363 Manningham Rd, Lower Templestowe ph : (03) 9852 4086
Let me begin by saying that I have a strange prejudice that Yum Cha in Melbourne is better in the 'burbs. There is a high concentration of fairly decent Chinese restaurants in the Doncaster-Templestowe area. Diners heading that way are spoilt for choice, with Taipan, Plume, and even Kam Fook being worthy destinations. In my opinion Golden Dragon Palace joins the ranks of these well-loved Yum Cha favourites, with the bonus of it being reasonably kid-friendly. Yum Cha is always a good option for family catch up's and we've been here on quite a few occasions, this time during the school holidays for lunch with the grandparents.
I apologise for the sub-par quality photos in this post, as I had my hands full sorting out my 3 kids scattered amongst relatives around a large table. Taking pictures before the food was attacked by hungry kids and adults became secondary on the agenda!
The restaurant, unlike lots of Chinese eateries, is spacious enough for prams if these are needed. We prefer using their high chairs, which are reasonably clean (as compared to other Chinese restaurants we have experienced).
Their dumplings and dim sum selection were of good Cantonese standard. The prawn dumplings (Har Gaos) had good sized whole prawns in them and were very tasty.
The Shu Mai are quite kid friendly, as were the Spring Rolls, which came with a sweet and sour dipping sauce, itself a source of entertainment for the kids.
The Chicken Feet are a popular Dim Sum item, although not popular with all adults, let alone the kids. Fairly average I am told.
My kids are fans of the easy to eat Custard Buns, and also the Roast Pork Buns (Char Siu Baos). Even Bubs had a go at these and seemed to like them!
I saw some Sago and Taro Baked Pudding on a passing cart and ordered one. I find that not every Yum Cha restaurant make these and I always order one when I see them. This one was not too sweet, which I liked, but a little bit too gluggy and not smooth enough for me to order again.
We had many more other dishes which were of good standards, but none that I would say stands out distinctly. In terms of kid-friendliness, Golden Dragon Palace scores well for parking, access and provision of high-chairs. The food is of good standard although not spectacular as compared to the standard of other yum-cha places in the area, and the slightly quieter ambience and relative space comes with a higher price premium.
Eat.Play.Shop. Says - Overall a good standard of Yum Cha for Melbourne and a place that I would visit again with the kids.
I've always thought that this place does decent dim sum - and like u said nothing really outstanding, but its all in the execution. In the past, their quality fluctuates so much. My last visit recently was decent !
ReplyDelete@ HK Epicurus : Yes I have also noticed some fluctuations in their standard, but probably not as much as some of the Yum Cha places in the CBD! At least they always seem to be clean and the staff are courteous! (So sad that I am not surprised to see grotty cutlery and rude service when I visit Chinese Eateries!)
ReplyDeleteNice place and ambiance however being charged $18 for a pot of Chinese tea seems a bit rich when we spent over $224 on dinner! Most Chinese restaurants would provide a pot complementary.
ReplyDeleteI cannot recommend the calamari unless you like eating rubbery calamari not to mention some of the dishes were cold except for the lamb tenderloin in the claypot which was scolding hot!
An hour after ordering and hardly a half an hour into our unfinished meal the waiters were already talking our plates away right from under us .... even if some of us were still eating and with still 2 hours to closing time. They obviously had some place better to be at!
Wow you were charged $18 for a pot of chinese tea? that sounds pretty steep! I would definitely question that on the bill! I haven't really dined there for dinner, but yum cha experiences at most Asian eateries are a fast and furious affair. I do notice that at chinese restaurants they tend to clear the plates ASAP. I always wonder if that is what they see as "Good service" whereas in Australia we see that as "hurry up". Hope you find a nice chinese dinner place, you can then recommend it for me!
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