Here is a tip from a retired Chef. You will notice that sizziling dishes are always far more expensive on the menu than standard dishes with exactly the same ingredients. What is the difference? Well we put the cast iron skillet on the range flame until it is super hot, put the dish from a normal pan on to the skillet and when the server picks it up we pour a shot glass of tap water into the corner of the skillet to create the ""sizzle"". The server then rushes for dear life to the table before the sizzle dies( usually lasts about 3 minutes ). looks great for people who have not ordered yet who think "Oh that looks nice" and pay18 quid for a sizziling dish rather than a tenner for one with no sizzle. You are paying for 40cl of tap water.

Gary, thank you for your honest review of this restaurant, in China town. When they are charging £3.60 for a can of Coke, at least serve it in a decent glass with ice and lemon. Not a very big ask.! The food looked very decent and presentable, but whenever served so quickly, one has to ask, how these dishes could be prepared so swiftly, unless they have a massive portions ready made and simply tossed into a wok for final heat and garnishing. Paying upfront is not a problem, since nowadays, some people will make excuses for going out for a smoke, never to come back again. The production value of your cameraman and your fantastic presentation earns a 10/10 score. The restaurant given the pricing and drink in a can, earns at best 6/10. I think I've been generous with the restaurant score, but now I've given it, I'll leave it as it is. Looking forward to your next review in earnest.

Actually, as far as Chinatown goes, that looked ok. It's very hit or miss down there, including the service! As far as I know, I think if you sit outside they tend to ask you to pay up front. They do get a lot of runaways (not our ages Gary, we probably couldn't leap the barrier let alone run after a big meal, but younger customers lol !), especially later in the evening when groups have had a few. The prices are very inflated and no way value for money, but as you said it is Chinatown and central London and very much targeting tourists, not Londoners so much. I only know quite a fair bit about Chinatown because my wife is Chinese and she says the food there is pretty much the same average standard in all the restaurants. She even joked that they probably have one huge main central kitchen running underground the area that sends dishes up to all the various restaurants lol. Anyway, you wanted marks. Well, it's hard to do that when you haven't tasted it, but from the look of the food and minusing the extortionate price, I'd give it a 7.

A friend of mine once paid £7.90 for a Coke so you're doing good. Not surprised you had to pay in advance. I guess they must have had a lot of people eat outside and run off without paying. Meal looked very nice. Well laid out on the table. Cheers for the review.

If you are ever in Southend there is an excellent Chinese restaurant called Wings (in York Road). It's cash only but the food is exceptional. Lots of the local Chinese community eat there which is always a good thing and the menu is full of dishes you don't see in your standard 'British' Chinese restaurant. Great videos by the way. Really enjoying your content.

Again spot on & why you are one of my favourite foodtubers! Quality looked spot on, the price was horrendous - you can get proper duck that's hanging in the window level stuff for very similar price with plenty of other dishes in Chinatown...you need to come Stoke & have a cheese, bacon, sausage Oatcake...the best breakfast food this side of Turkiye!

It’s nice to hear a proper review of food, not just someone saying that everything is amazing. Really enjoying your vids, thanks.

7.5! Another great review Gary. Nice to see China Town as background. Cheers and thanks.

Your critique was spot on again and I think your score was fair. I can’t see any justification for spending that amount of money for three dishes and you have had better, even a Michelin star rated plate of food for roughly the same amount! Great video 😊

I was in there a couple of weeks ago while on holiday in London. I couldn’t believe how expensive it’s gotten. We also paid £50 for two dishes, two boiled rice , a beer and a small bottle water. It was never so pricey 5 years ago when I lived there.

Loving the channel. Great ideas for places to go!

