For some reason, my previous review is gone! I'm writing the review for few visits in one. Chef Tony is located at Empire Centre which the central of Richmond. There are plenty of parking stalls around and park few levels parking at the Hazelbridge way entrance. What made me came here for dinner? I heard Chef Tony dishes are quite delicate and decent, of coz, I wanna try it out. On my 1st visit, I took my parents here for dinner. We all liked their modern interior, bright and cleanness coz they opened early this year. Besides it, Chef Tony has more servers than other Chinese restaurants (most of Chinese restaurants are understaffs and lack of service). When we checked out the fancy menu, we found all the dishes were at least 10-15% more than other upscale Richmond restaurant. No problem, I definitely had high expectation of pricey dishes. Steamed traditional hand-minced pork patty - It's really hand-minced pork that with bouncy but soft texture. Stir fried sea cucumber with green scallion - It's an expensive dish (over $48). It presented beautifully however, the portion of dish just a bit smaller than we expected. I only know few common tropical species of dried sea cucumber and it's so expensive!! We guessed it served almost entire of dried cucumber and it cut into small pieces and stir fried with green scallion. Delicious! Stir fried angus beef - it's full flavour of beef but a bit greasy. Chinese pea sprouts in broth - It's so fresh and generous portion of dish. Overall, all the dishes were plated beautifully and balance flavour of everything which tasty. On my other visits, I went there for dim sims. The Big TV always showing the dim sims they served are so tempting and really make you to order it all. Deep fried radish balls - It's quite crispy and light flavour of radish inside. Seaweed and shrimp spring rolls - It's ok not really outstanding. Pan fried chives rice crepe - Chives were finely chopped and wrapped in rice crepe. Traditional steamed red sugar sponge cake - It's steamed hot and soft Chinese traditional dessert. It's perfectly light sweet for Chinese and it's really let me recalled my grand mom made me sponge cake when I was a kid. Taiwan Sword Leaf Lettuce - It's fresh and tasty sword leaf lettuce and fresh tasty black bean. Yummy! Steamed chicken in bitter melon rice roll - It's quite special and time consuming dim sim. They use bitter melon juicy in rice roll and steamed with chicken. It's full flavour of bitter melon and delicious. Steamed shrimp dumplings - It came 5 shrimp dumplings in big bamboo steamed basket, it's ok. Stewed beef tripe and tender - We all loved it so tasty and soft of tenders. I would say the dim sims are so good and expensive but good enough to make me return regularly read more

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First off if you arrive at peak time without a reservation forget about it. Secondly, keep your neck on a swivel in the parking lot because finding an open can be interesting. Haha When we were promptly seated and ordered the food arrive hot and fresh. This place has amazing egg yoke tarts. Fish congee on point. Most of the green veggies are seasoned just right. Black Truffle chicken was savory with level flavors. Lava buns had just the right amount of flow. Each visit to BC deserves at least one visit here. read more

Do make reservations so that you'd save yourself waiting time. The flavors are quite gentle and tasty. Do come in a party of 4 so you can taste more varieties of dim sum. The bitter gourd chicken rice roll is a must among the many others. The steam radish cake is a rare find as they are mostly pan fried. I'm usually disappointed with the custard bun in most places but this Salted egg custard bun is a real winner. There's enough filling and the bun is steamed real soft and not clumpy or soggy wet. Egg tarts are as gentle to hold as to it's taste. Do get a vary of dim sum so it's not all shrimp and truffle taste in your mouth. On average most of the dim sum was 8 cad per container before tax and can be a tad expensive than the others out there but the quality does make up for it. I'll return. read more

