ALL THE CHINESE TAKEAWAYS IN CAMBRIDGE No. 1 – LAN HONG HOUSE

I recommend this guy on Instagram (great name).

He answers questions about life, the universe and everything from his sofa.

“What’s important, Martin ?”

Well, obviously for me, it’s living long enough to see Simon complete the GBG, my lads join CAMRA, and me visit all the Chinese takeaways in the UK.

OK, I’ll settle for every takeaway in Cambridge.

So, leaving the Champ, I left Hobson Street,

and headed through the colleges to the Lan Hong House at the very start of Regent Street, the city’s informal Chinatown.

Lan Hong, as with Golden House right next door, looks unchanged in 40 years, and perhaps it is.

Cash only, a couple of tables if you want to eat it hot, lunchtime opening, student deals.

And ready within 5 minutes, which is efficient and worrying in equal measure.

In 1988 I had Sweet and Sour Chicken and Egg Fried Rice from here and ate it on a park bench on Parkers Piece without utensils. The Southworths will sympathise.

Today I at least have a plastic plate that’s slowly disintegrating and a wooden fork which contains dinosaur DNA to enjoy it listening to politics back at Sunnyside.

Despite a journey from counter to train to home that adds an hour to that 5 minutes it’s superb, the bellwether crispy beef and Singapore rice chewy and filling (NCTSS 3.5+).

Don’t expect more than one  of these reviews a week, mind.

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Published by retiredmartin

Retired NHS, doing long walks around UK and the world to record the great bits. Focused on Good Beer Guide pubs and live music.

21 thoughts on “ALL THE CHINESE TAKEAWAYS IN CAMBRIDGE No. 1 – LAN HONG HOUSE”

  1. With a tear in my eye I can confirm that the frontage of Lan Hong is unchanged since the late 70s. Always a sensible (at the time) end to JCAFC post-match analysis.

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      2. Food’s being taken seriously now on another discussion forum with “Not only do I object to restaurants like any proper CAMRA member, but I also on a point of principle refuse to pollute my body with any food unless it’s explicitly approved by the Micropub Association as a category of “traditional pub snack” that one is allowed to dabble in. Please arrange my medal”.

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      2. I look forward to your post, Lana.

        My mum was a great fan of Singapore rice from our Cambridgeshire takeaway and even as her health faded in the last year she could still put away a sumptuous Chinese meal !

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      3. Have had idea knicked from husband’s friend for this year. He lives with his mother and they order a huge Chinese on Christmas Eve to see them through Christmas day. Never tried that. Will add in a trial of Singapore rice!

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      4. Regular readers will know I don’t celebrate Christmas, or any other festival or annual date, believing in treating every day given to us by the Creator with equal joy. No Christmas tree, no roast, no cards, no presents. Cromwell would be impressed.

        So I have had reheated Chinese takeaway, and curry, on Christmas day.

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      5. Martin, I too am puritanical in this regard. When I became a Christian (as a former new ager) I realised Christmas was all pagan nonsense so that was the end of it for me. Prior to that I had not had a Christmas tree in any event for years. My husband is not a Christian but he doesn’t like the tat and materialism of it all which is a blessing in its own way.

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  4. “Well, obviously for me, it’s living long enough to see Simon complete the GBG, my lads join CAMRA, and me visit all the Chinese takeaways in the UK.”

    Now THAT’S a bucket list!
    (probably literally in some instances)

    “and headed through the colleges to the Lan Hong House at the very start of Regent Street, the city’s informal Chinatown.”

    So; no coolie hats then?

    “Card only, ”

    (looks at pic above)

    Er, I see two handwritten signs that say ‘cash only’.

    “And ready within 5 minutes, which is efficient and worrying in equal measure.”

    (slow golf clap)

    “In 1988 I had Sweet and Sour Chicken and Egg Fried Rice from here and ate it on a park bench on Parkers Piece without utensils.”

    I’m guessing it was finger licking good.

    “Today I at least have a plastic plate that’s slowly disintegrating and a wooden fork which contains dinosaur DNA”

    So… improvement?

    “Don’t expect more than one of these reviews a week, mind.”

    Don’t mind that at all. 😊

    Cheers

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