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| - The only time I've been to Swatow is for late night noshing usually after the bars close and a group of us are too buzzed from the evening to go straight home to bed. There aren't many restaurants even open past the 2 am last call Toronto bar closing time, let alone staffed properly where sometimes inebriated patrons can be too much to handle. This is when Chinatown has always been a popular place to go, and Swatow proudly delivers. It's something about the bright white fluorescent lights, and the thin and wiry waiters in their black and whites milling around the small place, staying out of your face, yet magically stepping in when they need to be there almost using a sixth sense. A group of us visited twice recently, with one night being a Sunday. It was an early concert we went to. As we were seated, the waiters slid each of us a can of Budweiser as we sat at the round table, a comforting sight even after having a few earlier in the evening. Then they set the table with machine gun precision and deftness after which they disappeared letting us peruse the menu. They tolerate a little rowdiness at this restaurant and maintain their cool, no matter what happens. Settling in, we could talk about the best parts of the evening, without worrying about being overheard in the din. Then, as the evening dragged on, we realized that we were the only people left in Swatow that Sunday night, as the staff went into maintenance mode, watering and trimming the plants and tidying up. We made our way out onto chilly and dark Spadina as the staff piled into their SUV and cheerfully said good night! Oh, and the food is perfect adjunct to a night out with friends :)
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