Hi Gary, suggestion on your travels "Miller and Carter". my favourite steak house. Excellent review as usual. 🌹👍

Beef looked better quality than the usual stuff you get at a takeaway. £15.80 is steep but your paying a bit for location. The real kick in the gonads is paying £3.60 for a can of coke!!!! I’d give it 8/10 as although overpriced,it did look good quality Keep up the good work Gary

Another decent review Gary, not been here since it got a 0% hygiene rating, shame I didn't see this video beforehand as would of said and you wouldn't of gone! Also love in the background showing the great musical: Les Mis 👍🏻

Gary - I totally agree with you as price is all important especially the cost of living in today's economic turmoil. What you could do is to break your rating in to say 3 distinct areas. Food, ambience and price - mark all 3 say out of 10 each and then work it out as a percentage as currently you're tending to give it one great big overall score which is not as subjective as splitting it in to 3 areas. Hope you find that helpful and keep up the good work! . . . . 👍😎👍

Note to self, "stop watching Gary Eats when it still an hour till your own dinner"

Another great clip Gary, but oh wow, did you pay for the pleasure or what, it was a great deal of money which i would suggest only a 7. Your quite correct a family Chinese for four is about the same or less than what you paid. I cant think of any Chinese restaurants up here in North Yorkshire, but like iv said before some great fish and chip shops in Whitby like The Magpie and Trenchards. Also if you want a massive 32oz Haddock and Chips yes 32oz, you can get it from the take away at Murgatroyds in Leeds for just £17 (more if you eat in) Chris.

Hi Gary. Went to Gerard’s Corner last Tuesday and sat inside based on this video. Lovely meal and very reasonable for London prices and location. Thanks for the recommendation. Keep the video’s coming 👍

Great review Gary. Chinese is my favourite it looked good and you are in London so the price weĺl done👍don't understand the bill before the meal though with service charge

Proper expensive!!! Nevernind the £3.60 for a coke... I'd say £5.50 for a bowl of egg fried rice is extortionate. Great video as always!

I'm really unsure how to score too. I think price is really important and £3.60 for a coke & paying upfront says it all. I used to work near Chinatown and only the buffets charged in advance (& they were fairly good in their day). Its hard to score.. I agree with you Gary... So I will read all the other comments instead & decide that way (lol). Another great review.

You have answered your own question. I totally totally agree with you. Back in the day. I say 4 - 5 years ago. A meat dish lemon chicken or whatever was £9 odd but now £12-13 for it is expensive!

Another good video mate Thought you was giving the gilet a rest

Hi Gary, just discovered your channel and am enjoying it. Great work. I watched another review around Teddington and wondered if you have tried the Naturally Chinese restaurant in Surbiton. I have been there with some Chinese friends for dim sum and they thought it was good.

Not too surprised by the price in a tourist trap but the food does look nice

Gary I love your channel! I'm in the USA hoping to see you over here across the pond sometime soon! Come to Pittsburgh, PA!

Hi Gary. Another excellent review. The food looked very nice but, as you said, that was very expensive for a Chinese meal (bearing in mind that I live in North Wales and I'm not used to London prices). Given the cost I'd rate that at 6.5 out of 10. By the way, if you ever do a feature on North Wales I can give you some places to try.

That hot plate looked half empty, theres better value ones there, great video Gary ty

The sweet & sour chicken looked delicious I’d give it 8/10 but the price for what you got was quite high. So 5/10 for value for money. You should try so,e Chinese buffets. As for trying places outside London, the Eastern Eye Indian restaurant in Newton Abbot, Devon does an awesome delicious -all you can eat- Indian buffet on Sunday and Tuesday evenings. Very reasonably priced. Exeter has some nice Chinese and Lebanese places.

Hi Gary. Used to visit this place with some mates back in the day Cannot remember paying before the food arrived - very strange. Excellent channel.

Across the pond here. Could you go on a Pub food tour. Thank you! Love your channel 😊

Gary I'd rather have tried a all you can eat Buffet ! 15-20 quid you can get them for in Chinatown and as good or better than what that looked ! Terrible prices Nate ! Cheers Gary mate ! Paul ! South Tottenham ! 👍👊🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿

The more extensive the menu the lower the quality, usually. Never been there, but I can promise you we won't visit the place. But as usual, a great honest review, mate! Keep up the fab work, mate! 🍾🥂 PS. Not too fond of Chinese.. sorry mate

Absolutely fantastic video Gary, pity the prices are not a lot better. I know one you can get a lunchtime meal for just under a fiver, I am surprised because Chinese can be great value for money.

