For me coming home to Mumbai has two big lures - one of course being with Mom and family, and second is a visit to my favourite Chinese restaurant in the world where food is always perfect! I did what I normally do. Ordered soup, lots of dimsums and ended with pan fried seafood noodles. It was absolute bliss.

Royal China has cool, darkish interiors with celebrities wolfing down their soups with the non-filmy Mumbaikars. We have Dimple Kapadia and family seated on the next table enjoying their dimsums, but everyone gets the same level of service.

The perfect Hot and sour soup (Rs 325) is the start here, clearly demonstrating that the simplest of dishes are the most difficult to master. The soup is perfect. Chee Cheung Fun is a Cantonese dish from southern China, commonly served as a variety of dim sum. It is a thin roll made from a wide strip of rice noodles, filled with shrimp or pork or beef or vegetables. Seasoned soy sauce is poured over the dish upon serving. Prawn Cheung Fun (Rs 475) here is a thing of beauty. A few restaurants attempt it because it is so difficult to make, but very few can make it well. Royal China has perfected this dish.

                Hot & Sour soup                                    Prawn Cheung Fun

Pork Spare Rib Dim Sum (Rs 325) are sheer poetry to have. The ribs are soft and melt in the mouth, leaving behind that delightful sticky feeling on the lips. I am salivating as I write this. And one does not have to be a vegetarian to enjoy Turnip Cake Dim Sum (Rs 295). 

             Pork Spare Ribs Dim Sum                            Turnip Cake

Seafood Dim Sums (Rs 350) transport the awesome taste of the fruits of the sea all together in the mouth. I round off the meal with another favourite of mine – Seafood Pan Fried Noodles (Rs 695). I won’t describe it; you have to taste this complete meal yourself.

               Seafood Dim Sum                           Seafood Pan Fried Noodles

What I like the most about this restaurant is its consistency. The dishes taste the same, whenever one comes here. I hope this beautiful habit of mine does open in Gurgaon sometime soon. Gurgaon can do with a great Chinese restaurant.

The review was anonymously done after paying for the meal.

Ratings (Out of 5)

Food: 4.5 | Ambience: 4.0 | Service: 4.5 | Value: 4.0 | Overall: 4.5

Meal for two: Rs.2500 | Alcohol: Yes | Credit Card: Yes | Wheel chair friendly: Yes

Address: 192, Turner Road, Bandra Talao, Bandra West, Mumbai. Tel: 022 26425111, 022 26425533