Restaurants
Crown Princess
The Crown Princess offers some of the best dim sum south of Steeles and West of Kennedy (though I suppose the proprietors at Lai Wah Heen would have something to say 'bout that) and considering the surroundings in which you eat those savoury morsels, it better be since the dining room is as overwrought as any of my reviews. I mean Sweet Jane, could you dial down the lavishness of the décor a bit?
Having dim sum in the Crown Princess is like what I imagine it would feel like eating in Liberace's bathroom if his fleet of Chinese French maids fluttered back and forth, arms piled high with bamboo steamers instead of feather dusters and his tables were cleared by what I can only assume are middle aged Chinese castrati in frilly collared black shirts that make them resemble the goth version of a crown rack of lamb (though they do sing beautifully fwiw)
So how exactly did this humble Chinese brunch take on such monstrous proportions, metastasize into a rococo riot of brocaded cushions, ornate gold leaf, faux marble pillars? Crown Princess is a downtown satellite of the equally opulent Crown Prince in Markham and in truth dim sum's not the real point as they both "court" the Chinese Wedding Banquet and HK expense account crowd.
Anyone with even a hint of humility or who likes their dim sum traditional, their porcelain chipped and their chopsticks plastic will sense a feeling of immediate, madcap alienation. That said, suppress any pinko sensibilities you have, dear class warrior, summon your inner Merovingian and indulge in the crazy over-the-topness of your surroundings - your effort will be rewarded with some seriously good nosh. Though if you're gonna own the Matrix thing, as pristine as the bathrooms are you might actually wanna bring your own silk if you want to *ahem*curse in French
Admittedly, prices are a little higher than average but you can even stick it to the ruling class if you arrive before 11 am when most of the items on the dim sum menu are $3.10 each!
Right from the get-go, you'll be impressed by the small details down to little porcelain rests for your enameled chopsticks and dandified teapots filled to the brim with fragrantly floral jasmine tea ($1.20/person).
Dim sum restaurants typically live and die by stalwarts har gao and siu mai. Chef Caleb Pang's versions
at Crown Princess are far from typical, they're some of the most technicolour flavours downtown. The har gao ($5.30 for 4) is packed with fresh, plump pink pieces of shrimp steamed to perfection stuffing translucent rice flour pockets that are neither too thick nor too flimsy and adding just the right amount of carb to balance out the bright seafood flavour of the dumpling.
The siu mai ($6.30 for 4) are as opulent as the digs. These lovely little steamed dumplings
have always been my favourites because of the perfect balance of pork and shrimp they achieve. Until I tried the Crown Princess version, I didn't think you could improve on perfection but adding a small dot of sweet, smoky foie gras mousse and switching out plain ol' fish roe for proper caviar elevates the dish to an amazing flavour bite that'll having you begging for more like Oliver Twist.
Not everything coming out of the kitchen is blinged out, and are probably just as good, if not better at your go-to dim sum (well if I actually had one since Yiu Wah closed down). The fung jao ($4.30) are competent if unremarkable though there's not much you can really do with chicken feet.
Pouches of sticky rice in lotus leaf ($5.30 for 3) are tasty but portions are tiny compared to most places in Chinatown. And though it guarantees the freshness since all items are delivered to order, you think you could've spent some of the reported $2 million it cost to tart up this former 5th Element space on dim sum carts (you could even have them pushed by hunchbacks to go with the whole Versailles decadence theme).
The kitchen gets back on a roll with a new personal favourite. The beef tendon in thai sauce (pictured above) ($5.30) is all about texture; think al dente penne crossed with the stickiness of spare ribs and smother the lot in a spicy, lemongrass and chili infused Thai curry and you'll marvel at exactly how crack-like addictive the 5th quarter can be.
Speaking of offal, the beef tripe in XO sauce ($4.30) lacks even a hint of the trademark "wet-sheep" smell that usually accompanies tripe dishes. Also absent is the excessive chewiness, all which conspires to make this version of the dish something that'll appeal to the pickiest eaters (provided you don't actually tell 'em what they're eating, natch). Other winners include perfectly crispy fried octopus tentacles, and beef meatballs scented with preserved orange peel.
Crown Princess may not ever be your go to dim sum restaurant but if you're in the mood for high-end indulgence and don't fancy the drive to the burbs, then swing by and give it a try. Sure you may feel slightly like a ventriloquist's dummy sitting on this lap of luxury but hey, there are worse things to be when the food is this tasty.
