Mietta's Review
Gilbert Lau has sold his interest in the restaurant to the staff who have been in the kitchen and on the floor for more than 20 years, he remains a consultant to the business. As you would expect from this fine establishment, the transition has been seamless, just like the dining experience itself. The menu is Cantonese done exceptionally well. The service is elegant and so intuitive it borders on ESP. The wine list is an epic, and easier to traverse with the helpful hints of the sommelier. The Flower Drum continues to out wit the ravages of time, and just keeps getting better.

Other published opinions

Age Good Food Guide 2010 Score: 16.5/20

Gourmet Traveller 2010 Australian Restaurant Guide Score: ** "There is no better place to eat Carltonese food in this country than in this series of lacquerframed rooms. The decor is lived-in and of a certain vintage, but it feels venerable rather than worn"

Age Larissa Dubecki, 20-3-2009

Gourmet Traveller 2009 Australian Restaurant Guide Score: ** "As recognisably Melbourne as 'Toorak' or 'Collins Street', there was a sense, for a while, that the city's most famous restaurant had slipped into complacency. That torpor seems to have been arrested: there's a fresh sense of endeavour at what is probably Australia's best Cantonese restaurant"

Age John Lethlean

Age Good Food Guide 2008 Score: 17/20

Gourmet Traveller 2008 Australian Restaurant Guide "The Drum has an undeniable sense of occasion. The long wait for the day of your booking to arrive, the lift ride up to the spacious carpeted dining room, flocks of attentive waiters fussing around you all point to the Special Occasion or the Big Night Out"

Age Good Food Guide 2006

Gourmet Traveller 2006 Australian Restaurant Guide *** "At Melbourne's haute Chinese institution, it's the tingle of anticipation that carries you past the world's slowest lift, blinds you to the somewhat down-at-heel decor and propels you safely into the hands of the staff - adroit, charming and an example to waiters everywhere."

Gourmet Traveller 2006 Australian Restaurant Guide Best Chinese "It's grand and very expensive, but if you can afford to put yourself in a waiter's hands here for the night, the experience is memorable."

Gourmet Traveller 2006 Australian Restaurant Guide Best business lunches "If the budget's looking healthy, and the guest from out oftown, there's little to match Flower Drum for brand power."

Age A2 Jane Faulkner 9/4/05

Age Good Food Guide 2005 Restaurant of the Year score 18/20

Gourmet Traveller 2005 Restaurant Guide *** "Celebrated restaurateur Gilbert Lau has moved on but the Flower Drum remains in safe hands. Consistency and equilibrium are central to its success. These are evident in the balance oftraditional Cantonese cooking and innovative dishes, and a dining environment that, despite its spaciousness, retains intimacy."

Age, A2, 15/5/04, Matt Preston

The Foodies' Guide 2004,Allan Campion & Michele Curtis,'The big Grandaddy.Flower Drum isn't voted Melbourne's best restaurant year after year for nothing-just don't forget your credit card.'

Age Good Food Guide 2004 Awards-3 hats, score 18/20

Gourmet Traveller Restaurant Guide Australia 2004, 3 Red Stars, Good vegetarian options,'one of the finest Cantonese restaurants and most innovative dining establishments...staff are friendly and always helpful.The menu features the best in locally sourced produce, beautifully turned out with delicate flavours and expert presentation...The wine list deserves your proper attention'

Vogue Entertaining & Traveller, March April 2003

Age Good Food Guide 2003. Best Chinese. Score 18/20

Herald Sun, Weekend, Bob Hart, 30/11/02

The Herald Sun, 29.05.01, Bob Hart Score: 19 out of 20."

Sunday Age, 03.10.99, John Schauble

The Weekend Australian, 9-10/8/03, Alison Crosweller