Royal China Queensway London Review
Royal China
Queensway, London
Reviewed by Amanda Hayes
For our first meal out alone since the birth of our son two years ago we were lucky enough to be given the opportunity to visit Royal China in Queensway which is right outside the Queensway tube station and a short walk from Bayswater.
Small and unassuming from outside the restaurant opens up to a large bustling room full of traditional Chinese décor and buzzing with atmosphere. We were soon seated at a large round table and menus brought to us. Whilst choosing our food we went for two Tsing Tsao beers which arrived quickly and nice and cold. To start we decided on Chef’s Imperial House Hors D’oeuvres which consisted of Sesame Prawn Toast, Spicy Smoked Shredded Chicken, Vietnamese Pancake Rolls & Crispy Seaweed. This was very tasty indeed and was a generous platter which staved off our hunger nicely.
We then moved on to crispy aromatic duck which arrived with plenty of steaming pancakes in a bamboo basket, spring onions and sliced cucumber. The duck was cooked to perfection with both plenty of flesh and crispy skin. To be honest we were getting quite full by now but keen to try a bit of everything we followed the duck with beef and cashew nuts, spicy smoked shredded chicken and Yeung Chow fried rice. The rice was packed full of large prawns and tasty pork pieces and the beef was so succulent it just melted in your mouth. I normally steer clear of beef in Chinese restaurants as it can be chewy but this was just perfect. There weren’t massive amounts of cashew nuts but enough to keep the dish interesting and with an added crunch.
To finish we shared a pistachio ice cream and a pot of Chinese tea. I can honestly say that the ice cream was the best pistachio ice cream I have ever tasted and was not sweet at all, just creamy and nutty. If I wasn’t so full from the rest of the meal I could have eaten two.
We were pleasantly surprised by the completely mixed clientele in the Royal China with plenty of families, couples and large groups. As an extra recommendation there were also plenty of Chinese customers too. The mixture meant for a great atmosphere and an almost full restaurant when we arrived at 7.30pm. It stays open until 11pm at there were plenty of people still arriving when we left around 9.30pm.
I highly recommend this restaurant, the food was very good, so was the atmosphere, and access is very easy with two underground stations within a three minute walk. A must try restaurant next time you are visiting London.
Rating: 5/5 
For more information or to view menus visit www.rcguk.co.uk/rcqw.html.
Royal China, 13 Queensway, London, W2 4QJ | 0207 221 2535
