Golden Phoenix

Cheap, noisy and vibrant, lots of gaudy yellow décor but lots of windows with a view of Auckland from our table. Typical Yum Char fair, one of the better ones in my opinion but with 3 newbies to Yum Char at the table, not a lot of flavour and too slimy and doughy for them. I loved the Duck and mince balls the best and the ice cream balls were interesting. It was only $ 20 each and I was full on leaving. It’s BYO but as we went for lunch we didn’t take this up. The regular Chinese menu looked great with the locals doing more of that than Yum Char. We passed on the sinew and chicken feet though. haha

Great Chinese restaurant for large groups. Speedy service and yummy food. Offer yum char esrlier in thr day and peeking duck, although the minced duck wasn’t as good as the best in Auckland.

My favourite place for yum cha. Tasty and authentic. If you come here on the weekends, be prepared to wait if you don’t have a reservation.

I had NO idea what to expect when I arrived here. However, considering I was going with my parents as well as aunt and uncle who all ADORE good food I was willing to put up with the dire surroundings. It’s not THAT bad — except for maybe the water damage on the roof, the horrible carpet, the razor wire around the outside that you can see from your window seat… It’s really not that bad, it’s just not pretty.
But the food is superb. None of us could really decide what to eat and with six people you may as well do their set menu options. I think that consisted of chicken and corn soup, spring rolls, beef and black bean sauce, lemon chicken, sweet and sour pork… and a few other things I can’t quite remember.
I found the chicken and corn soup quite bland, I wasn’t really into it. But my dad loved it — he went back for seconds. Can’t have been too bland. I think I’m still slightly horrified from that scene in ‘The Devil Wears Prada’ where Stanley Tucci is telling Anne Hathway about the cellulite that’s in the soup. Totes untrue, I’m sure, but… ugh.
The rest of the meal was wonderful. I find that sweet and sour pork can be hit or miss. When it’s miss, it’s a really bad miss with chewy, fatty pieces of pork that no one wants to eat and you just end up eating the deep fried batter soaked in sauce. This was not the case. We’re talking plump, juicy pieces of pork that melt in your mouth. You don’t need to chew it 30 million times to make sure it goes down. Same for the beef in that dish. Beautiful pieces of meat, well marinated and definitely not tough. Vegetables crispy and flavoursome.
If you’re keen for some decent food and you’re in the neighbourhood, I highly recommend coming here. Parking is not a problem as there’s a parking lot out front, but just pay attention to the traffic direction signs… Just saying. Again, like with a lot of great little food places, the surroundings won’t entice you… but you’re a big kid, you can deal with it.
Note, BYO only. Bottle stores all around Birkenhead though.

I live quite close to Birkenhead shops, and whilst pregnant with my son, I had ducked into the Golden Phoenix one lunch time, for a quick order of two meals on the takeaway menu– a delicious combination meat stir fry with vegetables and rice and a seafood fried rice, which was also simple but scrumptious.
Just a while back again, I had the opportunity to book a dinner for five at the Golden Phoenix and I was thrilled to return again and try more seafood — the number one reason to eat at Golden Phoenix, in my books.
Very popular with the local Chinese community, the food on the menu is traditional, and bursting with flavor and goodness.
If you dine with a big group, take it upon the table to order a bunch of meals and share as you get so much more out of trying more than one.
The Birkenhead restaurant is quite a large space, which shows that they do draw crowds, especially on the weekends, and at dinner time.
The Yum Cha here could quite possibly be the best of the Shore.