Review Canton Cafe - Auckland Central

Jen Natoli

Look, I really want to tell you not to go here so I don't have any issues booking it all for myself. But that's unfair. Canton is incredible. Their Special Black Chili Hapuka is divine. Hands down, fave Cantonese in Aotearoa. Can't get a booking? Keep trying. Too loud inside? Deal with it, the food is worth it. Think the mains are a bit dear? You're paying for their quality, value and quantity. Seriously, message me and I'll come pay you for your leftovers. Parking is a nightmare. That's not Canton's fault. Side streets are a good option. They allow BYO and the corkage isn't cheap but again, WORTH IT.

Benedict Uy

I came by for a farewell party andthey had booked two tables. The place was packed as always. We grabbed a few things to share and the items werw all quite nice. I quite like the pe pa tofu here. fried tofue with a brown sauce.

MM

I recently have lunch there, and it was fantastic. The dishes were incredibly flavorful, the staff was friendly, and the service was fast. They also allow you to bring your own alcohol. recommended for delicious cuisine in a welcoming atmosphere.

Gerard Sullivan

Delicious food and very attentive staff. No complaints. We had a big group and they had no problem fitting us upstairs and serving us with no long delays for the food. Incredible!!

Ruby M

I have been coming to this place for over 20yrs now! Restaurant was introduced to me by my in-laws. Never have liked Chinese food but this place changed my taste buds! It’s absolutely mouth watering. We don’t really explore the menu as we only order few regular dishes. Prawns with black chill sauce and chicken fried rice is the best and top selling items! What’s surprising is the flavour has not changed since the day one I had them! Keep up the good work and maybe a tinny suggestion, just need a better customer service and it will be a 5 star! Thank you

Lilian Monaghan

Food:(3.5/5) We had the crab, peiking duck and the pork with tofu. The crab was very delicious but the portion of peiking duck was so small and the pork with tofu was way too salty. Service:(4/5) Service was fast and staff were very friendly.

Kathleen Koronui

My relatives have raved about this tasty establishment for years, so I was rapt to finally dine here. My cousin and I booked for 6:30 pm whilst en route on a Sunday evening. We arrived 15 minutes early and were greeted by a smiling server. Our 3 dishes were served within 5 minutes - you can't get better service than that! 😍😍 We ordered a hapuka fish dish, lemon chicken, and stir-fried beans. I've NEVER tasted more delicious beans in my life. And I was raised vegetarian, so I've been around a bean or two - haha The restaurant was busy with a stream of diners. Excellent meals, wonderfully warm staff - and like the Terminator - I'll be back 👍😍😍

B B

Awesome food, awesome service, and reasonable prices. I’ve been a Canton Cafe customer for many years - both dine in and take away. I’ve never had a bad experience. There is a reason why this restaurant has been in business for so long and continues to be extremely popular!

Andrew Curtis

The pulse of Cantonese food in Auckland starts here. You can’t beat Canton Cafe. I have been eating here since 1998 and I will never stop eating here. The staff and family owners have become true, loyal and sincere friends. Let me rate the Peking Duck, Maggi Prawns, Hapuka and Asian greens as some of the finest dishes you will eat anywhere. There is also plenty of other knock out dishes to choose from. A great venue for groups of 4 to 8 people as the dishes all deliver for these numbers.

Jean Annandale

I ordered our lunch yesterday. Went to pick up food, we calculated $185 (from website menu), different total at pick up... $197!!! My daughter was too shy to say something. The food was delicious though 😋. Can you UPDATE your WEBSITE MENU so this doesn't happen again

Amindha Fernando

During a time of uncertainty it's nice knowing that your local BYO still delivers. With a restriction of 10 people, we venture out on a Friday night for a late night favourite, Canton Cafe. Service was friendly and the food just hits the note. Sizzling beef is awesome and the black chilli chicken is also worth a shot. Will be back.

David Hiscotte

Have visited & used for takeaways for over 15 years but Saturday night takeaway order was over 35 minutes late & cold. Restaurant was out of control & personal pickup for birthday celebration was horrendous & stressful. Evening ruined.

Sharon

Look, you dont come here for the amazing service or high quality decor. But you always have a good time. Dishes served in large shared portions with bottomless rice, what more do you need. Oh yes BYO!! Also try the crispy pork belly starter. Amazing

Sharon Louie

It was my brother’s birthday and we came to Canton Cafe to celebrate. I feel as though we forgot about this restaurant because there are new Cantonese restaurants around Auckland. Apparently, my brother and I came here often as children. Between the 4 of us, we got sizzle lamb chops with black pepper, garlic choy sum, green beans with salted olives and pork mince and roast pork bean curd with vegetables casserole. The food came out so quickly, literally once we ordered and 5 minutes after, we were eating! My personal favourite is the sizzle lamb chops with black pepper because it’s so flavourful and it’s a must get in my opinion. The casserole was super delicious too! The tofu soaked the sauce and goes super well with rice. Only criticism is my brother and dad both agreed that the wok hei was missing, which is essential in Cantonese cooking.

Nidhi Wadhwani

By far the most delicious Chinese food in Auckland! Love it. The quantity is great and it’s a great place to come with a large group of friends as they offer BYO. Highly recommend this place for all Chinese lovers! We had the Sweet Corn Chicken soup, Fried Noodles with chicken, Black Chili chicken and Chicken fried rice! All were super delicious.

Riddhi

The staff should be commended alone for having to deal with BYO groups every week! Always loud busy and chaotic at canton. We had a group of 19 and booked 2 weeks in advance which already was quite hard to secure a booking. Service was polite and helpful, but didn’t interact with staff too much. They are really quick at cleaning tables and organising the chaos. Food came out relatively quickly. I tried the fried dimsum, noodles and pork and bokchoy on rice. All these dishes were really good and worthwhile for price point. Serving sizes are large so can definitely share between 2-3. Price is expensive but again it’s a good place to share meals. BYO is super cheap at $2.50 per person and you can bring in whatever as long as it’s low % (rtds accepted). Also note only one bill per table.

Carmelia Ng

To be honest I really wanted to give a higher review because the staff handled everything so well but for the cost and what food we actually got it was really average. Great for byo and location is good but the food wasn't great it was smaller portioned than other Chinese places I think if the cost wasn't the same as some higher end Chinese place I could justify it. Good variety with food though and staff were friendly enough. Place can get roudy too so great for young adults

Tess Rankin

Canton. wow. I write this to you as a thank you. thank you. Persuaded by my friends to go here. I was heading in with an open mind. Now a quick side note, I recommend, no I don't recommend. IM telling you, book a table! be ready it's busy, it's loud, but it adds to the whole dining experience. WOntons were a bit meh. Ways to improve? more meat, that's what she said Ahah I kid, I kid. Now, what did I love you may ask? The noodles wow, absolute deal-breaker. It was a taste cleanser after all the deep-fried options we ordered. I recommend these. They sure are tasty. Now the prawns. I am not a prawn girl, but wow. These were great. Tasty and crispy. My friend persuaded me to eat them as she ordered too much. SIde note, the portions are big, so order light, you can always order more. That's it.

Rebekah Cook

This place is an absolute banger. I went here with my friends and we had such an amazing time. It was really busy which is always a good sign so we walked in all excited and sat down at our table. We ordered the deep fried dim sum, chicken noodles, prawns, wontons and fried squid. The service was top notch and the staff were all very friendly. The servings sizes are quite big so definitely don't over order as when it arrives at your table, you will be shocked. Overall loved my experience here at Canton Cafe and would 100% go back for another great feast.

Tiwul

My favourite salt and pepper king prawns were not as good as they used to be. The price has gone up to $38! Overly priced, small portions and too salty. However the service has improved so much, staff are friendly. Unfortunately we won't come back for sure.

Ethan

Canton Cafe is a great place for large groups of friends to order and share via the lazy susan tables upstairs. While it is a little pricey and can get very loud at full capacity; it's always a solid choice.

MCP

came here a while back, beef was so good and soft, the peking duck was a bit dry but still ok, a little bit pricey for the portion size.

AstridJP

I heard high recommendation by British community. Their portion are decent. one main costs upto 20$. But it's good to go if you wanna have BYO and make your buzz cheap at restaurant.

Navin Chand

This place has surely changed hands or lost its previous chefs. It is now an overly priced poor quality, poor tasting fast food place. Their signature dishes like the spicy prawns, or the salt and pepper squids are now poorly cooked, rubbery, and they severely lack flavour. What has happened to the famous Canton café? So disappointing to see it has lost its magic.

Glyn Flutey

Crazy busy and service can sometimes be crappy. But stick to your guns. Order more tea. And enjoy yourself! Foods pretty good. Flavoursome. Love the hapuka in black bean sauce 😋

Anastacia

Decidedly average and very overpriced. Not impressed with the quality of the food - very on par with a chinese takeaway which is appalling, considering their prices are 2-3 times that of an average takeout. They are however, always very busy though so they must be doing something right (besides their ideal location in the middle of the Kingsland strip).

Andromeda Kaiulani

Prawn dishes were good but service was sooo disappointing. We were almost scared to ask the waiter for some water. We asked to be seated upstairs so after dinner the rude waiter mopped the stairs and didn’t put any wet signs up. 😩 We left quietly because we didn’t want to start drama especially after having a really nice day before thinking it was a good idea to end the day having dinner at Cantons. The building is not baby friendly nor allows for anyone in a wheelchair to easily access the building. Won’t be going back.

Hungusmcfatty

Such good food. We love the green beans, sweet and sour pork, fried noodles, chilli eggplant and sizzling beef (basically everything on the menu).

Clem

Yum! Family favourite. Have been coming here since it first opened 15+ years ago. Everything is delicious at this place, you can’t go wrong!

Yakuta Moiyadi

Favourite place to go have some goood king spicy black prawns with fried rice on side. But i have to say the prices have gone slightly up. Can get a bit overwhelming eating there as its so busy!

