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A La Kitchen
Categories: Restaurants Asian Fusion Restaurants Chinese Asian Fusion, Chinese [Edit]
21 Fairburn DrUnit #18
Markham, ON L6G
(905) 946-7990
- Price Range:
-
$$
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- No
- Parking:
- Private Lot
- Attire:
- Casual
- Good for Groups:
- Yes
- Good for Kids:
- Yes
- Takes Reservations:
- Yes
- Delivery:
- No
- Take Away:
- Yes
- Waiter Service:
- Yes
- Outdoor Seating:
- No
- Good For:
- Lunch, Dinner
- Wheelchair Accessible:
- Yes
12 reviews for A La Kitchen
12 reviews in English
-
Review from Edwin A.
9/27/2011
3.5 stars
Dined here a few times I find it an very good choice in and around the First Markham area.
I've had:
Crab and Pork Dumplings - made proper with a thin casing, taste is good. only restaurant i've seen this dumpling.
Green Onion Pancake - quite excellent ranks very highly
House Special Vermicelli Noodle - this is good selection of mixed vegetables and meat.
Beef Tenderloin - Sizzling on an Iron Cow plate. Hilarious and cute.
One comment the decor could be more inspiring. On the walls and ceilings are bamboo dim sum baskets. Ho hum.. -
Review from Jonathan L.
Richmond Hill, ON
1/2/2012
I absolutely hate this place. We made reservations here twice and both times, the owners gave up our reservations to give to their friends. The servers are extremely rude (even by Chinese standards).
I will never ever bother to come back here again. Their food isn't even that good, I have no idea why the line up is always so long, maybe because it's cheap. Anyways, I would rather pay more and go to other restaurants in the FMP area that deal with their incredibly rude servers that lack the integrity to hold a reservation.
DO NOT DINE HERE -
Review from Ariel G.
11/30/2010 ROTD 12/19/2010
This is a great, always busy restaurant in a 'newish' industrial condo mall. It features a good variety of Chinese dishes, but what distinguishes it are the many 'special' complete meals for 2, 4 or 6. Please note that this restaurant is always full at most times of day.
On our last visit the two of us ordered the following:
Hot and Sour Soup
This is served in a non-symmetrical bowl with a handle through the side. I makes for an attractive presentation, and the soup was piping hot, well seasoned and totally delicious. The 'portion' yields about 5 or 6 small eating bowls and shrimps were present in the mix aplenty.
Pan Fried Beef Dumplings (4)
These had a tasty stuffing, were fresh and well prepared, and were not soggy.
Fried Crispy Beef with Chili Sauce
This was a delicious offering, with a 'melt in your mouth' taste, and a nice crispy finish. This is an outstanding dish.
Braised Eggplant with Minced Pork
This is a classic and was delicious. The small eggplants were tender, not watery, well spiced and very tasty. The pork was a nice component of this dish and was not (as it often is) dry and crumbly.
The whole meal was accompanied by Chinese Tea. This particular special menu allows you to choose from 1 Soup, 1 Appetizer, and 2 Dishes accompanied by 2 steamed rice. We only opted for 1 steamed rice.
This mini feast cost less than $ 25.00 and it was worth every penny. We have been there on a number of occasions and we will continue to support this wonderful restaurant. -
Review from bold c.
Toronto, ON
2 MIN Summary
----------------------
-Shrimp & Tofu - outstanding
-Salted duck (cold) - good.
-Dan Dan noodle - very good & spicy
-Fried green bean w/ pork - good
-Fish grilled with fungus & wine sauce - outstanding
-Fried onion pancake - awesome
-Fried banana - ok needs some work (not prepared correctly)
COST
--------
-$55 Cdn + Tip = WICKED VALUE $
-CASH ONLY NO CREDIT CARDS
Observations
------------------
-Fried items had little oil and were not greasy.
-Majority of food was prepared properly and was quickly delivered.
-The restaurant smelled awesome outside (reminds me of China)
-Packed parking lot.
