Let me start by saying that if everyone treated their customers’ complaints the way Mr.Mario Haddad did, then the quality of restaurants in the country as well as customer loyalty will rise significantly. As some of you might have recalled, i had a relatively bad experience on my first visit to the Jasmine room and was asked to give it a second visit by its owner, Mr. Haddad.

The dinner was scheduled on Friday night at 9 pm and i attended it along with Chahe and Cohiba from the blog. I was greeted by Mario who invited us over to the round table, also known as a Lazy Susan. I thought it was gonna be the 3 or 4 of us, but then we were joined by 3 staff members from BrainStorm, a company that manages The Jasmine Room along with other restaurants, as well as the Commercial Director of TimeOut magazine in Beirut, and the executive chef Thomas Reger.

We started off with lots of cold and hot starters and a really good “Vin Rose”. There were lots of items i haven’t noticed on the menu on my first visit, among which a plate which i absolutely loved, consisting of a mix of chicken and carrots with a delicious side sauce which you can roll into small pancakes, and then came the “Crispy aromatic duck with pancake” plate which was exceptional. Afterwards, we were served two crab dishes and even though it was a hassle trying to get something out of them, they were succulent.

At this point, i thought dinner was over before another load of hot dishes landed on the table (Home-made noodles, beef and chicken dipped in various sauces etc. ) I was full already and very satisfied with what i’ve had and hoping there won’t be any desserts afterwards.

In all, i must admit my second visit to the place felt like going to a whole different place, and the bad experience i had during my first visit was a mere accident that i have already forgotten about. I believe this is one of the very few times, if not the first time, i change my mind on a restaurant that drastically.

On a last note, i wish to thank Mr. Mario Haddad and his team for this delicious dinner and agreeable company and assure them that the Jasmine Room will be my #1 choice when it comes to Chinese food.

PS: The Jasmine Room delivers and has a menu online for those who wish to check it out.