Mabu Generation

Mabu Generation, a Taiwanese bubbletea restaurant and bar (yes bar) at First Markham Place has been open for a few months now.  I believe they are the same owners as Mabu Station at Yonge and Finch who have decided to expand and include alcohol on their menu of drinks and more food options.  This definitely sounded intriguing and with the modern design, I wanted to try it out even though I'm not drinking right now.

Besides offering Taiwanese food like Mabu Station, they also offer a number of Japanese dishes and hot pot for one.  Their dessert selection also is a bit different and includes a variety of matcha items.  However, this next generation is also more expensive than Mabu Station.

I was disappointed.  Well actually, the service was quite good but the food...ahhhh, needs much improvement!

Unfortunately the place is dim because of the hipster lighting so the pictures didn't turn out very good.  My meal was a Grilled Chicken Donburi (or House Special Don) but looked nothing like the photo in the menu.  The chicken tasted good but there just wasn't enough meat or seasoning for the rice; the presentation was quite poor, like someone just slopped it together.

Braised Taiwanese beef noodle...poorly done as well.  Meat was not tender and the noodles were too soft and the soup was not up to par.  Given that Taiwanese beef noodle is almost like the national dish, I would have expected at least average but sadly it wasn't.

My friend ordered the curry pork cutlet and she said it was okay but very salty.  Nothing to rave about.  Nor was the mini hot pot another friend had ordered.

I also had the mochi waffle with ice cream pictured above.  This was better than my meal.  The waffle was entirely mochi, a good size and tasted okay, soft and chewy.  Part of me expected a wheat based waffle stuffed with mochi filling though...I guess I've been seeing too many pics from cafes in Taiwan that make a mochi waffle but the mochi is a filling inside so you still get a nice crisp exterior and a chewy centre.  

As I said, decor was really nice (too many people to take a picture of the inside, sorry) and I think for an evening with friends it would be an okay place to chat with friends over tea and dessert.  I say this because our experience with service was good so could be worth giving them a try if you're in the area.  But for lunch or dinner I would pass, there are much better places.

Wall mural of the popular tourist and day trip town Jiufen.

Mabu Generation

Unit #23-26, 3235 Hwy 7 E.  (First Markham Place)

Markham, ON L3R 3P3

T: 905-604-8358

http://mabugeneration.com/english

Kiu Japanese Restaurant

Kiu Japanese Restaurant is a newish sushi and ramen restaurant located in the downtown Markham complex.  We went on a Friday for lunch and it was busy but they have quite a bit of seating so we got a table easily.

The restaurant offers sushi (not too extensive), raw oysters, small appetizers, and ramen from Ramen Isshin (located on College St.).  I've been to Ramen Isshin and it was good so we thought it'll be good to try their uptown location since we're uptown more than downtown.  

I had the Kotteri Rich Shoyu Ramen and made it into a combo with karaage for an added $3.  Not too bad, broth was flavourful and rich...just what I was looking for.  The egg was done nicely and the noodles were good, could be chewier but still enjoyed it.  The pork slices were very thin, too thin if you're paying $11 a bowl.  We got two large pieces of karaage but they weren't seasoned enough, good crunch though.

I also have to mention the tea, if you order green tea they serve houjicha tea (roasted green tea) which was enjoyable.  They refilled my cup without asking which was good because I think I drank the first cup pretty fast!

Side order of takoyaki...yum!

Black Sesame Tan Tan Noodles...this wasn't that spicy and does taste like dan dan noodles you get at Chinese restaurants.

Kiu is spacious and clean and lots of natural light. Too many people to take a photo of the tables though. The service was good, no complaints.  

We also found out there is underground parking so it makes this a good choice for winter months.  Overall, the experience was good.  Not the best ramen in the city, but I'd come back to try their sushi and other ramen bowls.

Kiu Japanese Restaurant

169 Enterprise Blvd, 2nd floor

Markham, ON L6G 0E7

T:905-513-6368

http://www.ki-u.com/

Moji Japanese Eatery

Karaage chicken udon

Food was a mixture of Japanese udon or donburi dishes and some desserts.  Small selection of drinks like fruit green tea or matcha milk teas for $2.  Spacious and feels like IKEA mixed with a bit of Japanese charm.  Lots of seating and bright lighting, different from other restaurants in the area which are packed tight with tables.

