The Dragon Pearl in Isle of Wight

Dragon Pearl has always been our place to go for a Chinese Takeaway when visiting the island. Usually we would eat in but as there was only the 2 of us it was more handy to have a takeaway. We had chicken fried rice, chips, Chicken curry & bbq spare ribs & as always we were not disappointed. My husband is Gluten intolerant so we did ask questions on whether or not the chicken curry was GF which it wasn't but we still had it anyway & it was delicious. They do however have lots of GF options on the menu which other restaurants/takeaways do not offer so this is always good to know. Great friendly staff too.

Visited this restaurant whilst on holiday in the IOW. It seemed like a really lovely small family restaurant. Whilst the prices were a bit on the expensive side the food was super worth the price. It was freshly made, hot and not overly greasy. It beats takeaways by a long shot and everything was very well presented. Everything there was super clean and the atmosphere was lovely. I highly recommend this restaurant if you plan to visit the IOW and fancy some Chinese cuisine. I hope to visit this restaurant again on my return visit.

Enjoyed our meal, food was tasty and cooked well, the portions were generous. Service was friendly, overall would definitely recommend

They catered for a party of 10 of us including a child and infant. Hospitality was great and they even had a high chair at the table ready. Service was excellent and food second to none. I tried a dish I hadn't had before and it was amazing. Easily up there with the best Chinese meal experiences I've ever had! I can't recommend them highly enough!

They catered for a party of 10 of us including a child and infant. Hospitality was great and they even had a high chair at the table ready. Service was excellent and food second to none. I tried a dish I hadn't had before and it was amazing. Easily up there with the best Chinese meal experiences I've ever had! I can't recommend them highly enough!

Excellent meal at this place. They catered for a party of 10 and we all really enjoyed the food and the service. Highly recommend

Very expensive, pretty much 40 pound each for meal and all we had was a little bit food no different than a cheap Chinese or making it at home for quarter of the price

Sorry. Really bad. No taste in food. Very expensive. No kids menu. And had to pay 5 GBP for some extra rice.

I am not sure what has happened, but this once favoured Chinese of ours has drastically reduced in the quality of their food, to the point I actually could not eat anything I ordered as it was tasteless, under and over cooked, and the sauces and veg looks like it was weeks old. Please review your quality of food and cooking to get back to where you were pre Covid I am local and feel sad you have deteriorated so badly.

Found this little gem as per the title while looking for somewhere to eat on our first night on the island. As others have said it can be a little pricy but the portions are large and if you order a prawn dish you dont get the average five or six prawns but many more, the fried rices and noodles are packed with meat so you certainly get your monies worth. Lovely staff who always had a smile, we ended up eating there every night nearly during our stay. Just a little context my wife is a trained chef (by her farther who was a Michellin stared chef for many years) so she knows good food when she sees it, and she became addicted to the prawns and mushrooms her go to dish after a hard days walking.

The first thing to say is that it is quite expensive. We had the Dragon Pearl Special set meal at £39.90 per person which is more than I would usually pay for a Chinese meal, but having said that the food was very good and portions were large.

The reviewers of this restaurant who have complained about the prices are completely missing the point as the portion sizes are huge, the food is freshly cooked and is all absolutely wonderful. We have eaten here five times now since we moved to Shanklin in May and we cannot fault it at all. We took a visitor from the mainland who said it was singularly the best Chinese food she’d ever had. That’s how we feel too so please don’t be put off by those who value price over quality.

Friends had "sharing platter" really tiny portions looked tasteless as a starter (they wanted yuk sung but they don't do it really!!!) I had salt and pepper spare ribs as a starter but came with main dish!! Very fatty, Friends had deep fried chicken balls looked yuk ,we had chow mein with singapore fried rice very tasty.4 overpriced 300 mll beers £5.80.total bill £110 asked by waiter was everything OK I said beer was overpriced she says that is due to costs.Thank god I was a tourist won't be returning .

Lovely intimate dining experience that we booked last minute for a family celebration. Food isn't rushed, is fresh and not swimming in oils. Great customer service too

Price increase unbelievable, small bottle of cheap beer, £5.80, Curry £13.50 and rice £6.00. Been going for years, never again.

