Went since they were open until 1 am. Food was ok. Singapore noodles were the highlight of the dishes. The beef and pork were ok too. Would go again if looking for a late night spot. read more

Chef 88 - Beef - Chinese Near Me - Toronto, Ontario

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We came as a party of 2 for a super early dinner (5pm) on a weekend. The restaurant had approximately 5 other parties/tables during our 1ish hour there, with people occasionally dropping in for take-out. Since this Chef 88 is opened until 1am, I think this place will get busier as the night progresses. We weren't super hungry as well ate something for tea time. So we ordered Maggi Lobster (~3lbs) for $34/lb, and stir fried beef with Chinese broccoli (gai lan). The lobster was cooked perfectly, with the Maggi sauce not being too salty. They definitely gave us all the pieces of the 3lbs lobster. The gai lan had a bitter aftertaste, which is common for this vegetable. I wished they had a way to get rid of that. They were generous with the amount of beef and was well marinated. The cut wasn't that great, but that is to be expected. I don't think they added much MSG or at least used good quality ones, as we did not feel overly thirsty later in the evening. They give free daily soup and dessert. What we were most impressive was with the service. The waiters were very attentive, changing our plates twice during our 1ish hour meal. The also gave us wet wipes and more napkins without us requesting it. They even offered us additional soup, which we declined as we were quite full. read more

Chef 88 - ~3lb Maggi stir fried lobster - Chinese Near Me - Toronto, Ontario

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We dropped in for a family dinner with 6 adults and 1 tween on a Monday evening. The restaurant was empty except for 1 or 2 tables at 5:30 p.m. We wanted to try out Chef 88 based on Yelp reviews as we usually end up going to the same restaurants for Peking Duck. We were seated promptly, and one of the wait staff started blurting out menu suggestions really loudly from half way across the restaurant, which we thought was odd. He even brought out a fish (some type of Gobi which was supposed to be super rare and expensive) and tried to get us to order it. Since it was our first time there, we did not want to spend $48.99/lbs for a 2.5 pounder we weren't sure about, so we passed on it. Then the waiter started saying, "lobster, lobster" at the top of his lungs in the same manner as before. We felt a little uncomfortable but politely declined and ordered what we came for, which was Peking duck. Their Peking Duck is very reasonably priced compared to what we were used to paying, and we also liked that their second course for Peking Duck included stir fry option with eggplant, which turned out to be very delicious and our favorite dish of the evening. We ordered 2 soups (hot and sour and minced beef with egg whites, both just ok), Peking Duck 2 ways (great!), Cantonese chow mien (ok), jellyfish appetizer (ok), beef on sizzling pan (super delish!), stir fried snow pea leaves in garlic sauce (ok) and oyster pancakes (ok). Most dishes we ordered were well prepared, and our group certainly appreciated the not so heavily seasoned but delicious offerings. Our least favorite was the hot and sour soup as it was too bland. The oyster pancake could have used more oysters and less salt as well. They served us a complimentary mung bean dessert at the end, which was appreciated. The dinner was good enough that our picky group vowed to come back to try our their other offerings, which is a real compliment. I can't wait to return here for their lobster as we were eyeing our neighbors enjoying a great looking lobster dish. read more

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Average dimsum restaurant. Came on a weekday and the hostess was a bit rude. Dim sum is average, Yu and the One have better dim sum. Bonus that they have a patio so if you want to sit out during the summer it is nice.. just a bit dirty. Have many other dim sum place around to try rather than chef 88 read more

Cant believe the high reviews. Gave this place two chances to change my experience. Food continues to be below avg, service was fine. First visit ordered Peking Duck 2/5 dry, tasted old. Told manager who insisted it was fresh, don't even remember the other forgettable dishes we had. Second visit: clams w bb sauce 3/5 Salt n pepper squid 2/5 rubbery, tough Tofu w veg 3/5 bland Lobster w ginger green onion, 3/5, very small but cooked ok Two times of disappointment = no return read more

4.5 STARS Celebrated my fathers birthday here, and was able to book two tables in the private room area. This place used to be Chiu Chow boy, but they closed down and renovated it to the now Chef 88. The private room section had other tables with other patrons dining here when we walked in for our table. We were able to bring our own alcohol to celebrate the occasion which was really nice! Since we got two tables, one table was the "adults" table and the other were the "kids" table, we ordered a set menu for the adults whereas kids got the typical goodies you would get at Cantonese restaurants (don't judge, these kids ate good (they got Peking duck, Peking pork chops, sweet and sour pork, soy sauce noodles with stir fried beef, fried rice etc etc). Food wise for adults side was super yummy, my dad was very happy with the set course, and so was my mom, which makes me even happier. Everything came fresh and still hot, most memorable mentions were the steamed bass, lobster in maggi sauce, and dried oysters with lettuce. After cake cutting and eating, our waitress asked if we wanted Chinese dessert, and of course we said yes as we love green bean dessert. It was a little pricey since only siblings paid for the two tables, but so worth it to get together with family and enjoy a wonderful meal with your parents. read more

