The Real Story Behind Golden Phoenix : How They Make 4,000 Dumplings Before Breakfast

Golden Phoenix begins its day long before Chinatown wakes up.
By 4:30AM, the pastry team is already shaping and steaming thousands of items: around 500 BBQ buns, 1,000 har gow on Saturdays, and a menu that stretches across more than 300 dishes.

For a kitchen this busy, the pace should feel chaotic. Instead, the workflow is steady and coordinated, shaped by years of repetition and an almost intuitive division of labour.

The Zero-Shortcut Rule: Why Purple Buns Are Actually Purple Cabbage

One detail defines their kitchen culture: nothing gets carried over to the next day. Every bun, dumpling, and roll is made fresh each morning.

There are no enhancers, no colouring agents, and no convenient substitutes. If a bun is purple, it is because someone shredded and cooked purple cabbage at dawn.

The £50 Beginning: What Happens When an Immigrant Refuses to Give Up?

Golden Phoenix did not start with investors or a strategy deck.
It began with a man who landed in London with £50, spent two months without housing, and eventually found work in a kitchen.

He trained through a traditional three-year apprenticeship under a dim sum master, learning techniques that require precision, muscle memory, and repetition.
Three decades later, that training still shapes every tray sent out to customers.

The Decades-Long Team: Why This Kitchen Stayed Together When Others Didn’t

Many of the pastry makers who stand at the steamer stations today have been here since the early years.

During the financial crisis, during COVID, and during the period when many dim sum restaurants turned to frozen products to manage costs, the owner held onto his belief that fresh work, done by people he trusted, mattered more than shortcuts.

He kept every staff member.
He kept the workflow the same.
And he kept the kitchen moving by hand, every morning, year after year.

The Chinatown Story: Why Locals Call Golden Phoenix a Sign of Hope

Within Chinatown, Golden Phoenix is often mentioned as a reminder of what persistence looks like. The restaurant survived not through trends but through consistent labour, an owner who believed in the craft, and a team that remained in place for decades.

It’s a story of continuity in a neighbourhood that is constantly shifting.

The Afternoon Dim Sum Set: A Quiet Twist on the Usual Group Meal

Most visitors arrive in groups for the usual spread, but Golden Phoenix also offers an afternoon dim sum set. It includes smaller portions across steamed, fried, and dessert items, a way to sample the range without committing to a full table spread.