Sassy Gal

We went here a little while ago with some work mates. We ordered lots of different dishes to try. The whole fried snapper was amazing. The black chilli prawns were such a generous serving and the taste was devine. The duck was delicious. The staff were nice and friendly. Will be back for sure :)

Way2Food 🍔🍟🍕🍖🍰 (25% Of ZomatoGold, Code : WAY29380)

Been coming here for almost 8 years now... Especially for their black chilli king prawns & salt/pepper squid. Can tell you that their prices have increased drastically. The place gets very noisy on the weekends because of big groups... And it's BYO which is a bonus so no complaints there. Still a lovely place to eat but the food quality/quantity has declined over the years and the place might need to be refurbished at some point. We used to love the sweet & sour pork from here too but it tastes nothing like it used to a few years ago 🚫. Plenty of veg/non veg options to choose from ✔️. Staff/owner I'm guessing is very friendly. And is always accommodating if the restaurant gets too packed etc. Ambience : ⭐⭐ Staff : ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Price : ⭐⭐ Food : ⭐⭐⭐

Saasha

Food is great and good size to share but the place can definitely do with fresh look and sitting is too tight and hard to move around. Could improve on service as well

Jenny Da

Canton Cafe food portions are amazingly huge for the price and they serve a great selection of dishes perfect for large groups. The restaurant is quite noisy as the place gets so busy, the tables are really close together. For work functions or large group, they do BYO so it’s a great place for a feed and drink. The staff are always friendly and will help you with dishes, there are also good vegetarian options.

Anastasia

Always seen this restaurant packed with people and decided to try it out one day. I have to say I am disappointed. Food was average. I had the yangzhou fried rice. It wasn't worth the price for the taste even though it was a big portion. Food was served relatively fast. Service was average. I personally wouldn't go back to Canton cafe.

“Dailee” 25% Off Zomato Gold

Oldie but goodie. Family and friends favorite. This place never rests, always packed, tight, busy and the interior hasn’t changed for like forever. Delicious, reasonably priced chinese food and their portion is huge. Always enough leftovers for lunch the next day. Whole fried fish, salt&pepper squid, stir fry beans and whole steam chicken comes to about $130.

Sahitya Anand

I had earlier rated this restaurant 4 which I still think it deserves for taste and service. But, I bought chicken soup to-go and found a strand of hair half way in. I've uploaded the photos.

FoodieBeast

BYOD - brilliant. The food is good. The service friendly at times a little hard to communicate. The place could do with a bit of a clean up though. Overall nothing fancy but good for grub when you're having a few drinks.

Prashant Gavri

Delightful food! A very well located restaurant and has a great vibe. The spicy black prawns are a must every time we visit. Prompt and friendly service and they have zero issues with BYO liquor. Highly recommended.

Dani

Bought these prawn noodles to takeaway. Good to share between 2 people however the quality of the dish was disappointing. Didn’t really taste as good as it looked and is definitely something that I wouldn’t buy again. An overall mediocre dish.

Aika

Friendly staff, amazing delicious food even though is a bit pricey. Love coming here and have been for many years, flavours have not changed at all. Service is quick too.

RL.P

Prawn noodles from here tasted like those cheap noodle platters you can buy from those Asian takeaways in Avondale, so really should have gone for that cheaper option than paying $22 for an average portion.

Peter.heretic

Walked into the restaurant & was taken upstairs despite the empty tables downstairs. Upstairs was absolute filth, filled with ants on the table and a old smelling kitchen as our eating view. Food came within minutes & felt like it was pre-made/frozen. Noticed the restaurant directing all brown people upstairs & kept the rest downstairs. Service was terrible.

Zahabia

Dined here on a girls night out and was not let down. Our most favourite is the black pepper chicken, lovely flavour and perfectly saucy. However, the texture changes when ordered with prawns. Ordered some noodles and other chicken serves, all the food was amazing.

Anushree Sen Gupta

We were craving their beautiful black prawns only to be turned away because we were a couple and not a large group. Shame on them for making us walk past empty tables.

FOODLAB.IN

I have heard a lot about this place so i finally decided to visit this place. We order Deep fried spring roll which was amzing, perfectly cooked. I loved the stuffing and it was not oily. We also ordered Chicken and sweet corn soup which was so tasty you must try it. Singapore fried noodles was the best thing i had in auckland. It was so tasty that we can’t resist buying other serving. Place is amazing, presentation is beautiful. This place has the best ambiance. The service was quick and staff was friendly.

Hemant Wagh

Did a takeaway last night from here. The Diachin Chicken, Hapuka in chilli sauce and Chinese greens were excellent. Keep visiting and doing takeaways from here and they are consistently good.

Sam

Went with a group of 10 adults squeezed around a table with hardly any room to move. Service was terrible and rushed. Food was oily and most were bulked up with onions where they could it seems - especially the stir fried duck with lettuce cups and salt & pepper kind prawns. Both were also very salty. Been to a lot of Chinese food places for dinner before and definitely would not go back to this time again. Very disappointing.

Tasmanian

The service was okay. It is a BYO venue so if you want to take your own alcohol you can and they don’t have any limits as to how much you are allowed I think. The restaurant is pretty small so it will get crowded but it’s a good place for groups, there is also seating upstairs if you are needing more space.

Sigourney Berry

Great for large groups who want to do a byo dinner, gets really loud in here, they do give you a time limit of about 2 hours before they bring out the fruit to hurry you along, but a real buzzing place. Best to have a larger group to share meals otherwise expensive with only a couple people. I’ve been going here for years and they have increased their prices but never had a bad night!

Chirag Darji

I have been here more than 10 times. Nice food, they have food and flavor to suit your fancy. The byo drinks is awesome. The place is buzzing, so if you find your self in the restaurant for more than an hour on a busy day. You will be eyed on by the staff to find your way out once you are done eating. Overall, a better than average experience.

Clarence Zhang

I was expecting some good quality of food as they are charging a simple Singapore Style Noodle with $21. Well the result is I'll never come again. Also, be careful when you enter and leave the restaurant, there's a QUITE UNUSUAL INVISIBLE INCREDIBLE DEEP step by the door and, that's just made this place even worse.

Mcm

The staff were very friendly and attentive, okay we did stay her for about 4 hours. but it was empty so I dont think they minded terribly? Idk maybe they did The squid wasnt anything special, and we got the chicken vege fried noodles, dawg they fried the egg noodles? I was not expecting that, not sure if I appreciated that but it was okay. Would go back but would not order the same stuff. Personally I feel it's lil bit expensive for what it is (being regular degular schmegular european Chinese food)but would be good byo for big groups; $2 corkage per person is a freaking good deal.

Kitty005

We were a nice bunch of 4 people who went for dinner. I have a fond memory of celebrating my birthday 2 years ago here so here I was back again with my friends. We went in and requested a table for 4 for which the hostess pointed at a corner table which had 3 chairs cramped into it, not to me too atleast 4 tables were empty at that moment. We said please table for 4 and she said yes that's table for 4. That was quite confusing, unfriendly and frankly I began to question coming back again. After insisting on a better table we finally sat down for dinner. We ordered veg spring roll, egg fried rice with chicken, chicken with ginger and spring onions was the best of the lot. The Singapore noodles was good but lacked seasoning. We were left wanting for more in terms of flavor not to mention the prices were quite high for those dishes, double the normal prices. They cleared our plates as we were finishing up as if nudging us to finish faster, while the customers were still walking in and there were still many tables empty.

Amy Marie

Love the food, full of flavours. In my top 5 places that I like to go, would recommend as a great place to eat with a group in order to chose a variety of dishes. BYO is great too!

Rachel Liew

Been there several time over last few years. I think with sometimes overwhelming customers they learned how to be sneaky. I remember When we ordered a dish it was not evenly warmed up when served to us. I guess they pre cooked and rushed to microwave before handing over to us. We looked each other with disbelief how this seemingly popular restaurant could serve customers food with such low quality while charging expensive price. We never come back again since then.

Christopher Key

Fantastic food, easily the best Chinese I’ve ever had. Not only is it on the forefront of litty BYO’s in Auckland, I dare say,even the universe, it’s a great place for a quiet date night or 80th birthday. Five wontons out of five, very nice much recommend.

Raeray

Extremely fast in cooking and serving the dishes and apparently the unbelievably low corkage ($2 per person regardless bottle amounts) is the dominating reason why customers come in, together with its being the only Chinese restaurant on the road. BUT! If you have at least basic expectations/tastes for quality Chinese food, you are guaranteed to be disappointed as the dishes I ordered from the menu were horrifically salty and unpolished. To those who had their virgin Chinese cuisine with this place, don’t be let down or limited, as there are many more out there which are decent and tasty.

Charlette Taylor

Always like this place, service is always fast! Food is always yummy! But sometimes the wait .... but worth it! Spicy stir fry Gang gong veggies, pork chops..... aaahhhh....,yummmmmm

Robert Ramos

The food and flavour is good here. No MSG which is nice. All the ingredients seem to be fresh, etc. The only downside is their prices are quite high, although the portions are larger than other places. Also the restaurant itself is small. But that has nothing to do with the food, which is exceptional.

Leilani Fuemana

Delicious food! Pecking duck first course and second course are really yummy and good portion. Chilli squid is definitely a winner for me. Wouldn’t recommend families to go here on a Thursday-Friday-Saturday night as too loud.

Vatsal.M

Canton Cafe is an amazing place to have Chinese food. I have been here 4-5 times and yet to be dissapointed. Have had Special Black Chilli Chicken, Mix Veg Rice Noodles, Black Pepper Chicken and these have been amazing. Their flavours are subtle and soothe the palate. Must try: Special Black Chilli Chicken/Prawn which is fried crisp chicken/prawn stirred in Chilli sauce.

Brandon Li

This place is rubbish and have been for quite some time. Do not expect miracles here as their so call cantonese food is embarrassing. Food is bland, the roti for crispy duck is by far the worst, the roti is hard, too much powder on top. People who go there are obviously don’t know what cantonese food should be. Avoid at all cost.

Cindy

If you want great authentic and tasty Chinese food, Canton Cafe is the place! Any of the King Prawn dishes are to die for and the Hupuka dishes are also fantastic. The staff are friendly and the owner is always on site to ensure best quality is served. You also get some complimentary nice cut up cold apples and oranges after.

Rory Duncan Buchanan

Love this place and in fact i have just driven from te atatu to get some take away. Decent Chinese places are hard to come by these days. Must have dined in/ gotten take away at least 30 times from here and will keep coming back. A lot of people miss the point of this place. If you come on a Saturday night expecting a quiet fine dining experience you are not going to get it! Believe me the food is awesome. Good quality ingredients and v authentic

Harley Broughton

The food is so damn good! Black chilli squid is my favourite. Good place to take close friends or family. Can take your own booze, so that's a bonus

Mulik.aditya99

Excellent service always an awesum place to grab some quick lumch. Friendly staff and superb service. Never been disaapointed. We ordered the special spicy king prawns shell off and a chicken dish with egg noodles.