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5 star rating on the logo for sure. With the chubby, rolly, polly chef and his moustache. The parking lot looks really small but there's actually a whole parking lot out back behind the building. My gf recommended this place because she swore that they had the best sweet n sour pork. BOLD WORDS. So my friends and I decided to come test out this theory on a sat evening. Sweet n sour pork: Did this sweet n sour pork beat Top Choice or Fishman Lobster Clubhouse s'n's pork? NAHHH But it was pretty damn good I'll give em that. I'd slide em into my top 3 behind those other 2 Clams: These were really fresh and tasty (didn't spot any dead clams; maybe just 1). Sauce was salty and rich. Crispy Chicken: Definitely just an average crispy chicken imo. I've had much better at other restos (Starchiva in Richmond Hill makes a way juicier one). The breast meat was a lil on the drier side. Fish fillet w/ snap peas: Could've come w/ more fish slices. This dish was 60% snap peas, 40% fish but the ratio should've been reversed Maggi sauce style lobster: Not bad, lobster definitely looked under the poundage that we ordered but can't fault them on taste (it was pretty standard) Stir fried pepper shoots w/ garlic: My first time trying pepper shoots (usually you see pea shoots featured on the menu rather than pepper shoots so these were interesting). I liked em! Stir fried pork jowl w/ choi sum: A lil XO sauce provided a nice kick. We tried to get it as mild as possible since some ppl in our party cant really do spicy. I liked this dish. Again, too many veggies, not enough meat. Cantonese sticky rice: This dish was a disaster. They didn't use the proper rice. The rice didn't soak long enough before being thrown in the wok. And the rice itself was slightly burnt (you could actually smell the burntness). One of the worst canto sticky rices I've ever had Phukien fried rice: Amazing. This rice was phenomenal. My favorite phukien fried rice was at Kenny's Gourmet (richmond hill) back in the day or at Bayview Court (richmond hill). This one matched up well to Bayview Court. A lot of sauce. Lots of toppings in the sauce. No skimping out on ingredients. Much better than the canto sticky rice. Overall, the place deserves a 4 star rating. Food was good on aggregate with a couple of misses but the majority were hits. I would be down to return in the future. read more

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I thought it was a good idea to try a new restaurant for Chinese New Year's Eve dinner. I picked Chef 88 over Chef 88 Elite because I didn't want a big restaurant. Big mistake, you know where this is going already. My reservation was for 6:30 pm, and we arrived at 6:15 pm. No one was at the front door to greet us. All the waitress and waiter was running around. I keep asking them, and they keep ignoring me. Finally, I spotted the manager. Twenty minutes later, we got our table. I ordered the set menu for 4 and added a lobster within 3 minutes because I know how busy it is. I even told qqiyer how I wanted my lobster. 2 minutes later, he asked me again.  I gave him the same answer. The waiter could have suggested that if I get the set menu for 6 people, it would be cheaper than the 4 with lobster and more food. Anyway, I should have gone over the menu more carefully. (My fault) Here comes the good part. The manager was busy greeting 2 VIP tables. He didn't even notice there was one table without food for 30 minutes. I complained about our food, i got several responses, "It's coming," from the waiter and waitress. Tik Tok Tik Tok one hour later. No food, and we are starving, and I got hangry.  I asked one of the waitress where is my food, it's over an hour. At that moment, I knew that waiter forgot to enter my food in the system. Everyone is getting dishes except us. All we wanted was Fish Maw soupto start. Does that take an hour to make? (There were approx. 15 tables and most of the people were half way through their food.) Food: Fish Maw soup - 8/10 Braced Pork Hocks with vegetables and ox tongue - 7/10 ( not enough pork hocks) Stirred Fried Cuttlefish with vegetables - 6/10 (too chewy) Steamed Talipia w/soya sauce - 8/10 House dessert - small bowl of red beans - 5/10 (disappointing for Chinese New Year dessert.) All for $108, I added Lobsters $93 Service: 0/5 It was horrendous. Very unorganized and waitress keep looking over at our table and noone came over to apologized. I would be ok if they came over and admit their mistake and gave us some complimentary food to eat. An hour later, we received our 1st course. (Fish Maw Soup) Why aren't the manager checking every table to ensure the food was served hot and fresh and their customers are satisfied? Rating: 2 out of 5 stars I would not return to this restaurant ever again. Worst service in my lifetime. read more

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Chef 88 is still as good as before, and they also have karaoke in the private room, which is very nice for group and family gatherings, we came to celebrate birthdays, everyone had a great time singing eating and chatting. read more

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We got two tables and did a set dinner. They gave us a private room, which was really nice. However, with regards to the food, I was not really impressed. Especially as a Chinese restaurant in Markham, I expected better. The meal included duck and lobster. But nothing was really memorable. read more

A cozy family Chinese restaurant with lots of menu items and special items too. People have recommended their Sweet and Sour Pork and I do agree it is one of the best - also first time seeing blueberry used. They have many seafood options and one of my favourite is their curry crab. However, if you are a spicy curry fan, you might be disappointed. The curry is flavourful but has very little spiciness to it. Another fav you don't find everywhere is the Taro Duck - you need to pre-order this item a day ahead. Service is quick and friendly. Waitresses were very attentive and switched out plates out twice. Highly recommend for Cantonese food! read more

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Heard about this restaurant for long and many people recommended. Very sorry I am quite disappointed. All food just so so. We special request geoduck and when it serve to the table, all of us were so shocked....the colour is dark brown and the waiter keep politely apologized the geoduck is not good. Then why they still serving us About black bean source steam razor clams, sure I can cook better then this restaurant the rest of dishes not worth to mention. But Peking duck and birthday steam buns are good. The worse is the environment, not too many people but so noisy...feel so tired eating there. Fair speaking the price are reasonable. This restaurant will out of my bookmarks. The end. read more

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Disappointed to say the least. We were looking forward to having a family dinner here. We've had a good experience at the sister location in Markham (Denison and Kennedy) and could only imagine this place being comparable or even better. The food presentation was alright, however the food quality was poor. Peking duck was dry. Sweet and sour pork was over fried. Veggies were bitter and tasted overly salty. Beef was overcooked and dry. The only compliment I could give was the chicken - nothing special but by this point we had no more expectations. Two stars for the environment and service. Overall a very disappointing meal. I hope it was a one-off. Nonetheless, I'm not sure if I would even come back to give it another try. read more

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My second time coming to this restaurant. Was looking forward to a good meal out. The place was nicely spaced out or had barriers between the booths for Covid-19 safety. After checking our vaccine papers, we were promptly seated. For the servers, not all the servers spoke english so we had to be assigned one. To start, we were given peanuts. This was different. They were OK. To start, we had the Crab and Fish maw soup - 2*. Couldn't really taste or see any crab pieces, the fish maw was tough, and the the soup was on the salty side. Pork Chops with Spicy Salt - 3* - This was good. The flavour was good but different that the usual way this is normally made at other restaurants. It had a bit of sauce and not a 'spicy salt' flavour. Garoupa Bean Curd Hot Pot - 3* - This is normally one of my favourite dishes at other restaurants. Here it was a disappointment. The fish had good taste. The tofu was terrible - not fresh. I mentioned to the waiter and he did nothing. He said ok and then avoided us after that. The most difficult thing to get was 2 steamed rice. We had to request it 4 times before we finally received them. Service - the service was quite attentive - until my complaint. Serving sizes were quite reasonable. Even though I didn't quite enjoy this visit, I would return. I did see some other tasty looking dishes on other tables so I would like to give those a try. read more

