Review Jin Yan - Castle Hill

We had Yum Cha there on a busy Sunday. The Dim Sum were excellent. The service was good. We'll be back.

Yum Cha is the best! The taste haven't changed even after the Last few years. BBQ pork bun is wow! The texture of the bun is very soft and melts in your mouth. Something that I would to come back to for our next family lunch out.

I would leave zero stars if I could. Came to this place only due to they could redeem the club reward, Get some take away food at 5 pm when it’s not busy, keep me waiting at counter about 5 minutes, hostess stand was rude, pointed to the counter corner and ask me to grab the menu by myself, menu is sticky, then I said I don’t need it, took order without the menu, then she said “ hard to server” in another language, which was shocked me. When I came back to pickup the order, then told me the soup I already paid was our of order, then did another kind of soup without asking, then I check the takeaway bag, there was no soup, terrible service and management, will not come back again.

We started ordering Take Away from here in 2020 (Lockdown). Always great food like the restaurant but went to order tonight and the prices have increased by more than $10 per dish (for example, one usual dish we order jumped from $15 to $27). Prices are now the same as they are if you eat in-house. No more orders for us.

And yet, there was more. For in this crisp time when autumn begins to fade, the chef brings pork ribs with black bean, and even adds beautiful sauce to the meat, while ensuring the heat is restrained. You experience the fruity, delicious flavor of this without any spicy pain. I don't need any more pain. Hell, does anyone? In finality, I will say that my experience at Jin Yan was sublime and my treatment near that of a gladiator most decorated. But the street parking wasn't that great. Four stars.

Booking system is horrible. Do not recommend. We noticed several orders were missed after been waiting for long, so we told the waiter to check it out, the man just went totally ignorant, he went changed all the teapots on each table, cleared the empty dishes for all other tables, even emptied the bin, but having further eye contact with us, left us with no explanation nor customer service, it’s shocking for all of us. Plenty of better chinese restaurants with better service, and they also charged 20% more than other Chinese restaurant.

Had really nice food at Jin Yan. Same as other people service wasn’t 5 star. Mains came out before entree. Lovely people just need to polish up on the customer service. Could not fault the food quality or price.

This restaurant is in a deep dive to the bottom of the pile. Went there on Saturday night like we have done other times and found they were not busy at all, we found after why this would be. After looking at the menu found all the dishes had gone up by at least ten dollars but we still ordered. The prawns chips were soft and the meals were small and tasteless and why is there pineapple in the satay. To cap it off at the end they gave us stale fortune cookies. I could go on but the message is to stay away from this place they are only still trading on there history.

Had yumcha there the other day, service was excellent and the food was delicious. Food service was quick and the all the dishes were very fresh. Loved the environment especially how there was like an open balcony, felt like a mini getaway from the city. Would definitely come back and recommend to anyone who loves Asian cuisine.

Good food, however absolutely HORRIBLE service. I visited the restaurant last evening (9 pm) for dinner with family and friends and from the moment we walked in, it seemed like the restaurant staff wanted to get rid of us..probably in a hurry to go home themselves. This is not a cheap place to eat and to be treated the way they treated us, was unacceptable. They even attempted to pick up the dishes (twice) from under our noses while we were still eating. Will never visit the outlet again. Spoilt a good Friday evening :(

Food was OK service was poor, my meal was out and we had to ask for my wife's Didn't come around to ask about tea, coffee or desert; or come back at all. No choice but to go to the front desk and pay

By the time we arrived at 1pm we were a bit disappointed that the trolleys stopped coming around at about 1.30pm, even though Yum Cha finishes st 3pm, however the few meals we did have were quite good & served nice and hot, compared to other places I've had Yum Cha where the meals have been lukewarm. Would like to try again one day and arrive there just as it opens.

Customer service was pretty poor. One guy who serve me had no communication skills at all. Food was pretty average rushed and banging plates here and there. Definitely would not rerurn

Great food Asian first class quality You feel you are in HK!

This was a lovely experience. Fruendly staff , clean, good service, great food.

Line up to get in. And some confusion with both girls at the front desk. Luved the food however slow in the beginning. But was busy !!

Amazing always have a great time and great food !