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Overpriced for average quality dim sum, super bad service, and extremely poor hygiene. Walked in during weekday lunch hours, half restaurant was empty, but the hostess still made 2 of us wait around 15 minutes before we were seated. Other than the manager, the entire staff were rude and refusing to serve us because some were not assigned to our table, but they did not even bother getting our server for us, even after I waved numerous times. The plexi glass right against my 2 person table was extremely filthy, filled with old food stain splashes. The candle tea stand had old food and tea stains. Walking to the washrooms, I was able to smell the stench of old pee before I reached the hallway where the washrooms were located, obviously the washrooms were disgusting. We had the truffle Shui Mai (bad, truffle "sauce" only which should never be cooked, only added before serving), Har Gow, rice roll, and egg tarts. Only the egg tart was good and unique-- just Google the price, all the dishes are averaging $3-5 more than majority dim sum restaurants because they claimed to have high end unique dim sums. And to respond to some people claiming that they had 5 dumplings compared to other venues with 4 dumplings; well, you need to know that they are tiny dumplings, not like some massive sized 4 dumplings. And for inexperienced dim sum diners, there are many restaurants that serves 5 dumplings per steamer, there is nothing unique about this practice of smaller dumplings with 5 per steamer. Yes, their menu claims to use upscale ingredients; however, if such ingredients are not prepared correctly, it's a waste of your money, and it shows me that the chef really does not have enough culinary skills nor knowledge about these ingredients to validate their prices. Tasted like dumped upscale ingredients just to fancy name their dishes so that they can charge more, that's it. At this price range, I had higher expectations. But from the moment I walked in, to trying to wave down at 4 staff trying to pay my bill and staff just ignoring me as they walk past me, this whole experience was worst than going to a Macdonald's. There are many other upscale dim sum places around town that I've dined in, this restaurant definitely does not qualify as upscale, except their menu prices. This was the worse "upscale" restaurant I've experienced in this city. Final note, I did notice that majority of other customers are very likely tourists based on the fact that they has luggages beside their tables, and majority were from mainland China based on their clothing, behaviors, and language. I concluded that this restaurant was more of a tourist trap than anything else. Maybe this is considered 5 stars in their home country? I don't know, I'm from here and have Canadian standards. Needless to say, we're never going back again. read more

Chef Tony can get it !!! Legit!!!!! 5 stars sooooo good. Everything is so fresh and scrumptious. Bussin or digussin??? Bussin fr fr

What I would order again: 65 - flaky almond meat sticks 75 - egg white custard tart 84 - coconut juice pudding 66 - pan fried Pandan bun in casserole 51 - Bitter ground and chicken shreds rice noodle 22 - black truffle shrimp pork dumpling 86 - baked durian pastry 29 - stewed ox stomach and tendons 26 - wild rice and meat wrapped in lotus leaf 61 - meat and dried shrimp sticky rice dumpling Do not order: 28 - meat loaf wrapped in bean curd 82 - Pan fried Ginger cake 69 - pan fried Taro 34 - Mushroom and truffle dumpling 35 - shrimp crabmeat dumpling 18 - shrimp dumpling 38 - cuttle fish ink shrimp dumpling 20 - steamed radish cake 64 - pan fried chives rice crepe 126 - deep fried tofu with spicy salt and pepper read more

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Saw reviews on YouTube and claimed it is better than Dynasty Seafood. So went and tried. May be I was expecting too much and was disappointed in the taste Dept. There is no surprising good taste infact, some smaller restaurants can do better. Ordered 9 dishes, paid $129 including tips. The social distancing was well done, atmosphere was above average, and toilet was very clean. Will I come back again?....not likely. read more

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Good quality dim sum although a bit expensive Location is near a free parking lot at the end of the strip mall. read more

Coming here based on reviews read and not disappointed with the food. Very different if selection vs other dim sum locations in Richmond or Vancouver. There is a private parking area but limited in space as it is for a complex with other establishments. Busy on weekend like many dim sum restaurants are and again, reservations would be recommended or go first thing when it opens. Would go again to here for dinner in the future read more

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Honestly, Chef Tony was one of my best meals I had in Vancouver. Might be an unpopular opinion given that I tried a few popular restaurants in Vancouver. I love their salted yolk bun! It's so good and hands down my favorite dish the entire meal. I'd say Chef Tony's is a bit expensive.. about $70 for two people for breakfast. I came right when it opened and was able to skip the wait, but people started coming in shortly after. I assume it usually has quiet a line. If you're from the 626 one of the workers said that Sea Harbour is actually the same owner and is very similar! read more