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I'll be honest, this place is a bit tough when you don't speak Mandarin/Cantonese. It was a little past 8PM when my husband and I were sitting in the parking lot of Pmall, craving Peking Duck when Peking Man in Pmall had told us their kitchen had already closed. Chef 88 was the closest to us. Entering the establishment, there's a nice atmosphere, place was about 70% full of, of course Asian clientele, most seem to be of older generation. First thing that caught my eye were the high ceilings. The vibe was also fun that night because there was a lot of gathering families and what seemed to be just friends meeting eachother for drinks. There was a table by us where the servers took Henny shots with the patrons lol My husband knowing 'just enough' Canto to get us by, we ordered the peking duck, which if I roughly remember was around $45. What was included was of course the peking duck with all the fixins and pancakes. And the rest of the duck carcass, bones and all, get stir fried with eggplant. We also got the yeung chow fried rice for extra filler, because we were starving at this point. They give you this bowl of boiling water .... Which my husband told me was to 'clean' the utensils at the table? We didn't really catch what the server said. And good thing they gave this to us, since my tea cup had old, stuck on food on it ... Service was friendly enough and attentive, but the food kinda took forever. It was maybe a 30 to 35 minute wait on the entire duck dish to arrive. I just wish they didn't deliver it to us in fragments, where we got the veggie fillings first, and then pancakes and then 10 minutes later the duck itself .... Where of course the pancakes were pretty cold at that point. Duck was dry, but I think because I was just so hungry at that point, I found it delicious. I just think the duck we got was pretty lean. The skin was also not as crispy as I would have hoped and was more 'leathery' than crunchy. We got the yeung chow fried rice 15 to 20 minutes after getting our complete duck set and the yeung chow fried rice is what saved this review. Fresh and great wok hei flavour, it was great! The remainder of the duck carcass with eggplant had great flavour too ... But that might be because I'm a sucker for anything eggplant. Be prepared to get your hands dirty, trying to pick at every bit of meat within those bone cavities. Overall, it was a nice place, good service, okay food. Although I would not go here alone, or without a Chinese speaker because it was already tough to navigate with what limited Canto my husband had. I think my husband liked this place a lot more than I did, but I told him I knew better places to have duck. Restaurant is in a plaza with tons of parking. We paid with cash. read more

Chef 88 - $45-ish duck and pancake - Chinese Near Me - Toronto, Ontario

Please remember to say no MSG, if ordering fried items. Good portions. Authentic? read more

Chef 88 - Buddha Dish 3 - Chinese Near Me - Toronto, Ontario

The dishes I tried range somewhere between good and average. The entry to the restaurant is via main road and the plaza has enough parking. The interior is pretty, no complains there. The menu is sizeable and we were three people, it took us a few minutes to decide. The server kept hovering over us and asking us every couple of minutes if we had decided, we almost felt pressured into deciding asap, what could be the need to do this, I wonder?! (The restaurant was 20% occupied, no rush). Also, I was taking a photo, the server simply took the quarter plate away that I had adjusted to fit nicely into the frame and it was evident I was photographing; it was weird. The food takes a a while to arrive, which I'm okay with, if they prepare fresh food, I welcome that. The shrimps were delicious, well cooked and a great flavour, but there was hardly 10-12 shrimps in the dish and 75% of the plate was filled with red and green peppers and onion. I wish they don't scrimp on the shrimp quantity, the dish isn't expensive but not cheap by any means either. The chilli chicken has good flavour but felt dry, it was also less spicy for our liking and we would've liked some extra sauce, at least on the side. The fried Cantonese style noodles were delicious, worth a try. Overall an okay experience with a couple of well made dishes saving the day. read more

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If you want to have some Cantonese food late night, Chef 88 is a good bet. Complimentary soup and dessert which one can expect from the old school Cantonese restaurants. The only difference is probably the wait staff here is so much friendlier. The portion is decent and the taste is A-OK. Just lacking a little wok hay (fresh from the wok aroma). Not a bad choice if you are in the neighbourhood. read more

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We came for an early dinner and ordered stir fried string beans with minced pork, satay shrimp and vermicelli in hot pot. We started with a (huge) complimentary bowl of soup. The other dishes didn't take long to reach the table. Beware of touching the pot with the shrimp and vermicelli, it's very hot! I would advise mixing the vermicelli a bit or else some won't taste like anything and you'll get all the sauce for other bites. The sauce was tasty and not too goopy as it sometimes turns out with too much corn starch. We found the shrimp not that fresh. The firmness in the meat just wasn't there and it was a bit soft. The string beans along with the pork were perfect with having with rice. Dinner ended with complimentary bowls of dessert too. We were so stuffed. read more

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Summary: Average Chinese lunch specials at a very affordable price. Don't expect too much but it definitely won't hit the wallet too hard. Not sure if we just had a bad one-off experience but felt this place could have done better given it's Yelp rating. We might try again at dinner to see if it's better. We came as a group of 4 for lunch on a Thursday lunch hour. The place was pretty empty, maybe 3 other tables seated. Service: We were seated pretty quickly (the place was fairly empty). Probably within 5 minutes of sitting, 3 different servers, in rapid sequence, each asked us "what would you like?" - each time we said give us more time. The last one tried to push some of the pricier dishes on us saying it would be great for a group of 4 (it would have been way too much food). I'm guessing all 3 servers were bored since there were so few people at the time. Score: 2/5 Food: We had the chicken curry with rice. This was a yellow curry with potatoes, chunks of green peppers, onions, slices of chicken. Overall, okay curry flavor but not much spice - felt a little watered down. 3/5. Braised Vermicelli with eggplant and minced pork - tons of noodles, okay amounts of eggplant, but minimal minced pork. The flavor was interesting - sweet, sour and spicy - I feel like the flavor was spot on here. My only complaint is the noodles were underdone - they were still a little too firm, needed more time to cook and soak up the sauce. 3/5. Beef with rice noodles - classic dish that I think they executed well. Great amount of noodles, bean sprouts, green onions and beef. Has that charred wok aroma. However, they cut the beef weird, it came out all tangled together as if they didn't cut through the beef slices fully. Also, they seemed to cut some pieces with the grain, making those ones super chewy. The dish would have gotten a 4/5 if they didn't mess up the beef - because of that - 3/5. Complimentary soup was good. Price: Lunch specials are great price at $8.88 but it's mainly carbs - 4/5. read more

