The Goat
Order the Kung Pao Chicken was very delicious, will be back to try other dish, friendly customer service, came back the next day order pork dumplings was really delicious, just an update the seafood soup is very nice but Maple Topu with rice was very salty and hard to eat didn’t finish it after 2 bites they didn’t charge for the Maple Tofu which was nice and very good customer service I order the pork dumplings was amazing.
Alex Oneill
We ordered the fried veggie dumplings and veggie fried rice with no egg, added tofu. It was soooo delicious. Very friendly service. Dumplings could have been a little crispier but the taste made up for that, and they seemed quite busy with online orders too. Very reasonable price :) Will definitely come back.
Neil Chand (NCTV)
Good dumplings, terrible customer service. Didn't clear my table of the previous customers mess, and after a 30 minute wait gave me a takeaway order which seemed to have been sitting there for a little while even though I ordered eat in. At that point I just took the food and left to eat in my office so at least it's clean
Hamish Gavin
Friendly staff but the north east friend rice I ordered I was told was big, it was medium sized - also the meat portions in it were very small so I was still hungry after. I wanted to order a small dumpling portion but was told they only sell them large (12 dumplings). Not really suitable if you're eating by yourself as I was, only good if eating in a big group. Also a single beer was expensive
tommyjordan1988
Nice food.
Our dining experience was soured by the gregarious staff member who was so busy playing video games on his cell phone, he couldn't take a payment from the customers, he literally stood there I front of the customers at the till, clicking away on his phone like a child, until another staff member took payment for the meal. Also the same staff member was walking around munching on a big greasy rib bone and spitting the gristle into a bucket Infront of me while I was trying to enjoy my sweet and soir pork.
Ilke Karacasulu
Very delicious handmade food to affordable prices
Anweiser Sidabutar
Had lemon chicken and spring onion pancake for lunch. Nothing special. Not bad bad but not great either. For those who come here because of Liven, better double check if their liven works otherwise you have to pay normal. Im sure many got dissapointed because of it.
M W
There are quite a few authentic dishes on the menu that bring back darling memories of NE Chinese food culture. Reasonably priced. Noisy kids on the second floor add to the family restaurant vibe.
Mousumi De
This one is a meat lil chinese dining place right in the middle of a lane in flinders street.<br/><br/>We were three people and got a seat instantly de soite the restaurant being quite busy.We ordered dumplings,singapore an fried rice and a large steamed baramundi.Dumplings were fresh,made to order and tasted just perfect with the salty soy and viniger.The noodles and fried rice was perfectly seasoned and had good meat to rice/noodle ratio.<br/><br/>The star of the meal though was the Strand Baramundi.Perfectly cooker in salty fish sauce and complemented with leaks..This is a.must have for anyone who enjoy good fresh seafood..<br/><br/>Last but not the least,the themed decor adds to the overall experience.<br/><br/>Visite the place with Supratim Khan by suggestion of @Kamraan Ali Faisal
Pranav Parikh
Best Vegetarian Pan Fried Dumplins in Town. Veg Noodles and Fried rice is also something to die for. Have been consistent quality for past 5-6 years since I have been going there
Christopher Alex Pavlidis Garkinis
Interesting restaurant and is consistently good, sometimes very good. Dumplings, sichuan inspired dishes, noodles, spring onion pacake is very good, beef dumplings are great! Nice flavour... I have been a few times recently and will go again. Only issue in 90% of Asian restaurants, is an impersonal, rushed and rude service. This place, waiters are quite rushed yet are friendly and remember me every time I speak Mandarin or Cantonese to them, which is a good thing! :)
AaronN
Service here is abrupt and without a smile. The decor looks tired and old. But you know what, the dumplings and food here ain't bad (as long as you aren't expecting fine dining), and pretty good value for the quantity you get. If going for lunch, make sure you go before 12 to beat the rush.
Rowena Caroline
Amazing quantity for the price. Really exciting combinations of meat for the dumplings. The staff were very friendly. However the wait time is a bit too stretched.
Gupta.nitin.3
Horrible experience, I am sitting here and writing the review. It’s been over 30mins not been served our mains and starter. My wife and I are just served with fried rice we ordered but with what should we have them with. Top of it,we got our Invoice even before the food is serve. I don’t know they are being rude or this always been so horrible because no other table on the ground floor was given the copy of invoice.
Paras Bhansali
Noodles and fried rice were too oily. The special vegetable dumplings were not at all good in taste. soy sauce or any type of chilli sauce is not a combination with dumplings.<br/>Service was slow.
Hello. Imnikki
2.5<br/><br/>The epitome of ordinary and this by no way indicate that there's anything majorly wrong with this place. Hit and misses abound with each dishes, but overall the taste and flavours passed the test.<br/><br/>The overarching problem with most of the dishes was that there were too oily. There was probably enough oil leftover to pan fry half a dozen dumplings. The Shanghai Fried Noodles and Stir-fried Pork Intestines on Rice suffered from this fate, but as mentioned before, the flavours were there and it was reasonably tasty.<br/><br/>The pancake stuffed with chestnut and pine nuts was just slightly less oily, which was surprising considered that this was fried. The pancake was rather thick, and the filling not generous enough, but what filling there was was delicious. The chestnut puree gave a delicate mellow flavour, and the crushed pine nuts added a crunchy texture.<br/><br/>The pork and leek dumplings obviously was the only one that didn't had any issues with being too oily, and was the most enjoyable of the lot. The dumpling skin was, again, on the thicker side, but the filling, again also, was delicious and flavoursome.<br/><br/>I can't say that I didn't liked what I had, but I can't say that I liked it either. A place where you get your tummy filled and that's it.
