Tuan Tuan

The Verdict

Tuan Tuan is the latest in a string of overseas success stories to land in Melbourne.

Just in the last year or two we’ve had Tim Ho Wan, IPUDDO and Hawker Chan—Melbourne seems to be the logical next step when you’ve conquered Asia. Kind of like Risk.

So who is Tuan Tuan? They’re a cult Hong Kong-style Chinese brasserie with five sell-out stores in Manilla. This is their first foray into the cut-throat Melbourne scene, and yep, they’re bringing the congee...

The signature dish here is the Snow Bun: a soft golden bun, baked fresh on the hour, stuffed with your choice of BBQ pork, pineapple, salted egg custard or almond cream. The top is cracked and crispy, a little like a streusel.

The rest of the menu is a blend of Chinese and French flair. You’ve got spicy fish noodle soup, Hong Kong curries, pan-fried lemongrass chicken and Macanese dishes like Cajun chicken.

Our picks are definitely those Snow Buns (a potential rival for Tim Ho Wan’s famous pork buns? You be the judge) plus a serve of the beef brisket curry. Good kick on that one.

The venue on Queensberry St was designed by WALL Architects (the same guys behin Jack The Geezer). It seats 100 bustling, elbow-pumping, soup-slurping diners, and the execution is pretty sweet. There’s a tree growing in the middle of the restaurant, and a truly epic mural running down the side wall.

Brassy accents, hanging light installations, soft white furnishings (potentially dangerous, with all that noodle soup flying around) round out the aesthetic. There’s some definite ‘wow factor’ in here.

Queensberry St is certainly heating up. We got Super Ling and Tuan Tuan in the same week. You spoil us Melbourne, you really do. 

Image credit: Hugh Davies