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Consistent quality chinese food overall, and an extemely fast kitchen that served 9 main dishes practically at the same time. Although we did arrive at 5:30pm and ahead of the usual dinner time. The restaurant has very high ceilings, so it doesn't seem too crowded and it is easy to have conversations at the table. For $68, we ordered the six dish combo which also came with complimentary dessert. Unfortunately the dessert tasted watered down. But for the price point, the speed of cooking the food, and size of the dishes, it is a good deal and would modestly suggest it to friends. The braised beef was a highlight of the night, which we ordered separately from our combo. Six dish combo; Crab Meat & Fish Maw Soup Deep Fried Pork Chop w/ Thousand Island Dressing Braised Chicken w/ Soya Sauce & Chili (1/2) Sauteed Baby Bok Choy w/ King Mushroom Shrimp w/ Cashew Nut Whole Steamed Tilapia w/ Ginger & Soya Sauce read more

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Chef 88 is a solid spot if you're looking for the classic "wok hei" flavor in your meal. They have a good selection of Cantonese fare to select from, whether it be Sweet and Sour Pork (with blueberries in it, believe or not), wok fried lobster, steamed fish, fried rice, etc. I have been to Chef 88 quite a number of times for dinner and lunch with my family and we received pretty nice service overall. Since the wait staff is a bit shortstaffed at times, service can get slow. However, the food does make up for it as there is a wait for tables during the dinner rushes. In terms of my personal favourites dishes from Chef 88, I have a few for dinner and lunch. For lunch, I would recommend the Olive, String Bean, Minced Pork Fried Rice. The small olive flavour brings a nice saltiness to compliment the crunchiness from the string beans in the fried rice. For dinner, I would suggest the Sweet and Sour Pork. The pork ribs are fried to a nice crisp to compliment the tangy sauce accompanied by the pineapple, peppers, onions and blueberries all placed on a fried wonton skin. If you're looking for a great, nice and simple dinner with a big group or small, then Chef 88 is the place to be at. read more

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Great service! Great Banquet style food, especially given that we are not local. Very impressed! Authentic and good!!

Came here during the holidays due to an Instagram ad. Upon arrival, the server and manager said it's not available and there were exceptions to be made in fine print. The posters throughout the restaurant and Instagram did not have any fine print- only the one pamphlet that the host had. We had to pay additional $30 for our combo due to it being landing on a holiday, $15 if we wanted the lettuce wrap for Peking duck (manager said it was standard for all restaurants serving Peking duck) and additional $20 due to the fish that is being served is a "bigger" fish that was only provided during the holiday only. We traveled so far and were a bigger group of +8 and decided to stay. Peking duck was good, the lobster was stir fry in bok choy sauce (not the greatest),sea cucumber stir fry was a bit saltier than normal, soup was delicious and we ordered additional beef fried rice and Cantonese noodles. The service was excellent, they were very attentive and constantly changed our plate. We were offered a dim-sum coupon for our convenience as well. read more

Chef 88 - Holiday Promo- please be aware of exceptions as it's not on their Instagram or poster throughout the restaurant. - Chinese Near Me - Toronto, Ontario

If you're like me, you probably PLOTZED when Chiu Chow Boy that used to be here closed down suddenly a couple of years ago. I wasn't gonna miss the service (which was terrible), or the dated decor, or most of the food even, really... But I think I cried a little, knowing that I wouldn't be able to eat that awesome hand shredded salted chicken anymore... Well, stop crying, JERK!! Cuz Chef 88's still got it! A funny thing about this restaurant is they got two menus. There's one menu with normal canto stuff like sweet and sour pork, and fried rice, and another menu called the Chef's Special menu. I call it the "Chiu Chow Boy" menu, because it has all the classics you remember from Chiu Chow Boy! Classics like Hand Shredded Salted Chicken, and... And... Did I mention they have hand shredded salted chicken?? Cuz they do! Okay, honestly, that's the only thing I ever ate at Chiu Chow Boy, and that's probably the only thing I'll ever eat here, so I didn't actually READ the specials menu... There's not gonna be a test, right? Right??? Okay, so the resto is basically like Chiu Chow Boy. They take card now, so that's good, and the place is now clean and modern. The biggest improvement has come in the service: the workers are now super friendly, and actually do their jobs! They'll bring you that hand shredded salted chicken lickety split, don't you worry! read more

