Westminster, Chinese Restaurant Guide

“High-quality and sometimes very punchy Sichuan food” is the order of the day at this understated-looking spot on a Westminster corner. Chef Zhang Xiaozhong presides over a “huge menu” which takes in some unusual dishes “including offal”, while the proximity of Parliament brings a “changing cast of MPs, lords and sundry politicos, which makes people-watching fun”.

“Probably the best Chinese gastronomic experience in the UK” – Andrew Wong “has changed the game for Chinese cuisine” in the West and “the progress he has made over the years is phenomenal” at this Pimlico HQ (which began life as his parents’ restaurant, Kym’s). “The hype is deserved” for food that’s “exceptional, original, and utterly delicious”: “he really sets the bar and showcases that Chinese gastronomy can go head-to-head against the likes of French and Japanese traditions when it comes to this level of cooking”. (“You can see the refinement and constant drive to make each and every element of a dish better and better”). At lunch, “exquisite dim sum” is served à la carte (and there’s also a lunchtime tasting option). In the evening, there’s the “pure theatre” of a lengthy tasting menu for £200 per person (“I don’t do tasting menus anymore, but this was a wise exception to my rule and an absolute triumph”). To a striking extent, no-one questions the quality here. Even so, some do bristle at the ultimate bill (“the food is exceptional, but you might prefer a week in Greece for similar money?”). “Still, despite the huge money, he’s full, so there are plenty of takers”. Top Tips – “Keep your eyes on instagram for last-minute bookings”. And “if visiting, ensure you have a drink in the basement bar, which very much has an old HK vibe”.

“Our Hong Kong and Singaporean friends rate this as the best in London!” – this “top-drawer” West End venture is now over five years old and the first European outpost of a 20-strong Singapore-based group with spin-offs in HK, Shanghai, Beijing and also one in Tokyo. It occupies a swish, converted banking hall in the West End, where the styling is “modern and chic while still being comfortable”. “The Peking Duck (which must be ordered in advance) is delicious, but the other menu choices are also terrific”. The catch is obvious – notwithstanding its excellence, “it feels expensive for the experience”.

2021 Review: “In a crowded Chinatown field”, this three-story Cantonese institution just off Leicester Square “is a dependable crowd-pleaser” with a “good price-to-quality ratio”: “the queues outside speak for its popularity”. Highlights from the “reliable menu” include “fab dim sum every time”, “yummy char sui” and “legendary soft shell crab”, all delivered by staff who “although rushed off their feet are generally smiley and friendly”. Top Tip – “the ground floor is a better experience than the higher floors”.

“Great dim sum” backed up by more substantial Cantonese and Sichuan dishes have established this unshowy venue as one of the area‘s best bets. It’s easy to find: it’s right by the archway at the entrance to Chinatown!

“The best roast duck in the world? I have no idea, but it’s certainly superb” at these Cantonese canteens… and “you definitely don’t go for the ambience. No, You go for the duck… if you’re really smart, the roast pork… or even better, the pork and the duck!”. “But the service is comically, disastrously rude – and your arteries will probably thank you if you don’t go too often”. Launched 35 years ago in Queensway, the group now has outlets in Chinatown, Soho, the Hippodrome (Chop Chop), Colindale’s Bang Bang Oriental food hall and Oxford.

2024 Review: “Fresh and very tasty dim sum” ensures that this 30-year-old Cantonese over three storeys on the edge of Chinatown “soon fills up with regulars”. “It may be a blessing that the ambience is not exactly chic – it keeps the tourists away”.

2023 Review: “Top egg yolk buns” are a big draw at China-born architect Z He and chef Alex Peffly’s well-known Chinatown pit stop, which provides an “excellent bustling ambience and wonderful heart-filling food”.

“Huge Cantonese restaurant” over two floors on Chinatown’s main drag, praised for its “sensibly priced and fine-quality dim sum”, along with “good crispy duck with pancakes”. “Service is brisk but friendly”, and its capacity makes it “good for walk-ins”.

Many long-in-the-tooth Londoners regard this “no-nonsense”, multi-floor Chinatown veteran as their “go-to Chinese restaurant in the West End”. “The legend of Wong Kei was the sheer rudeness of the staff. Nowadays they are just casually brusque but still provide a wide range of well-priced Chinese dishes” – “where else to have a complete meal in the West End under a tenner? Wonton Soup with noodles is ordered even before the menu gets slapped on the table”. Top Tip – “all dishes come with free green tea”.

“Fantastic dim sum with good-quality ingredients” make this family-run Cantonese “a good Gerrard Street standby”. Now entering its fifth decade, the decor is “slightly cooler than in your average Chinatown restaurant”.

“The best roast duck in the world? I have no idea, but it’s certainly superb” at these Cantonese canteens… and “you definitely don’t go for the ambience. No, You go for the duck… if you’re really smart, the roast pork… or even better, the pork and the duck!”. “But the service is comically, disastrously rude – and your arteries will probably thank you if you don’t go too often”. Launched 35 years ago in Queensway, the group now has outlets in Chinatown, Soho, the Hippodrome (Chop Chop), Colindale’s Bang Bang Oriental food hall and Oxford.

“The best roast duck in the world? I have no idea, but it’s certainly superb” at these Cantonese canteens… and “you definitely don’t go for the ambience. No, You go for the duck… if you’re really smart, the roast pork… or even better, the pork and the duck!”. “But the service is comically, disastrously rude – and your arteries will probably thank you if you don’t go too often”. Launched 35 years ago in Queensway, the group now has outlets in Chinatown, Soho, the Hippodrome (Chop Chop), Colindale’s Bang Bang Oriental food hall and Oxford.

2021 Review: In Chinatown’s shiny, new, Central Cross development, this “functional but bright and clean” 150-seater opened in spring 2019, and early days feedback says it’s a good, modern addition to the area. “My wife and I know Shanghai food from both Hong Kong and Shanghai – this is good, with generous portions at good-value prices”. “Staff, despite being rushed off their feet, were pleasant and helpful, though few spoke English”.

2023 Review: This modern pan-Asian in Covent Garden – an import from NYC – offers “playful dim sum”, alongside other “cut-above” dishes. There are “relaxed long tables for groups or cosy red-checked spots for two diners”, and the atmosphere is set by the “fun 90s playlist and friendly team”.

“Sublime” and “well-executed Sichuan dishes in all their spiciness” (“crazy Chinese cooking like I’ve never experienced anywhere else!”) make this “a sensational go-to” foodie destination for its many long-term fans (who reckon it’s “back to late-noughties form”). The decor is relatively “soothing” by the standards of the area, with no agreement over whether sitting upstairs or downstairs is best.

2023 Review: A “very good” modern take on classic Cantonese cuisine from Z He and Alex Peffly (of Bun House) is presented in an atmospheric “neon-lit underground parlour in Soho, with the menus on newspapers, giving a gentlemen’s club/opium den vibe”.

This glossy Mayfair venue modelled on ‘the supper clubs of 1930s Shanghai’ “has a real buzz” with “wonderful singers and a band to add to a great night”. But while some diners feel the food is outstanding, ratings are undercut by the view that it’s “middle-of-the-road Chinese that’s well executed but nothing special and soured by the bill”.