Only about 7 mins walk from my apt in financial center in London. We had a great Sunday afternoon Din Sum time with friends. Quality n authentic Hong Kong style Dim Sum in London financial center. What a gem! But way too pricy comparing to those in Long Island New York. Less variety but decent quality. Very nice water view. Will definitely return next time visit London Canary Wharf. read more

See all

Lovely place to enjoy dim sum and the docklands. This eatery is a floating restaurant with a crosswalk to go on board. As usual, dim sum was delicious, served with efficient and friendly staff especially Simon. Glass cabinets display trophies from the local Raging Dragons, boat racing team. watch birds and boats by the window. Will return, if in the neighborhood again. read more

A large group of us came for dinner and they did a great job accommodating us. Thumbs up to the wait staff! The food was more hit and miss. The steamed sea bass was well prepared, the duck tasty and the pea shoots were delicious. Everything else was a letdown though. The aubergine lacked flavour and the (canned) mushroom and napa cabbage was bland. Both were clay pot dishes served in disappointing metal containers. The noodles lacked good flavour and the Sichuan shrimp sauce was cloying, with unappetising bright red sauce. I would stick with their dim sum which is definitely prepared to a higher standard than the rest of the menu. read more

An interesting and unique concept of a restaurant floating on Thames. Although the boat normally does not leave the shore embarking on the boat itself creates a different feeling than just popping into a usual dining place. I visited The Floating Lotus Twice. On first occasion it was a company dinner and I liked the idea of a round table as everyone was able to have a conversation with each other. The food was tasty and reasonably priced. On the second occasion it was the Chinese New Year. The decor was much more lively and the restaurant was busier than normal for obvious reasons. The aromatic crispy duck was indeed aromatic and crispy and the squid starter with red chilly and spring onions did the trick as the combination of tastes created more appetite. Despite not so enthusiastic waiting staff and an included 10% service charge the meal was more than satisfying to the palate. All in all I'd visit again. read more

See all

This place is one of my favorites. I thought SuperStar in Leicester Sq was good..well this place is GOOD and CHEAP. MUST TRY... EVERYTHING.. personally i like the fried turnip cakes, pork ribs, pork buns, shanghai dumplings, prawn dumplings,.. (i don't know the name of all the dim sums...sorry) we usually go in a big group and order family style~ we even invited our professor out and he LOVED it~ What i liked: 1. ambiance : the restaurant is a BOAT. 2. Beautiful view 3. FOOD is awesome read more

Lotus - Dimsum~~~ - Chinese Near Me - London, XGL

The views! Absolutely amazing! I came here during the night so was greeted by a traditional Chinese exterior that's quite reminiscent of the ones found in China. So if not for the food, visit here for the views. Portion wise, is quite similar to other nearby Chinese restaurants so could do with a little bit more on the plates and the food when compared to my experience in other restaurants is probably a tad bit better in quality. What sets them apart from other restaurants is the service (no offence but Chinese restaurants aren't known for their customer service skills so it was nice to be treated like you're welcomed!) My favourite would be their version of the standard 'poached chicken with ginger scallion oil' but done with a coating of chilli with the chicken sat on a bed of jelly (not your typical jelly per se but still very good). read more

See all

You aren't assigned a specific waiter so we had (literally) 6 different people checking on us. That was great when we needed anything. The food was great. We did the set menu and it was WAY too much food. Great if you want to sample different items. The peanut sauce was so good. The salt and pepper squid was perfect. The sweet and sour pork had the perfect amount of sauce. read more

Not going to travel out of my way to come here again. Nothing special with the food, and the service was practically non existent!. I had to repeatedly ask for my green tea, they didn't bring me the sweet and sour sauce for my prawn toast (again had to ask multiple times), and by the time I got my sauce and drink, my food was cold. It wasn't a busy night, and I would just see the waiters huddled at the front of the restaurant talking. Best to go China town, or anywhere else than here! read more

Who sets up a restaurant here, near the Millwall Inner Dock ? If you are not from Canary Wharf, there is very little chance of you ever being able to locate the place (but to be fair to them, there is no reason for an outsider to travel here to have chinese food). The food here is pretty good, especially the dumplings, but nothing outstanding, and overly expensive for the quality and the location. Also they do not accept credit cards for bills less than £15. That is not cool. But i will forever remain grateful to them for the hot chicken soup they fed me (for cash, no card) the day London was snowed in. Helped me to get through that day ... brrrrr ... read more

