Your Review Here--The Golden Palace Restaurant, Brisbane

China Town, Brisbane, a relatively small pocket of red and gold running parallel to Valley Mall, opened on Chinese New Year 1987. Designed by three Chinese architects and three engineers from Guangzhou in China’s Guangdong province, Chinatown Mall is regarded as the most authentic in Australia. Walking up the mall and gazing at the shops surrounding a grand pagoda—which was rebuilt in 1996 after it exploded when a car drove through a second story window and landed on it in Jackie Chan’s film, First Strike—you will find Chinese supermarkets offering imported Asian goods, Chinese herbalists, duty free shopping, jewellers, a weekend street market and of course the plentiful, colourful restaurants. Steamy aromas escaping the many eateries and sights of the marinated birds and meats in the shop windows will tempt you into submission, but if you manage to make it to the top of the mall without eating yet, then you may want to visit the Golden Palace.

Sat in a cheerful room, I tasted something I had neither heard nor seen before. Presented as delightfully as it smelled, and smelling as deliciously as it tasted, it was something of a creative signature of the Golden Palace. Crafted by Hong Kong trained chefs, the glistening coat from a mighty oven roasted chicken had been gracefully removed and draped over, to tailor fit, a steaming prawn meat valet. The crispy chicken skin was a fine garment for a surprisingly complementary torso.Suzanne, the daughter manager of this long established family run restaurant, proudly invites us to join her.
“We’re one of the oldest Chinese restaurants in Brisbane and the biggest in the Valley and city area.
This restaurant was opened over 20 years ago and has been under the management of my family for over 12 years.”

A multi lingual waitress, looking authentic in vivid mauve and gold, carves a juicy Peking duck by our table and places succulent slices of the offering onto home made crepes. The self rolled crispy duck pancakes left us holding back on licking our fingers for want of more, but the next dish, wagyu steak cut into bite size, melt in the mouth morsels, outdid the first. Each mouthful was a gift for the tongue, chefs Peking sauce complementing the prime beef without overpowering the palate.
With two teams of staff, each working along side either the yum cha chef or the a la cart chef to perfect receipes and service, Suzanne proudly exclaims that the food has an ability to advertise itself once customers try it. Relying greatly on word-of-mouth marketing, she has a number of regular patrons. Her only complaint is that she sometimes finds that her frequenters tend not to be as adventurous as she would like them to be. By allowing staff to try new dishes, so they can appropriately describe all menu items, she influences some visitors and regulars to widen their knowledge and appreciation of Hong Kong cuisine. “We want to make sure every customer is satisfied every time, so the restaurant promotes itself. This is how we maintain a full house every Saturday and Sunday lunch time.”
The food presentation was outstanding, with pieces of vegetable artwork adorning each plate, carefully hand crafted to mimic flowers. The waiters and waitresses were friendly and it was very easy to find comfort in the relaxing environment. “The floor staff must speak English and Mandarin or Cantonese, and our chefs are brought here on their merits as specialist chefs in Hong Kong cuisine."
Although it isn’t exactly a first date place, for lack of privacy or romantic lighting, I would bring the family or a group of friends for any occasion to sit around one of the Golden Palace’s circular tables, which ensure a sociable, authentic eating experience coupled with a whistle wetting Australian wine list.
With a 350 seat capacity, and two private dinning rooms, the Golden Palace often holds corporate events, weddings, yum cha banquets and it has convenient ATM facilities. For menu and reservations please visit the Golden Palace website here.
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