[AlbertC]

Even more nostalgia.... Chinatown Centre mall on Spadina used to have a buffet as well that occupied the entire 3rd floor during a very short period in the mid-90s. Major flop...

 

[ksun]

^^ Could be but the friend I go with was born in Hong Kong and he especially likes all the sweet stuff like sweet & sour spare ribs, honey garlic spare ribs, sweet and sour chicken balls. So you really can't make any blanket statement. Maybe my friend just has really bad taste in food.

Anyway, all I'm saying is that a Mandarin downtown would be a good thing for ME because then I wouldn't have to go to the dreaded suburbs. I hate going to Scarborough and North York. My eyes just can't deal with that level of ugly and I have an allergy to strip malls/shopping centres with monster parking lots. Anything north of Lawrence is a no go zone for me, unless there is food involved. lol

There is no bad taste or good taste. There is nothing wrong with eating the food we are comfortable with, authentic or not. I am only saying that Mandarin is not really popular among Chinese people in general. Sweet and sour spare ribs are good, and i like it too. But chicken balls - I have no idea what they are

I agree with you that downtown needs more Chinese restaurants outside Chinatown. There are very very few and it is frustrating. There are a few on Dundas east of University but hell, they are bad! It is frustrating that I need to go so far to the suburbs to have any decent Chinese food!

 

[LNahid2000]

Maybe he chose to take you there considering that you might not like the real Chinese Chinese food?

Hong Kong food has a lot of fish and seafood. Considering you are white Canadian, he probably won't take to somewhere to eat crabs (The Chinese usually eat the whole crab, taking meat from the shell as well as the eggs, unlike the just-the-meat-no-shell Canadian style) or eat whole steamed fish. Will you be willing to eat a whole fish with chopsticks?

You should know that there is A LOT of stuff white people don't eat - fish with bones (the Chinese eat their eyes too), chicken feet, duck tongue, pork intestines, beef stomach, lamb liver etc, or anything spicy. Even duck neck is a popular snack in China. But when it comes to meat, most Canadians ONLY eat the meat part and don't touch anything else of that animal.

Real Chinese will be very reluctant to take them to a real Chinese restaurant.

Well different people like different food...big deal.

 

[Johnny Au]

^^ Could be but the friend I go with was born in Hong Kong and he especially likes all the sweet stuff like sweet & sour spare ribs, honey garlic spare ribs, sweet and sour chicken balls. So you really can't make any blanket statement. Maybe my friend just has really bad taste in food.

Anyway, all I'm saying is that a Mandarin downtown would be a good thing for ME because then I wouldn't have to go to the dreaded suburbs. I hate going to Scarborough and North York. My eyes just can't deal with that level of ugly and I have an allergy to strip malls/shopping centres with monster parking lots. Anything north of Lawrence is a no go zone for me, unless there is food involved. very funny

There is a Mandarin very much next door to Eglinton station.

I am a second generation Chinese. I like my Chinese food Westernized.

 

[ehlow]

^^ Could be but the friend I go with was born in Hong Kong and he especially likes all the sweet stuff like sweet & sour spare ribs, honey garlic spare ribs, sweet and sour chicken balls. So you really can't make any blanket statement. Maybe my friend just has really bad taste in food.

Anyway, all I'm saying is that a Mandarin downtown would be a good thing for ME because then I wouldn't have to go to the dreaded suburbs. I hate going to Scarborough and North York. My eyes just can't deal with that level of ugly and I have an allergy to strip malls/shopping centres with monster parking lots. Anything north of Lawrence is a no go zone for me, unless there is food involved. lol

Thank you for at least including midtown in your habitable area by saying "north of Lawrence" (NoLaw using NYC naming convention) instead of "north of Bloor" (NoBlo).

 

[cruzin4u]

Maybe he chose to take you there considering that you might not like the real Chinese Chinese food?

Hong Kong food has a lot of fish and seafood. Considering you are white Canadian, he probably won't take to somewhere to eat crabs (The Chinese usually eat the whole crab, taking meat from the shell as well as the eggs, unlike the just-the-meat-no-shell Canadian style) or eat whole steamed fish. Will you be willing to eat a whole fish with chopsticks?

You should know that there is A LOT of stuff white people don't eat - fish with bones (the Chinese eat their eyes too), chicken feet, duck tongue, pork intestines, beef stomach, lamb liver etc, or anything spicy. Even duck neck is a popular snack in China. But when it comes to meat, most Canadians ONLY eat the meat part and don't touch anything else of that animal.