Been coming here for a decade or so. A friend of mine from HK and his family first took me here for yum cha one sunday and it's been a regular of mine ever since. In terms of authenticity, taste and notably value for money it's easily top 5 in London (along with Yi Ban docklands and JKL Chinatown). Standard yum cha fare - har gau, siu mai, lo mai gai, hot pots, char siu bau and alike all for around 2-3 quid. There can be a bit of a queue sunday afternoons, and the waitering staff arent the most attentive (though again from my experience of restaurants in HK, that's pretty authentic also!). read more

"So where are the shops?" "Just go down past the floating Chinese restaurant and turn left" "Sorry, go past the what?" Yes folks, I ate at a floating Chinese restaurant. I work nearby and considered this place to be almost a biohazard, an oddity that couldn't possibly exist in a reasonable world and why would anyone eat here? Where, outside of Vegas, would you find a floating dim sum place? When we were first moved from Canary Wharf to Millwall, it was bereft of any shops and cafes, but of course, there was the floating monstrosity. The Lotus sits on a barge, surrounded by river debris and on the outside are big plastic bins that the trash goes in. It smells. You see workers dumping the trash. It's gross. It should not be. But I'd heard that some co-workers had eaten here. And more importantly, survived. I always refused. On principal. But one day we all decided to go for dim sum. And it wasn't bad. We ordered up a round of the usual steamed and fried dishes. All very tasty and not suspect in the least. A co-worker and I even tried the curried whelks (well, once you've looked the devil in the eyes, it seems pointless not to go the whole hog, or whelk). These weren't so great. The dim sum here is good, but don't get me wrong, it's a strange and disturbing place. read more

Sadly, I hadn't been to Lotus in a couple of years - not because it's bad, mind you. It just got superseded a little by Peninsula in Greenwich in terms of atmosphere, speed of service and ease to get there. Unfortunately, when we turned up to Peninsula for our Sunday dim sum, it had been shut by the health inspector! (My friend maintains that the dim sum was yummy, despite all the alleged offences...). Anyhoo, I vetoed everyone and decided we were going to Lotus as it was always one of my favourite local dim sum places. I'm glad we did. I'd forgotten how much I like the bean curd prawn rolls here - it's my favourite dim sum dish, and Lotus does it the best in my opinion (within London) - yes, it is driving my fourth star. There are a lot of nice dishes on the menu - the scallop dumpling stood out as well. The cheung fun was not so good (the skin is a bit too thick), but the char siu boa and the char siu so are good. On arrival, it was sadly quiet (it picked up by about 1pm, which seems unusual to me for a dim sum restaurant). It's a lovely setting - yes, cheesy because it's a floating restaurant, but quite a nice view of the water front. I'm surprised that it wasn't busier with the other main dim sum place shut down, looks like the regulars all dissipated somewhere else, but I haven't quite figured out where! The only real problem with Lotus is the transport - you really only have an option of a car, the DLR or a bus. But if you can overlook that teeny-tiny fact, then it's worth popping in at least once for dim sum. read more

One day, as the bf and i were taking a walk around the wharfs when I spotted a boat that looks like a tourist trap in china. Upon closer look, I laughed and told my bf it's a decked out floating chinese restaurant called Lotus - wtf? I got home and looked to see if the place was any good, and surprisingly it has quite large following on Yelp. Could it be that there's a dimsum place in walking distance to our place and is actually good while floating on water? Finally I found the opportunity to drag my bf back there and have dimsum. And I overordered: - lotus leaf wrapped chicken sticky rice (good!) - turnip cake (great!) - fried dough rice rolls (good!) - curry squid (ew) - bbq pork buns (meh) - custard buns (great!) - black bean pork ribs (good but fatty) - prawn and chive dumplings x 2 (great!) - black bean chicken feet and pork ribs on rice (ok) The total was 43.23 GBP, including 1.50 tea charges for two ppl. The price was reasonable, and we had to take a lot of food home given how much i ordered. The service was great and the view is amazing as you are sitting in a boat. It's definitely going to be our new go-to place for dimsum from now on! read more

