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Happy Palace

Kung Pow! chicken.
Kung Pow! chicken.Eddie Jim

Chinese$$

For years I've looked up at Happy Palace. Haven't you? That big-windowed Chinese restaurant, perched on the corner of Bourke and Exhibition streets. It's a classic, a retro relic, and a part of the view since 1985.

But what's this? Now there's a balcony, leafy with greenery. And are those glam funksters sitting under the Chinese lanterns, sucking down cocktails, and loving the kitsch kookiness of this new-old Chinese kid on the block?

Masters of shtick Jerome Borazio (Ponyfish Island, St Jerome's, Sister Bella) and Josh Lefers (Big Dog Creative) have gone to town with the gags, and Happy Palace is rife with irony, in-jokes and '80s flashbacks.

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Happy Palace's awesome open-air balcony.
Happy Palace's awesome open-air balcony.Eddie Jim

Left untouched are the majestic chandeliers, the golden wall dragons, the yesteryear carpet. Tanks once holding doomed seafood now sport kitsch trinkets and the brown veneer tables and vinyl chairs look as dated as a winged keel.

New is the impressive bar, the cool tiger mural, upside-down soup bowls as lampshades, mahjong-tiled tables and the awesome, open-air balcony.

Spunky young staff wear a version of the original Happy Palace uniform (bow tie, black vest, white shirt) all sporting ''Nigel'' nametags. Woks double as sinks in the ''Toilot'' and other deliberate misspellings are everywhere - a silly, tongue-in-cheek dig at ''Chinglish'', a gag that's not exactly politically correct.

''Half a loaf of Kung Fu'' and ''scorpion hotpot'' might be fake dishes but the food, by chef Kim-Maree Moore (ex-Seamstress), has real technique and flavour, referencing Westernised Chinese cuisine.

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Munch on ''prawn crackers'', whole deep-fried school prawns in spicy chilli flour; ''fried chicken wang'', a box of crisp wings to dunk in hoisin; tofu sang choi bao, springy with shiitake in a crisp iceberg lettuce cup; or Chinese DIY ''tacos'', with sheer pancakes.

''Kung Pow! chicken'' rocks, made with organic, free-range chook, the slow-burn sauce with big mobs of garlic, a hint of numbing Sichuan pepper, whole dried chillies and hot roasted peanuts. Chilli fiends: you might find the ''extreme Bruce Lee'' heat warning G-rated, more like Kung Fu Panda.

Potsticker dumplings - nah, these aren't a forte, too greasy, the skins too brittle. Instead, go for the slow-roasted Berkshire pork ribs, sticky and smoky with a salty, sweet, allspice crust - superb with Moore's green chilli ''Fah-King Hot Sauce''.

Duck is slow-roasted, fragrant with star anise, then smoked in green tea. The meat is delectable and well-cooked but the skin could be a smidge crisper.

For many, Happy Palace will be their new happy place. The food lands fast and as it's ready, and it's a prime spot for a pre-gig hook-up or late-night nosh. Happy days.

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Do … You know they sell merch?
Don't … Look for MSG in the food; there isn't any
Dish … Kung Pow! chicken
Vibe … Kitsch and kooky

nrousseau@fairfaxmedia.com.au

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