Kensington, Chinese Restaurant Guide

“With such delightful views of Kensington Gardens, the food could so easily become secondary”, but the impressively glam 8th-floor of the “luxurious” Royal Garden Hotel has long been acknowledged as one of the capital’s best destinations thanks to its “consistently excellent” Chinese cuisine (“better than I had in Hong Kong!”). Its ratings came off the boil slightly this year however, amidst some unfamiliar accusations that “it’s going downhill and becoming very expensive”: “if this is the best Beijing Duck in town, then I’m the Emperor of China!”

“No-fuss” Chinese dive in posh Kensington that’s “filled with surprising high-end customers, particularly given its shared table design” and beyond-retro 1950s decor. “The cheap food’s always the same: consistently delicious and freshly cooked – long may it continue in this expensive area”.