Oriental Teahouse Melbourne CBD

The worst dining experience in Melbourne with no service and tasteless tea. Other people's reviews seem good, so it could have been one off time. For me, it was such a disappointment :( Incorrect booking: Made a booking for a group to celebrate World Dumpling Week. I didn't pre-book a special menu so others could order a la carte. When we arrived, the hostess thought we were all getting a special menu. I had to re-explain and ask for the regular menu. No service: Apart from ordering a drink, literally NO ONE stopped by our table of 7 for 15-20min. I had to get up from the table and ask someone near the bar to take our orders. Missing order: Oolong chicken and steamed rice didn't come out. Again no one was checking our table. I had to get up again and go to the bar section to follow up on what happened to the order. Later the person said the order didn't go through and whether our table wanted to order. We cancelled the menu because it was too late to eat after finishing other food. Below par special menu: DO NOT ORDER world dumpling basket. It was overly seasoned and not fresh. Not worth the money. Also, the front of the house couldn't explain which dumpling was which 🤣 Why ask for a tip? I hate leaving a negative review because I also work in hospitality and understand how things can be hectic. Still, when you neglect your duty to look after a table, you don't ask for a tip. If the venue is understaffed and a team member is not trained, you explain the situation and apologise. To me, it was shocking how our table was left out for so long when the venue wasn't busy and I had to keep getting up. Even for the bill, our group was waiting then ended up walking to the counter and paid. From beginning to the end, it was really bad... microwaving frozen dumplings and making my own tea at home was much nicer and had better service than paying $54/pp at Oriental Teahouse Melbourne.

One of my favourite tea houses in Melbourne! Love the range of quality teas here, and the delicious dumplings. To be fair, the prices here are more than what you'd get down Chinatown, but the fillings are unique and flavourful - the roasted duck dumplings and Scallop XO dumplings are delish! They also have a nice range of cocktails too if you're not into teas. Lovely place for a nice catch up with friends.

A nice Chinese restaurant to go visit with a group and share dishes, the menu is quite extensive which is perfect for bigger groups to order a selection and share. Service was a bit slow and we were seated on a table that didn’t have enough room for what we order. The food itself had good flavours, no stand outs but it was good overall 7.3/10

👍 Nice ambiance Fried squid was crispy and tasty Fried rice had some nice elements like tiny pieces of lemon rind which was refreshing Smoked chicken was flavourful 👎 Slow service Crispy pork was crispy from being overcooked Stir fried noodles was drenched in oil Fried fish was not fresh Lovely tofu except the surrounding tofu skin The bao fillings tasted mushy The dumpling skin was hard