Chuen Cheng Ku

i went to this restaurant last night for my birthday. i had been before and enjoyed it and decided to go again. the reviews below nearly put me off but i realized that they all criticized the service and service is not what you go to this place for.

i eat dim sum in chinese restaurants all the time and this is a really good place. it's very good value, (we ate an incredible amount of food - dim sum, duck pancakes, roast duck, char sui pork, etc) and it came to £15 a head. the service is sharp but that's how they do it. the food is tasty and the amount of chinese clientel proves that this is a decent joint.

the lights went out just when we were about to pay and the entire staff came out and presented me with a birthday jelly, candle and everything.

to top it off, Paul Daniels was having his dinner there and he did a special birthday magic trick for me. yes paul.

so if you want to take someone special to the most romantic restaurant in town, don't go here. if you want to go out with some friends and eat loads of great food, do.

and most of all, don't pay any intention to the reviews below
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barny barratt
Overall rating
Food 7 | Service 7 | Atmosphere 7 | Value for money 9
Tuesday, March 18, 2008

I wondered into this place one lunch time to find a bewildering barrage of trolleys serving dim sum. Alas no one would explain what was going on and almost none of the waiters spoke any English. By the end of the meal we had worked out the whacky system, but honestly a 10 second "have you been here before?" ala Nando's would have been welcome. All things considered the service was really terrible and the staff very unwelcoming.

So we end up just grabbing various things (the steamed dumplings being the best of the bunch and the steamed ribs being the worst). All of the dim sum was nice enough, and the ying yang fried rice was OK as well, but none of the food was great.

The lack of prices on the trolleys was a bit disconcerting and the end price of the meal was higher than we would have liked. For the quality of the food and the service I would say they are quite a lot overpriced. But the real killer was the service which was rude and very unwelcoming, I wouldn't go back.
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Businessman
Overall rating
Food 6 | Service 1 | Atmosphere 5 | Value for money 5
Friday, March 14, 2008

i have been to chuen cheng ku once and will i go again.... it was for a friends birthday and we got splitted up into 2 tables. the other table ordered a few minutes before my table and my table waited for an hour for our food. by the time our food have arrived, the other table had already finished...! i was not impressed with the food. at a such high prices i expected better. my dish was some what tasteless and it did not fill me up, (maybe it was because they made me wait so long for my food) in the end we decided not to pay the 10% service charge as our food came late and WHAT SERVICE?? so we crossed out the 10% bit (it stated on the bill that if we did not agree with the service charge we can cross it out). after that we left and a member of staff OH-SO-KINDLY said:

'in your free time, DONT come back'

well we WONT! and you shouldnt go there too unless you enjoy verball abuses......!!
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Overall rating
Food 0 | Service 0 | Atmosphere 0 | Value for money 0
Friday, November 30, 2007

DO NOT COME HERE!

Having been to this restaurant a number of times before i decided this will be the ideal place to take a small party out to celebrate. I later regretted this decision.

1. A had booked a table well in advance so wasn't impressed when i got told i should go to the buffet next door because everybody had not arrived at the same time.

2. We were rushed through our dinner and not asked if we wanted any drinks.

3. The food was cold, very greasy and the portions were small.

4. The food was overprized.

5. The waitress who came to collect our bill was rude and she even told one of my guests to shut up and called her a female dog.

There was many more problems which I would not go into. All together the night was a very unpleasent experiance and not one of us will be returning or will be reccomending to anybody.
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A. S - View all reviews by this user
Overall rating
Food 1 | Service 0 | Atmosphere 2 | Value for money 2
Thursday, August 16, 2007

I had my doubts when we arrived, as we were waiting for the rest of our party and the hostess could not stop staring at us! However once we went in and were taking through the many different rooms to our table, we found ourselves in a semi private room with a spinning middle table which was quite noisy from the A/C but we just talked over it. Also the drunken stag party in the corner were quite annoying but again we managed to ignore them. I found the main menu quite expensive so we opted for the set menu for 6 for 15 pounds. We were also able to swap a fish dish for a king prawn dish at no extra cost. Overall we were very pleased with the meal and whilst the service is not the best and the decor is quite dated this is the best chinese i have experienced so far in Chinatown. Our overall bill came to 21 pounds each incl of service charge though the majority of drinks were soft. I would recommend you visit here!
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Catherine
Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 7 | Atmosphere 6 | Value for money 10
Tuesday, December 19, 2006

Chuen Cheng Ku is a fun concept for those after fast food with little fuss.