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Tried this restaurant for the first time on a Saturday night for dinner. We made reservations for 7 people and when we arrived it was actually fully seated. However apparently there's another section that is hidden in the back side entrance which surprisingly was much more comfortable and had bigger tables. There was a karaoke setup in that room with a bar so likely used for event party bookings. They had set combos ranging from dinner for 4 to 10 but ended up ordering individual dishes to our liking. The dishes were very small considering each dish priced around $15-20. I was expecting nice hot stir fried wok cooking but dishes came out so so tasting. Nothing to be excited about. We were served on a mid sized table that should have had a turntable but wasn't offered. I highly recommend you ask cause reaching for dishes was not a pleasant experience especially for elders. Overall wasn't too impressed. For the price ($170 for 6) dishes you have many other old school Chinese restaurants that can offer a better bang for your buck with the added taste you are looking for. read more

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Chef 88 is a new player in the competitive world of Cantonese style restaurants in the Scarborough area. Serving traditional Cantonese fare such as seafood, poultry, noodles, etc, it has already become a popular local spot as it's get busy during the lunch and dinner rush. The food here is actually pretty good as the selection includes both set menus as well as a la carte selection. The only problem was that service was very spotty as the staff keep forgetting to follow up on requests such as water, napkins etc.. Other then that it wasn't bad at all. 3.5/5 for a new local neighbour restaurant. read more

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Really great value. Should be a 3.5 but the service was surprisingly good... We had a nice attentive server. Lunch specials were $8.88. 15 to 20 dishes to pick from. We tried a number of them in our group. My favorite were the fried beef noodles and curry chicken on rice. Will go back and try more... And report back others that I like. read more

Chef 88 - Braised pork belly - Chinese Near Me - Toronto, Ontario

You could immediately tell this place is fairly new by the above average level of cleanliness - unstained tablecloths, unripped seats, lack of strange odours in the washrooms. The overall ambience of the restaurant was pretty nice too, and our family enjoyed our experience here on a quiet weekend afternoon. Based on the pictures and reviews and my research, we tried to order some of their more popular dishes: lobster (they have a two small lobsters for $43.88 combo which is a decent deal), snow pea shoots, stir fry beef. All of them were quite good! There wasn't anything particularly fancy about the taste or presentation, but they were delicious anyways. I also appreciated that the food seemed to be slightly less greasy and salty than is customary. The portions were reasonable, given that our group of big eaters walked away satisfied, but perhaps on the smaller side if considering the prices? Some of the dishes on the menu were definitely more worth the value than others. The lobster, for example, was very well done and surprisingly full of meat - I was afraid that they would pick the tiniest lobsters possible, which didn't happen. On the other hand, the vegetables were noticeably more expensive, and I didn't find them especially fresher or higher quality than at other places. Maybe because we came at an off peak time, but service was rather...distant. There were no slamming of plates down on the table or anything, but our waitress wasn't exactly warm. When we were hesitating or had questions over the menu, or needed more napkins or tea, there was always an air of impatience. At least the food came out fast though, and we weren't hurried out of the restaurant. So far, so not bad! I'll be keeping an eye on this place - hopefully they find a standout point among the numerous competitors. read more

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We came here for dinner tonight. I think that they've been open for around a month. They have a few set menus and a lot of other dishes. We ordered the 4 person combo plus steamed oysters, Eight Treasure Tofu and Intestines with Beansprouts. All the foods were nicely cooked and portion sizes were quite large too. The restaurant is fairly spacious. At the end of the meal we got Coconut & Sago Sweet Dessert Soup. The service here is quite good too. Wait staff checked on us regularly and changed our side plates a few times. The only bad point is the parking here but there are spaces available further away from the restaurant. I think that this, will be our new go to dinner place. read more

