Parrot House Restaurant is a cosy, colourful spot that delivers delicious, hearty Southeast-Asian flavours. Their dishes are rich, well-spiced and generously portioned curry, stir-fries and rice bowls standout. Staff are friendly and welcoming, the atmosphere is laid-back, perfect for a relaxed dinner. Great food, good price, and definitely worth a visit!
Overview
Discover Parrot House Restaurant, a longtime Cantonese favourite located at 293-295 Racecourse Rd, Flemington VIC 3031, Australia. Known for roast meats, seafood, wok-fired dishes, and generous shared plates, this neighbourhood restaurant delivers the comforting flavours of an old-school Chinese dining room without unnecessary fuss. From a food blogger’s perspective, Parrot House Restaurant is particularly appealing for families and groups who value authentic Cantonese cooking, substantial portions, and a menu designed for sharing.
The menu is extensive, covering roast duck, crispy pork, soy chicken, live seafood, beef stir-fries, noodles, fried rice, vegetables, congee, and speciality seafood dishes. Expect roughly A$20–A$40 per person, depending on how many premium seafood plates are ordered. Dine-in, takeaway, delivery, reservations, table service, alcohol, high chairs, wheelchair-accessible seating, and nearby free parking are available. Dinner reservations are sensible during busy periods.
The essential first order at Parrot House Restaurant in Flemington is the Roast Duck. Customers repeatedly praise its juicy meat and lightly crisp skin, and it perfectly represents the restaurant’s traditional Cantonese barbecue style. Served with steamed rice and Chinese greens, it is rich without becoming overly complicated. One regular even described the restaurant as a “hidden gem known only to the locals” while praising its roast duck.
Seafood lovers should consider the Mud Crab with XO Sauce and Noodles, another dish singled out by repeat diners. The combination of sweet crab, savoury XO sauce, and noodles creates a luxurious shared main course with plenty of wok-fired aroma. The menu also features scallops, prawns, barramundi, calamari, pippies, and salt-and-chilli seafood, giving larger groups considerable freedom to build a banquet-style meal.
Another worthwhile speciality is the Homemade Bean Curd, which customers frequently recommend alongside seafood and roast meats. Its softer texture provides a useful contrast to crisp pork or fried dishes and demonstrates that the kitchen is not dependent solely on meat-heavy favourites. For dessert, the Pineapple Fritter with Ice Cream provides an old-fashioned finish: hot, crisp fruit paired with cool, creamy sweetness.
The atmosphere at Parrot House Restaurant is casual, lively, and unmistakably group-oriented. Tables can fill quickly, particularly at dinner, and the room may become noisy when large families arrive. Some diners have reported slower or abrupt service during peak periods, but others praise the owner and staff for being friendly and attentive.
For diners comparing the best restaurants in Flemington for authentic local dining experiences, Parrot House Restaurant deserves consideration for its roast duck, fresh seafood, generous portions, and classic Cantonese character. Call +61 3 9372 6688 and visit with family or friends for a table full of comforting dishes made for sharing.
Good to know
Service options
✓ Takeaway ✓ Dine-in ✓ DeliveryPopular for
✓ Lunch ✓ Dinner ✓ Solo diningAccessibility
✓ Wheelchair-accessible entrance ✓ Wheelchair-accessible seating ✓ Wheelchair-accessible car parkOfferings
✓ Alcohol ✓ Beer ✓ Quick bite ✓ Small plates ✓ Spirits ✓ WineDining options
✓ Lunch ✓ Dinner ✓ Dessert ✓ Seating ✓ Table serviceAmenities
✓ ToiletAtmosphere
✓ CasualCrowd
✓ Groups ✓ University studentsPlanning
✓ Dinner reservations recommended ✓ Accepts reservationsPayments
✓ Credit cards ✓ Debit cards ✓ NFC mobile payments ✓ Credit cardsChildren
✓ Good for kids ✓ High chairsParking
✓ Free of charge street parking ✓ Free parking lotPhotos
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Location
Reviews
- No ratings yet 552 reviews
I recently visited this restaurant and tried their 3-way roasted meats; duck, char siu, and crispy pork. The duck was definitely the highlight: juicy and flavorful, though I wish the skin had been a little crispier. The char siu was just okay, nothing too special. As for the crispy pork, the skin was nicely done and crunchy, but the cut I got had way too much fat with very little meat, which made it less enjoyable. I also ordered the pipi with XO sauce along with an extra serve of Chinese doughnut and a bowl of rice. The XO sauce itself was excellent – rich and full of flavor – but it hadn’t fully infused into the pipi shells, so the dish wasn’t quite at a 10/10 level yet. The Chinese doughnut, however, was fantastic: light, crispy, and perfect with the XO sauce. Price-wise, the total came down to $68 for everything. Overall, some hits and some misses, but definitely worth a try if you’re after roasted meats and XO-based dishes.
Delicious authentic Chinese food! Great and friendly staffs. Clean venue. Highly recommend!
Had Hong Kong style congee for $15. Very large serving and congee had fish cake, duck, calamari, nuts, crackers and a subtle home cooked taste. Perfect for a cold winter meal. Update 270725 Scallops with Chinese broccoli $32.50, Deep fried chicken ribs with egg yolk $25. Quarter roast duck $14. 1 X steam rice $4. Scallops were big, juicy and firm. Not pan fried though so don't expect crispness. Chinese broccoli was very tasty, crunchy and juicy with a glistening coating. Roast duck was tender with meaty sections and skin was crispy enough. Fattier bits were more greasy. Chicken ribs had a nice dry salted egg yolk coating atypical of wetter Malaysian and Singaporean varieties. Also not overly salty or oily. Called in advance for booking for Sunday evening and glad we did. Fast moving service with cramped seating. Long queues at the door even on a wet winter evening. Service for all 3 dishes came within ten to 15 minutes of ordering which startled us slightly. And we noticed the next table was serviced equally quickly.
To avoid disappointment, I recommend you call ahead and book a table. We arrived to a very long line of people waiting for a table, however we had a booking and were seated after a few minutes. It makes perfect sense that this place is popular. The food is just authentic and cooked to perfection. Since it was a special occasion, we ordered the lobster with egg noodles. The server showed us the live lobster they would use and it tasted extremely fresh. Our favourite dishes that we order every visit are: Salt and Pepper Chicken Ribs Tofu and vegetable stir fry Mongolian Beef Sea cucumber and mushroom 3 roasts - duck, roast pork, bbq pork Salted fish and chicken fried rice All came to around $470. We had an additional serve of chicken ribs and roast meats. There was 7 of us and we were extremely full in the end with three containers of leftovers to enjoy the next day. Highly recommended. One of the best Chinese restaurants ever.
The food was yummy, and the service was nice. I enjoyed the meal with my family
Started with roasted pork belly and the fried small fish; taste just nice and the pork skin was crispy. Peking duck was decent, flavourful and matched with the white rice. Steam fish was great too, fried vegetables were so delicious and the clams were tasty. Beef was soft and the dishes were too much, we had so full. Lastly with the fried banana ice cream, our friends were enjoyed it so much.