Showing posts with label rice roll. Show all posts
Showing posts with label rice roll. Show all posts

Bong Lua Vietnamese Restaurant 禾花 (Toronto)


If you had to eat one type of dish for the rest of your life, what would it be? Popular choices tend to be pizza, pasta, or tacos. For me, it’s a bowl of soupy noodles. And if I had to stick to one type, then pho would likely feed me to eternity.

Yet, pho wasn’t what I was craving when visiting Bong Lau Vietnamese Restaurant. Instead, it was their famous bún riêu ($13.95) that drew me in. Traditionally, it’s a fragrant seafood, pork, and tomato soup. Bong Lau’s recipe skips the meat and uses tomato, crab, and egg drops (?), which when soaked in broth provides a crumbly texture that almost seems like it could be minced meat.

For a dish that looks so vibrant, the taste was surprisingly timid. There wasn’t that salty umami hit of shrimp paste that I expected. In fact, it wasn’t very salty at all. The most prominent flavours were the tomato, basil, and shallots topping the dish.

Perhaps if the bún riêu was hotter, it’d be more enjoyable. As it stood, the lukewarm texture combined with lacklustre soup and the frozen tasting blue crab really didn’t seem rave worthy.

In retrospect, selection of “light bites” would be more impressive. The bahn dap ($11.95), a steamed rice roll stuffed with a choice of lemongrass pork, beef, chicken, or Vietnamese meat balls, makes for a refreshing but hearty meal. Unlike a salad roll, which uses a rehydrated rice paper wrapper, the steamed roll was thicker and softer, while still having an elasticity that allowed it to be held and dipped.

We opted for the recommended lemongrass pork, which was well seasoned and thinly sliced so the meat layer adds a saltiness throughout the roll. Incorporating tender lettuce leaves, hits of herbs, and bits of crunchy peanuts, the bahn dap had a host of textures and flavours that kept me satisfied.

Bong Lau’s extensive menu does offer a selection of soup-based noodles rarely found elsewhere. Consequently, if I had to subsist on soupy noodles forever, you’d find me at Bong Lau’s all the time. 

In a nutshell... 
  • Must order: bahn dap (rice rolls)
  • Just skip: bun rieu (crab noodles)

Overall mark - 7 out of 10


How To Find Them
 Location: Toronto, Canada
 Address: 2572 Birchmount Road
 


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____________________________
Gastro World's Grading System

  • Anything under 5 - I really disliked and will never go back
  • 6 - decent restaurant but I likely won't return
  • 7 - decent restaurant and I will likely return
  • 8 - great restaurant that I'd be happy to recommend
  • 9 - fantastic restaurant that I would love to visit regularly and highly recommend
  • 10 - absolute perfection!


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Zunyan Fine Dining & Banquet 樽宴大酒楼 (Toronto)


If you’re in the mood for dim sum on a weekday, consider Zunyan Fine Dining & Banquet where any small, medium, or large dish is only $5 for the entire lunch period. Order before 11:00am on weekends and the price inches up to $5.25.

Their sui mai with fish roe (L) is solid with authentic flavours and the pork not overly pulverized. Just break into it before eating as they were not cooked through on one of my visits.

Oddly, the har gow is considered an XL and therefore not included in the special. But, if you’re a fan of shrimp dumplings, the shrimp and chive dumplings (L) is a close substitute. Moreover, the filling is heavy on the shrimp and skimps on the vegetable anyways. It’s a run-of-the-mill version of the dish with the wrapper slightly to thick and sticky.

It’s a similar story with the BBQ pork and egg rice roll (M), which has big chunks of barbeque pork, but lacks flavour. The rice roll wrapper isn’t consistently prepared: one visit it was too thick and another still thick but at least silkier.

If you prefer a thinner cheung fun, the fish paste with parsley and preserved egg rice roll (L) fits the bill and the filling a combination seldom found elsewhere.

Zunyan’s shrimp balls (L) remind of me of a crab claw without the crab. Hot, crispy, and juicy these are delicious! Just be aware that the crispy vermicelli noodles pieces coating it are not always used.

The shrimp balls are much better than the pan-fried shrimp with corn cake (L), which is really fish paste studded with shrimp pieces. Sadly, it also lacks corn… an ingredient that adds texture to an otherwise overly soft patty.

While there’s a fair amount of mushrooms in the tofu skin roll (M), there isn’t a lot of other vegetables and relies on vermicelli instead. At least they were well toasted to give it that crunch you need.


I prefer the steamed bean curd meat roll with oyster sauce (M) that encapsulates more filling. Big chunks of pork, shrimp, and vegetables are wrapped in the flavourful bean curd sheets. Having ordered this several times, the dish stays consistent and always satisfies.


The shrimp paste and squid with vermicelli (L) is rarely found at dim sum restaurants, even though it was a staple in the past. While the dish isn’t heavy on the shrimp paste, it’s flavourful enough and the vermicelli soaks in all the juices and almost melts into the other ingredients. Sadly, in recent months the squid seems to have been taken off the menu… hopefully, it’ll make a reappearance.  

