‘I tried the Chinese restaurant named best in London, and their best-seller isn't what you should be ordering'

Yahoo

07-06-2025

Deliveroo just announced its top-rated restaurants of the year across the country, and London gets its own spotlight. The capital has an entire section dedicated to its best eats.
While Deliveroo's overall winner - Independent Restaurant of the Year - happens to be in London, the city also boasts a range of other category champions. From pizza to fried chicken, each spot has been crowned best in its field.
This year's Chinese food champion is a takeaway spot called Three Uncles. They have locations all over London, from Brixton to Camden, and St Paul's.
READ MORE: Best restaurants and takeaways named after 160,000 votes
I went to their Liverpool Street branch to see if the hype held up. I'm obsessed with Chinatown, so I didn't go in easily impressed.
It's a casual spot, but not just a basic takeaway counter. The food comes in boxes, but there are some tables and counter seating available, and the décor is really sleek, with dark blue tiles and red neon signs.
The first thing that stood out wasn't the food - it was the service. A staff member serving the customers clocked me looking for a table and quickly set one up just for me.
Despite the lunchtime rush of office workers, the staff were warm and attentive. One customer was even greeted with a 'the usual?' - I had never seen a busy central London spot recognising a regular customer.
The menu is small, which I always take as a good sign. No endless scroll of options here - just roast meats, rice or noodles, and a few dim sum classics, from baos to wontons.
I went for their best-seller: roast duck on rice, with plum sauce on the side. To try a bit of everything, I also ordered char siu BBQ pork with Lo Mein noodles (egg noodles) and wontons.
Each dish was around £14, so not the cheapest. But when I opened the boxes, I was shocked by the portion size - one dish easily could've fed two, and I couldn't even finish mine.
The roast duck had beautifully crisp skin, and the rich meat paired incredibly with the sweet plum sauce. But the rice was underwhelming - sticky, plain, and the duck did not have enough sauce to drip on it and bring it to life.
At that point, I was thinking - it's good, but 'best in London' good? Not yet. Then I tried the noodles, and everything changed.
The egg noodles were thin and packed with flavour from the sweet char siu pork on top. There was a mystery sauce that added a savoury, salty depth without overwhelming the noodles.
Jalapeños on the side gave it an unexpected kick, which spice lovers might adore. But what took it up a notch was a £1 extra ginger and spring onion sauce - I'd go back just for that dip.
The wontons were another win - soft, tasty, and far from the greasy versions you often find at other Chinese spots in the city. It's that clean, non-oily finish packed with flavour that really sets Three Uncles apart.
I've eaten in other Chinese restaurants that are on par with this one, but it's certainly delicious and worth a visit. And honestly, the woman taking orders might've been the best part of the whole experience.
There's more on the menu I'd love to try next time - from lamb dumplings to a Char Siu Bao, and a two meats combo. I'll be back for round two, especially for those noodles.
You can find Three Uncles in Liverpool Street, Brixton, Camden, St. Paul's, Ealing and Brent Cross. In Liverpool Street, they're located at 12 Devonshire Row, London EC2M 4RH. It's open from 11.45 am to 9 pm every day.