Wow what a disappointment. I used to love this place , but my goodness it's gone down hill. Scruffy staff just in hoodie and jeans, not a good start, empty restaurant, also a bad sign, and when the food came it got worse. Cold plates which made the food get cold quick, and one of the meals was just disgusting. Horrible taste and looked even worse. We complained, and all we got back was excuses. Sadly, I will not be going back

Possibly the worst Chinese takeaway I have ever had and also the most expensive! The meat in every dish we had was so over cooked that eating it was a very miserable experience... some of the sauces tasted ok, egg fried rice is standard, but the chow mein was bland and the chips (for my kids) could only be described as "mashed potatoes". Certainly won't be returning and feel very mislead by the other reviews on here.

Disappointed, food was bland and expensive compared to others.

The worst Chinese meal I've ever had and the Manager was very unprofessional and unrealistic.

Not had a takeaway from here for about a year . Never had a bad meal but tonight's takeaway was very disappointing. Had a beef dish and a pork dish both meats were tough and very chewy. We only live 5 minutes from the restaurant but food was cold when we got home . Not cheap either sorry to say but won't be going back

After reading reviews we were really looking forward to our meal from The Dragon Pearl, but sadly it was the worst chinese meal we have ever had. The rice was bland and flavourless, the chicken very very chewy as though it had been reheated several times and instead of the fries we asked for we got chicken in an orange sauce. We had the House special chow mein, yet it came with no meats. To add to that, it was more than we would normally pay and there were no free prawn crackers, which are pretty standard with most chinese takeaways. Either someone was having a really off day in the kitchen or what is served in the restaurant varies greatly to what is served for takeaway. Either way, sorry, but we won't be back.

Lovely fresh food. It was a little expensive, but worth it.

We have been going to the dragon pearl for many years. It was a family run restaurant for many years and the food was outstanding. A few years ago it changed ownership. We still kept going there but wasn’t as happy with the food as before. The staff are really nice and attentive. This time we went we ordered crispy duck, unfortunately it was not very crispy.the duck was tasty but skin was still fatty.

After trying the other 2 Chinese in town this was best of 3.The people in shanklin must be easy pleased as none of the 3 of them are decent.

Very good first visit. Cheery staff, good service and very good food. Just a little on the expensive side for what it was hence the four stars rather than five. Will return.

I booked this restaurant for 3 people however there was another table of 6 people in there that was part of our group so 9 all together. We overall enjoyed our meals with an exception of 3 who ordered sweet and sour chicken. It wasn't explained to them that the meal they ordered only came with a dipping sauce. All 3 thought the sauce was blend. When we came to pay my friend asked why there was no veg (onions, pepper etc) in the sauce to be told oh you should of ordered Cantonese style sweet and sour. I'd like to offer some advice to the restaurant. Take a minute and explain that the guest may have ordered the wrong item from the menu. It would definitely ensure the guest got the correct item and therefore ensuring returning guests. One final comment. If asked would you like everything to come out together that means you will get your starter and mains together so make sure you say no thank you we'll have our starters first. Long post but i hope this helps guest and restaurant

This is our favourite restaurant on the Isle of Wight, we are here for 10 days & always eat here in our 1st & last night, this year again was amazing, the restaurant was very busy, I would definitely recommend booking, we all ordered our food, the waiter went through the order as there was 7 of us, all our food came out together & was all piping hot, all the food has amazing flavours, the ribs are lovely & meaty, no fat at all. Everyone said how delicious it was, I do wish I could take this restaurant home with me. Looking forward to next time

My wife and I visited during our holiday.read reviews on here so booked a table.quick service great meal.cannot fault would recommend if your in area.

Have been twice now, each time staff have been friendly and helpful and good atmosphere. Food was delicious. happily to return and recommend.

I have to be gluten free, and a bad experience elsewhere in Shanklin early in our holiday had made me ill and put me off eating out for most of our time away. After seeing a review elsewhere of Dragon Pearl which mentioned that it had many gluten free choices, I finally plucked up the courage to have a meal out. The young staff were all very friendly and helpful; I was very nervous because, when my meal arrived, the batter on my sweet & sour chicken looked exactly like gluten-containing batter. The waiter promised me it was gluten free & so it was - no ill effects at all. There are no Chinese restaurants at home which have such a wide range of gluten free dishes - most have none at all - so this was a real treat for me. If I had to pick fault I would say the veg could have been cooked slightly more, and our main meals arrived as my husband was still eating his starters. But neither of those is a big deal. I just wish we had somewhere like this at home!