Another excellent review Gary , food looked delicious, I thought £3.60 fir a coke was a lot ,I would give it 8/10 ❤

you should have gone to the Chinese streetfood tent on Berwick Street. Would have cost a fraction and the food is superb

Great blog, great food, expensive. Agree with your score. Tourist trap. But, it was quality!

Nice one Gary lad, keep up the good work

Pricey but does look good enjoy gazzer keep the honest reviews coming

If you’re going to do Asian food in London again, I’d definitely recommend going to Bang Bang on Edgware Road in Colindale, it’s a wonderfully diverse eating hall with vendors from the whole content of Asia and although not cheap is very good value. Atmospheric but not theatrical and vibrant as a location

Looks like it has a 0 food hygiene food rating. Major improvements required. I definitely would not go there. Visited London a few years ago with a Thai friend. went to a different restaurant in china town (can't remember the name) the worst Chinese meal I've ever had, had about 2 spoonfuls of an horrendous chicken with cashews and stopped eating. Usually judge the restaurants we visited by the state of the toilets, my friend warned me not to visit the toilet !!

Looks nice Gaz but £46 for a 2 course meal n a can o coke is way over the top me n the missus can go to our local Chinese restaurant and get a banquet for 2 and a bottle of wine for less than that so it’s only a 3/10 for me pal great vids keep it up 👍

I'd recommend Golden Pheonix next time, they do similar dishes but excellent dimsum for something a bit less greasy. You are right about the area being a tourist hotspot but there are a few places like the one I mentioned that are popular with locals (usual bring my parents there)

Looks quality and fairly generous on the portion size. I would pay beforehand but not at that price. It's just too expensive. 6/10 Cheers

Yes I agree that seems over priced. Even though it's in China town . So I would give it 6 out of 10 . The drink was extortionate and also a check getting the customer to pay upfront for customer service.

Food looked really good Gary but the price was very expensive.Albeit that was 2 meals you ordered,it did look very tasty. Cheers👍

Slowly catching up on your back catalog Gary, 😁😁😁😁, one thought thy price was a touch expensive, but when it was served . . . It looked fantabulosa . . . Starving at dinner time down 🥝🥝🥝under, 🍺🍺🍺🍺cheers from below stairs Gary 👏👏👏👏

Food looked good Gary but the price was steep. Don't like the idea of paying before you get to taste the food.

I just checked..this venue has a 0 hygiene rating a 0!!! 😮 Wow! £46 for a bit of beef, a few chicken balls and rice. I agree no matter the taste can not justify the price. Fair enough if you in Harrods or something

Yummy 😊😊id love to be eating that now the beef sounds so good looks amazing and who doesnt love sweet and sour fried rice looks delicious although i prefer a bowl of broken rice with asian food i hadnt eaten all day and sat down with a cuppa and this pops up now im salivating i pay before meal at my fav Vietnamese cafe which is amazing food to😊😊😊😊😊😊

At last, I found a review from you of a place I've visited! A friend and I had lunch here before we went to a matinee at 1 pm. Paying first was *good*, because we were watching our time, and the restaurant became very busy, very quickly. It wasn't cheap, but she arrived in London at about 11 am, so we couldn't stray too far. I wouldn't eat here if you wanted a Chinese meal per se, but for our purposes, 7/10.

Hi, the food looked tasty enough, but the price was a little steep. That said, you did know the price before you ordered! I'm sure there must be very tasty but inexpensive Chinese places in London, perhaps you could do a lunch for less than a tenner mini-series?