Photos courtesy Pearl Lam and Martino Lozej
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that said, unless it's specifically vegetarian or buddhist style dim sum, you should assume that most dim sum (Crown Princess included) is as vegetarian as it is kosher. if you're a vegetarian you should definitely give Crown Princess a wide berth.
on a related note, i never hear meat-eaters complain about the lack of meat options at vegetarian restaurants...funny that... ;o)
2) The best dim sum in Toronto is at Broadview and Gerard: River Seafood House
I have exactly one vegetarian friend, because I have met exactly one vegetarian with a sense of humour.
"I really wish BlogTO made sure to always include vegetarian options or acknowledge if there aren't any." For crying out loud, have you ever been to dim sum? Your food issues are not their priority.
frank, the reason meat eaters do not complain about the lack of meat at veggie restaurants is because they generally do not go to exclusively vegetarian restaurants. they mock them. for that matter, many vegetarians like fine food and variety and do not necessarily limit themselves to vegetarian-only restaurants.
much of the time, vegetarians are just looking to find some options for them. there are a few good asian restaurants that go out of their way to provide vegetarian options or modify dishes upon request. this is what the people above are asking you to consider. a few examples are Dynasty (for dim sum ... although you may need to look at the regular menu as well and speak to a manager to ask for modified items like noodles or pea shoots or their sometimes offered "veggie plate" of gluten/seitan) or Golden Thai which has many items and specifically tells you to ask them for modifications.
jamesmallon - in contrast to your experience, i was vegan for over a decade (i'm now mostly vegetarian) and in all this time, i have never made an issue of it or brought it up, yet many people seemed to want to create a debate or question it or justify themselves without any provocation. by the way, i'm not sure what you're getting at in terms of humour, but there's nothing funny about an abattoir. just saying.
and frank, you might ask why you need to be strangely defensive on the matter. it is only with inner doubt of some kind that a person feels the need to debate. :)
this way the veggies and carnivores can enjoy a meal in harmony
:)
and a|layton, if u want good tea, u always pay for it. broadview and gerrard?? yuk. viet mando land. sorry u need a decent hk chef for great dim sum.
Right? I mean, please.
Every decent dim sum restaurant has vegetarian options to cater to the MILLIONS of VEGETARIANS LIVING ALL AROUND THE WORLD.
I mean, some people have moral or ethical or religious reasons to not eat meat. Some people can't include it in their diet for health reasons. Others see a political force that is taking over the control of basic diet through factory farming.
A restaurant review of a restaurant with a large menu that only focuses on one part of the menu has not really done the full job of the publication. Considering dimsum menus are massive this just focuses uncessarily on dishes like tripe and chicken feet which, as pointed out are not usually that "unique" without adding anything. Try more dumplings which ARE THE BASIS OF ALL DIMSUM.
Other dishes to possibly try: sticky sheets of tofu in garlic sauce, fried balls of glutinous rice with schichuan salt, stinky tofu, steamed eggplant, steamed pea shoots, etc.
That said I will go here, eating with other people who enjoy meat, and I'll order all of the vegetable options. That way everyone can try a larger variety of dishes and when there are the inevitable leftovers I can take home the veggie ones and have lunch for the next day.
Once again it is annoying that meat eaters see it as a question of everything or nothing. There is no advantage in everything or nothing because that is not the kind of world we live in. Do something because it works in this world.
Not eating meat doesn't imply superiority. Most of the worlds people are not eating meat now... It's as absurd as saying that eating meat makes you better.
corn congee
veg dumplings
sweet potato spring rolls
tofu skin rolls filled with veggies
braised taro and sweet potatoes
greens
and other dishes...
No one cares about your personal view on the matter.
Stop plastering your opinion on the internet about a subject so indisputable as personal CHOICE.
Dim sum rules.
Helen, thank you for your reply. Seems like this would be a great place for a vegetarian to eat a meal. That's all people are saying when they ask about vegetarian options. I completely understand that.
I love Dim Sum. I'm a vegetarian (who wears leather, suck it). I see a great review about a place not too far from my home and I wonder if there are a decent amount of options that cater to my dietary needs. Luckily enough we've got this comment section which serves as a great place to make such inquiries.
We live in a society. Lets all try and act like it a little better than this unless we want to risk being seen as Americans.