Abhishek Baners
The fried dumplings are the best in MLB and the Sichuan sauce is simply awesome❤️. Service can be a bit of a downer but the food makes up for it multiple times over
JaneDoeEats
One of the few places that serve vegetarian dumplings. Not many places where one can get 15 dumplings for $10. I’ve had only dumplings here and they’re pretty good.
Prof. Pinky@LunchLab
J’s score 4.0 stars. J had a late solo lunch here on Wed 13th Feb – we have eaten here before (many moons ago). Service was friendly and efficient - the place clean, spacious and had a relaxed vibe (acoustics were good, so not too loud). Free Chinese tea was brought to the table. Only criticism 🙁 was that quite a lot of the more unusual dumplings were unavailable (as was the case on our previous visit)! Not sure whether that is typical, or a function of it not being the weekend or dinner time? <br/><br/>J had: Special vegetarian boiled dumplings ($10) > 15 big plump dumplings 😋. Thick green wrappers were nice (& not chewy). Filling was lovely - tasty shredded cabbage, dried shitake, carrot, something green? & something slightly crunchy?? Served on a special plate so they're not sitting in water, they went well with Chilli oil & vinegar. Great value 👍 (& filling - J brought home 5)! <br/><br/>Seafood combination beancurd (tofu) soup $5 > It also had snow peas, broccoli, big prawns, fishcake, crabstick, carrot, bok choy & lots of tofu. Lovely seasoning in the seafood stock & J enjoyed all elements of it 😋. A smallish (entrée) serve, but good value 👍! Overall, worth a third go...
Paul In OZ
Food 4/5<br/>Service 3/5<br/>Environment 3/5<br/><br/>Nice dumpling and really valuable for lunch. 15 dumplings for 10 to 12 dollars, enough for lunch and taste really good.
Sweet.connoisseur
Usually visit this place on lunch break as it is close by our office. Experienced terrible service!<br/><br/>Wanted to order stir fry egg and tomato with rice and the waiter said she is too lazy to go down into the kitchen to tell them this order and had used "busy" as an excuse.<br/>On our previous visits, also during lunch times - this was ordered and served to us without any issues.<br/><br/>Ordered mainly boil dumplings, had placed order the minute we sat down. The waiter took our order before our surrounding tables.<br/>After waiting 20 minutes, noticing that our surrounding tables have received part of their food, I had inquired about ours ... The waiter was rude and didn't follow up for us, told us it will come in about 10 minutes.<br/>Waited another 10 minutes, more foods were served to our neighboring tables. I had inquired again... but no one was able to follow up the order nor able to give me an answer as to what was going on.<br/><br/>Food finally arrived after chasing them for 45 minutes and I didn't get what had intended to order because of the lazy waiter... If you are willing to wait over 45 minutes for very average food to be served then good luck.<br/><br/>Food: 2/5<br/>Service: 0/5<br/>Ambiance: 2.5/5<br/><br/>Would I recommend North East China Family to family and friends? No <br/>Will I be returning back to North East China Family? No
Amy_l
Leek, shrimp & egg dumplings - the best. My favourite dumplings out of all that I have tried in Melbourne. Very busy on Fridays and wait times can be 30-45 minutes for food to arrive, but generally quick delivery on other week days. A local favourite near my work place.
Kerstin Thuresson
I visited this abhorrent "restaurant" today for lunch with two of my colleagues. After waiting 25 mins for 1 x serve of pork dumplings (staple dish) I enquired as to where my dish was. A further 10 mins passed with no update or food. I enquired once again as to where the food was. Another 10 minutes passed once again with no update or food. After waiting for over 45 minutes for one dish of food, we decided to leave and informed the cashier as to why. The blank stare was coupled with a 5 minutes conversation with his colleagues in a foreign language with no acknowledgement that we were still standing there. We went to walk out not expecting to have to pay for he minimal food that we did receive given the inconvenience and appalling service. However, we were soon called back and ordered to pay the $11.40. RUDE, IGNORANT and NO FOOD! North East China Family - NO THANKS AND NEVER AGAIN!
Debby
We saw this restaurant was quite busy on Friday night when we walked around the area and decided to give it a go. Ordered their Hailin Noodles, Beef Pocket and Boiled Pork on rice. The pork dish was bland and the amount of pork is so little. The noodles were chewy but very thick and doughy. The beef fillings are pretty good, too bad the enveloping dough is dry.
Jasmine
Great value for money. Came in a big group of people and left incredibly filled for about $10. <br/><br/>However, not a place I would return to. They seemed unprepared to cater during the lunch rush while managing a group of 10. It's also very hard to get service when you're seated upstairs. Hot tea, although complimentary, was incredibly diluted. <br/>We had too many bowls and plates for our seating but not enough utensils where we didn't have spoons at all. <br/>Incredibly disorganized and the absence of service that left a bad taste in my mouth. <br/><br/>I'd suggest trying north east china family for a smaller group of people who wouldn't mind the mess of a presentation, who value quantity over quality. That way you'll be able to focus more on the food. <br/><br/>Unfortunately, my experience this time was not great.
