The team behind Golden Century may have closed doors to their Chinatown institution last year, but the growing hospitality group has plenty of spinning plates when it comes to top-tier Cantonese food. The latest, Golden Century BBQ is a traditional and casual take on the beloved original, now open at Darling Square just beneath XOPP.
There is no name as synonymous with festive late-night dining in Sydney as Golden Century. For years, the Sussex Street original dominated Sydney’s later hours with an iron grip, attracting both big-name chefs and discerning diners to Chinatown where the kitchen would regularly pump out succulent Chinese meals and cooked live seafood well past reasonable eating hours.
With Golden Century BBQ now open, Sydney has managed to claw back some of that no-nonsense Cantonese food that’s been sorely missed in the area since BBQ King shut up shop. The new venue leans into a casual atmosphere that’s a bit more intimate than the rustic Chinatown favourite, building up a nice little setting for some crispy roast duck with XO sauce.
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Traditional Cantonese BBQ is the focus, with the meat-centric menu listing all kinds of staples including roasted duck, barbecued char sui, house-made dim sum and more, shaped into an energetic space intimate enough for just 40 seats on the ground floor of Kengo Kuma’s avant-garde Exchange Building.
While XOPP continues to resemble the original Golden Century more and more, with live seafood tanks and a lot of the classics, Golden Century BBQ skews a bit more niche and rests on the broad appeal of Hong Kong-style barbecue. The new Sydney restaurant also does up some takeaway options, slotting itself somewhat as Sydney’s answer to Kam’s Roast Goose.
According to the team’s Billy Wong, the location was slightly strategic. The idea is that seafood lovers might want to get their fix at XOPP and then pop on down to Golden Century BBQ and pick up some ready-to-heat take-home treats to pop in the prep the next day.
Golden Century BBQ
Address: 1 Little Pier St, Haymarket NSW 2000
Opening Hours: Wednesday – Monday (11 AM – 8 PM)