What a delicious Chinese place! Me and my partner had a few takeaways from hear on holiday and it was lush! Even being 20 minutes away from where we was staying it was still hot and yummy! Best curry we had aswell! And I will pay gd money if the food is good! So well done!

Very nice food with lots of gluten free choices for mains, although starters limited to soup. The chef adapted the special fried rice to be GF.

Lovely food. Just so expensive..

Very poor, the food was terrible and very expensive. The best bit was the spring roll to start and a potion of chips my husband had as a side, the whole experience as a lovely night out was sadly very poor I am still coming to terms with paying £3.20 for a can of lemonade, there was no customer service it was very shabby no table cloths it was more like a cafe 2/10

Ordered the starter of 2 spare ribs 2 samosas 2 spring rolls 2 prawn toast and crispy seaweed. When it came out the prawn toast was dripping in oil the spring rolls were very small and no filling the samosas were empty and for the spare ribs no sauce on them and not very tender as for the main meals ok but not the best The starter for the cost I give it 2/10 for the main meals I give it 6/10 Over all not impressed

Hello, I’ve been a customer for the last 46 years, I love ALEX, the waiters and waitresses are the best, can’t believe it

I've always for many many years been going to dragon pearl Chinese Even when it had previous owners and highly recommended it many people. Well today has changed .I had chips chicken fried rice and chicken chow mein.The chicken fried rice lovely as normal.But the chips are very greasy to much to eat and my chow main was very dry.I called up and told them about my issues the owner told me to take it back for refund.I explained I don't live close by,But she wanted me to take it back if I didn't like her food.I was not going to travel all the way back once I had been dropped off home.Ive never once had any issues before but sadly this occasion I have and sadly the owner is very upset I don't like her food this one and only time. so now my loyalty will no longer be with them.

It's an average Chinese takeaway. The kung pao is a bit lacklustre, but it's not offensive. Good reviews for the beef chow mein. Food was made quickly and in the time stated, staff were friendly, and the restaurant is bright and cheerful.

Some of the best food we've ever had, everything was fresh and hot, and plenty of it, highly recommended. Great staff, friendly and attentive.

I am afraid to say this rates as the poorest Chinese meal l have eaten. The restaurant interior resembles a 3rd class transport cafe . The food is tasteless and overcooked. Avoid this establishment

Great food and friendly service. I look forward to my next meal there

Went for a family meal as it used to be our regular but not been back for several years. Lovely atmosphere and the food was lovely however we felt that the steamed and fried rice portions were a bit overpriced compared to other restaurants. We all felt that the cost of the soft drinks were extortionate. The 2 children in our group had a can of Tango each. EACH can cost £3.60 which we didn't realise until the bill arrived !!!! This is daylight robbery in my opinion and a shame because the food was lovely.

Best Chinese restaurant on the Island. Always friendly and courteous. Lovely food and always delicious.

Have been coming here for over 20 years and it's an annual event when we visit the island, great food and atmosphere and never had a bad meal in all the years we have been eating here

Midweek meal in a very quiet Shanklin. Slightly out if the way location, relatively basic but clean decor. Tasty food with the right spices, generous portions at reasonable prices Young cheery staff, definitely worth visiting

The restaurant has very helpful service Food is really fresh and nice. Pleasantly nice for our first time Nice large portions. Nearly gave a 5 Star review my only concern was the food did not come at the same time It was one dish wait for few minutes then another. Everything else was great would recommend

Unfortunately I have to downrate this restaurant. I've had to do this because it has been taken over by English people. I know it will sound stupid but in my opinion this place has dramatically changed and not for the best. I have used this restaurant for 30 years. I would never go anywhere else, but I was amazed by my last visit to find English people cooking and serving although the food was nice it doesn't come up to scratch. I am so disappointed by this, I can't see myself using this place again. The staff are friendly but the food is just not Chinese. I never thought I would be giving it a bad review but I came, I saw and was extremely disappointed. I now have a big question, where can I find a restaurant that will compare with how Dragon Pearl as was? By all means try it but it isn't for me anymore. It's such a shame and a shock and I'm so,so disappointed. Good luck with this one!

Worst Chinese ever had no flavour in any of it. pork was not fully cooked Waste of £70 ruined a family get together.

