China Garden Restaurant

It’s my second time here and the food is good. However the service could be much, much better and more inviting. As soon as we arrived we were greeted with a sour comment «you are 15 minutes late»! They then set up our table for 2 child booster seats, and then complained that we put one of the children on the outside of the table where they would be serving the food, so we had to change the seats ourselves. When my friend took her child to the loo to change her nappy she was again told off by the staff that she was «standing in the wrong place»! I brought visitors here to have a good time and the service really let it down. I came here previously with a friend who knew the staff and the service was quite different…

Preston Street, with stpans the gap between Western Road and the Seafront is the closest Brighton has to a restaurant street. And one of the best places to eat down there is China garden. Amazing dim sum on the weekends is invariably very busy and there is a great choice of other dishes. You get friendly but brisk service: there is often a queue for dim sum and they want rid of you sharpish! But, what I do like best, is that lots of Chinese people eat here, which has to be a good sign.

Don’t try and get anything other than the dim sum the best in town according to those in the know

This place is a Brighton institution, especially for dim sum, which is probably the best I have had outside Soho. The clientele includes many Chinese families, which is always a good sign. A recent Sunday lunch had prawn cheung fun, lotus wrapped savoury rice, yam and mixed meat croquette, and pork, prawn and crabmeat dumplings. For pud, we had their excellent mango pudding. The food is all hot and well cooked, and as tasty a meal as you will find anywhere. If you are not familiar with dim sum, the above selection is an ample lunch for two, ranging across the dim sum repertoire. With jasmine tea and Tsing Tao beer, we were as happy as larry. Try it! (Good value too, our bill was £25 for two astonishing, really)

I went there recently and was utterly disappointed. The food was awful. I asked for NO MSG, and it was caked in the stuff… I know this because after years of living in the Far East, I know what effect MSG has on my body; that aside, the food was completely cold when it arrived, and when I asked for it to be changed, the waitress brought back the same thing but clearly microwaved for a few seconds. The wine was alright, but I hadn’t gone there for the wine!!!

We were there recently. The waitress was very rude, brought my husband the wrong meal and started shouting when he said sorry but I ordered another meal. In addition service is very slow. Food very expensive.
Do not waste your time going there.

Open Weekdays 12pm-11:30pm; Weekends 12pm-11:45pm
Wow The China Garden did not fail to impress. This is a real fine dinning experience and one of the few decent restaurants in Brighton. It is based at the bottom of Preston Street so you can have a table with sea views. As soon as you walk in the door you are warmly greeted by very friendly staff so you immediately feel special. Every table has been considered for an enjoyable dinning experience so you have a pleasant environment, space to relish your meal and the prompt courteous attention from your waiters. The menu consists of fantastic dim sum, Cantonese specialties along with more traditionally found Chinese items of noodles, soups and dishes. This is a fine dinning experience, somewhere to celebrate and this will cost a little more but it is worth every penny. You will come away feeling as though you have been spoiled, pampered and as a result you will indulge your taste buds.

Just off the seafront, this grand looking Chinese restaurant is extremely popular among Chinese natives. For those who aren’t Chinese, the food offered here won’t all be what you’re use to from experiences of take away’s and ‘Sharwoods’ sauces.
The food is all a lot more authentic, having eaten here with people from the province of Guangzhou, I can say that this is what they’re use to eating daily.
We ate a seafood griddle and lamb ‘hot pot’, both of which were well cooked, you can be sure that the food here won’t be full of colourings and MSG.
China Garden is more expensive than most Chinese restaurants, and that was my only personal reservation about eating here. Definitely an experience though, very different from what I was used to.

I’ve been to a few Dim Sum restaraunts, mostly in LA and SF — I’m not an expert at Dim Sum, but I do know good from bad. I went this morning and enjoyed it — it’s a very nice place, right off the seafront (there’s an NCP just around the corner, but they do have street parking if you are lucky).
What impressed me most — the dumplings, fillings, and various types and textures of outer shells were all very nicely done — and when we ordered the black bean desert, it was clear that they had been made to order — in fact nothing seemed re-​heated or as if it had sat for a while as in some Dim Sum cases.
I don’t know enough about it to say that this place is amazing, but I would definitely say it’s an enjoyable meal with a nice atmosphere and decent service/​prices.
Note: if you don’t plan on getting there early, you might want to make a reservation — it was packed today, but that may be because it was Chinese New Year weekend.

A huge Chinese place at the bottom end of Preston Street, and generally a better bet than many of the restaurants in that area.
The food tends to be less greasy and with better tasting ingredients than many Chinese restaurants, and the dim sum in particular is worth trying.
Staff are efficient and friendly.
I’d recommend getting here early if you want to eat on a Friday or Saturday night, or booking, particuarly if there are a few of you.

The China Garden is great for authentic Chinese food in a a swish setting, it has a modern décor with white walls and glass panelling, The prices are quite high for Chinese but you get what you pay for, everything taste fantastic particular to me as I’m used to quick cheap Chinese from takeaways.
Its always busy at weekends so book ahead, but it makes for a great atmosphere while dining. The service can be slow but that is to be expected when they’re packed I suppose. Its the best sit down Chinese I’ve had in Brighton.

Reliable, great position and often delicious Cantonese food. Especially good for dimsum. Surprisingly authentic Hong Kong buzz 50m from the beach.

I really have to say that just after ordering from the take away part of the restaurant tonight, myself and my partner were extremely disappointed with the food. I got a chicken curry which was bland as cardboard and don’t even get me started on the chicken. The chicken was not firm in any shape or form, the chicken if you can call it that had the texture of jelly. It was absolutely disgusting. My partner got chicken balls which had the same so called chicken in them.
I will definitely not be ordering from here again. Having said all that it could very well be an isolated case. On the plus side the service was quick and the people were lovely to deal with.

I’ve spoken to people who hate this place, but I sincerely don’t understand why. It’s towards the higher end of the price bracket, but it is in a prime location on the seafront just opposite the West Pier.
I’ve eaten in here 3 times, and the food and service has been excellent on each ocassion. I even came here the night before my wedding with my best man to chill out, and were able to do just that. The décor is very cool, and the service is attentive without being overbearing. Highly recommended.

This is a spacious restaurant, which I found very welcoming, with good service on the night I was there. According to the people I was with who know Chinese food, the menu was a good one, and I certainly enjoyed it.

Great dimsum at lunchtimes. Don’t sit there waiting for someone to take your order (as we did) but instead fill in the ‘tick box’ order form which will be on your table.
Restaurant has been there years and what used to be a swanky retreat is now looking a bit dated. Service is good.

looks better than it tastes, although food is not bad. Expensive. Its one for a business lunch.

I’ve been to this restaurant a few times and thought the food was not bad. The restaurant looks high class aswell as the helpful and friendly staff. I usually have dimsum (chinese cuisine) at lunch time and the quality of food is very good. Recommended for all chinese food lovers.