-Hard to find location in a new mall behind First Markham place adjacent to the Home Depot around back.
-Service was fast.
-Tea prompt
-Nice decor
-Seats well worn for such a new restaurant. (lots of business & turn over of food = FRESH OPTIONS)
-Very high volume of customers.
-Soups are on everyone's table. Big bowls.
-POPULAR WITH THE MAINLAND OLYMPIC SPORTS TEAMS WHEN THEY COMPETE IN ONTARIO - CHECK OUT THE SIGNED SPORTS SHIRT AT THE FRONT ENTRANCE
WHO SHOULD EAT HERE?
-------------------------------------
-Strong recommendation for families and lunch clients
-Mixture of shanghanese & Cantonese customers. Principally large families.
-THIS IS THE PLACE FOR EX-PAT Shanghai & their visiting families
-A La Kitchen (A La = We in Mandarin) was the top of her list of authentic Shanghai restaurants to take her parents to eat!
Recommendation
-----------------------
BEST VALUE FOR SHANGHAI FOOD IN MARKHAM
Skip the Fried Banana -
Review from Precilla C.
Scarborough, ON
The first time I came to A La Kitchen, I found the food to be bland and unmemorable. But I'm about giving second chances, so I came back again and ordered different dishes.
To start off, we shared a large bowl of sweetened hot soy bean milk. I think I still prefer my soy milk chilled, but this was nice for a chilly day. The rice roll with dried and minced pork and fried dough stick, pan-fried dumplings and pan-fried pork buns were all pretty ordinary. My favorite was the fried Shanghai noodle, which was addictively greasy and super flavorful. I love the abundance of meat and veggies. Our dessert, deep fried egg white ball with mashed sesame, was pretty underwhelming, but it might have been because I was too full to enjoy it too much.
All in all, my experience at A La Kitchen was better than my previous one, but I was still not overly impressed by the food. I think that there are better Shanghai restaurants around the area. -
Review from Jennifer K.
Markham, ON
2/7/2010 15 photos
A La Kitchen food quality is no comparsion to Ding Tai Fai! However there are a few dishes that A La Kitchen is better!
I really enjoy the Chicken Wonton Soup! This is one of the few places I know of that you can order a smaller size ($7.99) which is prefect for 2 person. However that are not enough chicken pieces or vegetables in it. The wonton though is really nice, has 4 big ones which are filled with chives and pork ;).
The Mash Seasame I think it is the best here compare to Asian Legends. This is the only place I know of can has the fillings with black seasame. You need to preorder that when you order your main course. They are prepared freshly and served hot hot hot! $4.80 for 4 big ones! This is the must order for me whenever I visit.
However the green beans with minced pork tastes like something that i made in my own kitchen (Jen's Kitchen), not spicy, tasted pretty bland. The beef has too much oyster sauce in it.. though I do enjoy the pancake wraps.
I have to agreed with Katrina L that the dishes were on the sweet size.
Cash or Interac only! -
Review from Katrina L.
Richmond Hill, ON
7/20/2009
I came here with my family. Again, not knowing specifics of what I was eating. But this place specializes in Shanghai style Chinese food (there wasn't a category for that). I love Shanghai food, so the true test for me is to try their Shanghai styled noodles. Had them, forgot them. That's how good they were. I just remember them being too sweet. Really? Sweet? That is not how noodles are to be made. It is not a dessert, it's dinner.
We just so happened to know our waitress through a friend of a friend and when the owner wasn't looking kept telling us to not eat there and that the food wasn't great. Uhh, that's always comforting when the chick that is supposed to be promoting this place meaning more business meaning more tips tells you that the food isn't that great.
It was a bit on the pricey side (for Asian food, probably what you would call 'normal' pricing for other food) and as such, we have never gone back. We were referred there from a family friend and I have then learned that her taste buds are on the sweet side and she loves this place. So, if you love having sugar in your food, well then this is the place to go. But if you want your food to taste well, like food and not dessert and are looking for a cheap meal, this is definitely not the place for you.Listed in: Asian Sensation
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Review from Patty L.