For a filling dish, the preserved egg with minced pork congee (L) arrives as a huge bowl and has a decent amount of ingredients. While the congee base could be saltier, it is accompanied by green onions and crispy wonton bits for colour and crunch.

Zunyan’s wrapped chicken with egg yolk and cilantro sticky rice (L) are larger arriving two to an order. However, it’s mostly rice with a bit of salty duck egg and meat. Overall, nothing really stood out and it was too dense. Having it with the steamed shiitake and chicken (L) is ideal. At least the chicken is marinated longer and flavourful enough to cut through the big chunks of rice.

If you can get past the overly oily wrapper on the fried chicken dumpling (M), it is crispy and stuffed with chunks of chicken, diced mushrooms, and green onion. For me, I found this was too oil logged and heavy.

In terms of dessert, sharing the golden mango sago (M) is a perfect finish. The sago isn’t overly large and just sweet enough to satisfy. The real mango pieces are also a nice touch.

I find the mango sago more satisfying than the black sesame glutinous rice balls (L), which wasn’t sugary enough. Ultimately, it tastes more like a nutty sticky rice ball than dessert.

Zunyan’s dining room is spacious, but even so, I recommend arriving before 11:00am on weekdays to avoid waiting. Tables of two will need to be okay with dining beside others as the small tables are set very close. There’s no privacy with dim sum.        

In a nutshell... 
  • Must order: fried shrimp balls and bean curd meat roll with oyster sauce
  • Just skip: pan fried shrimp corn cake and fried chicken dumpling

Overall mark - 7.5 out of 10


How To Find Them
 Location: Toronto, Canada
 Address: 648 Silver Star Boulevard
 


Follow me on twitter to chat, be notified about new posts and more - https://twitter.com/GastroWorldBlog
____________________________
Gastro World's Grading System

  • Anything under 5 - I really disliked and will never go back
  • 6 - decent restaurant but I likely won't return
  • 7 - decent restaurant and I will likely return
  • 8 - great restaurant that I'd be happy to recommend
  • 9 - fantastic restaurant that I would love to visit regularly and highly recommend
  • 10 - absolute perfection!


Is That It? I Want More!

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Skyview Fusion Cuisine (Markham)



In the GTA, there is no shortage of restaurants serving dim sum. But, where do you find the best? For me, I favour places with clean dining rooms, menus with enough choices, reasonable wait times, and of course, where the food tastes delicious.

At Skyview Fusion Cuisine, even though their early bird specials are only available Monday to Friday, based on reviews, the restaurant still gets busy on weekends – perhaps due to its proximity to a Costcos. However, the wait times seem manageable: arriving at 9:30 on a Saturday, we were seated right away and even while leaving at 11am there were still available tables.

Their regular menu prices are small for $3.90, medium for $4.90, and large for $5.90. Even without the weekend early bird special, Skyview’s menu includes a lot of small category options: pan-fried turnip cake, deep-fried sticky pork dumpling, and steamed beef ball with chestnuts, which may be considered medium at other establishments. As a result, the bill total isn’t too bad, even without the discount.

Their steamed beef ball with chestnuts (S) was a bit dense for my taste, but the addition of cilantro, water chestnuts, and sweet corn does help to add further flavours and textures to an otherwise monotone item.


I would have liked the pan-fried turnip cake (S) to be cooked longer, to enhance the crust, but otherwise it was a decent consistency and incorporated enough turnip and lap cheong within the cake. Similarly, the deep-fried sticky pork dumpling (S) could have used a bit more time in the oil to really create a crunchier exterior but was still a solid version of the dish.


Both their steamed shrimp dumpling or har gow (L) and steamed pork dumpling or siu mai (M) are solid renditions and sizeable portions. While most people welcome the golf ball sized dim sum, I personally prefer them smaller so there’s a better ratio of wrapper to filling.


With all the seafood dumplings, it seemed like a bit of over kill to also have the seafood dumpling (L), which truthfully pretty much tasted like the har gow with a tiny bit of chives, scallop, and fish roe on top. It’s a good dish, but I’d pick one or the other.


Their steamed sticky rice with chicken in lotus leaf (L) is a great option. The glutinous rice is not overly thick and there’s enough filling to keep it interesting.


The ‘vegetable and bean sprout and shrimp rice rolls’ (L), may more concisely be labelled as shrimp and snow pea shoot rice roll. It’s fine, the rice wrapper thicker than it needs to be.


One of my favourite dishes, assuming its prepared properly, is the steamed seafood dumpling in soup (L). At Skyview, they are one of the best. The dumpling’s wrapper is thick enough to withstand getting too soggy and there’s tons of ingredients (scallop, shrimp, mushroom) in it. The broth is salty enough for flavour and is kept hot with the candlelit warmer. It was amazing when it was first brought to the table, and still decent enough to finish half-and-hour later.


