Restaurants

This bustling Chinese canteen is an anomaly in Kensington High Street, where smart, chi-chi establishments are more the done thing. Portions are workmanlike and prices are low; plates of noodles are immense, while half a crispy duck, one of the more expensive dishes, is a meal for two in itself. It does a roaring trade, with a steady stream of office workers, students and shoppers popping in for takeaways or perching on the bar stools to eat at the narrow Formica counters. Sometimes you have to wait, but staff are quick to point out available seats. Quality can be slightly hit and miss and investing in the slightly more expensive dishes does pay dividends: a portion of prawns with black bean sauce (£6) was packed with plump and juicy crustaceans, whereas beef with ginger and spring onion (£4.60) was let down by some cheap and thoroughly tasteless meat.

Time Out Cheap Eats in London Guide 2007