North York, ON
I only come here once every 5 months since it's a bit out of my way, but the food at A La Kitchen is consistent and good. That means something, since many other places start of great and then go downhill. The prices are decent and the food is average for Shanghainese fare. Definitely prefer coming here than Asian Legend!
Came here for dinner tonight with a group of 6 and waited about 20 minutes for a table. We got a table in the back corner, which was nice because we weren't smushed in the middle of the place and it wasn't as noisy. It can be a bit cramped since the place is small.
Things that are good here (in no particular order):
- Fried duck (Item D8A on the menu; $12.50) - a bit salty but delicious. Every table around us also order this.
- Shanghai Noodle (J7; $6.99) - After sitting for 20 mins, still no oil had congealed on the plate. A sure sign of good skill on a fairly simple dish! I didn't find this sweet as all (re: Katrina L's review).
- Hot & sour soup (B1; $6.99) - Regular size was more than plenty for 6. My friend who loves H&S soup approved of this dish.
- Xiao Long Bao (Pork Dumpling - L2; $3.80/ 4 pcs). Good, not great. Still searching for the perfect xiao long bao.
- Green Onion Cake (L16; $2.55) - eat it while it's hot!
- Mash Red Bean (the gao li dou sha mentioned below. M2 on the menu; $4.99/4 pcs)
- Red bean cake (M7; $3.55)
We ordered 2 desserts and I didn't find them too sweet. The gao li dou sha is sprinkled with sugar and you can brush most of it off - that takes away 80% of the sweetness.
FYI they don't take credit cards.
FYI 2 - if you are sensitive to MSG, be aware... I finished dinner around 9:30pm and I'm still awake right now and have dry mouth - and it's 7:30am! -
Review from Cynthia D.
6/22/2010 3 photos
Super crowded on the weekends and since the tables are so close together, it's like a maze trying to maneuver around, especially since my party was sitting in the side room.
I thought the food here was pretty average. The xiaolong bao was good but a bit too chewy for my taste, great noodles, great rice cake noodles with wild green veggies making it slightly bitter and delicious crispy dumplings although the pork inside looked a bit raw.
The star dish of A La is the gao li dou sha. It's a bread with some sugar on top filled with egg and red bean. It's slightly sweet but not overly sweet and it takes a really good baker for this dish to turn out right. The bread was fluffy and not too hard so it was probably super fresh. This is def not the type of food that preserves well in a doggie bag. Come for the dessert! -
Review from Lawrence L.
1/2/2010
This is a safe spot for xiaolongbao and other shanghainese fare. As the other reviewers had already spoken to, the food is comforting but forgettable. With other Shanghainese places reputedly "going downhill" in terms of quality, A La Kitchen is still surviving. Not being a resident of Toronto, I relish every chance I get to indulge in Shanghai food and A La Kitchen is a safe way to fill that craving.
Some other interesting dishes I had a chance to try during my latest visit were the crispy rice, and mutton cake. -
Review from Lily Y.
Richmond Hill, ON
1/1/2011 1 photo
My family, boyfriend and I decided to try this restaurant on new years eve as recommended by a family friend. We usually order a set menus for the party number as it makes ordering easier and usually ( and let me emphasize on this "usually" word) better value than ordering separately and house specialties items are sometimes included.
The set menus was 98 dollars for what seemed like a pretty good deal with soup, appetizer, 5 entrees, rice/noodle and a dessert. Typical set menu at a Chinese restaurant! HOWEVER, when the dishes arrived, WOW it was the SMALLEST PORTIONS I have ever seen in a Chinese restaurant. The dish sizes were the size of a side plate with only the noodle dish maintaining the size of a real plate size. I was so disappointed by the portion size that I waved down the server to literally ask him why in the world were my 5 entrees SO SMALL that it looked like a side dish.
Two servers came and both had inconsistent answers while one said that it was just the plate and not the content that was small. (which is BS because we are not blind and the content was clearly 60% of the actual full size.) the other server said that it was smaller and then my mother became so angry and asked them why did you not let us know that the portions would be smaller?