Stackcats
I went there for a late lunch a few days ago and ordered xiao long bao (10 pieces for $8.8). <br/><br/>I'm on the fence about the lunch experience. Indeed, $8.8 for 10 pieces of XLB is excellent value in Melbourne CBD. The wait time wasn't too bad. The XLB taste was decent. Each XLB was of medium size and the skin wasn't too thick; each held a generous amount of soup inside. <br/><br/>BUT, the XLB presentation was problematic - the way the XLB was folded was a bit sloppy, compared to fancier places like HuTong. This is however not a dealbreaker for me, this is more like a family restaurant and as long as the XLB can hold the soup, it's all good. Secondly, as you can see in my photo, all 10 pieces of XLB were crammed into a small bamboo steamer, they were all pretty much stuck together! When I managed to separate one XLB from another with surgical precision, then guess what, the bottom of the XLB was stuck to the steamer! The baking paper on the bottom was too small, and also had too many ventilation holes. Out of the 10 pieces of XLB, I only managed to eat half that were not punctured in tragic circumstances, even my mad chopstick skills couldn't save them.<br/><br/>It's a pity, their XLB were actually decent. I may return another time to try other dishes, from what I've seen, their portion size is quite generous. Staff service was a bit meh, courteous but a little aloof.
Timbo
Went there today and I must say that it punches above its appearance.<br/><br/>1. Service is ad hoc but what do you expect for a Chinese restaurant that charges $9 for 15 dumplings - whooping value.<br/>2. We also had oyster and garlic coated Chinese broccoli which was very tasty (and not single dimensional)<br/>3. Salted Calamari was also tasty, crispy and well garnished with onion, chilli and onion<br/>4. Also had the Xinglongbao which didnt dissapoint.<br/><br/>The also served hot tea on the table without any extra charge.<br/><br/>Good value, worth a go particularly around that area.
Marion Crane
Service is terrible, food was disgusting, dumplings were all brown and orange/rotten looking around the edges. waiter got order wrong and gave us a dish from someone elses table that they had already started eating! My chair completely collapsed beneath me as soon as I sat down (not coz i'm overweight, i'm a slender 75kg), no toilet paper in the loo for when i needed to do my chilli dump. did not even eat the meal and they still expected us to pay the full bill for the rot that they served. neva goin back.
Heckleard
Wowee. This is the best place I've ever eaten at! i'd say I've had lunch here over 100 times over the past 7 years. I love the chicken and prawn dumplings! get them every time, literally. I have no idea what else is on the menu but the C&P's and the chilli oil are a match made in heaven! An all time partnership just like Lloyd & Lucas, Diva & Bossy or Hayden & Langer. Give it a run, thank me later.
Veganaut
I love this place, go here all the time. The vegan dumplings are amazing and you get 15 for $9. They have several other vegan dishes too: eggplant, tofu, greens. Definitely amazing authentic Chinese food. You cannot go a miss here.
Neo
After waiting for 45 minutes for the order, reminded the staff. Looked like they started preparing it then, and after 1.15hours when we decided to leave the food arrived and they insisted we have it!
Mtgurn
I’m hooked with their steamed Shaolongbao. They are so tender and juicy, just like what I would expect from a Chinese restaurant. And Pan fried dumplings are so crispy and yummy! Highly recommended!
Rajat Kapoor
Really delicious Hot & Sour soup and Chicken Dumplings. Will definitely visit again to try more. Food arrived quickly. Service was good too.
Little Bit Of Everything
Dumplings are delicious and great value for your money. We ordered chicken and prawn along with crab meat dumplings. For dishes with rice we got spicy chicken giblets with leek. Love their flavours and quick service. They have skewers which has to be minimum two if you want to order, freshly made to order.
Jesskaar
This place is very sticky, to say the least. The service is also awful. And I’m pretty sure they pre cook all their dumplings before rush hour, such that ours weren’t even lukewarm when they were rushed to our table. <br/><br/>We struggled to find any seafood in our ‘seafood’ noodles, or any flavour, for that matter. Such a shame given that the noodles themselves were handmade and were amazing on their own. <br/><br/>Our prawn dumplings were forgotten and arrived only after we spent 15 minutes trying to wave a waitress down. I’m all for a sticky Asian restaurant. Despite the low prices, I’m not willing to go back if it means that waving down wait staff is like trying to find Nessy, and the food is less than average.
Sue
Yummy dumplings. Can't go wrong with their pork dumplings especially.. lunch wait can be quite long some days! Staff are friendly and helpful.
Martin Newman
Great, and great value, dumplings and plenty of authentic Chinese (offal) dishes on the menu. We ordered the relatively conservative honey chicken, rice, pork and crab dumplings and prawn pancake. The steamed dumplings were divine. They do them steamed or fried and also have a wicked fried spring roll, which is like a flat dumpling. The pancake was a bit plain but soft and light and best supplemented with some soy or chilli sauce. The honey chicken was tasty and well cooked, but there are many more interesting dishes on the menu if your tastes are more adventurous. The decor is basic but (just back from Flinders Street) it has the authentic atmosphere of a really bustling Chinese diner. The neon sign at the front and the lack of marking (where's the name?) add to the feel of it being a hidden gem.