Came here for the first time on the weekend and really enjoyed it. It’s inside the Castle Hill Rsl club and the restaurant is quite spacious and very busy. We waited for a bit over 1/2 hour for our table. Really like the large variety of dim sums on offer in the carts. There were still fresh dishes that came out from the kitchen even though it was around 1:30pm by the time we sat down. Food tasted nice and I think it’s one of the best restaurant for yum cha around the area. Would visit again with my parents next time.

Was introduced to this joint by colleagues over a long Friday lunch. We were there for Yam Cha and it was one of the best I have had in awhile. Food was fast, with lots of variety and hot too. Particularly the Wu Kok (deep fried 🍠 yam). <br/><br/>As highlighted there is ample parking on site.’

Do not recommend it to Chinese people. <br/><br/>Service is slow as a snail. 20 minutes just to get drinks when the whole restaurant only had 8 tables.<br/><br/>In fact it’s a disgrace, how dare you service Veges first before the seafood Eg crab.<br/><br/>How does a Chinese restaurant not have lobster on a Tuesday. <br/><br/>They are only catered towards aussies in the local area, if you Chinese don’t bother going. <br/><br/>I have never been so pissed off.

Is it our imagination or are the number of yum cha places across Sydney gradually diminishing? They seem harder to find and rarer. We were in the Hills district and felt the urge to graze on yum cha. We did a bit of sleuthing and discovered Jin Yan wasn’t far away, tucked inside Castle Hill RSL. We were there early but as it was a weekend unsurprisingly it was packed. Nonetheless, we waited a mere ten minutes and were seated and ready for the trolleys to roll past.

A great Chinese Restaurant inside Castle Hill RSL.<br/>They serve yum cha as well as made-to-order dishes.<br/>Seating area is very spacious so it would be suitable if you come with a large group of people.<br/>The venue has Asian inspired decor with brown and red as dominant colours. Pretty cool vibe.<br/>I came here for lunch during weekday and they were not that busy. Service was quick and efficient.<br/>They have a large variety of yum cha dishes so that’s definitely an added bonus as some places have very limited choices.<br/>All dishes that I tried was delicious but my favourites were:<br/>Bbq pork bun pastry, salt n pepper squid, egg tarts, pork spare ribs, sticky rice, chicken feet and roasted duck (well, the duck was a little bit too salty for my liking but still tasty and the sweetness from the plum sauce gives a great balance).<br/>I will definitely come back again ‘cause the dishes are awesome here (in my opinion they’re above average compared to other yum cha places I’ve visited before).<br/>

Had yumcha there the other day, service was excellent and the food was delicious. Food service was quick and the all the dishes were very fresh. Loved the environment especially how there was like an open balcony, felt like a mini getaway from the city. Would definitely come back and recommend to anyone who loves Asian cuisine.

Ok food, but poor service. Waitress was not friendly at all. Despite being a large group, we were not given the complimentary prawn crackers on arrival, and while this may seem like a trivial matter, when we pointed it out, the waitress simply informed us that they had run out. Which is funny considering another table that arrived a few minutes after this received it. There are much better restaurants out there and we won’t be going back.

Not the best but probably the best yum cha in The Hills. Located in Castle Hill RSL. Yum cha is quite good but wish they have more variety. The dinner is nice if you know what to order. Some dishes are excellent but some are bland. <br/><br/>The service is a little cold but once you are a regular and they recognize you, service does get better. <br/><br/>Price is on the more expensive side compared to all the other Chinese restaurants around there. But it's a nice place and clean.

Good yum cha, decent sized portions but on the pricier side. Great that we could book and there was plenty of room to accommodate 3 prams and high chairs around the table!

Located upstairs in the Castle Hill RSL Club, Jin Yan is a large and classy Chinese restaurant.<br/><br/>Consistently excellent food. My pick for the best Chinese restaurant in the Hills District by far. Since the change in ownership of Golden Century Chinese Restaurant in the city, Jin Yan is my go to place.<br/><br/>Service is quite good. Good yum cha, but dinner is better.<br/><br/>Price is higher than usual Chinese restaurants, but is well worth it.<br/><br/>On the weekends, this place is very busy so it would be wise to book a table.

Excellent and consistent with great food and service. Lovely menu and quality of food outstanding.<br/>Always accommodating and well worth a visit.

