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Chinese food in the GTA

Pearl Court Restaurant at 633 Gerrard St E is closing on December 1st, 2019 after being in business since 1982.

They're considered to be the second oldest Chinese restaurant in the city after Hong Kong Gardens (2993 Bloor St W, near Royal York), which has been around since 1947.

www.blogto.com

One of Toronto's oldest dim sum spots is closing

After more than 30 years serving dim sum and Cantonese cuisine, Pearl Court is closing its doors for good. The OG East Chinatown restaurant, which...
www.blogto.com www.blogto.com
 
Pearl Court’s last supper: The demise of a Toronto dim sum institution

For 37 years, this East Chinatown restaurant has been one of the last places for traditional cart-service dim sum in the city. Now, it’s closed and the building has been sold to new owners. Photographer Lucy Lu chronicles their final weekend

LUCY LU
SPECIAL TO THE GLOBE AND MAIL
PUBLISHED DECEMBER 2, 2019

www.theglobeandmail.com

Pearl Court’s last supper: The demise of a Toronto dim sum institution

For 37 years, this East Chinatown restaurant has been one of the last places for traditional cart-service dim sum in the city. Now, it’s closed and the building has been sold to new owners. Photographer Lucy Lu chronicles their final weekend
www.theglobeandmail.com www.theglobeandmail.com

New owners for iconic East Toronto Chinatown eatery

Pearl Court Restaurant to be renamed Dine & Dim
NEWS NOV 29, 2019 BY JOANNA LAVOIE

New owners for iconic East Toronto Chinatown eatery

Pearl Court Restaurant at 633 Gerrard St. E., just east of Broadview Avenue, has recently changed hands and will be renamed Dine & Dim. Correction — Nov. 18, 2019: T
www.toronto.com www.toronto.com
 
AlbertC said:
www.ctvnews.ca

The history of Jewish families eating Chinese food on Christmas

Spring rolls, hot and sour soup, fried rice, and ginger chicken – for many Jewish families in Canada and the U.S., these are the some of the classic Chinese restaurant dishes they’ll share with friends and family on Christmas Day.
www.ctvnews.ca
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The Chinese restaurant is also where many Jews get their first taste of pork and shellfish, neither of which are kosher, since the pork and shellfish are often mixed in with the rice or dumplings, and most Jews who willingly eat fried rice or dumplings don't bother to pick out the non-kosher parts and would simply eat them in their dish as is. To be fair, dairy products are practically absent in Chinese cuisine, which means that those who avoid mixing meat from mammals with dairy products can easily consume Chinese food (mixing meat from mammals with dairy products is also not kosher, even if the ingredients are otherwise kosher).

Practically every single Jewish neighbourhood in North America has a Chinese restaurant these days.

The phenomenon of Jews eating Chinese food is even noted on Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinese_cuisine_in_Jewish_culture_in_the_United_States and in TV Tropes: https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/PekingDuckChristmas
 
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If you are in the Leaside/Flemingdon Park area, check out Hakka Garden. It is beside the Subway and across from the Tim-Wendy's.
 
AlbertC said:
www.ctvnews.ca

The history of Jewish families eating Chinese food on Christmas

Spring rolls, hot and sour soup, fried rice, and ginger chicken – for many Jewish families in Canada and the U.S., these are the some of the classic Chinese restaurant dishes they’ll share with friends and family on Christmas Day.
www.ctvnews.ca
Click to expand...

Is there any more frequently told Christmas story, except, perhaps but maybe not, the actual Christmas story? I'm pretty sure every news outlet there is writes this exact same report every single Christmas and cuts and pastes it over and over and over each year.
 
AlbertC said:
I've found that the "Lobster Tower" concept to be gaining more coverage and notice in recent years. And it seems to be recognized as Toronto item too. It was featured on an episode of David Chang's "Ugly Delicious" show on Netflix at the Fishman Lobster Clubhouse Restaurant in Scarborough (Youtube clip below).