Jen Lin

What sold me into coming in here was the fact that they do not use MSG in their cooking. Arrived here on a Saturday evening (6.30-7pm) and it was packed! We were lucky enough to grab the last table. Food: We ordered the Sweet and sour Hapuka (3.5/5), Sizzling beef plate (4/5) and some steamed rice. I was so happy that we were given a small but generous portion container of rice which we could refill ourselves (at a fixed cost). Both dishes werent too salty like many other Chinese restaurants I have been too. They were not too stingy on the meat and fish served. To finish, a small plate of seasonal fruits were given (common in Canton Restaurants) Cost: A little more expensive than your usual Chinese Restaurant. But you do pay for you get, so was worth it. Also had lots of left overs too. Service: Staff were nice and attentive.

G Bill

Be careful about deep door step, it is definitely a hazard for someone who never been to there before, talked to the boss but she doesn't even care, her attitude was awful too, never want to go back for such poor customer service.

Campbell Spencer

I have never thought to sit down and write a review for Canton Cafe. I have eaten here over 200 times at least over the last 20 years. Frankly it's almost become a joke. The food (OMG the Black Chilli Prawns, and the 2 course Peking Duck are heaven!!!) is authentically cooked and is true to the Cantonese way. All of my international clients when in Auckland always ask to eat at Canton Cafe, and once you get to know the owner and staff their level of service is incredible!!!

Reema

I don’t mind a dingy restaurant and crap service if the food makes you smile. But Canton has crap food as well. And the final insult is the rude prices. We paid $86 for 3 virtually inedible plates of misery. Peking duck was rubbery with last week’s pancakes and shrivelled veg. Spicy prawns were neither spicy nor seasoned. And the noodles were like instant freeze-dried rations but they forgot to add the hot water. Or flavouring. Their menu proudly says “We don’t use MSG.” Well maybe they should - it could only improve things. And the final gotcha was no alcohol on the menu so I couldn’t even drown my culinary sorrows. Probably the most miserable 37 mins and 19s of my life. Couldn’t get out of there fast enough to go home, clean my teeth, have a hot shower and burn my clothes. Never again.

Shoulyn Singh

The food here is amazing! Everything's great I've had so far. Also offer BYO and corkage is only $2 which is good because food is not cheap here. Well worth the prices though!

Jess Wilson

Canton is a great restaurant for groups of friends and It is often my ‘go to’ to start off a night out! Food is really tasty and great plates for sharing- although the menu seems rather pricey, the portions are huge! The portion sizes and extensive menu are great for being able to taste a few of the dishes if in a big-ish group. Very quick service and the vibe is ideal for beginning a Saturday night out

KG

I've been here once for a friends birthday dinner. There was about 15+ of us. We were all seated up stairs which was nice because we had access to the balcony. The room we were on was pretty tightly packed to be honest, not to much room to move. If you wanted to get somewhere numerous people would have to move as well. The place itself was very busy as well! Food arrived in a reasonable time. A few peoples orders were messed up. This could have been due to the size of our group maybe? They didn't rectify this but everyone seemed to be okay with what they got. The food was okay, a majority of us didnt eat it all. Did I mention it's BYO. They do have a surcharge for this. It's either per person or per bottle regardless. This place is best suited for birthday dinners, catch ups with friends just due to the size and groups of people that go there. Probably not ideal for a couple dinner date!

Leonie An

Very busy restaurant , service was bad, waited 45minutes for the food. And the food was a joke. The rice was not fresh at all its smelly and hardened .Flavor was not so authentic, it's twisted to suit the white peoples taste.. too much ketchups and sugar. I don't see 'generous portion' coz a lot of other Chinese restaurant have more generous portions, their dishes are over price.😑😑😑😴😴😴😴

Aimee.

If you're ok with a dirty restaurant and average customer service then this place is for you. The food itself is really tasty and fresh however it's a little overpriced compared to other Chinese restaurants. The restaurant isn't that big and it gets full really easily.

Naziminator

I love this place, they serve Cantonese Chinese cuisine n is very popular with the westerners. They did well to suit western palate, you may not find the authentic taste here but again the foods here have good flavour, good portion size n the staff are friendly n helpful. My favorite is the sizzling Daijin prawn dish n their sizzling venison with ginger is pretty good. Another bonus, they can serve prawns with shell on n off. Not many Chinese restaurants offer prawns without shell n this place does. That's another reason to head off to this place straightway... Make reservation if going in a big group n on weekends.

Tinos.adventure

This place is a go to for my siblings and I. We absolutely adore this place. The staff is hilarious and the food impeccable. We always get the spicey dajian chicken, I highly recommend it.

Cookingkenny

Yum! What a great range. Came out nice and quickly and everyone lived it. Good size too. 8 big firemen filled up by 8 dishes. Might be a bit on the expensive side for what one expects for Chinese food but as it's a level or two higher in quality I'm happy and would probably return.

Gina Partridge

Black chillie king prawns and lemon chicken are my favourites. Always serve the prawns as appetisers for parties as they go well with drinks. Very generous portions!

Simone Mulitalo

Food was decent, I've had better. Other than that there's nothing to complain about, it has the casual simplicity of kingsland in the restaurant and has different types of people that dine there not just Asians. Good atmosphere to catch up with friends being that it is a BYO

Shannon

Takeaway only, the food is great the service is deplorable and the decor is drab and dirty. The portion sizes are also very large so unless you have a large group it's hard to get a variety.

Foodie

Mixed Reviews - Food was delicious but not generous portions for a $29 plate. A tad overpriced for the quality of food considering other similar joints charge $15 for a similar dish if not better.TERRIBLE SERVICE. grumpy waitress, could not speak English and mixed up our orders with additional plate we later had to pay. When settling the bill the lady that served us was rude, disrespectful and shouted at us due to the mix up by the waitress that couldn't pronounce blue cod. Although food was delicious, customer service goes a long way. Have always been a regular at Canton when I was younger but after a while I have to say this was a very disappointing experience lastnight. If you are looking for something cheaper with quality food same cuisine, you are better off trying - Golden BBQ Dominion Road, Mt Albert BBQ Noodle House our Flourishing Cafe Avondale - Better Food, even better price and service is a lot more welcoming and friendly.

Sheenal

Great service, great food. Both mains and dessert was amazing. Definitely going here again . It's a must to try out this amazing place. Such an enjoyable experience.

Annie Jenning

Canton is an Auckland institution. It seems to have been around forever. The food is always freshly cooked and portion sizes are HUGE. The prices do seem high but for what you get it twice the size of other Chinese takeaways. Never dined in but always had quick service for takeaways. You know the food is authentic when the chef only speaks Chinese!

ILoveToEat

Personally, I like this place for a "before you go out drinking" kind of place. The food is cheap for what you get, bug portions that I totally recommend sharing.. To be fair I have only been here on a Friday or Saturday night and each time it is always full of rowdy people drinking and eating before they go out. It gets VERY loud so if you are looking for a nice quiet dinner I wouldn’t recommend coming here on a weekend night.. They are always very accommodating although the staffs English is sometimes really difficult to understand and communicate. I have to say though, the whole “one bill per table” can become a bit annoying especially when you’re sharing with a large group.. Otherwise yum, cheap food, (huge portions) very simple interior.. nothing fancy. Definitely good place to come if you’re going out after! (You can pretty much BYO anything…)

Love B

Wow! This restaurant serves amazingly tasty food. It satisfies my soul every time I dine here. Well, it's not a fine dining restaurant hence, don't expect excellent service but the staff members were friendly and efficient. Must try: Peking duck and hot n' spicy king prawns.

Y YOU

I always come with a big group!I love their king prawns with garlic sauce which is to die for ! This place is always crowded so making reservation before you go is must!

Sylvester Kuo

Peer pressure is a weird thing. I came here with some classmates because they thought Canton Cafe is nice and they wanted to play with the spinning table. The waitress could not speak English so I resorted to speaking Chinese to her on behalf of my mates. The food was definitely not cheap, I don't know what others were thinking but I was a little stunned when I saw the price. The dish sizes were quite small too, I was left hungry but thankfully the girls do not eat as much as the other male mate and I devoured the whole thing (with me doing so out of hunger). The upside to Canton cafe is that they only charge 1 dollar for corkage, which is good if you want to have some heavy drinking while having the food.

T.B.F

Bring a box of alcohol with ya when you come. Nah seriously though - bring a box. I came here for a birthday and it was b.y.o. The guys literally bought a box with them so they were happy. Not sure what the surcharge for that was though. Food was hot and sizzling and everyone got theirs at once, especially considering we had four large tables. The quantity is quite big, so it's best to share the platters and just eat off a saucer. Good experience. If anything Kingsland has some real shitty as parking in their area. All these amazing cafes, bars and restaurants and bugger all parking. Hence why I try to avoid dining in that area.

Food Reviewer

The food is lovely and delicious, Great service overall. Quick and efficient. Will definitely visit again. Also tried the duck which is average. The special black chilli prawns and ginger spring onion chicken are two dishes to die for. Great combinations.

Rose

5 stars... Amazing staff and excellent food. worth the money great family spot. yummiest asian food would highly recommend 👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼

S&G Take Auckland

If you're expecting quality ingredients then dont bother going to canton! This is a cheap but delicious treat to have before you're pre-loading to town. I ordered a spicy chicken dish and to be honest I didnt like how the fat was not cut off from the chicken- it gave it quite a chewy texture. I would probably only go back if my friends were craving a cheap feed before town other than that I'm not sold on trying it out again because of the health implications it may cause.

Iris Joy Ebasco Edic

Been here before on a company meal. Place is always packed. Good Chinese food can't complain. It's just place is Not that big enough. Maybe will be back again.

Annie Wilson

Don't judge this place on looks. It's abit old but the food is delicious, the plates are large, the food is fast! Go as a group and order a majority of food to try. It is also byo wine and beer! Best Chinese in Auckland!

Neha Shetty Suri

Loved the special black chilli king prawns and peking duck. The fried rice was good as well & portions are huge here. It's difficult to get a table, noisy but definitely worth a visit!

SJ

Initial visit to Canton Cafe was excellent and really enjoyable. Recently, a group of 15 of us visited canton cafe for a birthday dinner and were disappointed. The staff were rushed and rude. The food was ok and not great. Would not recommend for dine in experience unless you want to be yelled at by the lady taking your order. Takeaway is probably the best option for this place as cheap take out is always a winner.

Seeeaaann

Great place to eat with friends or family. Try the chilli pepper salt squid you won't be disappointed! Staff are pretty friendly. Only downside was we couldn't split the bill for a group of 10+

Foodie Spy

Used to really thrash this place but have eased up of late. The food is good and the service not to bad. Can get a little rowdy with the dinner crowd.Pays to go with a group,a lot more cost effective and experience more dishes that way.