Don't forget to get east end pie and mash and liquid

Many years ago I used to love drinking in De Hems and then eating on Gerrard Street. My other half and I ate at Wan Chai Corner a couple of times in 2018 and the food was awesome. I also love the Ping Pong restaurants, they used to do an all you can eat deal, DimSundays, it was quite wonderful.

Blimey looked good but as you say a tad pricey but i suppose its London nice one mate GREAT REVIEW !!

They instantly lose one mark for adding their own tip to the bill.

There's no decent Chinese restaurants in Chinatown. Most of them overpriced and tourist traps. Enjoyed the vlog though

On looks alone I'd give the meal 8/10 but with a service charge before you've had an y service (what a cheek !) I'd bring it down to a 6 . So expensive there though (London prices I guess) cos here in Adelaide we'd pay half that price at our fav Chinese & that would also include 3 spring rolls & a bag of prawn chips !! Amazed also at the price of a glass of Coke - are they having a laugh? All comments aside Gary, thank you for another great video and I can't wait to see where you go on your travels around the UK.

Gary my friend, I really appreciate and enjoy the up front and honest style of your videos, keep up the good work. I have Discovered the best way in high Tourists Areas to Secure a good Meal at a Reasonable price is to Investigate Different places and Observe the People, as to see were the good places are before You Make a Final decision. Never, Every just Select a place Without doing some type of investigation, to Determine If the place is Worthy of Your time and Money. This is What I Regularly do Whenever I go to a place to Eat if I haven't been there before, and if I see Things I don't Approve of, I'm Never be Ashamed of walking Out of There. So, how would I rate this situation, Overall, This Rates 4/10, And That's Being Generous. Take Care Gary, And All The Best To You And Your Family.

Hi Gary. The food looked tempting, especially the beef with the crispy onions. But at £16, despite the location, I'd feel a little cheesed off. The chicken again looked appealing and the £12.50 was a more reasonable price. Certainly the rice was overpriced and the cola was way too expensive. I understand a joint like this has high overheads but I think I'd leave it for the tourists. The speed with which it was delivered to your table (5 minutes) would have worried me but you said it all tasted good so fair play. I don't understand the advance payment of the bill unless it is, as you suggested, due to 'runners' but I can't see it. I think it's just a policy they have where they grab the money as quickly as possible and there's no way back for the punter in the case of complaints about the food/refunds etc. The sour icing on the cake was the advance service charge! So... decent looking grub, but as I say, I don't imagine many in-towners eating there and it's a tourist place. Food : 7/10 VFM : 4/10 Dining environment : 6.5/10 minus a point for the naughty advance service fee. Unless my maths are wrong, I make that, with the deduction, an overall score of 5.5.

Food looked good but its got to be 0/10.Paying for food before you even receive it ? I Dont think so.

I'm well out of touch on London prices. I looked at the menu and I would have picked different things. E/G Crab in ginger and spring onions is one of my favorites. But at over 30 UK not a chance. The last time I had that in China town it was 17 UK. The prices frightened me so would have given that restaurant a wide sidestep. Little tip look for a restaurant that has lots of Chinese people eating there if it's full of tourists give it a wide berth. Or you will get stung as you found out. Love your presentation please carry on with the volgs. Oh, and if you are going to try things that you don't know a lot about just stick to the the safer UK stuff. Oh, my mark for the value of what you had was a -1.

Service & Chinese restaurants is an oxymoron ....

That's a lot of cash for what you are getting. I'm going to be conservative because the quality looks great but the price isn't. 6.5/10.