Rosie Raiti
Chicken and prawn dumplings, yum my favourite with soy and hot chilli sauce, very busy lunch venue but food is good and fast. Dumplings huge selection on their menu.
H.O.M.
This place does large serves of delicious vegetarian dumplings (or any dumplings, I just like the veggie ones the best) for a really reasonable price. The venue isn't very roomy, but the atmosphere is nice and the service has always been fantastic. I've been coming here for over 6 years and the quality has always been great.
David Chen
Want to have a quick lunch here and order the dumplings only. The quality is normal and the skins of dumplings are broken in some of them. But the price is cheap in city.
The Dear Luncher
“It's a rainy afternoon, 1990. The big city. Geez it's been 20 years. Candy. You were so fine.”<br/><br/>OK so it wasn’t 1990, because people in Australia for the most part had no idea about dumplings in 1990. It was actually 2017, but it was raining and it was in the afternoon. It really did feel like what The Dear Luncher imagines North East China to be. Chaotic. People everywhere, every table full. Plates of dumplings going left, right and centre. The Dear Luncher and three other companions managed to get a table despite all the chaos. Ordered were some chicken/prawn dumplings, beef/onion, spring roll pancake, chicken wings and chicken noodles. Everything seemed a little slap dash and dishevelled but it all still worked out. Tables were still dirty when we sat down but in all honesty it was so chaotic, they are forgiven. The dumplings were not the best ever experienced, but they were good enough. Lightly fried, keeping the casings still a little soft and the insides were well formulated. The Dear Luncher enjoys the fact that this venue serves the very large bottles of Tsing-Tao as well.<br/><br/>A good place for your Chinese needs in the non-China-town part of town.
Cookielessvee
Well lit interior with wooden interior. Food took a while come out, half an hour for the food to arrive and service is average.<br/>Food is terrible and poor quality. Xiao long bao is juicy but had a strange off taste and offputting smell. Fried chicken and prawn dumplings were hardly fried, oily, soggy skin and the filling was minimal and off. Pork dumplings were full of fat and the crispy edges had a sweet taste. Only good thing here is they accept card.<br/><br/>
Shazzamataz
On flinders lane close to swanston and the station. Dumplings pretty good. Service patchy loved the decor of plasric Ivy and various fruit and veg, aubergine, chilli and strawberries to name a few. Haven't tried the sauerkraut volume pictured below... maybe next time!
Gee
Another Chinese place in the CBD, but this time far removed from Chinatown. So this is northern Chinese cuisine which I'm not too familiar with. The same rude, nasty service (you don't go Chinese for the smiles), but interesting dumplings. Leek and shrimp, egg and prawn. Loads of MSG in the stir fry. Average.
Rem
Consistently experienced poor quality of food, dirty plates and spoons and wobbly chairs! Location wise, the restaurant got great potential to attract a really good number of customers, but please do step up your game.
CCC
It can take a long time for food to come out during peak hour. Like most cheap dumpling places, the feel isn't overly clean. But the food is very good! I come with work friends often
Pitted4Lyf
A good dumpling spot if you can't make the trek to China Town. <br/><br/>Working in south bank, it's difficult for me to make my way to China town so it's great to have a spot like this not too far away. <br/><br/>My colleagues and I managed to score one of the private rooms upstairs, which provided a relaxed setting. The service left a bit to be desired. <br/><br/>The dumplings were excellent. The xiao long Bao was fantastic and the Shanghai pork were big and fluffy. <br/><br/>A great combination of delicious food and exciting banter.
KopiOjoe
Food is alright but do NOT go on a Friday evening, especially if you're pressed for time. They're just not set up to cope with the high volume. We waited close to an hour for our 2 dishes and eventually gave up waiting on the 2nd dish.
Luna
The dumplings are traditional Northeastern dumplings. Yummy, yummy. However, other dishes are very average. Nothing stands out. DO NOT order the hand made noodles with seafood and mushroom source!!!!!!!!!! It's terrible....
Chickenman
I eat here often, have done for years.....Pretty much since they opened the doors NECF could be relied on to provide consistent quality meals. This was particularly evident with some of their signature dishes. My favourite has always been the Spiced, salted squid (SSS)......that was until my last three visits. At first I thought maybe it was just a bad one off, the second time I casually mentioned it to staff, like " Hey, the spiced salted squid is lacking spice!.....and salt!!"<br/>So now it's happened on a third consecutive visit. Apparently they have a new cook....who is a bit light on with the flavours....I'm worried if they don't fix this, I'm going to have to go elsewhere....The SSS was the KFC of Chinese food.....now it's just another Red Rooster. Please fix this NECF.
Pierre Pie
Food nice, service nice , reasonable price . Is a right placed to hangover for dumpling ^^ it's great . Recommend the prawn dumpling and also the fried calamari it's awesome man !!!!
Cocktails&Chocolate
Been here a few times, but only to eat dumplings, so I can't comment on the rest of the food. Huge variety of options (including vegetarian). I've seen one review which says the place has changed owners, and I agree that the quality has gone downhill. The place has been refurbished but quality wasn't the same during my most recent visit. <br/><br/>I think this is better to go to as a large group, as recently I went with just my partner, and another couple ended up seated on the same table as us (the restaurant was only a third full). They have recently extended their opening hours to past 8:30pm, which is extremely good if you want to take advantage of it being BYO.