The sitting around factor of a dish may also be considered an important criterion for a good dim sum experience. After all, it’s an occasion to eat, but also to catch up with family and loved ones. Sometimes you want to sit back and actually just yum cha (drink tea). Converse, drink more tea, and then dive into a dish later.

Overall mark - 9 out of 10


How To Find Them
 Location: Markham, Canada
 Address: 8261 Woodbine Avenue

Follow me on twitter to chat, be notified about new posts and more - https://twitter.com/GastroWorldBlog
____________________________
Gastro World's Grading System

  • Anything under 5 - I really disliked and will never go back
  • 6 - decent restaurant but I likely won't return
  • 7 - decent restaurant and I will likely return
  • 8 - great restaurant that I'd be happy to recommend
  • 9 - fantastic restaurant that I would love to visit regularly and highly recommend
  • 10 - absolute perfection!


Is That It? I Want More!

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Casa Imperial Fine Chinese Cuisine 名門金宴 (Toronto)


At first glance, you wouldn’t think Casa Imperial is a Chinese restaurant, much less one that serves authentic dim sum. Set in an altered mansion, the baroque details, gilded frames, and sparkly chandeliers suggests the place would serve more high tea than jasmine tea.

Even though they do not offer an early bird special, the restaurant is still fairly busy, especially on holidays and special occasions – skip Mother’s Day unless you like waiting around and fuming. As for their pricing, it’s in line with the regular menus found elsewhere: $3.80 for small, $4.80 for medium, and $5.80 for large with $1.50 per person tea charge.

My must-have dish is a siu mai (L). The conpoy (dried scallop) topping the pork and shrimp dumpling adds little to the experience and gives the dish a boring beige appearance. Nonetheless, the siu mai itself is tasty; a balanced combination of filling to ensure it’s hearty but not hard.


For something a little more Instagramable, the scallop and spinach dumpling (L) has a nice pop of colour. It’s also fairly flavourful with enough seasoning added to the shrimp filling and wrapper, compared to other places.


Casa Imperial certainly isn’t afraid to lay on the spice, there’s plenty of it in the curry sauce marinating the steamed baby cuttlefish (L). The seafood is enveloped in salt and heat, to the point that you may want to ensure there’s a neutral rice dish to pair with the cuttlefish.


Something like a steamed rice pot, as the sticky rice with conpoy and chicken in lotus leaf (L) already has a lot going on in the fragrant parcel. Aside from the chicken and dried scallop, there’s also pieces of Chinese cured sausage and salted egg yolk, traditional fillings that have been substituted by cheaper minced pork at other restaurants.


The crispy bean curd rice roll with shrimp and pork (L) is such a great combination of textures. Soft silky rice rolls surrounds a shrimp and pork sausage like filling that’s encased in a crunchy bean curd sheet. It’s a little heavy, so make sure there’s at least four of you to share.


Our meal seemed to include a lot of things that spent time in the deep fryer. The crispy meat dumplings (S) and chicken wings with lemon grass (L) both arrive hot, hot, hot! While they’re nothing to rave about, they’re still solid offerings, especially when they’re so fresh from the fryer.


It’s not every day you’ll find fruit mixed with shrimp. In reality, the peach in the crispy spinach nest shrimp roll with peach (L) is simply the puree dipping sauce on the side. The puffy spinach laced batter is pretty, but also fairly oily… I personally still enjoy the plain Jane bean curd sheets. Yet, this combination was better for my denture wearing grandmother, who had no difficulties biting through the airy crust.


Same with the soft black sesame dumpling coated with cashew nut (L), a ball of sticky glutinous rice filled with a warm oozing black sesame paste and covered with powdered and crushed cashews to keep everything from sticking together. It’s a nice way to finish after all the deep fried dishes that graced the second half of brunch.



If you’re not a fan of leftovers, Casa Imperial’s portion sizes are larger than normal, so you’ll want to order less and add on later. Or you’ll just have to get a bigger group together – four or six works best – so that each person gets a mouthful of the dishes. It’s the sampling and varied bites that makes dim sum such a great experience. Even if the oil-based paintings doesn’t make it feel like you’re in a Chinese restaurant.

Overall mark - 9 out of 10


How To Find Them
 Location: Toronto, Canada
 Address: 4125 Steeles Avenue East

Follow me on twitter to chat, be notified about new posts and more - https://twitter.com/GastroWorldBlog
____________________________
Gastro World's Grading System

  • Anything under 5 - I really disliked and will never go back
  • 6 - decent restaurant but I likely won't return
  • 7 - decent restaurant and I will likely return
  • 8 - great restaurant that I'd be happy to recommend
  • 9 - fantastic restaurant that I would love to visit regularly and highly recommend
  • 10 - absolute perfection!


Is That It? I Want More!

Other Gastro World posts similar to this: