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| - I wavered between giving Ding Tai Fung a 3 star or a 4 star. In the end, I decided it was a 3-star Shanghainese restaurant + 1 star for the stupendous xiao long bao. I've been here on many many many occasions and always come back for the xiao long bao. All the other dishes, are, well, kinda average. The pricing also makes this place slightly more expensive than your normal Chinese dining experience in the Markham area.
But first the xiao long bao. I cannot rave about this enough. The dumpling skins are light with just the right amount of "chew". Be careful when you take that first bite - if you're not prepared, you will end up with hot soup flowing down the sides of your mouth. For that reason, I generally eat the xiao long baos in a spoon so that I can capture every last drop of that fat-filled soup. Yum. One order of xiao long bao between me and my partner disappears in several seconds. I would recommend the crab meat xiao long baos as well - an extra $2.00 to the order, but very sweet.
Outside of the xiao long bao, the other fare is good but average. You can expect the standards here - red beef noodles, dan dan noodles, ground meat noodles, onion pancakes, etc. They are all done well, but not spectacularly. The noodles can sometimes be a hit and miss, with the misses being soggy noodles that aren't that appetizing. I also found that it was priced a little bit too high for what you get. For that reason, this restaurant would normally be a solid 3 star restaurant. Good, but not amazing.
As for service, it is efficient and pleasant, although I noticed better if you speak Cantonese.
Bottom line: come here for the xiao long baos and an overall solid experience.
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