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This place is deserving of 5 stars. I have been there two times this week already. Basically if you go fishing, you can also bring your fish there to steam, of course for a fee. Anyways, the crab meat with pea shoot was good. The crab was real crab and the sweet and sour pork was good, not too sour or sweet and no thick batter. It was just right and not those fatty meat inside that I have had in some restaurants. The fried egg with shrimp and chives. The texture of the egg was sooo good. I can eat the whole plate by myself. Service was good, if you ask for napkins, they bring it in a plate with toothpicks. I am organizing dinner for 9 people tomorrow and coming back again! read more

Classic Cantonese cuisine with good service that is slightly offset by higher price points and hit-and-miss dishes What We Got: combo for 6 - includes fish soup, braised chicken with soy sauce and chili, pork chops with thousand island dressing, tilapia, shrimp with cashew nuts, and bak choy with king mushrooms. What We Liked: Bak choy with king mushrooms! Porkchops were pretty juicy and tender What We Didn't: Chicken (Friends seemed to think the seafood dishes were decent but not spectacular) What I'd Try Next: Peking duck, sweet and sour pork, and maybe the snow pea leaves (but they look a bit pricey!) Note to Self: if coming from the east (westbound), you can turn onto Milliken Rd from McNicoll and access the store from the back parking lot instead of making a left onto Kennedy. A bunch of us swung by on a Sunday evening around 5 pm for an early dinner. It had steady traffic even this early, so I bet it gets real busy during peak hours. We quickly ordered the combo for 6 for the five of us. Service was friendly and efficient. Price has gone slightly up compared to the menu pics, and is now just under $70 (around $90 after tax and tip) for the 6 person combo. It does NOT come with rice, so it would realistically feed 4-5 unless you got the extra carbs. Dishes were hit or miss. FISH SOUP was apparently decent. I didn't have any, but while a couple people had multiple helpings, it ended up being leftover. BROILED CHICKEN definitely a miss. Even the ginger and chili sauces didn't redeem the blandness and dryness of this boney dish PORKCHOPS WITH THOUSAND ISLAND DRESSING A hit if you don't mind the heaviness of the dressing. Thousand islands goes well with a lot, but this isn't just the dressing: the meat is tender and juicy! Highly recommended. TILAPIA SHRIMP WITH CASHEWS Both were reported to be alright BAKCHOY WITH KING MUSHROOMS Huge hit! Leafy greens with ample mushrooms that were tasty! Definitely the group's favourite dish. All in all, I'd give this place another shot. I have a feeling you just need to know what dishes to get! read more

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First time here on a Saturday at 9 and it still pretty busy! We ordered their clams and a lamb pot for the 3 of us. The clams were fairly decent size and portioned for the price, however it was slightly lacking in sauce. The lamb pot came with some veggies on the side, and was pretty large. Looking around, a lot of their dishes look very good so we plan on bringing more people to try them out! Note: not sure if it was just us, but we waited a while for the lamb pot. There's also many TVs in the room (I counted 7), playing NBA games when I went (sports fans approved!!). There's lots of big tables for large parties and the space is fairly big (although the lack of parking may suggest otherwise), so don't be afraid to bring larger groups here. The restaurant is pretty bright and clean looking. The service here is really good! One guy came to take our order and he seemed distracted (focused on what other waiters were doing) but was very kind in helping us choose what to order. There was also another lady who came all the way back to give me the wifi password, even though she told me she didn't know it (I feel as if most Chinese waiters would just simply leave it at that, instead of looking for it). Overall, it was a great experience and I will be definitely returning soon! read more

Chef 88 - Chinese Near Me - Toronto, Ontario

Got the 2 lobster dish for $43.88. As I was told, they're smaller lobsters compared to their regular lobsters that are by the pound. The waiter mentioned that it's about 2.5lbs together. When we got the lobster, there were only two claws together (ok, technically 3 but one was so small, it was like from a cull lobster that just had it grown back). We got the scallion and ginger flavor, and it was really good. We also got the Satay Beef in Fensi (Chinese Glass Noodles) in a hot pot. That one was also really good--good flavor and really hot. Waiters are friendly but they'll really try to sell you on more expensive menu items (seafood and stuff). I don't really have a problem with that since they weren't pushy. Staff was also quick to come to replace plates with the lobster shells. Looking at the menu items, they're pretty reasonably priced. Most are about the same or cheaper than those found in Congee Queen (which I've found to have gotten expensive over the years). I'd come back again if I get the chance, but it's a little far from where I live. Quality: 8.25/10. Services: 8.25/10. Value: 8/10. Overall 8.25/10 (Not an average). read more