Munterboy

The Food here is really good and the service is fast. It's always packed and is byo which is good I guess. The only thing I thought was its kinda expensive

Duchess_Arg

Good food. Good taste. Good service. We went here on a late sunday night. We were glad because they served the food quickly, just like what we wanted. We love the idea of giving orange slices after eating heavy meals. Two thumbs up for that.

Namratag

Absolutely love this place. Spicy king prawns and special black chilly chicken are my favorite and regular picks. The place is quite noisy but worth it.

Pritika Sharma (Veg)

Over priced (for vegetarians). Inconsistent. Taste standards have definitely dropped. My vegan clay pot lunch seemed overpriced ($19.50 for vege & tofu Claypot and $5.50 for rice). Food was ample for two, i had half only.Last time o ordered the same dish, price of rice was included in $19.50. TASTE today was REALLY bad. the vege & tofu claypot made last time was tastier therefore, i say they are inconsistent. I am not returning for a very long time!

Sam Chimanlal

Brought two main meals takeaway to find two hairs in it!!! Seriously has put me off ever going back here again. Both meals went in the bin!!! Brought chill pawns and rice noodles.

Audacity 2 Write

This place has only gotten from bad to worse. If you thought that the staff at Canton Cafe were rude and unaccomodating as a gimmick to show you the 'charm' of Canton as they claim, I'm sorry to report it is no act. The staff, particularly this tiny skinny woman who appears to be running the show, have clearly missed the memo that kiwis respond to kindness and polite customer service because when i just went in about a half hour ago to correct an order I placed over the phone, she screamed at a family member and then at me. The pictures below shows the percentage of veggies in the 26 dollar chicken. Dish I ordered. It was over 50% veggies and hardly any chicken. In fairness they have two dishes with the words "black chicken" in it and I ordered the wrong one. But that was no excuse to be so exceedingly rude. They treat their customers like it's feeding time in a mess hall and have an inside joke that the fruit they serve you at the end of your meal is called '$%^& off fruit'. As in, "Now that you have had your meal, eat this fruit and $%^& off so we can serve someone else". All this is humourous and fun and games until they show that the seemingly endearing attitude is not at all like the banging of pots and pans and yelling across the kitchen Gina's Italian Restaurant used to have to create an authentic Italian atmosphere - they're sincerely lacking in customer service. The woman I dealt with who is small in stature and thin and sort of frontlines the whole operation, embarrassed her staff as they looked upon the scene and threw apologetic smiles my way. The patrons looked on in shock. When compared to other restaurants who have fairly decent food but outstanding customer service, it's not difficult to see that kiwis are drawn to polite customer service and will be willing to go back to a place if they're simply treated with politeness. So please be warned, and if you do decide to try this place despite this review, don't leave your artillery at home, take it with you - you're going to need it.

Ryan Gibb

I can not think of anywhere better than Canton. The Black Chilli Chicken is gods gift, the beans with pork are also superb. Great for takeaway and dine in with great atmosphere

Reuben Morris

If you ain't eating Black Chilli Chicken you ain't living. S/O to Black Chilli Chicken. .....................................................

Kunal Khatwal

Been here last week. The place is okay. We went there for a team outing. We ordered quite a lot. Chicken Lamb Duck Beef and Prawns. Chicken sweet and sour and only sweet not sour. Beef was okay. Fried chicken was disappointing. The best thing was pepper prawns. They were really good. Overall the place is just okay.Try Pepper prawns though if you happen to be there.

Payal

Popped in here after work to grab dinner. Had been looking for an excuse to go back since my first time here back in 2014. I ordered the spicy dijin chicken and only realised it was the wrong thing that I wanted until after I received it. It was still super delicious and the portion was HUGE. Heaps of chicken and veges in a nice sauce. It was soooooo good and a happy mistake on my part for ordering it. I even manged to save some for my dinner the next day. Can't wait to come back!

Nakul Patel

From what I have heard, this place has been around for a very long time and the only thing that has changed over time are the prices. But the quality of food has remained constant and I would believe everything I hear about this place. I quite enjoyed everything I ate ranging from squid to prawns to chicken to fish to venison. Great flavours and quantities with quick service alongside a very friendly staff.

James

Very nice - big portions, big tables and B Y O - great for 21st birthday (gals with the latest wildpair and guys with clubbing shirts). An Easy transition/intro to Chinese & cantonese cuisine for the unfamiliar - yes, there is strength in large numbers, often you'll see big groups there... maybe it helps cloud any cultural cluelessness. Food is always very good and everything has a lot of 鑊氣 ("Wok Energy") menu offers a delicious variety of stir fried dishes, from the classic salt & pepper squid to the more westernised lemon chicken. Soup is always good - great for those who don't get homely hot soups made by mother. There is even peking duck. First time coming here in 1999 I saw Michael Jones (the All Black) maybe he came from Eden park. And I have confirmed with staff - "Cashew Chicken" is only available on the English menu.

Nidhi

The chilli king prawns were simply aaaamaaazing. Seriously couldn't get enough of it. I had gone there for a team dinner thing, so we ordered pretty much 2 of everything and we still have left overs. So yes the quantity is good but the price not as much and defiantly not a date night kinda restaurant. Service of food was fast however some of the staff were nice and friendly and others seemed like they had just had enough of people for the day

Disha

Went there yesterday for lunch after multiple recommendations from friends and work mates. Ideally it's best to go there in a group and share the dishes, becomes cost effective. The quantity is quite good as per the price. Personal favourites being chicken in black bean sauce and black pepper prawns are the best, we also had Singapore noodles, egg noodles, sweet and sour chicken and wontons. Service is helpful despite struggling in translation. Don't go with the decor of the place but you will come out satisfied and your taste buds will thank you. The Chinese tea was perfect and helps you digest and clear your palette. All in all I totally recommend it. One of the best Chinese experience in Auckland!

Cdeep

Dont look too much into the decor of this place....the food is amazing...we ordered 4 dufferent dishes and everything was yum yum yum👌👌👌👌👌

Stefan Sanford

Canton Cafe is an incredibly authentic Chinese restaurant. More than just food, the bustling and at times hectic atmosphere really lends to it's name. A restaurant fitted into such a space that it feels like a busy cafe. The food is what you come for and is well worth the effort. The portions are large and easily shared among 2-3 people and the circular tables make this easy. The list of different dishes is exhausting and different varieties of each are frequently available. The service is not something you stay for and as always is a mixed bag. I once had a waitress spill my drink over me and then giving me the napkins to wipe down the table and my shirt. Although at times inconsiderate the staff are generally friendly but the sheer number of people can slow them down. Overall the food is delicious and the bustle does add to the vibrancy of the restaurant and does speak to it's popularity.

Justin Boswell

Have been several times due to friends raving reviews. May have been situational but the food was below average, and as expected the service was nothing to rave about. Feel like I've given them enough of a chance, wont be back given the quality and price.

MissEstherZ

A small but really popular Chinese restaurant that is a perfect place to eat some tasty food, BYO and then quickly head out to a bar in kingsland, or go to ponsonby or town. I didn't realise it was so busy- we walked in at 6:30pm on a Tuesday and we had to be out by 8. Way too small to keep up with demand but not their fault. To be honest, their portions are slightly smaller then what I'm used to and the prices slightly higher. It is reflective of their area though, since it is city fringe. Good food, but because I go to A LOT of Chinese restaurants, it was good. It was entirely what I expected. Great for a Chinese craving. Would be back if I was in the area, but not seek it out especially.

Topi

The food here is awesome but the service is close to non-existent. If you want great tasting Chinese food in Auckland and don't mind bad service than this is the place to go. As you will see from my rating I am one of those people. I wouldn't go here with my date. Good for family/friends dinner or lunch. Very busy place so you may have to wait for table.

Jonathan Booth

Started off with a very large prawn dish. I liked the texture of the flesh and flavours. I would have enjoyed them more with some lemon to cut through the oil. The vegetables in oyster and garlic sauce were beautifully fresh and crunchy.

Eleazar Dagoy

I was about to order a meal for lunch. Suddenly the waitress pull out a white plastic to cover where I should eat. Bloody racist! I ask them why are you doing it. They just said so that I wouldnt soil the table linen! Bloody hell excuse! you are bloody restaurant to serve food what do you expect. I left and totally wouldnt recommend.

Bhavya

Serving size is excellent - if you have a huge appetite like hubby's and mine, 1 dish between the two is more than sufficient. Being a seafood lover, I am absolutely thrilled at how generous their prawn serving is...seafood is always on the more pricey side, but the serving more than makes up for it, as does the taste. The only drawback is that the restaurant itself is fairly crowded/cramped, but that probably just goes to show how much everyone enjoys it :)

Josh Law

Came here on a Saturday night. If you're looking for a rowdy BYO place then this is the place for you. You can pretty much bring in whatever you like for BYO which is excellent (heard rumours of a BYO chilly bin). So if you want an alcohol fueled meal before hitting town... then welcome to Canton. If you wanted to go for a proper meal, then I would skip this one. The food is OK at best. And is incredibly expensive. I would say you're paying $10 per dish more than Dom Road and $6 or so more than Newmarket. No reason it should be that expensive. A similar meal in a restaurant out East cost us $13 per person, whereas this was $26.

Zoe Bowker

I didn't really understand the fanfare about this place. We lived in the vicinity so decided to try it out. It really does have the atmosphere of an authentic-you're-in-Asia restaurant - too bright, crappy decor and budget table settings - but that does usually direct you to the best in Asian food in suburban Auckland. They struggled with understanding my allergies but hey, I won't hold that against them - I'm special needs and not a usual customer, but we sort of got there in the end. What we did end up with was not spectacular, and not cheap compared to other local restaurants of the same ilk. The large plates at high cost make it difficult to try an assortment as a couple, I think this restaurant is better for large groups. Judging by the crowd in the restaurant, it was for young people who wanted to drink a whole lot of BYO wine and the stuff on the cheap before heading to the rugby at Eden Park or into town. Guess we just missed picking up on whatever is talked about as being so special about this establishment.

Mezza

Great place to come for large group. Prices seem expensive but the portions are BIG and perfect for sharing. They do BYO (beer and wine) so, it's excellent for a cheap night out. We ordered chicken&corn soup, dim sum, crispy pork, Singapore noodles, sweet&sour hapuka, chilli squid and beef in black bean sauce and noodles. The dim sum looked watery and apparently weren't too good. Everything I tasted was delicious! The chilli squid with the Singaporean noodles was amazing. Service isn't overly friendly but I didn't think it was rude.

