Guangzhou Restaurant 广州酒家 (China, Guangzhou)

Guangzhou Restaurant 广州酒家

Guangzhou Restaurant 广州酒家 is known as the 'Number One Restaurant in Guangzhou'. The restaurant has a long history dating back to the  1935.  Guangzhou Restaurant started out with a restaurant located at the corner of Wen Chang Nan Road and the famous Shangxiajiu Street; which is its main restaurant today. It has expanded over the years and has several branches around Guangzhou, China and even Hong Kong.

Guangzhou Restaurant occupies the whole building; three levels along with an elevator.  The first level offers a selection of Chinese and Western food while the second and third levels offers Cantonese food. It seems to provide a courtyard dining experience as there was a pond and a tree right in the middle of the building. (Reminds me of Yung Kee Restaurant in Hong Kong) It is said that the restaurant can serve as many as 10,000 people a day.

Opening Hours

Operating hours for the Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner. They are opened as early as 7am!

They have even prepared Wasabi in the background. I did not see the need for it during this meal. Is it normal for Wasabi to be eaten with Cantonese food? (not that I know of)

Tie Guan Yin 铁观音 RMB 12 (S$2.40) Per Pax

Tie Guan Yin 铁观音 RMB 12 (S$2.40) Per Pax

Tie Guan Yin 铁观音 RMB 12 (S$2.40) Per Pax

Ordered Chinese Tea - Tie Guan Yin 铁观音 to complete the meal. How can we not order Chinese Tea in the China! It is chargeable at RMB 12 (S$2.40) per person. Sit back, and watch how the waitress prepare the tea for you. More will be prepared when you have finished the tea. 

Honey-Stewed BBQ Pork RMB43 (S$8.60)

The Honey-Stewed BBQ Pork is actually Char Siew. It was delicious and has a melt in the mouth sensation. Each piece was not overly fat. Well-seasoned and best eaten with plain rice.

Roasted Goose RMB43 (S$8.60)

Roasted Goose RMB43 (S$8.60)

The Roasted Goose was amazing. The layer of skin was crispy and fragrant with little fats. Will be a waste of the chef effort not to try / eat it (skin). Inside, the meat was tender and soft. Underneath the meat, there were peanuts underneath. Again, this reminds me of the Roasted Goose in Yung Kee Restaurant!

Ice Dalian-abalone Piece RMB68 (S$13.60) Per Piece

Ice Dalian Abalone (Baoyu), per piece at RMB68 (S$13.60). My concern before ordering was that, this is so cheap, how can it be. It must be of lousy quality and hard. But my other half of the mind was telling me, its so cheap, what is there to lose. Can't resist trying this considering the price I have to pay for something like this back home (Singapore).

Ice Dalian-abalone Piece RMB68 (S$13.60) Per Piece (Close-up)

The Ice Dalian Abalone was presented very nicely. It was cold (needless to say as the name suggest), lightly seasoned and tender-soft. Moreover, it was fresh with no fishy taste. It was easy to savour as it has been cut nicely into six pieces. Certainly worth a try!

Overall, I quite like my experience at the Guangzhou Restaurant 广州酒家! The food was great and value for money! Hard to find food of this quality at this value in Singapore especially for the BBQ Pork (Char Siew), Roasted Goose and Ice Dalian Abalone!

ps: After leaving the Guangzhou Restaurant, we went to Nanxin Shuang Pi Nai 南信双皮奶. Over there, shared a table with 2 locals. They overheard us talking about our dinner at Guangzhou Restaurant. And they told us that the food there was expensive and lousy! 

Guangzhou Restaurant 广州酒家 (China, Guangzhou)

2号 Wenchang South Road, Liwan

Guangzhou, Guangdong, China, 510140
Tel: +86 20 8138 0388, +86 20 8138 9840, +86 20 8138 0803  

Opening Hours: Daily 7am to 10pm

Website

Location

Directions: Take MTR to either Huangsha or Changshou Lu station (Line 1). Both stations are around 15 minutes walking distance away from  Wenchang South Road. If you are not familiar with Guangzhou, take to Changshou Lu instead, it is easier (and brighter) to walk over.

Location

A - Guangzhou Restaurant 广州酒家 

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Yung Kee Restaurant 鏞記酒家 (Hong Kong)

Yung Kee Restaurant is a Chinese Cantonese restaurant reowned for its Roasted Goose and Century Eggs. It has been reported that they sell as many as 300 Geese per day!

Yung Kee restaurant is located along Wellington Street, 5 minutes walk from Central MTR Exit D2. It is located in Yung Kee Building (yes, they owned the building!). If you are lost, ask the locals!

We were directed to level 2 where we saw a large crowd of people gathering around a lady who was in charge of giving out queue numbers and assigning seats. We were assigned a number and told to come back 1 hour later. We decided to go to Tsui Wah Restaurant located opposite for some bites before coming back as we were starving.

Waiting Area

Waiting Area

When we came back, I spotted this sign saying waiting area. True enough, Yung Kee has dedicated a corner as a waiting area with seats and magazines on a rack. We waited just like everyone else. Luckily for us, we managed to get a table soon after coming in. In total, the time when we got the queue number to the time we were assigned a table was 45minutes.

A very packed level 2

Menu Cover

Chrysanthemum tea (per person) HK$12 (S$2) to quench our thirst. It comes in a pot which is refillable.

Century Egg and Pickled Ginger (per person) 

The famous Century Egg served with Pickled Ginger (per person) at HK$10 (S$1.66). Each person gets half a slice of the century egg. This appetizer looks different from those in Singapore. It is the best century egg I have eaten. So smooth, so soft, so tasty! Now I know why some people take the trouble to bring this back to Singapore!

Roasted Goose (Half)

Braised Soya Beans beneath the Roasted Goose.

The award winning Roasted Goose (half) HK$230 (S$38.33). Fragrant and flavourful roasted goose that was crispy on the outside yet soft, tender and juicy on the inside. There were braised soya beans beneath the roasted goose that soaked up all the drippings from the goose making it fragrant and flavourful. Description is pointless for this dish, you got to try this yourself!

Vegetable with Oyster Sauce

Vegetable with Oyster Sauce HK$75 (S$12.50). Honestly I have no idea what this vegetable is. The vegetable was big and fresh, paired well with the oyster sauce.

Chinese 'Waxed' Sausage & Preserved Fresh Goose Liver Sausage 

We also ordered the Chinese 'Waxed' Sausage (lap cheong) & Preserved Fresh Goose Liver Sausage. The Chinese 'Waxed' Sausage was delicious. But the Preserved Fresh Goose Liver Sausage was too adventurous for me.

Fried Rice in Yangzhou Style

Fried Rice in Yangzhou Style (Large Portion) HK$145 (S$24.16). Lots of ingredients (shrimps, char siew, egg, scallions) and was well fried. Certainly another dish to try.

From this meal, I can conclude that a stay in Hong Kong is not completed without stopping over at Yung Kee. The 'die die must try' dishes are the Roasted Goose and Century Eggs. The food here is definitely worth the wait!

As we were leaving, we saw this sign that states that all the roasted geese have been sold out!

If you know when you are coming over, do ensure that you make a reservation for not only a table but also the goose!

ps: H&M is located nearby.

Yung Kee Restaurant  鏞記酒家 (Hong Kong)
32 Wellington Street, Yung Kee Building
Central, Hong Kong (Near Central MTR, Exit D2)
Tel: (852) 2552 1624
Opening Hours: Daily 11am to 1130pm
Website
For reservations below 5 pax: http://www.yungkee.com.hk/reserve/reserve-e.html
Location

Location

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