Aussie-Chinese food in Chinatown. Just because a restaurant is located in Chinatown does not mean it is "real Chinese". But Aussie-Chinese is a bona fide regional cuisine in its own right, just as American-Chinese is a bona fide regional cuisine. * * * The population of diners here is about 2/3 Anglo. There are many restaurants in Melbourne where the customer base is nearly 100 percent Asian. That said, the food that is served is perfectly good on its own terms. I had their carefully tamed version of Singapore Chili Prawns. The fire level was toned down to just a subtle undercurrent. There was clearly sugar in the dish. There was pineapple. So technically the dish was "sweet and sour". BUT ... There was that mild undercurrent of heat that you don't get in a traditional sweet and sour. Better yet - This is what sweet and sour looked like in the original dish that was developed in Canton when catsup was first introduced to China. Sweet and sour has degenerated badly in the West from the good dish sweet and sour used to be. (Awful red glaze without the interesting acid touch brought on by the catsup now rules. Contemporary sweet and sour is cloying candy.) This "back to the roots" sweet and sour would have been hard to find in the U.S. where I live. It is intrinsically a good dish. I was happy to have it. Does this have any relationship to the Malay Cantonese fusion fire dishes that you can get in Chinese restaurants in Singapore? Of course not. But Singapore is far away and Melbourne is here and I am hungry now. Let's Eat! read more

I thought the ordering system was pretty cool. They give you an iPad and you just click what you want. I ordered a beer and it came in 2 minutes! Not going to lie, I was completely captivated by it. It was the first time I had seen something like this in a restaurant - America is a little behind (we still don't even really use tap to pay credit cards)! For food, we ordered a few dishes to share. We had the jellyfish, chicken and string beans in garlic sauce, and beef and clams in some sort of a pepper sauce. Everything was pretty salty. You definitely need some white rice to balance it out. We also ordered some fried rice. I wish I could tell you how that was but we finished all of our other dishes and it never came out. I think the iPad froze when we were trying to order it, so I can't really blame the restaurant for that. The service was pretty good. It was just the food that was mediocre. We really only came here because it was Chinese New Year, we wanted Chinese food, and all of the other Chinese restaurants were either packed and/or were super expensive. The Crane fitted within our budget range. I guess what my mama always told me is true - "You get what you pay for!" read more

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Got suckered in here by the advertising of $10 claypots on the windows...unfortunately, that price is only available for lunch. All the dishes are actually your typical aussie fare of $15-$25. The stir-fried peapods are 15 AUD. Thankfully the portions are huge and we had a bit of leftover to take home for the next day. The flavours were good but i think not salty enough for some of the dishes. My boyfriend really loved their chili chicken ($23) but i was shocked that it turned out to be more sweet and sour chicken with a bit of spice to it. I would say there's is more western chinese food here than real chinese food and caters to the non-asians It's kinda cool that you get to ordered off of some machine, but it's kinda gimmicky because it's not as useful as you'd thinkg. As soon as you place the order, they start making it in the back, which doesnt give you a lot of room to choose dishes that are complementary to each other and backtrack when you change your mind. Also it's hard to see on the screen. read more

The Crane Restaurant - Chinese Near Me - Melbourne, VIC

Was delighted to be seated within 14 minutes in Chinatown on Chinese New Year in a Chinese restaurant. My friend kept raving about their iPad menus but after we sat down we were given two leather bound printed menus. He insisted on their iPad and we were provided with an iPad with a barely working touch screen which was low on battery. I prefer the leather bound with large glossy photos. As such I feel like I really couldn't order what I wanted We had pork chilli wontons drowning in spicy sweet szechuan sauce. By far my favourite dish. I drank the spicy sauce like juice and now am suffering from severe heart burn but so worth it. The pork bun was nice with a light soft dough but the filling was extremely sweet pork pieces. The spring onion pancake was good but smaller in size than expected. The San choy how was the most disappointing. Half a lettuce leaf in a bowl with a spoon of mince chicken. Yes it tasted nice but how is it San choy bow when I have half a bow.... I also had a raspberry lemonade which wad watered down raspberry syrup with soda and some lemon but was refreshing. Surcharge if you pay by card No split bill Would go back to try other dishes read more

