Hello Spice — Restaurant in Canning Vale

I’ve been to this restaurant a few times before and really liked their drinks as they’re tasty and reasonably priced. However, after coming back a few months later, I was quite disappointed with the service.

When I approached the self-ordering machine and saw that it had Simplified Chinese, I instinctively thought it was okay to ask questions in Mandarin — for that, I apologize. But the lady at the front counter responded with a very unpleasant expression and said, “Sorry, I’m not Chinese so I don’t speak Mandarin.” Her tone and attitude made me feel very unwelcome. Even after I switched to English, her attitude remained cold and unfriendly.

Mandarin isn’t even my first language — I only spoke it because the menu was in Chinese, and I assumed that a restaurant serving Chinese food might be able to communicate in Mandarin. Also, Mandarin is spoken by many people, not just those from China.

I was also disappointed to find out that the $9.90 meal deal didn’t include lychee water, which I had been looking forward to. Overall, the poor service from the staff made me not...

very affordable food that compromises on quality far less than others. normally i had scallion oil noodles but today i chose the pork belly rice. really neat + beancurd cubes included, maybe the ratio is a bit uneven though. there is a lot of sauce at the bottom so be sure to mix that well.

fried xiaolongbao / soup dumplings, and the other dumplings, taste very good too, only lacking slightly in texture in that it’s kinda tougher to get in there

also PLEASEEEE add an option for no coriander i seem to (and others do) have the soap taste genetics (UPDATE: THEY PUT IT SEPARATELY NOW WOOHOO)

update: also got the fried snow chicken rice although i can’t really taste the snow part so it may as well have been fried chicken rice. the salad is not as lackluster in terms of taste anymore but still leaves slightly more to be desired. the chicken and rice itself was portioned generously as usual! only other issue is the fact we don’t get sturdy spoons to eat this :/ only forks, chopsticks, and...

Having heard that the restaurant had changed ownership, we were initially reluctant to return, as the food and service had always been very good under the previous management. However, we decided to give it another try and opted for three different curries to share. I am pleased to say that all were very nice and tasty.

My only criticism is that the dishes lacked the flourish and garnish that the previous owners were so adept at providing. Additionally, the tables have been changed, and in my opinion, the restaurant has lost some of its charm in the process. It was also disappointing to find that there is no beer available on tap, although the selection of wines and other beverages is commendable.

If the restaurant is to succeed, I believe it will need to introduce some competitive offers and reconsider the service charge, which may put off many locals. This is a community restaurant, and these factors are crucial to its...