Manjari
I have been visiting this joint which located in the heart of the city for over 6 years, I have introduced dumpling lovers to this place much to their satisfaction. The taste, menu prices and quantity of food has remained the same over the years. Good taste and generous quantity makes up for the slack in service that I have experienced at times.
George M
I have been coming here with my work colleagues for 4-5 years and must say the dumplings are as good as any you can get. Other food I have tried has also been of a very good standard. The dumplings are fresh, tasty and cheap. Unfortunately this place continuously lets us down as service is really not up to scratch. Too frequently the food is late coming out or they get our order wrong. Again quite often in a group someone may eat their meal before someone else has got theirs. Communication with the staff is sometimes tricky having to repeat yourself often. There is a tall solid gentleman there at the moment who must be related to the owner otherwise I cannot understand why he is allowed to work there as he doesn't seem to like dealing with people. So, why do we go back......the dumplings are that good!!!<br/><br/>
MelbFoodHunter
Great for a night out with a big group with large table arrangements upstairs suitable for up to 16 people. Food is tasty, quick and cheap and it will satisfy all dietary requirements. Not to forget it's also byo ;). So definitely worth a visit with your mates!
DinDin
Avoidance is best<br/>The place has recently had a refurb and perhaps changed owners as it's gone down hill dramatically.<br/>We had 2 sets of steamed dumplings which where passable not great but ok, if you go stick to dumplings only. We then had kungpao chicken and fried rice. The chicken is odd, tiny (almost minced) bits of chicken in a sauce that tastes of spice and preservatives. The fried rice was revolting, it came out looking like pale brown goop with giant chunks of fake seafood sticks. I explained I was pregnant and can't eat that (it was not in the description) the lady basically said she doesn't care and not to worry as it's not a "real" seafood and perhaps made of flour. We explained that we won't eat it due to safety in pregnancy and were then verbally abused by a gentleman who stood over us and shook the rice plate violently at as, saying we didn't know what we were talking about and all fried rice is like this. He still charged us even though we sent it back.<br/>The place is filthy too!<br/>I might contact the health department regarding the "fake" seafood.<br/>Avoid! Much better places around the cbd.
FridayFoodie
A cheap and cheerful restaurant. Really good value for money and the dumplings are quite good. I'd go for the pan fried dumplings first but steamed are ok too. Try not to look too closely at the plates and glasses, they were all quite dirty. It's byo and a good place for a Friday night dinner with friends.
Don Djoe
Came here for dinner yesterday and ordered kungpao chicken. It was good, i like the taste and it came with decent portion with plenty of nuts. The chicken was cut into tiny pieces which is a bit odd for me but again its still overall a good experience. I dont mind trying their other dishes next time.
Liam
Dumplings are the best I've ever had.<br/>> Best Taste<br/>> Best Price<br/>> Best Quantity<br/><br/>This place is the yardstick against which so many other Chinese restaurants I visit fall well short.<br/><br/>Great chilli oil, tea on the side, BYO with a bottle shop next door or help yourself to one of their cheap Tsingdao's and you're set for the night!
Chad
Can't really think of any negatives! Wow, that might be a first. Listen, here's the deal. I love the destination dining with high end ingredients as much and anybody else. When we go to Europe on vacation prior to leaving the first thing I do is buy the latest Michelin Red book and pick a three star based in the city we are visiting. But I gotta report, I love the type of place I went to tonight, just as much, if not more than the white table cloth experiences. <br/><br/>Not joking, there is a 'grandma-esque' looking woman behind a glass window in the forward section of the kitchen to the left of the cash register making the dumplings by hand as the orders come in. Like literally looking out at us as we eat the fresh dumplings to see if we are liking the food. No joke, I almost took a picture of the menu to show how inexpensive the selections are. Everyone says Melbourne is an expensive dining city, and rightfully so, but they haven't discovered this place. The pork and crab dumplings were my favorite tonight. Quality handmade fresh food that is extremely easy on the wallet. It was awesome!!! This was my second visit and I already want to go back for a three-peat! <br/><br/>Ok, maybe they should take down the small mini Christmas tree by the front window with the odd looking little Santa under it that looks like it was put up a decade ago. But hey, the lights still work on the tree. 🎄
Jamie Frost
Fantastic dumplings, nothing fancy, basic steamed and fried dumplings like they should be! Can be a little crowded, you may be seated with others you don't know on the table, but this just adds to the atmosphere.
Peternezos
one of my favourite dumpling places in melbourne. the go to dish is the chicken and prawn dumplings, where my preference is the steamed option. I think their chilli oil is what makes this dish great too. I've also tried the pork pancakes which are delicious too. Dont expect great service, but you go to this place for the dumplings and forget everything else.
Ta.be.tabi
Another dumpling joint on Flinders Lane located right next to Yum Yum Dumplings that I went to the other day, I was curious to see if they also had the pumpkin pancake I was still oh-so-craving. Sure enough it was on the menu, but it gave me false hope as they didn’t have any on the day. My bf was curious about the Steamed French Bean Dumpling which had cute little pleats across the top, but again they didn’t have any. So when the staff came back later to inform us, I hastily chose another variety of pork dumpling.
