Review Maxine's Palace - Christchurch

First time here and this restaurant offers a commendable culinary experience overall, with flavors that leave a positive impression. While the taste is generally satisfying, the pricing might be considered a tad high for some. The variety of dim sum is good and I can tell that they use quality ingredients. However, the steamed vermicelli roll fell short of personal preference, possibly due to its texture (thick and a bit chewy). The ambiance and service are noteworthy, contributing to an overall enjoyable dining experience. I would not say the pricing is the most affordable dim sum choice in town but not too bad.

Westernised foods does not taste authentic at all, price is slightly high compare to food quality, service is slow. Very crowded, recommend to make reservation in advance. Har Gow (Shrimp Dumplings) seasoning are good but the skin is too thick. Chee Cheong Fun (Rice Noodle Roll) is too thick too and the shrimps were too little, it wasn't able to absorb the soysauce to infuse it's flavouring. Xiaolongbao is disappointing, totally dry and no broth from the bun, and taste bland. BBQ pork bun is too dry, colouring and taste are way off. Overall still a good place for Dim Sum / Yumcha.

Food is not bad at all but a little on the high side. 2 dishes plus 1 plain egg fried rice for NZ$81. The premium they can charge is admirable and inspiring. Also, service is darn good and accommodating!

It is one of the best Chinese restaurants I have been to. Yum Char was great!

Maxine’s palace is always a welcoming, smiling atmosphere. With the lovely, attentive staff, it is by far mine and my partner’s favorite place to dine. The food is mouth watering and never disappoints.

Fast service, great food. Definitely will go again.

I had crispy roast pork on rice and a hot and sour soup. I think it was a decent meal, I didn't like the sauce that came with the crispy roast pork, but I just will ask for no sauce next time, the soup was lacking a bit of the sour taste but still nice. The staff were nice and friendly, my only upset is they wouldn't give me 2 dumplings alone I would've had to buy a full entree just to taste the dumplings. They should have single buy options for the single person. Pork was a bit thin...

Loved it. Went 2 nights in a row and wanted to go back again. Definitely recommend.

Been to Maxine's Palace a few times. GREAT food and dim sum but had been inconsistent today and the previous visit. The beef tendon we ordered today was really chewy and seems undercooked, unlike the tender ones we ate previously. The fried radish cake was too peppery. Maybe it's a different chef? The remaining food were delicious as usual. 👍 Service staff are consistently friendly 😁 and polite even though it was very crowded during lunch time today. ❇️ Best to make reservations before going to Maxine's. ❇️ Recommended dishes are 烧卖 siew mai, fried sesame balls (sweet), 烧鸭 roast duck, 烧肉 roast pork, 干炒牛河 fried beef hor fun, 肠粉，凤爪.

Food is good. Service is fast and responsive. We tried the dimsum and congee, taste pretty average actually. BUT, we are very mesmerised with the egg tart. It’s a must ordered food!!You will never regret it. Its the best egg tart i have tried in New Zealand. Well done!! Will definitely come back just for the egg tart 😂

Always a joy coming to Maxine's Palace for yum cha. Food is tasty, service is friendly and prices are reasonable! My favourite place to visit everytime I go back to Christchurch !

Great place for yumcha! Good selection too. Speedy service.

Excellent authentic Chinese dishes served quickly by polite staff. Boss very helpful and generous with gifts to children. Worth a visit and booking is needed for peak hours.

Visiting Christchurch and being the last day before we go back, thought we needed a sleep in and yumcha. We came across this little gem in Addington where we called ahead to make a booking. <br/><br/>Food selection, although not extensive (compared to Melbourne), was superbly cooked to perfection. Everything was ordered to made as you order and the served hot. So its best to order all you want initially. Our spare ribs came after 30 minutes wait and we ordered it straight up.<br/><br/>Staff was plentiful and very friendly and helpful. But perhaps it’s because we were towards the end of the lunch session on a Saturday, staff were not as alert. Our egg tarts never arrived, and when we asked about it, they keep saying they’d given us the food... in the end they finally own up that it’s sold out. In fact, I saw two tables being served egg tart and we never got it even though we probably ordered first. <br/><br/>One staff member could cause the quality of the service to go down a lot. It was the same staff member that when we asked for water and menu for dessert and she totally forgot about giving us the menu. We had to go and take it from the counter ourselves. When we ordered the two extra items, only one item was served and she denied she hasn’t served it for us, after 15 minutes wait. That particular staff member did not even apologise, she just kept denying she forgot. She’s forgotten us twice and twice no apology. <br/><br/>If not for this experience I would probably give this place a 4star.

Came here for my husband's birthday. Good prices. They don't have a good wine menu at all, so I didn't bother getting one. As a group we ordered to share dumplings, satay prawns, chicken bites, mapo tofu, dried chilli chicken, sweet and sour pork and roast duck. The dumplings were amazing, good flavour and a nice crispy wrapping. The satay prawns were average, not much flavour. The chicken bites had a nice flavour but were too oily. Mapo tofu was nice but way too spicy, I've never had one that spicy before. The sweet and sour pork was nice but I've had better. The roast duck was amazing, nice crispy skin and great flavour. Altogether alot of hit and misses

Yum! Dumplings, wontons, sweet n sour pork, satay chicken, full of flavour, best Chinese in town, it’s so far away from where we live but so worth the drive.

One of my favourite Asian restaurants. I love the environment and the food. The food is delicious and the service is really good. Love this place

Average Chinese Restaurant. Food is a little over-priced and portions are small for what you pay for. Ordered the crispy pork which was not crispy, disappointed with that dish. The atmosphere was pretty authentic and service was very efficient. Would recommend getting the lemon chicken.

