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Shark Fin Inn, Melbourne, AU-VIC

Shark Fin Inn

4.5 (164)
$40 and under
Chinese
50 Little Bourke St, Melbourne, AU-VIC 3000

Make a reservation

2 people
11:00 PM
Booked 14 times today

About this restaurant

  • Good for groups
  • Good for special occasions
  • Great for brunch
The 'original' Shark Fin Restaurant was established in 1980 at the top end of the little Bourke Street. Close to the Parliament Station, Shark Fin Inn achieves it's excellence by serving the finest Cantonese food at affordable prices. With lunchtime Yum Cha, takeaway service and an extensive a La Carte and banquet menus, Shark Fin Inn has remained favourite of many despite some strong neighbouring contenders over the years. It gives customers a good chance to savour the famous dishes from Hong Kong without the expensive price tag of the air ticket - or the meal. Close to different bars, cafes and theatres and open until 1.30am daily, Shark Fin Inn is the best place for family gathering, business acquaintance, celebrating special occasions and late supper after a night out.

Additional information

  • Dining style
    Casual Dining
  • Price
    $40 and under
  • Cuisines
    Chinese
  • Hours of operation
    Lunch Daily 11:00 am–3:00 pm Dinner Daily 5:30 pm–10:00 pm
  • Phone number
  • Payment options
    Mastercard, Visa
  • Dress code
    Casual Dress
  • Neighborhood
    Melbourne CBD
  • Parking details
    Street Parking
  • Additional
    Beer, Cocktails, Full Bar, Gluten-free Options, Non-Smoking, Takeout, Vegan, Wheelchair Access, Wine

What 164 people are saying

Shark Fin Inn reviews from people who’ve dined at this restaurant. Based on recent rating.

Overall ratings and reviews

Reviews can only be made by diners who have eaten at this restaurant

4.5
4.5 based on recent ratings
  • 4.5Food
  • 4.5Service
  • 4.1Ambience
  • 4.2Value

NoiseEnergetic

Loved For

  • City Centre

    Great for brunch

Review summary

AI-generated from verified diner reviews
Shark Fin Inn offers a delightful dining experience with "fantastic food & amazing service." The Yum Cha is a favorite, praised for its freshness and variety. The staff are "welcoming" and "treat guests like best friends." Despite occasional service hiccups, the overall experience is "satisfactorily" enjoyable and highly recommended.
164 Reviews
  1. Carolyn

    Canberra1 review

    5.0

    Dined on May 22, 2025

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 5
    Fantastic food & amazing service! The excellent staff could not do enough for us. Highly recommend

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  2. Grace

    Melbourne2 reviews

    4.0

    Dined on May 18, 2025

    1. Overall 4
    2. Food 4
    3. Service 4
    4. Ambience 4
    Always a favourite place with our family. The best Yum Cha.

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  3. Sandra

    Melbourne2 reviews

    5.0

    Dined on May 16, 2025

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 3
    Our family were pleasantly surprised firstly by the service and all dishes were of a very high standard. We all enjoyed every dish that we ordered. Next time we will ask to be seated upstairs found downstairs eating area small and lots of front traffic of people going upstairs of restaurant. That was the only thing we found on the negative side.

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  4. Julie

    Melbourne1 review

    2.0

    Dined on May 10, 2025

    1. Overall 2
    2. Food 2
    3. Service 2
    4. Ambience 2
    My husband and I eat at The Shark Finn Inn on Saturday 10th May and Sunday the 11th May 2025 first night was ordinary second night was very poor. So much so that we will not eat there again. Regards Julie Mortlock. Dont want to send PRIVATE BECAUSE NOTHING WILL HAPPEN ||||

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  5. Christopher

    Melbourne3 reviews

    5.0

    Dined on April 26, 2025

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 4
    Went for my mother in laws 75th birthday for lunch. Had the benefit of having yum cha and al la carte menu. Have to say the staff made the experience really special and enjoyable. Food was really good for the price. Only thing we didn’t rate was the Peking duck pancakes. They took 50 mins to serve and weren’t great. Everything else was spectacular and once again the hospitality was next level especially with how busy they were with tour groups. Would recommend.