I have never been to a restaurant that had set menu entrees smaller than the normal menu dish. It was appalling. The dinner was set for 6 ppl and we had 5 ppl and we were NOT FULL. I have never been to a Chinese restaurant and not been full. The other sever told us to order more if we were not full and I just told them to leave us alone as they have already pissed us off enough.
But no, THEY DID NOT STOP AT THAT. They decided to make us even more angry by bringing in the dessert while we were still eating the SMALL entrees in attempt to kick us out faster. We got our food around 650 and by 730 we were out the door and this was not voluntary either. This was a the result of the dishes being so small that we finished it so fast and the fact that they stuffed the dessert in our faces while we were peeved. We could not take it anymore and had to get out.
I had the worst new years eve dinner ever yesterday. I hate this restaurant so much that I will do anything to convince people not to go.
Also, the food is SO SUBPAR that this fact alone does not warrant a first visit, let alone a second visit.
Worst 135 dollars I have ever spent in my life. We still tipped because we are not cheap. We just wanted good food with good company and the first was destroyed by this stuck up restaurant.
IF YOU ARE SMART, DO NOT EAT HERE!!!!!!! -
Review from Francisca W.
8/24/2009 7 photos
went there on a weeknight around 10pm, thinking that they don't close till 1am (according to their listing on http://ccue.com), only to find out later that they were indeed closing at 10:30pm or so. was apologetic to the waiter upon finding out the updated closing time; he was pleasant and told us not to worry about it. the chefs and other wait staff were leaving one by one, but kudos to he who stayed and remained in good grace.
this is a new(er) place so they have a clean and modern design, which is pleasing to the eye. cost is about average; not very cheap but not outrageously expensive, either. food-wise, we ordered 3 things of appetizers, a noodle, and a dessert, details as follow--
appetizers:
1. "xiao long bao" (soup dumplings with crabmeat)--wasn't tasting particularly "crabby", but the skin is soft and thin, and the soup and meat are flavorful.
2. "sheng jian bao" (pan-fried meat buns from raw)--was rather disappointing. the bottom crust (spotlight of the dish) wasn't crunchy enough, and the meat and bun were not memorable otherwise. blah.
3. "hong you chao shou" (wonton in red/chilly sauce)--i liked it that it wasn't super spicy like some place would make it to be (or it was supposed to be quite spicy). their sauce has a certain amount of sweetness in it, paired with the chopped peanuts, it was an ok combo. wontons were cooked to satisfaction; the skin (wrapper) was soft and paper-thin. not super fantastic, but still good.
entree:
"shanghainese noodle"--it was, again, nothing spectacular, but on par and as expected.
dessert:
was deciding between the "gao li dou sha" (baked egg white w/red bean paste) and the "ba si xiang jiao" (deep fried banana dipped in honey/syrup); the latter which i chose didn't disappoint. though it seemed the banana could be fried just a tad longer (after the ice bath they were getting closer to warm than hot inside), and my bf stopped eating the crust after two pieces coz it might have been too sweet for him. but i liked it. i liked the crust that's sweet and crunchy, contrasted with the warm mushy banana inside. having the waiter scoop the sticky pieces out of the dish and dump them into an ice bath is a spectacle in itself. highly recommend this dish for first-timers.
in all, food is about average, but fact that they took us minutes before closing without giving us attitude or rushing us out deserves an extra star in itself. i love shanghainese food, and since i haven't tried out many of the other dishes (ex. soy bean milk and "ci fan"--sticky rice roll) here, i would definitely go back unless i'm greeted with a huge line.
i heard they can get quite busy during meal times so it's recommended to make reservations if you're planning to dine at peak hours. also, they are located at the new section behind the main plaza, so you can actually enter via Rodick Rd or through Yorktech Rd to avoid plaza traffic. another thing, they only take cash or debit; no credit card.
:)Listed in: Canada: Hidden (or not so…