Had a cousin from New York visit in the summer and was told from a friend that was a place to check out. Such a thing apparently isn't found in NY or most places in the States. Personally, I found it a bit over the top. Although it tasted good, the portions and presentation was just excessive IMO.
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AlvinofDiaspar said:
That is really excessive - but excess is nothing new to (HK) Chinese banquet-styled cuisine.
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Was the "lobster tower" a Toronto thing (or invented by that restaurant) or was it something that existed back "in the old country" that was carried over?

It's got to be unique enough that other North Americans (and American media in general -- e.g. https://www.businessinsider.com/lobster-mountain-from-fishman-lobster-clubhouse-in-toronto-2016-5) would find it noteworthy though.


Johnny Au said:
To be fair, dairy products are practically absent in Chinese cuisine,
Click to expand...

Do you count dairy in baked goods like tarts, dim sum desserts, or Chinese bakery buns as being "part of Chinese cuisine", even if they arose after contact with the west?
 
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wild goose chase said:
Was the "lobster tower" a Toronto thing (or invented by that restaurant) or was it something that existed back "in the old country" that was carried over?

It's got to be unique enough that other North Americans (and American media in general -- e.g. https://www.businessinsider.com/lobster-mountain-from-fishman-lobster-clubhouse-in-toronto-2016-5) would find it noteworthy though.

Do you count dairy in baked goods like tarts, dim sum desserts, or Chinese bakery buns as being "part of Chinese cuisine", even if they arose after contact with the west?
Click to expand...

Lobster tower - not as far as I know. I certainly don't know that it is a thing growing up - not even at banquets. And yes, I would definitely consider those baked goods Chinese cuisine - not doing so would be like not counting tempura, tonkatsu and the rest of Yōshoku as Japanese cuisine.

AoD
 
wild goose chase said:
Was the "lobster tower" a Toronto thing (or invented by that restaurant) or was it something that existed back "in the old country" that was carried over?

It's got to be unique enough that other North Americans (and American media in general -- e.g. https://www.businessinsider.com/lobster-mountain-from-fishman-lobster-clubhouse-in-toronto-2016-5) would find it noteworthy though.
Click to expand...

The method of cooking it with the battering and deep frying, is generally a Cantonese/southern Chinese style concept and has its origins in the old country. Although the arrangement, presentation and portioning appears to be something that developed locally in the GTA. It has gained more exposure in recent years due to social media and the online review culture. However, it's still more of a feast/splurge item so I don't think it'll development into a mainstream item that can be consumed casually in an everyday setting like Xiao Long Bao, Dim Sum, etc.
 
And the award for Most Unusual Restaurant Name goes to...Tender Trap Restaurant in Cabbagetown:

20200830_080839.jpg



And another suggestion for Chinese Canadian food. Garden Gate Restaurant at Queen East & Beech Ave in the Beaches area. They've been around since 1952 and also have a Wikipedia page:

en.m.wikipedia.org

The Goof - Wikipedia

en.m.wikipedia.org en.m.wikipedia.org

20200830_103457.jpg
 
AlbertC said:
And the award for Most Unusual Restaurant Name goes to...Tender Trap Restaurant in Cabbagetown:

View attachment 268005


And another suggestion for Chinese Canadian food. Garden Gate Restaurant at Queen East & Beech Ave in the Beaches area. They've been around since 1952 and also have a Wikipedia page:

en.m.wikipedia.org

The Goof - Wikipedia

en.m.wikipedia.org en.m.wikipedia.org

View attachment 268006
Click to expand...

Does 'The Goof' serve decent food now?

When I was a kid is that the typical and bad 'Canadian Chinese' food.

Bad egg rolls, terrible plum sauce, flavourless fried rice, and the most evil among such foods, Chop Suey! As a child I detested the dish that was clearly created to subsidize bean sprout farmers!
 
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