I heard a lot of hype about this restaurant online, so I visited. The place is very fancy in decor and the food is fancy as well, using ingredients like abalone, gold flakes, and black truffles so I had high expectations. The food turned out to be underwhelming in the sense that it is not really better than normal dim sum served in a more humble setting. It appears to be fancy for fancy's sake rather than for food'a sake. Nevertheless, it is interesting to check it out if you want a different take on dim sum. read more

Chef Tony - Dim Sum Near Me - Richmond, British Columbia

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I am surprised Chef Tony does not have 4 or 5 stars. This was by far the best dim sum I have ever had (including having had dim sum in San Francisco, Orange County, and Hong Kong.) It is so extra I love it BUT the extraness also definitely contributed the the food. The egg white egg tarts were lighter than traditional egg tarts. The haogaw with truffle had the most delicious truffle after taste. The charcoal custard bun and a wonderful gooey egg in the center. The dim sum was expensive but not so outrageous. I think comparable to yang sink in San Francisco but the food was so much better. I think the wait can be outrageous but we went before the restaurant opened and waited half an hour. We were seated soon after the restaurant opened. If you are able to make a reservation, that would be much more preferable. read more

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Update: I've now had lunch and dinner here, and dinner really knocked it out of the park. The truffled chicken! OMFG! I'm going to say this is THE tastiest chicken I've ever had in my life. It was poached beautifully and dressed in a spectacular sauce with truffles, shallots, cilantro, and just the right hit of acidity. It was so good, I almost licked the plate. No joke. We also ordered the special whole ling cod, which was fried, then cooked and served in a huge clay pot with eggplant and a few other things, the beef with maitake mushrooms, sautéed pea vines, and a delicious egg dish cooked with milk and crab meat. Think super soft egg white scramble with an incredible texture. Hands down the fanciest Chinese dinner I've ever had in my life. Service was exceptional and I'm pretty sure they changed our plates no less than 3 times during our meal. Every place setting had two pairs of chopsticks: a pair for you to eat with, and a pair for you to serve yourself with. Definitely a first, but not the last! read more

Chef Tony - This chicken though. Gimme. - Dim Sum Near Me - Richmond, British Columbia

(4.5 rounded up!) As someone with a Cantonese background, I've loved yum cha since I was a little kid; watching in awe as waiters or waitresses took dishes out of a cart and unveiled steamed goodies, pouring the tea for family, and all the chaos with Chinese people talking/arguing/screaming. Chef Tony serves yum cha in a refined environment, a big white space, private rooms, and fancy decor all add to the upscale feel. The food here matches the level of classiness: Some dishes we ordered include har gow with mushrooms, shu mai, egg white tarts, charcoal egg yolk buns, chinese broccoli, shrimp cheung fun/long noodles, baked pork buns, shrimp and truffle dumplings, savory taro balls, and durian pastry tart. The addition of truffle throughout and subtle flavor enhancements really elevated the dim sum here from average to one of the best dim sum meals I've ever had. Recommend calling in advance for a reservation. read more

Chef Tony - Egg white tart - Dim Sum Near Me - Richmond, British Columbia

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Food is always good and fresh service is fast and friendly stuff prices are fare . We always come here every time we go to Vancouver .

Decent food prices slightly in the higher side but not too bad. Overall service was decent. Would go again at some point.

Very creative dim sum. Cuttlefish ink shrimp dumpling had a polarizing black appearance

The name of this restaurant suggests spaghetti and meatballs. What you get is something that couldn't be further from it. Chef Tony's has awesome dim sum! Black Truffle siu mai? Yes please...White Truffle har gow, Yes please...Pillowy baked hum bow? Yes please! This place was awesome, everything arrived hot and fresh and was delicious. The stand out was the "Steamed egg sponge cake". It was melt in your mouth delicious and not too sweet. The only dish we didn't think was great was the bitter melon and chicken cheong fun. It lacked bitter melon flavor. The restaurant was bright, clean and modern. There were constant tea and water refills. They do a great job of getting food out hot and quick, but don't make you feel rushed. Eating dim sun in Seattle is like eating the sludge in the bottom of the McDonald's frier...Chef Tony's is like having a Wagyu ribeye at John Howie. Get some! read more

