Strictly Shanghainese restaurants are few and far between in and around the city — usually, the cuisine is fused with food from other regions of China like Szecuhuan or Taiwan. But for great Shanghainese food, head up to A La Kitchen for soup-filled dumplings and other classics like noodle dishes and braised meats.

For chef Anna Chen’s first stand-alone restaurant, she opted to open a 32-seater in the west end. Blonde wood accents the minimalist room, and soulful tunes play overhead, foreshadowing Chen’s highly elegant take on comfort food. Buoyed by her knowledge from stints at Figo and Scaramouche — plus an upbringing in India — Chen has

North York's beloved Artisan Noodle has opened up a cool and cosy downtown outpost with Artisan Plus. This spot is home to northern Chinese delicacies that are often rare to find in Toronto, like the hand-pulled noodles or a jia mo, which can best be described as a Chinese hamburger.

Since its Chinatown location opened its doors in 1988, Asian Legend has spread across Toronto to give all diners a taste of northern Chinese dim sum and stir-fry. Their cooking motto is "northern flavours with a traditional style," which has allowed for its chefs, all from reputable dining locales in Taiwan and mainland China, to fine-tune the menu and bring diners dishes like the especially flavour-rich kung pao chicken.

In the heart of Toronto’s downtown Chinatown, Awas Tea Noodle is a Taiwanese eatery that knows exactly what its doing. The teas Awas offers, which are imported from Taiwan, are served in glass bottles that have been refrigerated overnight so as to reduce the caffeine but keep the same amount of antioxidant benefits. Really, though,

Since 1979, Bagel Plus has been serving all Torontonians classic Jewish comfort food from its location at Bathurst and Sheppard. They will always have you covered for when that bagel and schmear craving hits, but the menu also includes options such as eggplant Parmesan and fish and chips, branching outside the shtetl world of blintzes, pickled herring and rugelach.

Inspired by the street food scene of its namesake city, Bangkok Buri (Union Station food court) is making a name for itself right in the core of downtown Toronto. The menu was carefully crafted with the memory of Bangkok's piping hot noodles, green curry and grilled meats in mind, but the founders wanted it to fit in its urban city centre.

Grabbing its name from the classic martial arts flick, BIG TROUBLE is a Chinatown bar that promises the 20-something set a good time. Sibling owners Andrew and Christine Pham wanted to properly celebrate the hood they grew up in; multicoloured lanterns dot the room, red drapes decorate the windows while a dragon oversees the bathrooms

If you’ve never heard of Bingz, you’ve probably never been to China. The burger joint first opened in Beijing before quickly becoming a prominent fast food chain with locations across the country. Now, Bingz has brought its specialty crispy LiberTerre pork burger to Markham with its first Canadian location. Also on the menu are classic

This chain took its native China by storm before beginning its rapid expansion in Toronto. It serves up one-of-a-kind crispy Chinese burgers, called roujiamo, which were invented rooughly two millenniums ago in the Qin dynasty and have been popular in the country ever since. They can be stuffed with beef, chicken, pork and vegetables, and

Bolan Thai Cuisine uses nutritious and healthy herbs along with flavourful spices to create the dazzling array of exotic tastes that make Thai cuisine so unique. The venue is cosy and eclectic, and the menu features Thai staples, like green and red curries, as well as chicken satays.

The authentic Chinese restaurant with a French name, C’est Bon, has been not just a staple, but a favourite of midtown for over a decade. The founding Chen family comes from a French Taiwanese background, hence the name and cuisine of the restaurant. Most of the menu is made up of classic Szechuan dishes, like

Since the dim sum downtown has sunk in a slough of grease, dumpling-seeking Sinophiles have few alternatives. At first glance, Casa Imperial is an unlikely candidate: a baroque mansion loaded with gargantuan crystal chandeliers, ersatz British hunting scenes and musty brocaded draperies. It’s about as Chinese-looking as Casa Loma, but the dim sum is quite

This popular restaurant is an ode to classic Filipino food, which is a melange of the various culinary cultures that have made their mark on the Philippines, including Spanish, Chinese and American. Casa Manila offers dine in and takeout and all-you-can-eat buffets as well as a full pig roast. Casa Manila also strives to bring

For the people at Chadwick’s, a “craft” kitchen means that everything is made in-house. This includes the sausages and the burger buns, the dressings and condiments, and the succulent smoked brisket. The concept for their menu is based on a variety of street food and diner fare from around the world. Executive chef Pablo V

Charidise is a gourmet Taiwanese-inspired lunch spot feeding students and professionals alike in the Baldwin village. “Cha” means “tea” in Mandarin, and in tandem with the notion of “paradise,” you get the picture of what this restaurant strives to be. With many options of loose leaf tea, bubble tea and everything in between, Charidise lives

Located at the Golden Square Centre in Mississauga, Chi’s Congee and Noodle House offers both of its namesakes as well as wonton soup, dumplings, sweet and sour pork and other Chinese food favourites. The congee, which is a rice porridge popular in many Asian countries, is served in many variations including chicken and duck, shrimp,

This week’s cheap eat is all the way up at Metro Square in Markham. As a teenager, there were many late nights spent here, upstairs in the arcade (when smoking inside was still allowed), gossiping over cheesecake at Cafe Mirage or sipping on this “new” Taiwanese drink (bubble tea) at Ten Ren’s Tea Time (now Serissa Cafe).

The star of the show at Chloe’s Convenience is the bagged noodles — a much-loved sensation from Hong Kong’s streets. These noodles are not your ordinary fare. They come chilled and are customizable with an array of toppings, all brought together by a savoury, garlicky and spicy sauce that is nothing short of irresistible. Shaken to

Don’t feel like waiting for your meal? Why not head over to Chop Chop where the only thing better than the Chinese food is how fast it lands on your plate. Perched on the southwest corner of Dundas and Markham, this fast-food restaurant is making Chinese food healthy and quickly. The interior is clean and