This restaurant is one of the few popping up in the city that specializes in Northern Chinese food. You won't find any of the typical "Cantonese"-style foods, let alone the "Chinese Canadian" varieties. The food served is mostly (very) spicy - as is most Northern Chinese food – and is made with uncommon ingredients like "aorta" and "chicken cartilage." That coupled with the awkward opening hours (3PM-1AM) and the poorly translated menu makes it appear as though this restaurant caters towards the foreign crowds more, e.g. international students.
We ordered a plate of "Pig's Intestine with Pepper King" and "[Frog] in Dry Pot." Both dishes were delicious in how they were seasoned but, despite asking for them to be made less spicy, both dishes were still incredibly spicy, especially the latter. I could barely eat more than 2 pieces and ended up focusing more on the former dish, which was also spicy but less so.
While the food was pretty good, the ambience of the restaurant left something to be desired. Finding the restaurant was a bit challenging because the signage was not clear and the exterior of the store looked like a garage. The interior of the restaurant is better furnished; however, there was no air-conditioning or fans when we went during 40C weather. I’m not sure how the waitress managed in the heat; we were sweating buckets just sitting. The waitress was quick to address our concerns when we asked (except for the issue of heat) but didn’t seem as comfortable interacting with us in English as she was with other customers in Mandarin.
The restaurant has a lot of potential and I’d give it a second try, though perhaps I’ll delay my visit for the winter time when spicy food is needed and air conditioning is not.
charsiubaobao
We ordered a plate of "Pig's Intestine with Pepper King" and "[Frog] in Dry Pot." Both dishes were delicious in how they were seasoned but, despite asking for them to be made less spicy, both dishes were still incredibly spicy, especially the latter. I could barely eat more than 2 pieces and ended up focusing more on the former dish, which was also spicy but less so.
While the food was pretty good, the ambience of the restaurant left something to be desired. Finding the restaurant was a bit challenging because the signage was not clear and the exterior of the store looked like a garage. The interior of the restaurant is better furnished; however, there was no air-conditioning or fans when we went during 40C weather. I’m not sure how the waitress managed in the heat; we were sweating buckets just sitting. The waitress was quick to address our concerns when we asked (except for the issue of heat) but didn’t seem as comfortable interacting with us in English as she was with other customers in Mandarin.
The restaurant has a lot of potential and I’d give it a second try, though perhaps I’ll delay my visit for the winter time when spicy food is needed and air conditioning is not.