"Classy" Chinese food - does it exist?

[calimehtar]

Maybe it's unfair not to call Susur/Lee a Chinese restaurant but to me it is fusion....

 

[wild goose chase]

Isn't there that Chinese restaurant located in a former classy Victorian mansion in Scarborough?

 

[wild goose chase]

Maybe it's unfair not to call Susur/Lee a Chinese restaurant but to me it is fusion....

One thing I'm often not sure of is how people draw the line between fusion and a cuisine onto itself (that previously was itself was formed by influences/fusing of different cuisines in the past)?

Would Chinese American or Italian American cuisine be considered fusion or its own cuisine? How about those of Chinese-descended communities in places like Singapore, India or Peru, or cuisines like Jamaican or Latin American ones themselves a blend of colonial European, African, Native and even Asian influences.

Is it that fusion refers to mixes that have just recently been created in modern times, within the span of the last decades/years, not for generations?

 

[calimehtar]

I think fusion vs classic Chinese is a relevant distinction if you are trying to understand why there are so many restaurants in Toronto that charge $100+ per plate and the only ones that seem Chinese are self-consciously doing a fusion with French cuisine. After posting, though, I noticed that Momofuku is also in the $100 per plate club. I don't know enough about Momofuku to comment.

I did go to Susur back when they were doing the ~$200 tasting menu so I know what I am talking about in that regard.

I am not trying to argue that fusion isn't OK, or that classic Chinese cuisines are either inferior or superior. If I was going to make any point at all it would be that paying that much for any meal is borderline ridiculous

In fact one of my favourite diversions in the city is hunting down some obscure Chinese cuisine that I haven't tried, fusion or otherwise.

 

[prosperegal]

Isn't there that Chinese restaurant located in a former classy Victorian mansion in Scarborough?

Casa Imperial

Food's okay, but I haven't been in over a year. I think their website kind of sucks and they do not post their full menu online (a big DON'T in my books). They also desperately need to be on social media!

 

[Blacksheep]

There's a Chinese restaurant in the Doubletree Hotel at Dixon Road and Highway 27, I've never tried it but it looks absolutely beautiful inside. Very formal.

 

[prosperegal]

There's a Chinese restaurant in the Doubletree Hotel at Dixon Road and Highway 27, I've never tried it but it looks absolutely beautiful inside. Very formal.

But the hotel itself is kind of run down and a bit budget-y.

 

[TrickyRicky]

To the original topic of the thread. Chinese food has a deep and rich history and is incredible complex, varied, and refined. There is no reason that it couldn't be "classy" in the upscale restaurant sense of the word. Although frankly I'm not a fan of "classy".

Ksun, I appreciate your posting a more up-to-date picture of the contemporary restaurant scene in China; However, I actually think that the food in Toronto is pretty decent by Chinese standards.

There is a conservative aspect to food in Canada in general I would agree but frankly it doesn't take getting sick too many times in places like China from the food to start to see the pay-off of "fresh" versus bland but sanitary. The fact is that much of the food ingredients and food preparation would not pass basic standards here in Toronto. Street food, meat handling of any kind, and even fruits and vegetables in East Asia are often and generally questionable. My wife is from Taiwan, a society very proud of it's food and food culture. She used to get sick all the time before coming to Canada and thought this was from having a weak immune system. She does not get sick here and we have come to realize that this has a lot to do with food related contamination and pathogens in Taiwan.

There are also two cultural generalization to Chinese food culture that bother me, although I appreciate that they might be stronger or less strong regionally. The first is that the Chinese love everything new. New things are invested in, appreciated, well patronized. But beyond the initial investment nothing is maintained. Those shiny new Shanghai restaurants you posted will probably soon be demolished or run into the ground. The second is that price equals quality. Expensive food is good because of the price, not because of the taste or quality.

 

[Blacksheep]

But the hotel itself is kind of run down and a bit budget-y.

I've never actually stayed in the hotel, so that's good to know. I go there pretty frequently to eat at the Japanese restaurant that's there, but have never ventured further than that inside the building.

 

[prosperegal]

I've never actually stayed in the hotel, so that's good to know. I go there pretty frequently to eat at the Japanese restaurant that's there, but have never ventured further than that inside the building.

Never stayed there myself, but I've been there to go to the restaurant. The restaurant itself is nice, but to me, it sticks out like a sore thumb compared to the rest of the hotel. Perhaps they're attempting a high-low (hi-lo?) thing, but it isn't working - at least not in the fashion sense (e.g. pairing, say, H&M or Joe Fresh with Prada).

 

[Blacksheep]

Yeah good point now that I think about it. The restaurants do look much better inside than the hallways and front lobby area looks. And I always thought that the swimming pool area looked a bit dodgey whenever I've walked by it too.

 

[TheDudeInToronto]

There are many good chinese restaraunts out there

 

[AlvinofDiaspar]

There is also the Chinese saying that refers to "eating the place", which the negative connotation that you are paying for the decor and not the food per se.

AoD

 

[ShonTron]

Yeah good point now that I think about it. The restaurants do look much better inside than the hallways and front lobby area looks. And I always thought that the swimming pool area looked a bit dodgey whenever I've walked by it too.

The DoubleTree branding was lost in 2014, I think. It has since reverted to the International Plaza brand. Usually, losing a hotel brand affiliation means you're on your way down and out as a hotel.

 

[Blacksheep]

The DoubleTree branding was lost in 2014, I think. It has since reverted to the International Plaza brand. Usually, losing a hotel brand affiliation means you're on your way down and out as a hotel.

Oh I hope not! I really love the Japanese restaurant in there.
(Sorry OP for the off-topic bits in your thread)