Tong Ha Supreme BBQ

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Tong Ha Supreme BBQ – $5.99 + tax
633 Silver Star Blvd f9
Scarborough, ON M1V 5N1
Inside First Markham Place Food Court

Overall Rating 4/10
Cha Siu Tenderness 4/10
Cha Siu Flavor 3/10
Ratio of Cha Siu to Rice 7/10
OMG.  I really expected better from this Markham Asian area food court.  The rice was mushy and wet, which is never good.  The bbq pork was decent at best.  No real flavor and texture seemed off.  They seemed to be a tad heavy on the ginger marinating the cha siu, it seemed to over power the cha siu flavor.  The good news was that there was veggies in the box and also a soup to go.  But that was about all that was good.
At this price I guess that’s the best I can have?…. I think not.  I know at least 3 other places at the same price that taste better than this box I had.

New Sun Hong Kong – San Francisco

Thats right, its time to go international!

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New Sun Hong Kong  – $10.50 + tax
606 Broadway
San Francisco, CA 94133
United States

Overall Rating 7/10
Cha Siu Tenderness 7/10
Cha Siu Flavor 7/10
Ratio of Cha Siu to Noodle 7/10

 I remember this trip mainly because our flight from Toronto into San Fran was delayed.  We arrived at 10:30pm on a Friday night at the hotel and the first thing I asked the concierge was where could I get some NON-White food.  He himself being an Asian guy recommended New Sun Hong Kong.  I was just off a 2 week business trip and really didn’t want fried foods.

I was starving when I arrived to this location.  Not the best hangout area for princesses, but I was too hungry to care about what was around the restaurant at that time. I remember the noodles were a good substitute to the rice.  The bbq pork was a bit more lean then I wanted (chewy) and the noodles were a bit under cooked. But hell, at 11:30pm on a Friday in a city I’ve never been in before, pretty damn good.

Kum Hong Restaurant BBQ

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Kum Hong Restaurant BBQ – $6.50 + tax
420 York Regional Road 7
Richmond Hill, ON L4B 3K2

Overall Rating 8.5/10
Cha Siu Tenderness 8.5/10
Cha Siu Flavor 7/10
Ratio of Cha Siu to Rice 9/10
When I went here this place was run by two ladies.  One would handle the cashier the other the chopping of the meats. These two ladies take their sweet time compared to some of the other “Chefs” I have seen chopping along on their cutting boards.  Total wait was probably 10 minutes for a 5 person line. But gosh dang it. It was worth it. At only $6.50 for the meal the meat to rice is perfectly portioned, a little on the heavier side for meat.  And the quality of meat is high.
The sauce could be better, but the tenderness here is top tier. Definitely one of my top 3 in Ontario currently.

Luen Hing Barbeque

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Luen Hing Barbeque (Food Court) – $5.50 + tax
888 Dundas St E.
Mississauga, ON L4Y 4G6

Overall Rating – 5/10

Cha Siu Tenderness – 4/10
Cha Siu Flavor – 3/10
Ratio of Cha Siu to Rice – 5/10
The sauce on this was a brown goop.  Wasn’t appealing at all.  There was way too much ginger in the sauce.  I do give the place credit though, this was the best veggies yet. They had broccoli which was rare.
Meat was decent. Nothing outstanding.
Make sure you ask for not too lean. He was smart with me and gave me three different cuts of meat.  Lean, medium and fatty.  Lean was definitely worse off the three.  The other two were passable.
Goes to show, don’t go outside Toronto for Cha Siu.  Mississauga is still too far away for good Cha Siu.

Dragon Dynasty

DragonDynastyDragon Dynasty (Food Court Side Takeout) – $6.50
2301 Brimley Rd
Scarborough, ON M1S 5B8

Overall Rating – 8/10

Cha Siu Tenderness – 9/10
Cha Siu Flavor – 7/10
Ratio of Cha Siu to Rice – 8/10

This being the takeout restaurant add on to a very reputable and expensive Chinese restaurant makes this place a very good location for some great Cha Siu Faan.  They also are one of the top Chinese food caterers in the Greater Toronto Region.
For the price this is easily one of my top 3 locations for Cha Siu.  My only one concern is that there weren’t any veggies.  Instead they had a TOFU replacement which was suppose to be about $2 dollars.  Maybe I was just lucky with the time of day I went to get my meal.
The one thing I didn’t like about this was the sauce.  I usually enjoy a sweeter sauce so that it mixes well with the rice.  This one hands down was on the salty side.  The Cha Siu itself though was pretty good.
Just remember, go to the side where the food court is to enjoy this great meal.  Don’t go in through the classy restaurant, you will look like a fool.

Mikes BBQ

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Mikes BBQ – $6.21
4400 Sheppard Ave E
Scarborough, ON M1S 5J5

Overall Rating – 6/10

Cha Siu Tenderness – 4/10
Cha Siu Flavor – 7/10
Ratio of Cha Siu to Rice – 9/10
Very friendly boss working with his son that was working there during summer break.  I had the option of sauce type, honey vs soy sauce. This was a first time for me to have someone ask me about what sauce I wanted.  Another first was that there was tofu.  Most of the other cha siu boxes I get have veggies, this one had tofu which was a pleasant surprise.  I definitely think that the sauce and flavor helped this one.
For the price it was decent, but I just remember wanting more afterwards.

John’s Chinese BBQ Restaurant

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Let`s start off with what I think so far is Toronto`s best Cha Siu in the North End of Toronto.

John`s BBQ Restaurant – $10.16
328 York Highway 7
Richmond Hill, ON L4B 3P7

Overall Rating – 9/10
Cha Siu Tenderness – 9/10
Cha Siu Flavor – 9/10
Ratio of Cha Siu to Rice – 9/10
First, I think everyone should know that I had to wait about 10 minutes before they had fresh Cha Siu available.  I think this is a sign as to how often people come in here to buy roasted meats.  I assure you, if you wait, it is fresher and even better.
The meal came with soup, which wasn’t spectacular and no other sides. Just cha siu and rice.
 The rice was hot, and accompanied by fresh Cha Siu it was an amazing grouping of flavour.

The cha siu was perfect tenderness, and some parts burnt just slightly which gave a crisp flavor accompanied with the sweetness from the sauce made for a perfect dish.

This is why hands down John’s BBQ Restaurant is one of my top 3 cha siu restaurants in Ontario.