Flavor

Sunshine Restaurant

Dejvická 40 P-6

224 321 888


Often Westerners don’t venture too far into the menu when ordering at a Chinese
restaurant, regardless of how many dishes are listed. There are a few well-known
styles; sweet and sour, kung pao, lo mein that offer the thrill of exotic dining
without the risk of finding something too foreign on your plate. The restaurants
know this and gladly steer us round-eyes to the more familiar items on the menu.
The Sunshine restaurant in Dejvice is one of a handful of places in the city that
serves the famous Peking duck, a specialty that is best prepared a day in advance
for the following reason. As anyone who enjoys duck will tell you, it is the succulent,
crisp skin which gives the dish its flavor. Before roasting, the duck is air-dried,
ideally in breezy, cold air, which allows the skin to separate. It is seasoned
in vinegar and ginger along with other spices and roasted until the skin and underlayer
of fat get the ideal rich texture. The duck is served cut into long ribbon-like
golden strips along with pancakes, and thinly sliced green onions and cucumbers
on the side. Our server kindly explained that it is for good luck that he should
prepare the first one. Deftly laying out the pancake and layering the meat and
vegetables along with a drizzle of plum hoisin sauce and wrapping it into a nice
tight pocket, he then assured us that it is fine to eat them with our hands. It’s
just the right size for two to share one order at 499Kč. Keep in mind that duck
is very rich and you may want a shot of spirits to cut the fat. We were offered
a complimentary glass of sweet plum wine after the meal. You need not order a
day in advance (ours took about 30 minutes on a slow afternoon) but it can’t hurt.
Sunshine also offers a roast suckling pig which must be ordered ahead. These less-than-ordinary
dishes will open up some new horizons while you relax, knowing there won’t be
any unwanted surprises.