Chirag Tailor

Been here quite a lot of time but you should know what you want to eat here .My all time fav is Black chilly prawns I just go here for this dish and Black bean chicken with steam rice . Talking about the place yes jam packed all the time and a very casual place with lot of loud chats going around.

HJ

This place has plenty of seating up and downstairs which is perfect for groups. It feels a little bit like a house with far too many dining tables, as there is several rooms to dine in. It's in need of a spruce up but the food is the main star. I've had several group catch ups here and the food is always good. Portions are big so it's best to ordered a few dishes to share between you. The service is pretty average so don't expect too much. The Peking duck and Salt & pepper squid are really good! Plus its BYO which is a plus 🍾

Pakalu Papito

Saw Lorde here once. Been going here since 05. Best Chinese in the moderate price range in Auckland. If you are new to Canton and don't know what to order, go with: Chicken and Sweet Corn Soup and Deep Fried Squid to start off with. Then for mains get Black Chilli Chicken, Black Pepper Venison and Maggi Prawns. Order Rice too. Never ever had a bad experience here. There's only one dish that isn't that great here (Cantonese Fried Chicken.)

WESTY5

If you are totally drunk before you go in the food will be amazing I don't understand why this place is so popular the food is no better than the average take away I was there with a group from work it was cramped in an upstairs room with a kitchen near by that looked as tho it had not been decorated since the beginning of time. The toilet had graffiti and was dirty. Altho I appreciate the fact it was paid for its certainly not my choice. The service was well the food was just plonk ed in the middle of the table It was very very noisy I could not hear myself think Usually having Asian food fills you up I had a a burger on the way home. Thanks Carl's junior... If your drunk and have lots of cash to waste and enjoy below average food this place is for you.

Lvgdfd

Over the years we have visited Canton so many times, few things stand out consistently, viz. the crowd, the noise, the food, their excellent hospitality and the bill. The crowd is mostly Kiwi. The noise levels are second only to the airport, thats for a laugh. I think people feel so relaxed with such great hospitality they tend to speak rather well & when we all speak so well and freely the din is going to be truly great! Aah their food is very renowned, choices of duck, chicken, lamb, pork and fish to spoil you to bits but the piece de resistance is their king prawns signature dish. I cannot stop eating it nor stop praising it, & their cooks are just marvellous and they cook in the kitchen which has no doors towards the diners, it adds to the aroma and the visual delight. Their service is impeccable, accurate, superfast, efficient and so prompt & friendly. The icing on the cake is the special offering of free fruit at the end of the meal. Gives a great meal a nice finishing touch. Have always enjoyed the dining experience and yes the bill! Always go as a group as their portions are generous to a fault hence share the bill so its easy on the pocket too! The place deserves a 10 for consistency and quality. Its only the noise level which reduces my rating to a 4.0 but once they have added some sound absorbing to the place it might help their score. Lol. Highly recommended to all, and yes; encourage you to go as a group, book in advance, and have a whale of a time, sorry whale not served!

A Tale Of Two Tummies

Food ordered: Beef w/ Oyster Sauce Steamed Rice (x2) Bill: $29 Big tummy: We decided to stop at Canton Cafe for dinner, as we were in the area for milkshakes (it's like two shops down from Grill n Shakes) and it seemed to be popular. Popular = good, right? All in all, I found our experience here to be extremely hit or miss. Everything from the food to the prices to the service seemed to go from really good to pretty bad. We ordered the beef with oyster sauce and while the plate was just enough to share (we were both still hungry when we left), I really struggled to find it to be worth $26. The quality didn't really match the price either. Like for a dish of that size to be priced at almost $30, I'm expecting the food to impress, if not dazzle, me. The beef was actually very well-cooked and full of flavour, but the broccoli was extremely hard, to the point where it was almost impossible to chew through. I was also kinda gutted to find it included mushroom (it had no mention of this on the menu) all throughout the dish, as I have an intolerance to mushroom. Funnily enough, the rice was very generously portioned... one serving would easily be enough for two people. Over-priced mains, under-priced rice. The service was again 50/50. The waitresses are very efficient and are quick to assist you. The food was relatively quick to arrive. But I didn't count a single smile in the place... even when I was paying, the waitress didn't even look at me. I did like the little touch of putting fresh fruit on your table though once you finish your main. A surprising and very nice feature of the dining experience. Little tummy: We wanted somewhere cheap for dinner, so what better than Chinese (even though it didn't quite work out as cheap as we expected). The beef was tasty enough, though parts of the broccoli were almost inedible. I had to leave rock-hard chunks on my plate. I liked the fruit handed out to us at the end though. A really nice way to end the meal. To be fair, the jury is out on whether we'd return. It wasn't a bad experience, but I guess ultimately we expected more. Would most likely try out other places before coming back.

Georgia Vossen

I don't really know why this place is so popular and has so many awards! I mean it was nice, and I guess I'm not too much of a meat eater, I usually like to stay safe and only really eat chicken, beef stuff like that. So I found the other meals we ordered to share with a variety of foods I had never tried a bit strange and didn't like the flavour much. Found them really greasy and dripping with fatty sauces which doesn't particularly appeal to me much. Didn't find they had much flavour and that kind of thing. I find Chinese takeaway shops just as good to be honest, but I spose that's as I go for the simple common dishes. Was a good experience though, very interesting foods. I found that the waitresses are not very friendly and well trained with service either, again it's a different culture and it's something I'm not used to so it was fine for the experience. Very run down bathroom etc too, couldn't they just renovate the place a tad, make the atmosphere a little better?

Izzy Walker

I went to this place with 2 other people and managed to get a table for 3 as it was already quite packed. Due to many people already at the restaurant it was very noisy but I suppose that's just unlucky. We ordered our food and were served with our dishes within 5-10 minutes which was very quick however our order for the rice never turned up meaning we had no rice. It is also BYO. Food was very tasty and full of flavour, highly recommend for the food but not the service. Definitely room for improvement.

Rud Ster

we arrived on friday, we got seated upstairs in a room with a very dim light (they might think it's a romantic ambience with this sort of lighting but it was shit). we ordered chicken, tofu, venison, blue cod, crabs and squid. all the dishes came up pretty quick except the tofu. when the foods arrived, the chicken slightly on the dry side but still acceptable, the venison is a bit tough and not much flavour in it. then the crabs came - and it was a complete disaster. these crabs meat was OFF !!! you can definitely smell it and taste it that they were OFF big time !! we took some and pointed nicely to the manager lady downstairs and she was NOT very receptive to it at all - but at the end, we got the crabs replaced with some prawns. to make matter worse, we had to wait for almost 1 hour for our tofu - the tofu only came in when we were finishing our dinner - after we told them that we were finishing soon and to cancel the tofu. after all that wait, the tofu was tasteless. then when the time to pay, we got a nasty surprise to see that we have been charged $48 for the blue cod fish !!! i have never been to any chinese restaurant with a blue cod priced at $48 !!!! it seems they overcharged us to compensatethe BAD crabs that we returned. we have been going to this place for 10+years. the last 3-4 years we hardly go there anymore coz we think the foods haven't tasted the same anymore (we always order the same dishes everytime we go there) - and this is very obvious as you can hardly see any chinese ppl eat there anymore (you know if a chinese restaurant is THAT good, they will be full of chinese ppl because they KNOW what is authentic or not, good or not). i went there with some friends 4 weeks ago and i ordered the usual dishes and it was great. so i thought since mum's b'day was coming up, we booked a place for 5 to celebrate mum's b'day there. well.. that's definitely a BAD CALL ! what a disaster that was !!!

Wendy Zhou

One of the Best Cantonese Restaurant in the city!!! Those black pepper prawn shelled are AMAZING! Veges always good and right in season, specially black bean sauce Beans! Yummy Picking Duck, 2way or 3way best for small or large group of people! Been visiting this place for 6years, taste of all my favourite dishes hasn't change a bit! 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

Ryan

Best Chinese in Auckland! Best for a group because then you can order a couple of dishes to share and try a bit of everything. Can be exxy but not too bad if split amongst a couple. Decor is nothing fancy but the food is out quick. Our go to place if we're after some no fail Chinese. Prawns are always a hit.

Luke Cochrane

The food is really great here! The only thing that let it down for me was the price. The atmosphere is really busy as you can see all the kitchen and the wait staff are always running about. A Saturday night dinner is very busy. They managed to cram and fill every table with as many people as possible, so it was very loud and kind of awkward to manoeuvre around sometimes. But if you love good food, don't mind paying a little bit more money and don't mind a busy atmosphere, this place is really great.

Nalin Ariyawansa

Good Chinese joint, Last Saturday we were there with a group of 14, food and service and the pricing perfectly matched. Also this help when they allowed to bring in your own wine.

Stifanyanwar

This place so recommended for all Chinese food lovers! The prawn was amazing and we ordered black bean beef which is very yummy!!! A bit more expensive but it is worth it.. The prawn was serve without any tails or skin and it serve in a big portion of plate so don't order too much ( or otherwise you can take it home lol) !! Must try for all Chinese food lovers😋

EssJay

I've been going here for a few years now. The food here doesn't compare to your typical Asian takeaway. The food here is totally different. I've always been here with friends and split the bill. Food and service is very good. I'll go here on any given day, prices they charge are worth it.

Sophia O-W

I remember coming here as a kid and it used to be so good, not much has changed. Came with a large group of workmates for our dinner and had a good time. We ordered many dishes which came out in a timely fashion, which included; siu mai, wontons, roast duck, lemon chicken, combination fried rice, spicy ribs, garlic half shelled prawns, seasonal vegetables, black bean beef (a must try!), and some other dishes with drinks. Overall it cost just under $300 for 8ppl which is slightly on the pricey side of things, but for the amount of food we ordered and its high quality, it was most likely worth it. Good experience overall, would reccomend to asian food lovers, just make sure you make a reservation!

Robyn De Vega

Not the prettiest place, but never mind that! The food is divine. I ordered the Hot &Spicy King Prawns, no shell. And Black King Prawns - deshelled- this is the yummiest ish EVER! It is a bit spicy, however if I can handle it- I cant stand hot food, then anyone can. It is rather pricy $32 each for the two dishes mentioned above, therefore best to go in a group and bring some cash along- one payment per table. They give u free tea- bonus! :-)

Sana Siddiqui

I would like to start by saying that its my most favourite place to go whenever I wish to eat Chinese. Its not really a fancy place. Is generally crowded during the evening, better to do a reservation before going. I love the refreshing hot tea which is served as soon as we get seated. The staff is nice, they always try and do things as per your taste buds. Special black chilly chicken and hot and spicy kings prawns are to die for. They also serve you nicely cut apples and oranges after the meal. I would definitely suggest people to go and try this place. Its crazy.

