Forbidden City in Woking

We placed an order online for. Set meal for two. We have had this meal before so were confident we knew that the quality of the food would be good. The delivery did not arrive at the scheduled time, it was peak Saturday night takeaway time... so kind of expected some delay.We called to chase up after 30 minutes of the scheduled time; we were told it would be on its way in 10minutes. It was a further 20 minutes and just as we were about to call again that it arrived.The food was still warm and they had put a little extra in for us. We throughly enjoyed our food and will use again. However will probably go too collect.Our experience of most delivery services during COVID on Friday and Saturday has resulted in delays with delivery. So we are judging on the food and only taking of 1 point for the delivery being slow.

I felt compelled to write this review as our experience of Forbidden City last night was just dreadful. My partner and I selected this particular Chinese takeaway as a special treat after a long working week and saw on Trip Advisor that it was no. 3 most popular in the area but to its advantage compared to the top 2, you can order online and pay via Paypal. It isn't on Deliveroo, UberEats or Just Eat but that was ok, we just wanted to support our local takeaway. It gives you a delivery time when you place the order online. We ordered on the website at 5:22pm and the delivery time was set at 6:10pm. We spent £27.60 and qualified for free prawn crackers. So far, so normal.The problems started at 6:27pm when we thought we ought to chase up the order. The restaurant was constantly engaged! After 5 minutes of trying and 67 call attempts, we got through to a lady who asked for our online order no. and said "sorry, we are very busy, it's on its way right now, the driver is leaving now!" and hung up on me. We were getting hungry and couldn't understand why, when we ordered so early that we were now stuck in a back log. Maybe they were waiting to gather enough orders to make it worthwhile to head out to deliver? We are reasonable people, just getting hungry but could understand it's a Friday night and of course they're busy.At 6:54pm I am now ravenous and at 5 months pregnant, need to eat something. We try calling again, this time it takes 7 minutes and 71 attempts to get through. Same lady. I am asked for my online order number again but this time the phone is put to one side for around 2 minutes and I wait. Then again I'm told "It's on its way right now, the driver is leaving now!" I asked if it was 10 minutes away then, as that's how far away the drive would be for us. She tells me we live 20 minutes drive away. We do not.I'm afraid at this point I lost it as there was no real apology for the fact we had been waiting for so long and it would have been a 2 hour wait for food we did not order at peak time, otherwise I could have understood better. By this time we just didn't trust what she said and felt as though if the food did turn up, it probably would have been spat in, so we asked for a refund. She shouted to her manager in the background and I was then told we would receive the refund the next day. Yes that's right, we just paid for no food and a torturous 1.5 hours of waiting for nothing!Why did they take our order in the first place if they were too busy to fulfill it? Why didn't they stop their online orders once they got too busy and stop taking phone orders? Why don't they have a better answering service in place so we didn't have to call so many times? Why don't they know what their own capacity is on a Friday night? Why don't they have proper staff training to deal with these circumstances? They are not a brand new business and they are only dealing with takeaways right now. It was extremely difficult to communicate with the lady and I felt as if i was talking to an online chat bot that only had two settings. "We are very busy" and "its on its way to you". It just felt as if she was lying to us and that was the real issue for me. It really felt as if we had stepped back in time with service levels - I may as well have phoned in my order from a phone box only for the order to be lost on a bit of paper on the floor of the takeaway. It's just not something we expect these days and I'm afraid it's got me running back to the likes of Deliveroo where your order is tracked, you are kept regularly updated and if anything goes wrong, there is an apology and in most cases, compensation. I think most places these days would have thrown in some starters to pacify us but....literally nothing. This happened to me with Delightfully Greek in Woking recently. They called me in advance of delivery to say they were low on a certain item but would throw in some extra dips and gave me discount on my next order. I was delighted and they made a new lifelong customer!So I'm afraid we can't comment on the food as we never got to experience it, just their appalling service.I will never know the answer to my questions but I do know I will never ever try Forbidden City or be able to recommend it and they have lost a new customer.