Chef Tony - Bunz! - Dim Sum Near Me - Richmond, British Columbia

If it was possible to give ZERO starts I would. The service is horrible and the food is mediocre at best. One of the dishes ordered didn't even come out. We waited half An hour after finishing the rest of the food and it still didn't come out. The server kept saying one minute, if they didn't defer to a different server. Finally we told them to cancel the dish and magically it appeared. By that point my husband and I were beyond annoyed. The food was more hype than taste. This place try's to be modernized and one of the cool restaurants but really it doesn't even deserve to be in the same category as a good dive. As an Asian American I've had my fair share of dim sum at places with good and bad service. At least most places with bad service made up for it with delicious food. The service here was so bad and the food didn't even make up for it. The only thing it really had going was some of the dishes was topped with black truffle shavings. read more

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Good dim sum. Really unique items - ie non traditional. Tough to find parking but was worth it. read more

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Call ahead for reservations. They don't take walk in. Good food good service. Overall is great but the reservation is a pain. read more

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Came to visit Vancouver and heard great things about this dim sum restaurant. Best dim sum restaurant in Canada! They have unique dishes that you cannot order elsewhere. The har gow (black with edible gold shavings) and their black bun with egg yolk (also black with edible gold shavings were few of the recommended/ unique dim sum dishes. FYI- It's on the expensive side (well worth the price) with no morning specials. read more

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My friend (who is Chinese) raved about this place as her family comes here often. I was hesitant since the ratings weren't great, but I've had a miss with other dim sum places around Vancouver so I figured why not. We came here on a Monday and it was PACKED, but we were smart to call ahead the day before, although the hostess completely ignored us and our reservation until my friend started speaking Chinese to her. After that, we got our table within 5-10 minutes (way shorter than what she had told me), and our tea pot came. We ordered a good amount of food (total was about $20/person for 4 person table), our food came at about a good pace but the reason for my low rating was the lack of customer service and the taste of the food. Everything was mediocre, nothing I'd get again EXCEPT the truffle shiu mai. OMG they were so good!! I'd go back just for those. read more

This place is delicious for dim sum. It is very pricey but in my opinion one of the best high end dim sum restaurants out there. Their truffle siu mai is to die for and their truffle chicken during dinner time is something else. So good and it's a must try if you ever go to Richmond. However, there's long wait and you have to make sure you do reservations. Everything here was really good the few times I have came here for dim sum and dinner. Highly recommend! It's a little expensive but I think it's worth it and you get what you pay for! read more

Hands down the best Cantonese dim sum in the world. They are also the best dim sum in Richmond. I've had dim sum all over the world and Chef Tony clearly stands out from the crowd. Their har gow skins are thin and the shrimps have a nice crunch and never mushy. The xiu mai dumplings are a light texture and they have truffles on them. The salty egg yolk bun is cooked to perfection and nicely oozes from the center. The baked barbecue bun is heavenly. I don't eat chicken feet but my husband says they are so delectable. Their sticky rice steamed with meat is also divine. My picky son loved the way they cooked his Chinese broccoli and beef. They are open for dinner and I always recommend that you make reservations for dim sum and dinner. There is always a line. The food does take longer to come but the wait is so worth it. read more

We love Chef Tony! Hands down the best dim sum I've ever had. The egg tarts just melts in your mouth, the har gow ratio was perfect, the skin was translucent with a big chunk of shrimp inside. The rice noodle rolls were smooth and fragrant. Basically everything there was good and it is highly recommended. Too bad we can't cross the boarder right now, if we could, that's gonna be the first place we hit up for dim sum!! Make sure to make reservation before hand to save you waiting time. read more