Ariah-Bella Peters

Went here with a large group of friends and we ordered a number of different dishes to share. They serve really big meals for a very reasonable price and the complimentary tea is a nice touch. They food here is delicious. The place is a bit cramped and it's a little inconvenient that they don't allow you to split the bill but I would definitely go here again.

Victoria

Eaten here multiple times, haven't yet found a chinese place that out does these guys (and we've been trying!). You can be guaranteed anything you order from the menu is going to be tasty, we usually go for prawns and try a new type or an old favourite. Service is quick and polite. Hard to go past CC when in Kingsland. Tip, come in with a few people so you can order a few dishes to share!

Pankaj Kini

Cheat day numero uno!! So its was a call for celebration while snuggling indoors on a cold night. Whats better than takeaway from Canton!! We had the special black chilli prawns and chicken, stir fry venison and the usual chicken fried rice. This place is consistent as hell. The place was pumping as always when I stepped in to pick up my takeaway order. Food was the same - delicious as always. The prawns are deep fried with no shell with dark red chillies. Its succulent and spicy at the same time - just the way u would like it as was the chicken! First time tried venison and again tender and flavourful. Chicken fried rice is what it is - comfort food to fill you up. Canton is a perfect combo with your Johnny black - get takeaway in the comfort of your home while the drinks are flowing. You shall thank me later if you have never tried it before!

Jasmine

I remember walking past this restaurant several times in the past and seeing crowds of people waiting outside to be seated and always thought to dine there since it looked so popular. When first walked in, I thought it was a war zone as it was fully packed. It is impossible to dine there without a reservation. The restaurant is so small compared to it's popularity and if it was bigger, it would probably still be packed as it's BYO as well (Extra brownie points). We ordered 2 course Peking duck along with Sizzle Beef and Black pepper and Salt Vegetables with Braised pork. The table we were seated at was too small so when the Pecking duck came out, the table was completely full. The food comes out really quickly - so quickly that they try to take your food away. As soon as we got our Peking duck meal, 5 mins later the second course came out but then another 5 mins later, the other food came out and the waitress started clearing our table straight away (and combined the food onto one plate etc) They are very efficient but I felt rushed. The food was delicious, the dishes are huge and the price is fair, Every single bite was delicious. Other than the fact that you feel rushed and if you ignore the fact that the waitresses are yelling and rushing past you in the speed of light, (this may come across as rude) this place serves one of the best affordable Chinese/Cantonese dishes I've had in Auckland.

Gaylene Harker

We went last night didn't book but were lucky to get a table for 2. Atmosphere buzzing, service prompt and friendly the food was outstanding. We thoroughly enjoyed this meal. King Prawns, Scallops & a Sizzling Beef , needless to say the generous portions made this too much for us to eat and they gladly gave us a doggy bag. Wow though didn't want to stop eating it as was so tasty so beautifully cooked and full of flavour. The beef was so tender and generous amounts of prawns & scallops as well. Great value for money. Will definitely go back again. Really recommend

Gon Guerra

OMG!!! The best #squid i've ever tried!!! Really good and tasty and also the roast pork!!! Damn good!!! Highly recommended we're coming again soon for sure!!!

Tania

A good place for a group of people. To get the best value out of this place, come a in a group to share a variety of dishes. The price per dish is quite expensive, as Chinese is usually cheap and cheerful, but spread out among a group, it works out as a good feed. Not exceptional, but tasty. The maggi prawns and blackened chilli prawns are pretty darn nommy though. Don't expect friendly service as I think they get a bit flustered with big groups of people, but the food comes out really quick. BYO is definitely the way to go.

I'm Hungry

This place deserves all the awards it has on its walls. Authentic chinese but a bit higher priced. We went in a big group and had a feast. Luck to try over 10 dishes at once. Although nobody smiles, service is fast and good and open for late lunch as well.

Food Food Foodie Food

If you like Chinese food, live anywhere near by and haven't been here... You're lying about one of the above. Blackened Chilli Prawn. It's everything. Peking duck pancake. Byo includes beer.. If that takes your fancy.

Ameri Lim

My family and I usually come here for dinner on special occasions or during the weekend. We have dined in this restaurants over 5 times. Every time I dine here, the restaurant is fully packed with customers and often groups of people will be lining up outside the restaurant. So I would advise pre-book a table if you want to go as a group or family because that's what my family does all the time. In term of the food. the sweet and sour pork and the seafood tofu are my favourite dishes. The food do not only taste exceptionally good but it is rather affordable for the quantity you get for every dish. The customer services were always helpful,quick and friendly. So I would definitely recommend this Chinese restaurant for a simple,affordable dining experience with your group of peers or your family. I also saw many Locals would have takeaways instead of dining in as it can be crowded during the weekends. It has no disappoint my family and I every time we done here. Give it a try! :)

Tritip Kittitanarux

Very loud, confined space, I could hardly hear my neighbours LOL, great foods and super cheap !!!! Unlike other chinese restaurants that are very greasy and full of MSG (more than Canton), I would like to recommend Black Chilli King Prawns and Maggi Sauce Hapuka, sound simple but amazing, they are really massive King (and Queen) Prawns, shell off !!!! Cooked in black pepper and chilli, just about right in texture. Maggi Sauce Hapuka...favourite dish for children, just fried Hapuka (boneless) cooked with Maggi sauce, I feel Iike 5 yrs old again, as I've grown up with Maggi sauce LOL. You'll definitely need to eat those with rice because all the dishes here have very strong flavour but I can guarantee you as I'm also Asian myself, if you want to look for cheap place to eat, good value for money and delicious foods.....try this place if you don't mind non-speaking English staff but they are nice :) I don't mind at all because I just show them I want to order from menu. If you walk in, you'll definitely have no table, always fully booked on weekends.

Donna&Shane

Food is great... Still the same quality after all these years... Service not as good as it once was but you go here for the food... Takeaways can be easier as it gets really busy and noisy

Juanine

First time I had Peking Duck Pancakes and they were so Yum! Also had a dish which mainly consisted in beans which was also very tasty. Would recommend

SS

If you dine here expecting nothing from the slightly rude, non English speaking staff, you'll be happily surprised at how good the food is. FOOD. I'm going to start by stating this is my absolute favourite place to have Peking duck - I love how the duck pieces/carvings have a significant amount of meat. Other restaurants serve the skin and fat only. They are also super generous when it comes to the sauce and salad which accompanies it. The second course, stir fried duck meat wrapped in fresh ice berg lettuce is simple but yum - I also think it's cool how the cut they lettuce into little pocket shapes ☺️☺️ The garlic steamed prawns, salt and pepper hapuka, and salt and pepper squid are also really good. Portions are big and not pricey at all. I also love how byo is $2pp!! Canton is very busy, even during the week. It pays to book! Only lost a point because they served us warm tap water. Super weird.

Brunette1

Is pretty pricey but the food sizing is more than one meals worth so it is great, very yummy, customer service wasn't as bad as I thought it would be reading the other reviews although I did go for lunch time so it wasn't as busy so meals came out pretty quick which is always a bonus when you are hungry. It even wasn't as oily like other reviews said. Yes would go back but dine in next time :)

Shannon Thurgood

Great Price, great serving sizes and nice staff! Food is wonderful, will def be returning. Interior isnt the best buuuuttt you can easily overlook this because of the yummy food.

Supreet Kaur

It sucks to not be able to give this place more than this. I absolutely love the food. A friend took us there for her birthday dinner and since we were about 7 people, got a table and good service. Since then I've recommended it to 3 of my friends and every time we went there, the service was horrible. There is no catering for smaller groups and we were forced to sit in the balcony that was a tight squeeze. The other time, we didn't get a table and no straight answer to waiting times. I don't recommend it to anyone anymore. I wish they would do something about their service.

Lauren

Whenever I've passed Canton Cafe it's always been full of people - so my family and I decided to try it out, and we are so glad we did. The food is full of flavour and the menu has a big variety of choices, so everyone is bound to find something they like. The only downside to our dinner was the long wait for our meal - but it is understandable as they were very busy.

Chanel Stevens

the prawns were the best I've ever had, heard about this from a mate and now we can't stop talking about when will be the next time we will go back.

David.beard

Food Porn - love the Special Black Chilli Prawns. YUM FACTORY The Special Black Chilli Prawns are delicious. We're regulars and order this dish everytime. Highly recommend Canton Cafe

Andrew Turner

Some local friends suggested Canton Cafe as a good place to get together for dinner for seven of us. We arrived and secured our large round table in the already busy establishment and arranged our BYO drinks, apparently this is less common in NZ than "Aussie" as the locals call it.

Nick Keesing

Walked past this place for 9 years, lots of Chinese in it, a good sign for a Chinese restaurant. Finally went in with mate, ordered beef in black sauce and half duck. Food came out in ten minutes, if that, and an extra plate of sliced pork gratis. You can't wreck duck and it was great, but often beef can be the wrong cut or wrongly prepared. This beef melted in the mouth. Pork was tender, fragrant. We ate ourselves into extreme disrepair, there was enough for 5 people to be honest. They supplied both chopsticks which i used and knives and forks. The splash-guard on the table-cloth solved any guilt problems I had with my dining accoutrements occasionally failing to deliver the bite-sized morsels to my mouth. Rice was perfect, no grains stuck together, none hard or discoloured. Everything spotlessly clean, premises, staff. I told the Chinese floor manager my opinion and she said, "See you tomorrow" and laughed. If I wasn't on a rigid diet, such would be the case.Totally good value. N. Phillip. K

Rebben

The Salt and Pepper squid is delicious! Canton is the type of casual eating establishment for people who are looking for large portions of food at value for money. The restaurant itself is incredibly noisy, so you can't really hold a conversation with your dining companions. But who needs to talk when there's eating to do? A tip - take a large group so you can share and try all the different meals :) BYO is available

Scha

Try the burnt chilli prawns! Delicious! Super place, quick service, staff don't always smile but the food makes up for it. Vey busy place, need to book table in advance.

Garrick Chong

As a Chinese person living in Auckland, this is one of my favourite places to go for Chinese food. Service is brisk, bordering on rude but the food certainly makes up for this. Mostly MSG free and with what tastes like the freshest ingredients, this is certainly one of the best Chinese restaurants you can go to in Auckland. And a $90 bill for a dinner with 5 people with leftovers makes this a even better choice for those seeking good food, but without a hefty price tag.