I had gotten the chicken karaage udon which tasted pretty good.  Udon was chewy and the karaage was well seasoned and tender.  Only difference is the batter used is similar to tempura and the mayo is mildly spicy.  We also got the pork curry udon and an order of takoyaki which were piping hot and very good!

They definitely tried to add a different look to their bowls, e.g. cantaloupe in the udon soup which I liked but others may find odd or not appropriate.  For me, the little bit of edamame, tofu and marinated egg that was added to the udon noodles were nice additions.  The food didn't wow but it didn't disappoint either.  Portions for the udon may be a bit on the smaller side for the price, but sometimes I like to think of it as saving room for dessert, lol!

Matcha and taro soft serve ice creams were average, would have liked more matcha flavour though.  Mochis were not that soft so I'd stick with the soft serve only.
抹茶和芋頭冰淇淋還ok, 多一點抹茶味就比較好.  麻糬硬一點所以我建議只點冰淇淋.

Servers were polite and were available when needed.  I'd come back to Moji, especially for a relaxed lunch.


Moji Japanese Eatery
8362 Kennedy Rd Suite U A6 (Peach Tree Plaza facing Kennedy Rd.)
Markham, ON L3R 9W5
T: (905) 479-6654

Why the occasional duplicate sentence written in Chinese?  

One of my goals starting in 2016 is to improve my Chinese language skills so this is one way I'm going about it.  
Please comment if you noticed I've totally messed up!  Thanks!

Inspire Restaurant

Fusion food done right! Inspire Restaurant is located on Main St. Markham, a street with a bit of olde town feel, the chefs bring a level of quality to the area that is not usually found in the suburbs.  They don't serve foie gras or other high end staples, but they dress up comfort foods very nicely.  It's definitely a place I would go to regularly if I lived or worked closer.

融合美食做的很好!  Inspire Restaurant 設在 Main St. Markham 路, 那個路有一點點的古城的感覺, 可是廚師帶來quality食品,這個地區沒那麼有.  沒有鵝肝, 但是爽心美食更上一層樓.  如果我住在或是上班附近, 我會常時來. 

There were actually a number of items I would have love to order, but I could not resist ordering the Chicken with Waffles.  So happy that I did.  Tender pieces of fried chicken in a lightly spiced breading (I'm thinking cumin seeds?) with waffles and maple syrup...a sweet and salty combo that made me devour it!  The chicken was very moist, especially for chicken breast and the seasoning was slightly different but works. The only downside, too much syrup so the chicken loses some crunch and parts of the waffle get soggy.  Would have preferred less drizzled on top, and a side amount offered instead.

My partner had the INSP burger with duck fat fries...it looked great and from what I hear, it was very, very good.  I tried the fries and liked the flavour but they were softer than I'd like due to all the toppings...but kinda like a poutine.

Service was good, polite and efficient.  For the quality, everything was reasonably priced.

Interior is modern with a relaxing zen vibe, fits well with the fusion food.  I'd love to visit more often but the drive is a bit far...great for those that live in Markham though. 

Inspire Restaurant

144 Main St. Markham North Unit 1

Markham, ON L3P 5T3

905-554-2889

http://www.inspirerestaurant.com/

(Parking spots available at the side of the restaurant.)



Why the occasional duplicate sentence written in Chinese?  

One of my goals starting in 2016 is to improve my Chinese language skills so this is one way I'm going about it.  
Please comment if you noticed I've totally messed up!  Thanks!

Love Me Sweet - New Japanese Cheesecake Bakery

A new Japanese cheese cake bakery, Love Me Sweet, just opened in Markham (or I think of it as Thornhill since it's just north of Steeles on Yonge) and it is every bit as light and airy as you would expect!  The cake is lightly sweetened and the cream cheese taste is there, but not has heavy as a New York style cheese cake.  We got it right out of the oven so it was also quite moist, letting it cool down definitely helps it set a bit.  Or leave overnight in the fridge and you've got a thicker cake if that is your preference.  If you've been to Uncle Tetsu's, it tastes pretty much the same from what I can recall (with the popularity of Uncle Tetsu's, it's hard not to compare).

