43 de la Gauchetiere E.
Montreal, Quebec
Metro: Place d’Armes
Bus: STM 55, 80, 129, 150, 410, 427, 430, 435, 747
Visit: April 13, 2013
http://www.tongsing.ca/
My mission to find all the various Dim Sum locations in the Greater Montreal Area continue recently and I was more than happy to take part in it. Tong Sing is the little known Dim Sum place in the original Chinatown that seems to have taken a back seat to the 3 juggernauts. During my visit, I was hoping to see if the sleeper choice would surprise or explain why it was tucked away in a corner of Chinatown.
68 de la Gauchetiere Ouest
Montreal, Quebec
Metro: Place d’Armes
Bus: STM 55, 80, 129, 150, 410, 427, 430, 435, 747
Visit: November 25, 2012
If you’re Asian and even if you’re not, there’s a feeling of pride when it comes to a Chinese pastry shop. The amount of people who go gaga over these places is absolutely mind-numbing. The feeling to total support isn’t for nothing, a lot of Chinatown’s pastry shops are definitely worth the hype. The question now is if a relative newcomer to the already loaded scene can pick up on that momentum. For a weird answer to that question, I turned to La Légende.
72A De La Gauchetiere O.
Montreal, Quebec
Metro: Place d’Armes
Bus: STM 55, 80, 129, 150, 410, 427, 430, 435, 747
Visit: October 26, 2012
A lot of people would agree, Montreal is one of the place’s with the greatest wealth of Chinese restaurants in North America. However, one of the other things that we would also agree with is the fact that despite an abundance of those places, there aren’t very many that truly satisfy their customers. It’s no wonder that when a new place opens up in the midst of Chinatown, it gets the attention of many. Today’s place in question is Ethan, right in the middle of the pedestrian walkway known as De La Gauchetiere.
43 de la Gauchetiere E.
Montreal, Quebec
Metro: Place d’Armes
Bus: STM 55, 80, 129, 150, 410, 427, 430, 435, 747
Visit: July 12, 2012
http://www.restaurantmonnan.com/
My half-Chinese heritage demands that I scour the island for each and every restaurant that does my native cuisine justice. My purpose for my visit to Mon Nan is not to show what everybody already knows, but to shed light on another aspect that doesn’t get too much play. There are some pretty decent, well-known restaurants in Montreal where you can get lunch for well under 10 dollars and Mon Nan is one of them.
1676 Lincoln
Montreal, Quebec
Visit: May 21, 2011
Metro: Guy-Concordia
Bus: STM 15, 24, 57, 66, 165, 166, 427, 435
I’ve been hearing a lot of buzz for this dumplings restaurant in the last few months and I had to check it out. Unfortunately, there are a few lessons that need to be learned. The first and only true lesson is to now eat an hour before coming here.
The restaurant only really serves dumplings and that’s a good thing. The other tables, three of them, ordered nothing but dumplings. In a market that saturated with Chinese restaurants, a specialty restaurant is what Chinatown 2 needs. This was my first ever visit to Chinatown’s long lost orphan cousin and hopefully it won’t be my last.
Shrimp and Pork Fried Dumplings
Tried: May 21, 2011
The one thing any patron of dumplings should know is that they take a very long time to come to your table. I spent a lot of time watching the 4 kitchen staff churn out 15 dumplings. I ate 12 of them and it didn’t do it for me. It’s not that the dumplings were bad or anything, it just wasn’t my taste. The dumpling shell tasted weird for me and I would just rather stick to my Siu Mai favorites.
1008 Clark
Montreal, Quebec
Visit: April 25, 2011
Metro: Place D’Armes
Bus: STM 14, 55, 129, 150, 410, 427, 430, 435, 747
It’s been a very long time since I’ve been to Dim Sum. I’ve always had pleasant experiences with Dim Sum and this time was no different. This restaurant used to be a whole lot smaller. It now encompasses the entire floor of a small shopping center. Come early, or you might now get seated. It should be noted that the division of staff was really off. There were so many waiters who had nothing to do during this busy period. It makes you wonder.
For those of you who don’t know how Dim Sum works, let me explain. As you’re seated at your table, ladies with carts pass by telling the diners what they’re offering. If you choose to go for that dish, the lady takes your piece of paper and initials it. At the end of the meal, the waiter adds it all up and presents you with the bill. Simple process and the ladies can now communicate in English, because at one time, hardly any non-Chinese people went to Dim Sum.
Siu Mai w/Mushrooms
Tried: April 25, 2011
This was one of my favorite dishes of the proceedings, thought I could’ve done without the mushrooms. Siu Mai contains so many ingredients, that when put together, it creates a powerful taste that I can’t go without.
Dumpling
Tried: April 25, 2011
I’m unsure of the name of this dumpling, but it was also really good. I usually go without the use of any soya sauce and I made the right decision. This stands up well on its own.
Dumpling
Tried: April 25, 2011
Years ago, I wouldn’t of touched this with a ten-foot pole, but I decided to give it all a go. This dumpling was soft but the taste was lacking. It wasn’t bad, but I chose to only have one and try for something else.