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This restaurant looks very high-end with the crystal chandeliers, bright colors and lighting. It definitely can attract a lot of customers and succeeds in it. I went here with my family for dim sum recently which would be probably my 4th or 5th time. They try to innovate their dim sum and offer some unique dishes by adding some fruit. They even had a Smoked Salmon dim sum dish with some fruit added to it. My parents are a fan of that, but I particularly am not. I expect dim sum to mostly consists of savory dishes that are hot. These new dishes were cold and sweet. Not very good in my opinion. But if you order the standard stuff, the food is pretty good. Although, their cube of Radish Cake is weird to me. Cut it up so it's more palette-able!!!! I do like their Shrimp Dumplings quite a bit and they do have some great Egg Tarts. The Truffle Shu Mai is good, but I hate the fact that they're trying so hard to fancy up Shu Mai by topping it off with Truffles. When you eat it, you can't even tell that it's even there!!! The Chinese Donut with Shrimp Paste filling was pretty good. I feel like they need to find a better sauce for that other than mayo and mustard. A sweet chili sauce would compliment that pretty well. I say, if you stay away from their weird fruit dim sum dishes, you will enjoy this place no problem. The standard dim sum dishes are quite good here and I do plan I taking my friends here one day. read more

Was there for dim sum and dinner. Their dim sum was one of the best in town. Not overly fancy and great taste. However, I have to make reservation a couple of days before to get a table at peak hour on weekends. I will definitely be back for more. Their dinner, on the other hand, was on the expensive side. Taste was great tho. If you are there to try something new or to entertain friends, it would be a good place for it. Overall, it is a great restaurant to visit from time to time. read more

Chef Tony has been one of the dimsum restaurants that I've been wanting to try and finally had the chance to come here for noon dimsum with family. Covid-19 protocols were done quite well here with tables fairly well spaced out with barriers in between. They also provided two chopsticks to each person. Maybe we didn't order the right things, but dimsum was overall quite ordinary (e.g. truffle siu mai, rice rolls, prawn rolls). While the food was alright, I don't think it's worth the high price. Glad to be able to check this off my places to try, but it won't be one of my top dimsum places to go to. read more

Recent winner of best dim sum in Vancouver so we had to make a stop. We reserved for 10:30AM on a Monday morning and the place was already packed. Super spacious and clean dining room. Our server was super friendly and even joked and chatted with our kids. At one point, my son mentioned he was hungry (we hadn't been waiting long). Our server overheard and said he would check. Magically our dishes started arriving! Everything was delicious and super fresh. The more memorable items were the har gow shrimp dumplings, seafood congee, cheung fun rice noodles, and steamed turnip cake. Nothing was overly sweet or salty. read more

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The seating system needs A LOT of work! We made a reservation for 5 at 12pm and when I told her about it she doesn't seemed to care! There's other people who came in after us and was seated right away! It felt that because they speak the same language they were given the priority! When she sees I caught on here scam that's when she wanted to seat my party. Very rude lady!!! read more

Definitely not your typical dim sum place with the usual items. You can tell a lot care and time are taken into making each item...if you like big portion and typical taste, do not come here! I love this place myself and wouldn't mine going back again and again. One of my favourite item is the almond crusted fried shrimp!!! Their egg yolk bun is also to die for...I am not so impress with the "truffle oil dumplings" - can't really taste the truffle oil... Overall I would totally recommend this place for those who love quality dim sum with a twist! For those of you who love the usual taste of dim sum, this is not the place...they do have the usual items but not too many... Their prices? It's not over the board and it is definitely worthy of the quality! I love it! read more

RSVP at Chef Tony is a must on the weekend. Must try salted egg lava buns, marinated black truffles chicken, ,Ha Gao, duck congee, and chicken feet, and so much more. Maximum time allowed for dim sum dine-in is no more than 1 hour during the Covid-19. Highly recommended for high quality dim sum anywhere in Vancouver after Mott32 closed down. read more

