Chiu Chou Garden Chinese Seafood Restaurant — Restaurant in Sydney

We finally tried Chiu Chou Garden Restaurant after hearing about it for years and seeing great recommendations online. I can honestly say it didn’t disappoint and I wish we’d gone sooner!

Here’s what we ordered:

Poached Free-Range Chicken: This was the highlight of the meal and seems to be their signature dish. The chicken was tender, flavourful, and served with a fragrant ginger and shallot sauce. You can also request it sliced and boneless for a small extra charge. Highly recommend ordering this—it’s one of the best versions I’ve had.

Stir-Fried Rice Noodle (Chiu Chou Style): We were hesitant at first because the dish looked plain in photos, but we’re so glad we tried it. The little bursts of radish and the slight "wok hei" charred flavour made it much more flavourful than expected.

Young Chow Fried Rice: A classic done well. It was tasty and what you’d expect from a good fried rice dish.

Stir-Fried Rice Noodles with Beef: This is one of my favourite dishes at any Chinese restaurant and they did a great job. It had just the right amount of flavour and tenderness.

Congee with Pork and Thousand-Year-Old Egg: I’m not usually a fan of congee or the egg, but others at the table enjoyed it. Personally, I think it could’ve used a bit more pork but it was still comforting and well-made.

The menu is large, even at lunchtime and the service was efficient. Overall, we had a great experience and can’t wait to return for dinner to explore more...

Great food. Friendly staffs. The speed of cooking is like lightning! Can't believe how fast the food was served and they are super authentic. The fried rice, oh my... The breath of wok is everything an amazing plate of Chinese fried rice should be! Balanced taste too! I really enjoy the XO sauce clams and snow pea in broth too. Wanton noodle soup is so hearty in a cold winter night. If you are looking for Authentic southern Chinese food, this is it!

This area is very busy during peak dining hours. If you want to easily get a parking, get there by 6:30pm. There is also a basement carpark but be mindful that the staircase connected to the building has a one way lock which can't be opened from the building to the carpark, only from the carpark to the building. But you can walk through the ramp. Not the restaurant owner problem, the building management.

Will return and try...

We ordered live fish today, but the meat was rotten, and the taste was bad. We complained to the manager, who insisted that the fish was alive before cooking and mentioned that her kitchen was still cleaning the fish. However, there were only two more tables, each with one person, and they seemed to be finishing their meals. There were no signs of anyone else still ordering fish, as the live fish is only to be cleaned after being ordered. The vegetables were also very unfresh, but we had to pay the full price for the food, which we couldn't eat.

We have been loyal customers for more than 10 years and have never encountered such issues with the food before. We are unsure if this problem is due to a change in management or cooks, but regardless, we were very disappointed and won't...