This is a solid choice for a dim sum (yum char) lunch. We usually have a craving every week or so and we walk away from here satisfied after a filling lunch. It's good value too. It has all of the usual dim sum favourites and items you can order off the menu. I like their sticky rice in lotus leaf wrap and they do good prawn dumplings too. The Shanghai pork dumplings need improvement. I recommend it as a family friendly restaurant where you can bring young children and be easily accommodated. The restaurant is uniquely in a boat moored to the side of Millwall Inner Dock, near Canary Wharf. The closest DLR stop is Crossharbour, but South Quay is also a short walk away. read more

Excellent food. Try the lotus chicken rice. Har gow is amazingly fresh... I could go on about this place, but you won't know until you try it! read more

Like what one of the reviewer had said, it sure as hell looked gimmicky; sort of like a tourist trap. However looking at the past review and photos, my friends and I decided to give it a try. The food was good, rather authentic, and the atmosphere was okay! I read that some people felt that the food was not well seasoned, but hey! That sort of worked for me? I thought it was well balanced, so did my friends. The congee was okay too but slightly too salty for my liking, otherwise the portion of century egg given was generous and the meat given was slightly paltry. I mean it's £4.80 per bowl, I think the portion justified the price. Apart from the congee, I had nothing else to complain. Oh wait, maybe ask for their chilli (not the freshly chopped ones, get the chilli with oil) if you can stomach heat. The chilli is really good! read more

I'm not sure I would make the trek especially out here for their yum cha, but saying that my expectations were exceeded. We totally stuffed ourselves and the bill came to slightly more than £12pp including service which is less than you'd pay at a Royal China or similar. I found the food slightly too oily for my liking, but they definitely made up for it with variety. There was a good range of steamed and fried dim sums as well as quite a few cheung funs (noodles wrapped around a filling, I recommend bbq pork or fried dough). I was definitely impressed with their variety and reckon they have more options than most. They also had congee and a few other items on a little card with only chinese (which the girl was kind enough to read out to me since I can't read chinese!) - so worth asking if you feel like something in particular and you can't find it on the standard yum cha menu. They also have the no seating until your whole party is there policy, which I find an annoying practice, as I'm used to eating and waiting when it comes to yum cha! (Saying that they are not the only chinese restaurant to implement this policy). All in all, if you're in the area and don't mind the cheesy setup that is a floating chinese restaurant, it is definitely worth a visit for a spot of yum cha. read more

A wonderful little restaurant, probably the best Chinese around Canary Wharf (with the exception of Royal China down at Westferry Quay). The cool thing is that the restaurant is on a boat, although it is moored to the pier and it doesn't rock, so it shouldn't be a problem with those who get seasick. Service is very prompt, although a bit cold, and the decor inside is nice. Tables are spaciously laid out, not like many other Chinese restaurants where they try to cram as many tables in as possible. They serve dimsum and also have a proper menu. I've only ever had the dimsum, and it was good, comparable to what you can get in restaurants in Chinatown. I've also tried the seafood ho fun noodles, which was massive (enough for 2 people). Bill wise expect to pay around £8-£13 per person (excluding drinks) for a filling dimsum read more

This chinese restuarant is located on a chinese themed floating boat, close to Canary Wharf and South Quay DLR stations. I have only ever been here on a weekend for lunch and as i normally find of Canary Wharf and surroundings to be completly dead, this place always seems to be heaving. The restaurant is split over 2 floors, i think the upper floor is slightly more 'plain' compared to downstairs. The boat is pretty stationary for those without sea legs! I have only tried the Dim Sum menu (with a couple of dishes of the main menu) and must admit i am pleasantly pleased with what we have had. The usual dim sum are on offer, and are all very tasty, especially my favourite Char sui buns. The staff can be over attentive - we were asked for drinks by 3 different staff members in the first 5 minutes, although when the food arrived we still had no bowls, and of course there were no staff around, however they are friendly and quick on the mark. I have been with groups each time, and never had to spend more than a tenner each, which is fantastic value for money. Worth the trip to Canary Wharf. read more

This restaurant is located in a floating boat-like 'pavilion' on the waters of the Docklands, in close proximity of Crossharbour DLR station. It is quite an extraordinary feature for a Chinese restaurant. This place serves great value and delicious dim sum. The price is about 15% cheaper than most Chinese restaurant. I am a keen supporter of this restaurant and I usually have dim sum here on Saturday afternoon. There are 2 storeys of huge dining spaces; hence getting a table is not a problem. Booking in advance is not necessary. My favourite dim sum here is the black sesame dumplings and the Char Siu pastry, they are the best that I have tried in London. Dinner in this restaurant is not as good as the dim sum. So my recommendation for first timer is to try the dim sum. read more