Step into this restaurant and step back in time. Beautiful interiors this is not. Think more dodgy wedding function room from the 70s - but don't let that put you off - it's all part of the fun of dining tacky-stylee. Petite ladies in Chinese dress pidgeon step around the tables with food trollies full of little delights. Don't expect any curteousness, I've never been served with a smile but more of a grunt - but as I continue to say, it's a funny experience. Be careful not to get to carried away when each trolley visits you as the dishes do add up and with the regular breaks from eating, you can easily be tempted to let your eyes rule your stomach. For a fun, tasty lunch or a pre-night out in Soho, Chuen Cheng Ku is perfect. Don't expect to experience the finest in Chinese cuisine - it's far from, but do expect a quirky experience that I'm sure you'll frequent after your first visit.
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Jenn
Overall rating
Food 6 | Service 4 | Atmosphere 9 | Value for money 7
Sunday, December 03, 2006

By day waitresses push trolley loads of Dim Sum, coaxing, coercing and cajoling unsuspecting diners to partake of their wares.

By night this hub hub gives way to an oasis of calm and tranquillity. The same waitresses, who harry their customers by day, now serve their customers with meek servility and kindness. On the wall, fairy lights gently illuminate the oriental backdrop of temples. Two lonely Dim Sum trolleys remained, quietly and gently peddling their wares.

It was only 6:30, but the restaurant was already busy, and although we had not booked, we had no problem getting a table.

To drink we ordered pints of Carlsberg, which went well with the food.

The crispy aromatic duck as starter was outstanding, and for me the meal could have ended there.

For mains the sea food noodles were delicious, and made a welcome change from rice. The braised mushroom with prawn in black bean sauce swam in a glutinous sea, and although not for me, was enthusiastically devoured by my co-diners. Conversely I enjoyed the bean curd with spicy meat, but my colleagues didn’t. We all enjoyed the chicken with broccoli.

The bill came to £100 for 3, which we thought was a bit on the expensive side.

Despite the restaurant having already added a service charge to our bill, the credit card slip was left open for further gratuities – not only that but the supervisor insisted on a further tip. Practices that I thought had left the West End a long time ago.

Would I recommend this restaurant? On balance yes I would. But for the real action go for the Dim Sum.
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Stephen Blagden
Overall rating
Food 7 | Service 8 | Atmosphere 8 | Value for money 6
Saturday, November 25, 2006

We always go to CHINA CHINA or NEW WORLD in Gerrard St, but based on a friend's recommendation we thought let's give this restaurant a shot. We had dim sum on a Saturday lunch time and were seated within 5mins so no waiting. But the service was extremely poor. We had to ask for a simple steamed bowl of rice 5 times before it arrived 30mins later. Ordered crispy pork but was told it had finished by 1pm in the afternoon! Rest of the food came out not what we are used to going to dim sums. The choice and variety really lacking compared to the other two places we normally go to. THEREFORE WOULD NEVER EVER VISIT THIS PLACE AGAIN! Will definitely going back to CHINA CHINA and NEW WORDLD where we know for sure the food and service is always excellent.
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Overall rating
Food 0 | Service 0 | Atmosphere 0 | Value for money 0
Sunday, November 19, 2006

i have been going here with my mum for 6 years and we have even made friends with one of the waiters! the service is great and the food is amazing espicaly the red bean paste buns!
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clemmie dugdale
Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 7 | Value for money 9
Tuesday, October 03, 2006

We have been going to this restaurant for 25 years and love it just as much today as back then. The food is always fresh and varied and is very good value. It's a great place for families and out of town guests and we love that hungry tummies get satisfied immediately. Our favourites are prawn dumplings, roast duck and paper prawns, Service is attentive but very much like dim sum in Hong Kong - all about quality and efficiency - not necessarily charm. The atmosphere is authentic and upbeat. Go by noon on weekends or call to book to avoid queues.
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T. A. Collins
Overall rating
Food 8 | Service 8 | Atmosphere 8 | Value for money 9
Wednesday, June 14, 2006