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I really wanted to treat my parents while visiting.  We rarely go out (since they are excellent cooks), but I still wanted to take them somewhere they've not tried yet.  I looked at a bunch of Youtube channels, since Yelp is less popular in Canada, and decided on this one.  Since it's still COVID, we actually got everything to-go and just ate in the car, to be safe.  I'm sure the indoor experience would be much better, but I'm still not ready to eat indoors without a mask. We got the following: 1. Braised mushrooms with egg tofu, 2. Steamed cuttlefish ink shrimp dumplings, 3. Shrimp and matsutake dumplings (a.k.a. har gow), 4. XLB, and 5. Yang chow fried rice I was really excited about the egg tofu (which is one of my favorite types of tofu) and it definitely turned out to be the favorite dish for everyone.  I also loved their shrimp and matsutake dumplings (which was perfectly steamed).  I think their XLB was good but average and I wouldn't get it again.  The cuttlefish was good and different, in an interesting way, but I'd only recommend it if you like a slightly musky umami, which was how I remembered it.  Yang chow fried rice is something my mom and I have memories about from my childhood, but I would say it needed a bit more oomph.  If we were in the restaurant, maybe they would have had some soy or smoked "spicy" oils that would have paired nicely with the rice (since this is a Cantonese shop I hesitate to imagine they have anything actually spicy).  Since we ate it with little time in between, I'm not going to say that having it in the restaurant, piping hot would have made the difference.  However, I do remember the shrimp in the fried rice being large and plump. I'd saying 1 & 3 I'd definitely order again.  I'm willing to try other things on the menu I didn't get to and for the life of us, neither my Mom and myself could find eggplants (that we saw online) on the english menu.  Maybe it's on another menu.  I'd also be willing to try the Stir-fried Lobster with homemade Spicy Sauce, but maybe that would be better for when I will feel more comfortable being maskless in any restaurant again (unfortunately, probably not this year). If you're more comfortable with masks and social distancing, the food is good enough to take to-go and enjoy somewhere you feel safer.  The inside of the restaurant looked pretty cozy (and I believe I saw some screens up between some of the tables), but it just wasn't the right time for myself personally.  I would come again with my parents and try more things when I'm in the area! read more

This place definitely makes it to the top 5 favourite dimsum restaurants in Vancouver! My favorites are the squid ink custard buns, shrimp dumplings, and radish cake. The matcha milk pudding and Chinese doughnuts were just okay. The only bottleneck factors that would hold me back would be the wait time and parking situation. The wait for 2 people is ~30 min on a week day. So make sure you get here early to grab a parking spot and/or make a reservation beforehand. read more

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Friend who's a local recommended this spot as his favorite for dim sum so we decided to give it a try. We knew it wouldn't be traditional dim sum, but our experience far exceeded any expectations we may have had. A few details started this experience off right. Even though it was just two of us, we were given a pair of communal chopsticks, in addition to our regular place setting (yay hygiene!). We also liked that the teacups had saucers (we're both messy & terrible at pouring tea) and they offered a separate pot of hot water for when we would eventually run out of our first pot of tea. Great start. Now onto the food. Shrimp & yellow chives rice noodles. Seeing how tough the noodles were when I was picking them up (they usually fall apart in my experience), I was skeptical, expecting the noodles to be too firm. I was pleasantly surprised when the noodles remained in tact, while still maintaining a smooth texture. Only downside was that I would have liked the soy sauce a little sweeter and the flavors as a whole were pretty standard in this dish. Egg white custard tarts. The custard consisted of the perfect smoothness and density. The crust was too sweet for my liking, but was wonderfully flakey. It was almost flakey to a fault; the tart fell apart slightly in my hands. Shrimp & matsutake dumplings. The mushroom provides a unique flavor to this dish, adding a savory intensity. Don't expect it to be anything like regular shrimp dumplings though. Truffle shumai. These are magical! The truffle really brings out the mushroom taste in the dumpling. At first, it freaked me out how the shrimp and pork filling was so well-blended, but I was over it quickly after tasting the incredible flavor. Taro & abalone dumplings. This was my favorite dish! For something deep-fried, this dish did not taste too oily. The skin of the dumpling was thick and the perfect level of crispiness. The ratio of deep-fried skin to taro filling was good - at other restaurants, the filling tends to be too substantial and overwhelming. I'm also not usually into abalone, but I thought it made the dish more complex here, as taro has a tendency to bland up dishes. This is a must-order! BBQ pork buns. These are very standard, but not particularly bad nor particularly good. Honestly, you could probably find better ones elsewhere. Duck feet. We ordered these thinking they were going to be similar to chicken feet with similar dressing. We found out was that this was Chef Tony's take on jellyfish salad. Duck feet skin, with bones and tendons removed, replaced jellyfish. And we loved it! The grittier texture of the duck feet skin caught more of the chili sauce, which added more intensity than jellyfish salad normally does. Sticky rice. We agreed - this was the best version of this dish either of us had ever had! Normally, sticky rice is too tacky; it would seem like the rice had been sitting there all day and turned into a gooey mush. The sticky rice here is the perfect consistency (it almost crumbles) with the same traditional flavors, egg yolk and a tiny piece of Chinese sausage. Another must-order! We didn't understand the poor ratings for this place, but it probably has something to do with the patrons in the area not realizing how good they have it. In dim sum, each dish is so unique and requires serious work. Not only is the dim sum here made fresh, but Chef Tony adds an innovative flair, which really makes this restaurant exceptional. read more