Gemima
This was an odd experience for Melbourne. I totally understand it is a family run business and that's great. However, a young boy (primary school age) was waiting tables and clearing them etc. He looked happy as anyway. Food was average at best. Dumplings had a think chewy skin and flavorless filling. Chinese tea was not loose, just a teabag. I wouldn't go back
Wayne And Cassandra
Was shown this place by an old gym friend who works across the road after we did a lunch catchup here.<br/>Keep in mind there are two dumpling places next door to each other, I have been to both and both are very similar in price and quality. The service is lacking a little here but it's still comparable depending on which place is busier.<br/><br/>If you are craving dumplings, this place has really cheap dumplings both steamed and fried in large batches of 12 which makes it easy to share amounts a small group. <br/><br/>I came here another time with some work colleagues and we ordered 12 pork buns (Xiao Long Bao's), 12 fried chicken and pork dumplings and 12 fried beef and onion dumplings with a serving of spring rolls.<br/><br/>The dumplings were great value for money and were very tasty especially the XLB's which had a tasty juice when bit into.
Custard Queen
The most bland food I've had in years. I had: beef and onion dumplings, the excess skin tasted terrible and filling was nothing special. Chicken+prawn wonton noodle soup was bland wontons in warm water, didn't eat it. Spring rolls and pork pancakes were super greasy and also bland, tasted like all the other stuff - bad. I really like their green tea but that's about it. Never again and I feel pretty ill. I suppose I should mention the long wait time and unfriendly service, both things I disregard if the food is good.
Melinda Le
Good food, cheap and good service! Restaurant was clean and actually had a lot of diners!<br/><br/>Came here for a quick bite and didn't think too much of the place but I was surprised. I really loved their Deep Fried Potato with chilli! Dumplings were average, noodles were a bit salty but considering the prices I will come back to try some of their main dishes!
Sap Pm
1) The service was terrible. Although the restaurant was completely empty, they asked me to sit next to another person. I was there at 15:00 PM. Then it took 10 minutes for them to realize me waiting to order. When I wanted to pay, I still needed to wait standing, at least 10 minutes. No smiling, no goodbyes... I was a customer but I felt like I was an annoying person.<br/>2) Atmosphere - Extremely noisy although there were only 2-3 customers at that time. Staff yelling at each other from one side of the restaurant to the other. So if you would like to eat something peacefully, this is definitely not the place. It is a restaurant but you are eating your food as if it is in the middle of one of those food courts. <br/>3) Well... after losing your appetite, I believe there is nothing left to appreciate in this restaurant.
Biggiechee
Good food, great service, cheap prices! What else can you ask for! Hearty northern chinese dishes which are mouth wateringly delicious. We tried the pork and picked cabbage dumplings, hand made noodles with eggplant and a side of Chinese broccoli with garlic sauce. 👍
Ben To
This is a real get-'em-in-and-get-'em-out type of place with little consideration of service or attention to detail. But it gets really packed about 3 seconds into lunch service, so I guess they're laughing all the way to the bank. On the positive side the food has a great Chinese flavour hit of (in varying degrees depending on the dish) salt, soy, garlic, ginger, chilli, and MSG (I would think, and I'm ok with that). I guess that's what keeps people coming back.
Rayzzz
Cheap and cheerful dumpling restaurant known for its dumplings. Decent servings at reasonable prices. Dumplings are served either steamed or pan fried. I recommend having the dumplings pan fried as the flavours stand out a bit more.<br/><br/>The salt and pepper squid was a pleasant surprise. The batter was nice and light with the right amount of spice.
Skellie
The dumplings I had seemed sort of mushy and tangy inside, a bit unpleasant.. The noodles with vegetables was really good, enough veges and also had some tofu, which was appreciated. Shallot pancake was as expected, good, hot and fresh. Cheap too, $4.<br/><br/>Tofu and mushroom dumplings would be a good addition to the menu here. Staff were pleasant and unobtrusive, service was fairly fast.
Featured Eats
This place serves up great dumplings at very reasonable prices. The leek shrimp and egg dumpling is a personal favourite. You can choose to have them either steamed or pan fried but I always find having them pan fried makes them taste just that little much better.
Shar
I've been frequenting this restaurant for a few years now and would happily take anyone here especially after they renovated. The food is really good for the price. It's simple but really flavourful. Their dumplings are quite flavourful and the chinese broccoli in oyster sauce is simply yum! It's not just oyster sauce but mixed with garlic sauce which just takes the dish to the next level. Staff is polite, english is probably not their strength but they are warm and welcoming. Would happily recommend the place.
Avolette
Cheap and cheerful dumplings.<br/>Not the best dumplings around but can't complain.<br/>Service is not always the best as the restaurant gets quite busy.
Bruce Hardie
Decided to try again seeing the refit to see if they were better than previous terrible service. If you get lucky and get served in a reasonable amount to time then the food is pretty good.<br/><br/>This time, we rolled the dice and lost. 1 of 3 plates of dumplings arrived in 40 minutes. Yes I understand it is a busy Friday lunch service, but that is completely unacceptable.<br/><br/>So instead of catching up with some friends over lunch the only conversation was:<br/>"Is that our food?"<br/>"When do you think our food will come?"<br/>"Should we ask them again what is happening with our food?"<br/>"What is the latest you can leave and still get back to work on time?"<br/><br/>And so we have to get up and leave and decide where we can quickly buy some food on our way back to work because NECF failed to provide us any.<br/><br/>Your apology was sincere, but you ruined my day. Again.
