Daphne's Restaurant — Restaurant in Christchurch

16/06/2020 - I suddenly has the urge to eat dim sum for lunch. Upon arrival, I wasn't sure what to order but had decided on: Durian puffs, pork and century egg congee, wonton soup, BBQ pork buns, steamed prawn 🦐 dumplings, steamed "siu mai" and milk buns. Overall, satisfying 😋.

Overall, it was a good experience. This is a licensed (🍻🍸🍷🍾🍹🍺) eatery. There is plenty of seating area. They accept cash and EFTPOS including credit card payments (Paywave payments are available, for those who want to know). Please note that they have 2% surcharge for all the credit card payments.

Would I go back? Yes 😀.

Food: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ out of 5. It was yummy. Ambience: ⭐ ⭐⭐ out of 5. Don't expect too much Price: ⭐⭐⭐ out of 5. Reasonably priced. Customer service: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ out of 5. The staff were friendly.

Disclaimer: Please note that this review is entirely based on my personal experience at the time of the visit (14/06/2020). You might have a different experience than me and also, the food may or may not suit your taste.

27/10/2018 - I came for the dim sum and it was marvellous. Friendly staff and fast service. I managed to find a car park 🚙 as I arrived early (around 11.30am). I ordered 10 different dim sum dishes including a bowl of congee with century egg and pork 🐖 slices. You must come and try it.

4/08/2018 - I've been this Daphne restaurant for many years for their dim sum. It is a great place to have dim sum or any Chinese food. Plenty of tables and chairs, and can accommodate a single person to a large group of people. It is also a good gathering place for family and friends.

There is a huge menu selection; from dim sum dishes to stir fried dishes and individual meals. The food there is mainly southern China cuisine (the photos are showing the dishes). I like the taste compared to other restaurants in Christchurch because it suits my palate. However, this is not the best dim sum that I had but it is up there with the good dim sum places. I believe it is the shifu (dim sum chef) plays the main role of making the dim sum taste good.

Friendly and helpful staff with a good service. The place is clean, neat and tidy.

The prices are reasonable and they accept cash, debit and credit cards. Please note that they have 2% surcharge for all the credit card payments.

Just be aware, it is hard to find a car park, especially during the weekends.

Would I go back? Yes ☺ Food: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ out of 5. It was yummy 😋. Ambience: ⭐ ⭐⭐⭐ out of 5. Don't expect too much, a standard Chinese restaurant but is clean and tidy. Price: ⭐⭐⭐ out of 5. Average pricing; some dishes are a bit expensive while some dishes are cheaper. So, no a concern when...

Visited for a quick light lunch. The outside appearance can make you feel a little apprehensive about coming in - it's a little old and tired looking. But that is partly due to the similar look of the whole complex this restaurant is part of. Don't be scared to go in. The interior is nicer (ignoring the old fish tanks), and the staff were very warm and welcoming. We only ordered six very common dim sum dishes for two people. The portions were of a good size. The flavour in the dishes was good. It's not the best dim sum I've had, but I would happily come back. In my experience, dim sum is very meat centred. They did have a few vegetarian options that were easily identifiable, though. More veg options would be great. Where are the tofu and mianjin creations?

It was very quiet when I visited, on a Saturday at 1pm. Food came out fast, and the waiter also came round with a trolley to choose from after we had placed our order on the paper form.

After being greeted and spoken to in Chinese, I confirmed that we wanted tea and that my grasp of Mandarin was nearly non-existent. We were then asked if we wanted forks by two different people, which was thoughtful.

The restaurant could use something to change the entrance from the main street. Currently, the doors open straight onto the dining room, right next to tables. This caused some draughts during our meal, as we sat close to the doors. Perhaps some tall potted plants or room dividers to make the entrance its own space. It would improve the feng shui, and possibly business as a result!

The bill came to 43 dollars for 2 people (6 dishes and tea). Reasonable I would say.

Would come...

Delicious food and exemplary service. We arrived at a busy time on Friday night, but the restaurant is huge and there were plenty of tables. There is a large staff and after helping ourselves to a table we were greeted by a bubbly friendly waitress who organised our drinks - I was pleased to find three nice local beers available alongside the mainstream options. We enquired about some dishes and she established we had some dietary requirements (wheat free). A manager swiftly appeared, and she offered precise knowledge of everything on the menu along with helpful suggestions. She was very diligent in establishing the exact nature of our dietary requirements - whether soy was okay in the marinade, etc. We felt very well cared for. The green beans with spicy pork mince were exactly the lovely umami experience we were after, the chef's special smoked pork belly was superlative, the delicious thin strips are my new favourite way of having pork belly, and the Singapore curried rice noodles were a nice unusual carb to soak up all the saucy goodness. From long experience trying many of Auckland's diverse restaurants and now quite a few in the south island, I am happy to say this is one of the best Chinese restaurants in New Zealand. We will...