China Bar

«Consistently fast, good food and terrible service for Supper»
Their signature is bad service & super fast good food. It has not change, does not matter when you dined.

Biggest draw is that this chain opens late, and is brightly lit. I mostly eat the roasted meats, and they are authentic tasting though likely you can find the same for slightly cheaper at the other Chinese restaurants. But if you don’t want to venture into those places, China Bar’s a ‘safer’ choice.

Came in for late night drunken food NYE. The food was good for what it is, and they sell beer, and we got seats. The staff was all over the place but who could blame them. I don’t know what this place would be like sober/​day time, haha, but for late night food, it was great. We had noodles, spring rolls, bbq pork buns, prawn dumplings. I’d return.

My girlfriend and I went out for a late night adventure last night and ended up at China Bar.
We just moved from Perth and aren’t used to the majority of stores we come across being cash only. Apart from the payment side of things, the food was great. Fresh, delicious and you get to write your own order to give to your waiter which is new!
It’s a very authentic experience!
We decided to get a dish each and then share but very little sharing was done as we both loved our food. We got the braised beef — was a rich and tender dish with a really full flavour. Had a bit of a rice wine aftertaste as well. We also got the crispy skin chicken with lightly fried rice — the taste was great and exactly what I had been craving for a while. For drinks, we had smoothies. Could not recommend the Avocado smoothie enough! It was beautiful!

Great place if you are hungry late at night or just forgot about the time and realised it was 10pm and your tummy is not a happy camper!
Walked in and stood there for a few minutes before the waitress realised i was a customer and not a pole.
Ordered the lemon chicken with fried rice and my mates ordered the pork and duck noodle soup (i really cant remember the exact name) but they both loved the soup dish.
My lemon chicken and rice was good, although i do wish it had some veggies or greenery to go with it. Alas i should of ordered what looked like broccoli with peanut sauce! My mistake.
They open till 7am on saturdays! So if you are looking for a late night /​night club /​bar hungover feed, def stop by. Prices reasonable.

Believe it or not, China Bar has good Nasi Lemak… Unbelievable right? Well no… Nasi Lemak is a staple dish but also quite a cheap one. China Bar does cheap dishes well and therefore there Nasi Lemak is pretty good.
For all those that find themselves in a China Bar late one night and craving Chicken Curry (prob 1 in 100), skip Roti for a night and try the Nasi Lemak you won’t be disappointed.
China Bar regular dishes for me have either been Combination Hor Fun or Crispy Pork and Duck with rice, but this one night when I decided to actually to pick up a menu I realised Nasi Lemak was part of China Bar’s 300 odd dishes.
Sambal is fairly hot with great taste and the chicken curry was a winner, the peanuts and anchovies actually come on the plate as one pile. Try it out!

Ah ive been to China Bar twice. Both times fairly lateish on a friday night after many drinks. The 2^nd time was rather memorable hence I am now writing this review.
The three of us were directed up on to the 3^rd floor in a small room by unsmiling harried staff. After a while of menu discussion they came to take our orders however to add insult they demanded payment upfront! We were pretty drunk (and both my friends dont understand the meaning of «inside voice» so perhaps thats why). However we were on the 3^rd floor not sure how we could escape without paying…
So we paid, we ate, we left, it was all ok. However the next day it occurred to me that they had not given us one of our entrees yet we were charged hence the bad review here.
I dislike giving 1 star reviews however after the last experience I will be very reluctant to go there.

This is got to be the best China Bar restaurant in Melbourne.
It is a nice cheap eat, where you come in, stuff your face and leave with a smile on your face.
But from eating here and hearing what my friends says, I guess this is a place where you love or you hate, there really isn’t an in between, I guess because you can’t really say that this is authentic chinese food, but again can’t really say that it’s a fusion of anything. It is something that you really gotta take it for what it is. But I am definitely a fan.

Oh China Bar — I only see you when I’m drunk and there is a reason for that. At 2am on a Friday or Saturday night, China Bar in the CBD will be rammed with drunks. That’s fine because you’ll most likely be drunk as well.
I’m sure people eat here when they’re sober, but I actually don’t find the food that great when I’m sober. But for a late night meal, it’s good and cheap. The service isn’t great, but that’s expected, particularly at the hours that I frequent China Bar.
I’ve had the dumplings here — they’re quite average. I’ve had the salt and pepper squid here — they’re quite average. I’ve had many of the generic Chinese dishes — they are all quite average.
There are plenty of places to go at 2am, but I definitely prefer China Bar to let’s say McDonalds or Hungry Jacks. You actually get to sit down and have a meal and unwind for the night rather than waiting in a fast food line with other drunks.

It’s hard to give an honest and informed review on a place when your sobriety is questionable on the few visits that you’ve been there. But nevertheless, maybe this personal experience of China Bar might give a decent insight into what you can expect.
First things first… it is open really late. This means when you are kicked out of the bars and clubs, it is always an option for the post match hunger. Secondly, it is pretty darn cheap. You can get a wide range of noodles for around $ 10 and you can also get some dumplings for around $ 5 – 6. I generally always feel satisfied walking away from China Bar in the CBD but I really don’t know the extent of what I’d eat at that time of the morning.
I’m not sure how much the chains vary between China Bars ie. a big mac might not taste just like a big mac from chain to chain. In the cold light of day, the Fitzroy China Bar would only get 2 stars. I wonder if China Bar in the cbd would face the same fate.