I love a good dim sum brunch. And finding delicious and innovative dim sum in the confines of central Toronto was something I had been trying to get to. When my friend suggested Crown Princess instead of my go to suggestion, Pearl Harbourfront, I was all for it. And Crown Princess was pretty spot on. You can tell a good restaurant by how they treat the staple foods. The har gow and Siu Mai here tasted of fresh ingredients. And what a delightful difference to use foie gras instead of tobiko. The har gow was not greasy as sometimes it tends to get if sitting in the steamer too long. The siu mai was crisp in the mouth as each morsel was devoured and the pork was tender and not mushy as some restaurants can be, again if it sits in the steamer too long.
Between me and my friend, we ordered 8 dishes.
Har Gow
Siu Main
Deep fried Octopus
Crispy Taro and mushroom paste
Sirloin beef wrapped in rice noodles (this I would skip next time as it was rather mushy)
Beef meatball on bed of enoki mushroom
Shrimp Rolls
Egg tart
Which is a lot for two people. But we devoured it all.
The decor is nice, a little ostentatious but with a name like Crown Princess I guess they cater to the ostentatious. It also doesn't seem like the price of the dim sum discourages young, old nor families because all of them were present at this downtown establishment. I will definitely bring my family here next time and try all of the other dishes. Lots to choose from and this restaurant certainly doesn't disappoint.