Driftwood Restaurant Port Alberni (Golden Dragon) — Restaurant in Port Alberni

I’m editing my 5-star review to add this as I went a couple days ago and the service was terrible. My brother and I decided to go here for dinner and get the buffet. It’s very expensive ($26 each before taxes and not including drinks) for the quality of what we received.

Some of the options were very lukewarm and obviously not fresh and one dish was incredibly salty. The spring rolls tasted alright, but were pretty burnt. It was also quite greasy, but that isn’t surprising because a lot of fast-food Chinese places can be like that.

We get greeted and seated fairly quickly, but the booth we were taken to was visibly dirty and sticky, so we moved to the next table over. It was also sticky. We then wait for our server to come and ask us what we’d like (buffet or something off the menu) and if we want anything to drink. We both ordered iced teas and never got them nor did we get napkins given to us except for the one included with our cutlery. We did get water, but that was never refilled once.

We get finished eating and I see that we were charged for the iced teas after we had already paid. After the poor service and lacklustre quality of the food we had, I decided to go over to the cashier desk and mention it to the server. We never got an apology and he only spoke directly to who I believe was the manager standing there at the time. I said don’t worry about refunding us, since it would have only been about $8 total and I just thought I’d bring it up for next time. The server was then rather rude and dismissive even though despite the service we had received, we still tipped quite well.

It honestly felt like a slap in the face. I probably won’t ever be getting food from here again.

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Their chow mein and fried rice is the best because they add a good amount of flavour unlike some places I’ve been to where it’s all very plain. Some of the food can be a little too greasy or doughy for me, but that’s more personal preference than anything.

The portion sizes are also extremely generous. You can order two meals and feed four people. The containers they use for delivery are also reusable and dishwasher safe. It’s way better than the styrofoam/paper containers most restaurants give you that leak everywhere.

They definitely don’t deserve the reputation they get and most people who say negative things about this restaurant haven’t even been...

2024 update: Fairly close to what the original Golden Dragon used to be in the "good old days" The manager Michelle does a great job of keeping everything humming along. Bathrooms are neat and tidy with no bad smells. Food: One of the long time Golden Dragon chefs (Francis) returned back to the Driftwood awhile back to bless us with his talent. Very consistent from week to week with what is going to be served to you on your plate. They have no problem with accommodating various needs (allergies) to your order. Considering the way food prices have risen over the last year or so the menu is pretty good value for your money. 2023 update: Now owned [for a while now] by Driftwood Restaurant (they have multiple locations in other Island communities). They've done much needed repairs to to the seating in the booths with new material replacing the very worn out seat bottoms - thank you owners! I've visited a few times since the year started and have had good service by the wait staff. The food came fairly quickly and was very nice and piping hot. Portions were generous. Just a FYI - they are under going renovations ATM. I haven't stopped by during the day to see if they are open but definitely closed at night. I know that they are trying to get open ASAP, even if the reno is completely finished. Looking forward to smorgasbord in the near future. I'll post some new pictures of the new look as soon as I get my foot in the door.

Owned and operated by Ken and his wife Lee. Daily smorgasbord plus full menu of both Chinese and Canadian cuisine. Full bar service. Senior staff are long term employees. Available for private functions in two banquet rooms that are separate from the main restaurant. Special smorgasbord on Chinese New Year - I try to never miss out this event. Side street parking is available...

I will never go back to this Chinese buffet. There wasn’t enough food and some of the food looked like it had gone through a battle. The buffet food trays were empty when I got up there. Much of the taste of the food seemed to be overly infused with 5-Spice. Some of the dishes, for instance the duck dish had to be an experiment (I think it was duck). Traditionally duck has never been cooked in a Chinese restaurant in the manner that it was. Chinese take a lot of pride in how they cook duck. Normally the fat is properly rendered from the meat and the skin is suppose to be crispy. Such was not the case. It was rubbery and tasteless. The shoo mai (pork dumplings) looked unappetizing and like they had been sitting there for ages. They tasted awful. I tried them out of curiosity . They were dried out and lifeless. To be fair the chicken wings were good. They tasted like they were freshly prepared.

The bright spot of the evening were the helpers as they were very friendly and attentive.

I love the location of this restaurant. The classical Chinese decor and the layout of the restaurant was very nice.

But this was a total rip off, from start to finish. I do not...