Miss Poppy

We always love coming here.the food is fantastic and a great price/selection. The only real problem is the Kingsland parking, but hey you can't be to picky when you know you are going to have a fantastic meal. Can highly recommend the fried green beans! They are the best I've ever had

Ania

My friend recommended this place to me and it is really really good. I went their with a group of work of work friends on a Friday night and we ordered like 10 different dishes. They were all yummy as. :-)

Eugene Z

Good food and atmosphere/environment. Not the best place if looking for a quiet restaurant but is well suited for eating out with friends. Food came extremely quick and was nice. When I went it was absolutely full so luckily we booked a spot, so I would definetly recommend this restaurant and would suggest booking beforehand.

Shharukh Issani (Sharkx)

Delicious Chinese food , good cozy environment and tasty food i think only good for a party of 4 at least . its BYO so helps a little . also was featured in metro cheap eats so shall try it . although I did not enjoy take way as much as I did dine in.

Azah Forlife

I was here on a Friday night. Dinnet for four. The atmosphere was a tad rowdy but that's to be expected for a Friday night. We orderes the Pekin duck, chicken with garlic n ginger sauce, bok choy - steamed, n some rice. The food was delicious, flavorsome and just spot on. The only criticism would be the service was a little lackluster but I suppose that's to be expected with a noisy crowd. Still recommend if only for the duck alone. :) ended up giving leftovers to random strangers when we left because that's how much we had. Coming back again.

EatsByZee

Canton Café is an Auckland institution for quick, delicious and satisfying Chinese cuisine. A great place for group catch-ups, as the dishes are large, however the volume can become quite loud given the popularity of the place. Favourites include special black chilli king prawns (shell off - $30) green beans with salted olives and pork mince ($23) and any of the sizzling plates. It is always a good idea to book ahead as they are always busy. Due to the quick turnover, diners are often rushed near the end of their meal. When the plate of salted fruit is brought to the table, then that’s the restaurant's subtle (not or so subtle) hint that it’s time to leave as the next round of diners are due.

Ann Lee

Have been here twice now and while the food is great - the customer service is terrible, some of the worst I have experienced. The lady in charge needs an attitude adjustment! If I was to return I would definitely get takeaway as it's not worth dealing with such rude staff.

Susan Fox

Great food and cheap but shame the staff don't have slightly better customer skills! You need to book as gets busy.

Fleur Peps

I come here 3 - 4 times a year and each time I enjoy the food. Yes it's loud Yes the customer service is somewhat lacking Yes it's crowded However, the food is amazing, it's very cheap and if you book in advance they are happy to accommodate you. The lady that owns / runs the place is actually very friendly and will chat to regulars and be friendly towards guests. Will always come back here!

Vikz

I've been meaning to go here for ages - so why not for my birthday treat? Wow - packed on a Tuesday at 8pm? We had to wait for a bit for our table (which we should've booked, but hadn't!) The service was fast and not too smiley - but thats not why any of us eat Asian, is it?! Personally I prefer to feel like I'm actually eating in the country that the food originates from! The food comes in very large portions, lots of meat and very tasty. At the end of our meal a waitress was yapping to us and was very friendly and sweet, certainly didn't experience the poor service described in previous reviews! Its defo worth a try if you like Chinese food, I'll be back - its just around the corner from my house! :)

Jan Thaggard

I went here last night - place was busy and loud as usual, food came out a in timely manner which was good but the service was a complete let down!! Will never ever be coming back due to attitude of the lady in charge. She was rude from start to end. She looked less than happy to be taking our order, after a couple of minutes of receiving our dishes, we asked her for spoons - she responded with a "no" walked away and sat at the table closest to the kitchen. Staff need to learn customer service skills.. I couldn't have been happier to get the out of there.

Lou

A destination restaurant! It's fast, loud, busy and fun! Works out reasonable with a group, especially with byo. The staff are busy and efficient, food always A+. Another great night out for our group!

Angela Lee

We went here for Chinese New Year eve and experienced the worst celebration of a special event at the beginning of the year. To be honest we only came here cause our family friends said it was good. Anyways, the lady who was in charge of taking our orders was too busy playing with her phone and made us call her six times until she heard. It was ridiculous!.This is the first restaurant where we've had a different type of the starter soup, it was as murky as mud water and tasted a bit off...compared to the other Chinese restaurants I've been to in Auckland. The lady saw that some of our family relatives didn't like the soup so then she yelled at us saying that it's a waste and we shouldn't be served. Looking back on it, I think we should have left...it was shocking. Out of the 8 plates we ordered, we only liked 2 out of 8...The remaining 6 were full of MSG and salt. They also have poor hygiene even though they have an "A" grade hygiene. One of the waitresses dropped a pair of chopsticks on the ground and left it on the next table next to us which was missing a set.

LLL

Do not come here if you care about customer service. I've encountered many unhelpful staff in the past, and I normally don't look for the bad when I go out to eat, but these people are terrible. They were almost spiteful when responding/denying any requests. Food is good so if you can get over the staff continually going out of their way to pee you off, then by all means come here because they do have quality Cantonese food.

Mia Hendrix

I went here for a birthday lunch/dinner before a concert. The lady was rude and unhelpful. I was expecting great peking duck since this place had great reviews but we got the smallest amount of duck made to look bigger because they put it on a whole plate a prawn crackers! The pancakes were tortillas not the proper pancakes and there was hardly any cucumber. It was crap. I wish I had gone to my favourite place in the city instead of choosing somewhere near my flat just because it had great reviews. This was a terrible experience and neither I nor my friends will be returning anytime soon.

Kim

The food here is quality. However, rating only 3 starts because of the rude service - my friends and I were yelled at and also got told to switch from 3 tables down to a squished two just because we were a bit louder than everyone else - it wasn't that busy that they needed the extra table. On top of that the woman rolled her eyes a numerous times while we ordered, it's unacceptable. Can't fault the food however, it's the only thing that keeps us coming back

Trevor Cole

Had takeaways tonight, went early,only about 6 diners. I was first asked "Have you ordered" I said no and asked for the menu {I thought there may have been something new]- given to me begrudgingly, gave order and handed over my card to pay. Card taken without a word as she talked in her own tongue to another staff member the whole time, EPTpos machine shoved towards me and card given back - all without stopping her conversation. No thank you, at all. We have been going there for about 15 years, and staff manners have never been good but this was the worst, same staff too but they don't make any effort whatsoever. It's only for the food that we go back, which is very tasty.

Blossoms Lapitan Cruz

Great place if you are after authentic Cantonese food ( it's like being transported to Hong Kong as you step into the restaurant!), good serve size portions, the best hot & spicy squid and Peking duck... but unfortunately customer service is not the greatest -- a lot of the staff barely speak english, and you know you are being rushed to wrap up your meal when they serve you a plate of fruits, as if to say "hey time is up, we have got more customers to feed so bye now!"

Mike Cruz

I always enjoy coming back to this restaurant. Hot and Spicy Squid... one of the best in NZ! I suggest you book a table upstairs if you're with a big group.

Nicky

Food comes quickly and good generous portions (which you'd expect with the price). Dishes are about $20 - $25 Food is really yummy, we had sweet and sour pork, lemon chicken, chinese vegetables in oyster sauce, fried rice, prawns and a tofu dish. The service is horrendous, some of the women who work there have no concept of how Western people like to be served. They forced my friend to sit down when she was trying to talk to a friend, and was incredibly impatient to my other friend, making rude gestures with chop sticks to hurry up! I am Chinese myself, and it's a shame they don't pick up their interpersonal skills as it would make all the difference especially to the non Asian customers who must find this shocking. Also, the place is so loud you can hardly hear the person next to you, we went on a Wednesday night and it was still unbearably loud. Not a place to go if you want to catch up with friends.

Don Graham

This is an amazing restaurant. The food, the service, the price and the atmosphere is all brilliant. Over the past year, I have been to this restaurant at least 8 times. Three of those times I have taken a Chinese visitor with me and she rates it as the best original Chinese restaurant in Auckland. ( Just like Shanghai!) Try it, you will not be disappointed!

Orca1

After reading reviews, decided to give this place a go, catchup with mates. Can't fault the service but this restaurant is definitely not quiet. We came in with the rain, hail & thunderstorms thinking it'll be a quiet mid-week, we were in for a treat. Had to shout to be heard, after a while gave up. Meals on the pricey side. our sizzling beef dish was the only one with bit of kick/flavor. The steamed mixed veges in garlic sauce limp & overcooked. Definitely better Asian around town. Friendly staff just tired looks and busy restaurant. Their do well in politely turning people away until tables are empty or ready.

Jack

Just reading other comments about the service and want to say I find the people who work there to be the salt of the earth. I've been frequenting the restaurant for over 10 years and to my delight - the same women are diligently and efficiently walking those floorboards since way back when. They are like stern aunties who don't muck around - its hot, steamy and brisk and so they make sure everything is in top order. They always seat us at our favourite table in the middle and the little details - hot tea, fruit pieces are always appreciated. Love them and love Canton Cafe. They keep it real!

Jarrod Hageman

The best Chinese restaurant in all of Auckland. You have to try their bean dishes and the sweet and sour pork dish. It is superb. We get takeaways once a month.

Debs

We love this place! Have been here many times, great for a large group. Love the round tables with the lazy Suzy set up. Very handy for a big group coz it's BYO and the food is incredible. My favorite is the lemon chicken which is done in potato flour not wheat flour which is great if you try to avoid wheat.

Sunaina

3 stars because the food is amazing. However, worst customer service I have ever experienced in my life. The waitresses are rude and their behaviour was absolutely unacceptable. They really need to attend classes in order to improve customer service skills.

Bobbie Jones

Disgusting service. Workers were rude, and offensive. Yelled at us, rolled their eyes, just a rude experience. Can't complain about the food, but would not be returning.

