• Mahjong Room

This modern Cantonese eating house in Surry Hills is famous for its traditional wooden mahjong tables and monthly lunches which combine lessons in the traditional game of mahjong and dim sum. Mahjong Room serves home-cooked Chinese food in a fun and relaxed atmosphere with a modern touch. Private dining rooms are also available for banquets and group bookings.

Address: 312 Crown Street, Surry Hills
Ph: 02 9361 3985
Monday to Saturday 6.00 - 10.30pm
Last Saturday of each month,
11.30am - 5pm (Lunch or Playlunch)
Website: http://www.mahjongroom.com.au

• Lotus Pond Restaurant

Set in the tranquil surrounds of a palatial Chinese garden, Lotus Pond offers an extensive menu of regional Chinese and Asian specialities.
Address: Level 2, above Garden Buffet
Website: Lotus Pond

• Blue Eye Dragon Chinese Restaurant

This Taiwanese restaurant combines a touch of casual elegance with happy service while enlivening familiar flavors from the mainland. Blue Eye Dragon is BYO but there's a bottle shop next door. It is modern, yet rooted in tradition, ranging from street stall dishes such as the addictive deep-fried chicken with basil and five-spices ($8) to a sort of sang choi bau with prawns and pine nuts ($12).
Address: Shop 2, 42 Harris Street, Pyrmont, NSW
Ph: (02) 9518 9955

• Dragon Star Sea Food Restaurant

This is the largest and possibly most traditional of China town's impressive list of restaurants. Up to 1,000 people happily eat their way through the best and purest of Cantonese cooking in town-it is huge, busy and noisy. If you go at the weekend, be prepared to queue for up to an hour for a table. Lunch time is Yum Cha - pork buns, prawn parcels, dumplings, the decision is yours. Just choose from the passing trolleys. Evening specialty includes duck and amazing amounts of seafood. Complimentary green tea is always served.
Address: 9-13 Hay Street Sydney, NSW 2000
Ph: (02) 9211 8988

• Billy Kwong Chinese Restaurant

Celebrity chef Kylie Wong runs this small joint that serves some excellent Chinese and Asian fare. Most dishes have been created from her traditional family recipes, so you can get a taste of home. The Crispy-Skinned Duck with Blood Orange Sauce and the Vegetable Dumplings are highly recommended. As this place is small, it can get a bit noisy but the food really compensates for that.
Address: 355 Crown Street Sydney, NSW 2010
Ph: (02) 9332 3300

• Chinese Noodle Restaurant

This is the ultimate cheap eat. With food and prices like these, it is no wonder this tiny spot is packed to the rafters every night of the week. It is a mini-hole in the wall, very basic, but they make the best fresh noodles, dumplings, spring pancakes and pork buns in Chinatown. And with really low pricing you walk away feeling
Address: 8 Quay Street Sydney, NSW 2000
Ph: (02) 9281 9051

• Lon grain Chinese Restaurant

The epitome of groovy, stylish and scrumptious modern Asian - and that is just the interior. A fusion of different continents makes for a fantastic combination of tastes and flavors; all consumed from long tables in designer decor. If there is a long wait for a table, there is always the adjacent bar full of hungry fellow diners. It all happens in a large airy renovated space and is as cool as Sydney comes.
Address: 85 Commonwealth Street Sydney, NSW 2010
Ph: (02) 9280 2888

• BBQ King Restaurant

This landmark Chinese restaurant has been serving generations of Chinese, Australians and, more impressively, local chefs for years. The food and buzz is everything the interior is not. This hot spot is infamous for its barbecued meats, spare ribs, duck, and price list. You will walk away more than satisfied with the variety of eats. And it is cheap, casual and comfortable.
Address: 18-20 Goulburn Street Sydney, NSW 2000
Ph: (02) 9267 2433

• Zilver Restaurant

At the top of the escalators, in an unobtrusive arcade, awaits one of the best Yum Cha restaurants. In this attractive environment, laden trolleys whiz by offering generous servings of all manner of dumplings, noodles, vegetables, barbecued meats, and succulent surprises. Popular with the local Chinese community this is an eating experience not to be missed. Set banquets include dishes such as Peking duck, soup, chilli prawns, fresh fruit and coffee or Chinese tea.
Address: 477 Pitt Street, Level 1 Sydney, NSW 2000
Ph: (02) 9211 2232

• FuManchu Restaurant

Fu-Manchu is as efficient and funky as it looks. The menu offers primarily Chinese and South-East Asian cuisine and although it has nothing like the variety that is available in Chinatown, it does have fresh, flavorsome food and boasts free range eggs and corn fed chicken. The slick modern interior is centered around two slim communal tables with little red stools. It is fabulous for a quick bite - noodles come served with a variety of meats or vegetables. Not licensed. No smoking.
Address: 249 Victoria Street Sydney, FL 2010
Ph: (02) 9360 9424