Castle Hill RSL is very nice decorated place and well maintained.<br/>Jin Yan Yum Ca disappointed. The earlier visit was 12 months ago. We thought they could have improve by now but NO. <br/>Food are not tasty in relative to other Yum Ca restaurant. Worst is the food not fresh! Such as Siew Mai.<br/>Castle Hill RSL should seriously review this restaurant and maintain the good name of the club. <br/>Strongly not recommend. <br/>

Not good customer service, a lady claimed herself Lisa with bad attitude to us, and when we told her we will complain, she said "go for it, my name is Lisa", too arrogant, terrible!!<br/>Don't want to go again!!

Surprisingly not great service for a nicely decorated place into the RSL. The variety of food wasn't great. We were place in a table outside which was hot and uncomfortable and can hardly get any service.

Food was fine but the service mind is lacked. Beware when chinese tea was offered because it is being charged and it is charged per head not a pot of a tea. And they don't tell you that beforehand.

#kningjaeats at her favourite yum cha. I really enjoy coming here for good quality food and great variety too with the classics to something a little more fancy. There is a really relaxed environment too with open space on to the balcony and not as squashy as you would expect at a typical Chinese restaurant.

On Saturday, my family and I headed over to Castle Hill with the intention of eating a boatload of curry and naan at the Curry Festival. However, Dad got the day wrong (it was on Sunday!) and a quick change of plans saw us get a table for four at Jin Yan Asian Cuisine for Yum Cha.

Waited far too long. We were told the wait was 30 minutes so we booked a table yet 90 minutes later we are yet to be seated! We will not come again..<br/><br/><br/>-----15 Mar, 2015-----<br/><br/>Waiting too long. The wait is somewhat ridiculous. We were told we'd have a seat in 30 minutes yet here we are heading towards 90 minutes with no sign of a table yet! We will not come again..

Service has improved a lot and good food.. We've been going to this restaurant even since it opened at the Castle Hill RSL. Admittedly they have had some issues in the past with service and even with chefs. They have fixed one thing after another and I think for the last month, both the service and food have had much improvement. Surely the owner or restaurant manager must have seen the reviews. We go there every Saturday so we have seen its ups and downs. Our children like dim sum so we are there every week.

Located in the Castle Hill RSL, the ambience is more up-market compared to other Yum Cha places. The main difference is the service,  it's so noticeable after having The Eight as a baseline,  they must have brought over descendants of emperors' servants and from the part of China that speaks English. All jokes aside, it is a breath of fresh air to see that good service and a Yum Cha restaurant can co-exist in the same universe. Whether they are consistent with their level of service, that's another question. The Yum Cha selection and quality overall is average. Steam dumplings are about as good as any place within that price range. Squid was a tad rubbery, all-time favourites congee and mango pancake were also good! Coconut flan dessert was surprisingly good! Conclusion Jin Yan is a solid restaurant within its area although I wouldn't say it warrants a trip down if you do not live near Castle Hill. On the other hand, if you do, it is the closest thing to the real deal with pretty good

Jin Yan has a very Asian influence with large round tables, lazy Susans and lots of red and gold accents. The room can accommodate about 150 people (by the looks of it), and has a nice large open balcony on one side which lets in light and fresh air. Service We were able to get a table for my grandparents, parents, Wicko, and my uncle. There are a lot of staff and they busily wheel around the trolleys full of delicious foods and sweets, reminiscent of a Asian night market. Se

I just love those beef rice noodles with the addictive soy sauce and a hint of sesame. The texture of the filling is also wonderful, with a slight crunch from what I think must be bamboo shoots.

Oh, now it comes to my favourite of the day. The Egg Tarts! They were absolutely heavenly! The egg custard really melts in your mouth. I have eaten a good number of egg tarts before and when I said the custard melted in my mouth, really I could still feel it being a gelatinous form on my tongue before it dissolved. But this one, I could not even really feel its presence on my tongue because it dissolved almost immediately. It was almost like a transition from solid form to liquid in an instant, and I just loved the feeling of the smooth, silky egg on my tongue. Of course, the pastry did not disappoint. Flaky, crispy and buttery – an absolute yum!

If you can’t find the things you want, just order it through a waiter and that way it’ll be especially made and come hot and fresh. Worth going to if you’re in the area!

