We’ve been wanting to dine at this newest Chinese restaurant in Bathurst street for a long time but every time we pass by for dinner, there’s always a long queue.
On Christmas Eve, we decided that we will endure a long queue, in case there was, just so we can finally eat there. And what do you know? There was none. We easily got ourselves seated with a good view of the whole restaurant and the see-through kitchen.
Chefs Gallery is a Chinese restaurant with a modern feel. I’ve never eaten at a Chinese restaurant such as this. I found it very refreshing to sit and eat in a minimalist ambience (they have zen-like interiors as compared to those heavy looking furniture flared up in gold and red found in traditional Chinese restaurants!)
There’s something admirable about a restaurant being transparent when it comes to preparing food. In Chefs Gallery, guests have the privilege of watching what goes on inside their kitchen. Inside the glassed kitchen, every staff member wears a mouth guard for hygiene purposes. The first thing I said to the Husband when we saw them, “Ohhh, it’s like the ones we’ve seen on koreanovelas!!” (Yes, we are fond of watching them).
Service was fast, friendly and attentive. We decided to order one dish in each course to try a bit of everything. Our waiter smiled at us and told us, “I think that is more than enough for both of you” as we’re about to inform him of our desire for dessert. We only laughed as our eyes made contact that said, “We’ll see about that.”
This was Christmas Eve lunch after all and other than Christmas we are celebrating a number of personal milestones that day. To wet out appetite, we ordered the Pork Belly Roll.
This was soooo good. Pork Belly Roll is a thinly sliced blanched pork belly rolled with carrot, cucumber, topped with a garlic and oil-free vinaigrette dressing.
After the Pork Belly Roll, all the other dishes we ordered (except for dessert) arrived. We ordered Chinese Tea so we can easily digest what we were about to eat and to help pace ourselves.
Our first time to try pastry in a Chinese restaurant with this dish called Shou Zhua Bing or Fluffy Chinese Roti served with lots of pork floss on top. This golden pastry is soft and delicious.
The pork floss had the right amount of saltiness and made me want more. It became an instant favorite of mine.
Since we were in Chinese restaurant, we tried the usual dishes: Steamed Pork Buns and the Steamed Prawn Dumplings.
Sad to say, they pork buns and dumplings didn’t measure up to our expectations.
Good thing we partnered the buns and dumplings with delicious Handmade Fried Noodles. We can’t resist the urge to try their handmade noodles so we ordered the Thick handmade noodles wok fried with shredded pork and black fungus. The dish looked inviting and when we saw it, the Husband and I attacked it like there was no tomorrow. It was delicious and very flavourful. The noodles were cooked perfectly.
The noodles were also perfect for our Sweet and Dark Pork Ribs. According to our waiter, this is one of their best sellers. I would have loved this dish if I was fond of sweet dishes. However, “biased-aside”, this is a great dish. The fusion of sweetness and saltiness is immaculate.
For dessert, we ordered another best seller, the Steamed sesame ‘piggy face’ buns (as sumptuous to the eyes as it is to the taste buds according to the menu). It’s the cutest bun we’ve ever seen!!!! What a creative and lovely idea for a sesame bun. An order consists two piggy face buns–a male and female!
Took me awhile to eat it because it’s soooooo cute!!!! I didn’t want to ruin their work of art. The bun was so soft and the inside was filled with black sesame paste. It’s sweet and nutty.
Our thoughtful waiter offered to pack our leftovers for take away but surprisingly, we finished everything off.
The Husband and I enjoyed our Christmas Eve lunch and we will definitely come back here for more.
Chefs Gallery
Shop 12, Ground floor
Regent Place, 501 George Street, Sydney
(between KFC and the Lumiere building,
main entrance on Bathurst Street)
Tel: +61 (02) 9267 8877
Opening hours:
Open 7 days 11am-3pm and 5pm-late