First i enjoy your vids as i love food you make them intresting and you dont say you know everything With the chinese meal i use i local one near my home Your meal looked the same as mine but you got bigger portions I get 4 courses and a bottle of wine for 11 euros I dont live in the uk but still a foodie My family and freinds tell me how much a chinese is in the uk But your meal looked great but very expensive as you said Really enjoying your vid always nice to see different points of view

Sadly, its a sign of the times. Central London is soooo expensive now for business owners due to the cost of the rent. Unfortunately, those costs get passed onto customers. I live in the London suburbs and recently went to a local Spanish restaurant for a friends birthday - the restaurant charged £9-12 for a starter and £18-£35 for a main course! The food was nice enough but the portions were tiny and after dessert + 1 soft drink + service charge, it was over £50 a person.... 😞A friend of mine went to a Korean BBQ restaurant near Covent Garden recently and that was even more expensive with mains costing £25-£45! London is a tough place to live these days in terms of cost of living.😞

It would be interesting to see what the other places nearby were charging for the same items. Food looked great and obviously tasted great but for me i wouldnt set foot in there again. Anyone charging that much for a coke is a joke. 7/10 all in for me.

Excellent review. Your channel is booming. More…..

I would say 6/5 out of 10, the food looks great, but v expensive…and the bill situation….there was a £9.95 eat all you can buffet next door. And deff please don’t come to Orkney, our takeaways truly suck because they don’t need to try. Great review again Gary m8👍👍

It is several years since I have eaten there, it was my late wife and my own favourite in Chinatown. Looked like a meal for two so I would rate it a 6 as I'm sure there are better value eateries around the vicinity.

Gary Gary! Yes it’s because you don’t run off! Should have tried Golden Dragon just a long the road. I went 2 times a week when I worked in London.

We went for dinner in China town and it was poor and expensive. You really need to know exactly where to go rather than take pot luck. Excellent review Gary.

The seems expensive to me but I guess that’s Chinatown prices nowadays. It used to be cheap years ago. Me and Hubby Joe spend around £45 on a Chinese takeaway and get two nights dinner from it and that includes starters!!! £3.60 does sound extortionate for a can of Coke! 6/10 for me as the beef looked great. Not a lover of sweet and sour as it’s always way too sweet for me.

Hey Gaz, the next time you're in Chinatown could you try the dim sum menu at Plum Valley? Was recommended it by a couple of friends but have never been!

Great video This placed seemed much better than Lido. Granted the price was very high. But if I’m out simply for a meal and not to “dine” my rating is only based on the quality and taste of the food

If you’re travelling around the country then try the Eastern Eye Indian in Newton Abbot, Devon. It has a delicious all you can eat Indian buffet on Tuesday and Sunday evenings.

"I'll see you guys shortly", always sounds like a threat to me! 😅😅

Me and the Mrs went to Young Cheng Buffet around the corner in Wardour St on Saturday Gary. It was £15 each to eat in and as much as you like. I thought the food was very good and a great selection with no service charge.

Looked ok , but very unsure of paying for the meal before trying . My score would be low for the way they charged you ! So it’s a 6 from me! You give a good review.🙏🏼🤩👏😁💙

Any tourist area (usually urban), in Any country is going to charge higher prices. 1 - Because they can (most visitors don't know any better) 2 - The rent/lease is likely a lot higher, so higher over head. The food looked mediocre, but the prices don't surprise me even though I'm not from the UK. It's the same here in Toronto, Canada

Hi Gary I order the same as you have, a sizzling beef or fillet steak but with black bean sauce, and sweet sour chicken Hong Kong style with noodles or rice, it usually comes to £45, it does look lovely at Chinatown sitting outside, would expect it to be dearer in London, I would give it 9 out of 10, knocking a, point off for paying in advance before the meal x😍

Agreed it's going to be expensive in the centre of Soho (and London) for that matter, but I think it was overpriced. The rice portion was particularly mean.

You always get the bill first in china town because people do run off if your outside, a bit expensive I thought remember they’re catering for mostly the tourists trade so west end prices, they don’t care if you don’t come back again there will always be the next tourist. My mark 8 for the food and 4 for the prices. Remember they’re not bothered if you don’t come back!!!

If you're in Central London, you're always paying a secret "tourist tax" some call it which is inflated costs due to the location that you're in compared to your local. Standard Sweet & Sour dish at a Chinese takeaway is usually around £6.50 which is what I pay and it's far better if not the same as what you'd get in Chinatown. Highly recommend Wing Sing, South Woodford, E18 if you would like a set meal for less than what you paid for just 3 dishes and it's on the Central Line also!