G R

Nothing bad can be said. Simply amazing. Food is served up hot, sizzling and oh soooo yummilicious. A funny incident... We ordered venison but they served us beef. My mate is religious and doesn't eat beef. When the staff realised their mistake. We were surrounded by the waiters/tresses. My mate was surprisingly calm about it. ( only to inform me later that a neighbouring table had a couple of higher management staff from his work place, and a scene would not have looked good for him) They did take the plate of beef away from the table.. BUT I did grab a lil for myself.. hehe... had it tucked away nicely in my bowl.. yea boiiii.. Venison, crispy pork, black chilli chicken, spicy hapuka, black chilli bean curd and rice.... Our usual staple when we pop down here. And not to forget ( my lil snippet of beef -- on the house I might add ) ;)

Treesha Sinha-Joshi

I have always liked the food at Canton but always found the service cold. Yesterday though I received the most appalling service! We had a booking and were told to sit at a table right outside the kitchen by one of the waitresses. I requested for a table upstairs. In response I got an angry and rude reaction. The menus were thrown on the table in front of me and I was told to go upstairs to table 17. I was taken aback as I did not understand the reason for such a reaction. I was still polite and asked her which side was table 17 and was told "What happened? Go up" We went upstairs to find the table cramped up in a corner with barely any space for 2 people to sit down and another lady comes and tells us 'sit here' and leaves. We just lost our appetite to be honest and walked out of there. I am not going back to Canton ever and even though I have always commended their food I found yesterday's service was unacceptable. Very disappointed.

Megan

must have the Peking Duck, we found it to be very good value ($55) and there is actually meat, not just skin and fat :) also recommend the hapuka with roast pork and veges. so delicious :D very good Chinese atmosphere (loud and bustling) :D

Bowiesgirl

Best Chinese food ever! Ok, you probably don't want to come here for a quiet romantic evening, or if you're dining with the Queen; but if you want your tastebuds to do the happy dance, this is the place to go. Crispy skin duck, and salt n pepper prawns: I'm drooling just thinking about it.

Dayal P

True to the old chinese proverb about all the effort going into the food. Amazing tasty fresh food, rapid service, tons of atmosphere, staff rushing everywhere, always packed; bangs, crashes, lots of cooks and machine gun chinese language from the kitchen.

Jacob Thompson

Recommended to come here by some local friends. This place serves very tasty food at cheap prices. Apparently it has changed a lot since all the kiwis caught on, but the food is still top notch. Must try....

David

Besides coming out smelling like your dinner the food is full of flavour and the service is fast and efficient. The dishes are generous in portions and always super satisfying after a meal.

Lou

The cramped tables and hustle and bustle only add to the fun of Canton. Great large fresh portions of Chinese food, BYO - well priced. There's a reason why this place is always packed full, its fantastic. Try the Black Chilli Prawns!

Alix Whittaker

Mmmm....this place has deliciously tasty treats, I have eaten here on more than one occasion and enjoyed the food thoroughly every time!! The Black Chilli Chicken and the Hot and Spicy Hapuka are my favorites!!

Brandon Lelaulu

Canton Cafe is all about intensely flavoured Chinese cuisine. The focus is definitely NOT restraint. Meals always arrive speedily,consistently loaded with taste and quality every time. There's nothing subtle about this place at all. The lights are bright, but the place is always alive and buzzing. You are usually encouraged to 'dine and dash', to keep the tables turning, but if that suits, it's a perfect formula. Often I'll get takeaways which never take more than 10 minutes at any given time. It will take me that long to find a carpark in Kingsland anyway. I must admit, being a creature of habit, I haven't tried much from the extensive menu. I have a minor addiction to the 'Black Chilli Chicken', which is tossed in Garlic, Ginger, Red Chilli and soy (and lots of it) or 'Chicken Satay', which is not at all traditional, but the large dose of garlic (once again, nothing in half measures) entice this diner to lick the plate clean (in the privacy of one's own home, of course) 'Canton' probably wont suit everyone, especially those wanting intimacy or romance. It is most likely, however, that you will still fall in love with at least one tasty treat on offer here. My desire for such things has kept me faithful for many years.

Sandy

Basic diningroom but great food. The kids loved it too. The crispy duck, salt & pepper squid and sweet & sour pork were all scoffed down! The crispy sweet & sour pork is soooo nice compared to the soggy stuff other chinese restaurants sell. we'll be back - many times I suspect!

Lauren Simpson

Canton Cafe is terrific, yes it's bustling but that just reflects how popular and good their food is. I agree that it's not the place for an intimate romantic dinner (I'd question my boyfriend if he took me here) but it is cheap, cheerful and DELICIOUS, absolutely ideal for a bunch of friends - BYO makes it even better. The mains are huge and could feed 2 people, we normally order a few things and everyone shares, the prawn crackers are light and crunchy, the black chilli prawns are my go-to order if I can't decide on something else. Try it!

Andrew

Always a favorite for small groups and visitors. We always look forward to someone arranging dinner there. The Black Chilli Prawns and Hot and Spicy Beef (or Squid) are standards with our orders. We loved it so much!!!!

Rad

Great food, poor service. Cheap and Cheerful!

Amanda

This has to be my fav restaurant! the food is beautiful always hot and quick service to. It lacks in the decoration department BUT its all about the food is it!

Raquel

great food, the place is not flash but the best Chinese food ever. Highly recommended, we always book a week in advance.

Milan Mohan

We were seven and all enjoyed the food very much. Quality and Quantity both are good. Sumptous food and great service... We find it very busy so better go with prior booking. I will highly recommnd Canton Cafe to those who love chinese food... Cheers...

Yello

We came here with a group of 20 for Bfs birthday. We booked in advance but arrived about ten minutes late as parking was almost impossible. The restaurant is made up of large round tables. It is extremely cramped and really hot! For our group they pushed two of the round tables together. They were set for 20 people, but it was impossible to fit us all on as the chairs would not fit! We asked to be moved which after a lot of back and forth they arranged to. It was a little hard to communicate with the waiting staff as they were rushed off their feet (being extremely busy) and we had to literally almost chase them down. Also it took them a while to understand what the problem was - language barriers and the noise of the place. But they were helpful and friendly! We ordered a selection of dishes for us all to share. These arrived quickly and kept coming throughout the evening. From what I had read on here I had high expectations regarding the food and low expectations concerning everything else. The food was just that: excellent! It was delicious and plentiful. Everyone noted how extremely satisfied they were after the meal. They provided us with takeaway boxes to take home the leftovers - there were plenty (as the portions were huge). A nice touch was the fruit plate we got at the end as a type of desert / palette cleanser. I half expected them to rush us out as soon as we had finished eating (from what I had read) but it was a very pleasant end to the evening. Relaxed and not pushing for us to go at all. It is byo and they did not charge corkage which was a pleasant surprise. Also they are very child friendly - always ensuring they had everything they needed and even running after us after we left to return a bracelet one of the girls had left behind. On top of all this it is very very affordable for the amount of quality food you get. Overall a great night with a very lively (loud) and cosy (cramped) athmoshere and delicious, affordable food.

Jody

Best no:-1 chinese food in kinglander

Sharad

Great Food! One of the best chinese I've had in a while in a typical chinese type enviroment which adds to the spirit of such fine chinese food. Book about a week early to get a good time. Great dishes including Peking Duck, Prawns and mouth watering chicken dishes.

Jo Fortune

THE BEST CHINESE I HAVE EVER TASTED! The restaurant is a bit grubby, but the food is amazing! Prices range from about $20 per dish - but worth it, the lemon chicken is great! Always busy - so if you want to dine in make sure you book.

Veena

food was great.. better to go in groups so u can order different dishes. reasonable price. Hot & spicy squid a must have.

Andrea

It's not flash, but the food is so tasty! They are always busy with people dining in and takeaway orders as well. Reasonably priced, although I haven't been for a while.

Amy Webb

I'll start off with saying I had been wanting to come here for a very long time, so when a friend decided to have a BYO dinner here last night, I was naturally very excited. After reading reviews I knew not to expect anything from the service. We all ordered a dish to share, but it would have probably been best to order one less as the plates are huge. Also a good idea to come with many people so you can try a lot. I found the good exceptionally oily, I bit into a piece of tofu and my mouth filled up with oil. The atmosphere is quite cool, and it's great to have a BYO that's beer and wine for only $2 per person. I must admit I was quite disappointed, the service was worse than I thought and we were rudely told to leave. The price of the meals were pretty steep considering the quality of food.

Shamal Kumar

Been here numerous times and this is the same recommendation each time. The food is very good. Priced very well and the BYO anything is a great addition. Don't go here expecting amazing service or great interior deco etc. This place is great for big groups and really good food.

Genie @ BunnyEatsDesign

My family and I went to Canton Cafe for a catch up dinner last night. A firm family favourite in the past, it’s been a while since we last dined here. I had been dreaming about their salt pepper hapuka for a few weeks. Even though it was very cold outside, the dining room was warm, though each time the door was opened a blast of cold air rushed through the room. Canton Cafe is a no-frills, efficient service type of place. You go here for consistent, good food rather than ambience. On Fridays and Saturday nights with packed tables of BYO, it can get LOUD. Lucky for us, an early Sunday dinner is the perfect time to bring the folks. We ordered our favourites including salt pepper hapuka, sweet and sour pork, green beans with pork and Chinese olives. A wild card was their soy sauce chicken which looked a bit sad on the plate, like it had be microwaved. It tasted fine though. The food wasn’t quite as good as we remembered but rumour has it that their head chef works at their sister restaurant now. The sweet and sour pork was the best dish of the night. They just do it really well. Rice is plentiful, tea is hot and we also received their complimentary pre-dinner soup and the post-dinner dessert. We didn’t BYO wine this time but we have done in the past. Total bill came to $92 which made it less than $20 per person with 2 containers of leftovers to take home. Still good value, can do better. Tip: Their dishes are large, so order 1 dish less than the number of people at the table.

Zetin Moza

If you want great tasting food, this is the place! I have been to Canton Cafe five to six times this year, and the food never disappoints! Their seating space is limited, so if you are going in a group, be prepared to wait a little (Friday/Saturday nights). However, the restaurant is located alongside many bars and cafes, so you can always grab a few drinks while you wait. They do allow BYO drinks. Remember to go in a group of at least 4 to 5 people, as the portions are massive and cost roughly $25-30 - so its best for sharing. Having said that, if you don't end up finishing your dish, you can get it packed and take it home. The black chilli prawns are my favorite dish, followed by the spicy daijin chicken. When I first heard great things about this place, I went to check it out myself. When you arrive at the venue, you will feel hesitant to go in, as it doesn't 'look the part'. While it does not look fancy or have an interesting ambience, the food is absolutely brilliant.

Gabby

Delicious, great for a large group of big boys that eat their fill! Plenty of rice for each dish, and when feeding a big group, great price -- but not so convenient for feeding less than three people, dishes are all very large hence expensive, so not easy to have variety/ appropriate amount of food per person. Great sweet and sour spare ribs, black bean beef good too. Very packed, not much room to sit, inside decor is....not very atmospheric shall we say. Food great, has been highly praised in past metro magazines, but not a place to will frequent regularly.