"The food was tasty, but the service has deteriorated. When I asked for something, the servers either didn't respond or gave me annoyed looks."
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...
The restaurant is a gem, tucked in a quiet plaza so there’s plenty of parking during the dinner and the service attentive, not only during dinner, but throughout the entire process. From the moment I called in to make the reservation, Andy their General Manager) was helpful at ensuring the menu was catered to meet our party size. The banquet meal I chose normally feeds ten $668 inclusive of taxes and gratuities), but with the exception of three dishes where I added on additional pieces, the existing menu was more than enough to accommodate four extra people. The skin on the roasted suckling pig was divine, very thin and crispy so it could shatter with a light pressure. The warm pieces of jui...
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.
Next came awkwardly cut chunks of celery and tough pieces of squid, both drenched in oil to achieve that glossy dine-out appearance. These elements were already disappointing, but the pointless addition of more pepper flakes and black pepper only made things worse. The quality of the scallops, however, was well-preserved. The spinach stalks and shiitake mushrooms were acceptable, though a bit greasy, while the abalone was surprisingly tender and exceeded my expectations.
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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.
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!
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...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.
The food was tasty, but the service has deteriorated. When I asked for something, the servers either didn't respond or gave me annoyed looks.