Wonderful food good service amazing night especially the all you can eat menu which was served hot and not a long wait either

Came in with a couple of friends and was laughed at by the waiter. Very confusing, and rude. Will not be returning here

Nice Hong Kong style in Woking!We drove from Cambridge to Winchester, stopped by Woking to have dinner. Forbidden City was ranked among the top restaurants in Woking, it is 15mins away from M25. We ordered crab meat sweetcorn soup, prawn toast, spicy n chilli calamari , pak choi, fried beef with broccoli, king prawn fried rice. All with high standards. Worth trying

Thoroughly enjoyable meal,very tasty, friendly service, great choice and pleasant atmosphere.The price is very reasonable and all items cooked well and presented smoothly and speedily.

Food ok but service terrible with rude miserable staff. No baby changing facility. Meant to be a buffet and eat as much as you like but on ordering more there seems to be a problem. If you do not drink, there is a problem. Asked 3 times for something and eventually had to go up to bar and ask again. New management certainly does not enhance service. Doubt I will revisit.

We haven’t been for years due to a bad experience but as it now claims to be ‘under new management’ we thought we’d give it a try. The buffet style ‘eat all you want’ set price hasn’t changed but then neither has the standard of the food. I asked for the fish dish, the picture of which is number 4 on their own website as it looked very nice. I suspect it’s a library picture as it amazingly wasn’t available. As for the rest it was fairly basic nothing more special than you would get from take-away. When we came to pay the bill the waitress told us how to put a tip on three times, each time slightly louder than the last. Then she quizzed me, in front of my guests, why there wasn’t going to be a tip. I tried to explain the word is ‘discretionary’ as I had my card and receipt slammed on the table. Beware of the card machine as the screen invites you to rate the meal … if you indicate you liked it … it automatically adds a tip at a rate of THEIR chosen rate.

Service has massively gone downhill, in the restaurant and with deliveries. Not enough staff and poor communication.

My family and friends have been coming to this restuarant for years and it has always been one of our favourites but have not been recently for a variety of reasons so when the opportunity for a family get together for a Chinese we headed straight for the Forbidden City.I have to say upon reading some of the recent reviews I was wondering if we were going to leave feeling disappointed but pleased to report that this was not the case as the food was excellent as was the service.We all agreed it was a great evening out and throughly enjoyed our visit and will be going back again next month, could not fault it.

We used to come here years ago and it was really good but when it changed hands we started going to E&O in Chobham, however we were told the old owner was back so thought we would give it a try, well we won’t be going back, we turned up only for no one to greet us, after waiting 10 minutes I went up to the bar and said we booked a table etc to which we were then sat down, no apology for not noticing we had arrived, the carpet that we walked on was so sticky that if we left our feet there too long we may have got stuck and the service was appalling we arrived at 8 and didn’t get to our duck course until 9:15! There is a severe lack of staff employed here and the service is terrible, the waitress kept slamming dishes down and snatching them away! It was a very unpleasant experience all 6 of us have said we will not be returning. God knows what the kitchen is like if the carpet is anything to go by!

For my Partner's, his Son's and granddaughter's birthday the whole family (12 of us) went to the Forbidden City in Knaphill. The service was appalling, it took 20 minutes to get three pints served even though there was a designated barman ... They could have made twice as much on drinks if they had been more efficient. One of our group had to get up several times to 'jolly' the barman along -it was really frustrating. The place was busy for a Monday evening and they were extremely short staffed. There was only one waitress, who did all the running and I felt quite sorry for her. The Manager took orders and payments and as I said the barman - I don't know what he had for breakfast. Everyone can have an off day but this was soooo disappointing. I am just glad that I took my Partner to one of our favorite haunts the day before where we had a brilliant meal and excellent service.As for the food - it was the worst Chinese food I have ever tasted, so much so that I didn't have a main course, I just couldn't face it. There has obviously been a takeover in the last few months as my Partner's daughter, who organised the evening, and her partner went there several times before and raved about the place. By the time we finished eating it was nearly 11pm and no-one was in the mood for cake (we brought two cakes to the restaurant). It was such a shame that we were unable to have proper celebrations or indeed a nice meal with good service. We shall certainly not frequent that place again.

This place used to be brilliant but under new management it is complete an utter rubbish. the portions for 3 people wouldn't have even fed my 10 year old grandson. On the starters they forgot to bring a dish and when we noticed told them we haven't received it, and from then on we got sarcastic visits every 5 or 10 minutes asking if we've got everything. I felt very uncomfortable after that. The staff looked like they would prefer to be anywhere else but there. Considering there was three staff and only about 6 tables with customers the service was extremely slow.

I been here many times before with no real problem so thought I would book to go for my partners birthday with 13 friends... well it was shut under new management the voice mail said I thought great as we all seen the star rating it got lately... well we turned up and still the same management waited 45 mins to be asked if we would like a drink we then waited 20 mins for the drinks to come all drinks were flat and half didn’t turn up, so we said I’m sorry but these are all not very nice could you check beer and soft drinks were flat and warm... another 15 mins nothing comes so I went to complain where they said yes the beer is our fault well by this time everyone had had enough and we were not waiting any longer... so went to another restraint and had a lovely meal... such a shame!!! Won’t be coming back in any hurry!!

Visited last Friday with my son, the staff here are lovely so attentive and helpful.We chose the eat all you can menu, the food was wonderful,freshly cooked and so tastyThe menu is roughly £20 per person,but as all restaurants the drinks are not cheap so that bumps up the meal price. But I would defiantly visit again, as really enjoyed the experience.

Absolutely ridiculous service waited an hour for a starter!!! No apologies still waiting for the mains even though the half of the party has had all there mains!!! And has now been given there wipes and mints I’ve come here so many times and I have to say it’s been shocking and disgusting!!!

I have never been to an all you can eat restaurant as I always believed the food quality will be poor .

Seven of us visited the restaurant yesterday (Monday evening) and we had a table booked for 6pm. It wasn't particularly busy with maybe 5 or 6 tables filled and there was only one person serving on the tables.

We went here tonight for my friends mums birthday. The food was lovely and so were the staff. There was a new girl bless her and she did really well. She was so nervous but I’m hoping we put her at ease a bit. Because she was new the service was slower than normal but she had a lovely smile and was so polite and were in no rush. Now to the food. The food was lovely hot and fresh and so tasty. There was plenty to eat to. There was six of us and we had lots of different dishes that we shared. Asparagus in garlic , king prawns with cashew nuts in yellow bean sauce we’re my favourites. Others on the table loved the Duck and there was plenty to eat. The price is very good as well as you can eat as much as you like. Within reason lol so overall our meal was lovely !!!!! We shall be back again soon.

We have used this restaurant for years eating in but mostly takeout. Last week we

There for two hours had to leave really bad service. They missed some of starter asked the missed dish same with next course made to feel like it was our fault didn't even get to order main course after two hours had to leave

11 of us enjoyed a great evening of lively banter, great food in a friendly festive atmosphere. Food kept coming and placed on the Lazy Susan in the middle of the table. The place was very busy but the service was still excellent, nothing was too much trouble. We will definitely return.

Food was good, quick to the table (was empty so cannot quote when it is full). Would have awarded another point, but, you advertise yourselves as being an eat as much as you want restaurant (as per your menu), but, you push towards people ordering a starter and an appetizer at the same time and then take the menu cards away! Our table was also visited far too often (11 times for two people) and stop taking plates away when people are still eating. Your website also advertises a different price for you all you can eat menu (update it please). Finally, I wanted the Mixed Hors’ d’oeurves as an appetizer and this seems to be linked to the Aromatic Duck which is also down as an appetizer, but I was rudely forced to having it as a main. Are the two linked?

Great service and food is great nothing to much trouble for the staff you need to book st he weekend as can get very busy good value for money and eat as much as you like.

The service was really poor and the food lacked flavour and quality. The staff were totally disorganised and tried giving us dishes that we did not order. A rice dish and just one chicken dish were brought to our table and we had to wait over 5 minutes for our other dishes to arrive. We were served food on a cracked dish and when we alerted a member off staff they didn’t seem to care. We told one of the waiters that we were not happy with our meal. The waiter said he would get the Manager but the Manager never came to our table to apologise. Having a busy restaurant is no excuse for the poor service that we received. My 3 friends and I were not impressed at all! This was one of the worst Chinese meals I’ve had and I will not be returning.

wonderful staff, fantastic food, reasonable price. We travel quite a distance to eat here, but it is totally worth it.

Brilliant service, friendly staff, hot, tasty fresh food. Reasonably priced will definitely come again

I used to eat at Forbidden City regularly and it was one of mine and my family’s favourite placs to go, but ever since they got new management the service has gone down.

What a lovely place to eat .food great,staff nice and very reasonably priced too. The buffet has plenty to chose from.We will definitely be going back

You have an extensive menu to choose from and the food is freshly cooked. The shredded chicken and chilli squid starters are excellent. Do not let the fact that these dishes contain chillis put you off, as the chillis can easily be removed allieingvthe recipient to eat the disheswithout experiencing the chilli heat.

we go there evry year for a celebration,we have allways enjoyed rearly great food. The service is fast and friendly, and the all you can eat menue is superb.

We went here recently to celebrate a family birthday. The food was excellent , piping hot and very tasty. This is due to the dishes being freshly cooked to order. The staff were very helpful and friendly. This place is a great and well worth visiting.

Had a great meal here with the family after a tiring day at Chessington. Although few staff, they were attentive and friendly with us and the food was really tasty. It’s an all you can eat but you order dishes as you need them and they’re cooked to order. You can also specify smaller portions to ensure that you can all try lots of new foods.

Went here for a family birthday get together and everyone thoroughly enjoyed the food and it was just excellent, the waiting staff were very helpful and friendly to. This place is so good we are going back again next week and rate it very highly.

I came here for a meal out, as previously I have eaten here with family and friends. The menu is very reasonably priced and this is why we chose to eat here rather than other alternatives in the local area.

Met friends on a Saturday night for the all-you-can-eat menu. For a fixed price, you can order whichever dishes you want, over 2 or 3 courses. The food was really good and service was generally friendly and quick (although some dishes arrived later than others). We all had a great evening.

The food is awesome. Highly recommend going there. Couldn't eat third course as too full. Could do with expanding their pudding menu though. Service excellent

Booked a table for eight people for my sons 18th. I’ve eaten out in restaurants all over the world for more than 30 years. This must be the worst. Over two hours in, the dishes came out a few at a time and lukewarm. A couple of dishes without boiled rice so they were stone cold waiting then some rice and still other dishes waiting twenty minutes later. Absolutely appalled. After bringing it to the staffs attention, service still no good, paid £80 and left in disgust.

Great food for the all inclusive buffet style menu. Good Peking duck!! Service was a bit slow on a Saturday night, but it was very busy and we were not in a rush, so was ok.

We arranged to meet our friends at the Forbidden City in Knaphill for Chinese meal, we used to visit on a regular basis but both couples hadn’t been here for around 3 years.

Thought we would try this restaurant again.

Totally forbidden for weight watchers. The food array is irresistible and the amount served is again for the gluttonous gourmet diner. It's so amazingly presented by smart and friendly waiters that you do not stop ordering. They explain most politely what is contained in what and how it should be consumed- to no embarrassment if you are not a regular Chinese food fanatic.

Don't go to the Forbidden City for a quick bite of ordinary Chinese food, this is not an eat it and beat it cafe. The Forbidden City is the place to go for individually cooked, carefully prepared and well presented Chinese cuisine.

I've been here more than once each time the food is just as good would recommend this for all occasions

Not been for a while New decor and feeling to the place Food was from the buffet menu but all served hot and apple portions Staff helpful and relaxed

Noche muy agradable. El precio era razonable, pero me pareció que la elección era limitada. Entrantes estaban bien, pero cuando llegó a plato principal en todo lo que pueda comer no mucho selección. Aun así, probablemente volveremos.

Recientemente trasladado a la zona y se mostró reacio a probar todo lo que se puede comer el último lugar cerca de donde vivíamos era tan maldita buena! Sin embargo, después de una noche con la esposa (quienes prefieren comida tailandesa) encontramos la comida agradable y fresco para mí, gustos encantador y el personal era muy educado y amable. Sin duda volveremos! Pollo ahumado es la bomba! ! ! !

Myself and a few friends went for dinner on a Saturday evening to enjoy the all you can eat buffet. Everything was running smoothly and food was ok (however been to better Chinese restaurants) until it got to our mains. There was us and one other table in the restaurant at the time (bearing in mind only 7 of us and 4 on the other table) and the food took around 50 minutes to arrive. When this did arrive we weren't happy and decided to complain once the bill arrived, yet were responded with the owner of the restaurant, and a couple of the waiters that had served us laughing in our faces. Their behaviour was absolutely disgusting and I find it disgraceful that the owner and staff can't accept a complaint and instead laugh in the customers faces. Don't think I would call that good customer service? I would advise anyone not to visit this restaurant, unless you want to feel belittled by the staff.

Located at the beginning of the Broadway, next to Knaphill town center.this is my first visit to Forbidden City - Knaphill, Woking.I would definitely recommend it.I loved the Fried Rice; it was really fried, not the boiled rice with a few carrots and peas served in other restaurants.Looking forward to going there again and trying other dishes.

Absolutely disgusting food. I have eaten in hundreds of restaurants and this takes the prize for the worst ever food.

I have visited this restaurant many times over the years and have always recommended it to friends. But on my last visit it was a total disappointment. I found the restaurant was under new management and it shows. The starters arrived separately and over about 10 minutes and although quite tasty were sadly pretty much cold. The main course again took some time to arrive . This course was not good and pretty much devoid of any taste at all. At the point of payment the waiter asked if we enjoyed the food and we answered honestly. He returned to the table a little later to tell us he had spoken to the chef and he would do better in the future and we should not be so shy to complain in the future ! Unbelievable bad service. Would not recommend to anyone.

Great value for money, not a traditional all you can eat. Food cooked from fresh with excellent staff and amazing flavours that left my mouth tantalised. Would recommend and almost certainly will return.

Went out a few days ago with 9 others, 1st time i had been here, had a wonderful experience the staff were amazing and the £17.80 menu had loads to choose from it was clear plates all round highly recommend and will be certainly going back again

My wife took me there as a surprise having heard about it from friends at work.It was very good value as it was all you could eat for £17.80. You choose as many dishes as you want from a wide and comprehensive menu as the price is the same.The quality and freshness was as good as any Chinese restaurant I've ever eaten in in the UK.

We were not aware that the restaurant had come under new management until we noticed that all of the staff were new and all wore the same sort of uniform. The menu is new but the old favourites are still on there. Perhaps a rearranging of the main course offerings into meat types with headings would help in finding what the customer wants? We all agreed that the food was just as good as previously.The staff were very professional and reacted quickly to any request. Perhaps they were not quite as friendly as the previous staff but that may not necessarily be a bad thing.All in all a very smooth transition of ownership. The cost was about £25 per person including beer and soft drinks so that wasn't bad for a Friday evening. As before, this restaurant is highly recommended.

Eaten & had takeaways from this restaurant since it opened it has slowly been going downhill of late ordered & picked up a takeaway got it home sweet & sour sauce missing from order (a main component of the meal) phoned restaurant who did not apologise & asked if I wanted to come & collect it to which I replied no!!! They did send a driver out with the sauce which to be fair arrived fairly quickly but again no apology & another bag of prawn crackers was given by way of compensation we already had the prawn crackers in the original order as they are always given as a matter of course. This restaurant is under new management with tweaks to the menu all in all just very average now

A la carte quality food in an all you can eat setting. Food is cooked fresh to order, and the service is extremely friendly. A recent change in ownership had seen the good parts retained and some improvements on top. An improved lunchtime offering and better wines now feature. If you haven't tried it, treat yourself. If you have, and were reluctant to go back, give it another try, you will not be disappointed.

Took my mum for a surprise treat for mothers day it was lovely service was excellent even when we were taking forever to decide they were so patient food was amazing drinks werent expensive it was great value and a lovely evening, thank you!

I have been coming here more frequently for the past couple of months, I must say their food has been consistently good. The service and staff are friendly and accommodating. The ambience is great. Good value for money. I would recommend it to everyone.

I was introduced to this restaurant by a friend and I am a convert. The food was amazing and a clean ambient atmosphere as well as friendly and attentive staff. Loved the salt pepper asparagus and various tasty dishes. The new management give a sense of excitement and with more surprises to come in vegan dishes as well as a new a la carte menu. Well done !! Be back very soon with my family

A few local friends recommended me to this restaurant, This was my first time I was here, been to many Chinese restaurants in my time, This restaurant has a very tidy and clean place, I had a very relaxing and enjoyable time to relax on my day off.

I was at this restraunt last saturday night had a couple friends with me, the team and the service was very professional and well mannered, we didn't have to wait that long for the food as they're always busy on the weekends. The new Al Carte menu we tried was absolutely spot on, I couldn't believe that the new owners have changed the premises and made this restraunt look immaculately clean, as a regular customer for many years, I've always loved eating out at Forbidden City, Richard and Anne and their new staff are always very helpful, they're brilliant working together as a team and asking them about there new menu Richard has trained them very well. Thank you all for a wonderful evening, see you in a couple weeks time.

One of the best all you can eat Chinese restaurants I have tried. Its not a buffet. It is a sit-down all you can eat off the menu. It is very clean and the staff are nice. Its a family run business and everyone cares a lot. I also order food for home from there and it is always great.

The new management continues with the same format but with a few tweaks to the menu and an improved wine list. There has been no increase in the set menu prices and the wide choice of dishes and great quality are unchanged. The service is good and very friendly. A lovely relaxed atmosphere.

As a table of seven at an all you can eat we found the size of the table rather slow for multiple dishes at a time. We found the service very slow and not very customer friendly, food was nice but we felt over priced for what it was at 19.95 a head. Drinks where also over priced £3 for a pint of flat coke. I don't see us being back.

Booked for 12 people. After an hour and a quarter still no food. Complete joke, we knew the service was poor but for a night out with friends it was a shambles.

Been to this restaurant many times........but today will be the last! Booked table for 8pm, ordered drinks , then appetisers, came out in dribs ans drabs. Second course was duck and lamb, no lamb came out, enough duck for one person, we were a table of 4, asked for more duck and the original portion of lamb and ordered more drinks. I reordered drinks again 10 minutes later. Ordered main course, 2 dishes never came out and 2 were stone cold. A young waiter couldn't understand when we asked for things, he really shouldn't of been front of house. When we spoke to the manager, who used to be around with the previous owners/ managers, not once did he apologise, just saying people get things wrong sometimes, kept talking over us and not listening, he couldn't cope with constructive criticism and certainly has no management skills whatsoever, this will be the restaurants downfall. He then told us it was under new management. The other waiters were to busy clearing and laying up tables, they didn't even come over once to ask if we wanted anymore drinks, no dessert or coffee was offered, and table not cleared, then the bill was done, the manager couldn't even come over himself, no service charge had been added and there was 10% off. I gave one star for the ice in my drink. Service was dire, food cold, would not recommend!

Been before and was nice but sadly been very disappointed when visited with family, very slow, slack and order all wrong! One and half hrs waiting for starter! Will not be returning!

So we have been here a few times. On one occasion I noticed the bill seemed a little high. On checking we realised they had charged us for several drinks we did not have. This has been the case for our subsequent 2 visits. Last night we were charged for 3 tiger beers and 2 diet cokes that we did not order, £21 extra on our bill! Service was terrible too. This is our last visit! Watch out people, check your bills, con artists!

Thoroughly enjoyed my evening here, the food was great as was the service! Would definitely recommend having a meal !!

We always go early to avoid any issues about slow service.The staff are always friendly and attentive.

My family and I have been coming here for years. We love the food, would literally risk any dieting for the sake of this place. We enjoy the food alot and have had some absolutely amazing times at this restaurant in the past.Easy parking, park next to co op for free and a very short walk.Great prices, friendly happy staff, food to die for and leaves you wishing you could have room for more.Fantastic choice of beverages, alcoholic or non.You would normally have about four or five courses and not feel it in your pocket after.There is no rush, its a lovely leisurely process, which is what you need for the amount of food you get too! Also a perfect opportunity to drink up! ;)So many pros, but what are the cons you ask?Well, let's see;- They are very much lacking staff, whilst you can be as patient as you like, waiting even for a drink, you really can't sit there too long, as mentioned before, the service is very slow so you would end up probably either being rushed or missing half your meal...- because of the layout, we noticed half the side of the restaurant will get served but the other half is completely missed.I know these sound miniscule compared to the pros but once you've experienced them on a busy night when their under staffed you will understand.Best option is to go mid week! Go MID - WEEK, its quieter and you can experience them at their best!It would be a shame to see this place go to waste, they work very hard, unfortunately, it was not enough for us tonight, as said before, due to lack of staff.If you do venture here on a busy evening, be prepared to grab the waitresses attention every time you want something ... And then to call them twice after to ask where your food/drinks are.As said before, really pleased with the food and pricing are really great! Shame about staff issues. My family and I came tonight but were waiting almost an hour with only having one drink each and some prawn crackers, we just had to leave and get some food asap.