Tara Ó Súilleabháin
We sat at a table by the door and there was only a tiny gap between the side of the table and the wall making it very difficult to get past. They over-charged us for corkage (there were 7 of us, they charged us for 8 and only 3 had wine). They don't do split payments which was a real pain because we needed to split it 4 ways. We told them we needed to leave in 40 minutes and they said that'd be fine but the food took too long to come out.<br/><br/>So why am i rating them 4/5?<br/><br/>Because for $11.50 i got 15 very tasty Vegetable dumplings and a soft drink. Next time i'll make sure i sit upstairs, have plenty of time and check the bill before i pay it, but there will be a next time because for $11.50 i;ll happily put up with the rest of it!
J.zee
Food here was bad. Ordered fried dumplings and the skin was soft as if it was steamed. Vegetables in the fried noodles were so overcooked that it became gooey. The xiao long baos aren't made fresh and are definitely the exact same ones I can get from any Asian grocery store. Enough said.
Jeremy Friedman
Food good, service ordinary.<br/><br/>Soft drinks are NOT a substitute for water, in particular when charged for drinks specifically not ordered.<br/><br/>Would still return for the dumplings
Catherine Hawes
My rating is a negative<br/>two, yes negative two!!<br/><br/>1. They said "we've run out of tap water" - WTAF!!! Who puts one<br/>bottle of water on a table of 14 people. They then delivered coke cans to our<br/>table and said words to the effect of "drink this" <br/>2. Our orders were very simple, nothing too complicated. They didn’t<br/>deliver half the food we asked for nor knew what orders belonged to our table. <br/>3. I couldn’t say a positive word about the staff or the experience even if you<br/>paid me to! <br/><br/>This place was a<br/>effing joke!
Sampath Soysa
Outstanding dumplings - the rating is for that, not the service which is very no-nonsense Asian efficiency. Recommend ordering early as they have been known to ignore you after a few minutes and you can end up waiting awhile to get someone's attention, especially if seated upstairs away from the main bustle. Renovated fit out is nice too - looks and feels a lot less dingy than it used to.
JW
North East China Family is a decent Asian restaurant with good dumplings, meat and rice dishes. The prices are reasonable and nothing out of the ordinary for similar restaurants of this kind.<br/><br/>The service that I experienced during my time here was good and the food arrived in a timely manner.
The New Fave
North East China Family has always been one of my go to dumpling houses. But with it's latest reno, refreshed menu and new tasty delights, this dumpling house has moved up on the list. . The decor is still traditional Melbourne dumpling house style - lots of plastic table and chairs, all cramped into a small space. However, the revamped furniture definitely gives the place a lighter and brighter feel than what it once had.
Gizmo111me
Take away. The pork and crab dumplings were delicious but had to take away because it took 50 minutes to arrive?
Melbourne Epicurean Juror
Best dumplings in Melbourne at North East China Family in Flinders Lane. A great friend took me out for lunch today & I wasn't disappointed - the best dumplings I've ever had. We chose 2 varieties of large dumplings (20 in all) & we both feasted well leaving both plates empty. They were served steaming hot within 10 minutes of ordering & were just so flavoursome. Service was excellent by polite & friendly uniformed young ladies and the eatery was spotlessly clean. By 1pm it was packed & customers had to go upstairs to be seated, another a sign of truly great food. I'll definitely be returning soon. Phill Jury (food critic & writer)
Gastrology
I've had dumplings here before and thought they were quite good. So, when Charlotte found time out of her busy corporate lawyer schedule, we decided to have lunch here. The place was in a bit of a mess, to be perfectly honest. The wait staff appeared absolutely clueless. We had to ask for our tables to be cleaned and for a new set of cutlery. We ordered Wonton dumplings and noodles. While they tasted alright, it had taken them quite a while to serve us. We also ordered pancakes. These were suppose to be for entree. Unfortunately, they came after the noodles... which we found quite strange. The pancakes were good though. Beautifully crisp on the outside. Incredibly moist, perfectly seasoned pork on the inside. Overall Impression: 4/10 Service was dissapointing. Time was the main factor. As it was a week/working day, both of us only had an hour to spare and dining there took up almost all of that time. Food was not bad.
Jenster
Service was dissapointing. Time was the main factor. As it was a week/working day, both of us only had an hour to spare and dining there took up almost all of that time. Food was not bad.
Sweet And Sour Fork
The Spice Salt Squid ($18) was battered with powdery rice flour, and fried into large golden florets. Though the squid leant towards mushiness, the batter was light and peppery with just the right amount of salt. Despite having a light texture however, the batter was rather too liberal in places, and ended up being a bit cloying towards the end.
Msihua
We had both noticed (on separate occasions) that North East China Family was always busy and crowded during lunch hour, so based on that, we assumed that this was a good sign...
Ecumer
We've been going to North East China Family Restaurant ever since it opened, which was about three years ago. It's our go-to place for takeout on a Friday night as a reward for a long hard work week; when a whole stack of family come to visit, it has room for large groups and a menu with something to please everyone from kids with soft palates to grown ups with savoury palates. We have had stacks of meals either there or from there. What's that you say? You should blog it, already? Okay. You can tell it's
I.preetijoshi
Awesome Food !. Awesome dumplings and fried rice ! that is all i have tried till now. you will forget the not-so-good settings when you have amazing dumplings in your mouth :)
Beck
Really great food, good service! Dumplings were amazing as stated by other users. Will definitely be visiting again!
