"...very good, but it was on the expensive side, and portions were small. It looks more like a banquet place than somewhere you would regularly have dinner."
Elegance Chinese is a pretty nice banquet type restaurant that is seemingly popular for their dim sum. Arrive before 10am if you even want a chance at getting their early bird special (order by 10:45 am). It was just me and my girl, so a table only took about a half hour. Expect longer waits if you're a larger group or get there earlier. The place is rather nice and the service is pretty fast and good. <br/ <br/ I always judge a good dim sum place by their shrimp dumplings and Elegance did a pretty darn good job. The shu mai with scallop was really good too. The shrimp rice rolls were some of the best and they cut it into 4 quarters for you. The sticky rice in lotus leaf come in 3 and taste...
When this restaurant first opened, it was a pleasant experience with great service and delicious food. Unfortunately, it has significantly declined since then. We visited last week, and the food was unimpressive. When we didn’t leave a full 10% tip, the staff actually returned and tossed the money back onto our table, saying in Chinese that it was still short. We were taken aback, as we only tip according to the service we receive. They kept insisting that we were still short. We explained our reasoning, and one of the managers came over, snatched the money plate back, and rudely told us that if we didn’t want to pay, we didn’t have to. We were shocked! What kind of customer service is that?...
Overall, the food is quite good. The steamed BBQ pork buns are fluffy, the chicken feet are tender, and the squid tentacles have a nice savory flavor. The spare ribs are tender without being overly sweet, and the egg tarts have a satisfying crispness. However, the filling of the har gow had gone sour, and the soup dumplings were too salty. The portion of chung fin was smaller than what you would find at most other dim sum restaurants, but at least the shrimp was fresh. The sponge-layered taro steamed cake had a good texture but tasted somewhat like freezer burn. The service is typical for dim sum places—efficient and quick.
At Elegance, the frustrating thing is that everything comes in quick succession and you end up with a table full of items getting cold. Some traditional items ordered included the steamed squid with curry sauce (M; $4.20), which was very well flavoured with the savoury Singaporean style curry. <br/ <br/ The steamed minced beef balls with vegetable (S; $3) were decent, but sadly arrived with not a vegetable in sight. The description is rather misleading as I would describe the beef to be more paste like than “minced”. It’s essentially processed until smooth and then steamed so that it becomes airy.
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My favorite dish is usually the steamed squid with shrimp paste (large), but the flavor can vary at Elegance. One visit it lacked taste, while another it tasted more like spicy XO sauce than shrimp paste. The steamed squid with curry sauce (medium) is more consistent, and always comes with a generous serving of curry.
The minced beef ball with orange peel (small) is fluffy and voluminous when served fresh from the steamer.
However, the filling in the har gow tasted sour, and the soup dumplings were too salty. The portion of chung fin was smaller than what you would typically find at other dim sum restaurants, but the shrimp was fresh. The sponge layered taro steamed cake had a fine texture but tasted like freezer burn.
The service at this restaurant is typical of most dim sum places - quick and efficient.
I had a great experience at this restaurant! I particularly enjoyed the beef ribs, which were perfectly seasoned and cooked to be sweet and tender. The vermicelli dish was also delicious, made with a combination of glass noodles and vermicelli, along with preserved vegetables and stir-fried chicken strips. I loved it so much that I would definitely come back for more.
The dim sum was good! I especially liked the beef ribs. They were seasoned and cooked just right to be a bit sweet and tender. I really enjoyed the vermicelli as it was a mixture of glass noodles and vermicelli. It had just enough flavour from the preserved vegetables and the stir-fried chicken strips. I absolutely loved this dish and would return just for it.
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This restaurant offers the best dim sum in the Greater Toronto Area, featuring authentic Cantonese style. It's an excellent value for those who arrive early, before 10 AM!
...very good, but it was on the expensive side, and portions were small. It looks more like a banquet place than somewhere you would regularly have dinner.