We have used the takeaway service before and it has generally been of a good quality. We ordered one last night, it was late, luke warm, the food appeared old and greasy and gave 2 of us upset stomachs. Won't use again

I have eaten at this restaurant on many occasions and have always received a 4/5 star service. However my last visit on Sat 21st Jan was sadly, extremely disappointing and has put me off going again. I had booked for a party of nine to celebrate my husbands birthday. When we arrived the table was set for 8 but a further place was quickly added.The guests present ordered drinks, with the others ordering on arrival. Food order was taken after 20 minutes and at this time we reminded them that we were still drink free. One pint of beer and Jug of tap water arrived and it took another polite request for the remaining drinks to delivered to the table.After an hour I chased up the starters. When the food arrived it was not as hot as usual, but very tasty, however it arrived in dribs & drabs. The intermediate course of duck arrived within good time and was delicious.We were then asked to order our main courses and sadly the evening deteriorated from this point. Main dishes were ordered by everyone with a request for rice and noodles for 9 covers. 2 1/2 hours after sitting down I chased up our food and I have to admit to becoming cross and a little embarrassed. Our friends had not been to this restaurant before and were unable to see the attraction. The dishes finally arrived intermittently, with one small bowl of egg fried rice and a small plate of noodles between us all, which was soon eaten - 3 main dishes never arrived. At this stage I raised my concerns with the waiter - a very pleasant young man who was very understanding. On reflection I felt that I should not shoot the messenger so I went up to the bar to speak to the lady, who I assume to be part of the management team. She was apologetic and hot food then started to arrive at the table. Sadly by now, the friend who had not eaten any main course was past caring.There was obviously an issue with staffing on this occasion. The staff who are normally very attentive, were not on duty and those that were tried very hard under difficult circumstances to manage. The restaurant, which was packed as usual, really did not meet the expectations I have come to expect. I was unable to enjoy the event as I was on edge trying to ensure that my husband and guests were able to relax and enjoy the experience. At one stage we were all drinking tap water as it was hard trying to get any attention to order further drinks.This is the first negative review I have written and it is with a heavy heart I do so. The food, which we did have was delicious albeit not very hot and definitely not well portioned on this occasion. I know only too well that they are capable of so much more, however on this occasion they fell very short of my expectations.

Easy to order different dishes and try new things, great service very good price had a big group of us and everybody had a fab time.

We use the takeaway facilities of this restaurant every two weeks or so, although a little more expensive than the ordinary takeaway its menu is more comprehensive and of much higher quality.At the end of December we visited the restaurant for a sit down meal, well it was really special, the "all you can eat" menu is not only excellent value for money it has a quite extensive range to choose from.The house wine is inexpensive for a restaurant and very more'ish.All in all a good and local place (to us at least) that we shall be visiting again soon.

Always a pleasure to go and eat here, the staff are friendly and accommodating and the food is always good. Best place to eat in town, and have introduced loads of people to the FC and they keep going back.

Go here with my friend every couple months or so and for £16 all you can eat is brilliant, the food is lovely and they have a great menu. I must admit i spend most of my time eating off the starter menu which has a good selection of foods. I highly recommend the Mussels in Black bean sauce! The duck is what you expect always nice and crispy not too dry. I havnt had many of the main courses i normally am full by the time i get to that menu as i keep eating the starters. Beer slightly pricey but i suppose that is how they make their money. Service is good but every time i go in there its very quiet as its mid week so always feel like i'm being watched. Overall though very good great place to come for a meal out with mates as you can pay £16 for a bang average pub meal in this area and this is 10 times better!

I had no great expectations about this restaurant, because last time (3/4 years ago) it wasn't really remarkable. This time I was surprised by the freshness and tastiness of the food. You can order whatever you want as long as you eat 90% of everything and pay just £19. The service was polite, friendly and quick. The starters are amazing but every single thing is delicious. Splendid!

I went back to this restaurant with my girlfriend and two dear friends after 3 years since my previous visit. I have found a much improved restaurant both in terms of quality and politeness shown by staff.Service was perfect and food extremely fresh (especially king prawns with Chinese mushrooms and stir fried mixed vegetables) and tasty.I am normally not so fond of the "all-you-can-eat" formula, but I was extremely pleased to have changed my mind this time.Definitively a recommended restaurant!

A buffet, eat as much as you want restaurant where the food is cooked to order. Really good quality and a huge choice. Almost full on a Tuesday evening - says it all.

Really good night out with the family. Food was fantastic and service was very attentive. We went early (6.00pm) on a Saturday night and had a really good evening.

Went on a Monday evening at 6.30. Hadn't booked but no problem at that time. 9 of us and a toddler in a booster seat. Food was lovely. Nothing a problem. Manager even walked to the local takeaway for chips for the little one as didn't have them on the menu. Eat as much as you like was £16+ a head. Great food

Great little all you can eat Chinese restaurant with tasty food and a large varied menu. My only issue with the place would be that the service is very slow.I will go again, perhaps when I have a little more time for a leisurely meal.

My husband and I have been coming to the Forbidden City for many years at least once if not twice a month. Food amazing and choices excellent with eat as much as you like that is freshly cooked . No issues if you want more. The staff are friendly but not intrusive and the restaurant has a nice relaxing atmosphere.

Nice food, great staff when I went. Lovely quantity as it was an all you can eat. Everyone in the group had a great time and did the other customers by the looks of things.

Buffet style food bought to your table. Pick what you want and eat as much as you can! Our kind of heaven. They served the best duck pancakes I've ever had and their fried asparagus was lush. Already planning our next trip back - a great find and seems very popular with the locals so I would recommend booking a table if you can as the restaurant was almost full (Friday evening).

The food is delicious wide range of choices.The service is excellent and a very friendly atmosphere. enjoyable family evening.

If you have travelled to China and loved the food, you will get flasbacks if you eat at the forbidden city restaurant. Great quality food !!

Our family went to the forbidden city after deciding we fancied some Chinese food. The restaurants was lovely and welcoming with friendly staff and the food was very delicious. Our children loved it and also loved the fish tank. A fab range of food and all lovely and fresh and hot. Will be going back soon

It was the second time to visit here. Takeaway at the first time, eat-in at this time. I felt their house wine is not above average, but the others are so good. Especially, I like the manager's kind service and attitude !

Wanted some nice food while on a working weekend and as my colleagues opted for the next door pizza parlour, I treated myself to Chinese takeaway.The food was nice and the portions abundant. Will be back.

Occasionally visit The Forbidden City when we are down at Bisley and it's always good. We had the set "eat all you can" menu but there is great choice, especially as I am vegetarian. The food is fresh and very tasty and the service is excellent

We went here for my birthday. We went on a Saturday so it was more expensive but the food was really good and so was the service. Would definitely recommend.

There were 6 of us who sat down in a near empty restaurant one Monday evening. The owner assisted the single and efficient waitress with a smile (as always) and good service.The food was excellent and we could of eaten far more had our stomachs allowed us. There was a one price deal of £16.95 each which would of fed a VERY hungry person. There is so many good things on the menu but the food always tastes fresh and flavourful.We will be back

We usually celebrate my parents Birthdays and anniversary's here, they love it and so do we. We never order from the A La Carte menu, we just go with the set menu options, chef's hors d'oeuvres, duck and then our choice off the main menu - but after the duck we are always totally full anyway. I have never had a bad meal here, the food is lovely - they have a good wine list. The atmosphere is always energetic and you can see everyone is having a good time. The staff are all friendly and the menu is well priced. We love it here and will keep on returning.

I had always enjoyed my previous visits to The Forbidden City and regarded it as Knaphill’s best restaurant. Due to a change in personal circumstances I hadn’t been for awhile so I was looking forward to popping in this week. Oh dear, oh dear... ok, Tuesday’s are probably quiet everywhere, but the good service I had always enjoyed before was missing. Now it was lacklustre, without passion and awkward, not even a smile!. The food was bland, in fact, almost tasteless. Hopefully, this experience was just a one-off.... Yes, I will return but I will expect to find it a lot better all round next time!

Always fun and lively. Great service and food is good and great value. Book a table on a popular day. We always go for the buffet menu and they will keep bringing food as long as you keep eating it.

Better value for money if you order off the All-You-Can-Eat menu rather than the A La Carte Menu. The food wasn't terrible, but it wasn't the best Chinese i've had either. The staff are very attentive too.

Wonderful food,excellent choices, beautifuly cooked, lovely staff.Superb flavours ,warm friendly atmosphere..