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Chef Tony does a decent, but very busy dim sum. It's not like Hong Kong or anything, but it's pretty par for the course in terms of West Coast dim sum- complete with haphazard, slap-ass service. If I had a nickel for every time the staff bumped into my chair... read more

Rating here is purely based on service. We arrived around 1 PM looking for a table for 2. There were a few others in line ahead of us that were promptly seated and I did not overhear that they had reservations. When we got to the podium, the hostess made eye contact with us and then walked away to another room. She walked back and forth between the host stand and the room a few times, making eye contact with us. After about 10 minutes, she returned to the host stand and then spoke with the people in line behind us. We finally stepped up and asked if we could join the list. She asked how many, we responded two. She then asked if we had a reservation, we did not. From there she curtly responded "no reservation, no table", and made a hand motion to shoo us away. We left very surprised at how we were spoken to and confused with the entire interaction. read more

Chef Tony is well known among dim sum go-ers as a more upscale dim sum experience. They are know to put a more refined twist on their dim sum dishes - such as the charcoal salty egg yolk bun, truffle siu mai, bitter melon steamed rolls etc. While they sound very interesting, the dishes don't tend to be ground breaking innovations on traditional dim sum. Don;t get me wrong, the food still tastes like your traditional dim sum dishes done right, but just a bit gimmicky. Overall, they definitely put a lot of thought into putting up refined dishes, but it also comes at a hefty price point. Your dim sum dishes on average will ring up to about $1 to $2 more. Like most dim sum spots, they charge a tea fee per head. Chef Tony's tea tends to be better than the average. I suggest you try the pu'er. Not only is it great for digestion during any dimsum occasion, but Chef Tony's pu'er is also infused with tangerine peel. However, the tea tax comes at whopping $2/person, which is definitely the highest I have had to pay in the Metro Vancouver area (Chef Tony is sort of known of this though). For reference, the average dim sum spot charges $1 to $1.50 in the Metro Vancouver area. Spots east of Burnaby usually don't even charge for tea. As I mentioned earlier, Chef Tony definitely is targeted at a clientele looking for an upscale experience. I would suggest making a reservation at least a day before. There are quite a few private dining rooms available for big groups if you are looking for a more intimate experience with your large party. Otherwise, the main dining room is a bit of a squeeze. The restaurant use to be quite exclusive in that they would not really accommodate walk-ins. However, they seem to be more lenient about that now, but I am not sure if it is for the better. I remember going two years ago and the restaurant seemed more spacious and serene. During my recent visit, there was definitely more hustle and bustle. The tables were much closer together. I suspect they wanted to accommodate for the demand. This was a little disappointing as I originally decided on this spot remembering its quieter ambience in the past. However, the restaurant has definitely compromised its initial aims to deliver an upscale dining experience to take in more business. The atmosphere has turned into what you would expect at an average dim sum spot in the area, but with big premiums on the bill. read more

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In the land of Dim Sum it's pretty hard to stand out and Chef Tony certainly does a good job. It's a very busy place and the organized chaos is managed by one of the best in the business (shout out to Wallace). The dim sum is made to order and not pre-made and shuttled around in carts (which I don't mind at all either). The food is well prepared and the quality of the ingredients is obvious. They have won many Asian food awards for good reasons - quality dim sum and good service. I personally love the truffle and pork dumplings and of course their famous and beautiful molten egg yolk buns. It's not your typical dim sum spot so give it a try. I recommend reservations as it is always busy. read more