Lau's Family Kitchen

Seven years on, Lau's still commands two busy dinner sittings most nights. Regulars lap up the exceptional service and modern Cantonese offerings as attentive waitstaff buzz around the tight, informal space. Some nights Gilbert Lau, father of the owners and 30-year veteran of the Flower Drum, pitches in, expertly plating dishes at the table or ensuring the gap between courses is just right. A quartet of house-made siu mai dumplings, steamed and filled with a flavoursome mince of pork, prawn and Chinese mushrooms, is hard to pass up as a starter. Similarly tempting is salt-and-pepper squid in a delicate, crisp batter, enlivened with spring onions, chilli and add-your-own lemon and five-spice seasoning. Patagonian toothfish is treated with the same light touch in the wok, its fine golden batter and mild, moist flesh happily matched with a sweetish sauce of soy and rice wine. For dessert, the small kitchen turns out no-fuss plates of fresh fruit or banana fritters.