Photos with captions only

Food ok, Service terrible.. Unfortunately it was a distasteful experience - staff have no concept of service and the manager was very rude and uncouth - certainly not fine dining would have had a better experience at a take away joint.

Ok food. rude waiters. We often go for yumcha as its close to our house. Food is ok but some of the waiters and waitresses are pretty rude. For instance we lifted the lid of our teapot and commented to each other there was no tea left and a bunch of waiters standing around who overheard us muttered " go get it yourself" under his breath which we overheard which I found a little rude. Lots more examples but I think this was the most outrageous.<br/><br/>Food is decent for the hills area though. I just get a little upset about the service every time I dine there.

One of the best Chinese restaurants. I have eaten at countless Chinese restaurants, and Jin Yan is one of the best. It is nearly on par with Golden Century in the city, which is consistently voted the best in Sydney (or Australia even!) <br/>It is always full of customers so especially on the weekends bookings are recommended.<br/><br/>The 'Western' dishes are solid, but it is the more fancy dishes which really stand out.<br/>XO Vermecelli Scallops are a favourite, as is the XO Vermecelli Crab (Best in Sydney).<br/>All meat and vegetable dishes are also made very well, and the Wasabi beef warrants a mention.<br/><br/>MSG use seems to be minimal, which is always a good sign.<br/><br/>Staff are great.

Pretty Good. Ate here with some friends on Saturday evening. Food was good, prices reasonable and service was pretty good for an Asian restaurant. Nice looking place (the club it is in Castle Hill RSL is amazing) and very clean. Had the stuffed scallops and the duck with crab meat. Recommended and will eat there again.

Torture chamber and dishonest. We recently had dinner there with friends. Even though Chinese restaurants are notorious for noise, it was the worse. We need to shout across the table to hear each other.<br/><br/>Their food was already expensive, but the worst part was they overcharged us with beer we did not drink, food we never ordered They corrected it when we went through the bill. Never go back again.

Yeah their service has slacked quite a bit. If I'm not ordering lobster I'm given poor service. It takes ages to flag help down and then they come with the wrong thing or the food is cold. Not happy!!

Worst Service Ever. I'm not one to usually write in these forums but I felt compelled to warn other potential diners how bad the service is at this place. <br/><br/>The food was ok but you'd expect better for the prices charged. What I couldn't get over was how bad the service was. At no point throughout the meal did we have a member of staff check in with us. Every food order, every drink order, every request, required you to almost tackle a waiter to get their attention. When you did finally flag someone down, they either couldn't help you or we're extremely rude. <br/><br/>Quite possibly the worst service I've ever experienced.

Nice ambience, average food. The staff were very friendly and the atmosphere was really nice. Parking was easy too.<br/><br/>The two things that let this place down were the food and the price.The food was reheated to the point where the combination buns were HARD, not crunchy, The chinese brocolli was dry and the brand of soy used was very salty. <br/><br/>$102 for 2 grown ups and 2 children (4 and 6) for lunch rounded out this very average experience.

Rsl no more. Dont kid yourself they are not rsl clubs as you one knew them...they are just a veneer........rsl nsw says they are privately owned business'...they just pay to use the rsl name....the man i spoke to said that wont be for much longer......very poor standard throughout the club as a whole.... we wont be going back.. how dishonest of them

WORST SERVICE EVER. I had previously been to this restaurant mid week when it wasn't busy so I decided to take my husband for his birthday together with our children and their spouses. Boy what a mistake that was. Our reservation was for 6.30pm. Our mains didn't hit our table till after 9pm and then we had to keep asking for the rest of the dishes. I could also see and hear other disgruntled patrons complaining at the length of time it took to get fed. I admit the restaurant was busy but tables near us who arrived up to an hour after us, were served well before we got our mains. Service staff were inexperienced and often could not understand what we were asking for. Needless to say - the directors or Castle Hill RSL need to start taking complaints seriously if they wish to keep their clientele happy.

