In the colder months, all we want to do is curl up with a bowl of biang biang noodles (or a piping hot bowl of pho), some warm dim sum and a weighted blanket. However, we will leave the house for food, no matter the wind chill, especially for Chinese food in Toronto.
From the glowing lights of Chinatown to Superfresh Asian night market on Bloor, there are so many amazing options for Chinese food in Toronto, any way you like it — and in ways you maybe haven't even tried yet. Our list of the must-try Chinese food in Toronto features a mix of glitzy restaurants and no-fuss eateries that are older than Gen Z — many of these places are available for takeout and delivery.
We never need an excuse to dig into Toronto's amazing Chinese food, but if you do, Lunar New Year falls on January 22, 2023. Celebrate a fresh start with stir-fried rice rolls (and three kinds of soy sauce) from MIMI Chinese, or a steaming hot plate of delicious dumplings from Spadina Ave. fave Mother's Dumplings.
Whether you're wanting dim sum delivered or a four-foot noodle cut tableside by a waiter in a bowtie, we've got the Toronto Chinese food you're craving.
16 must-try restaurants for Chinese food in Toronto
1. MIMI Chinese
265 Davenport Rd.
Every so often, a really special restaurant in Toronto opens and totally shakes up the city’s culinary scene. MIMI Chinese is that kind of place. From the team behind the hugely successful Sunny’s Chinese pop-up, MIMI is like the more polished big sister, but it’s not stuffy at all.
Inside this newly-opened, swanky Yorkville spot you’ll find family-style regional Chinese food with a focus on the provinces of Guangdong, Sichuan and Hunan. The four-foot belt noodle (cut tableside) with house chili oil is a must-try.
2. Dasha
620 King St. W.
The moment you enter Dasha, you are transported into the neon streets of Hong Kong and Shanghai: glowing red lanterns, private karaoke rooms, a giant metal birdcage that envelops the entire staircase — OK, that last one is just for dramatic effect.
From Michelin star chef Akira Back’s creative genius, you’ll find a menu laden with modern, innovative tributes to Chinese traditions and flavours like scallop shumai dim sum served in a billowing puff of dry ice.
3. House of Gourmet
484 Dundas St. W.
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House of Gourmet is everything you didn’t know you needed under one roof. This no-fuss Chinese restaurant right in the heart of Chinatown offers almost every style of Chinese food, meaning you can get your fill of seafood, barbecue and noodles. Their wonton-brisket-noodle soup is legendary.
4. DaiLo
503 College St.
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We could not have a 'best Chinese food' list without including our top Toronto restaurant, DaiLo. Chef Nick Liu is not a fan of the term ‘fusion cuisine,’ but what he’s doing with 'new-Asian cuisine' on College Street is anything but traditional (and we mean that in the best way possible). Liu, who grew up as the son of Hakka parents in Canada, frequently wows palates with a unique brand of Chinese food made with French cooking flair.
5. Omni Palace
Multiple locations
Cold weather got you craving a glorious bowl of noodles? Omni Palace is the place. There’s a reason why it’s China’s biggest hand-pulled noodle chain. At every location (two in North York, one in Scarborough) meat or vegetarian broths come with a choice of toppings and various noodle shapes and sizes.
6. Chat Bar
Multiple locations
Billed as the first GTA restaurant to serve izakaya-style chuan’r (skewers cooked over an open flame), Chat Bar brings this northern Chinese street food tradition to Torontonians. The extensive menu has a variety of chuan’r from lamb and beef to pork intestines with green onion and grilled enokitake mushrooms.
7. Rol San
323 Spadina Ave.
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If you ever find yourself craving dim sum at 10 p.m., Rol San is the answer. After 28 years, this all-day legend still sparks joy in our hearts. We're obsessed with their crispy beef in that heavenly spicy ginger honey sauce.
8. Asian Legend
Multiple locations
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Since 1988, Asian Legend has been serving up Northern Chinese cuisine to hungry patrons. Today, the original Dundas Street eatery has expanded into five locations across the city, so your next plate of seafood-fried noodles and moo shu beef is closer than you think.
9. Mother's Dumplings
421 Spadina Ave.
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A meal at Mother's Dumplings is basically a right of passage for Torontonians. Whether you like 'em boiled, steamed or pan-fried, the dumplings (and their prices) at this Spadina stalwart never disappoint.
10. Sunny's Chinese
60 Kensington Ave.
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Sunny's Chinese (from the same folks behind MIMI Chinese) started as a pandemic pop-up in 2020. Each menu drop focused on traditional food from a particular region in China. And they sold out every single time.
From Sichuan’s famous dan dan noodles to stir-fried cheung fun (rice noodle roll) with a Hong Kong-style chili shrimp oil on their Cantonese menu, Sunny's Chinese is an education and an explosion for our taste buds. Now they have a fun and funky permanent location for their regional Chinese cuisine and delectable cocktails.
11. Vintage Hotpot
3355 Steeles Ave. E.
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Forget winter, this is the kind of face numbing we want: Sichuan-style hot pot. Coming in hot (we'll stop) from China, Vintage Hotpot is arguably the country's most famous chain with over 700 locations. This Toronto location is the first one to open in North America.
Buckle up because Vintage Hotpot specializes in the Chongqing-style of hotpot which is the spiciest kind. Choose from a selection of braised meat, fish balls and vegetables and dip them into your personal bubbling hot pot and we'll see you on the other side.
12. Moon Palace
40 Dundas St. W.
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New to the Atrium on Dundas, Moon Palace has taken over the former home of Thai chain Spring Rolls. The Cantonese restaurant is here to make our dim sum dreams come true with a wide selection of steamed and pan-seared dumplings. Their other specialties include stir-fry and seafood, so expect entrées like whole lobster on a bed of fried crispy egg noodles.
13. Good Luck Cafe
2432 Eglinton Ave E.
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Like slipping into your favourite tea-stained pyjamas after a long day, Good Luck Cafe has that comforting, never-want-to-leave feeling. And why would you when you have dishes like not-your-standard-microwave instant noodles, oozing molten salted egg yolk french toast with pork floss, and curry baked into a bread bowl. Good luck doing up your pants after.
14. Tianjin Auntie's Steamed Bun
77 Huron St.
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The northern Chinese city of Tianjin is the birthplace of bao, so you know the steamed buns here are going to be off the charts. In between bites of their popular pork and green onion bun and that juicy beef, carrot and onion bun, you can also find us chowing down on their savoury jianbing or Chinese crepes.
15. Rosewood Chinese Cuisine
463 Dundas St. West
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Four words: All day dim sum. Yes, we may have taken the all-you-can-eat dim sum here a little too far on several occasions, but we're not sorry. The prices are cheap, the orders come out quick and the siu mai dumplings are perfect.
16. Hong Shing
195 Dundas St. W.
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And last, but certainly not least, Hong Shing is just straight-up inspirational. After 25 years, a devastating fire and a misleading viral video, this gem is still standing and we couldn't be happier. What would the weekend be without their deep-fried shrimp wontons, the 48-hour marinated roast duck and the lobster noodles with green scallions?
Oh, they also have a comfy-cool (seriously) clothing apparel line, which we desperately want to wear while stuffing our faces with their golden fried chicken wings.
