Harden's survey result
Summary
“Sunday dim sum lunch is always full of happy families” at this popular Cantonese group with 1980s-nightclub decor – an occasion for which they “cannot be beaten” for many diners: so “arrive around 10:45 to join queue for 11am opening”. With the closure of its Bayswater branch a few years ago, Baker Street and Canary Wharf are its preeminent spots (and SW6 can be “disappointing” by comparison). All feedback is about the lunchtime service – “the evening offering is a bit ordinary”.
Summary
“It can be very crowded so get there early” if you visit this well-known Cantonese chain: still a top choice for “very tasty dim sum”. With the famous Queensway branch closing a couple of years ago, you now have to go to Baker Street, Canary Wharf or Fulham for your fix (although the latter is little commented on). “Whatever else keeps people coming back here, though, it’s certainly not the service!”
Summary
“Like Rick’s in Casablanca, everybody looking for dim sum in London comes to the Royal China” – whose well-established venues (decorated along the lines of an ’80s disco) in Baker Street, Canary Wharf, Fulham and Harrow deliver the proper Cantonese experience. They “never disappoint” (although “main dishes can be less successful”), but, “given the well-known robotic efficiency of their approach, if you want ambience, you have to bring your own”. One big loss this year, though – their most popular branch, on Queensway – has bitten the dust.
Summary
“As far as dim sum goes – the go-to place” – these famous Cantonese fixtures are “not unlike ones you could find in Hong Kong”. “No-one comes for the cuddly service” (“don’t expect any smiles from the staff”), nor the ambience (“proper Chinese chaos”) of the group’s 1980s-tastic black-and-gold lacquered branches, but they “predictably deliver good food every time you visit” in the manner of an “industrial assembly-line”; and “kids love it”.
For 33 years we've been curating reviews of the UK's most notable restaurant. In a typical year, diners submit over 50,000 reviews to create the most authoritative restaurant guide in the UK. Each year, the guide is re-written from scratch based on this survey (although for the 2021 edition, reviews are little changed from 2020 as no survey could run for that year).
Have you eaten at Royal China?
Restaurant details
Opening hours
Last orders: 11 pm, Fri & Sat 11.30 pm, Sun 10 pm
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