one cuisine, Asian would always come top of my favourite foods.  I’ve always had a passion for spicy foods and have been lucky enough to visit Hong Kong, Thailand and Singapore where my love for South Eastern cuisine flourished. Tasting some amazing authentic Asian dishes on my travels has encouraged me to cook and experiment with Chinese and Thai food myself and I’ll always have a sneaky supply of chilli, garlic and ginger in the kitchen. Therefore I’m always up for going out for a curry with my Dad or ordering a Chinese takeaway with my friends, however I’m often left feeling a little disappointed when I try Asian food in the UK. This week I visited Tyepyedong in Sidwell Street, now I wouldn’t of thought to visit this little noodle bar as from the outside I always presumed it would be another disappointing Chinese restaurant which would leave me wondering why I wasted my time and money, but my friend Lauren had such high reviews of the place that I thought I’d give it a try.

As I said, this Oriental fusion restaurant doesn’t look much from the outside, in a street littered with bookies and bathroom warehouses you wouldn’t expect a lot, but once inside you’re transported into a sleek and stylish eatery. The décor is simple, with an open kitchen where you can watch your food being freshly prepared and long Asian style wooden benches stretching across the restaurant floor. The lay out reminds me of Wagamama’s, however this place has a much more personal touch, with no corporate menu’s and over trained waiting staff.  What’s more when the restaurant is quiet you have your own personal space on the table to enjoy your meal and company, unlike other chain Asian restaurants (*cough* Wagamama’s *cough*) where you sit shoulder to should with strangers which just screams school lunch halls to me.

Entering the restaurant on a Wednesday evening, there was a welcoming atmosphere and a relaxing buzz from the fellow diners. We were shown to our table by a lovely waiter, who was attentive and friendly throughout our evening. Browsing through the extensive menu there was a wide range of Chinese and Japanese dishes to choose from. At first I was drawn to the Japanese Java curries which looked really tempting with fresh vegetables and lots of meat options, however after much deliberation I chose the Malay stir fry served with Mei Fun noodles (£9).

The service was extremely quick and my meal was in front of me within ten minutes of ordering. I was glad to see a hearty portion of thin Chinese noodles scattered with big, juicy king prawns, accompanied by large shreds of chicken and beef and plenty of vegetables. The prawns and chicken were particularly tasty, perfectly cooked and not too chewy as you often find in takeaways, and the Kamaboko-aka (Asian fishcakes) were a delicious and unique compliment to the stir fry. Although I really enjoyed the meal, the dish as a whole was slightly lacking in flavour as I couldn’t really taste the satay sauce it came in, however there was plenty of soy sauce on the table and with a couple of splashes added in, it was delicious!

I would recommend Tyepyedong as a great place for a quick lunch or evening noodle stop, I’ll definitely be ordering my next takeaway from here!  Although, I wouldn’t recommend this restaurant for a special evening out, and the only reason being that the service was so quick, we were in and out within 40 minutes, and it just seemed a little rushed. However the food is still authentically tasty and isn’t too badly priced either, so it’s certainly worth a try!