Sam M
Best Dumplings in Melbourne. Steamed veg are a winner
Natalie.careersaustralia
Try it!!!. This place was a great find thanks to my cousin recommending it. It's cheap and cheerful :) Service was very fast and efficient. I would recommend if you love dumplings you must go here and try them out.
Sally Johnson
We have been to this restaurant twice already as we wanted to give it a second chance after an initial not-so-good experience. After the second time we will not go back again. Our dumplings came out semi raw and we requested for the kitchen to cook it a bit further (we didn't even ask them to cook us a new dish) but they refused. Initially the waitress said the dumplings looked Cooked to her. After a second request the manager came out and said the same thing again to us even though we split the dumpling to show them that it was undercooked. In the end we just wanted to get out of there so we paid and left. It was a very disappointing experience especially since we were giving it a second go because we usually love north eastern Chinese food. The first time we went there, the sweet and sour pork that was $18ish was of very bad quality. The pork was close to its used by date and it was not authentic either. Unfortunately this place ruined our dinner twice. We highly recommended against going there!
Sjr2104
Best dumplings in melbourne. 15 dumplings for $9... and that is only the start of it!!! juicy, fresh, juicy, juicy, fresh and just so bloody tasty. each dumpling is more than a mouthful, so value for money is just ridonkulous. would take all of my chinese friends here, if i had any that is! boom bang!
Foodiemelb1
Love the dumplings. Chicken and prawn dumplings....im so addicted these! probably the best dumplings ive had in Melbourne so far! the chilli oil with the soy sauce mixed and dipped by the dumplings is so mouth watering! Whoever has been here will probably agree on this too...and also I wont talk about the service as the dumplings are really good
Melanie_P
Best Dumplings with the poor service. I have tried countless dumplings all over Melbourne and this place never disappoints in terms of flavour and quantity. Have tried seafood dumplings, vegetarian, leek shrimp and egg but my favourite, and seems to be majority of their customers favourite is the chicken and prawn dumplings. You get 15 good size dumplings which are packed with flavour, i love them! However the service is a major let down. Sometimes I have watched my friends receive and finish their dumplings while im still waiting or we are seated in the room where they havent bothered to turn on the Air conditioning. I still go though despite the service because of the flavoursome dumplings.
David Vickers
Small takeaway sized container of ordinary special fried rice = $12. Not great & not great value.
Jordan.janssen
Food is fantastic!!. Just around the corner from work, North East China Family is always a favourite among many for one reason - their food is fantastic.<br/><br/>Normally, we order take out and bring it back to the office but today we went to the restaurant to experience the cosy atmosphere. <br/><br/>Friday lunch - a packed restaurant. With 9 of us there, we had 6 dumpling dishes, 4 fried rice plates and drinks and we were out (VERY full) after just 45 mins. The dumplings are amazing. <br/><br/>With a packed restaurant, service can always be difficult at the best of times. However, as English is not the first language of many of the staff at the restaurant, it can be difficult for both parties understand each other.<br/><br/>But, if you can see through the language barrier, the food is fantastic and the ambiance is great. Highly recommended. Best dumplings in Melbourne!
Osman Osmaam
Terrible service. After waiting patiently for over 20 mins, we received our order of beef fried rice, it smelt great, but at closer inspection the meat was barely cooked. We returned the meal and decided to get some dumplings instead. This took them an additional 20 minutes to bring out. The whole time we were waiting we were met with cold stares and occasionally the chef from the kitchen would come out and just stare at us from the counter. As if to say we're wrong about what we saw. <br/>Very disappointing that I had to keep asking where the order was. I thought I was getting hard done by when I realized there were several other tables waiting on a missing dish. Like us, most just wanted to get it take away and get out as quick as they could. <br/>The staff are terrible and rude, the service is shocking and worse of all I don't think they care. Which is why I won't be going back there.
Carissa
Dumplings are delicious! But the service is terrible. I've gone there a few times on my lunch break and quite often they will forget part or all of your order so I would remind them every 5 minutes to avoid disappointment.
Boppy Chick
Yum dumplings, pity about the service. I like this place, its not the best dumpling place but the chicken and prawn dumplings are great. There are lots of dumpling varieties too. Its a good cheap eat. The service is horrible. Like literally terrible. You need to really actually stand up to get the attention of anyone and even then they may ignore you.
Rakhee Patel
Very disappointed. After being referred to this restaurant by a good friend, I was pretty excited to find out just how great the food here was, so I lined up a lunch date. Alas I did not have that chance. <br/>After a very long wait, only 1 of our 3 dishes arrived, even the 1 drink we'd ordered from the fridge right behind us wasn't served until we had to ask for it again.<br/>After a further wait, when we started noticing that diners who had arrived after us had already been served, finished their food, and left, I started getting very mad.<br/>I would NOT recommend this restaurant, and will never go back there. The service is the worst I have EVER experienced anywhere!
Gigaplex
Poor service. After a half hour wait for our meal only one side dish of vegetables came out - they even forgot to give me the coke I ordered which I had to remind them about. We asked for a status update on the dumplings, which the waitress politely replied she'd check, but she never came back with an answer. We eventually gave up and left without our dumplings after another 10 minutes as our lunch break was over and we had to get back to work.<br/>On the plus side, the vegetable dish was fairly tasty.
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