We did have to wait 30 mins (Sat afternoon) despite being told 15 mins because I think the cashier didn't realize when we ordered that we would have had to wait for the next, next batch to be ready.  There were people that ordered over the phone and people were allowed to buy more than one making it a lot more customer friendly!  The bakery is located at The World on Yonge, a condo and shopping complex so if you do have to wait you can wait inside (there actually isn't too much shopping but you can do grocery shopping at Season's supermarket).  Parking is also available underground.

Unfortunately no seating

Love Me Sweet

7181 Yonge St. Unit 16

Markham ON L3T 0C7

647-699-1899

https://www.facebook.com/LMSbakery/

 

Dayali - Spinach and Peanuts, Stir fried Tea Tree Mushrooms, and Yes, Peking Duck

Dayali Beijing Roast Duck
20 Gibson Dr.
Markham, ON L3R 0M7
T: 905-604-8680

About a month ago I was craving Peking duck, so I invited some friends to come try it out with me. We have ordered Peking duck for just 2 of us but I thought it would be good to try some other dishes and looking at the menu, I wanted to try a lot of other dishes!

We ordered the signature duck which was pricier, but unfortunately it wasn't the star of the show that afternoon. It was good but not "you have to eat this HERE!" type reaction.

The signature duck I believe comes with the extra slices of skin that I are around the chest area, fattier than other parts. It also comes with a warmer for the wrappers and extra sides which actually weren't that interesting after all. Overall, this was an average tasting bird. The special pieces were crisp but also because of the fattieness, the fat was somewhat "spongy" as my partner put it.

We ordered a number of sides to go with our duck...

From top L (counter clockwise): meat jelly, glutinous rice stuffed lotus root, spinach and peanuts, jelly fish, marinated duck wings

The best was the spinach and peanuts but it is a spicy dish.

Here are the other items we ordered...

 

Beef noodle soup

Fried rice

Tea tree mushroom stirfry (You can buy these at Chinese supermarkets...they don't taste like tea though, or at least I don't think so since it was stir fried with soy sauce and chilis)

Braised pork with glutinous rice

Spicy clams

 

Dishes that I'd order again based on taste:

Spinach and peanut salad
Spicy clams
Stir-fried tea tree mushrooms (although the picture in the menu was quite different, showing a mix of different types of mushrooms which would have been more ideal): these mushrooms are chewy and the dish is spicy so if might not be everyone's cup of tea.

Average:

Beef noodle soup
Lotus root stuffed with glutinous rice (sweet tasting)
Braised pork with glutinous rice (very little glutinous rice)
Fried rice (can't remember the exact name but I believe it was seafood)

Lacking flavour and wouldn't order again:

Meat jelly
Marinated duck wings

A number of the dishes seemed quite oily but I know that this is often the case.


Service was sub-par...there weren't many servers to attend to the tables, a friend had to get up and get little things like extra napkins himself!

Leaf de Tea - one of the best bubble tea deals in Markham!

Leaf de Tea has been around for years but last weekend was my first time trying out their tea.  We were at the First Markham food court and I wanted a milk tea after lunch and noticed Leaf de Tea.  It had the shape of Taiwan in their signage so I wanted to take a closer look. 

I was really surprised to see the prices were so...I don't want to say cheap because the word also has the connotation that the quality is not there...but, you get exceptional value!  How do you beat $2 for a regular bubble tea?! 

Got a regular milk tea and the jasmine milk tea, both without tapioca.  The regular milk tea was quite good, I forgot to ask for half sugar and it wasn't too sweet.  I may ask for less sugar next time but this was definitely pretty good as is.  Tea was flavourful and smooth.  The jasmine milk tea was also good but quite a strong floral taste.

This has got to be one of the best bubble tea deals in Markham, taste and price are both very good!  It doesn't have the youth appeal or social media marketing of Chatime, but it's definitely a good option for a tea drink if you're at First Markham.  And if you're hungry they also have food, also for a great price.  One special included 10 curry fish balls and a bubble tea for $5!!  Anyway, will be back to try other teas and their tapioca for a better review...and their food!

Oh, and free wifi offerred?!  Interesting for a food stand in a food court.