The 'Lotus' is as other people have said here a static floating boat in one of the docks near Canary Wharf. It is easy to reach via DLR or a short walk from Canary Wharf Jubilee line and there is also some parking around the boat which is pretty cheap, (If you can't park nearby there is an ASDA carpark 4mins walk away where if you spend on your weekly shopping you can park here). On first impression the restaurant is quite imposing with two floors for dining and good views (from one side of the boat) over the dock. It's usually pretty busy but as previous reviewers have said there isn't usually a wait and thus pre-booking is not essential. Lotus serves as expected both Dim-Sum and also evening meals. I have been there for both and will comment on both. Dim sum: The Dim Sum menu is a reasonable length with the standard dishes on it. On this front the dishes are reasonable, quite tasty and usually quick to arrive. There is also a special menu which is in Chinese only (at least it is when they give it to me!). From the special menu there are lots of goodies such as Chive 'cakes'. Service tends to be quite fast, although for some reason they often 'lose' a dish somewhere along the line meaning you either get one after you've finished everything else, or cancel it. The Dim Sum gets 4/5 stars, it's not as good as Peninsula which is nearby, (see other review). I've been to both many times an enjoy both. Evening food: The evening menu is large and I like the food from it. It's a bit greasy however and some dishes are over-priced. However they do great Tofu, (beancurd) dishes including some really spicy numbers that rival Bar Shu. Portion sizes are pretty large for some dishes so you won't feel hungry at the end. Also, and this makes it heaven for some of my Chinese friends Free rice refills and free Red Bean dessert at the end of the meal :) 3.5/4 stars due to comparisons with other Chinese restaurants around. Overall then, it's a good place. Not totally authentic but decent. read more

The Lotus is in a perfect location. It floats within the docks and has a great view across the water when you're eating, which really creates a nice atmosphere. The food is delicious and is definitely one of the BEST Chinese restaurants in London. The waiting staff are so friendly, polite and make you feel really welcome. The Lotus is a great experience and would be a lovely treat for somebodies birthday, or even for just a meal out. It gets busy, so be sure to book a table to guarantee a place! read more

The floating lotus is an ok chinese restaurant. It's in the mid price range and a good place to meet friends. We went on a Saturday night and it was fairly busy. I always order the crispy chili beef as it's really crispy and not too spicey. I really love the dumplings I had for a starter. They were really hot and fresh. Once it gets dark it is a nice view with all the lights in the area. read more

Absolutely my favourite Chinese restaurant in London. So unique with its style, very traditional decorations but yet very innovative for the idea of a floating restaurant! Not to mention the food..simply amazing! Their noodles are really the best I've ever tried, not overcooked or over salted.. just perfect! Will definitely come back very soon read more

I loved this place, especially the dim sum menu. For an affordable price you get tons of food and extra chilli bowl if you like spicy stuff like me. The restaurant itself is a boat, so it's already a good idea. I've been there a few times and definitely coming back again :) read more

I was running late for a meeting and i came across this nice restaurant on water i love dim-sum so it being midday i new. Staff was cold but i guess they did try in the end but it was the food i was after. Really liked it i will in again went im in the area. read more

Been a couple of times here - service isn't always great, but the food is good. Interesting idea having the restaurant on a boat - not sure it really fits in with its surroundings - but then it's the food that counts more than anything else. They have a chinese only menu which contains a few more authentic dishes than the european menu - so good to try and go with someone that speaks the language :) I'll certainly go again. (Just a shame the service couldn't be improved just a touch) read more

One of my favourite Chinese restaurants in London. Dim sum is quite good, and very good value for money. Service is a bit cold, but usually fast. There was one occasion, though, when our food just didn't arrive. We have waited for 15 or 20 minutes, but nothing - not even a single piece of dim sum. When we asked our waitress about the delay, she answered in a very rude and angry manner, in a commanding tone even, that they are very busy and we need to be patient. This was highly unusual, but we complied. After half an hour, we asked another waiter, and it turned out that they forgot our order. This second waiter was the exact opposite of the first one. She was very apologetic, and she went out of her way to make things right. She swapped a few dim sum dishes from other tables' orders to serve us as quickly as she could. We were even given a free dish, but the first waiter's total lack of manners did leave a bad taste in our mouth. But, to be fair, this only happened once out of many occasions, and I would still recommend the place, for its authentic, good quality, reasonably priced dim sum. Try to get a window table on the river side of the ship, those have quite nice view. read more