Real Chinese will be very reluctant to take them to a real Chinese restaurant.

Your statement is pretty fair, except for the fact that I am that exception.

I am married to a Chinese woman that was born in Canada and we venture out to both "white" Chinese places (Mandarin, China Gourmet) and even to authentic Chinese restaurants (Perfect Chinese in Scarborough or John's Chinese BBQ in Markham for example). If we are craving some chicken balls, we head out to get "white" Chinese food. If we are craving something a little more adventurous, we grab some pigeon at an authentic Chinese restaurant. Well, my wife is less inclined to eat pigeon or many of the other items on the menu. I, on the other hand, am willing to try anything and everything. In the end, whether it's Mandarin or an authentic Chinese restaurant - the bottom line is, the food is good and we have the ultimate choice whether to eat here or there. The beauty of this city is that there is so much variety and so much to "explore" in regards to food.

 

[ehlow]

There is a Mandarin very much next door to Eglinton station.

I am a second generation Chinese. I like my Chinese food Westernized.

Me too! Since ksun uses the term "real Chinese", that makes us... fake Chinese! It logically follows that Mandarin is our favourite restaurant.

Food does follow demographics. The best Chinese food is in Markham & North Scarborough. My neighbourhood at Yonge & Eg has an abundance of good Italian places. Bathurst north has an abundance of good Jewish Deli's. Eglinton West has great Jamaican food.

 

[ksun]

Well different people like different food...big deal.

It is not that simple. It is not "different people like different food". It is more about Anglo speaking world is very very conservative about what they eat.

I mean other people such as the Chinese or Japanese can accept steaks, salads, hamburgers or cheese just fine, actually they are getting popular in Asia - there is probably hardly anything Canadians eat that Asian find completely unacceptable, but on the other hand, there is SO MUCH anglo people don't eat. They just don't want to step outside their comfort zone and try something "exotic" and different. I however applaud the Japanese for successfully convincing white people into eating raw sashimi - that must have been difficult and I don't know how they accomplished that.

At first I thought it is a Caucasian thing, but later I realized that the French, Italian, Spanish and Portuguese do eat a lot of the "weird" stuff such as snails or bone marrow or horse meat. It is just the English speakers who seem extremely conservative and restrictive in their diet. This is why British, American, Canadian and Australian food is so scarce in terms of selections: it is always chicken breast/beef/sometimes lamb/pork (just the chunks of meat of course), a lot of time in the form of various sandwiches, plus salad and potato. No surprise. No adventure. Honestly if a restaurant doesn't sell steak and hamburgers, it probably wouldn't be able to run at all.

Way off topic but just some observation.

 

[ksun]

Me too! Since ksun uses the term "real Chinese", that makes us... fake Chinese! It logically follows that Mandarin is our favourite restaurant.

Food does follow demographics. The best Chinese food is in Markham & North Scarborough. My neighbourhood at Yonge & Eg has an abundance of good Italian places. Bathurst north has an abundance of good Jewish Deli's. Eglinton West has great Jamaican food.

sorry didn't mean that. I meant Chinese who grew up in China. The Chinese Chinese, not Chinese Canadian.
Yes food follows demographics, but I believe there is a big Chinese population downtown (UofT has a lot alone), so the lack of good Chinese food is kind of odd. Manhattan isn't exactly a Chinese neighhourhood, but they have a lot!

 

[ehlow]

sorry didn't mean that. I meant Chinese who grew up in China. The Chinese Chinese, not Chinese Canadian.
Yes food follows demographics, but I believe there is a big Chinese population downtown (UofT has a lot alone), so the lack of good Chinese food is kind of odd. Manhattan isn't exactly a Chinese neighhourhood, but they have a lot!

No worries I was just kidding around.

I think there is a much bigger Chinese community around highway 7 & Steeles in Scarborough than there is downtown. If you go to any Chinese plaza or mall up there, there's nothing comparable downtown in my opinion.
Downtown has two Chinatowns, but they are historic. It doesn't have the most or best Chinese restaurants or stores because the dominant Chinese community is in Markham & Scarborough.
Personally, if I want really good Chinese food, I expect that I have to drive up there.

 

[AlbertC]

Cheesecake Factory has some excellent downtown locations such as on the Magnificent Mile in Chicago, and Union Square in San Francisco.