 

Leaf de Tea
First Markham Place
3255 Highway 7, Unit 250
Markham, ON L3R 3P9

Chef Papa Tea and Noodle Bar

 

Chef Papa Tea and Noodle Bar recently took over the Congee Wong space in the Kennedy and Hwy 7 (Peach Tree) Plaza and it follows the same format as Deer Garden; you customize your meal by selecting your soup base, noodles, and toppings.  But, it seems like they offer a few more soup bases and less variety of toppings.  They also have rice dishes as well which I was tempted to get but wanted to try the noodles as it seemed to be their speciality.  Comes with a drink, Presotea drinks are an extra $2.50 with your noodle or rice combo.

 

They also have side orders and surprisingly the side of grilled lemongrass chicken was quite tasty!  The noodle soups were pretty good too but the chicken was done better than expected.  Don't get me wrong, I would definitely get the noodles again, but the chicken (albeit a bit small) was tender and very flavourful! 

 

I ordered a Chiu Chow style broth with fresh udon, Japanese chashu, and soft egg.  My partner got the hokkaido pork bone ramen (comes with the soft egg) with egg noodles and fish puff.  The udon noodles were definitely chewy and tasted fresh, this was probably the best part of my bowl!  The soup was flavourful but I think I prefer Deer Garden's Chiu Chow broth more (sorry, it's hard not to compare!).  The Japanese chashu was slices of pork belly (good portion size) which was decent, but not as tender as Japanese ramen houses.  Opted for a cold milk tea instead of Presotea which was okay, but they put in quite a bit of evaporated milk, seemed like condensed milk was added.

 



Overall, a decent meal with quite a number of options.  Especially great if a group of people want to eat differing types of noodles/rice, this place offers Japanese, Vietnamese, and Chinese noodles and rice dishes to satisfy a variety of cravings.

Chef Papa Tea and Noodle Bar
8390 Kennedy Road, Unit B1-3
Markham, ON L3R 0W4
T: (905) 604-1588

Kaka All-You-Can-Eat Sushi

 

I haven't been to an all-you-can-eat sushi place in while, but have heard good things about Kaka so we decided to head there for lunch on a whim last weekend.

When you first walk in, the decor is quite upscale that you wouldn't think they are an AYCE sushi place. Not sure if it was the manager that greeted us at the door but she was great, explained what they offered and made sure we were comfortable. We were also lucky that we got a table because there were a lot of reserved tables! Our seats were cushioned which was nice, definitely adds to the experience and something you don't see often.

 

Almost all the tables were reserved

Service seemed quite seamless in that you order off a touch screen tablet with the number of pieces you want.  Every order is ONE piece except the sushi rolls which are 3 pieces per order, so keep that in mind.  There was no mix up of orders and they came out relatively quickly.

Now, onto the food.  They have quite a bit of unique items and the sashimi that we ordered were fresh and decent sized slices.  Usually I would order mainly sashimi and a few rolls but we also ordered a number of cooked dishes; some were ok while others were done pretty well.  The cumin lamb skewers were good and is not something you see at Japanese AYCE, probably offered due to the huge Chinese population here.  Loved the grilled eggplant, topped with a sesame paste/butter sauce - I think this is probably why it was so good.  Only recommendation was that it was a whole eggplant and sliced opened lengthwise so a bit hard to eat when you just have chopsticks and no knife and fork.



Desserts were okay with a number of unique ones too.  Had a lavendar chocolate pudding which does have a lavendar taste (nice) and a green tea creme brulee which was average.  Actually, as I write this I realized we didn't get the earl grey tea ganache square that I ordered!  I think we had decided to leave and called for the bill before it arrived.

At lunch on weekends they offer the same all-you-can-eat menu as their dinner for $26.99 which is quite standard for AYCE with sashimi these days.  Lunch on weekdays they serve an a la carte menu with bento boxes.  (And just a side note: their fb page has an offer requesting you share your "photos on Instagram using the hashtag ‪#‎kakaallyoucaneat‬ for a chance to win a free dinner for 2 at the end of the month.")

Recommend! 

