China Hunan
Address: 121-123 Ranelagh (Unit 2), Dublin 6, D06H7K6
Telephone: 01 4060 869
Cuisine: Chinese
Website: https://www.hunan.ie/Opens in new window
Cost: €€€
China Hunan is four weeks old when I walk in. The lunar calendar has just reset. It is the year of the horse, more precisely the fire horse, known in the traditional stem-branch cycle as bingwu, a pairing that comes around once every 60 years. The horse in Chinese culture stands for speed, stamina and enterprise, summed up in the idiom that success arrives with the horse. This year adds fire, one of the five phases in classical cosmology, associated with heat, brightness and momentum.
This makes the timing notable. A brief delay meant that China Hunan in effect began trading at the very start of this fire horse year. In a culture where timing carries weight, that feels less like inconvenience and more like alignment.
There is pedigree here. It’s the team behind China Song in Monkstown, Co Dublin, formerly China Tang, as well as Hakkahan in Stoneybatter, Dublin 7, and Little Dumpling and Nan Chinese Restaurant on Stephen Street, Dublin 2. The menu mirrors the structure and format of China Song, carrying the same Hunan, Sichuan and Cantonese repertoire, plenty of offal, and the signature Peking duck I had enjoyed so much when I visited. I am keen to see whether this Ranelagh address, considerably closer to home, measures up to it.
The room is markedly different from Monkstown. Gone are the rich reds; here the palette is black, grey, white and deep green, restrained and polished. Dark patterned tiles stamped with circular and geometric motifs catch the light underfoot. To the right, a marble-topped counter faced in ribbed Connemara marble glows softly. Marble tables and deep green upholstered chairs with brass-capped arms add weight, while painted screens introduce traditional landscape imagery. We sit in the back room as families mark the new year at larger tables, dumplings steaming, Peking duck and whole sea bass moving past in regular succession.
Dumplings are a speciality here and, as a Chinese new year symbol of wealth and prosperity, feel apt. We choose the classic Cantonese wonton soup (€9.50), served in a pale celadon bowl, steam rising from a clear, lightly clouded broth. Five wontons sit beneath the surface, thin wrappers folded around pork and prawn. The broth is quietly restorative, the filling sweet from prawn and rounded by pork, with bright bok choi adding bite and contrast.
Crispy squid, typhoon shelter style (€12), arrives pale gold and lightly dusted, the crumb fine and sandy. Garlic and dried chilli are present but held in check, fragrant rather than fiery. Bite into one and the crust gives a soft crack before the squid inside gives way instantly – yielding without resistance, the flesh soft and sweet at its core. It is as good as crispy squid gets: tender to the point of disbelief.
The Peking duck (€88) is ordered in advance. Two days air-drying, then a fierce blast of heat in a bullet oven. It is carved tableside, the bird laid flat on a wooden block, bronzed, the skin stretched tight and gleaming.
Zhan begins with the skin alone, lifting a neat rectangle from the breast and placing it beside a small bowl of sugar. The skin is dipped lightly, then eaten on its own. It shatters cleanly, warm fat melting as the sweetness briefly catches.
Then the knife moves through skin and flesh together. The breast is sliced into even pieces; likewise, the leg meat, darker and more robust. A full bird yields a remarkable amount of meat, and there is more to follow. The remaining duck has been chopped through the bone and wok-fried, the edges catching until crisp and caramelised. It is more muscular in flavour. A bottle of Segredos São Miguel (€32), a light red, works well alongside it.
China Hunan: Mango king prawn kataifi pastry with homemade mayo sauce 
China Hunan: Stir-fried pork with jalapenos 
China Hunan: Roast duck swan-shaped crispy croissants 
China Hunan: Hunan-style stir-fried John Stone ribeye steak
And of course there is still room for dessert, a Cantonese charcoal lava bun (€9) which also features on the daytime dim sum menu. We cut into the black steamed dough and its strip of gold leaf, releasing a stream of golden yolk custard. Paired with coconut sorbet, it is a wonderful way to end our meal.
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China Hunan matches its Monkstown sibling dish for dish and, crucially, the Peking duck feels every bit as special. The room is sharper, more contemporary, but the cooking meets the same high standard. It is easy to see this becoming one of Ranelagh’s most popular restaurants. A smaller hot pot restaurant is due to open next door; if this is the benchmark, it will be worth watching. Together, they make this stretch of Sandford Road considerably more interesting.
Dinner for two with a bottle of wine was €150.50.
The verdict: A brilliant new restaurant for Ranelagh.
Food provenance: Silver Hill Duck, FX Buckley, Andarl Farm, La Rousse Foods and Keelings.
Vegetarian options: Crispy vegetable spring rolls, pickled cucumbers and black fungus, pan-fried tofu with scallions, stir-fried aubergine and beans, and a vegan menu.
Wheelchair access: Fully accessible, with an accessible toilet in Hot Pot restaurant next door.
Music: Chinese new year tunes.
China Hunan: The restaurant exterior 
China Hunan: The palette inside is black, grey, white and deep green 
China Hunan: Painted screens and walls picture traditional landscapes