Went to this Chinese with my family. Restaurant was very cold had to keep our coats on. Starters were ok mains were awful and cold. Very over priced. Waitress was to ill to be serving. Which had an impact on her service. Really not a great experience for us.

3 years ago, Fantastic. Now, VILE. Never again.

Amazing food with so much flavour, the staff was very welcoming when it came to ordering. Food was still nice and hot after 20min drive home so that was good. I have to say this is the nicest Chinese I have had on the island so far and will recommend it to anyone.

Love this place. Never sat in and had a meal though. Food is ALWAYS amazing. Never had a bad one. Staff are friendly. Service is quick.

food is excellent staff are friendly and always ready to help great portions best food i have had in ages

Cannot fault the service here and the food was great to boot. Portions were generous and the price was good for what you got.

Bit of an expert on Chinese take aways, I have an excellent one at home, and always try one when we’re away for a break. So, we’re staying just outside Shanklin, we had to give Dragon Pearl a go. And glad we did. Food hot and tasty, sweet & sour chicken balls particularly good, light batter, delicious chicken. Everything else top quality, and free prawn crackers. Service from the young ‘uns at the front of service very good. Recommended.

Saw reviews suggesting best on IoW. Not quite that good but still well worth a visit. Quick friendly service and well presented food.

It's ok, thought it was a little more on the pricey side for what was delivered, satay special main dish sounded really nice but found it to be lacking flavour and quite watery. The nicest dish we had was the Peking ribs and the quarter duck.

We booked in here after reading previous reviews and we were pleased we did. The food was delicious and plentyful. The staff were very friendly and accommodating. Will definitely return when back in Shanklin.

Food was nice until we found a bug in our rice. The manager was defensive and tried to justify it by saying ‘it might have come from the floor’ but we were put off and left.

My family and I ordered a number of dishes from the menu, which once cooked arrived at our table immediately. Every dish tasted excellent and fresh. Their prawn crackers were to die for, that we requested another bowl. For a family of 3 adults and 2 children (including alcohol) we spent just over £80, which was definitely worth it. If you visit the Isle of Wight, please do try to make a stop here for dinner, it will be worth it!

Food was amazing, had good flavour and potion size was big. Would definitely come back again when in the IOW.

Reliable restaurant provides good quality food

Food mediocre at best- starters over priced and dry . Bland main course Really not a friendly experience either . The owners should really have a think about the image their staff portray who were at times plain rude

This is our go to restaurant whilst we stay on the Isle of Wight, we always eat here on our first & last night. 8 of us had booked this time, all of our food came out piping hot & so tasty, the staff are...

Last night of our holiday so decided to try this Chinese out for dinner,we turned up but found they were fully booked and was told they could fit us in an hour later so went a short walk down to the beach.on returning our order was taken and drinks came quickly and soon to be followed by our food.all was tasty and hot and accompanied by free prawn crackers.would reccomend and happily return but suggest booking,also a car park is opposite which is handy.

It was an average Chinese but great service and we enjoyed it. Looked after our kids very well. Would have probably enjoyed a take away more

Bloody awful, asked for no veg in a curry an guess what, it was full of it, apart from that it was bland and boring, do yourself a favour and use China garden on regent Street instead!!

Amazing food and large portions. Great service as well. Especially happy to see so many gluten free options on the menu.

Reviews looked good so we visited this evening. Food was quick, hot and plentiful. I have eaten in Hong Kong many times,and this evening s food tasted very authentic. Staff were efficient and friendly. Reasonably priced. Pleased to recommend.

Good tasty food fast cooked very hot and served immediately.. good price as well efficient serving staff

Take away. Very friendly staff. Didn't wait long. Food was good.

4th time we have had a meal here, we normally dine here once per holiday. Food is lovely, portion sizes are good.

Absolutely fantastic Restaurant and Takeaway

Workers are lovely and place is very clean, however the food is very basic and over priced. Lemon chicken was laid of a brown piece of lettuce with hardly any sauce, the salt and pepper chips were a tiny portion but half of them were...

We came to the island for a short break and booked a table relatively last minute via email - prompt response, a good start! The staff were welcoming and attentive. The menu was varied and what we had was absolutely delicious. If you are looking...

Just been to the Isle of Wight with mates and we fancied a Chinese whilst there. After having a look around we was recommended this place. Have to say the food was so good, genuinely one of the nicest Chinese I've had anywhere. A little...

