Donna Chang Dining

Brisbane’s modern wave of Chinese dining crested in 2018 with the opening of Donna Chang, a spectacular 120-seat restaurant in the city. Formerly a bank built in the 1920s, the site’s grand heritage features are a major highlight of the dining experience. Ceilings are adorned with intricate carvings, entry to the bathrooms is through the old vault, and the private dining rooms upstairs are accessed via a grand staircase at the entrance.

But the extensive menu – drawing heavily from Cantonese and Sichuan cuisines – is undeniably the star of the show. Hot and cold starters might include oysters dressed in XO sauce, and Sichuan-style barbeque lamb ribs. Dim sum ranges from signature scallop and prawn dumplings, to cheung fun rice noodles with sweet soy. Large plates for the table can be ordered from the dedicated barbeque, live seafood and mains sections.

To complement the seafood-forward menu, the 100-plus bottle wine list goes big on white and light red varieties. But we love the Seinfeld-inspired cocktail list, featuring No Soup for You! (gin, yuzu, macadamia, taro honey and lemon) and Festivus (Belvedere, apricot, ginger, lemongrass, sake and citrus).