Wagamama Opens at MarketStreet in Lynnfield

Although I love to support small local businesses, I am okay with chain restaurants every once in a while, especially ones that do what they do well.  Wagamama is one of those places.  I was recently invited to visit Wagamama Lynnfield before they opened to the public and along with several other bloggers and writers was invited to taste the menu.

First, a little background about Wagamama and then I’ll get on to the good stuff:  the food!  Wagamama is a UK based chain of Asian food restaurants.  They cook fresh food that is full of flavour and served quickly.  Their aim is to capture the feel of authentic ramen bars.  What I love about Wagamama as well is that they have a great, atypical children’s menu.

As guests of Wagamama we were able to sample many appetizers , entrees and desserts all in one sitting.  It’s a tough job but someone’s got to do it.  Here is a quick peek at what we ate.  Throughout the meal I found that every plate was full of well-balanced flavour.  Nothing was too subtle nor too overwhelming including flavours that I often shy away from like coconut.  If you’re hungry now you might want to scroll right down to the bottom and enter to win a $25 gift certificate to Wagamama.  If you are ready to feast your eyes on the menu… then keep on reading.

The skins on these gyoza are perfectly thin.  They were perfectly cooked: crispy and not greasy at all.  Gyoza are always a crowd pleaser.  Who doesn’t love dumplings?! I think no one loves dumplings more than my daughter and I and maybe Grace Lin (author of Dumpling Days.)

The Ebi Katsu was one of my daughter’s favourites. The crunch of the panko gives way to the delicate bite of shrimp underneath. For me it is all about the sweet chili and garlic sauce.

Whether you are stopping in for a snack or a full meal at lunch or dinner, you could enjoy a smorgasbord of appetizers as your meal, but then again there are all the delicious main dishes too.

I would never order dessert at Wagamama.  For one, I rarely order dessert because by the time I’ve had my meal I don’t usually have room for dessert.  I also don’t typically think of dessert when I go out for Asian food, but Wagamama is not your typical Asian restaurant and desserts are definitely on my radar now.

The Wagamama chocolate cake is a light, fluffy cake paired with a rich, thick fudge frosting.  It is so well balanced.  I have never had a chocolate cake that I love but this one is one that I will go back for.  The coconut reika is a coconut ice cream served with a tangy mango sauce.  Coconut is another flavour that I don’t usually like, but I could have eaten the entire serving if I had had room.  One thing I do love is cheesecake.  The vanilla cheesecake was served with a blueberry ginger sauce that was neither too sweet nor too thick.  I was truly impressed.

Now for a little sharing of the love.  I wish I could give away enough for everyone, but one is better than none.  To celebrate the newly open Lynnfield Wagamama I am giving away a $25 gift card to Wagamama  If you win, you can go to any of the four US Wagamama locations in the area.  The giveaway ends on Wednesday, November 20th at noon.

 
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And now for dessert.