A little weary and a wee bit famished I sought out a nice hot meal without the need to be overly social; Chinese takeaway back at the hotel was a great idea. Finding the restaurant was not obvious and when confronted with an all caps sign asking you to keep your dirty shoes out of the restaurant I decided to gamble on the hospitality aspect of the food services industry and risk going up the stairs with my shoes on - if you are going to face your maker; do it with your boots on. This is where the average atmosphere rating comes into existence - the carpets were a bit more brown then the intended deep red indicated on the edges of the carpet. The decor had what you imagine a Hollywood producer would lull you into believing a Chinese restaurant should look like but it was just a little bit too tired but did its function. I was impressed by the private dining areas for intimate groups as well as normal tables. The ceiling design was fantastic and was lost a little bit by the other aspects. The service was fairly good for a Saturday night at a place that had a few tables and a number of takeaway orders. It did take a while to come out (I had time to walk down to the local PAK'nSAVE, shop for late night snacks and have a 5-10 minute wait). But it was also a good sign as it turns out because it great sign of a freshly cooked meal. Saying that there were obviously regular locals who turned up with brown bags that were taken out the back to have their orders stored in and returned to the trusted local. The service could be improved by improving some of the systems like pay/wave payments and a POS that tracks orders so customers aren't asked what they ordered - the scrap pieces of papers are wasting your time in conducting an interrogation and makes the customer feel a little less loved. Now lets talk food. When going to a new place I observe the locals. If you after the best coffee in the morning watch where the early morning tradies go to. Want the best Chinese food, stalk the local Chinese community and where they frequent that's the place; just don't make people paranoid otherwise you might be reviewing the cuisine of the penitentiary. In this case I get the feeling that there was no thriving Chinese diaspora in Timaru but by the frequency of locals heading up the palace stairs I felt this was going to be a good bet. I ordered the satay prawns and vegetables, sweet & sour pork (I know safe white person choice) with steamed rice. Priced under $50, hot, great ingredients and HUGE portions. The food made my night and I was unable to finish; large amounts of leftovers for those who enjoy next-day-re-heated Chinese lunch. Golden Palace I salute you.