Tweed Heads Chinese Restaurant — Restaurant in New South Wales

Dining at Tweed Heads Chinese Restaurant was one of the most frustrating and disappointing experiences I've had in a long time. Before going inside, we looked at the menu taped to the door to look at the selection and the prices. Seemed reasonable. The lady seating us warns us that the dine-in prices are different than the take-away prices (which are those taped to the window), and says she'll bring us some water while we look over the menu to decide if we want to stay. My boyfriend and I are in our 20s and were casually dressed; I may be making assumptions, but it seemed as though she was implying we couldn't afford to dine at her "classy establishment".

We decided it would be worth the money and ordered chicken curry (rice not included) and beef chow mein. The food came out in about 2 minutes, and the waitress said that the chicken curry "actually looked good," with a tone of surprise. It had very little flavor and the chicken was soggy. The beef chow mein looked nice and the first few bites tasted decent, but after that, everything lost flavor and was drowning in all the water on my plate. It was as if the whole meal had been boiled around midday and placed in a pot to wait for someone to order it, after which it was microwaved and brought out. The staff were busy chatting with each other so we could not get a moment to complain. We were hurried along to pay our $34 and leave.

We were so angry about our experience, we didn't end up saying anything in the restaurant. I rang back and asked to speak to the manager; the lady found out I was a customer with a complaint and asked me to leave a message. I told her I'd wait for the manager. He was more defensive of my comments saying that the food is fresh (despite it taking only 2 minutes to prepare and serve) rather than receptive to a customer's feedback. He offered a complimentary meal next time we dine there, so I politely declined and told them we will not...

Like other customers have stated, the curb appeal of this authentic looking Chinese restaurant is what attracted my girlfriend and I. Unfortunately the outside appearance is the only good thing about this place. The waitress seemed friendly, but emphasized profusely how there was a significant difference in price between take away and eat-in, and acted as if she expected us to leave because of the price, which made us feel as if she thought that we wouldn't be able to afford to eat there. The food arrived about 2 minutes after ordering which would indicate that the food was pre cooked and just sitting waiting to be reheated, like something you would expect from hungry jacks, and probably worse quality then a fast food restaurant. Also having to pay extra for rice at a Chinese restaurant seemed like a bit of a joke. I ordered the chicken curry, which tasted like the flavour came from a bottle that you would buy from woolworths or coles. My girlfriend ordered the beef chowmein which when it first arrived looked quite nice, but tasted bland and old. The bottom of the plate was filled with water, like she had ordered a soup and not a main. Was overall a terrible experience, and even though when we complained over the phone they offered us 2 free meals, I would still never go back to this place or recommend it. Very...

The ambiance and decor both outside and inside the restaurant is charming. The waitresses are friendly. The food is, on average, quite ordinary, bland flavourings, lackluster sauces, protein not perfectly cooked. The serving sizes are reasonably large but it doesn't matter because the quality is lacking. Personally I would prefer smaller sizes with better quality. If they picked up the food quality this place would be a five star restaurant and people would purposely drive long distance to dine here. A really nice restaurant with huge potential not being capitalised on. An example, the Tuesday night I attended there were only three or four tables dining. A restaurant in this location with such great ambiance should not only be packed to full capacity but should be so busy that people need to book in advance. There were two waitresses on to service four tables. Overstaffed. One good waitresses could service a full restaurant of this size on their own. Pity because the excessive wages bill is probably why they cost cut...