Of course the most important thing to take into consideration is the food, it was fairly descent or "mehhh" as I'd like to put it, but it was nothing that would tempt you back for more. If you decide to venture on to the floating Lotus I suggest the shredded duck noodles and or the fries, very delicious. One advantage the Lotus has is its unique location, and so with that comes a gorgeous view of the docks at night (especially from the loo windows down stairs). In regards to the resteraunt itself it felt and looked extreemly dated and needs a major refurb, the table linen a sickly yellow accompinied by cutlery and table ornaments which looked like they belonged in an antique shop. Beside from that, the staff (although freindly and welcoming) seem to keep a very close eye on you while your dining. Lastly, be aware of the hefty bill you receive at the end of your meal, beside from the overpriced menue you are given a five to six pound service charge. To add fuel to the fire the change we required from an almost sixty pound meal wasn't offered to us, instead a quick thank you and goodbye was offered in it's place. Give it a try, you'll either love it or hate it... read more

Mediocre food. King pao chicken should not taste like overbreaded orange chicken. Lomein is not vermicelli noodles. And string beans ? Really disappointing - how can you screw that up? read more

Best dim sum place in the area. Very reasonable price. Do not recommend dinner dishes. read more

I've grown more fond of this dim sum place... Get their early and eat your heart out and don't cringe with the bill, yay! Service isn't amazing but the dim sum is tasty and plentiful so you get what you came for (food narcosis) read more

Really great Chinese food, if a bit on the pricey side. Satay chicken to start with is great, served with a really nice sauce but could do with being a slightly bigger portion. For main I had the crispy shredded beef which is really really great. You can tell it's all very fresh and you don't feel gross and greasy afterwards, which is a plus! Egg fried rice is also nice. read more

this is probably the only restaurant where I can count myself as a regular. So what do I eat here? Two words: DIM SUM. (if you don't know what this is, it's like the Chinese version of tapas but we only have this for brunch) Brought my sis here who has been living a couple of months in Shanghai and she felt that the dimsum in Lotus is way better than what she had over there. (granted, dimsum is from HK, but if Shanghai can't compare to Lotus ... well, that proves how awesome Lotus is, doesn't it?) Plus, the price is reasonable here. For a good dimsum brunch, the total bill comes up to approx. £10 per person. Compared to Hakkasan, it's definitely a hit! However, the dinner options here are not up to par, I feel that only the dimsum is what makes lotus so popular in the afternoons. Love the fried custard buns especially. (would recommend more but I only know their Cantonese names) Every time someone from central London (or elsewhere) comes to visit me, I always, always bring them here for dim sum. Always. Then, when word spreads, more friends start asking and that hole in my purse starts getting bigger. Anyway, like a friend said, "in life you lose some, you dim sum." read more

It's just ok. There are fewer kinds of dim sum. But the price is reasonable. And the restaurant is designed as a ship, which is very special. This is a popular place on weekend. So if you are interested, it's better to be here earlier. read more

It's a weird little cheesy-looking Chinese restaurant that's on a quasi-boat thing fake-floating on the water. Very odd. The food is salty and in some cases overcooked. The whole thing is really weird, but there aren't a lot of other options nearby. read more

My neighborhood Chinese eatery when I lived in Canary Wharf. Solid homey food, the place where I went when I wanted hor fun, dim sum, a quick weekend lunch, a quick dinner, that sort of thing. This place is also not bad at all for dinner, but you have to know what to order. Lamb hotpot with bean curd sheets was excellent, as was the steamed fish. I can also wholeheartedly recommend the scrambled egg seafood hor fun. A great lunch or dinner one-dish meal, or as one of several dishes. read more

This is my favourite restaurant which we have been going to since I can remember. I love the location and I love that it sits on the river-except on a windy day. The food is really good and the service is always great read more

I've been here about 5or6 times now the food is really nice and its different the fact that it's a boat , I did find it a bit cramped when I've been and the staff don't smile a lot , also take plenty of money it's not cheap but I would recommend it for the food. read more

Absolutely terrible food! Can't understand how this place is still in business. The chicken is rubbery and microwaved. Taste is bland, service is poor, and it's outrageously overpriced for the tremendously low quality of food. read more