China Bar Signature Buffet & Grill on Burwood Highway has been around for almost a decade. It started more like yum cha all you can eat with Peking Duck, Century Egg and Pork Congee, Roasts Meats and so much more. It was such a fantastic all you can eat. In addition, if you visited at dinner time, you also had access to fresh seafood including crab, prawns, scallops, mussels, clams, and various fishes. Plus all the Japanese, Malaysian/Singaporean, and south east Asian cuisine, such as sushi, sashimi, curries, and pad thai. The dessert bar was also brimming with various cakes, panacotta, custards, mousse, and ice-cream.
| Highlights | The all-you-can-eat menu changed from Hong Kong yum cha to more Korean barbecue grilled meats. It’s a step down from the fantastic experience when it opened with Peking Duck, a variety of yum cha dumplings, noodles of several kinds, and heaps of sushi and sliced fish. Now it pales in comparison to what it used to be and cooking for yourself isn’t as enticing as the experience should be. |
| Cost | $45 per adult for lunch (Thursday to Sunday) $59 per adult for dinner (Sunday to Thursday) $69 per adult for dinner (Friday, Saturday and Public Holidays) $10 per children age 4 or below 30% off full price for children age 12 or below 10% surcharge on Sunday and Public Holidays |
| Location | 380 Burwood Highway, Burwood East VIC 3151 |
| Website | http://www.chinabarsignature.com.au/ |
In July 2023, China Bar Signature Buffet & Grill decided to add grill to its name and bring in grilled meats. Gone are the Peking Duck, Century Egg and Pork Congee, Roasts Meats, most of the dim sum, and the fresh seafood. Instead, you can pick your own meat to grill at the table from beef, lamb, pork and chicken. There are wagyu beef, satay chicken, Taiwanese sausages, and pork belly. Despite all the meat, I felt let down by the sauces and seasoning for the meat. While you can cook as much meat as you want, you don’t have any salt, pepper or any interesting sauces to go with it.
The bain-marie had some decent dishes like fried rice, beef brisket, chili fried clams, honey chicken and lemon chicken.
The dessert bar also had salads, but the usual suspects were there as well as a lolly and ice-cream station.
We visited for lunch on a Sunday where they had a get three and one free deal, but still incurred the 10% extra surcharge. There is also a surcharge on credit card payments as well. It’s $39 per adult, which isn’t too bad for a lunch. I don’t know if they swap out or add anything new during the dinner session. Sessions only go for two hours.
The décor is decent. The chairs are comfortable and cozy, maybe slightly elegant.
There are people who wander around to help customers with the grill and to put water jugs on the table. They have their own bar for drinks, which cost extra.
This feels more like a Korean barbecue than a yum cha all you eat
To get to the location you can either drive or take Tram 75 down Burwood Highway from Flinders Street.
In my opinion, I think China Bar Signature Buffet & Grill has lost its focus and charm that it had when it focused on yum cha cuisine. I am not sure how far the grill aspect will go, but I’d much rather go to an all-you-can-eat Korean barbecue for a cheaper price.
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