This place stands out for its selection of dishes that go beyond the standard choices of a typical low-end Chinese restaurant. Their specialty is claypot soup, sometimes with rice inside. These are usually cooked very well and taste delicious, especially on cold winter days. There is a good selection of single meals appropriately priced around $10 during lunch times. Service is standard, however there is the novelty of placing the orders from modified iPads. With this, you can even get the waiter to bring you a glass of free tap water without any human interaction. It also overcomes any language barrier as the interface comes in 3 languages. My only complaint thus far is that the serving size is a bit small for some of the dishes. If only they put a bit more rice/noodles, this place would've gotten a 4-star rating from me. As it is, I found myself having to get an extra snack after eating here a couple of times. read more

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A pretty tasty feed with good customer service. The restaurant uses iPads for all ordering of food and drinks which was a fun and unique way of ordering. The waiters were very efficient and the meals appeared quickly. The iPads also allow you to check on the status of your bill real-time! Very handy! Unfortunately despite the cool iPad system, they still managed to bring out your the wrong drinks order and an extra entree' we didn't order; but they were very apologetic and left it 'on the house'. I will go back again as the food was excellent and ultimately, that's the most important thing! read more

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So far, 3 stars across the board from every reviewer aptly sums this place up I think. Everything was fine, just not amazing. If you're a Xiao Long Bao fiend, temper your expectations. They were perhaps the blandest of our dishes. The pork dumplings in spicy sauce fared much better, a nice and potent tasty kick. At $3.50 per person corkage is a little dearer than other Chinatown eateries (most of which neglect to charge you) but still a pittance in the grand scheme of things. I don't really get the need for the iPad ordering system here, as wait-staff were always within wave-distance to flag down for anything, but perhaps it was a novelty thing back in the day when they first started with it. It can be a little annoying that the options on the IPad don't have any descriptions, so you find yourself cross-referencing with the actual menu with each selection anyway, which kind of takes the ease out of things. With so many other similar places literally a few steps away, I won't be rushing back to Crane, however should I find my way back here for a catch-up dinner or something I won't be disappointed to have to go back either. read more

Absolutely amazing food and service, And you order all your meals and drinks on their new iPad service!! Food was fast to come out and I would rate their meals 10/10. Definitely recommend :) Dinner / entree and beers for two cost us $75.00 read more

Was dying for dumplings and this was the only place that didn't have a line out the door. Needless to say, had low expectations but the Crane pleasantly surprised. Good menu beyond dumplings and very friendly staff. Was crowded but not packed like some of the other spots nearby. Not the best but better than average dumplings. Would happily return. read more

Been coming here for ages. And it's a nice cheap option for Chinese when you're in the city. Ordering on iPads is super fun but it can mean I sometimes over order a bit... So be careful! The salted fish and chicken rice here is delicious and I always get it. The dumplings are great and cheap. The beef brisket clay pot is really good too. It's not the cheapest option in the area but it's nice for a group. read more

Not bad, just fine food quick. Easy ipad ordering and friendly staff. Just try to get a table for 2, away from having them so damn close it's annoying. read more

I'm writing a review but can't decide if I do it don't like this place. I hated the self service ordering, it totally distracted from enjoying time with my friends and made the place feel cheap. Some of the dishes were amazing some were ok. Price was very good (around $35pp and left very full). Think I'll need to try it again, but might try others in between. read more

Went to The Crane Chinese restaurant yesterday with family- seven of us. Food was very good and served on time. They missed our order of rice but still got charged for it. Only saw this today when looking at bill. We had told waiter but no deduction. Very busy and popular place and recommended but watch for billing. Charge $3.50 per person for corkage which is a bit steep. JohnV read more

I can't speak highly enough of this restaurant. In town on Saturday night for a late show and we needed to find somewhere to eat and of course Chinatown was the first option. We were suckered in by the girl out the front with the menu but the fact duck was on the menu which I just adore was a clincher for me. We were seated and brought the iPad things on which you order and given a run down on how they work and then left to our own devices. Service was quick and efficient and pretty soon I had my braised duck with hot plum sauce on the side,$23.50 and my wife had a sizzling pork rib platter,also the same price. Water is poured discreetly and service is attentive and friendly,honestly,our experience there would not be far under par with that of the Flower Drum. We were really impressed and are fully looking forward to going back for a proper sit down meal without having to rush off. A real gem tucked away in Chinatown next to Celestial Lane. read more