Great food and service at reasonable price.<br/><br/>Excellent atmosphere for many occasions, whether you want to catch up with family and friends over yumcha, or have a function for work or business.<br/><br/>We went for lunch yumcha and left feeling very well fed and treated.<br/><br/>Thanks for a good experience.

We really enjoy Maxine's Palace. Very good for Yum Cha. We haven't had dinner there yet though. Great flavor. Maxine's and Corner House are our 2 favourite Chinese Restaurants.

Just beautiful food with great staff. Place is bit noisy but other than that everything is great. Staff members are very friendly. Love the food and specially their chilli oil.

Went here with the whole family on a weekend for Yum Cha. One of the best we've had here in CHCH! We recently moved here from Auckland and we'r@e so pleased to finally find an excellent yum char place. Service was efficient, price was just right. The foods ARE AMAZING esp their steamed buns ( the best ever ) Their congee was super good too. We had the best lunch that Saturday! There were 5 of us and we just spent $79. #fullandsatisfied

Tasty Chinese food, the food took a little bit long to come and price is little high compared to other Chinese resturant but its worth the wait and taste.

The place looks nice and the staff were very welcoming, friendly and helpful. The food was delicious. The size and price were reasonable. The only down side was that it took a long time for them to take our order and for the food to arrive. From when we came in to when we finally ate, was almost an hour.

Friendly smiley people, great service, nice decor, and really great food. Better than your typical Chinese Restaurant. Worth a return visit.

YUM YUM YUM YUM IS ALL I CAN SAY<br/>Delicious meals, friendly service, clean area, what more could I ask for. The food was the best and I wanted to eat the meal over and over again. We ordered the tofu, the chicken, the hot and sour soup, the calamari, steamed buns and white rice. I was so happy when I was eating the meal and I couldn't believe how delicious the meal was. The food was reasonably priced and everyone was so nice. I definitely recommend this restaurant as it is definitely the best Chinese restaurant in town!!!😃

AMAZING CHINESE FOOD!!! We loved it soooo much, we definitely will be back when we come to Christchurch. The food was a generous serving & taste was so authentic, price also very reasonable. The staff were very friendly & the restaurant is clean with a nice atmosphere. You must not miss this place is you come to visit Christchurch and you will definitely love it. The food leaves you feeling nice and warm and definitely wanting some more.

Good quality food and friendly service. Food tastes fresh and portion is decent. Worth the money. Not the best dim sum place but probably the best choice in Christchurch. Would revisit again

Had a big group with 2 tables for a birthday celebration. The boss lady and staff were friendly but they seemed a bit stretch to cover all the tables. Just a bit under staff to keep up with the service level. The food was as good as any Chinese restaurant. The duck was pretty good

I'm really impressed with tonight's experience at Maxine's palace. This will be another of my favorite Chinese restaurant in Christchurch. <br/><br/>Nice and clean environment. Authentic mixed Chinese style decoration every where including the plates and bowls. Kids friendly environment with large space between tables and also a little corner playground to keep them entertained.<br/><br/>Friendly staffs that we have encountered tonight that gave mood warmth to the atmosphere.<br/><br/>No complain to the food. We ordered the crispy pork and tofu pot & sizzling plate of diced beef and egg plant. Crispy pork got ask the flavored while cooking in the earth pot and the tofu has a firm skin with nice tender white inside. If they could cut the size smaller will be easier to put into mouth but not really a problem.<br/><br/>That also cooked the egg plants really well. Nice tender but slightly crispy gives the wonderful texture when you taste it. The beef is wonderful as well.<br/><br/>Also fruit after meal was provided while in typing the review lol<br/><br/>I only got these two dishes tonight but I'm really impressed. I'll definitely come back again and try their lunch menu sometime as well!<br/><br/>06/02/2016<br/>If a place will make us come back for yumcha within two weeks. That means the yum cha here is really good!! <br/>Nice food fresh and tasty, nice service as usual. All of us were satisfied and agree this is the best yum cha place in Christchurch so far!!<br/>We will definitely come again in the near future. Also happy Chinese monkey new year!!

Hubby & I liked the atmosphere and the smiley faces on the waitresses the moment we walked in for the 1st time. That's a good impression for the start, because we hardly get such friendliness from typical Chinese restaurant. The food we ordered came at the standard speed, so that was good for a busy restaurant. The food didn't wow me but was good enough for more bites :P We'll definitely come back again to try other dishes, and will also try their yumcha/dimsum during daytime because they have good service(they gave us free cherries for desserts after our meal too, aww...). We noticed this is a kid friendly restaurant too, so it'd be another convenient restaurant for us in the future :) **Updates: 24th Jan 16, On a warm Sunday hubby & I were finally here for their yumcha/dimsum brunch. We enjoyed every bites we had, we both agreed that they do their dishes slightly different way than other Chinese/Cantonese restaurant but in a pleasant way :) Will definitely come back again with friends next time❣

What a find! We’d headed for North and South on a yum-cha quest. It was shut – a sign said they were off on holiday. So we braved the newly opened Maxine’s Palace opposite. As it turned out it this is run and staffed by ex- N&S employees… it’s a good story, ask Maxine when you go!<br/><br/>The long and short is this place is better than N&S. It’s bigger and the décor enhances the experience – the loos are definitely palatial! The menu is slightly abbreviated but there’s still plenty to love here. I’m not a fan of it generally but the tripe was insanely good. Each mouthful melted like spring snow. It just wouldn’t be dim sum (“little snacks that tug at the heart”) without dumplings. Both the coriander pork and prawn were gossamer wrapped flavour bombs. Good plates of squid and sticky rice (would benefit with a little mushroom / preserved meat in the filling) rounded out our five dishes. All up it came in at $30 and feed 3.