PEOPLE sometimes ask: what's in a name? Well, if Aroma Kitchen in Abbots Langley is anything to go by, a great deal, it would seem. The mouthwatering aromas at the 80-seater Chinese and Malaysian restaurant in Katherine Place, College Road, guarantee that a sophisticated meal awaits, and not your average Friday night in-front-of-the-telly take-away.

Aroma Kitchen is set in an unusual location, but it is this factor, however, that is proof of the pudding, so to speak: the food is so palatable that diners make a point of eating there.

The menu is extensive, with more than 100 dishes, and caters for vegetarian and meat eaters. By far the best way to eat at Aroma Kitchen is to order a number of dishes and share them with your dining companions, guaranteeing taste in abundance. Its prices match any Chinese restaurant and start at ?1.30 (for prawn crackers) and run up to ?25 (a whole crispy duck).

The wisdom and expertise of the five chefs, from China or Malaysia, teamed with exceptional service from the five waiting staff, made eating at Aroma Kitchen an unforgettable experience.

First, my dining partner and I ordered the seafood mixed starter for two, at ?6.50. This arrived on a platter overflowing with four delicacies: salt and pepper squid; satay prawn; deep fried scallops, and mussels and black bean sauce. A perfect introduction to the meal, with flavours that complemented each other.

The aromatic crispy duck served with pancakes, shredded cucumber, spring onion and hoi sin sauce followed, and was soon devoured. The main dishes of sizzling chicken with spicy lemon grass sauce (?5.80), and sizzling prawns with ginger and spring onion (?7.30), accompanied by aroma fried rice mixed with prawns, chicken and mushroom (?4), turned out to be ideal companions as we savoured every morsel. All dishes were equally satisfying, the only complaint being that we had to be restrained from delving in until the sizzle had died down.

Dinner concluded with light, Chinese tea and the finishing touch to the meal was the Chinese beer.

A cheaper alternative is to take advantage of the Sunday lunch buffet, where an adult can eat as much as he or she likes for ?7.50, and children under ten for ?3.80 between 12.30pm and 4.30pm. There is also a special Monday to Saturday lunch menu.

Aroma Kitchen is open Monday to Thursday, noon to 3pm, and 6pm to 11pm; Friday to Saturday, noon to 3pm, and 6pm to 11.30pm, and on Sunday from 12.30pm to 11pm. There is also a take-away service. VL

Aroma Kitchen, Katherine Place, College Road, Abbots Langley

Telephone: 01923 681864

Reproduced from Limited Edition magazine, exclusive guides to living in Hertfordshire, Middlesex and the London Borough of Barnet (01923 216295)

December 19, 2001 15:00