Kaka All You Can Eat
3235 Highway 7 E., Unit 18A
Markham, ON L3R 3R3
T: (905) 604-5023
https://www.facebook.com/kakaayce

ZenQ - Grass Jelly Dessert to Cool You Down

ZenQ

1076-8333 Kennedy Rd (The Square at Langham Mall)

Markham, ON L3R 4P8

1-855-999-ZENQ (9367)

It‘s been quite a hot and humid weekend in Toronto so I was craving some cold dessert.  Initially, I was thinking shaved ice and ZenQ had a pretty good selection of flavours that I'd be interested in (i.e. black sesame, milk tea, and matcha flavoured).  I‘ve only had the milk teas at ZenQ in North York so was interested in trying their desserts.  Instead of shaved ice, I ended up getting a grass jelly dessert plate with red bean, tapioca pearls, mochi, and grass jelly ice.  (Also, a side of ice cream was an additional dollar.)

The grass jelly was smooth and cooling as expected and was a very good portion size.  Quite enjoyed it; just what I needed. This dessert is not that sweet and they don't give you a side of sugar syrup like some other places so be aware of this, it's not going to statisfy a sweet tooth.  I think the only disappointing part was I was hoping the 3 flavoured mochi would be a little more distinct in their flavours.  I know taro and sweet potato are harder to taste, but matcha should have been easier.  Despite this, still would recommend the grass jelly here.

Decor is bright and modern with a mix of seating that includes a couple of booths.  (Noticed one high chair for parents with toddlers.)

Haven‘t tried the meals here yet but their special combos look pretty good, $9 for food and a drink between 12pm - 9pm.  Next time!

Toast Delight - HK Egg Waffles

Green Tea Egg Waffle

Toast Delight
Unit 2659- 8339 Kennedy Rd (Langham Square)
Markham, Ontario
(416) 856-3026
https://www.facebook.com/toastdelight

We recently visited this non-descript shop at The Mall at Langham Square that serves flavoured HK style egg waffles and curry fish/beef balls.  But, these are not like your typical waffles, they‘re more dense but also more crunchy.  A different experience and I would say if your a fan of the Dong Dong brand, you won't like these, but if you're up for something a little different, do give them a try!

 

Ordered two for $5 (one for $3), we had the green tea and sesame flavoured ones.  They also had other flavours like red bean, chocolate, 3 cheese, and pork floss & seaweed (maybe my next visit).  I like the crunch and although I'd prefer a stronger green tea taste, it was enough so you could also taste the egg.  It's funny, I kinda expected the sesame egg waffles to be filled with a little bit of black sesame paste...somewhat like how a red bean waffle would be.  So although the sprinkled sesame seeds were good, it wasn't as good as the green tea.

 

But, do eat warm, they will be too hard if you wait a few hours.  The batter somewhat reminds me of Taiwan (I know, another way to fit Taiwan in another post, haha)...a lot of people say that the waffles in Taiwan cafes are made more dense, and it's similar.  The only thing is, I didn't have a scoop of ice cream or medley of fruits to go with it.  And...just as I was thinking this, if you check out their facebook page, you can add ice cream to your waffle.  Hmmm, I didn't see this when I went last week.  Oh well, I guess more reason for me to go back!

 

Also had the iced milk tea which was a really good size for the price and tasted pretty good.

 The shop is not too hard to find.  It's located on the 2nd floor. As you come off the elevator and head towards the shops, look towards your right and you'll see the store front pictured below.

 

 

Fortune Stone - Hidden Right Under My Nose!

Fortune Stone Restaurant

7010 Warden Ave

Markham, ON L3R 0L9

905-475-0099
 

Fortune Stone is an HK Style Cafe that has been around for a number of years and only now, only now did I know it existed.  Located in the same plaza as T & T Supermarket on Warden and Steeles, I can't believe I didn't see it earlier since this is one of the T&T's I frequent.  The building is the one closest to the Steeles and Warden corner, but is on the opposite side to Ajisen Ramen.

 

First impression, huge menu!  Not sure if they do everything well but it was pretty good eats so far.

Fish with spinach cream sauce

 It was hard deciding what to get as there were so many options and all at reasonable prices ($5-10).  I opted for a fish in spinach cream sauce dish and it tasted pretty good.  The cream sauce is also not as creamy as western cream sauces (which is typical for HK cafes) but still tasty albeit a little on the salty side.  Portion size was right for me, however could be a bit on the small side for others.  My meal came with a soup and drink (had an iced milk tea) which were both decent.

Baked chicken and cream sauce.

Service was friendly and the space is quite clean and bright.  Will definitely be coming back to this place since it's fairly close to where I live and I can stop by T&T for groceries right after, haha!