Girls night out and we decided to head to Jin yan. Hearing positive reviews from friends and a couple of people from our group had been before , we were excited for a night out with fine food and fun. The entrance to the restaurant was nice simple with a touch of Asian influence. We were seated promptly. We were a bit unsure of what to order the menu was elaborate and the chefs daily specials were longer than some restaurant menus. I did have to chuckle at the $188 lobster sashimi... Thinking that lobster per kilo was not that expensive. After deciding on a sample of entree to start off with we were already becoming disappointed. The items were all breaded and deep fried. The fried shrimp dumpling consisted of one prawn in a breaded fried dumpling. The steamed dumplings were okay not the best taste combination. Our first main to arrive was the Peking duck with pancakes. That too was good. And then our shredded beef with Peking sauce arrived... It was breaded and deep fried pieces of shredded beef. An interesting combination with a Peking sauce . The breaking and frying took away any taste of the meat. Then came our last entree recommended by our server. The honey spare ribs. Deep fried and breaded oh yes and can I say all it does is make the meat terribly tough and awful to chew. Food was a 2 out of 5. Wine glasses 2 of 3 had lipstick on them.. This won't be a place I want to return back to. I have had fast food Chinese restaurants in food courts have better mains and entrees.

The WORST service. DON'T GO TO THIS RESTAURANT.<br/><br/>Jin Yan lacked in so many areas of service, that have really put us off ever coming back to this restaurant. <br/><br/>From the time the booking was made, there was a mixup with our group and another group (simply because it was under the same name), where staff had told us that we had double booked and wanted to cancel one of the bookings. Much back and forth happened leading up to the date for dinner with almost 3 different people calling to reconfirm the same issue, why did this have to be so difficult? <br/><br/>When we got to the restaurant, the table wasn't set for enough people, luckily a few didn't end up coming, but we were palmed off in the corner, even though a request was made specifically not to be seated outside. The manager was extremely rude and ignored comments and just talked over the top of a few of us when we objected to the table. <br/><br/>On being seated, we were left with no waiter to serve us, or ask for drinks, were provided no instructions for the menu (as this was a banquet on the night) this was simply just left on our table.<br/><br/>After many firm words with the waiters, with being ignored and passed on to other waiters that 'couldn't help us', we finally confirmed our order, and then proceeded to chase down a waiter to order drinks. <br/><br/>The food came out, to say the least it was not bad, it was actually at a pretty good standard, which is a let down extremely by the service. To reflect this, the next table walked out after not receiving food after 2 hours.<br/><br/>A group of 15 of us all commented we would never go back to this restaurant again, there's no point in paying to eat somewhere when the service itself puts a downer on the entire experience, and for pricy chinese food as well. <br/><br/>From now on our family will be eating at other restaurants in the area instead, like Baulkham Palace, Winston Gardens, Hilltop Phoenix, which have at least the minimal level of service where patrons are served. <br/><br/>We will also be recommending our friends not to waste their time on this restaurant.<br/><br/>For experience I would rate this place a 1/10 only receiving a 1 because the restaurant itself has a nice decor, but no points on anything else.<br/><br/>Food itself I would rate about a 7/10 which was not bad<br/><br/>My overall rating would have to be a 3/10

Awesome. Fantastic restaurant, weirdly found service and food was better when they are busy, however we have always had a good time, friendly but short wait staff, verbally that is, the food is great, it is so nice to see a decent chinese in the hills, the duck is the best i have tasted, and all other food is amazing, would go there every week if i could, price OK, def not cheap but not expensive and its worth every penny.

Always Good. I have been here with friends at least 3 times now. Each time the staff have been very quick and attentive and the food has been served fast. The quality of food is very good. The prices are reasonab;le and the setting is quite nice especially if you sit outside.

Good food and nice atmosphere but slow service. Prices ok.

Great restaurant! Good quality food and good service. Not expensive either.

Very expensive for the quality of food. They even charge for chilli sauce which is ridiculous.

EXtremly bad service entree wasn't served until 1 hour and thirty mintues later and all seperate, manager was rude!!! Food was not impressive and the prices are ridiculous, don't be suked in by the appearance of this place you will be disappointed

Great food and ambience. This Chinese restaurant has recently opened its door and what a nice place. Located inside Castle Hill RSL, this new restaurant looked really awesome, and so was the service and the food. We had Peking Duck, Chilli Crab, Ginger and Soy Barramundi, Fried Rice, Mongolian Beef for entree and main, and we had Bourbon Ice Cream and fruits for the dessert. Need I say more?