Grape Garden

14/20Critics' Pick

Updated October 26, 2026,first published November 11, 2024

14/20Critics' Pick

TBC by Grape Garden Beijing Cuisine

Northern Chinese$

Family-run destination for pulled noodles, dumplings and Peking duck.

Jie Zhang and Lun Gao opened their first restaurant in 1989, a time when they could barely source the ingredients they needed. Now, decades later, they’ve seen many chefs come through their small kitchen and open new restaurants, and yet there’s no other restaurant in Sydney like Grape Garden.

Part of the unique charm is the attention and wit brought by the service team, led by their son Ecca Zhang, a Good Food Service Excellence winner. The other is the cuisine, a rare chance to try the noodles, snacks and dumplings of a bygone Beijing (the city has changed a lot since Gao and Zhang left). Jie and Ecca describe the capital’s food as lighter than the hearty experience of other northern traditions.

For the most quintessential Beijing experience, have Ecca talk you through the cold starters – you might end up with slippery woodear mushrooms or a few slips of tofu skins – before plunging into a plate of miniature lamb dumplings and a bowl of silky, hand-pulled noodles.

Good to know: It’s $15 corkage for BYO, so it’s a good place for a party.

Good Food reviews are booked anonymously and paid independently. A restaurant can’t pay for a review or inclusion in the Good Food Guide.

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Last visited: June 2026

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