Grape Garden Peking Restaurant

By Franz Scheurer

This is a restaurant where food is the hero and everything else doesn’t matter. Décor is virtually non-existent, the walls need a good clean and the tablecloths are so thin you can read a noodle soup through them. Add thin paper serviettes and a menu that’s so badly tattered you can hardly read it and you get the picture.

However, the food is what matters. There are few restaurants in Sydney with such a strong, regional focus and the cooking, although home-style, is uncompromising and authentically Northern Chinese.

We started with a mixed cold platter and marvelled at the variety and quality of the offerings. The tripe strips were sublime, the tofu (both shredded and firm) unbelievably good and the beef substantial and perfectly chewable.

Boiled pork dumplings were glassy and sticky and the pan-fried vegetable dumplings seared to perfection with the ‘breath of the wok’ clearly perceptible. The shallot pancakes were a work of art and should be consumed as hot as possible.

There are a variety of dishes using pork on the menu and, guided by the waitress, we tried a spicy version that had all the flavour of a dish from Szechuan without the searing heat. A serving of Ma-po tofu, again, was full of texture and flavour without being overpowering.

The piece de resistance: the Peking Duck (order ahead). Pancakes, obviously homemade, were slightly thicker than some, but had good flavour, the sauce, again homemade, was exceptional, the spring onion and cucumber were freshly cut and the duck was superb. Not fatty at all, but crisp and salty, it rolled into the best Peking Duck pancakes in Sydney. For the second course (you have a choice of a soup or noodles), we chose the house-made noodles. They were so good I’d be happy just to eat them until I burst, served with lots of pieces of duck on the bone, they’re perfect finger food, the idea being to suck the remaining meat from the bones.

The only disappointment was the squid: a little overcooked and rubbery it didn’t live up to the rest of the dishes, however a platter of fresh Chinese greens made up for it. We ended our meal with a burst of black sesame paste shooting out of a hot, sticky dumpling, and we were ready to roll home.

The service is attentive and friendly. It’s nice to see the wait staff, when not sure of an answer, go away and find out rather than just brushing you aside. The restaurant is BYO (if you bring a really good wine you might want to bring your own glasses, too) and the jasmine tea is well above average. Value for money is exceptional, but be warned: it’s cash only.

Would I go back? Absolutely, soon, maybe tomorrow!

Score: 6.5/10

For more information or bookings:

Grape Garden Peking Restaurant

52 Penshurst Street

Willoughby NSW 2068

Tel.: 02 9967 2001