My favourite kind of Sunday brunch (and I'm sure I'm not alone in this) is a nice fresh spread of Chinese Dim Sum. It's delicious and fulfills that desire to try everything on the menu as dishes are small and combinations for any brunch seem endless.

My usual Sunday (or any day, really) stops are located in downtown T.O. but this time around I found myself uptown and figured I should finally try the much talked about Cha Liu Dim Sum Shop on Yonge just north of Eglinton.

The 'shop' is tucked away on the 2nd floor above Ho Su Bistro (Bento anyone?) and serves up a variety of dim sum dishes for between $3.50 - $6.00.

Sure, not as cheap as downtown, but you are at Yonge & Eglinton. The portions are good and the quality is high -- we can see why our 3 steamed vegetable dumplings were just over a dollar each. The stuffing appears fresh, hand-chopped and made in house. The taste backs that up. Delicious.

Lotus leaf rice was also quite flavourful and nicely steamed, though a tad small (we've been spoiled by generous portions elsewhere).

The "juicy" (ie. soup-filled) dumplings were not as delightful. While they looked incredible (see photo above), they were a little, well, mushier than expected.

Complete opposite goes for the BBQ Pork Buns. While the flavouring was nice, the buns were seriously dry. Drank up a lot of tea to wash them down (though happy to do so as it was quite good).

Lastly came our pan fried radish cakes (similar to taro or turnip cakes elsewhere) which redeemed our senses after the dry buns.

Aside from the food, service is good and decor is even better -- check out the great ceiling mural and dishware. Makes a great place for a special evening or for initiating your high-strung parents into the Dim Sum world.

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2352 Yonge Street, 416-485-1725