Visit 23rd april Chips undercooked rock hard £2.40p in the bin. Chicken & sweetcorn soup should carry a health warning for the sugar content,it was disgustigly sweetened with extra sugar £3.70p in the bin. Chicken balls the batter was hard and crispy and the chicken inside was very tough. Fried rice tasteless and very dry Roast pork was quite nice only complaint was veg was undercooked and hard. Overall i would not use dragon pearl again,as a lot of things were not right and very undercooked and the use of sugar is far far to much,sorry guys but this is an honest review and can only score you 2,and it is just a 2

Was looking for a Chinese on the Island and couldn't recommend this one any better. Service was extremely fast and all the dishes came fresh. Cutlery and wipes for hands were in a sealed plastic bag which was a nice touch. Very reasonably priced. We left extremely satisfied and pleasantly surprised. Will definitely be back!

Excellent service and value, food served quickly and very tasty. Tsing Tao beer, chilled Chardonnay with complementary prawn crackers. We had Chinese beef curry, boiled rice included, chow mein and chopsuey with duck and prawn. Satay special with pork, chicken and prawn and egg fried rice. One of the nicest Chinese restaurants on the island, highly recommended. Nice atmosphere, will definitely visit again

Fabulous food with excellent service. Highly recommend

Excellent service great food,great staff recommend it.

Amazing food a d amazing friendly staff had a truly memorable time for my first time on the Isle. Highly recomended for family or friends..

Love food great staff bit too cosy in there bit packed in

One of the best Chinese meals I’ve eaten! Can’t fault the food. Waiting staff were friendly and very attentive. I hope to come back some day … ⛩⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

lovely meal here for my wife and me. lovely staff , excellent food and service . Will definitely use again when on the island.

Had a chicken chow mien from here, noodles were so dry and there was hardly any chicken. Chips were so oily and tasted horrible too. I’ve tried a few other Chinese's around Shanklin and would definitely recommend going somewhere else.

We was looking for eat in Chinese place on Isle of Wight and this place had the best comments on the Island. I couldn't be more right! My wife love it ;) good food, perfect service but the most unexpected thing i loved was... cutlerys sealed in plastic bags with napkin and wet tissue for hands cleaning! I saw tissues in some places but not very often but this combination was perfect! Especially this days... so highly recommended! Go and try and you not gonna be disappointed!

Four of us called in on the spur of the moment to eat in. The service was excellent as was the food both in quality and quantity. Very good value for money with a good menu range. We’ll certainly be going back and are very...

Amazing food and very friendly service. Hot and sour soup was lovely. Reasonable price for what we had.

Fabulous meal and friendly service. Generous proportions. Recommend the hot and sour soup, sweet and sour chicken and the chow mien.

Best dine in Chinese ever, big portions for a good price and the best duck chow mein ever.

Sat in and the food was quick and tasted great no complaints very friendly staff.

Tried this yesterday and it wasn’t the best at all. On top of that the customer service was poor as we barely had anyone come to speak to us - came across as quite hostile. Won’t be coming here ever again!

Loved this place, ate here 3 times, all cooked lovely and staff were excellent. Young chap with hair back was lovely lovely lovely. Thank you.

We had a lovely meal, to be fair. The young serving staff were excellent. I put a tip too the bill, and afterwards, thought to ask the staff to ensure they would get it. "No it goes to the restaurant, came back the reply!" To...

We decided try this restaurant as it was close to our hotel - we should have walked out as soon as sat down! We were looking forward to a relaxing, nice family meal out and instead we experienced quite the opposite. The ambience was hectic,...

One of the best Chinese restaurants on the Isle of Wight. Run by a very young team of attentive staff. And the food is 5* to. Will certainly be going back. But it's advisable to book as it's very popular and I can see why.

Was so looking forward to this meal as hadn't had a Chinese meal for ages. 2 of us had chicken and sweetcorn soup but it was ruined as was ridiculously sweet. Asked for salt but made no difference. Both of us left over half of...

Can't fault the food but sadly let down by the young dark haired English girl on the till taking the orders. Very rude and absolutely no manners. She may have been training but still no excuse

I can't tell you how good this is. I live near China Town in London and this is better than some up there. Great staff great fresh food I can't wait to return.