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| - Came here as one of the recommended restaurants by the Globe and Mail's top 10 Chinese places in the GTA. To be honest, after trying a few of the other recommended ones I wasn't expecting to be blown away.
We had a reservation for 6 people so we didn't have to queue in the huge line (although it did seem to move quite quickly)
Ordered:
Lion's head (Meatballs)
Gold Medallion Peking Duck (+ fried duck bones)
Peking style Lamb
Country style vegetables
Bullfrog (one of their 'signature' dishes, had 3 peppers meaning super spicy)
Shrimp and Egg Scramble
Steamed Plain Buns
Spicy Eggplant
Golden Pears for Dessert
The duck was kind of a let down. Yes, the plate of skin itself was crispy and delicious, and the wraps were presented nicely with all the different condiments, but I couldn't taste too much of a difference between Cantonese style Roast Duck and Dayali's Peking Duck. The Bullfrog was great, tasted like poultry, but also mind-numbingly spicy (probably as spicy as Sichuan Mapo Tofu). The meatballs and vegetables were great too, as well as the buttery/eggy goodness of the shrimp and egg scramble. The plain buns were ordered by my Chinese grandmother to dip into all the rich oily sauces (apparently Northern Chinese people didn't have rice to soak up those sauces so they either made noodles or bread). The eggplant was great too, only 'one pepper' on the spicy chart. Would pass on the deep fried duck bones though, after the novelty of knawing on the first one it was a little too much. The pears weren't that great; mostly fried outter batter with very little red bean filling inside which is a major negative for a red-bean lover like myself!
We bought the VIP card ($20, valid for 3 years), which entitles us to 1-2 bucks off per dish, but it was moderate to a little expensive (approx 22 per person after tax and tip) for a Chinese restaurant.
Didn't mind the service too too much, it's more about the food for me - but on that note I would say it's Ok if you want an indulgent rich meal once in awhile.
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