I love your reviews. You need to try Wong Kei, it’s also in Chinatown. The soups are superb. It’s a cash only establishment.

Try the Four seasons in Gerard street have the roast duck off the bone with crispy pork on rice with a bit of chilli oil very good mate

Gary, as all Chinese know, the best Chinese spots needs traffic, so if you are not waiting at least 30 minutes for a table, don't take a chance, especially if you are the lone customer. If in doubt, Cantonese BBQ restaurants are a great go-to spot, with a good variety of proteins and rice. One last tip: never order soda pop, they have universally gouged customers for decades, globally. Stick to a pot of Chinese tea. The score for this Chinese restaurant, a barely passing grade, 5/10 in a tourist spot.

Looks good mate, but way overpriced. SF and tip is ridiculous, we don't have that in Oz. Great to see your channel growing! (7)

.....I made an error 'once'. I ordered a 2 bottles of white wine here in Moraira Spain.Tha charge was 20E a bottle. I mentioned it and they said it's stated on the menu( I hadn't looked) Moral: The prices are there...... nobody's forcing you to order. Even go on line before you leave home. Your dilemma answered: You enjoyed it. China town is an experience, sat outside, people watched and relaxed. Worth every penny in my book.😎🍻

2 mains was ordered which is really for 2 people and factor in Central London prices then the cost wasn't surprising.

Ok we think 8/10 for the food . however fride rice over priced ... sizzling dish only sizzled for a min or 2 ..VFM well the coke was crazy price !. And paying service charge before serving..nuts 🙃.As a retired chief ( yup another lol).A tourist trap for sure ( I've eaten in China town and never paid before service so VFM 4/10..all the best keep rocking 👍🎸

If food really nice, I'd mark it down purely on price, 4.5/10. As you say, for that, 2 dishes and rice, you could've bought a huge banquet from most good Chinese chippies. * Re a recommendation: If you're ever up Liverpool way, i'd suggest the Chung Ku. A stand alone restaurant on the Banks of the Mersey. Only 6 or 7 mins drive, or a nice 30 min stroll from the city centre. The exterior could do with a lick of paint, but lovely inside, fantastic views of the river, and excellent food.

Oh Gary next time you are there - track down The Experiemntal Cocktail Club - it’s a speakeasy at 13a gerrard street so you walked right past it but you wouldn’t know as it’s just a black door - you have to stand outside and eventually someone lets you in. It’s an amazing bar like going back in time - so in a way it’s like Mr Foggs round the corner from Sexy Fish. So it’s styled like an old gentleman’s club. Well worth tracking down next time you are in China town in London - 13a Gerrard street! Experimental cocktail club.

I thought it sounded expensive but looking at the meal it looks amazing very good value 😊❤

Another great video. But very odd too pay your meal before the meal . Also service charge too . Nice food .. But not worth that cost. But then again it’s London. Every thing is expensive 🍺

The portions looked great and well presented but expensive for only 3 dishes!! and quite big service charge etc. I think with chinese food often the best value for money is a good all you can eat buffet or a local one near where to someone lives perhaps?? as central london is very expensive alot of the time?

No doubt they have a few fail to pay types, hence the upfront bill. I would have asked them to take the service charge off and give a tip post meal if you wanted to. Sizzling dishes are popular here in Australia but no real mark up where I live. Probably 13 quid for the one you had. Food looked good to me, quality perhaps a touch pricey, but it is London.. 8/10.

Love Chinese food - you should try Happy Seasons in Manchester Chinatown. There’s always a queue outside & I’ve never been disappointed.

If you are in south east London call in at the Miso in Beckenham High Street. Competitively priced, generous amounts and good service. Also branches in Orpington and Bromley.

Hoping you try out wings international cuisine in Hull some time. Tomahawk steakhouse in beverley is also nice.