Rice Noodle Rolls
Tried: April 25, 2011
These were one of my favorites during the meal. In combination with the provided soya sauce, the rice noodle rolls were extremely good. They are soft and provide a very decent taste. I was kinda yearning for more after they disappeared.
Potato Dumplings
Tried: April 25, 2011
I have a vague memory of what this tasted like. If that was the case for me, I can’t count this as good. If this was presented to me year ago, I also wouldn’t have touched this. At least you try everything once.
Ha Gau - Shrimp Dumplings
Tried: April 25, 2011
This was the second star of the day’s Dim Sum. You can’t go wrong with anything that has shrimp in it. Shrimp is like the Chinese equivalent of bacon, but bacon is always tops. You should never pass up on this.
Fish on Green Peppers
Tried: April 25, 2011
This was a weird one for me. This is fish combined with green peppers. I believe that the taste of the peppers overwhelmed the “fish” a lot. Even with the sauce, it wasn’t one to remember.
Pig Stomach
Tried: April 25, 2011
Yes, that’s pig stomach. I’ve once had pig intestines and that was good. This, however, was not. It takes a long time to chew and the texture leaves a lot to be desired. This is the last time I’m ever having pig stomach.
Vegetarian Noodles
Tried: April 25, 2011
These noodles have no content other than noodles and very few veggies, none of which you can see. There is no taste and you could get this at the buffet a block over, which is owned by the same Chinese man who owns the Dim Sum place. I had this later in the day, re-warmed. This was easily forgettable.
Siu Mai
Tried: April 25, 2011
We got these special orders from one of the ladies. We waited so long for these, that we knew she forgot about them. We had to send one of the waiters back to find her and the Siu Mai. Then again, it was worth every second of the wait.
This is an example of a Dim Sum bill.
92 De La Gauchetiere
Montreal, Quebec
Metro: Place D’Armes
Bus: STM 14, 55, 129, 150, 410, 427, 430, 435, 747
Visit: April 22, 2011
http://www.restaurantbeijing.net/
This restaurant was recently voted the best Chinese restaurant in Montreal by the readers of the Montreal Mirror. Being half-Chinese myself, I think I’m somewhat qualified to pass judgement on the food of my half ancestry. For one, the restaurant wasn’t that full, but there were the token Chinese families there. The trick is, when you see Chinese people at a Chinese restaurant, the food must be worth it. The waiter serving us looked extremely tired. You should know that waiters in Chinatown work extremely long shifts and it’s a thankless job.
Won Ton Soup
Tried: April 22, 2011
I’m always on the look out for Won Ton Soup. I’ve tried other places that never lived up to my golden standard. This contender also didn’t live up to my expectations. The pieces themselves were a little tough to eat. In my opinion, a good Won Ton piece should be soft and should go down easy. This one didn’t go down easy.
Cantonese Chow Mein
Tried: April 22, 2011
Much like the Won Ton Soup, my standards for Chow Mein are high. Though this tasted fine, the portions looked really small. The noodles were all stuck together with no mix between crispy and soft. The big thing I noticed was that the shrimp were undercooked and ones that resembled food court standards.
Beef Rice Noodles
Tried: April 22, 2011
The competition for Beef Rice Noodles in Montreal is wide open. I had pretty good ones in many different places and this one became a major player in the race. The noodle lengths are just right. The bites are light and the mix of ingredients fit really well.
Fortune Cookie
What’s a Chinese restaurant without a fortune cookie?
1018 Saint-Urbain
Montreal, Quebec
Visit: April 1, 2011
Metro: Place D’Armes
Bus: STM 14, 55, 129, 150, 410, 427, 430, 435, 747
http://www.restonoodlefactory.com/
This restaurant was recently voted #4 in the Mirror’s Best of Montreal poll of best noodles. We visited this location prior to that ruling out of sheer curiosity. The first thing you’ll notice was that this place is extremely small. The need for turnover is extremely high. Once a table leaves, another one needs to be filled. The big even that took us off guard was when the waiter came to clear our table. He took what was left on the dish and deposited it into our plates, saying, “no left overs, no waste now.” In my opinion, that’s a big NO-NO.
Chinese Vinegar
This was on the table. This is meant to be used with dumplings. This smells awful. This was so awful, I contemplated taking some with me for use on unruly students in class.
Siu Mai
Tried: April 8, 2011
Siu Mai is a type of dumpling that can contain many different ingredients, most notably shrimp. This was by far, of the three dishes ordered, the one that delivered for me. Whenever I go to a Chinese buffet or to a Dim Sum place, this is high on my list of things to get. Whether you add soya sauce or not, the taste is always great.
Beef Stir Fried Handmade Noodles
Tried: April 8, 2011
These are supposedly handmade noodles, but I doubt that. These noodles were too soft for me. They tasted okay, but nothing too memorable. This made me miss my crispy chow mein noodles.
Steamed Pork Chinese Dumplings
Tried: April 8, 2011
This looks good on paper, but it didn’t do the trick for me. The dumpling casing taste a little weird for my taste. I come to find out that this is the norm when getting dumplings. A word of advice, let them cool down before consuming. This was, however, one of the most ordered dishes when I was there. If you do order this, it does take a very long time to come to your table.
