Shinkows- Chinese Restaurant — Restaurant in Tamil Nadu

This is not our first visit to this, our favourite family restaurant in Ooty. During our every trip to this once quaint, now bustling hill station, we make it a point to stop by and enjoy a hearty meal at Shinkows. And, unfortunately, with every passing visit, we can see the standards of this establishment slipping precipitously.

During our last visit, it took a new and wholesome low – in quality, taste, food portioning, service, and even its ambience ! Everything, this time, was a serious letdown.

I have been a regular guest of this restaurant for over 40 years now. During those initial days, four decades ago, Shinkows was synonymous with the finest Chinese food this side of the Great Wall ! Their taste then was simply incomparable, their service was impeccable, their portioning used to be generous and the ambience was unmatched.

This time around, I was shell-shocked to see a table opposite us occupied by drunken roadside losers, wearing dirty lungis and playing raucous music on their mobile phones, so much so that I called and told the waiter to go and ask them to reduce the volume ! Never before have I seen such hoi polloi being entertained at Shinkows. I guess they have fallen on hard times, seriously. Otherwise, why else would dirty, drunk and unkempt louts be seen dining inside, creating a commotion ?!? It was definitely not the Shinkows that we were familiar with.

Sadly, during our last visit, we did not find the food tasty or pleasantly memorable. On the contrary, the food was eminently forgettable. All the dishes were very plain and pedestrian; hardly tasty. The service was lukewarm, much worse, totally indifferent. Despite voluntarily seeking the waiter’s advice on the best meat options and combinations to order, we were not guided well. What we got in response was a mere matter-of-fact take-it-or-leave-it suggestion. The bland response which we were served made us lose our appetite. Deeply disappointed.

Despite the appalling food, the unacceptable service, and all else disappointing, when the bill was presented, the waiter made it a point to openly ask, in no uncertain terms, for tips, bordering on demanding. It made me feel uncomfortable and immediately in my mind, Shinkows slid down by many miles on its hard-earned brand value and worth earned painstakingly over many, many moons.

It is evident that at this rate, this once famous establishment is headed towards its inevitable and unceremonious end – unless they revamp their menu, up their services, enhance the food quality and above all bring it to the level where it once used to be decades back – as a must visit not just Chinese restaurant, but a must visit...

I recently visited shinkows Chinese Restaurant in Otty and overall, it was a disappointing experience. Here’s a breakdown of my visit:

Food The food was not as good as it was hyped up to be. The flavors were mediocre, and the dishes lacked the authenticity and richness one would expect from a reputed Chinese restaurant. Despite the positive reviews I had heard, the reality did not live up to the expectations.

Service The service started off well, but things took a turn for the worse towards the end. Our waiter, Nathan, provided good service initially. However, when it came time to leave a tip, he was dissatisfied with the amount we offered and actually refused it, asking us to keep it. This behavior was quite unprofessional and left a bad impression.

Ambiance The ambiance of the restaurant was quite pleasant. The decor was inviting and comfortable, making it a nice place to sit and enjoy a meal.

Parking The parking situation was quite tight and inconvenient. It was difficult to find a suitable spot, which added to the overall frustration of the visit.

Payment Options One significant inconvenience was the lack of modern payment options. The restaurant does not accept GPay or any other UPI methods, which is quite outdated considering how common these payment methods have become.

Miscellaneous They serve pork, which might be a plus for some, but considering the overall experience, it didn't make much of a difference in improving my impression of the place.

Conclusion Overall, my experience at Shikows Chinese Restaurant was below par. The combination of mediocre food, an unprofessional response from the waiter regarding the tip, tight parking, and outdated payment options made it a visit I would not want to repeat. I would not recommend this restaurant based on...

Sadly, this place is one of those has beens, and no longer holds up to its past standards. You can check other reviews that express this.

I was suggested to visit this place a few days ago on a trip to Ooty with my family, by someone who lives in the same area. It was 8:30pm when we go there, not too late in the night. Firstly, about 10mins after we sat ourselves down and were ready to give an order. One of the servers came with 2 menus and dumped it on our table and left. We tried to stop him saying we were ready to give the order as we had our menus. But he mumbled something and walked away. When we called him back again after 2 mins to ask him about the options we chose, he again mumbled a half made up sentence and disappeared. We didn’t know whether we should be mad or laugh about it.

However after asking him our questions and getting half an answer we were asked to note down our own order on a notepad. This seemed new to us so we just did it anyway so that we could get the order in. Anyway after our order for sweet corn soup, Pork and Beef Chilli we were very disappointed with the food. The sweetcorn soup felt like a corn flour pulp with corn granules. No egg whites, barely any chicken. It was like baby food. The Beef and Pork chill didn’t let the meat’s taste come through as they should have, very mediocre batter fry for something priced at 460 rs per plate.

Either way we were shocked at the indifference shown by the servers and the food for its price point. I hope to find some good spots for authentic Chinese food around here as this establishment...