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| - Mabu Generation is a modern Taiwanese fusion restaurant that basically serves anything you can think of. What is impressive about this restaurant is the constant lineup. Despite locating in First Markham Place with tons of restaurants located in the mall, Mabu Generation always generate lots of visitor with queues even on weekday nights at 9pm. However, the variety of food and quality is definitely worth the wait. Mabu Generation strive for authenticity and annual they send chefs to Taiwan for training.
Tips: they take reservation for weeknights, but not weekends.
The restaurant is elegantly decorated with traditional Taiwanese décor. There is a large wall painting of JiuFen region of Taiwan. The walls are also filled with Taiwanese posters and merchandise from the 70s and 80s. Sitting are large and comfy with great atmosphere created by the dim lights.
The service was excellent as staffs are very knowledgeable and will happily explain the menu. They are also very attentive and will make sure your water cup is always filled or will add soup for the hotpot.
Menu
The most impressive aspect of Mabu Generation is the sheer number of items that are offered on the menu. There are hotpots, rice, metal plates, noodles, fried snacks, drinks, dessert, to even alcoholic drinks. The menu is beautifully made with colorful illustrations. But the toughest part of the visit is probably choosing what you want as everything just looks so amazing. Don't be afraid to ask the staff and they will happily provide recommendations.
We tasted the personal hotpot. Despite the name "personal", the portion was quite large and it is best shared with 2-3 people. There were lots of toppings inside the hotpot from beef, pork belly, veggies, to other traditional Taiwanese hotpot ingredients. The broth was very rich and spicy and tasted authentic. There is also an instant noodle served on the side so you can add on later.
Beside the hotpot, we ordered a few side dishes to share. We loved Taiwanese popcorn chicken, and we must say that Mabu Generation has the best that we ever tried. The chicken was perfectly fried with crispy exterior and warm and tender meat inside. The chicken is also marinated well with a unique flavor to it. The sauce was excellent too. This is a must try item!
The cheese filled pork cutlet is a unique dish that makes the Japanese fried cutlet with a unique twist. It is filled with cheese inside so the cheese sauce will flow out when you cut the pork. It is certainly an interesting dish, also sided with fries.
Grilled beef tongue is made with sea salt and black pepper, sided with green onions. It is very tasty and the green onion sides bring out the flavor of the beef tongue.
The highlights of Mabu Generation are definitely its dessert. There are so many to choose from, all of them visually appealing and tasted great.
Raindrop Cake with Sakura looks amazing and is very Instagrammable. It is made from clear jello with sakura (cheery bloomsome) stuffed inside and crushed Cheerios on the side.
Matcha cheesecake is served with red bean paste on the side. The cheesecake was delightful and very light and fluffy inside.
Tiramisu cake in a box also looks very appealing with a mix of sponge cake, lady finger, and tiramisu cream.
Being a Taiwanese place, there is also an extensive selection bubble teas and drinks.
Overall we enjoyed Mabu Generation a lot and was very impressed by their vast menu selection, décor, and also food quality. We especially loved their popcorn chicken, hotpot, and dessert selections. Would recommend anyone to want a taste of Taiwan in Toronto to at least come for a visit!
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