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  6. Janet

    Melbourne4 reviews

    2.0

    Dined on April 26, 2025

    1. Overall 2
    2. Food 3
    3. Service 2
    4. Ambience 1
    We booked a table and arrived on time for our booking. The restaurant was busy, which is great given the difficulties facing hospitality at the moment. We were sent upstairs as downstairs was very full. When we got upstairs there was no table ready for us. We were led to a table in the very back corner which was being cleared and reset as we got there. We had to push passed stacks of chairs that were being set up for future diners. Our table placement made it almost impossible for the yum cha trolley to get to our table for us to view the choices. We were told someone would come and take an order from us because of the difficulty, they never came. The tables being set up were for tourist groups. When their tables were filled we were trapped in our corner. We could not have left without at least 8 other people standing up and moving their chairs. Again, I’m really pleased the restaurant is busy. The theatre involved in their lobster banquet looked wonderful to me, my friend was facing the wall and missed it. The food also looked really good. We didn’t get that experience. We didn’t get the trolley to choose from, the presentation of the food. We felt as if we were in the way. Had we walked in off the street then you take what’s available. We had booked and the maître de downstairs sent us into that, knowing the number of organised tourists they were expecting. The only reason I have given a two star review instead of a one star review is Vera. Vera is one of the waitresses and whenever she walked passed our table she would check on us, advise us and leave us with a smile. The food we had was fine, although one part was a little oily. I would hope this is a one time glitch and not indicative of the usual service.

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  7. Amanda

    Victoria2 reviews

    5.0

    Dined on April 19, 2025

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 5
    Thank you for making our family Easter lunch so enjoyable. Such wonderful welcoming staff!

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  8. Jeanette

    Melbourne10 reviews

    5.0

    Dined on April 2, 2025

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 5
    Excellent food and fast efficient service for a reasonable price

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  9. Campbell

    Melbourne2 reviews

    3.0

    Dined on March 30, 2025

    1. Overall 3
    2. Food 4
    3. Service 3
    4. Ambience 4
    As always the quality of food is good. Service generally OK but lacking in warmth and interest as per most Restaurants in Chinatown. Prices seem to have crept over time and there is an opacity on the bill in what you are actually paying for

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  10. Murray

    Victoria10 reviews

    5.0

    Dined on March 30, 2025

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 4
    Yum Cha on a Sunday afternoon is a great experience at Shark Fin. First, there was no problem accommodating a request for a table downstairs (for an elderly diner) when making the booking. Second, the choice of Yum Cha items is extensive, and importantly, unlike other such restaurants, it is delivered hot. The food is fresh. The service is quick and efficient and delivered with a smile. The restaurant is busy, but the noise level is not excessive. Altogether, it was a very satisfactory experience.

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FAQs

Shark Fin Inn offers takeout which you can order by calling the restaurant at (03) 9662 2681.

Shark Fin Inn is rated 4.5 stars by 164 OpenTable diners.

Yes, you can generally book this restaurant by choosing the date, time and party size on OpenTable.

  1. Home
  2. Australia
  3. Melbourne
  4. City Centre
  5. Melbourne CBD

Make a reservation

2 people
11:00 PM
Booked 14 times today
Google Map for Shark Fin Inn

50 Little Bourke St, Melbourne, AU-VIC 3000

Additional information

  • Neighborhood
    Melbourne CBD
  • Hours of operation
    Lunch Daily 11:00 am–3:00 pm Dinner Daily 5:30 pm–10:00 pm
  • Price
    $40 and under
  • Cuisines
    Chinese
  • Dining style
    Casual Dining
  • Dress code
    Casual Dress
  • Parking details
    Street Parking
  • Payment options
    Mastercard, Visa
  • Additional
    Beer, Cocktails, Full Bar, Gluten-free Options, Non-Smoking, Takeout, Vegan, Wheelchair Access, Wine
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