New Edinburgh Rendezvous

This review appears in the The List's Eating & Drinking Guide 2008 – in the shops now or buy online.

The New Edinburgh Rendezvous is a bit of a misnomer – after all, Edinburgh's oldest Chinese restaurant has been serving up familiar favourites since 1956 (the past five years under the current ownership). With more than 50 years' experience, practice should make perfect and it certainly shows in the swift, professional service, which delivers starters within minutes. Crispy wontons are lifted by a spicy dipping sauce, and a mountainous pile of barbecued ribs is meaty and succulent. Portions are equally generous for main courses: fillets of crisply battered lemon chicken are tender, but the slightly oily sauce doesn't quite have the required citrus tang. Similarly, a dish of king prawns with ginger and spring onion is well cooked, but lacks the expected ginger pungency. However, a good value toffee apple dessert delivers mounds of soft, hot fruit in crisp sugar batter with S Luca ice-cream on the side. While the old-fashioned menu offers few surprises and the cavernous dining space isn't ideal for an intimate meal, it's perfect for the lunchtime all-you-can-eat buffet. For those looking for an unpretentious venue with decent, conventional Chinese food and plenty of it, New Edinburgh Rendezvous will provide.

• High point: Big choice, big portions
• Low point: Quantity over quality