And in downtown Seattle.

Overall, I'd rate the experience as better than the typical corporate chains here.

 

[Torontovibe]

What's so great about The Cheesecake Factory? Why is it, so many people on here want everything America has? Do you really think we are not Americanized enough? Whenever anybody on here talks about wanting new retail, it's almost always a store from New York or Chicago. One minute you guys are saying "Toronto will never be like New York" but the next minute, you're all jumping up and down when Sacks comes to town. It seems like most of you, are quite happy to become a mini-New York. I have no idea why people got so excited for Target. Seriously, Target? I have not bought one single thing since it came to Toronto.

Now you guys want a whole bunch of American chain restaurants? Is Cheese Factory all that special? (I wouldn't know, as I've never been) I am not one to covet American chain stores or restaurants. I travel to America frequently, and I am very rarely impressed by places I've tried down there. (that we don't have in Toronto) Usually when someone says you have to try this or that place, it ends up tasting like the restaurants we have up here. I have seen very few places that are all that different or unique.

I remember when my family in NYC took me to Katz's Deli and said, this place is going to blow your mind. After waiting over 20 minutes, to get take out, my mind was NOT blown. I found it just like the delis I grew up with in Toronto. Anyway, I don't worship anything American, like some people do.

I would prefer some decent Canadian restaurants, including some independent restaurants, to go along with a Mandarin. I think we are way too Americanized as it is. I want Toronto to develop its own style and not try to be a second rate Chicago or New York. But then again, I'm not a conformist, so I'm probably a rarity on this site.

 

[AlbertC]

There is no bad taste or good taste. There is nothing wrong with eating the food we are comfortable with, authentic or not. I am only saying that Mandarin is not really popular among Chinese people in general. Sweet and sour spare ribs are good, and i like it too. But chicken balls - I have no idea what they are

I agree with you that downtown needs more Chinese restaurants outside Chinatown. There are very very few and it is frustrating. There are a few on Dundas east of University but hell, they are bad! It is frustrating that I need to go so far to the suburbs to have any decent Chinese food!

Mandarin is the "Old Spaghetti Factory" of Chinese food. People don't go there necessarily for its authenticity, but instead for its pleasant dining experience that is also relatable and appealing to the general mainstream. They've developed a familiar branding over the years that has allowed it to gain customer loyalty and recognition.

Though, to be honest I really wouldn't eat there myself either.

 

[AlbertC]

What's so great about The Cheesecake Factory? Why is it, so many people on here want everything America has? Do you really think we are not Americanized enough? Whenever anybody on here talks about wanting new retail, it's almost always a store from New York or Chicago. One minute you guys are saying "Toronto will never be like New York" but the next minute, you're all jumping up and down when Sacks comes to town. It seems like most of you, are quite happy to become a mini-New York. I have no idea why people got so excited for Target. Seriously, Target? I have not bought one single thing since it came to Toronto.

Now you guys want a whole bunch of American chain restaurants? Is Cheese Factory all that special? (I wouldn't know, as I've never been) I am not one to covet American chain stores or restaurants. I travel to America frequently, and I am very rarely impressed by places I've tried down there. (that we don't have in Toronto) Usually when someone says you have to try this or that place, it ends up tasting like the restaurants we have up here. I have seen very few places that are all that different or unique.

I remember when my family in NYC took me to Katz's Deli and said, this place is going to blow your mind. After waiting over 20 minutes, to get take out, my mind was NOT blown. I found it just like the delis I grew up with in Toronto. Anyway, I don't worship anything American, like some people do.

I would prefer some decent Canadian restaurants, including some independent restaurants, to go along with a Mandarin. I think we are way too Americanized as it is. I want Toronto to develop its own style and not try to be a second rate Chicago or New York. But then again, I'm not a conformist, so I'm probably a rarity on this site.

I'd personally rather dine in a independent restaurant in Leslieville or Ossington.

But this is Yonge & Dundas we're talking about here. It's sold its soul out a long time ago...

 

[Automation Gallery]

I remember when my family in NYC took me to Katz's Deli and said, this place is going to blow your mind. After waiting over 20 minutes, to get take out, my mind was NOT blown. I found it just like the delis I grew up with in Toronto. .

Well, I don't know about that, I go back to when my dad use to take me to the original Shopsy's deli on Spadina Ave. and even that was no Katz's Deli
there was another one that I cant remember the name on the other side of Spadina, that was also pretty good