Chef 88 - 2 lobster for $43.88 - Chinese Near Me - Toronto, Ontario

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Amazing service, food, and atmosphere! Only thing is the parking space is very limited, it is best to come before the busy hours (before 7pm) because it gets quite packed here. I came here with my family and there was 7 of us. Food portions were quite generous, so fresh and tasty! Staff was very accommodating and made sure to refill our tea and waters frequently without even having to be asked:) they also brought out extra plates when ours was full. Free wifi included as well using the password "lifeisgood" read more

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Asked my hubby to take me out for Valentine's dinner, and I was in the mood for some Cantonese food. Wanting to try some place different, I came across Chef 88 and because it was newly opened and in our neighbourhood, we came to check it out. The restaurant took over the space that Chiu Chow Boy had, at the corner of Kennedy and Passmore. The dining space is not overly large, so I can see where during peak times you might have to wait. Booths suited for 2-4 people line the walls, with tables geared for larger families out on the floor. It was quite busy when we arrived at 8:15 pm and we were seated at a larger table meant for six, which in hindsight was a good idea considering the amount of food that came. There was a small dish of shelled peanuts on the table, a nice touch to have something to munch on while you are checking out the menu. Prices were fairly standard for the dishes, with some of the seafood items having more of a premium. We ordered several of our standard go-tos: hot and sour soup, beef fried rice, Cantonese chow mein, sizzling plate beef tenderloin Chinese style. All was very good, though I found the hot and soup too spicy. They definitely do not skimp on their dishes, each plate was loaded. But the star of the show for me was the deep fried oyster with honey and pepper. I had noticed plates of what looked like deep fried oysters being delivered to other patrons. I didn't see that specifically on the menu so assumed that it the oyster with honey and pepper. Turned out it wasn't since we received oysters glazed in a thick honey sauce. I'm a sucker for sweet food, so this was delicious - crispy fried oyster, tender inside, with a sweet glaze. Would definitely recommend if you like sweetness and oysters. I never thought to ask about whether they had oysters that were only deep fried, and I should have since the family owners kept checking to make sure the food was ok which shows they care about customer service and the quality of the food. They even asked if we had waited too long for our food, and when I said that it was a bit slow at first but that it picked up after, they apologized; which really wasn't necessary but nice that they acknowledged it. Parking might be a little tricky to find; we ended up parking at the very end of the long plaza strip. They have a decent lunch special, and a takeout combo which we ordered for our daughter at home, even though we had so much leftover to bring back. Overall, courteous service from the wait staff, delicious food, and good value for the money; would highly recommend. read more

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This place has replaced Chiu Chow Boy. By far the menu not only has several choices but also includes some of my family's favourites. Parking, not too bad, we came earlier than the rush hour so my comment cant be relevant. The same goes for seating as we were the third group of customer to be dining. As soon as we were seated and ordered people started piling in. Service was refreshingly friendly. No plates / chinas were harmed in the making of this review LOL. Some ladies and server spoke good english for us to order comfortably. Food is pretty much standard with all the other chinese places in Scarborough. Don't get me wrong, its good enough, just nothing that sets it apart from the rest of Chinese restaurants we've had. I would come back if I was in the area. read more

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Food is 0kay. Service is super slow.No air conditioning. Unless you want to have sauna with your dinner together.

Came to this newly open restaurant that replaced the old chiu chow boy. Price seems to be consistent with similar restaurant: 8.88 for lunch special and maim dishes are around $15 on average. We arrived around 12:00 on a Saturday which was pretty empty, though people slowly co me in and fill the tables. Decor is not much different from the old business. Lunch dishes come with complement soup - super salty and with lots of msg... Well, not expecting much with complement soup. We ordered two lunch special and a fried pork intestine - the port intestine isnjothing to write home about, though it is crispy on the outside ans chewy on the inside. The lunch special is really something to write home about - in a bad way. We ordered a bitter melon with beef rice and stir-fried beef rice noodle - the rice took FORTY-FIVE minutes to come, and the rice noodle took almost an hour... When questioned, they say they don't have enough cooks... Not impressed at all... Both dishes are simple dish and I can do it in 5 minutes with the ingredient prepped, so I have no idea what they're doing. The quality of the food - not bad but not too either.. Both dishes have beef and the beef is obviously treated to make it super soft - no texture at all. It's not much different from something ordered at a food court The portion of the food is huge though, so that's the only plus for this place... TL; DR: waiting an hour for dish I can make I'm 5 minutes lost my vote at this place.. read more

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20mins per dish ... and I'm not being sarcastic ...never had to wait so long for food. The fried dough u can tell is left over that got refried which is pretty hard on the teeth. As for the pork liver congee hmmmm is overcooked... don understand the lineups... disappointed read more

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